Ezekiel 17

⁴⁹Then I said, “Ah, Lord God, they are saying of me, ‘Is he not just telling parables?’”

³⁵So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet: “I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things hidden since the foundation of the world.”

³³With many such parables Jesus spoke the word to them, to the extent that they could understand.

³⁴He did not tell them anything without using a parable. But privately He explained everything to His own disciples.

⁸One day the trees set out to anoint a king for themselves. They said to the olive tree, ‘Reign over us.’

⁹But the olive tree replied, ‘Should I stop giving my oil that honors both God and man, to hold sway over the trees?’

¹²Now we see but a dim reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

³Now speak a parable to this rebellious house and tell them that this is what the Lord God says: ‘Put the pot on the fire; put it on and pour in the water.

⁴⁰For this is what the Lord says: “Behold, an eagle swoops down and spreads his wings against Moab.

¹Put the ram’s horn to your lips! An eagle looms over the house of the Lord, because the people have transgressed My covenant and rebelled against My law.

²²you, O king, are that tree! For you have become great and strong; your greatness has grown to reach the sky, and your dominion extends to the ends of the earth.

⁷But there was another great eagle with great wings and many feathers. And behold, this vine bent its roots toward him. It stretched out its branches to him from its planting bed, so that he might water it.

¹After Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had carried away Jeconiah son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, as well as the officials of Judah and the craftsmen and metalsmiths from Jerusalem, and had brought them to Babylon, the Lord showed me two baskets of figs placed in front of the temple of the Lord.

¹⁶The terror you cause and the pride of your heart have deceived you, O dwellers in the clefts of the rocks, O occupiers of the mountain summit. Though you elevate your nest like the eagle, even from there I will bring you down,” declares the Lord.

³All the nations have drunk the wine of the passion of her immorality. The kings of the earth were immoral with her, and the merchants of the earth have grown wealthy from the extravagance of her luxury.”

¹³You who dwell by many waters, rich in treasures, your end has come; the thread of your life is cut.

¹⁵This is what they are to you—those with whom you have labored and traded from youth—each one strays in his own direction; not one of them can save you.

¹⁴Thus says the Lord your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “For your sake, I will send to Babylon and bring them all as fugitives, even the Chaldeans, in the ships in which they rejoice.

¹¹And the merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over her, because there is no one left to buy their cargo—

¹²cargo of gold, silver, precious stones, and pearls; of fine linen, purple, silk, and scarlet; of all kinds of citron wood and every article of ivory, precious wood, bronze, iron, and marble;

⁴They will sprout among the grass like willows by flowing streams.

⁷For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks and fountains and springs that flow through the valleys and hills;

⁸a land of wheat, barley, vines, fig trees, and pomegranates; a land of olive oil and honey;

¹Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon made Zedekiah son of Josiah the king of Judah, and he reigned in place of Coniah son of Jehoiakim.

¹⁷Then the king of Babylon made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin’s uncle, king in his place and changed his name to Zedekiah.

⁷So they carry their wealth and belongings over the Brook of the Willows.

¹¹It had strong branches, fit for a ruler’s scepter. It towered high above the thick branches, conspicuous for its height and for its dense foliage.

¹²But it was uprooted in fury, cast down to the ground, and the east wind dried up its fruit. Its strong branches were stripped off and they withered; the fire consumed them.

¹⁴so that the kingdom would be brought low, unable to lift itself up, surviving only by keeping his covenant.

¹⁸Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.

¹⁹It is better to be lowly in spirit among the humble than to divide the spoil with the proud.

¹⁵But this king rebelled against Babylon by sending his envoys to Egypt to ask for horses and a large army. Will he flourish? Will the one who does such things escape? Can he break a covenant and yet escape?’

⁴The waters made it grow; the deep springs made it tall, directing their streams all around its base and sending their channels to all the trees of the field.

¹³Under their authority was an army of 307,500 trained for war, a powerful force to support the king against his enemies.

²⁰For because of the anger of the Lord, all this happened in Jerusalem and Judah, until He finally banished them from His presence. And Zedekiah also rebelled against the king of Babylon.

⁵Pharaoh’s army had left Egypt, and when the Chaldeans who were besieging Jerusalem heard the report, they withdrew from Jerusalem.

⁶Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet:

⁵He took some of the seed of the land and planted it in fertile soil; he placed it by abundant waters and set it out like a willow.

⁶It sprouted and became a spreading vine, low in height, with branches turned toward him; yet its roots remained where it stood. So it became a vine and yielded branches and sent out shoots.

¹⁰Even if it is transplanted, will it flourish? Will it not completely wither when the east wind strikes? It will wither on the bed where it sprouted.’”

⁵He will take Zedekiah to Babylon, where he will stay until I attend to him, declares the Lord. If you fight against the Chaldeans, you will not succeed.’”

⁴this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I will turn against you the weapons of war in your hands, with which you are fighting the king of Babylon and the Chaldeans who besiege you outside the wall, and I will assemble their forces in the center of this city.

⁵And I Myself will fight against you with an outstretched hand and a mighty arm, with anger, fury, and great wrath.

⁴¹But Moses said, “Why are you transgressing the commandment of the Lord? This will not succeed!

¹Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, who rely on horses, who trust in their abundance of chariots and in their multitude of horsemen. They do not look to the Holy One of Israel; they do not seek the Lord.

²Yet He too is wise and brings disaster; He does not call back His words. He will rise up against the house of the wicked and against the allies of evildoers.

¹²Now behold, God Himself is with us as our head, and His priests with their trumpets sound the battle call against you. O children of Israel, do not fight against the Lord, the God of your fathers, for you will not succeed.”

¹⁵Although he flourishes among his brothers, an east wind will come—a wind from the Lord rising up from the desert. His fountain will fail, and his spring will run dry. The wind will plunder his treasury of every precious article.

¹²These men are hidden reefs in your love feasts, shamelessly feasting with you but shepherding only themselves. They are clouds without water, carried along by the wind; fruitless trees in autumn, twice dead after being uprooted.

¹²But it was uprooted in fury, cast down to the ground, and the east wind dried up its fruit. Its strong branches were stripped off and they withered; the fire consumed them.

¹³Now it is planted in the wilderness, in a dry and thirsty land.

¹Ephraim feeds on the wind and pursues the east wind all day long; he multiplies lies and violence; he makes a covenant with Assyria and sends olive oil to Egypt.

⁶If anyone does not remain in Me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers. Such branches are gathered up, thrown into the fire, and burned.

¹⁹Seeing a fig tree by the road, He went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. “May you never bear fruit again!” He said. And immediately the tree withered.

¹⁹Then the people asked me, “Won’t you tell us what these things you are doing mean to us?”

²On the fifth day of the month—it was the fifth year of the exile of King Jehoiachin—

³and tell them that this is what the Lord God says: ‘A great eagle with great wings and long pinions, full of feathers of many colors, came to Lebanon and took away the top of the cedar.

⁹“Son of man, hasn’t the rebellious house of Israel asked you, ‘What are you doing?’

¹⁰Tell them that this is what the Lord God says: ‘This burden concerns the prince in Jerusalem and all the house of Israel who are there.’

¹⁶“Do you still not understand?” Jesus asked.

¹⁷“Do you not yet realize that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then is eliminated?

¹⁰At that time the servants of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon marched up to Jerusalem, and the city came under siege.

¹¹And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to the city while his servants were besieging it.

¹³He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear by God. But Zedekiah stiffened his neck and hardened his heart against turning to the Lord, the God of Israel.

¹⁵Nebuchadnezzar carried away Jehoiachin to Babylon, as well as the king’s mother, his wives, his officials, and the leading men of the land. He took them into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon.

¹⁶The king of Babylon also brought into exile to Babylon all seven thousand men of valor and a thousand craftsmen and metalsmiths—all strong and fit for battle.

⁵He took some of the seed of the land and planted it in fertile soil; he placed it by abundant waters and set it out like a willow.

²Although they say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives,’ they are swearing falsely.”

¹After Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had carried away Jeconiah son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, as well as the officials of Judah and the craftsmen and metalsmiths from Jerusalem, and had brought them to Babylon, the Lord showed me two baskets of figs placed in front of the temple of the Lord.

²(This was after King Jeconiah, the queen mother, the court officials, the officials of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and the metalsmiths had been exiled from Jerusalem.)

¹⁴I will restore Egypt from captivity and bring them back to the land of Pathros, the land of their origin. There they will be a lowly kingdom.

⁷The Lord sends poverty and wealth; He humbles and He exalts.

¹²And to Zedekiah king of Judah I spoke the same message: “Put your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon; serve him and his people, and live!

¹³Why should you and your people die by sword and famine and plague, as the Lord has decreed against any nation that does not serve the king of Babylon?

¹⁷So tell us what You think: Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”

¹⁸But Jesus knew their evil intent and said, “You hypocrites, why are you testing Me?

¹⁰Our skin is as hot as an oven with fever from our hunger.

¹⁷Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “This is what the Lord God of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘If you indeed surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, then you will live, this city will not be burned down, and you and your household will survive.

¹⁶But the king must not acquire many horses for himself or send the people back to Egypt to acquire more horses, for the Lord has said, ‘You are never to go back that way again.’

¹³He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear by God. But Zedekiah stiffened his neck and hardened his heart against turning to the Lord, the God of Israel.

³And you yourself will not escape his grasp, but will surely be captured and delivered into his hand. You will see the king of Babylon eye to eye and speak with him face to face; and you will go to Babylon.

²⁰For because of the anger of the Lord, all this happened in Jerusalem and Judah, until He finally banished them from His presence. And Zedekiah also rebelled against the king of Babylon.

³For because of the anger of the Lord, all this happened in Jerusalem and Judah, until He finally banished them from His presence. And Zedekiah also rebelled against the king of Babylon.

⁷But there was another great eagle with great wings and many feathers. And behold, this vine bent its roots toward him. It stretched out its branches to him from its planting bed, so that he might water it.

¹³But I will spread My net over him, and he will be caught in My snare. I will bring him to Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans; yet he will not see it, and there he will die.

¹¹Then he put out Zedekiah’s eyes, bound him with bronze shackles, and took him to Babylon, where he kept him in custody until his dying day.

²But if you refuse to let them go, I will plague your whole country with frogs.

¹⁷Then the king of Babylon made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin’s uncle, king in his place and changed his name to Zedekiah.

⁷Then he put out Zedekiah’s eyes and bound him with bronze chains to take him to Babylon.

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.

⁷“This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says that you are to tell the king of Judah, who sent you to Me: Behold, Pharaoh’s army, which has marched out to help you, will go back to its own land of Egypt.

⁶Look now, you are trusting in Egypt, that splintered reed of a staff that will pierce the hand of anyone who leans on it. Such is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust in him.

²Then lay siege against it: Construct a siege wall, build a ramp to it, set up camps against it, and place battering rams around it on all sides.

⁶Then all the people of Egypt will know that I am the Lord. For you were only a staff of reeds to the house of Israel.

⁷When Israel took hold of you with their hands, you splintered, tearing all their shoulders; when they leaned on you, you broke, and their backs were wrenched.

⁵Pharaoh’s army had left Egypt, and when the Chaldeans who were besieging Jerusalem heard the report, they withdrew from Jerusalem.

⁴So in the ninth year of Zedekiah’s reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon marched against Jerusalem with his entire army. They encamped outside the city and built a siege wall all around it.

²⁴All the officials and mighty men, as well as all of King David’s sons, pledged their allegiance to King Solomon.

⁸Now do not stiffen your necks as your fathers did. Submit to the Lord and come to His sanctuary, which He has consecrated forever. Serve the Lord your God, so that His fierce anger will turn away from you.

⁶We submitted to Egypt and Assyria to get enough bread.

²Although they say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives,’ they are swearing falsely.”

⁹Should I not punish them for these things?” declares the Lord. “Should I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?

¹¹You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not leave anyone unpunished who takes His name in vain.

²³It will seem like a false omen to the eyes of those who have sworn allegiance to him, but it will draw attention to their guilt and take them captive.

²⁴Therefore this is what the Lord God says: ‘Because you have drawn attention to your guilt, exposing your transgressions, so that your sins are revealed in all your deeds—because you have come to remembrance—you shall be taken in hand.

⁹Will you steal and murder, commit adultery and perjury, burn incense to Baal, and follow other gods that you have not known,

¹⁰and then come and stand before Me in this house, which bears My Name, and say, ‘We are delivered, so we can continue with all these abominations’?

¹³But I will spread My net over him, and he will be caught in My snare. I will bring him to Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans; yet he will not see it, and there he will die.

³This is what the Lord God says: ‘I will spread My net over you with a company of many peoples, and they will draw you up in My net.

³⁵And I will bring you into the wilderness of the nations, where I will enter into judgment with you face to face.

³⁶Just as I entered into judgment with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so I will enter into judgment with you, declares the Lord God.

³⁵you say, ‘I am innocent. Surely His anger will turn from me.’ Behold, I will judge you, because you say, ‘I have not sinned.’

²²I will execute judgment upon him with plague and bloodshed. I will pour out torrents of rain, hailstones, fire, and sulfur on him and on his troops and on the many nations with him.

⁵But the army of the Chaldeans pursued them and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho. They seized him and brought him up to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon at Riblah in the land of Hamath, where he pronounced judgment on him.

⁶There at Riblah the king of Babylon slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and he also killed all the nobles of Judah.

¹¹Then Nebuzaradan captain of the guard carried into exile the people who remained in the city, along with the deserters who had defected to the king of Babylon and the rest of the population.

⁵but the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook him in the plains of Jericho, and his whole army deserted him.

¹⁴And I will scatter to every wind all the attendants around him and all his troops, and I will draw a sword to chase after them.

¹²A third of your people will die by plague or be consumed by famine within you, a third will fall by the sword outside your walls, and a third I will scatter to every wind and unleash a sword behind them.

⁷And I will set My face against them. Though they may have escaped the fire, yet another fire will consume them. And when I set My face against them, you will know that I am the Lord.

¹I saw the Lord standing beside the altar, and He said: “Strike the tops of the pillars so that the thresholds shake. Topple them on the heads of all the people, and I will kill the rest with the sword. None of those who flee will get away; none of the fugitives will escape.

¹²And you are to tell him that this is what the Lord of Hosts says: ‘Here is a man whose name is the Branch, and He will branch out from His place and build the temple of the Lord.

¹³Yes, He will build the temple of the Lord; He will be clothed in splendor and will sit on His throne and rule. And He will be a priest on His throne, and there will be peaceful counsel between the two.’

²He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no stately form or majesty to attract us, no beauty that we should desire Him.

¹Then a shoot will spring up from the stump of Jesse, and a Branch from his roots will bear fruit.

²The Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him—the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and strength, the Spirit of knowledge and fear of the Lord.

⁴⁰For on My holy mountain, the high mountain of Israel, declares the Lord God, there the whole house of Israel, all of them, will serve Me in the land. There I will accept them and will require your offerings and choice gifts, along with all your holy sacrifices.

⁶“I have installed My King on Zion, upon My holy mountain.”

¹⁶May there be an abundance of grain in the land; may it sway atop the hills. May its fruit trees flourish like the forests of Lebanon, the people of its cities like the grass of the field.

³²Although it is the smallest of all seeds, yet it grows into the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.”

⁶All the birds of the air nested in its branches, and all the beasts of the field gave birth beneath its boughs; all the great nations lived in its shade.

²In the last days the mountain of the house of the Lord will be established as the chief of the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and all nations will stream to it.

⁷They will return and dwell in his shade; they will grow grain and blossom like the vine. His renown will be like the wine of Lebanon.

⁵I am the vine and you are the branches. The one who remains in Me, and I in him, will bear much fruit. For apart from Me you can do nothing.

⁶If anyone does not remain in Me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers. Such branches are gathered up, thrown into the fire, and burned.

⁶In the days to come, Jacob will take root. Israel will bud and blossom and fill the whole world with fruit.

¹¹“In that day I will restore the fallen tent of David. I will repair its gaps, restore its ruins, and rebuild it as in the days of old,

²⁷But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.

²⁸He chose the lowly and despised things of the world, and the things that are not, to nullify the things that are,

¹⁴I, the Lord, have spoken; the time is coming, and I will act. I will not refrain or show pity, nor will I relent. I will judge you according to your ways and deeds,’ declares the Lord God.”

⁵²He has brought down rulers from their thrones, but has exalted the humble.

⁵³He has filled the hungry with good things, but has sent the rich away empty.

⁵For He has humbled those who dwell on high; He lays the lofty city low. He brings it down to the ground; He casts it into the dust.

²⁶This is what the Lord God says: ‘Remove the turban, and take off the crown. Things will not remain as they are: Exalt the lowly and bring low the exalted.