Ezekiel 23
1 A message from the Lord came to me, saying,
The word of Jehovah came to me again, saying:
2 “Son of man, there were once two women. They were daughters of the same mother.
Son of man, there were two women, daughters of one mother;
3 They became prostitutes in Egypt. In fact, they were prostitutes from the time they were young. They allowed their virgin breasts to be fondled and their nipples squeezed.
and they committed fornication in Egypt; in their youth they committed fornication. There they allowed their breasts to be pressed, and their virgin teats to be handled.
4 The older girl was called Oholah, and her sister Oholibah. I married them both and they had sons and daughters. Oholah represents Samaria, and Oholibah represents Jerusalem.
Their names were Aholah, the elder, and Aholibah, her sister; and they became mine, and bore sons and daughters; as to their names, moreover, Aholah is Samaria, and Aholibah, Jerusalem.
5 Oholah prostituted herself while she was still married to me. She wanted to have sex with her lovers, the Assyrians.
And Aholah played the harlot when she was mine; and she doted on her lovers, on the Assyrians, her neighbors
6 They were soldiers dressed in blue, leaders and commanders, all of them handsome young men in the cavalry.
who were clothed with blue, captains and rulers, all of them desirable young men, horsemen, riding on horses.
7 She gave away herself sexually to all the important men of Assyria. She made herself unclean by her worship of all the idols of those men she wanted to have sex with.
Thus she committed fornication with them, with all the choice young men of Assyria, and with all on whom she doted; with all their idols she defiled herself.
8 She didn't stop her prostitution that she started in Egypt—men sleeping with her when she was young, squeezing her virgin breasts and using her to satisfy their sexual appetite.
Neither forsook she her whoredoms brought from Egypt; for they lay with her in her youth, and handled the breasts of her virginity, and poured their fornication upon her.
9 So I handed her over to her lovers, the Assyrians she wanted to have sex with.
Wherefore I delivered her into the hand of her lovers, into the hand of the Assyrians, upon whom she doted.
10 They stripped her naked, took away her sons and daughters, and killed her with the sword. She became infamous among women, and they punished her.
These uncovered her nakedness; they took her sons and her daughters, and slew her with the sword; and she became famous among women, when they had executed judgment upon her.
11 Oholibah saw what happened to her sister, but she became even worse than her in her wanting sex and practicing prostitution.
And her sister, Aholibah, saw this, but she was more corrupt in her inordinate love than she, and in her whoredoms more than her sister in her whoredoms.
12 She also wanted to have sex with the Assyrians: their leaders and commanders, their splendidly-dressed soldiers—all of them handsome young men in the cavalry.
She doted upon the Assyrians, her neighbors, prefects and rulers clothed most gorgeously, horsemen riding upon horses, all of them desirable young men.
13 I saw that she had also made herself unclean—both sisters were doing the same thing.
Then I saw that she was defiled; that they both took one way.
14 However, Oholibah's prostitution was even worse. She saw pictures of Babylonian soldiers wearing bright red uniforms painted on the wall.
But she added to her whoredoms; for she saw men portrayed upon the wall, images of Chaldaeans portrayed with vermilion,
15 They were wearing belts on their waists and large turbans on their heads. They all looked like Babylonian officers in Chaldea, the country where they were born.
girded with girdles upon their loins, and having long mitres hanging down from their heads, in their appearance all of them princes, after the manner of the sons of Babylon, of Chaldaea, the land of their nativity;
16 When she saw the paintings of them, she wanted to have sex with them and sent messengers to them in Chaldea.
and as soon as she cast her eyes upon them, she doted on them, and sent messengers to them into Chaldaea.
17 The Babylonians came to her and her love bed, and made her unclean with their sexual desire. However, after she had been dishonored by them, she rejected them in disgust.
And the sons of Babylon came to her into the bed of love, and they defiled her with their whoredoms, and she was polluted with them. She then became alienated from them.
18 When Oholibah so blatantly prostituted herself, exposing herself naked, I turned away from her in disgust, just as I had done to her sister.
So she discovered her fornications, and discovered her nakedness. Then my mind was alienated from her, as it had been alienated from her sister.
19 But she practiced even more prostitution, remembering how she'd been a prostitute in Egypt when she was young.
For she multiplied her whoredoms in calling to remembrance the days of her youth, wherein she played the harlot in the land of Egypt;
20 She wanted to have sex with her lovers who had genitals like donkeys and who ejaculated like stallions.
for she doted on their paramours, whose members were as the members of asses, and whose issue was as the issue of horses.
21 You went back to the indecent acts when you were young, when the Egyptians squeezed your nipples and fondled your young breasts.
Thus thou calledst to remembrance the lewdness of thy youth, when thy teats were handled by the Egyptians, on account of the paps of thy youth.
22 So Oholibah, this is what the Lord God says: I'm going to encourage your lovers to attack you, those you rejected in disgust. I will bring them to attack you from every direction:
Therefore, O Aholibah, thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I will raise up against thee thy lovers, from whom thou art alienated, and I will bring them against thee on every side,
23 the Babylonians and all the Chaldeans, the men of Pekod, Shoa, and Koa, and all the Assyrians along with them—all handsome young men, leaders and commanders, chariot captains and important officers, all riding horses.
the Babylonians and all the Chaldaeans, prefects, rich men, and nobles, and all the Assyrians with them, all of them desirable young men, prefects and rulers, captains and men of renown, all of them riding upon horses.
24 They will attack you from the north, invading with a great army, chariots, and wagons. They will come with their shields and helmets and surround you. I will hand you over to them for punishment, and they will judge and punish you following their own laws.
And they shall come against thee with arms, chariots and wheels, and with hosts of people; with buckler and shield and helmet shall they set themselves against thee on every side. And I will commit to them judgment, and they shall punish thee according to their punishments.
25 I feel so strongly about what you've done that I will oppose you, and they will treat you very badly. They will cut off your noses and ears, and they will kill those of you who are left. They will take away your sons and daughters as prisoners, and those of you who are left will be destroyed by fire.
And I will set my jealousy against thee, and they shall deal with thee in fury; they shall take away thy nose and thine ears, and thy posterity shall fall by the sword. They shall take away thy sons and thy daughters, and thy posterity shall be consumed with fire.
26 They will tear off your clothes and take your beautiful jewelry.
They shall also strip thee of thy garments, and take away thy fair jewels.
27 I'm going to put a stop to your immorality and prostitution, which started in Egypt. You won't think longingly about those times, and you'll forget all about Egypt.
Thus will I make thy lewdness to cease from thee, and thy whoredom brought from the land of Egypt, so that thou shalt not lift thine eyes to them, nor remember Egypt any more.
28 For this is what the Lord God says: Believe it when I say that I'm going to hand you over to the people you hate, the ones you rejected in disgust.
For thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I will deliver thee into the hand of them whom thou hatest, into the hand of them from whom thou art alienated.
29 They will treat you with hatred. They will take away everything you've worked for, leaving you stark naked with nothing, so that so that the indecent acts of your prostitution will be exposed. Your immorality and prostitution
And they shall deal with thee in hatred, and take away all the fruits of thy labor from thee, and shall leave thee naked and bare; and thy nakedness shall be uncovered, with which thou hast committed lewdness and fornication and foul whoredom.
30 is why all this has happened to you, because you acted as a prostitute with the nations and made yourself unclean by worshiping their idols.
These things will I do to thee, because thou hast committed whoredom with the nations, and hast been polluted with their idols.
31 Because you did what your sister did, I will give you her cup to drink.
Thou hast walked in the way of thy sister, therefore will I give her cup into thy hand.
32 This is what the Lord God says: You will drink from your sister's cup—a large, deep cup. You will be laughed at and insulted. You'll have to endure much of this.
Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Thou shalt drink of thy sister's cup, which is deep and large; it shall make thee a laughing-stock and a derision, for it containeth much.
33 It will make you drunk and full of grief because it's a cup of that brings horror and destruction, the cup your sister Samaria drank from.
Thou shalt be filled with drunkenness and sorrow. A cup of astonishment and amazement is the cup of thy sister Samaria.
34 You will drink it all down, smash it to pieces on the ground, and tear at your breasts. This is what I have spoken, declares the Lord God.
Thou shalt even drink it and suck it out, and lick the sherds, and thou shalt tear thy breasts. For I have spoken it, saith the Lord Jehovah.
35 In summary this is what the Lord God says: Because you have forgotten about me and have ignored me, you will have to experience the consequences of your immorality and prostitution.”
Therefore thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Because thou hast forgotten me, and cast me behind thy back, therefore bear thou thy lewdness and thy whoredoms.
36 Then the Lord said to me: “Son of man, are you going to condemn Oholah and Oholibah? Expose the disgusting things they've done!
Moreover, Jehovah said to me, Son of man, punish Aholah and Aholibah; yea, declare to them their abominations;
37 For they have committed adultery, and they are guilty of murder. They have committed adultery with their idols, and have even offered their children, whom they had for me, as sacrifices to their idols.
that they have committed adultery, and blood is upon their hands, and that with their idols they have committed adultery, and have also caused their sons, whom they bore to me, to pass through the fire to them for food.
38 They also did this to me: On the very same day they both made my sanctuary unclean and violated my Sabbaths.
This also have they done to me: they have defiled my sanctuary in the same day, and have profaned my sabbaths.
39 On very day that they killed their children for their idols, they went my sanctuary and made it unclean. Look at what they did right inside my Temple!
For when they had slain their children to their idols, then they came into my sanctuary the same day to profane it; behold, thus have they done in my house.
40 They even kept on sending messengers for men to come from far away. When the men arrived, you would get yourselves ready for them by bathing, doing your eye makeup, and putting in your jewelry.
Yea, ye sent for men to come from afar; messengers were sent to them, and behold, they came; for them didst thou wash thyself, and paint thine eyes, and deck thyself with ornaments.
41 You sat on an expensive couch, with my incense and my oil on a table placed in front of it.
And thou didst seat thyself upon a stately bed before which a table was prepared, and thereon didst thou set my incense and my oil.
42 The room was full of the noise of people partying. Drunk men were brought in from the desert along with some common people and they put bracelets on your wrists and beautiful crowns on your head.
Also the voice of a multitude at ease was with her; and together with men from the common multitude were brought deep-drinkers from the desert, who put bracelets upon their hands, and beautiful crowns upon their heads.
43 Then I said about the old worn-out woman, ‘Now they can have her as a prostitute because that's what she is!’
Then said I concerning her that was worn out with adulteries, Will they now commit whoredoms with her, even with her?
44 So they had sex with her like a prostitute. They had sex with Oholah and Oholibah, those immoral women.
They went in to her, as men go to a harlot; so went they in to Aholah and to Aholibah, the lewd women.
45 But men who believe in what's right will judge them and impose the punishment for committing commit adultery and murder, because they are adulterers and murderers.
But righteous men shall judge them, as adulteresses are judged, and as women that shed blood are judged; for they are adulteresses, and blood is upon their hands.
46 This is what the Lord God says: Have a mob attack them! Make them terrified and rob them.
For thus saith the Lord Jehovah: I will bring a great company against them, and will give them up to be harassed and spoiled,
47 The mob will stone them and kill them with their swords, slaughtering their sons and daughters and burning down their houses.
and the company shall stone them with stones, and cut them in pieces with their swords; they shall slay their sons and their daughters, and burn their houses with fire.
48 This is how I will put an end to immorality in the country, and all the women will be warned not to do what you have done.
Thus will I cause lewdness to cease out of the land, that all women may take warning, and not follow them in their lewdness.
49 They will punish you for your immorality, and you will have to experience the consequences of your idol worship. Then you will know that I am the Lord God.”
And they shall recompense your lewdness upon you, and ye shall bear the sins of your idols; that ye may know that I am the Lord Jehovah.
