Ezekiel 22:17-23:49
New King James Version
Israel in the Furnace
17 The word of the Lord came to me, saying, 18 “Son of man, (A)the house of Israel has become dross to Me; they are all bronze, tin, iron, and lead, in the midst of a (B)furnace; they have become dross from silver. 19 Therefore thus says the Lord God: ‘Because you have all become dross, therefore behold, I will gather you into the midst of Jerusalem. 20 As men gather silver, bronze, iron, lead, and tin into the midst of a furnace, to blow fire on it, to (C)melt it; so I will gather you in My anger and in My fury, and I will leave you there and melt you. 21 Yes, I will gather you and blow on you with the fire of My wrath, and you shall be melted in its midst. 22 As silver is melted in the midst of a furnace, so shall you be melted in its midst; then you shall know that I, the Lord, have (D)poured out My fury on you.’ ”
Israel’s Wicked Leaders
23 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 24 “Son of man, say to her: ‘You are a land that is (E)not [a]cleansed or rained on in the day of indignation.’ 25 (F)The conspiracy of her [b]prophets in her midst is like a roaring lion tearing the prey; they (G)have devoured [c]people; (H)they have taken treasure and precious things; they have made many widows in her midst. 26 (I)Her priests have [d]violated My law and (J)profaned My holy things; they have not (K)distinguished between the holy and unholy, nor have they made known the difference between the unclean and the clean; and they have hidden their eyes from My Sabbaths, so that I am profaned among them. 27 Her (L)princes in her midst are like wolves tearing the prey, to shed blood, to destroy [e]people, and to get dishonest gain. 28 (M)Her prophets plastered them with untempered mortar, (N)seeing false visions, and divining (O)lies for them, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord God,’ when the Lord had not spoken. 29 The people of the land have used oppressions, committed robbery, and mistreated the poor and needy; and they wrongfully (P)oppress the stranger. 30 (Q)So I sought for a man among them who would (R)make a wall, and (S)stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found no one. 31 Therefore I have (T)poured out My indignation on them; I have consumed them with the fire of My wrath; and I have recompensed (U)their deeds on their own heads,” says the Lord God.
Two Harlot Sisters
23 The word of the Lord came again to me, saying:
2 “Son of man, there were (V)two women,
The daughters of one mother.
3 (W)They committed harlotry in Egypt,
They committed harlotry in (X)their youth;
Their breasts were there embraced,
Their virgin bosom was there pressed.
4 Their names: [f]Oholah the elder and [g]Oholibah (Y)her sister;
(Z)They were Mine,
And they bore sons and daughters.
As for their names,
Samaria is Oholah, and Jerusalem is Oholibah.
The Older Sister, Samaria
5 “Oholah played the harlot even though she was Mine;
And she lusted for her lovers, the neighboring (AA)Assyrians,
6 Who were clothed in purple,
Captains and rulers,
All of them desirable young men,
Horsemen riding on horses.
7 Thus she committed her harlotry with them,
All of them choice men of Assyria;
And with all for whom she lusted,
With all their idols, she defiled herself.
8 She has never given up her harlotry brought (AB)from Egypt,
For in her youth they had lain with her,
Pressed her virgin bosom,
And poured out their immorality upon her.
9 “Therefore I have delivered her
Into the hand of her lovers,
Into the hand of the (AC)Assyrians,
For whom she lusted.
10 They uncovered her nakedness,
Took away her sons and daughters,
And slew her with the sword;
She became a byword among women,
For they had executed judgment on her.
The Younger Sister, Jerusalem
11 “Now (AD)although her sister Oholibah saw this, (AE)she became more corrupt in her lust than she, and in her harlotry more corrupt than her sister’s harlotry.
12 “She lusted for the neighboring (AF)Assyrians,
(AG)Captains and rulers,
Clothed most gorgeously,
Horsemen riding on horses,
All of them desirable young men.
13 Then I saw that she was defiled;
Both took the same way.
14 But she increased her harlotry;
She looked at men portrayed on the wall,
Images of (AH)Chaldeans portrayed in vermilion,
15 Girded with belts around their waists,
Flowing turbans on their heads,
All of them looking like captains,
In the manner of the Babylonians of Chaldea,
The land of their nativity.
16 (AI)As soon as her eyes saw them,
She lusted for them
And sent (AJ)messengers to them in Chaldea.
17 “Then the [h]Babylonians came to her, into the bed of love,
And they defiled her with their immorality;
So she was defiled by them, (AK)and alienated herself from them.
18 She revealed her harlotry and uncovered her nakedness.
Then (AL)I (AM)alienated Myself from her,
As I had alienated Myself from her sister.
19 “Yet she multiplied her harlotry
In calling to remembrance the days of her youth,
(AN)When she had played the harlot in the land of Egypt.
20 For she lusted for her [i]paramours,
Whose flesh is like the flesh of donkeys,
And whose issue is like the issue of horses.
21 Thus you called to remembrance the lewdness of your youth,
When the (AO)Egyptians pressed your bosom
Because of your youthful breasts.
Judgment on Jerusalem
22 “Therefore, Oholibah, thus says the Lord God:
(AP)‘Behold, I will stir up your lovers against you,
From whom you have alienated yourself,
And I will bring them against you from every side:
23 The Babylonians,
All the Chaldeans,
(AQ)Pekod, Shoa, Koa,
(AR)All the Assyrians with them,
All of them desirable young men,
Governors and rulers,
Captains and men of renown,
All of them riding on horses.
24 And they shall come against you
With chariots, wagons, and war-horses,
With a horde of people.
They shall array against you
Buckler, shield, and helmet all around.
‘I will delegate judgment to them,
And they shall judge you according to their judgments.
25 I will set My (AS)jealousy against you,
And they shall deal furiously with you;
They shall remove your nose and your ears,
And your remnant shall fall by the sword;
They shall take your sons and your daughters,
And your remnant shall be devoured by fire.
26 (AT)They shall also strip you of your clothes
And take away your beautiful jewelry.
27 ‘Thus (AU)I will make you cease your lewdness and your (AV)harlotry
Brought from the land of Egypt,
So that you will not lift your eyes to them,
Nor remember Egypt anymore.’
28 “For thus says the Lord God: ‘Surely I will deliver you into the hand of (AW)those you hate, into the hand of those (AX)from whom you alienated yourself. 29 (AY)They will deal hatefully with you, take away all you have worked for, and (AZ)leave you naked and bare. The nakedness of your harlotry shall be uncovered, both your lewdness and your harlotry. 30 I will do these things to you because you have (BA)gone as a harlot after the Gentiles, because you have become defiled by their idols. 31 You have walked in the way of your sister; therefore I will put her (BB)cup in your hand.’
32 “Thus says the Lord God:
‘You shall drink of your sister’s cup,
The deep and wide one;
(BC)You shall be laughed to scorn
And held in derision;
It contains much.
33 You will be filled with drunkenness and sorrow,
The cup of horror and desolation,
The cup of your sister Samaria.
34 You shall (BD)drink and drain it,
You shall break its [j]shards,
And tear at your own breasts;
For I have spoken,’
Says the Lord God.
35 “Therefore thus says the Lord God:
‘Because you (BE)have forgotten Me and (BF)cast Me behind your back,
Therefore you shall bear the penalty
Of your lewdness and your harlotry.’ ”
Both Sisters Judged
36 The Lord also said to me: “Son of man, will you (BG)judge Oholah and Oholibah? Then (BH)declare to them their abominations. 37 For they have committed adultery, and (BI)blood is on their hands. They have committed adultery with their idols, and even sacrificed their sons (BJ)whom they bore to Me, passing them through the fire, to devour them. 38 Moreover they have done this to Me: They have (BK)defiled My sanctuary on the same day and (BL)profaned My Sabbaths. 39 For after they had slain their children for their idols, on the same day they came into My sanctuary to profane it; and indeed (BM)thus they have done in the midst of My house.
40 “Furthermore you sent for men to come from afar, (BN)to whom a messenger was sent; and there they came. And you (BO)washed yourself for them, (BP)painted your eyes, and adorned yourself with ornaments. 41 You sat on a stately (BQ)couch, with a table prepared before it, (BR)on which you had set My incense and My oil. 42 The sound of a carefree multitude was with her, and [k]Sabeans were brought from the wilderness with men of the common sort, who put bracelets on their [l]wrists and beautiful crowns on their heads. 43 Then I said concerning her who had grown old in adulteries, ‘Will they commit harlotry with her now, and she with them?’ 44 Yet they went in to her, as men go in to a woman who plays the harlot; thus they went in to Oholah and Oholibah, the lewd women. 45 But righteous men will (BS)judge them after the manner of adulteresses, and after the manner of women who shed blood, because they are adulteresses, and (BT)blood is on their hands.
46 “For thus says the Lord God: (BU)‘Bring up an assembly against them, give them up to trouble and plunder. 47 (BV)The assembly shall stone them with stones and [m]execute them with their swords; (BW)they shall slay their sons and their daughters, and burn their houses with fire. 48 Thus (BX)I will cause lewdness to cease from the land, (BY)that all women may be taught not to practice your lewdness. 49 They shall repay you for your lewdness, and you shall (BZ)pay for your idolatrous sins. (CA)Then you shall know that I am the Lord God.’ ”
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 22:24 So with MT, Syr., Vg.; LXX showered upon
- Ezekiel 22:25 So with MT, Vg.; LXX princes; Tg. scribes
- Ezekiel 22:25 Lit. souls
- Ezekiel 22:26 Lit. done violence to
- Ezekiel 22:27 Lit. souls
- Ezekiel 23:4 Lit. Her Own Tabernacle
- Ezekiel 23:4 Lit. My Tabernacle Is in Her
- Ezekiel 23:17 Lit. sons of Babel
- Ezekiel 23:20 Illicit lovers
- Ezekiel 23:34 Earthenware fragments
- Ezekiel 23:42 Or drunkards
- Ezekiel 23:42 Lit. hands
- Ezekiel 23:47 Lit. cut down
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Bible Gateway Recommends
