Ezekiel 23
1 And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
A message from the Lord came to me, saying,
2 Son of man, there were two women, the daughters of one mother;
“Son of man, there were once two women. They were daughters of the same mother.
3 And they played the harlot in Egypt; in their youth they played the harlot: there were their breasts pressed, and there they suffered their virgin bosoms to be touched.
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.
4 And their names were Aholah the elder, and Aholibah her sister; but they became mine, and they bore sons and daughters: and their names are, Samaria is Aholah, and Jerusalem, Aholibah.
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.
5 And Aholah played the harlot while she was mine; and she longed for her lovers, for the Assyrians that were near [her],
Oholah prostituted herself while she was still married to me. She wanted to have sex with her lovers, the Assyrians.
6 Clothed [as they were] in blue, governors, and rulers, attractive youths all of them, horsemen riding upon horses.
They were soldiers dressed in blue, leaders and commanders, all of them handsome young men in the cavalry.
7 Thus she played the harlot with them, all of them the chosen ones of the sons of Asshur: and with all for whom she longed, —with all their idols did she defile herself.
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.
8 But also her lewdness from Egypt forsook she not; for they had lain with her in her youth, and they had touched her virgin bosom, and had lavished their lewd caresses on her.
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.
9 Therefore did I give her up into the hand of her lovers, into the hand of the sons of Asshur, after whom she longed.
So I handed her over to her lovers, the Assyrians she wanted to have sex with.
10 These were they that laid open her nakedness; her sons and her daughters did they take away, and her they slew with the sword: and she became infamous among women, when they inflicted the decreed punishments on her.
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.
11 And when her sister Aholibah saw this, she became more corrupt in her longing than she, and in her lewd acts more than her sister's lewdness.
Oholibah saw what happened to her sister, but she became even worse than her in her wanting sex and practicing prostitution.
12 For the sons of Asshur did she long, the governors and rulers that were near, clothed as they were most gorgeously, horsemen riding upon horses, attractive youths all of them.
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.
13 Then saw I that she was defiled, that they followed both one way.
I saw that she had also made herself unclean—both sisters were doing the same thing.
14 But she added still more to her acts of lewdness; for when she saw men engraved upon the wall, the images of the Chaldeans portrayed with color,
However, Oholibah's prostitution was even worse. She saw pictures of Babylonian soldiers wearing bright red uniforms painted on the wall.
15 Bound with girdles on their loins, with hanging down colored turbans on their heads, in appearance like commanders, all of them, in the likeness of the sons of Babylon of the Chaldeans, the land of their birth:
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.
16 Then did she long for them as soon as she saw them with her eyes, and she sent messengers unto them to Chaldea.
When she saw the paintings of them, she wanted to have sex with them and sent messengers to them in Chaldea.
17 And the sons of Babylon came to her unto the couch of love, and they defiled her with their lewd caresses; and [yet] when she had been defiled with them, she tore her soul away from them.
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.
18 And when she had laid open her lewdness, and had uncovered her nakedness: then my soul tore itself away from her, as my soul had torn itself away from her sister.
When Oholibah so blatantly prostituted herself, exposing herself naked, I turned away from her in disgust, just as I had done to her sister.
19 Yet she multiplied her deeds of lewdness, in calling to remembrance the days of her youth, when she had played the harlot in the land of Egypt.
But she practiced even more prostitution, remembering how she'd been a prostitute in Egypt when she was young.
20 And she longed for her paramours, whose flesh is as the flesh of asses, and whose lustfulness is like the lustfulness of horses.
She wanted to have sex with her lovers who had genitals like donkeys and who ejaculated like stallions.
21 And thou calledst to mind the incest of thy youth, when thy bosom was touched by the Egyptians for the sake of thy youthful breasts.
You went back to the indecent acts when you were young, when the Egyptians squeezed your nipples and fondled your young breasts.
22 Therefore, O Aholibah, thus hath said the Lord Eternal, Behold, I will wake up thy lovers against thee, from whom thy soul hath torn itself away, and I will bring them against thee from every side;
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:
23 The sons of Babylon, and all the Chaldeans, Pekod, and Shoa and Koa, and all the sons of Asshur with them, attractive youths, governors and rulers all of them, commanders and chiefs, riding upon horses all of them.
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.
24 And they shall come over thee with weapons, chariots, and wheels, and with an assembly of people, buckler and shield and helmet shall they set up against thee round about: and I will give up before them the right to judge, and they shall judge thee according to their ordinances.
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.
25 And I will set my zealousness against thee, and they shall deal with thee in fury; thy nose and thy ears shall they cut off; and what is left of thee shall fall by the sword: thy sons and thy daughters shall they take away; and what is left of thee shall be devoured by the fire.
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.
26 And they shall strip thee of thy clothes, and take away thy ornamental attire.
They will tear off your clothes and take your beautiful jewelry.
27 Thus will I make thy incest to cease from thee, and thy lewdness brought from the land of Egypt: and thou shalt not lift up thy eyes unto them, and Egypt shalt thou not remember any more.
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.
28 For thus hath said the Lord Eternal, Behold, I will give thee up into the hand of those whom thou hatest, into the hand of those from whom thy soul hath torn itself away;
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.
29 And they shall deal with thee in hate, and shall take away all [things acquired by] thy labor, and they shall leave thee naked and bare: and thus shall be uncovered the nakedness of thy lewdness, and thy incest and thy lewd deeds.
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
30 I will do these things unto thee, because thou hast gone with vile lust after the nations, because thou hast defiled thyself with their idols.
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.
31 On the way of thy sister hast thou walked; therefore will I place her cup into thy hand.
Because you did what your sister did, I will give you her cup to drink.
32 Thus hath said the Lord Eternal, The cup of thy sister shalt thou drink, the deep and wide one: thou shalt become to be laughed to scorn and to be held in derision, more than thou canst bear.
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.
33 With drunkenness and sorrow shalt thou be filled, [out of] the cup of astonishment and confusion, the cup of thy sister Samaria.
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.
34 Thou shalt even drink it and drain it out, and thou shalt break in pieces its fragments, and tear thy own breasts; for I have spoken it, saith the Lord Eternal.
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.
35 Therefore thus hath said the Lord Eternal, Because thou hast forgotten me, and cast me behind thy back: therefore bear thou also thy incest and thy acts of lewdness.
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.”
36 The Lord said moreover unto me, Son of man, wilt thou call Aholah and Aholibah to account? then tell them of their abominations;
Then the Lord said to me: “Son of man, are you going to condemn Oholah and Oholibah? Expose the disgusting things they've done!
37 That they have committed adultery, and there is blood on their hands, and with their idols have they committed adultery, and also their sons whom they had born unto me have they caused to pass for them through [the fire], to devour them.
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.
38 Moreover this have they done unto me: they have defiled my sanctuary on the same day, and my sabbaths have they profaned.
They also did this to me: On the very same day they both made my sanctuary unclean and violated my Sabbaths.
39 And when they had slain their children to their idols, then came they into my sanctuary on the same day to profane it: and, lo, thus have they done in the midst of my house.
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!
40 And farthermore yet, because they sent for men who were to come from afar, unto whom messengers were sent; and, lo, they came, for whom thou didst bathe thyself, paint thy eyes, and deck thyself with ornaments;
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.
41 And thou didst sit upon a stately bed, with a table spread before it, and my incense and my oil didst thou set upon it.
You sat on an expensive couch, with my incense and my oil on a table placed in front of it.
42 And the shout of a peaceful joyous multitude was [heard] within her; and with the men of the masses of the common people were brought Sabeans from the wilderness; and these women placed bracelets on their hands, and crowns of glory upon their heads.
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.
43 Then thought I of her that was worn out in adulteries, Will they now [still] commit lewdness with her, when she [is thus]?
Then I said about the old worn-out woman, ‘Now they can have her as a prostitute because that's what she is!’
44 But men went in unto her, as they go in unto a faithless wife: thus went they in unto Aholah and unto Aholibah, the incestuous women.
So they had sex with her like a prostitute. They had sex with Oholah and Oholibah, those immoral women.
45 Righteous men, however—these shall judge them as adulteresses are judged, and as women that shed blood are judged; because adulteresses are they, and blood is on their hands.
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.
46 For thus hath said the Lord Eternal, I will bring up against them an assemblage of men, and I will give them up to ill-usage and plunder.
This is what the Lord God says: Have a mob attack them! Make them terrified and rob them.
47 And the assemblage shall stone them with stones, and cut them down with their swords: their sons and their daughters shall they slay, and their houses shall they burn with fire.
The mob will stone them and kill them with their swords, slaughtering their sons and daughters and burning down their houses.
48 Thus will I cause incest to cease out of the land, that all women may be warned by example, and not do after your incestuous course.
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.
49 And they shall lay your incest upon you, and the sins of your idols shall ye bear: and ye shall know that I am the Lord Eternal.
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.”
