Ezekiel 16

Jerusalem’s Unfaithfulness

1Again the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

1And the word of YHWH came to me, saying:

2“Son of man, confront Jerusalem with her abominations

2“Son of man, make known to Jerusalem her abominations,

3and 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.

3and say, thus says the Lord YHWH to Jerusalem: Your origin and your birth are from the land of the Canaanite; your father was an Amorite, and your mother a Hittite.

4On 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.

4And of your birth, on the day you were born, your cord was not cut, and you were not washed in water for cleansing, and you were not rubbed with salt, and you were not wrapped in swaddling cloths.

5No 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.

5No eye showed pity to you, to do for you one of these things to have compassion on you, and you were thrown out into the face of the field in the loathing of your soul on the day you were born.

6Then 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!’

6And I passed by you and saw you wallowing in your own blood, and I said to you in your blood, ‘Live!’ And I said to you in your blood, ‘Live!’

7I 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.

7I made you a myriad like a plant in the field, and you increased and grew and came into the adornment of adornments. Your breasts were established, and your hair sprouted, and you were naked and bare.

8Then 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.

8And I passed by you and I saw you, and behold, your time was the time for love! And I spread My wing over you and covered your nakedness, and I swore an oath to you and came into a covenant with you—a declaration of the Lord YHWH—and you came to be unto Me.

9Then I bathed you with water, rinsed off your blood, and anointed you with oil.

9And I washed you with water, and I rinsed off your blood from you, and I anointed you with the oil.

10I clothed you in embroidered cloth and gave you sandals of fine leather. I wrapped you in fine linen and covered you with silk.

10And I clothed you in embroidered cloth, and gave you sandals of badger skin, and I tied you in fine linen, and I covered you with silk;

11I adorned you with jewelry, and I put bracelets on your wrists and a chain around your neck.

11and I adorned you with ornaments, and I put bracelets on your hands and a chain on your neck.

12I put a ring in your nose, earrings on your ears, and a beautiful crown upon your head.

12And I put a ring upon your nose, and earrings upon your ears, and a crown of beauty upon your head.

13So 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.

13And you were adorned with gold and silver, and your clothing was of fine linen, and silk, and embroidered cloth. Fine flour and honey and oil did you eat. You were exceedingly greatly beautiful, and you advanced to royalty.

14Your 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.

14And a name for you went forth among the nations on account of your beauty, for it was perfect in My splendor that I had set upon you, a declaration of the Lord YHWH.

15But 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.

15And you trusted in your own beauty, and acted as a prostitute upon your name, and you poured out your prostitution on everyone passing by—it was unto him!

16You 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!

16And you took from your garments and made for yourself multicolored high places, and you prostituted yourself on them—things that should not have happened and should not have come to be!

17You also took the fine jewelry of gold and silver I had given you, and you made male idols with which to prostitute yourself.

17And you have taken the articles of your beauty from My gold and from My silver that I had given to you, and you made for yourself images of a male and prostituted yourself with them!

18You took your embroidered garments to cover them, and you set My oil and incense before them.

18And you took the garments of your embroidery and covered them, and you set My oil and My incense before their faces;

19And 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.

19and My food that I gave to you—the fine flour, and oil, and honey I fed you—and you set it before their face for a pleasing aroma; and it came to pass! An utterance of the Lord YHWH.

20You even took the sons and daughters you bore to Me and sacrificed them as food to idols. Was your prostitution not enough?

20And you took your sons and your daughters, those whom you bore to Me, and you sacrificed them to them to be devoured! Was your prostitution too little?

21You slaughtered My children and delivered them up through the fire to idols.

21And you have slain My children, and have given them by causing them to pass through to them!

22And 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.

22And in all your abominations and your prostitutions, you did not remember the days of your youth, in your being naked and bare; you were wallowing in your own blood.

23Woe! Woe to you, declares the Lord GOD. And in addition to all your other wickedness,

23And it came to pass after all your evil—Woe, woe to you, a declaration of the Lord YHWH—

24you built yourself a mound and made yourself a lofty shrine in every public square.

24that you built for yourself a mound and you set for yourself a high place in every public square!

25At 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.

25At every head of the road you built your high places, and you made abhorrent your beauty by your opening your feet to all passing by, and you multiplied your prostitutions!

26You prostituted yourself with your lustful neighbors, the Egyptians, and increased your promiscuity to provoke Me to anger.

26And you prostituted yourself with the sons of Egypt, your neighbors, greatly fleshly, and you multiplied your prostitutions to provoke Me to anger.

27Therefore 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.

27And behold, I stretched out My hand against you, and I diminished your portion, and I gave you over to the appetite of those hating you, the daughters of the Philistines, who were ashamed of your way of prostitution.

28Then you prostituted yourself with the Assyrians, because you were not yet satisfied. Even after that, you were still not satisfied.

28And you prostituted yourself with the sons of Assyria from your lack of being satisfied, and you prostituted yourself with them, and still you were not satisfied!

29So you extended your promiscuity to Chaldea, the land of merchants—but even with this you were not satisfied!

29And you multiplied your prostitutions into the land of the merchants of Chaldea, and even in this you were not satisfied.

30How weak-willed is your heart, declares the Lord GOD, while you do all these things, the acts of a shameless prostitute!

30How weak is your heart, a declaration of the Lord YHWH, in your doing all these deeds of an imperious prostitute woman,

31But 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.

31in your building your mounds at the head of every road, and your high place you made in every public square. And you were not even like a prostitute because of your scorning of a prostitute’s payment.

32You adulterous wife! You receive strangers instead of your own husband!

32You are the woman committing adultery, who in place of her husband does receive strangers!

33Men 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.

33To all prostitutes they give a gift, and you—you gave your gifts to all your lovers and bribed them to come to you from all around in your prostitutions.

34So 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!

34And it is the opposite from other women with you in your prostitution; and no one was after you to be a prostitute, and you gave a wage and a wage was not given to you—you are the opposite!

Judgment on Jerusalem

35Therefore, O prostitute, hear the word of the LORD!

35Therefore, O prostitute, hear the word of YHWH!

36This 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,

36Thus says the Lord YHWH: Because your lust was poured out, and your nakedness was uncovered in your prostitutions with your lovers and with all the idols of your abominations, and because of the blood of your children, which you gave to them,

37therefore 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.

37therefore, behold, I will gather all your lovers, with whom you took pleasure, and all those whom you loved, along with all those you hated, and I will gather them against you from all around. And I will uncover your nakedness to them, that they may see all your nakedness.

38And 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.

38And I will judge you with the judgments of those committing adultery and shedding blood, and I will bring upon you the blood of rage and jealousy.

39Then 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.

39And I will give you into their hands, and they will overthrow your shrines, and they will break down your high places, and they will strip you of your clothes and take away the articles of your beauty, and they will leave you naked and bare.

40They will bring a mob against you, who will stone you and cut you to pieces with their swords.

40And they will bring up an assembly against you, and they will stone you with stones, and they will cut you up with their swords.

41Then 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.

41And they will burn your houses with fire, and they will execute judgment against you before the eyes of many women. And I will put an end to your prostitution, and even a single lover you will not pay again!

42So 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.

42And I will lay to rest My fury against you, and My jealousy will turn aside from you; and I will be quiet, and I will not be angry anymore.

43Because 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?

43Because that you did not remember the days of your youth, and you caused enragement to Me with all these things, behold, I also, will recompense your way on your head! An utterance of the Lord YHWH. And have you not done this wickedness in addition to all your abominations?

44Behold, all who speak in proverbs will quote this proverb about you:

‘Like mother, like daughter.’

44Behold everyone quoting proverbs will use this proverb against you, saying, ‘Like her mother is her daughter.’

45You 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.

45You are the daughter of your mother, loathing her husband and her children; and you are the sister of your sisters, those who loathed their husbands and children! Your mother was a Hittite and your father an Amorite.

46Your 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.

46And your elder sister is Samaria, she and her daughters, dwelling to the north of you; and your younger sister, dwelling toyour south, is Sodom and her daughters.

47And you not only walked in their ways and practiced their abominations, but soon you were more depraved than they were.

47And not only in their ways did you walk, and according to their abominations you acted—as if too little—and you became more corrupt than they in all your ways!

48As surely as I live, declares the Lord GOD, your sister Sodom and her daughters never did as you and your daughters have done.

48As I live—a declaration of the Lord YHWH—Sodom your sister has not done, she and her daughters, as you have done—you and your daughters!

49Now 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.

49Behold, this was the guilt of Sodom your sister: Pride, fullness of bread, and the ease of idleness was unto her and unto her daughters, and the hand of the poor and needy she did not strengthen.

50Thus they were haughty and committed abominations before Me. Therefore I removed them, as you have seen.

50And they were haughty, and they did an abomination before My face, and I turned them aside as you have seen.

51Furthermore, 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.

51And Samaria, according to the half of your sins, did not sin; and you have multiplied your abominations beyond theirs, and you have justified your sisters in all the abominations that you have done.

52So 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.

52So also you, lift up your own shame, that you have brought justification for your sisters in your sins that you made abhorrent beyond theirs. They are more righteous than you, so you too be disgraced and lift up your own shame in your justifying of your sisters.

53But I will restore Sodom and her daughters from captivity, as well as Samaria and her daughters. And I will restore you along with them.

53And I will turn back their captivity—the captives of Sodom and her daughters, and the captives of Samaria and her daughters—and the captivity of your captives in their midst,

54So you will bear your disgrace and be ashamed of all you did to comfort them.

54so that you may bear your shame and be disgraced by all that you did, in your giving comfort to them.

55And 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.

55And your sisters, Sodom and her daughters, will return to their former state, and Samaria and her daughters will return to their former state, and you and your daughters will return to your former state.

56Did you not treat your sister Sodom as an object of scorn in the day of your pride,

56Has not your sister Sodom come to be as a byword in your mouth in the days of your pride,

57before 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.

57before your wickedness was uncovered? It is like the time of scorn by the daughters of Edom, and all those around her, and the daughters of the Philistines—those despising you from all around.

58You will bear the consequences of your lewdness and your abominations, declares the LORD.

58Your wickedness and your abominations you will bear, a declaration of YHWH.

The Covenant Remembered

59For 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.

59For thus says the Lord YHWH: I will do with you as you have done—those having despised the oath by breaking the covenant.

60But I will remember the covenant I made with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with you.

60And I will remember My covenant with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish with you a covenant forever.

61Then 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.

61And you will remember your ways, and you will be ashamed, in your taking your sisters, those older than you to those younger than you, when I give them to you as daughters, and not by your covenant.

62So I will establish My covenant with you, and you will know that I am the LORD,

62And I will establish My covenant with you, and you will know that I am YHWH,

63so 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.”

63so that you may remember and be ashamed, and there will come to be for you no more an opening of your mouth from the face of your shame, in My making atonement toward you for all that you have done! An utterance of the Lord YHWH.”