Ezekiel 23

1 And there is a word of YHWH to me, saying, “Son of man,

And the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

2 Two women were daughters of one mother,

Son of man, there were two women, daughters of one mother:

3 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.

and they went a-whoring in Egypt in their youth: there their breasts fell, there they lost their virginity.

4 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.

And their names were Oola the elder, and Ooliba her sister: and they were mine, and bore sons and daughters: and [as for] their names, Samaria was Oola, and Jerusalem was Ooliba.

5 And Aholah goes whoring under Me, and she lusts on her lovers, on the neighboring Assyrians,

And Oola went a-whoring from me, and doted on her lovers, on the Assyrians that were her neighbours,

6 Clothed with blue—governors and prefects, All of them desirable young men, Horsemen, riding on horses,

clothed with purple, princes and captains; [they were] young men and choice, all horseman riding on horses.

7 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.

And she bestowed her fornication upon them; all were choice sons of the Assyrians: and on whoever she doted herself, with them she defiled herself in all [their] devices.

8 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.

And she forsook not her fornication with the Egyptians: for in her youth they committed fornication with her, and they deflowered her, and poured out their fornication upon her.

9 Therefore I have given her into the hand of her lovers, Into the hand of sons of Asshur on whom she lusted.

Therefore I delivered her into the hands of her lovers, into the hands of the children of the Assyrians, on whom she doted.

10 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.

They uncovered her shame: they took her sons and daughters, and killed her with the sword: and she became a byword amongst women: and they wrought vengeance in her for the sake of the daughters.

11 And her sister Aholibah sees, And she makes her unhealthy love more corrupt than she, And her whoredoms than the whoredoms of her sister.

And her sister Ooliba saw [it], and she indulged in her fondness more corruptly than she, and in her fornication more than the fornication of her sister.

12 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.

She doted upon the sons of the Assyrian, princes and captains, her neighbours, clothed with fine linen, horsemen riding on horses; [they were] all choice young men.

13 And I see that she has been defiled, One way [is] to them both.

And I saw that they were defiled, [that] the two [had] one way.

14 And she adds to her whoredoms, And she sees men carved on the wall, Pictures of Chaldeans, carved with vermillion,

And she increased her fornication, and she saw men painted on the wall, likenesses of the Chaldeans painted with a pencil,

15 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.

having variegated girdles on their loins, having also richly dyed [attire] upon their heads; all had a princely appearance, the likeness of the children of the Chaldeans, of their native land.

16 And she lusts on them at the sight of her eyes, And sends messengers to them, to Chaldea.

And she doted upon them as soon as she saw them, and sent forth messengers to them into the land of the Chaldeans.

17 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.

And the sons of Babylon came to her, into the bed of rest, and they defiled her in her fornication, and she was defiled by them, and her soul was alienated from them.

18 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.

And she exposed her fornication, and exposed her shame: and my soul was alienated from her, even as my soul was alienated from her sister.

19 And she multiplies her whoredoms, To remember the days of her youth, When she went whoring in the land of Egypt.

And you did multiply your fornication, so as to call to remembrance the days of your youth, wherein you did commit whoredom in Egypt,

20 And she lusts on their lovers, Whose flesh [is] the flesh of donkeys, And the emission of horses—their emission.

and you did dote upon the Chaldeans, whose flesh is as the flesh of the asses, and their members [as] the members of horses.

21 You look after the wickedness of your youth, In dealing out of Egypt your loves, For the sake of the breasts of your youth.

And you did look upon the iniquity of your youth, [the things] which you wrought in Egypt in your lodgings, where were the breasts of your youth.

22 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.

Therefore, Ooliba, thus says the Lord; Behold, I [will] stir up your lovers against you, from whom your soul is alienated, and I will bring them upon you round about,

23 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.

the children of Babylon, and all the Chaldeans, Phacuc, and Sue, and Hychue, and all the sons of the Assyrians with them; choice young men, governors and captains, all princes and renowned, riding on horses.

24 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.

And they all shall come upon you from the north, chariots and wheels, with a multitude of nations, shields and targets; and [the enemy] shall set a watch against you round about: and I will set judgement before them, and they shall take vengeance on you with their judgements.

25 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.

And I will bring upon you my jealousy, and they shall deal with you in great wrath: they shall take away your nose and your ears; and shall cast down your remnant with the sword: they shall take your sons and your daughters; and your remnant fire shall devour.

26 And they have stripped you of your garments, And have taken your beautiful jewels.

And they shall strip you of your raiment, and take [away] your ornaments.

27 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.

So I will turn back your ungodliness from you, and your fornication from the land of Egypt: and you shall not lift up your eyes upon them, and shall no more remember Egypt.

28 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.

Therefore thus says the Lord God; Behold, I [will] deliver you into the hands of those whom you hate, from whom your soul is alienated.

29 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.

And they shall deal with you in hatred, and shall take all [the fruits] of your labours and your toils, and you shall be naked and bare: and the shame of your fornication shall be exposed: and your ungodliness and your fornication

30 To do these things to you, In your going whoring after nations, Because you have been defiled with their idols,

brought this upon you, in that you went a-whoring after the nations, and did defile yourself with their devices.

31 You have walked in the way of your sister, And I have given her cup into your hand.

You did walk in the way of your sister; and I will put her cup into your hands.

32 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.

Thus says the Lord; Drink your sister's cup, deep and large, and full, to cause complete drunkenness.

33 You are filled with drunkenness and sorrow, A cup of astonishment and desolation, The cup of your sister Samaria.

And you shall be thoroughly weakened; and the cup of destruction, the cup of your sister Samaria,

34 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,

drink you it, and I will take away her feasts and her new moons: for I have spoken [it], says the Lord.

35 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.”

Therefore thus says the Lord; Because you has forgotten me, and cast me behind your back, therefore receive you [the reward] of your ungodliness and your fornication.

36 And YHWH says to me, “Son of man, Do you judge Aholah and Aholibah? Then declare their abominations to them.

And the Lord said to me, Son of man, will you not judge Oola and Ooliba? and declare to them their iniquities?

37 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.

For they have committed adultery, and blood was in their hands, they committed adultery with their devices, and they passed through the fire to them their children which they bore to me.

38 Again, they have done this to Me, They defiled My sanctuary in that day, And they have defiled My Sabbaths.

So long too as they did these things to me, they defiled my sanctuary, and profaned my sabbaths.

39 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,

And when they sacrificed their children to their idols, they also went into my sanctuary to profane it: and whereas they did thus in the midst of my house;

40 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.

and whereas they did thus to the men that came from afar, to whom they sent messengers, and as soon as they came, immediately you did wash yourself, and did paint your eyes and adorn yourself with ornaments,

41 And you have sat on a couch of honor, And a table arrayed before it, And placed My incense and My oil on it.

and sat on a prepared bed, and before it [there was] a table set out, and [as for] mine incense and mine oil, they rejoiced in them,

42 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.

and they raised a sound of music, and [that] with men coming from the wilderness out of a multitude of men, and they put bracelets on their hands, and a crown of glory on their heads;

43 And I say of the worn-out one in adulteries, Now they commit her whoredoms—she also!

Therefore I said, Do they not commit adultery with these? and has she also gone a-whoring [after] the manner of a harlot?

44 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.

And they went in to her, as [men] go in to a harlot; so they went in to Oola and to Ooliba to work iniquity.

45 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.

And they are just men, and shall take vengeance on them with the judgement of an adulteress and the judgement of blood: for they are adulteresses, and blood is in their hands.

46 For thus said Lord YHWH: Bring up an assembly against them, And give them to trembling and to spoiling.

Thus says the Lord God, Bring up a multitude upon them, and send trouble and plunder into the midst of them.

47 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.

And stone them with the stones of a multitude, and pierce them with their swords: they shall kill their sons and their daughters, and shall burn up their houses.

48 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.

And I will remove ungodliness out of the land, and all the women shall be instructed, and shall not do according to their ungodliness.

49 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!”

And your ungodliness shall be recompensed upon you, and you shall bear the guilt of your devices: and you shall know that I am the Lord.