⁴¹ you sat on a stately couch, with a table spread before it on which you had placed my incense and my oil.^(A)

² Mortal, there were two women, the daughters of one mother; ³ they prostituted themselves in Egypt; they prostituted themselves in their youth; their breasts were caressed there, and their virgin bosoms were fondled.^{(A) 4} Oholah was the name of the older and Oholibah the name of her sister. They became mine, and they bore sons and daughters. As for their names, Oholah is Samaria, and Oholibah is Jerusalem.^(B)

⁵ Oholah prostituted herself while she was mine; she lusted after her lovers the Assyrians, warriors^{[a](C) 6} clothed in blue, governors and commanders, all of them handsome young men, mounted horsemen. ⁷ She bestowed her sexual favors upon them, the choicest men of Assyria all of them, and she defiled herself with all the idols of everyone for whom she lusted.^{(D) 8} She did not give up her prostitutions that she had practiced since Egypt, for in her youth men had lain with her and fondled her virgin bosom and poured out their lust upon her.^{(E) 9} Therefore I delivered her into the hands of her lovers, into the hands of the Assyrians, for whom she lusted.^{(F) 10} These uncovered her nakedness; they seized her sons and her daughters, and they killed her with the sword. Judgment was executed upon her, and she became a byword among women.^(G)

¹¹ Her sister Oholibah saw this, yet she was more corrupt than she in her lusting and in her prostitutions, which were worse than those of her sister.^{(H) 12} She lusted after the Assyrians, governors and commanders, warriors^[b] clothed in full armor, mounted horsemen, all of them handsome young men.^{(I) 13} And I saw that she was defiled; they both took the same way. ¹⁴ But she carried her prostitutions further; she saw male figures carved on the wall, images of the Chaldeans portrayed in vermilion,^{(J) 15} with belts around their waists, with flowing turbans on their heads, all of them looking like officers—a picture of Babylonians whose native land was Chaldea. ¹⁶ When she saw them she lusted after them and sent messengers to them in Chaldea. ¹⁷ And the Babylonians came to her into the bed of love, and they defiled her with their lust, and after she defiled herself with them, she turned from them in disgust. ¹⁸ When she carried on her prostitutions so openly and flaunted her nakedness, I turned in disgust from her, as I had turned from her sister.^{(K) 19} Yet she increased her prostitutions, remembering the days of her youth, when she prostituted herself in the land of Egypt ²⁰ and lusted after her paramours there, whose members were like those of donkeys and whose emission was like that of stallions.^(L)

³² Adulterous wife who receives strangers instead of her husband!

²⁵ at the head of every street you built your lofty place and prostituted your beauty, offering yourself^[a] to every passer-by and multiplying your prostitution.^{(A) 26} You prostituted yourself with the Egyptians, your lustful neighbors,^[b] multiplying your prostitution, to provoke me to anger.^{(B) 27} Therefore I stretched out my hand against you, reduced your rations, and gave you up to the will of your enemies, the daughters of the Philistines, who were ashamed of your lewd behavior.^{(C) 28} You prostituted yourself with the Assyrians because you were insatiable; you prostituted yourself with them, and still you were not satisfied.^(D)

⁸ Then he said to me, “Mortal, dig through the wall,” and when I dug through the wall, there was an entrance. ⁹ He said to me, “Go in and see the vile abominations that they are committing here.” ¹⁰ So I went in and looked; there, portrayed on the wall all around, were all kinds of creeping things and loathsome animals and all the idols of the house of Israel.^{(A) 11} Before them stood seventy of the elders of the house of Israel, with Jaazaniah son of Shaphan standing among them. Each had his censer in his hand, and the fragrant cloud of incense was ascending.^{(B) 12} Then he said to me, “Mortal, have you seen what the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the dark, each in his room of images? For they say, ‘The Lord does not see us; the Lord has forsaken the land.’ ”