Ezekiel 23

1 Yahweh said to me,

The worde of the Lord came againe vnto me, saying,

2 “You human, [listen to this parable about Jerusalem and Samaria]. Once there were two women, daughters of the same mother.

Sonne of man, there were two women, the daughters of one mother.

3 They lived in Egypt. And from the time that they were young women, they became prostitutes. In that land, [men] fondled their breasts and caressed their bosoms [DOU].

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.

4 The older [sister] was Oholah, and her [younger] sister was Oholibah. [It was as though] they became my [wives. Later] they gave birth to sons and daughters. Oholah represents Samaria, and Oholibah represents Jerusalem.

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.

5 Oholah acted like a prostitute while she was [still] my wife. She desired to have sex with those she loved—soldiers from Assyria.

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,

6 [Some of them] were army officers and commanders. They wore [beautiful] blue [uniforms. They were] all handsome young men. Some of them rode horses.

Which were clothed with blewe silke, both captaines and princes: they were all pleasant yong men, and horsemen riding vpon horses.

7 She acted like a prostitute toward all the important Assyrian officials, and became unacceptable to me by worshiping all the idols of the men she wanted to have sex with.

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.

8 When she was a young woman in Egypt, she started being a prostitute, and [young] men caressed her breasts and had sex with her; and when she became older, she did not quit acting like a prostitute.

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.

9 So I allowed the Assyrian soldiers, whom she wanted to have sex with, to capture her.

Wherefore I deliuered her into the hands of her louers, euen into the hands of the Assyrians, vpon whome she doted.

10 They stripped all her clothes off her. They took away her sons and daughters. And then they killed her with a sword. [Other] women started talking about what had happened to her, about how she had been punished.

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.

11 [younger] sister Oholibah saw those [that happened to Oholah], but she was a prostitute, and she desired to have sex with men more than [older] sister had desired.

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.

12 Oholibah [also] wanted to have sex with the Assyrian soldiers. [Some of them were] army officers and commanders. [They all] wore beautiful blue uniforms. They were all handsome young men. [Some of] them rode horses.

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.

13 I saw what she did that caused her to became unacceptable to me, just like [older] sister.

Then I sawe that she was defiled, and that they were both after one sort,

14 But she did [even] worse things. She saw drawings of men from Babylonia on the walls, painted in red.

And that she encreased her fornications: for when she sawe men painted vpon the wall, the images of the Caldeans painted with vermelon,

15 The [in the drawings] had belts around their waists and long turbans on their heads. They all resembled officers from Babylonia [DOU] [who rode in chariots].

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)

16 As soon as she saw those drawings, she wanted to have sex with those men, and she sent messages to them in Babylonia.

Assoone, I say, as she sawe them, she doted vpon them, and sent messengers vnto them into Caldea.

17 Then the soldiers from Babylonia came to her, they lay in bed with her, and they had sex with her. Then she became disgusted with them and turned away from them.

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.

18 But when she continued to openly/boldly act like a prostitute [DOU], I became disgusted with her, and I rejected her like I had rejected [older] sister.

So she discouered her fornication, and disclosed her shame: then mine heart forsooke her, like as mine heart had forsaken her sister.

19 But she became even more immoral, as she remembered when she was a young woman who was a prostitute in Egypt.

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.

20 There she wanted to have sex with those who loved her, whose genitals were [very long], like [SIM] those of donkeys, and whose sexual emissions were huge, [like] those of horses.

For she doted vpon their seruants whose members are as the members of asses, and whose yssue is like the yssue of horses.

21 So she desired to be immoral like she was when she was young, when men in Egypt caressed her bosom and fondled her breasts.”

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.

22 “[represents you people of Jerusalem]. Therefore, this is what [I], Yahweh the Lord say: ‘I will cause those [soldiers] who loved you but whom you turned away from because you became disgusted with them, to be angry with you. I will cause them to come and attack you from every side—

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,

23 soldiers from Babylon and all the other places in Babylonia, [their allies] from Pekod and Shoa and [regions], and all the army of Assyria. [Yes], all of them are handsome young men, army officers and commanders, officers who ride in chariots, all riding on horses.

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.

24 Their huge army will attack you with weapons, riding in chariots and pulling wagons [that will carry their army supplies]. They will surround you, carrying large and small shields, and wearing helmets. I will allow them to capture you and punish you in the way that they [always] [their enemies].

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.

25 Because I am very angry with you, I will cause them to act [very] furiously toward you. They will cut off your noses and your ears. Then, those who are still alive, they will kill with their swords. They will take away your sons and daughters, and a fire will burn up those who remain alive.

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.

26 They will strip off your clothes and your fine jewelry and take them away.

They shall also strip thee out of thy clothes, and take away thy fayre iewels.

27 In that way, I will stop all the immoral behavior that began when you became a prostitute in Egypt. You will no longer desire to do those things, or think [what you did in] Egypt.’

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.

28 This is what [I], Yahweh the Lord say: ‘I am about to allow those whom you hate, those you became disgusted with and turned away from, to capture you.

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.

29 They will be cruel and take away everything that you have worked hard to acquire. They will leave you completely naked [DOU], and everyone will see that you truly are a prostitute.

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.

30 It is because of what you have done that you will be punished like that; you have been an immoral prostitute; you have had sex with men of other nations, and you have caused yourselves to become unacceptable to me [worshiping] their idols.

I wil doe these things vnto thee, because thou hast gone a whoring after the heathen, and because thou art polluted with their idoles.

31 You have behaved [the people of Samaria, who are like] your [older] sister. So I will cause you to be punished [MET] like they were punished.’

Thou hast walked in the way of thy sister: therefore wil I giue her cup into thine hand.

32 This is what [I], Yahweh the Lord, say: ‘[You will suffer like people suffer when they drink from a cup a lot of strong alcoholic drink]: [It will be as though] you will drink from the cup that the people of Samaria drank from; a big and tall cup. Because of your drinking what is in that cup, many people will scorn you and make fun of you because there is a lot of liquid in that cup.

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.

33 When you become very drunk, you will become very sad, [drinking what is in] that cup [MTY] will cause you to become ruined and deserted, like what happened [MET] to [the people of] Samaria, [who are like] [MET] your sister.

Thou shalt be filled with drunkennes and sorow, euen with the cup of destruction, and desolation, with the cup of thy sister Samaria.

34 You will drink all the liquid that is in that cup; then you will break that cup into pieces [use those pieces to] gash/cut your [because you will be very sad].’ [That will surely happen because] I, Yahweh, have said it.

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.

35 Therefore, this is what [I], Yahweh the Lord, say: ‘Because you have forgotten me and rejected me [IDM], you must be punished for your immoral behavior and for [like] a prostitute.’”

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.

36 Yahweh said to me, “You human, you must [RHQ] [the people of those two cities represented by] Oholah and Oholibah. You must remind them of their detestable behavior:

The Lord sayd moreouer vnto me, Sonne of man, wilt thou iudge Aholah and Aholibah? and wilt thou declare to them their abominations?

37 [It is as though the people of those cities] have committed adultery and have murdered [MTY] people. They have been unfaithful to me by [worshiping] idols. They have even sacrificed their own children, who belonged to me, to be food for their idols.

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.

38 They have done [disgraceful things]: They have caused my temple to be an unacceptable place for worship, and have not respected the Sabbath days.

Moreouer, thus haue they done vnto me: they haue defiled my Sanctuarie in the same day, and haue prophaned my Sabbaths.

39 On the same day that they sacrificed their children to their idols, they entered my temple, which caused it to be an unacceptable place for worshiping me.

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.

40 They sent messages to men [in countries] far away. And when those men arrived, [the women of those two cities] bathed themselves for them, painted their eyebrows, and put on jewelry.

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,

41 They sat on a beautiful couch, with a table in front of it on which they had put incense and [olive] oil that belonged to me.

And satest vpon a costly bed, and a table prepared before it, whereupon thou hast set mine incense and mine oyle.

42 Soon there was a noisy crowd around them. Among the crowd there were men from Sheba who had come from the [of Arabia]. They put bracelets on the arms of the [two] sisters and put beautiful crowns on their heads.

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.

43 Then I said about the woman who had become exhausted by her having sex with many men, ‘Now allow those men to act toward her as though she is a prostitute, because that is all that she is.’

Then I sayd vnto her, that was olde in adulteries, Now shall she and her fornications come to an end.

44 So they had sex [EUP] with those two women, Oholah and Oholibah, like men have sex with prostitutes.

And they went in vnto her as they goe to a common harlot: so went they to Aholah and Aholibah the wicked women.

45 But righteous men will condemn them to be punished, like women who commit adultery and who murder others are punished, because those women commit adultery and they murder [MTY] others.

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.

46 So this is what [I], Yahweh the Lord, say: Bring a mob to attack Samaria and Jerusalem, and allow that mob to cause the people of those cities to be terrified, and to rob them.

Wherefore thus sayth the Lord God, I will bring a multitude vpon them, and will giue them vnto the tumult, and to the spoyle,

47 The mob will throw stones at [to kill them]; they will cut them into pieces with their swords, they will kill their sons and daughters, and burn down their houses.

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.

48 In that way I will cause them to stop their immoral behavior. It will warn other women to not imitate/do what you people of Jerusalem are doing.

Thus will I cause wickednesse to cease out of the land, that all women may be taught not to doe after your wickednesse.

49 [people of Jerusalem] will be punished for your immoral behavior and for your worshiping idols. Then you will know that I, Yahweh the Lord, [have the power to do what I say that I will do].”

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.