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Ezekiel 23
The Voice
Ezekiel 23
The Voice
23 The word of the Eternal came to me with a parable about two sisters.
Eternal One: 2 Son of man, there were two women born of the same mother. 3 They became promiscuous in Egypt at a young age. Their breasts were fondled, and their virgin bodies were caressed. 4 The older sister was named Oholah, and her younger sister was named Oholibah. They married Me, and they gave birth to many sons and daughters.
Oholah is Samaria (the mother city of Israel), and Oholibah is Jerusalem (the mother city of Judah).
After King Solomon’s death, Israel splits into two kingdoms, the two sisters described in this parable. Israel is ruled from Samaria; Judah is ruled from Jerusalem. Both kingdoms are ruled autonomously until Assyria dominates Israel, forcing her to pay tribute. Eventually the Assyrians conquer Israel in 722 b.c. and annex her land. Throughout this struggle, the various kings of Israel turn for help to everyone they can—everyone, that is, except God. Israel’s last cry for help is raised to Egypt in the 730s b.c. by her last king, Hoshea (2 Kings 17:4). Unfortunately, surviving historical records are incomplete, and what happens next is unclear. But in the end, Egypt proves to be no help to Israel.
Eternal One: 5 Oholah played the whore while she was still Mine. She coveted many lovers, lusting after her neighbors, the Assyrians— 6 sharply dressed in handsome blue, governors and commanders—all attractive young men mounted on great horses. 7 She offered herself as a prostitute to all of the fine Assyrian men and anyone who desired her. She degraded herself with the idols of her lovers. 8 She didn’t stop the promiscuity she began in Egypt, for when she was young she slept with men who caressed her virgin breasts and poured out their lust on her. 9 So I handed her over to those she loved, the Assyrians whom she desired. 10 They stripped her naked, stole her children, and slaughtered her during the war. So among women, her name became synonymous with disgrace, when they saw the punishment she received.
Unfortunately Judah, the younger sister, repeats Israel’s mistakes. She turns to Egypt against a conquering Babylonian Empire; but this is a grave mistake, for soon she will be completely destroyed.
11 Her younger sister, Oholibah, witnessed all that happened; yet Oholibah became more corrupt than her sister. Her wanton lust and prostitution were even worse than her sister’s. 12 She was obsessed with the Assyrians, too, lusting after the elite—governors and commanders, sharply-dressed warriors—all attractive young men mounted atop great horses. 13 I saw how she degraded herself. Both she and her sister followed the same path, 14 but Oholibah’s path went further and she traveled longer. She added the Babylonians to her list of paramours. She was captivated by images of men painted on a wall: figures of Chaldeans dressed in red, 15 with expensive belts wrapped around their waists and flowing turbans adorning their heads. All of them looked highly distinguished, like Babylonian officers from the land of Chaldea. 16 As soon as her eyes met these portraits, she lusted after them. And so she sent messengers to them in Chaldea. 17 And the Babylonians accepted her invitation and came into her bed of love, degrading her with their lust. When they had completely defiled her, she turned away from them in disgust. 18 Because she carried on her whoring so publicly and exposed herself to so many, I was repulsed by her just as I was her sister. 19 Yet she went deeper into prostitution when she remembered how she played the whore when she was young in the land of Egypt. 20 She lusted for lovers whose genitals were as large as a donkey’s and whose emissions were like a horse’s.
21 You, Judah, longed for the lewd promiscuity of your youth in Egypt,
when men fondled your breasts and caressed your virgin body.”[a]
22 Pay attention, Oholibah! I will turn your forgotten lovers against you,
the ones whom you turned away from in disgust.
I will bring them against you from every direction.
23 Babylonians and all the Chaldeans,
the people of Pekod, Shoa, and Koa, and all the Assyrians,
All attractive young men, governors and commanders,
sharply-dressed officers and high-ranking officials mounted atop great horses.
24 They will come after you with lethal weapons[b] in hand,
shields in place, dressed in armor;
And troops will storm you from every side
in war chariots and wagons.
I will hand you over to their judgment,
and they will punish you according to their customs.
25 I will unleash My jealous fury against you.
They will slice off your nose and ears and kill the rest of your people in battle.
They will steal your children,
and they will burn any who survive in a fire.
26 They will strip you and take away your clothes;
they will rob you of your expensive jewelry.
27 This is how I will put a stop to the promiscuities
and prostitution you brought from the land of Egypt.
You will not admire or remember Egypt with yearning anymore.
28 Here is what the Eternal Lord has to say:
Eternal One: Pay attention! I am a moment away from handing you over to those whom you loathe, the ones whom you turned away from in disgust. 29 They will treat you with hatred and rob you of your lot. They will rip off your clothes in public and leave you naked. The marks of your prostitution—your lewd, promiscuous life—will be apparent. 30 You have brought this upon yourself because you played the whore with your neighboring nations, degraded yourself with profane images and breathless idols. 31 You have followed the same path as your sister; therefore, I will let you drink from her very own cup.
32 You will drink from your sister’s cup,
a cup deep and wide.
It will bring you shame and scorn
and a lot of it.
33 You will drink your fill of drunkenness and agony,
with tears of sorrow running down your cheeks.
This is the cup of ruination, of destruction—
the cup of your sister Samaria!
34 You will drink it down and drain it dry;
then you will smash the cup to pieces
And gnaw on its shattered remains;
you will tear at the breasts your enemies once fondled.
For I, the Eternal Lord, have spoken.
35 Because you have forgotten Me and tossed Me over your shoulder like a piece of trash, you must reap the consequences of your promiscuities and prostitution.
36 (to Ezekiel) Son of man, will you judge Oholah and Oholibah? You must! Confront them about their shocking actions— 37 the adulterous liaisons they commit with bloody hands, even sacrificing their sons and daughters, My children, as burnt offerings to breathless idols. 38-39 Not only that, but they have also polluted My sanctuary and profaned My Sabbaths by sacrificing their children to the breathless idols on the same day they came into My house. This is what they did to Me and My house. This is how they profaned it. 40 They even sent a special invitation to men who lived far away. When they arrived, you had bathed in fragrant waters, painted around your eyes, dressed in seductive garments, and adorned your body with shiny jewelry for your honored guests. 41 You reclined on a silky couch in front of a table set for your visitors with the incense and oils that belonged to Me. 42 As for Oholibah, the mellowed crowd gathered around her—drunkards from the desert and noisy commoners. They adorned the arms of the sisters with bracelets I’d given them and placed ostentatious crowns on the heads of My queens. 43 Then I wondered about this woman who was exhausted from adulterous sex: “Will they still want to sleep with her, here and now?”[c] 44 Yes, they all went into her bed, one after another, and used her as a prostitute. This is what they did to both these wanton women: Oholah and Oholibah. 45 But righteous people will condemn these sisters to punishment befitting adulterous and murderous women! For they are indeed adulteresses and their hands are covered with innocent blood.
46 This is what the Eternal Lord has to say:
Eternal One: Bring a vast army against them! Overtake them with terror and plunder their goods! 47 Their enemies will crush them with large rocks and hack them down in battle. They will massacre their children—My children—and burn down their houses!
(to the sisters) 48 This is how I will put an end to the lewdness practiced in the land and make you an example to all women, that they may learn from your mistakes and never commit the wicked acts you did. 49 You will suffer the consequences of your promiscuity; you will bear the penalty for worshiping your idols. Then you will know that I am the Eternal Lord.
Ezekiel 23
New International Version
Ezekiel 23
New International Version
Two Adulterous Sisters
23 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, there were two women, daughters of the same mother.(A) 3 They became prostitutes in Egypt,(B) engaging in prostitution(C) from their youth.(D) In that land their breasts were fondled and their virgin bosoms caressed.(E) 4 The older was named Oholah, and her sister was Oholibah. They were mine and gave birth to sons and daughters. Oholah is Samaria, and Oholibah is Jerusalem.(F)
5 “Oholah engaged in prostitution while she was still mine; and she lusted after her lovers, the Assyrians(G)—warriors(H) 6 clothed in blue, governors and commanders, all of them handsome young men, and mounted horsemen. 7 She gave herself as a prostitute to all the elite of the Assyrians and defiled herself with all the idols of everyone she lusted after.(I) 8 She did not give up the prostitution she began in Egypt,(J) when during her youth men slept with her, caressed her virgin bosom and poured out their lust on her.(K)
9 “Therefore I delivered her into the hands(L) of her lovers,(M) the Assyrians, for whom she lusted.(N) 10 They stripped(O) her naked, took away her sons and daughters and killed her with the sword. She became a byword among women,(P) and punishment was inflicted(Q) on her.(R)
11 “Her sister Oholibah saw this,(S) yet in her lust and prostitution she was more depraved than her sister.(T) 12 She too lusted after the Assyrians—governors and commanders, warriors in full dress, mounted horsemen, all handsome young men.(U) 13 I saw that she too defiled herself; both of them went the same way.(V)
14 “But she carried her prostitution still further. She saw men portrayed on a wall,(W) figures of Chaldeans[a] portrayed in red,(X) 15 with belts(Y) around their waists and flowing turbans on their heads; all of them looked like Babylonian chariot officers, natives of Chaldea.[b] 16 As soon as she saw them, she lusted after them and sent messengers(Z) to them in Chaldea.(AA) 17 Then the Babylonians(AB) came to her, to the bed of love, and in their lust they defiled her. After she had been defiled by them, she turned away from them in disgust.(AC) 18 When she carried on her prostitution openly and exposed her naked body,(AD) I turned away(AE) from her in disgust, just as I had turned away from her sister.(AF) 19 Yet she became more and more promiscuous as she recalled the days of her youth, when she was a prostitute in Egypt. 20 There she lusted after her lovers, whose genitals were like those of donkeys and whose emission was like that of horses. 21 So you longed for the lewdness of your youth, when in Egypt your bosom was caressed and your young breasts fondled.[c](AG)
22 “Therefore, Oholibah, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will stir up your lovers(AH) against you, those you turned away from in disgust, and I will bring them against you from every side(AI)— 23 the Babylonians(AJ) and all the Chaldeans,(AK) the men of Pekod(AL) and Shoa and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them, handsome young men, all of them governors and commanders, chariot officers and men of high rank, all mounted on horses.(AM) 24 They will come against you with weapons,[d] chariots and wagons(AN) and with a throng of people; they will take up positions against you on every side with large and small shields and with helmets. I will turn you over to them for punishment,(AO) and they will punish you according to their standards. 25 I will direct my jealous anger(AP) against you, and they will deal with you in fury. They will cut off your noses and your ears, and those of you who are left will fall by the sword. They will take away your sons and daughters,(AQ) and those of you who are left will be consumed by fire.(AR) 26 They will also strip(AS) you of your clothes and take your fine jewelry.(AT) 27 So I will put a stop(AU) to the lewdness and prostitution you began in Egypt. You will not look on these things with longing or remember Egypt anymore.
28 “For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am about to deliver you into the hands(AV) of those you hate, to those you turned away from in disgust. 29 They will deal with you in hatred and take away everything you have worked for. They will leave you stark naked,(AW) and the shame of your prostitution will be exposed.(AX) Your lewdness(AY) and promiscuity(AZ) 30 have brought this on you, because you lusted after the nations and defiled yourself with their idols.(BA) 31 You have gone the way of your sister; so I will put her cup(BB) into your hand.(BC)
32 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“You will drink your sister’s cup,
a cup large and deep;
it will bring scorn and derision,(BD)
for it holds so much.(BE)
33 You will be filled with drunkenness and sorrow,
the cup of ruin and desolation,
the cup of your sister Samaria.(BF)
34 You will drink it(BG) and drain it dry
and chew on its pieces—
and you will tear your breasts.
I have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord.(BH)
35 “Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Since you have forgotten(BI) me and turned your back on me,(BJ) you must bear(BK) the consequences of your lewdness and prostitution.”
36 The Lord said to me: “Son of man, will you judge Oholah and Oholibah? Then confront(BL) them with their detestable practices,(BM) 37 for they have committed adultery and blood is on their hands. They committed adultery with their idols; they even sacrificed their children, whom they bore to me, as food for them.(BN) 38 They have also done this to me: At that same time they defiled my sanctuary(BO) and desecrated my Sabbaths.(BP) 39 On the very day they sacrificed their children to their idols, they entered my sanctuary and desecrated(BQ) it. That is what they did in my house.(BR)
40 “They even sent messengers for men who came from far away,(BS) and when they arrived you bathed yourself for them, applied eye makeup(BT) and put on your jewelry.(BU) 41 You sat on an elegant couch,(BV) with a table(BW) spread before it on which you had placed the incense(BX) and olive oil that belonged to me.(BY)
42 “The noise of a carefree(BZ) crowd was around her; drunkards(CA) were brought from the desert along with men from the rabble, and they put bracelets(CB) on the wrists of the woman and her sister and beautiful crowns on their heads.(CC) 43 Then I said about the one worn out by adultery, ‘Now let them use her as a prostitute,(CD) for that is all she is.’ 44 And they slept with her. As men sleep with a prostitute, so they slept with those lewd women, Oholah and Oholibah. 45 But righteous judges will sentence them to the punishment of women who commit adultery and shed blood,(CE) because they are adulterous and blood is on their hands.(CF)
46 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Bring a mob(CG) against them and give them over to terror and plunder.(CH) 47 The mob will stone them and cut them down with their swords; they will kill their sons and daughters(CI) and burn(CJ) down their houses.(CK)
48 “So I will put an end(CL) to lewdness in the land, that all women may take warning and not imitate you.(CM) 49 You will suffer the penalty for your lewdness and bear the consequences of your sins of idolatry.(CN) Then you will know that I am the Sovereign Lord.(CO)”
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 23:14 Or Babylonians
- Ezekiel 23:15 Or Babylonia; also in verse 16
- Ezekiel 23:21 Syriac (see also verse 3); Hebrew caressed because of your young breasts
- Ezekiel 23:24 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
The Voice (VOICE)
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.