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Lament for the Leaders of Israel

19 “And you, raise a lament about[a] the leaders of Israel, and you must say,

‘What a lioness was your mother
    among the lions.
She lay down in the midst of young lions,
    and she reared her lion cubs.
And she raised up one from her cubs;
    he became a fierce lion,
and he learned to tear prey;
    he ate[b] humans.[c]
And nations heard about him;
    in their pit he was caught,
and they brought him with hooks
    to the land of Egypt.
And she saw[d] that she was waiting in vain;
    her hope was destroyed,
and she took one from her cubs,
    and she made him a fierce lion.
And he walked about in the midst of lions;
    he became a fierce lion,
and he learned to tear prey;
    he ate[e] humans.[f]
And he knew their widows,[g]
    and he devastated their cities,
and the land was appalled, and everyone in it[h]
    at the sound of his roar.
And nations set out against him
    from the surrounding provinces,[i]
and they spread their net over him,
    and he was caught in their pit.
And they put him in a collar with hooks,
    and they brought him to the king of Babylon;
    they brought him into[j] a prison,
so that his voice would not be heard any longer[k]
    on the mountains of Israel.
10 Your mother was like the vine in your vineyard;[l]
    planted fruitfully[m] beside water,
and it was full of branches
    from many waters.[n]
11 And she produced branches of strength[o]
    to[p] scepters of rulers;
its height became tall
    between[q] thick foliage,
and it was seen[r] because of its tallness
    among the abundance of its branches.
12 But it was uprooted in rage;
    it was thrown to the earth,
and the east wind dried up its fruit;
    they were stripped off,
and its strong branch dried up;
    fire consumed it.
13 And now it is planted in the desert,
    in a dry and thirsty land.[s]
14 And so fire has gone out from the stem of its branches;
    its fruit it has consumed,
and there was not in it a strong branch,[t]
    a scepter for ruling.’”

This is a lament, and it will be used as a lament.[u]

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 19:1 Or “over”
  2. Ezekiel 19:3 Or “devoured”
  3. Ezekiel 19:3 Hebrew “human”
  4. Ezekiel 19:5 Or “realized”
  5. Ezekiel 19:6 Or “devoured”
  6. Ezekiel 19:6 Hebrew “human”
  7. Ezekiel 19:7 Or “ravished/raped”; or “he ravaged their strongholds”
  8. Ezekiel 19:7 Literally “its fullness”
  9. Ezekiel 19:8 Literally “all around from the provinces”
  10. Ezekiel 19:9 Hebrew “in”
  11. Ezekiel 19:9 Literally “longer”
  12. Ezekiel 19:10 Or “in the vineyard”
  13. Ezekiel 19:10 Literally “fruitful”
  14. Ezekiel 19:10 Or “from waters abundant/many”
  15. Ezekiel 19:11 Literally “they became to her branches/rods of strength”
  16. Ezekiel 19:11 Or “for”
  17. Ezekiel 19:11 Or “among”
  18. Ezekiel 19:11 Or “visible”
  19. Ezekiel 19:13 Literally “a land of dryness and thirst”
  20. Ezekiel 19:14 Literally “a branch of strength”
  21. Ezekiel 19:14 Literally “she is for a lament”

A Lament Over Israel’s Princes

19 “Take up a lament(A) concerning the princes(B) of Israel and say:

“‘What a lioness(C) was your mother
    among the lions!
She lay down among them
    and reared her cubs.(D)
She brought up one of her cubs,
    and he became a strong lion.
He learned to tear the prey
    and he became a man-eater.
The nations heard about him,
    and he was trapped in their pit.
They led him with hooks(E)
    to the land of Egypt.(F)

“‘When she saw her hope unfulfilled,
    her expectation gone,
she took another of her cubs(G)
    and made him a strong lion.(H)
He prowled among the lions,
    for he was now a strong lion.
He learned to tear the prey
    and he became a man-eater.(I)
He broke down[a] their strongholds
    and devastated(J) their towns.
The land and all who were in it
    were terrified by his roaring.
Then the nations(K) came against him,
    those from regions round about.
They spread their net(L) for him,
    and he was trapped in their pit.(M)
With hooks(N) they pulled him into a cage
    and brought him to the king of Babylon.(O)
They put him in prison,
    so his roar(P) was heard no longer
    on the mountains of Israel.(Q)

10 “‘Your mother was like a vine in your vineyard[b](R)
    planted by the water;(S)
it was fruitful and full of branches
    because of abundant water.(T)
11 Its branches were strong,
    fit for a ruler’s scepter.
It towered high
    above the thick foliage,
conspicuous for its height
    and for its many branches.(U)
12 But it was uprooted(V) in fury
    and thrown to the ground.
The east wind(W) made it shrivel,
    it was stripped of its fruit;
its strong branches withered
    and fire consumed them.(X)
13 Now it is planted in the desert,(Y)
    in a dry and thirsty land.(Z)
14 Fire spread from one of its main[c] branches
    and consumed(AA) its fruit.
No strong branch is left on it
    fit for a ruler’s scepter.’(AB)

“This is a lament(AC) and is to be used as a lament.”

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 19:7 Targum (see Septuagint); Hebrew He knew
  2. Ezekiel 19:10 Two Hebrew manuscripts; most Hebrew manuscripts your blood
  3. Ezekiel 19:14 Or from under its