Now when I passed by thee, and looked upon thee, behold, thy time was the time of love; and I spread my skirt over thee, and covered thy nakedness: yea, I sware unto thee, and entered into a covenant with thee, saith the Lord God, and thou becamest mine.

Then washed I thee with water; yea, I throughly washed away thy blood from thee, and I anointed thee with oil.

10 I clothed thee also with broidered work, and shod thee with badgers' skin, and I girded thee about with fine linen, and I covered thee with silk.

11 I decked thee also with ornaments, and I put bracelets upon thy hands, and a chain on thy neck.

12 And I put a jewel on thy forehead, and earrings in thine ears, and a beautiful crown upon thine head.

13 Thus wast thou decked with gold and silver; and thy raiment was of fine linen, and silk, and broidered work; thou didst eat fine flour, and honey, and oil: and thou wast exceeding beautiful, and thou didst prosper into a kingdom.

14 And thy renown went forth among the heathen for thy beauty: for it was perfect through my comeliness, which I had put upon thee, saith the Lord God.

15 But thou didst trust in thine own beauty, and playedst the harlot because of thy renown, and pouredst out thy fornications on every one that passed by; his it was.

16 And of thy garments thou didst take, and deckedst thy high places with divers colours, and playedst the harlot thereupon: the like things shall not come, neither shall it be so.

17 Thou hast also taken thy fair jewels of my gold and of my silver, which I had given thee, and madest to thyself images of men, and didst commit whoredom with them,

18 And tookest thy broidered garments, and coveredst them: and thou hast set mine oil and mine incense before them.

19 My meat also which I gave thee, fine flour, and oil, and honey, wherewith I fed thee, thou hast even set it before them for a sweet savour: and thus it was, saith the Lord God.

20 Moreover thou hast taken thy sons and thy daughters, whom thou hast borne unto me, and these hast thou sacrificed unto them to be devoured. Is this of thy whoredoms a small matter,

21 That thou hast slain my children, and delivered them to cause them to pass through the fire for them?

22 And in all thine abominations and thy whoredoms thou hast not remembered the days of thy youth, when thou wast naked and bare, and wast polluted in thy blood.

23 And it came to pass after all thy wickedness, (woe, woe unto thee! saith the Lord God;)

24 That thou hast also built unto thee an eminent place, and hast made thee an high place in every street.

25 Thou hast built thy high place at every head of the way, and hast made thy beauty to be abhorred, and hast opened thy feet to every one that passed by, and multiplied thy whoredoms.

26 Thou hast also committed fornication with the Egyptians thy neighbours, great of flesh; and hast increased thy whoredoms, to provoke me to anger.

27 Behold, therefore I have stretched out my hand over thee, and have diminished thine ordinary food, and delivered thee unto the will of them that hate thee, the daughters of the Philistines, which are ashamed of thy lewd way.

28 Thou hast played the whore also with the Assyrians, because thou wast unsatiable; yea, thou hast played the harlot with them, and yet couldest not be satisfied.

29 Thou hast moreover multiplied thy fornication in the land of Canaan unto Chaldea; and yet thou wast not satisfied therewith.

30 How weak is thine heart, saith the Lord God, seeing thou doest all these things, the work of an imperious whorish woman;

31 In that thou buildest thine eminent place in the head of every way, and makest thine high place in every street; and hast not been as an harlot, in that thou scornest hire;

32 But as a wife that committeth adultery, which taketh strangers instead of her husband!

33 They give gifts to all whores: but thou givest thy gifts to all thy lovers, and hirest them, that they may come unto thee on every side for thy whoredom.

34 And the contrary is in thee from other women in thy whoredoms, whereas none followeth thee to commit whoredoms: and in that thou givest a reward, and no reward is given unto thee, therefore thou art contrary.

35 Wherefore, O harlot, hear the word of the Lord:

36 Thus saith the Lord God; Because thy filthiness was poured out, and thy nakedness discovered through thy whoredoms with thy lovers, and with all the idols of thy abominations, and by the blood of thy children, which thou didst give unto them;

37 Behold, therefore I will gather all thy lovers, with whom thou hast taken pleasure, and all them that thou hast loved, with all them that thou hast hated; I will even gather them round about against thee, and will discover thy nakedness unto them, that they may see all thy nakedness.

38 And I will judge thee, as women that break wedlock and shed blood are judged; and I will give thee blood in fury and jealousy.

Read full chapter

“‘Later I passed by, and when I looked at you and saw that you were old enough for love, I spread the corner of my garment(A) over you and covered your naked body. I gave you my solemn oath and entered into a covenant(B) with you, declares the Sovereign Lord, and you became mine.(C)

“‘I bathed you with water and washed(D) the blood from you and put ointments on you. 10 I clothed you with an embroidered(E) dress and put sandals of fine leather on you. I dressed you in fine linen(F) and covered you with costly garments.(G) 11 I adorned you with jewelry:(H) I put bracelets(I) on your arms and a necklace(J) around your neck, 12 and I put a ring on your nose,(K) earrings(L) on your ears and a beautiful crown(M) on your head.(N) 13 So you were adorned with gold and silver; your clothes(O) were of fine linen and costly fabric and embroidered cloth. Your food was honey, olive oil(P) and the finest flour. You became very beautiful and rose to be a queen.(Q) 14 And your fame(R) spread among the nations on account of your beauty,(S) because the splendor I had given you made your beauty perfect, declares the Sovereign Lord.(T)

15 “‘But you trusted in your beauty and used your fame to become a prostitute. You lavished your favors on anyone who passed by(U) and your beauty became his.(V) 16 You took some of your garments to make gaudy high places,(W) where you carried on your prostitution.(X) You went to him, and he possessed your beauty.[a] 17 You also took the fine jewelry I gave you, the jewelry made of my gold and silver, and you made for yourself male idols and engaged in prostitution with them.(Y) 18 And you took your embroidered clothes to put on them, and you offered my oil and incense(Z) before them. 19 Also the food I provided for you—the flour, olive oil and honey I gave you to eat—you offered as fragrant incense before them. That is what happened, declares the Sovereign Lord.(AA)

20 “‘And you took your sons and daughters(AB) whom you bore to me(AC) and sacrificed them as food to the idols. Was your prostitution not enough?(AD) 21 You slaughtered my children and sacrificed them to the idols.(AE) 22 In all your detestable practices and your prostitution you did not remember the days of your youth,(AF) when you were naked and bare,(AG) kicking about in your blood.(AH)

23 “‘Woe!(AI) Woe to you, declares the Sovereign Lord. In addition to all your other wickedness, 24 you built a mound for yourself and made a lofty shrine(AJ) in every public square.(AK) 25 At every street corner(AL) you built your lofty shrines and degraded your beauty, spreading your legs with increasing promiscuity to anyone who passed by.(AM) 26 You engaged in prostitution(AN) with the Egyptians,(AO) your neighbors with large genitals, and aroused my anger(AP) with your increasing promiscuity.(AQ) 27 So I stretched out my hand(AR) against you and reduced your territory; I gave you over(AS) to the greed of your enemies, the daughters of the Philistines,(AT) who were shocked by your lewd conduct. 28 You engaged in prostitution with the Assyrians(AU) too, because you were insatiable; and even after that, you still were not satisfied.(AV) 29 Then you increased your promiscuity to include Babylonia,[b](AW) a land of merchants, but even with this you were not satisfied.(AX)

30 “‘I am filled with fury against you,[c] declares the Sovereign Lord, when you do all these things, acting like a brazen prostitute!(AY) 31 When you built your mounds at every street corner and made your lofty shrines(AZ) in every public square, you were unlike a prostitute, because you scorned payment.

32 “‘You adulterous wife! You prefer strangers to your own husband! 33 All prostitutes receive gifts,(BA) but you give gifts(BB) to all your lovers, bribing them to come to you from everywhere for your illicit favors.(BC) 34 So in your prostitution you are the opposite of others; no one runs after you for your favors. You are the very opposite, for you give payment and none is given to you.

35 “‘Therefore, you prostitute, hear the word of the Lord! 36 This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because you poured out your lust and exposed your naked body in your promiscuity with your lovers, and because of all your detestable idols, and because you gave them your children’s blood,(BD) 37 therefore I am going to gather all your lovers, with whom you found pleasure, those you loved as well as those you hated. I will gather them against you from all around and will strip(BE) you in front of them, and they will see you stark naked.(BF) 38 I will sentence you to the punishment of women who commit adultery and who shed blood;(BG) I will bring on you the blood vengeance of my wrath and jealous anger.(BH)

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 16:16 The meaning of the Hebrew for this sentence is uncertain.
  2. Ezekiel 16:29 Or Chaldea
  3. Ezekiel 16:30 Or How feverish is your heart,

“When I passed by you again and looked upon you, indeed your time was the time of love; (A)so I spread [a]My wing over you and covered your nakedness. Yes, I (B)swore an oath to you and entered into a (C)covenant with you, and (D)you became Mine,” says the Lord God.

“Then I washed you in water; yes, I thoroughly washed off your blood, and I anointed you with oil. 10 I clothed you in embroidered cloth and gave you sandals of [b]badger skin; I clothed you with fine linen and covered you with silk. 11 I adorned you with ornaments, (E)put bracelets on your wrists, (F)and a chain on your neck. 12 And I put a [c]jewel in your nose, earrings in your ears, and a beautiful crown on your head. 13 Thus you were adorned with gold and silver, and your clothing was of fine linen, silk, and embroidered cloth. (G)You ate pastry of fine flour, honey, and oil. You were exceedingly (H)beautiful, and succeeded to royalty. 14 (I)Your fame went out among the nations because of your beauty, for it was perfect through My splendor which I had bestowed on you,” says the Lord God.

Jerusalem’s Harlotry

15 (J)“But you trusted in your own beauty, (K)played the harlot because of your fame, and poured out your harlotry on everyone passing by who would have it. 16 (L)You took some of your garments and adorned multicolored [d]high places for yourself, and played the harlot on them. Such things should not happen, nor be. 17 You have also taken your beautiful jewelry from My gold and My silver, which I had given you, and made for yourself male images and played the harlot with them. 18 You took your embroidered garments and covered them, and you set My oil and My incense before them. 19 Also (M)My food which I gave you—the pastry of fine flour, oil, and honey which I fed you—you set it before them as [e]sweet incense; and so it was,” says the Lord God.

20 (N)“Moreover you took your sons and your daughters, whom you bore to Me, and these you sacrificed to them to be devoured. Were your acts of harlotry a small matter, 21 that you have slain My children and offered them up to them by causing them to pass through the (O)fire? 22 And in all your abominations and acts of harlotry you did not remember the days of your (P)youth, (Q)when you were naked and bare, struggling in your blood.

23 “Then it was so, after all your wickedness—‘Woe, woe to you!’ says the Lord God 24 that (R)you also built for yourself a shrine, and (S)made a [f]high place for yourself in every street. 25 You built your high places (T)at the head of every road, and made your beauty to be abhorred. You offered yourself to everyone who passed by, and multiplied your acts of harlotry. 26 You also committed harlotry with (U)the Egyptians, your very fleshly neighbors, and increased your acts of harlotry to (V)provoke Me to anger.

27 “Behold, therefore, I stretched out My hand against you, diminished your [g]allotment, and gave you up to the will of those who hate you, (W)the daughters of the Philistines, who were ashamed of your lewd behavior. 28 You also played the harlot with the (X)Assyrians, because you were insatiable; indeed you played the harlot with them and still were not satisfied. 29 Moreover you multiplied your acts of harlotry as far as the land of the trader, (Y)Chaldea; and even then you were not satisfied.

30 “How degenerate is your heart!” says the Lord God, “seeing you do all these things, the deeds of a brazen harlot.

Jerusalem’s Adultery

31 (Z)“You erected your shrine at the head of every road, and built your [h]high place in every street. Yet you were not like a harlot, because you scorned (AA)payment. 32 You are an adulterous wife, who takes strangers instead of her husband. 33 Men make payment to all harlots, but (AB)you made your payments to all your lovers, and [i]hired them to come to you from all around for your harlotry. 34 You are the opposite of other women in your harlotry, because no one solicited you to be a harlot. In that you gave payment but no payment was given you, therefore you are the opposite.”

Jerusalem’s Lovers Will Abuse Her

35 ‘Now then, O harlot, hear the word of the Lord! 36 Thus says the Lord God: “Because your filthiness was poured out and your nakedness uncovered in your harlotry with your lovers, and with all your abominable idols, and because of (AC)the blood of your children which you gave to them, 37 surely, therefore, (AD)I will gather all your lovers with whom you took pleasure, all those you loved, and all those you hated; I will gather them from all around against you and will uncover your nakedness to them, that they may see all your nakedness. 38 And I will judge you as (AE)women who break wedlock or (AF)shed blood are judged; I will bring blood upon you in fury and jealousy.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 16:8 Or the corner of My garment
  2. Ezekiel 16:10 Or dolphin or dugong
  3. Ezekiel 16:12 Lit. ring
  4. Ezekiel 16:16 Places for pagan worship
  5. Ezekiel 16:19 Or a sweet aroma
  6. Ezekiel 16:24 Place for pagan worship
  7. Ezekiel 16:27 Allowance of food
  8. Ezekiel 16:31 Place for pagan worship
  9. Ezekiel 16:33 Or bribed

Go and cry in the ears of Jerusalem, saying, Thus saith the Lord; I remember thee, the kindness of thy youth, the love of thine espousals, when thou wentest after me in the wilderness, in a land that was not sown.

Read full chapter

“Go and proclaim in the hearing of Jerusalem:

“This is what the Lord says:

“‘I remember the devotion of your youth,(A)
    how as a bride you loved me
and followed me through the wilderness,(B)
    through a land not sown.

Read full chapter

“Go and cry in the hearing of Jerusalem, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord:

“I remember you,
The kindness of your (A)youth,
The love of your betrothal,
(B)When you [a]went after Me in the wilderness,
In a land not sown.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 2:2 followed

14 Turn, O backsliding children, saith the Lord; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion:

Read full chapter

14 “Return,(A) faithless people,” declares the Lord, “for I am your husband.(B) I will choose you—one from a town and two from a clan—and bring you to Zion.

Read full chapter

14 “Return, O backsliding children,” says the Lord; (A)“for I am married to you. I will take you, (B)one from a city and two from a family, and I will bring you to (C)Zion.

Read full chapter