Ezekiel 16
1 Yahweh gave me another message. He said,
Again the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
2 “You human, cause the people of Jerusalem to think about their detestable behavior.
“Son of man, confront Jerusalem with her abominations
3 Say to them, ‘This is what Yahweh the Lord says to you people of Jerusalem: [It is as though you are a woman who] [MET] was born in the country where the Canaan people-group lived. [It is as though] [MET] your father belonged to the Amor people-group and your mother belonged to the Heth people-group.
and tell her that this is what the Lord GOD says to Jerusalem: Your origin and your birth were in the land of the Canaanites. Your father was an Amorite and your mother a Hittite.
4 [It is as though] [MET] on the day that you were born, your umbilical cord was not cut, and your body was not washed in water, and it was not rubbed with salt or wrapped in strips of cloth, [like Israeli babies always are].
On the day of your birth your cord was not cut, nor were you washed with water for cleansing. You were not rubbed with salt or wrapped in cloths.
5 No one pitied you or acted kindly toward you by doing those things for you. Instead, [it was as though] [MET] you were thrown into a field, because on the day that you were born, you were despised {everyone despised you}.
No one cared enough for you to do even one of these things out of compassion for you. Instead, you were thrown out into the open field, because you were despised on the day of your birth.
6 Then [it was as though] [MET] I passed by and saw you lying in your own blood and kicking. And while you lay there kicking in your own blood, I said to you, “I want you to remain alive!”
Then I passed by and saw you wallowing in your blood, and as you lay there in your blood I said to you, ‘Live!’ There I said to you, ‘Live!’
7 [It was as though] I caused you to grow up, like plants in the field grow; you grew up and became tall and became like [MET] a very beautiful jewel. [It was as though] [MET] your breasts (formed/became large), and your hair became long, although you were still naked [DOU].
I made you thrive like a plant of the field. You grew up and matured and became very beautiful. Your breasts were formed and your hair grew, but you were naked and bare.
8 When I saw you several years later, [it was as though] [MET] I saw that you were old enough to have sex [EUP]. So [it was as though] [MET] I spread the corner of my robe over [to symbolize that I would marry you], with the result that you were no longer naked. I solemnly promised [that I would marry you] and made a marriage agreement with you, and you became my wife. That is what I, Yahweh the Lord, say.
Then I passed by and saw you, and you were indeed old enough for love. So I spread My cloak over you and covered your nakedness. I pledged Myself to you, entered into a covenant with you, and you became Mine, declares the Lord GOD.
9 [And then it was as though] [MET] I bathed you and washed the blood from you and put ointment on your body.
Then I bathed you with water, rinsed off your blood, and anointed you with oil.
10 [It was as though] [MET] I put a fine linen robe on you and gave you other expensive clothes. I put an embroidered dress on you and put leather sandals on your feet.
I clothed you in embroidered cloth and gave you sandals of fine leather. I wrapped you in fine linen and covered you with silk.
11 [It was as though] [MET] I put bracelets on your arms and a necklace around your neck. Those things all had nice jewels fastened to them.
I adorned you with jewelry, and I put bracelets on your wrists and a chain around your neck.
12 I put a gold ring in your nose and fastened earrings to your ears and put a beautiful crown on your head.
I put a ring in your nose, earrings on your ears, and a beautiful crown upon your head.
13 So [it was as though] you wore gold and silver ornaments. You had clothes made from fine (linen/white cloth) and other expensive embroidered material/cloth. You ate [bread made from] fine flour, honey, and olive oil. You became very beautiful, like [MET] a queen.
So you were adorned with gold and silver, and your clothing was made of fine linen, silk, and embroidered cloth. You ate fine flour, honey, and oil. You became very beautiful and rose to be queen.
14 You were very beautiful, with the result that people in other nations heard about you, because they knew that I, Yahweh the Lord, am the one who had caused you to become very beautiful.
Your fame spread among the nations on account of your beauty, for it was perfect in the splendor I bestowed on you, declares the Lord GOD.
15 But [it was as though] [MET] you realized that because people knew that you were very beautiful, you could [earn a lot of money by] becoming a prostitute. [It was as though] you had sex with [EUP] every man who came along, and they all enjoyed your beauty.
But because of your fame, you trusted in your beauty and played the harlot. You lavished your favors on everyone who passed by, and your beauty was theirs for the asking.
16 [It was as though] you took some of your clothes to make beautifully decorated shrines, and that is where you had sex with those men. Those things should certainly never occur!
You took some of your garments and made colorful high places for yourself, and on them you prostituted yourself. Such things should not have happened; never should they have occurred!
17 You took the fine gold and silver jewelry that I gave you, and you made male idols for yourself, in order to have sex with them.
You also took the fine jewelry of gold and silver I had given you, and you made male idols with which to prostitute yourself.
18 You took some of your embroidered clothes to put on those idols, and you burned oil and incense in front of them [to honor them].
You took your embroidered garments to cover them, and you set My oil and incense before them.
19 And the [bread that was made from] fine flour and the olive oil and honey that I gave to you to eat, you offered to be a fragrant sacrifice to those idols. I, Yahweh the Lord, declare that is what happened.
And you set before them as a pleasing aroma the food I had given you—the fine flour, oil, and honey that I had fed you. That is what happened, declares the Lord GOD.
20 And you even took your sons and daughters who were [as though they were] [MET] my children, and sacrificed them to be food for the idols. That was much worse [RHQ] than your becoming a prostitute.
You even took the sons and daughters you bore to Me and sacrificed them as food to idols. Was your prostitution not enough?
21 You slaughtered [those who were like] [MET] my children, and offered them to be sacrifices to the gods!
You slaughtered My children and delivered them up through the fire to idols.
22 All during the time when you were acting like a prostitute and doing other detestable things, you did not think about the time when [it was as though] you were very young, naked [DOU], lying in your own blood and kicking.
And in all your abominations and acts of prostitution, you did not remember the days of your youth when you were naked and bare, wallowing in your own blood.
23 So I, Yahweh the Lord, declare that terrible things will happen to you. In addition to all the other wicked things that you did,
Woe! Woe to you, declares the Lord GOD. And in addition to all your other wickedness,
24 you built a shrine to worship idols in every [city] square/plaza.
you built yourself a mound and made yourself a lofty shrine in every public square.
25 At the beginning of every street you built a shrine, and showed people your beautiful body, offering it to have sex with every man who walked by, becoming a better known prostitute every day.
At the head of every street you built your lofty shrines and degraded your beauty. With increasing promiscuity, you spread your legs to all who passed by.
26 [It was as though] [MET] you had sex with men from Egypt who were eager to have sex with you, men who lived near to Israel. You caused me to become very angry because you became more eager to have sex with more and more of them.
You prostituted yourself with your lustful neighbors, the Egyptians, and increased your promiscuity to provoke Me to anger.
27 So I punished [IDM] you and caused your enemies to capture some of your country. I enabled your greedy enemies from Philistia to defeat you; and even they were shocked because of your disgraceful behavior.
Therefore I stretched out My hand against you and reduced your portion. I gave you over to the desire of those who hate you, the daughters of the Philistines, who were ashamed of your lewd conduct.
28 [It was as though] you had sex with soldiers from Assyria, too, because you always wanted more sex. And after that, you still were not satisfied.
Then you prostituted yourself with the Assyrians, because you were not yet satisfied. Even after that, you were still not satisfied.
29 So you also had sex [with soldiers from] Babylonia, a country full of merchants/businessmen, but even that did not satisfy you.
So you extended your promiscuity to Chaldea, the land of merchants—but even with this you were not satisfied!
30 I, Yahweh the Lord, declare that when you did all those things, acting like [MET] a bold prostitute, you were showing that you were ready to do anything that you wanted to [IDM].
How weak-willed is your heart, declares the Lord GOD, while you do all these things, the acts of a shameless prostitute!
31 When you built shrines to worship idols on every street corner and in every city square/plaza, you were not like a prostitute: Prostitutes charge money, but you refused to take money for what you did.
But when you built your mounds at the head of every street and made your lofty shrines in every public square, you were not even like a prostitute, because you scorned payment.
32 You are like [MET] a woman who commits adultery: You prefer to [have sex with] strangers rather than with your husband.
You adulterous wife! You receive strangers instead of your own husband!
33 Prostitutes are paid, but [it is as though] you give gifts to all your lovers; you bribe them to come to you from everywhere to have sex with you.
Men give gifts to all their prostitutes, but you gave gifts to all your lovers. You bribed them to come to you from everywhere for your illicit favors.
34 So although you act like [MET] a prostitute, you are not like other prostitutes: No one needs to request you to have sex [EUP] with them. You are the opposite of other prostitutes; instead of them giving any money to you, you give men money to have sex with you.
So your prostitution is the opposite of that of other women: No one solicited your favors, and you paid a fee instead of receiving one; so you are the very opposite!
35 Therefore, [you people of] Jerusalem, who are like a prostitute [MET], listen to what I, Yahweh the Lord, am saying about you!
Therefore, O prostitute, hear the word of the LORD!
36 I say that [what you have done is as though] [MET] you took off your clothes and acted like a prostitute and had sex with men who are not your husband. [What I mean is that you have been worshiping] detestable idols, and you have murdered [MTY] your own children to be sacrifices to them.
This is what the Lord GOD says: Because you poured out your wealth and exposed your nakedness in your promiscuity with your lovers and with all your detestable idols, and because of the blood of your children which you gave to them,
37 So [what I am going to do is as though] I will gather those who you think have loved you and those whom you hated. I will gather them around you [to attack you], and [what I will do is as though] I will strip your clothes off you, and they will see you when you are completely naked.
therefore I will surely gather all the lovers with whom you found pleasure, all those you loved and all those you hated. I will gather them against you from all around and expose you before them, and they will see you completely naked.
38 I will punish you like women who commit adultery and who murder people [MTY] are punished. I will get revenge on you and get rid of you because I am extremely angry with you.
And I will sentence you to the punishment of women who commit adultery and those who shed blood; so I will bring upon you the wrath of your bloodshed and jealousy.
39 I will allow [your enemies who you thought] loved you [IRO] to defeat you, and they will tear down your shrines. [It will be as though] they will strip off your fancy clothes and take away your fine jewelry and cause you to be completely naked [DOU].
Then I will deliver you into the hands of your lovers, and they will level your mounds and tear down your lofty shrines. They will strip off your clothes, take your fine jewelry, and leave you naked and bare.
40 They will bring a mob to attack you, and that mob will throw stones at you and cut you to pieces with their swords.
They will bring a mob against you, who will stone you and cut you to pieces with their swords.
41 They will burn down your houses and punish you while many women are watching. I will cause your acting like a prostitute and paying your lovers to have sex with you to end.
Then they will burn down your houses and execute judgment against you in the sight of many women. I will put an end to your prostitution, and you will never again pay your lovers.
42 Then I will no longer be angry [DOU] with you. I will stop being jealous [because of your worshiping gods other than me only].
So I will lay to rest My wrath against you, and My jealousy will turn away from you. Then I will be calm and no longer angry.
43 You have forgotten [the wonderful things that I did for you] in previous years [MET]. You have caused me to become extremely angry because of all the [evil things] that you have done. In addition to all the other detestable things that you did, you committed many sexual sins. So I, Yahweh the Lord, declare that I will punish you [IDM] for doing those things.
Because you did not remember the days of your youth, but enraged Me with all these things, I will surely bring your deeds down upon your own head, declares the Lord GOD. Have you not committed this lewdness on top of all your other abominations?
44 People who [like to] quote proverbs will quote this proverb about you: “[behave] like their mothers [behave].”
Behold, all who speak in proverbs will quote this proverb about you: ‘Like mother, like daughter.’
45 You are like your mother; [it was as though] she detested her husband and her children. You are like your sisters, who also despised their husbands and their children. [It was as though] [MET] your father belonged to the Amor people-group and your mother belonged to the Heth people-group.
You are the daughter of your mother, who despised her husband and children. You are the sister of your sisters, who despised their husbands and children. Your mother was a Hittite and your father an Amorite.
46 And [it was as though] [MET] your older sister was Samaria, and she and her daughters lived to the north of you, and [it was as though] your younger sister was Sodom, and she and her daughters lived to the south of you.
Your older sister was Samaria, who lived with her daughters to your north; and your younger sister was Sodom, who lived with her daughters to your south.
47 You not only imitated all [DOU] their detestable behavior, but you quickly became more sinful than they were.
And you not only walked in their ways and practiced their abominations, but soon you were more depraved than they were.
48 I, Yahweh the Lord, solemnly declare that as surely as I am alive, [the people who lived in] [MTY] Sodom and other nearby cities never did the detestable things that you [people in Jerusalem and other places in Judah] have done.
As surely as I live, declares the Lord GOD, your sister Sodom and her daughters never did as you and your daughters have done.
49 These are the sins [the people who lived in] Sodom, who were like your sister [MET]: The people who lived there and in nearby cities were arrogant. In spite of having more food to eat than they needed, they refused to help the poor and needy [DOU] people among them.
Now this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed, and complacent; they did not help the poor and needy.
50 The people of Sodom and nearby cities [MET] were proud and did detestable things in my presence, so I got rid of them when I saw what they had been doing.
Thus they were haughty and committed abominations before Me. Therefore I removed them, as you have seen.
51 Also, [the people of] Samaria did not commit half as many sins as you have committed. You have done more disgusting things than they have done. You cause the people of Samaria to appear to be good, compared to you.
Furthermore, Samaria did not commit half the sins you did. You have multiplied your abominations beyond theirs, and all the abominations you have committed have made your sisters appear righteous.
52 Your sins are worse than their sins, so they seem to be less wicked than you are. So I will punish you more than I punished them. As a result, you will be ashamed and disgraced [DOU].
So now you must bear your disgrace, since you have brought justification for your sisters. For they appear more righteous than you, because your sins were more vile than theirs. So you too must bear your shame and disgrace, since you have made your sisters appear righteous.
53 However, [some day] I will [the people of] Sodom and Samaria and the cities near to them [MET] to prosper again. And I will cause you to prosper again, too.
But I will restore Sodom and her daughters from captivity, as well as Samaria and her daughters. And I will restore you along with them.
54 You will be very ashamed [DOU] of the wicked things that you have done, and that will cause the people of those cities to be encouraged.
So you will bear your disgrace and be ashamed of all you did to comfort them.
55 [The people of] Sodom and Samaria will prosper again, and you and the people in nearby cities will prosper also.
And your sisters, Sodom with her daughters and Samaria with her daughters, will return to their former state. You and your daughters will also return to your former state.
56 You (sneered at/despised) [the people of] Sodom when you were proud,
Did you not treat your sister Sodom as an object of scorn in the day of your pride,
57 before it was revealed that you were very wicked. And now [the people of] Edom and [the people of] Philistia all insult you and despise you.
before your wickedness was uncovered? Even so, you are now scorned by the daughters of Edom and all those around her, and by the daughters of the Philistines—all those around you who despise you.
58 And you are being punished for all your immoral behavior and other detestable things that you do.
You will bear the consequences of your lewdness and your abominations, declares the LORD.
59 This is what I, Yahweh the Lord, say: I will continue to punish you like you deserve to be punished, because by rejecting the agreement that I made with you, you have despised that solemn agreement that you promised to obey.
For this is what the Lord GOD says: I will deal with you according to your deeds, since you have despised the oath by breaking the covenant.
60 But I will not forget the agreement that I made with you long ago [MET], and I will make an agreement with you that will endure forever.
But I will remember the covenant I made with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with you.
61 Then you will think about what you have done, and you will be ashamed about those things when you welcome [the people of] Sodom and Samaria, cities which are like [MET] older and younger sisters to you people of Jerusalem. I will [put them under your control by] causing them to become like [MET] your daughters, but they will not have the same agreement that I will make with you.
Then you will remember your ways and be ashamed when you receive your older and younger sisters. I will give them to you as daughters, but not because of My covenant with you.
62 I will establish my agreement with you, and you will know that I, Yahweh, [have the power to do what I say that I will do].
So I will establish My covenant with you, and you will know that I am the LORD,
63 Then when I have forgiven you for all your sins, you will think about all the sins that you committed and you will be ashamed, and you will never again [boast about them], because you will be humiliated.’”
so that when I make atonement for all you have done, you will remember and be ashamed and never again open your mouth because of your disgrace, declares the Lord GOD.”
