Ezekiel 23
23This message came to me from the Lord:H1697H3068H5592“Son of man, once there were two sisters who were daughters of the same mother.H1121H120H8147H802H1323H259H5173They became prostitutes in Egypt. Even as young girls, they allowed men to fondle their breasts.H2181H4714H2181H5271H7699H4600H6213H1717H13314The older girl was named Oholah, and her sister was Oholibah. I married them, and they bore me sons and daughters. I am speaking of Samaria and Jerusalem, for Oholah is Samaria and Oholibah is Jerusalem.H8034H170H1419H172H269H3205H1121H1323H8034H8111H170H3389H1725“Then Oholah lusted after other lovers instead of me, and she gave her love to the Assyrian officers.H170H2181H8478H5689H157H804H71386They were all attractive young men, captains and commanders dressed in handsome blue, charioteers driving their horses.H3847H8504H6346H5461H2531H970H6571H7392H54837And so she prostituted herself with the most desirable men of Assyria, worshiping their idols and defiling herself.H5414H8457H4005H1121H804H5689H1544H29308For when she left Egypt, she did not leave her spirit of prostitution behind. She was still as lewd as in her youth, when the Egyptians slept with her, fondled her breasts, and used her as a prostitute.H5800H8457H4714H5271H7901H6213H1717H1331H8210H84579“And so I handed her over to her Assyrian lovers, whom she desired so much.H5414H3027H157H3027H1121H804H568910They stripped her, took away her children as their slaves, and then killed her. After she received her punishment, her reputation was known to every woman in the land.H1540H6172H3947H1121H1323H2026H2719H8034H802H6213H819611“Yet even though Oholibah saw what had happened to Oholah, her sister, she followed right in her footsteps. And she was even more depraved, abandoning herself to her lust and prostitution.H269H172H7200H7843H5691H8457H269H218312She fawned over all the Assyrian officers—those captains and commanders in handsome uniforms, those charioteers driving their horses—all of them attractive young men.H5689H1121H804H7138H6346H5461H3847H4358H6571H7392H5483H2531H97013I saw the way she was going, defiling herself just like her older sister.H7200H2930H8147H259H187014“Then she carried her prostitution even further. She fell in love with pictures that were painted on a wall—pictures of Babylonian military officers, outfitted in striking red uniforms.H3254H8457H7200H582H2707H7023H6754H3778H2710H835015Handsome belts encircled their waists, and flowing turbans crowned their heads. They were dressed like chariot officers from the land of Babylonia.H2289H232H4975H5628H2871H7218H7991H4758H1823H1121H894H3778H776H413816When she saw these paintings, she longed to give herself to them, so she sent messengers to Babylonia to invite them to come to her.H4758H5869H5689H7971H4397H377817So they came and committed adultery with her, defiling her in the bed of love. After being defiled, however, she rejected them in disgust.H1121H894H935H4904H1730H2930H8457H2930H5315H336318“In the same way, I became disgusted with Oholibah and rejected her, just as I had rejected her sister, because she flaunted herself before them and gave herself to satisfy their lusts.H1540H8457H1540H6172H5315H3363H5315H5361H26919Yet she turned to even greater prostitution, remembering her youth when she was a prostitute in Egypt.H7235H8457H2142H3117H5271H2181H776H471420She lusted after lovers with genitals as large as a donkey’s and emissions like those of a horse.H5689H6370H1320H1320H2543H2231H2231H548321And so, Oholibah, you relived your former days as a young girl in Egypt, when you first allowed your breasts to be fondled.H6485H2154H5271H6213H1717H4714H7699H527122“Therefore, Oholibah, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will send your lovers against you from every direction—those very nations from which you turned away in disgust.H172H559H136H3069H5782H157H5315H5361H935H543923For the Babylonians will come with all the Chaldeans from Pekod and Shoa and Koa. And all the Assyrians will come with them—handsome young captains, commanders, chariot officers, and other high-ranking officers, all riding their horses.H1121H894H3778H6489H7772H6970H1121H804H2531H970H6346H5461H7991H7121H7392H548324They will all come against you from the north with chariots, wagons, and a great army prepared for attack. They will take up positions on every side, surrounding you with men armed with shields and helmets. And I will hand you over to them for punishment so they can do with you as they please.H935H2021H7393H1534H6951H5971H7760H6793H4043H6959H5439H5414H4941H6440H8199H494125I will turn my jealous anger against you, and they will deal harshly with you. They will cut off your nose and ears, and any survivors will then be slaughtered by the sword. Your children will be taken away as captives, and everything that is left will be burned.H5414H7068H6213H2534H5493H639H241H319H5307H2719H3947H1121H1323H319H398H78426They will strip you of your beautiful clothes and jewels.H6584H899H3947H8597H362727In this way, I will put a stop to the lewdness and prostitution you brought from Egypt. You will never again cast longing eyes on those things or fondly remember your time in Egypt.H2154H7673H2184H776H4714H5375H5869H2142H471428“For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will surely hand you over to your enemies, to those you loathe, those you rejected.H559H136H3069H5414H3027H8130H3027H5315H536129They will treat you with hatred and rob you of all you own, leaving you stark naked. The shame of your prostitution will be exposed to all the world.H6213H8135H3947H3018H5800H5903H6181H6172H2183H1540H2154H845730You brought all this on yourself by prostituting yourself to other nations, defiling yourself with all their idols.H6213H2181H310H1471H2930H154431Because you have followed in your sister’s footsteps, I will force you to drink the same cup of terror she drank.H1980H1870H269H5414H3563H302732“Yes, this is what the Sovereign Lord says. “You will drink from your sister’s cup of terror, a cup that is large and deep. It is filled to the brim with scorn and derision.H559H136H3069H8354H269H3563H6013H7342H6712H3933H3557H476733Drunkenness and anguish will fill you, for your cup is filled to the brim with distress and desolation, the same cup your sister Samaria drank.H4390H7943H3015H3563H8047H8077H3563H269H811134You will drain that cup of terror to the very bottom. Then you will smash it to pieces and beat your breast in anguish. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!H8354H4680H1633H2789H5423H7699H1696H5002H136H306935“And because you have forgotten me and turned your back on me, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: You must bear the consequences of all your lewdness and prostitution.”H559H136H3069H7911H7993H310H1458H5375H2154H845736The Lord said to me, “Son of man, you must accuse Oholah and Oholibah of all their detestable sins.H3068H559H1121H120H8199H170H172H5046H844137They have committed both adultery and murder—adultery by worshiping idols and murder by burning as sacrifices the children they bore to me.H5003H1818H3027H1544H5003H1121H3205H5674H40238Furthermore, they have defiled my Temple and violated my Sabbath day!H6213H2930H4720H3117H2490H767639On the very day that they sacrificed their children to their idols, they boldly came into my Temple to worship! They came in and defiled my house.H7819H1121H1544H935H3117H4720H2490H6213H8432H100440“You sisters sent messengers to distant lands to get men. Then when they arrived, you bathed yourselves, painted your eyelids, and put on your finest jewels for them.H637H7971H582H935H4801H4397H7971H935H7364H3583H5869H5710H571641You sat with them on a beautifully embroidered couch and put my incense and my special oil on a table that was spread before you.H3427H3520H4296H7979H6186H6440H7760H7004H808142From your room came the sound of many men carousing. They were lustful men and drunkards from the wilderness, who put bracelets on your wrists and beautiful crowns on your heads.H6963H1995H7961H582H7230H120H935H5436H5433H4057H5414H6781H3027H8597H5850H721843Then I said, ‘If they really want to have sex with old worn-out prostitutes like these, let them!’H559H1087H5004H2181H845744And that is what they did. They had sex with Oholah and Oholibah, these shameless prostitutes.H935H935H802H2181H935H170H172H2154H80245But righteous people will judge these sister cities for what they really are—adulterers and murderers.H6662H582H8199H4941H5003H4941H8210H1818H5003H1818H302746“Now this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Bring an army against them and hand them over to be terrorized and plundered.H559H136H3069H5927H6951H5414H2189H95747For their enemies will stone them and kill them with swords. They will butcher their sons and daughters and burn their homes.H6951H7275H68H1254H2719H2026H1121H1323H8313H1004H78448In this way, I will put an end to lewdness and idolatry in the land, and my judgment will be a warning to others not to follow their wicked example.H2154H7673H776H802H3256H6213H215449You will be fully repaid for all your prostitution—your worship of idols. Yes, you will suffer the full penalty. Then you will know that I am the Sovereign Lord.”H5414H2154H5375H2399H1544H3045H136H3069
Ezekiel 24
24On January 15, during the ninth year of King Jehoiachin’s captivity, this message came to me from the Lord:H8671H8141H6224H2320H6218H2320H1697H3068H5592“Son of man, write down today’s date, because on this very day the king of Babylon is beginning his attack against Jerusalem.H1121H120H3789H8034H3117H6106H3117H4428H894H5564H3389H6106H31173Then give these rebels an illustration with this message from the Sovereign Lord. “Put a pot on the fire, and pour in some water.H4911H4912H4805H1004H559H559H136H3069H8239H5518H8239H3332H43254Fill it with choice pieces of meat—the rump and the shoulder and all the most tender cuts.H622H5409H2896H5409H3409H3802H4390H4005H61065Use only the best sheep from the flock, and heap fuel on the fire beneath the pot. Bring the pot to a boil, and cook the bones along with the meat.H3947H4005H6629H1754H6106H7570H7571H1310H6106H84326“Now this is what the Sovereign Lord says. What sorrow awaits Jerusalem, the city of murderers! She is a cooking pot whose corruption can’t be cleaned out. Take the meat out in random order, for no piece is better than another.H559H136H3069H188H1818H5892H5518H2457H2457H3318H3318H5409H5409H1486H53077For the blood of her murders is splashed on the rocks. It isn’t even spilled on the ground, where the dust could cover it!H1818H8432H7760H6706H5553H8210H776H3680H60838So I will splash her blood on a rock for all to see, an expression of my anger and vengeance against her.H2534H5927H5358H5359H5414H1818H6706H5553H36809“This is what the Sovereign Lord says. What sorrow awaits Jerusalem, the city of murderers! I myself will pile up the fuel beneath her.H559H136H3069H188H1818H5892H4071H143110Yes, heap on the wood! Let the fire roar to make the pot boil. Cook the meat with many spices, and afterward burn the bones.H7235H6086H1814H784H8552H1320H7543H4841H6106H278711Now set the empty pot on the coals. Heat it red hot! Burn away the filth and corruption.H5975H7386H1513H5178H3179H2787H2932H5413H8432H2457H855212But it’s hopeless; the corruption can’t be cleaned out. So throw it into the fire.H3811H8383H7227H2457H3318H2457H78413Your impurity is your lewdness and the corruption of your idolatry. I tried to cleanse you, but you refused. So now you will remain in your filth until my fury against you has been satisfied.H2932H2154H2891H2891H2891H2932H2534H511714“I, the Lord, have spoken! The time has come, and I won’t hold back. I will not change my mind, and I will have no pity on you. You will be judged on the basis of all your wicked actions, says the Sovereign Lord.”H3068H1696H935H6213H6544H2347H5162H1870H5949H8199H5002H136H306915Then this message came to me from the Lord:H1697H3068H55916“Son of man, with one blow I will take away your dearest treasure. Yet you must not show any sorrow at her death. Do not weep; let there be no tears.H1121H120H3947H4261H5869H4046H5594H1058H1832H93517Groan silently, but let there be no wailing at her grave. Do not uncover your head or take off your sandals. Do not perform the usual rituals of mourning or accept any food brought to you by consoling friends.”H1826H602H6213H60H4191H2280H6287H7760H5275H7272H5844H8222H398H3899H58218So I proclaimed this to the people the next morning, and in the evening my wife died. The next morning I did everything I had been told to do.H1696H5971H1242H6153H802H4191H6213H1242H668019Then the people asked, “What does all this mean? What are you trying to tell us?”H5971H559H5046H621320So I said to them, “A message came to me from the Lord,H559H1697H3068H55921and I was told to give this message to the people of Israel. This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will defile my Temple, the source of your security and pride, the place your heart delights in. Your sons and daughters whom you left behind in Judea will be slaughtered by the sword.H559H1004H3478H559H136H3069H2490H4720H1347H5797H4261H5869H5315H4263H1121H1323H5800H5307H271922Then you will do as Ezekiel has done. You will not mourn in public or console yourselves by eating the food brought by friends.H6213H6213H5844H8222H398H3899H58223Your heads will remain covered, and your sandals will not be taken off. You will not mourn or weep, but you will waste away because of your sins. You will mourn privately for all the evil you have done.H6287H7218H5275H7272H5594H1058H4743H5771H5098H376H25124Ezekiel is an example for you; you will do just as he has done. And when that time comes, you will know that I am the Lord.”H3168H4159H6213H6213H935H3045H136H306925Then the Lord said to me, “Son of man, on the day I take away their stronghold—their joy and glory, their heart’s desire, their dearest treasure—I will also take away their sons and daughters.H1121H120H3117H3947H4581H4885H8597H4261H5869H4853H5315H1121H132326And on that day a survivor from Jerusalem will come to you in Babylon and tell you what has happened.H6412H3117H935H2045H24127And when he arrives, your voice will suddenly return so you can talk to him, and you will be a symbol for these people. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”H3117H6310H6605H6412H1696H481H4159H3045H3068
Dublin, OH
and defiling herself.H5414
