11 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 12 “Say now to (A)the rebellious house, (B)Do you not know what these things mean? Tell them, behold, (C)the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem, and took her king and her princes and brought them to him to Babylon. 13 (D)And he took one of the royal offspring[a] (E)and made a covenant with him, (F)putting him under oath ((G)the chief men of the land he had taken away), 14 that the kingdom might be humble and not lift itself up, and keep his covenant that it might stand. 15 (H)But he rebelled against him by sending his ambassadors (I)to Egypt, that they might give him horses and a large army. (J)Will he thrive? Can one escape who does such things? Can he (K)break the covenant and yet escape?

16 (L)“As I live, declares the Lord God, surely (M)in the place where the king dwells (N)who made him king, whose oath he despised, and whose covenant with him he broke, in Babylon he shall die. 17 (O)Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company will not help him in war, (P)when mounds are cast up and siege walls built to cut off many lives. 18 He despised the oath in breaking the covenant, and behold, he gave his hand and did all these things; he shall not escape. 19 Therefore thus says the Lord God: As I live, surely it is my oath that he despised, and my covenant that he broke. I will return it upon his head. 20 (Q)I will spread my net over him, and he shall be taken in my snare, and I will bring him to Babylon (R)and enter into judgment with him there (S)for the treachery he has committed against me. 21 And all the pick[b] of his troops shall fall by the sword, (T)and the survivors shall be scattered to every wind, and you shall know that (U)I am the Lord; I have spoken.”

22 Thus says the Lord God: (V)“I myself will take a sprig from the lofty top of the cedar and will set it out. (W)I will break off from the topmost of its young twigs a tender one, and (X)I myself will plant it on a high and lofty mountain. 23 (Y)On the mountain height of Israel will I plant it, that it may bear branches and produce fruit and become a noble cedar. (Z)And under it will dwell every kind of bird; in the shade of its branches birds of every sort will nest. 24 And all the trees of the field shall know that I am the Lord; (AA)I bring low the high tree, and make high the low tree, dry up (AB)the green tree, and make (AC)the dry tree flourish. (AD)I am the Lord; I have spoken, and I will do it.”

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Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 17:13 Hebrew seed
  2. Ezekiel 17:21 Some Hebrew manuscripts, Syriac, Targum; most Hebrew manuscripts all the fugitives

11 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 12 “Say to this rebellious people, ‘Do you not know what these things mean?(A)’ Say to them: ‘The king of Babylon went to Jerusalem and carried off her king and her nobles,(B) bringing them back with him to Babylon.(C) 13 Then he took a member of the royal family and made a treaty(D) with him, putting him under oath.(E) He also carried away the leading men(F) of the land, 14 so that the kingdom would be brought low,(G) unable to rise again, surviving only by keeping his treaty. 15 But the king rebelled(H) against him by sending his envoys to Egypt(I) to get horses and a large army.(J) Will he succeed? Will he who does such things escape? Will he break the treaty and yet escape?(K)

16 “‘As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, he shall die(L) in Babylon, in the land of the king who put him on the throne, whose oath he despised and whose treaty he broke.(M) 17 Pharaoh(N) with his mighty army and great horde will be of no help to him in war, when ramps(O) are built and siege works erected to destroy many lives.(P) 18 He despised the oath by breaking the covenant. Because he had given his hand in pledge(Q) and yet did all these things, he shall not escape.

19 “‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: As surely as I live, I will repay him for despising my oath and breaking my covenant.(R) 20 I will spread my net(S) for him, and he will be caught in my snare. I will bring him to Babylon and execute judgment(T) on him there because he was unfaithful(U) to me. 21 All his choice troops will fall by the sword,(V) and the survivors(W) will be scattered to the winds.(X) Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken.(Y)

22 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I myself will take a shoot(Z) from the very top of a cedar and plant it; I will break off a tender sprig from its topmost shoots and plant it on a high and lofty mountain.(AA) 23 On the mountain heights(AB) of Israel I will plant it; it will produce branches and bear fruit(AC) and become a splendid cedar. Birds of every kind will nest in it; they will find shelter in the shade of its branches.(AD) 24 All the trees of the forest(AE) will know that I the Lord bring down(AF) the tall tree and make the low tree grow tall. I dry up the green tree and make the dry tree flourish.(AG)

“‘I the Lord have spoken, and I will do it.(AH)’”

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