Ezekiel 19

1 Moreover take thou up a lamentation for the princes of Israel,

“As for you, take up a lament for the princes of Israel

2 And say: Why did thy mother the lioness lie down among the lions, and bring up her whelps in the midst of young lions?

and say: ‘What was your mother? A lioness among the lions! She lay down among the young lions; she reared her cubs.

3 And she brought out one of her whelps, and he became a lion: and he learned to catch the prey, and to devour men.

She brought up one of her cubs, and he became a young lion. After learning to tear his prey, he devoured men.

4 And the nations heard of him, and took him, but not without receiving wounds: and they brought him in chains into the land of Egypt.

When the nations heard of him, he was trapped in their pit. With hooks they led him away to the land of Egypt.

5 But she seeing herself weakened, and that her hope was lost, took one of her young lions, and set him up for a lion.

When she saw that she had waited in vain, that her hope was lost, she took another of her cubs and made him a young lion.

6 And he went up and down among the lions, and became a lion: and he learned to catch the prey, and to devour men.

He prowled among the lions, and became a young lion. After learning to tear his prey, he devoured men.

7 He learned to make widows, and to lay waste their cities: and the land became desolate, and the fulness thereof by the noise of his roaring.

He broke down their strongholds and devastated their cities. The land and everything in it shuddered at the sound of his roaring.

8 And the nations Game together against him on every side out of the provinces, and they spread their net over him, in their wounds he was taken.

Then the nations set out against him from the provinces on every side. They spread their net over him; he was trapped in their pit.

9 And they put him into a cage, they brought him in chains to the king of Babylon: and they cast him into prison, that his voice should no more be heard upon the mountains of Israel.

With hooks they caged him and brought him to the king of Babylon. They brought him into captivity so that his roar was heard no longer on the mountains of Israel.

10 Thy mother is like a vine in thy blood planted by the water: her fruit and her branches have grown out of many waters.

Your mother was like a vine in your vineyard, planted by the water; it was fruitful and full of branches because of the abundant waters.

11 And she hath strong rods to make sceptres for them that bear rule, and her stature was exalted among the branches: and she saw her height in the multitude of her branches.

It had strong branches, fit for a ruler’s scepter. It towered high above the thick branches, conspicuous for its height and for its dense foliage.

12 But she was plucked up in wrath, and cast on the ground, and the burning wind dried up her fruit: her strong rods are withered, and dried up: the fire hath devoured her.

But it was uprooted in fury, cast down to the ground, and the east wind dried up its fruit. Its strong branches were stripped off and they withered; the fire consumed them.

13 And now she is transplanted into the desert, in a land not passable, and dry.

Now it is planted in the wilderness, in a dry and thirsty land.

14 And a fire is gone out from a rod of her branches, which hath devoured her fruit: so that she now hath no strong rod, to be a sceptre of rulers. This is a lamentation, and it shall be for a lamentation.

Fire has gone out from its main branch and devoured its fruit; on it no strong branch remains fit for a ruler’s scepter.’ This is a lament and shall be used as a lament.”