Ezekiel

Contains visions and prophecies of judgment and restoration for Israel and the nations.

Chapter 17

1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

*And God spoke to me through his message.

2 Son of man, put forth a riddle, and speak a parable unto the house of Israel;

*Son, ask a question using a story, and talk in symbols to the people of Israel.

3 And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; A great eagle with great wings, longwinged, full of feathers, which had divers colours, came unto Lebanon, and took the highest branch of the cedar:

*And say, The Lord God says: A big eagle with large wings, long-winged and full of feathers of different colors, went to Lebanon and took the tallest branch of the cedar tree.

4 He cropped off the top of his young twigs, and carried it into a land of traffick; he set it in a city of merchants.

*He cut some branches from a young tree and took them to a busy trade area. There, he planted them in a city full of businesspeople.

5 He took also of the seed of the land, and planted it in a fruitful field; he placed it by great waters, and set it as a willow tree.

*He gathered plant seeds from the land, put them in a productive field, and positioned them near large bodies of water. He treated them like a willow tree.

6 And it grew, and became a spreading vine of low stature, whose branches turned toward him, and the roots thereof were under him: so it became a vine, and brought forth branches, and shot forth sprigs.

*The vine grew large with many branches that faced towards it. Its roots were beneath it. It became a strong vine producing more branches and little shoots.

7 There was also another great eagle with great wings and many feathers: and, behold, this vine did bend her roots toward him, and shot forth her branches toward him, that he might water it by the furrows of her plantation.

*Another big eagle with large wings and lots of feathers appeared. This vine grew its roots towards the eagle and extended its branches to him. It did this so the eagle could water it using the channels made while planting the vine.

8 It was planted in a good soil by great waters, that it might bring forth branches, and that it might bear fruit, that it might be a goodly vine.

*It was planted in rich soil near big rivers to grow branches and produce fruit, so it became a nice vine.

9 Say thou, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Shall it prosper? shall he not pull up the roots thereof, and cut off the fruit thereof, that it wither? it shall wither in all the leaves of her spring, even without great power or many people to pluck it up by the roots thereof.

*Say this: God says this; Will it succeed? Will he not remove its roots and cut off its fruit so it dies? It will die in all its spring leaves, even without much strength or many people to pull it up by its roots.

10 Yea, behold, being planted, shall it prosper? shall it not utterly wither, when the east wind toucheth it? it shall wither in the furrows where it grew.

*Yes, when it is planted, will it thrive? Won't it completely dry up when the east wind blows on it? It will dry up in the rows where it grew.

11 Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

*Additionally, the LORD's message reached me, stating,

12 Say now to the rebellious house, Know ye not what these things mean? tell them, Behold, the king of Babylon is come to Jerusalem, and hath taken the king thereof, and the princes thereof, and led them with him to Babylon;

*Tell the disobedient people, don't you understand what this means? Explain, the king of Babylon has arrived in Jerusalem, taken the city's king and leaders, and brought them to Babylon with him.

13 And hath taken of the king’s seed, and made a covenant with him, and hath taken an oath of him: he hath also taken the mighty of the land:

*And he has chosen from the king's descendants, made a promise with him, and sworn an oath: he has also taken the powerful people of the land.

14 That the kingdom might be base, that it might not lift itself up, but that by keeping of his covenant it might stand.

*So the kingdom would be humble, not getting proud, and only by keeping its promise, it would stay strong.

15 But he rebelled against him in sending his ambassadors into Egypt, that they might give him horses and much people. Shall he prosper? shall he escape that doeth such things? or shall he break the covenant, and be delivered?

*But he refused to listen when sending messengers to Egypt for horses and many people. Will he succeed? Can he escape after doing these things? Or will breaking the agreement save him?

16 As I live, saith the Lord GOD, surely in the place where the king dwelleth that made him king, whose oath he despised, and whose covenant he brake, even with him in the midst of Babylon he shall die.

*"I swear," says the Lord God, "in the city where the ruler lives, who put him in power, but disregarded his promise and broke their agreement, there in Babylon, he will surely die."

17 Neither shall Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company make for him in the war, by casting up mounts, and building forts, to cut off many persons:

*Pharaoh, with his strong army and large group, cannot succeed in war by creating hills and building fortresses to block many people.

18 Seeing he despised the oath by breaking the covenant, when, lo, he had given his hand, and hath done all these things, he shall not escape.

*Because he broke the agreement and didn't care about his promise, after giving his word and doing all those actions, he won't be able to avoid the consequences.

19 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; As I live, surely mine oath that he hath despised, and my covenant that he hath broken, even it will I recompense upon his own head.

*So, God says, "I swear that I will pay back what he disregarded and broke in my agreement. I will make him face the consequences himself."

20 And I will spread my net upon him, and he shall be taken in my snare, and I will bring him to Babylon, and will plead with him there for his trespass that he hath trespassed against me.

*I will set a trap for him, and he will fall into it. Then I will take him to Babylon and talk to him about the wrong he did to me there.

21 And all his fugitives with all his bands shall fall by the sword, and they that remain shall be scattered toward all winds: and ye shall know that I the LORD have spoken it.

*And everyone who runs away with his group will be killed by the sword. Those left over will be blown away by every wind. You will know that I, the Lord, said this.

22 Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will also take of the highest branch of the high cedar, and will set it; I will crop off from the top of his young twigs a tender one, and will plant it upon an high mountain and eminent:

*So says the Lord God: I will take a branch from the tallest cedar tree and place it. I will cut a small branch from its tips with tender leaves, and plant it on a high, prominent mountain.

23 In the mountain of the height of Israel will I plant it: and it shall bring forth boughs, and bear fruit, and be a goodly cedar: and under it shall dwell all fowl of every wing; in the shadow of the branches thereof shall they dwell.

*I will place this tree on a tall mountain in Israel. It will grow branches and produce fruit, becoming a beautiful cedar. All kinds of birds will live under it, finding shelter in its branches.

24 And all the trees of the field shall know that I the LORD have brought down the high tree, have exalted the low tree, have dried up the green tree, and have made the dry tree to flourish: I the LORD have spoken and have done it.

*And all the field trees will understand that I, the Lord, have lowered the big tree, raised the small tree, dried the green tree, and made the dry tree thrive. I, the Lord, said it and did it.

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