Ezekiel 23
1 The worde of the Lord came againe vnto me, saying,
And there is a word of YHWH to me, saying, “Son of man,
2 Sonne of man, there were two women, the daughters of one mother.
Two women were daughters of one mother,
3 And they committed fornication in Egypt, they committed fornication in their youth: there were their breasts pressed, and there they bruised the teates of their virginitie.
And they go whoring in Egypt, They have gone whoring in their youth, There they have bruised their breasts, And there they have dealt with the loves of their virginity.
4 And the names of them were Aholah the elder, and Aholibah her sister: and they were mine, and they bare sonnes and daughters: thus were their names. Samaria is Aholah, and Ierusalem Aholibah.
And their names [are] Aholah the older, And Aholibah her sister, And they are Mine, and bear sons and daughters. As for their names—Samaria [is] Aholah, And Jerusalem [is] Aholibah.
5 And Aholah played the harlot when she was mine, and she was set on fire with her louers, to wit, with the Assyrians her neighbours,
And Aholah goes whoring under Me, and she lusts on her lovers, on the neighboring Assyrians,
6 Which were clothed with blewe silke, both captaines and princes: they were all pleasant yong men, and horsemen riding vpon horses.
Clothed with blue—governors and prefects, All of them desirable young men, Horsemen, riding on horses,
7 Thus she committed her whoredome with them, euen with all them that were the chosen men of Asshur, and with all on whome she doted, and defiled her selfe with all their idoles.
And she gives her whoredoms on them, The choice of the sons of Asshur, All of them—even all on whom she lusted, She has been defiled by all their idols.
8 Neither left she her fornications, learned of the Egyptians: for in her youth they lay with her, and they bruised the breasts of her virginitie, and powred their whoredome vpon her.
And she has not forsaken her whoredoms out of Egypt, For with her they lay in her youth, And they dealt with the loves of her virginity, And they pour out their whoredoms on her.
9 Wherefore I deliuered her into the hands of her louers, euen into the hands of the Assyrians, vpon whome she doted.
Therefore I have given her into the hand of her lovers, Into the hand of sons of Asshur on whom she lusted.
10 These discouered her shame: they tooke away her sonnes and her daughters, and slewe her with the sworde, and she had an euill name among women: for they had executed iudgement vpon her.
They have uncovered her nakedness, They have taken her sons and her daughters, And they have slain her by sword, And she is a name for women, And they have done judgments with her.
11 And when her sister Aholibah sawe this, she marred her selfe with inordinate loue, more then she, and with her fornications more then her sister with her fornications.
And her sister Aholibah sees, And she makes her unhealthy love more corrupt than she, And her whoredoms than the whoredoms of her sister.
12 She doted vpon the Assyrians her neighbours, both captaines and princes clothed with diuers sutes, horsemen ryding vpon horses: they were all pleasant yong men.
She has lusted on sons of Asshur, Governors and prefects, Neighboring ones—clothed in perfection, Horsemen, riding on horses, All of them desirable young men.
13 Then I sawe that she was defiled, and that they were both after one sort,
And I see that she has been defiled, One way [is] to them both.
14 And that she encreased her fornications: for when she sawe men painted vpon the wall, the images of the Caldeans painted with vermelon,
And she adds to her whoredoms, And she sees men carved on the wall, Pictures of Chaldeans, carved with vermillion,
15 And girded with girdles vpon their loynes, and with dyed attyre vpon their heads (looking all like princes after the maner of the Babylonians in Caldea, the land of their natiuitie)
Girded with a girdle on their loins, Dyed attire spread out on their heads, The appearance of rulers—all of them, The likeness of sons of Babylon, Chaldea is the land of their birth.
16 Assoone, I say, as she sawe them, she doted vpon them, and sent messengers vnto them into Caldea.
And she lusts on them at the sight of her eyes, And sends messengers to them, to Chaldea.
17 Nowe when the Babylonians came to her into the bed of loue, they defiled her with their fornication, and she was polluted with them, and her lust departed from them.
And sons of Babylon come in to her, To the bed of loves, And they defile her with their whoredoms, And she is defiled with them, And her soul is alienated from them.
18 So she discouered her fornication, and disclosed her shame: then mine heart forsooke her, like as mine heart had forsaken her sister.
And she reveals her whoredoms, And she reveals her nakedness, And My soul is alienated from off her, As My soul was alienated from off her sister.
19 Yet she encreased her whoredome more, and called to remembrance ye dayes of her youth, wherein she had played the harlot in the land of Egypt.
And she multiplies her whoredoms, To remember the days of her youth, When she went whoring in the land of Egypt.
20 For she doted vpon their seruants whose members are as the members of asses, and whose yssue is like the yssue of horses.
And she lusts on their lovers, Whose flesh [is] the flesh of donkeys, And the emission of horses—their emission.
21 Thou calledst to remembrance the wickednes of thy youth, when thy teates were bruised by ye Egyptians: therefore ye paps of thy youth are thus.
You look after the wickedness of your youth, In dealing out of Egypt your loves, For the sake of the breasts of your youth.
22 Therefore, O Aholibah, thus sayeth the Lord God, Beholde, I will raise vp thy louers against thee, from whome thine heart is departed, and I will bring them against thee on euery side,
Therefore, O Aholibah, thus said Lord YHWH: Behold, I am stirring up your lovers against you, From whom your soul has been alienated, And have brought them in against you from all around.
23 To wit, the Babylonians, and all the Caldeans, Peked, and Shoah, and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them: they were all pleasant yong men, captaines and princes: all they were valiant and renoumed, riding vpon horses.
Sons of Babylon, and of all Chaldea, Pekod, and Shoa, and Koa, All the sons of Asshur with them, Desirable young men, governors and prefects, All of them—rulers and proclaimed ones, All of them riding on horses.
24 Euen these shall come against thee with charets, waggons, and wheeles, and with a multitude of people, which shall set against thee, buckler and shield, and helmet round about: and I will leaue the punishment vnto them, and they shall iudge thee according to their iudgements.
And they have come in against you, With arms, rider, and wheel, And with an assembly of peoples; Buckler, and shield, and helmet, They set against you all around, And I have set judgment before them, They have judged you in their judgments.
25 And I wil lay mine indignation vpon thee, and they shall deale cruelly with thee: they shall cut off thy nose and thine eares, and thy remnant shall fall by the sword: they shall cary away thy sonnes and thy daughters, and thy residue shall be deuoured by the fire.
And I have set My jealousy against you, And they have dealt with you in fury, They turn aside your nose and your ears, And your posterity falls by sword, They take away your sons and your daughters, And your posterity is devoured by fire.
26 They shall also strip thee out of thy clothes, and take away thy fayre iewels.
And they have stripped you of your garments, And have taken your beautiful jewels.
27 Thus wil I make thy wickednes to cease from thee and thy fornication out of the land of Egypt: so that thou shalt not lift vp thine eyes vnto them, nor remember Egypt any more.
And I have caused your wickedness to cease from you, And your whoredoms out of the land of Egypt, And you do not lift up your eyes to them, And you do not remember Egypt again.
28 For thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I wil deliuer thee into the hand of them, whome thou hatest: euen into the hands of them from whome thine heart is departed.
For thus said Lord YHWH: Behold, I am giving you into a hand that you have hated, Into a hand from which you were alienated.
29 And they shall handle thee despitefully, and shall take away all thy labour, and shall leaue thee naked and bare, and the shame of thy fornications shalbe discouered, both thy wickednes, and thy whoredome.
And they have dealt with you in hatred, And they have taken all your labor, And they have left you naked and bare, And the nakedness of your whoredoms has been revealed, And the wickedness of your whoredoms.
30 I wil doe these things vnto thee, because thou hast gone a whoring after the heathen, and because thou art polluted with their idoles.
To do these things to you, In your going whoring after nations, Because you have been defiled with their idols,
31 Thou hast walked in the way of thy sister: therefore wil I giue her cup into thine hand.
You have walked in the way of your sister, And I have given her cup into your hand.
32 Thus saith ye Lord God, Thou shalt drinke of thy sisters cup, deepe and large: thou shalt be laughed to scorne and had in derision, because it containeth much.
Thus said Lord YHWH: You drink the cup of your sister, The deep and the wide one (You are for laughter and for scorn), Abundant to contain.
33 Thou shalt be filled with drunkennes and sorow, euen with the cup of destruction, and desolation, with the cup of thy sister Samaria.
You are filled with drunkenness and sorrow, A cup of astonishment and desolation, The cup of your sister Samaria.
34 Thou shalt euen drinke it, and wring it out to the dregges, and thou shalt breake the sheards thereof, and teare thine owne breasts: for I haue spoken it, sayth the Lord God.
And you have drunk it, and have drained [it], And you gnaw its earthen ware, And you pluck off your own breasts, For I have spoken, A declaration of Lord YHWH,
35 Therefore thus saith the Lord God, Because thou hast forgotten me, and cast me behinde thy backe, therefore thou shalt also beare thy wickednes and thy whoredome.
Therefore, thus said Lord YHWH: Because you have forgotten Me, And you cast Me behind your back, Even you also bear your wickedness and your whoredoms.”
36 The Lord sayd moreouer vnto me, Sonne of man, wilt thou iudge Aholah and Aholibah? and wilt thou declare to them their abominations?
And YHWH says to me, “Son of man, Do you judge Aholah and Aholibah? Then declare their abominations to them.
37 For they haue played the whores, and blood is in their hands, and with their idoles haue they committed adulterie, and haue also caused their sonnes, whome they bare vnto me, to passe by the fire to be their meate.
For they have committed adultery, And blood [is] in their hands, They committed adultery with their idols, And also their sons whom they bore to Me, They caused to pass over to them for food.
38 Moreouer, thus haue they done vnto me: they haue defiled my Sanctuarie in the same day, and haue prophaned my Sabbaths.
Again, they have done this to Me, They defiled My sanctuary in that day, And they have defiled My Sabbaths.
39 For when they had slaine their children to their idoles, they came the same day into my Sanctuarie to defile it: and loe, thus haue they done in the middes of mine house.
And in their slaughtering their sons to their idols They also come into My sanctuary in that day to defile it, And behold, thus they have done in the midst of My house,
40 And howe much more is it that they sent for men to come from farre vnto whom a messenger was sent, and loe, they came? for whome thou diddest wash thy selfe, and paintedst thine eyes, and deckedst thee with ornaments,
And also that they send to men coming from afar, To whom a messenger is sent, And behold, they have come in for whom you have washed, Painted your eyes, and put on adornment.
41 And satest vpon a costly bed, and a table prepared before it, whereupon thou hast set mine incense and mine oyle.
And you have sat on a couch of honor, And a table arrayed before it, And placed My incense and My oil on it.
42 And a voyce of a multitude being at ease, was with her: and with the men to make the company great were brought men of Saba from the wildernes, which put bracelets vpon their hands, and beautifull crownes vpon their heads.
And the voice of a multitude at ease [is] with her, And Sabeans from the wilderness are brought in to men of the common people, And they put bracelets on their hands, And a beautiful crown on their heads.
43 Then I sayd vnto her, that was olde in adulteries, Now shall she and her fornications come to an end.
And I say of the worn-out one in adulteries, Now they commit her whoredoms—she also!
44 And they went in vnto her as they goe to a common harlot: so went they to Aholah and Aholibah the wicked women.
And they come in to her, As the coming in to a whorish woman, So they have come in to Aholah, And to Aholibah—the wicked women.
45 And ye righteous men they shall iudge them, after the maner of harlots, and after the maner of murtherers: for they are harlots, and blood is in their hands.
As for righteous men, they judge them with the judgment of adulteresses, And the judgment of women shedding blood, For they [are] adulteresses, And blood [is] in their hands.
46 Wherefore thus sayth the Lord God, I will bring a multitude vpon them, and will giue them vnto the tumult, and to the spoyle,
For thus said Lord YHWH: Bring up an assembly against them, And give them to trembling and to spoiling.
47 And the multitude shall stone them with stones, and cut them with their swordes: they shall slay their sonnes, and their daughters, and burne vp their houses with fire.
And they have cast the stone of the assembly at them, And cut them with their swords, They slay their sons and their daughters, And they burn their houses with fire.
48 Thus will I cause wickednesse to cease out of the land, that all women may be taught not to doe after your wickednesse.
And I have caused wickedness to cease from the land, And all the women have been instructed, And they do not do according to your wickedness.
49 And they shall laye your wickednesse vpon you, and ye shall beare the sinnes of your idoles, and ye shall knowe that I am the Lord God.
And they have put your wickedness on you, And you bear the sins of your idols, And you have known that I [am] Lord YHWH!”
