1The word of the LORD came again unto me, saying,2Son of man, there were two women, the daughters of one mother:3And they committed whoredoms in Egypt; they committed whoredoms in their youth: there were their breasts pressed, and there they bruised the teats of their virginity.4And the names of them were Aholah the elder, and Aholibah her sister: and they were mine, and they bare sons and daughters. Thus were their names; Samaria is Aholah, and Jerusalem Aholibah.5And Aholah played the harlot when she was mine; and she doted on her lovers, on the Assyrians her neighbours,6Which were clothed with blue, captains and rulers, all of them desirable young men, horsemen riding upon horses.7Thus she committed her whoredoms with them, with all them that were the chosen men of Assyria, and with all on whom she doted: with all their idols she defiled herself.8Neither left she her whoredoms brought from Egypt: for in her youth they lay with her, and they bruised the breasts of her virginity, and poured their whoredom upon her.9Wherefore I have delivered her into the hand of her lovers, into the hand of the Assyrians, upon whom she doted.10These discovered her nakedness: they took her sons and her daughters, and slew her with the sword: and she became famous among women; for they had executed judgment upon her.11And when her sister Aholibah saw this , she was more corrupt in her inordinate love than she, and in her whoredoms more than her sister in her whoredoms.12She doted upon the Assyrians her neighbours, captains and rulers clothed most gorgeously, horsemen riding upon horses, all of them desirable young men.13Then I saw that she was defiled, that they took both one way,14And that she increased her whoredoms: for when she saw men pourtrayed upon the wall, the images of the Chaldeans pourtrayed with vermilion,15Girded with girdles upon their loins, exceeding in dyed attire upon their heads, all of them princes to look to, after the manner of the Babylonians of Chaldea, the land of their nativity:16And as soon as she saw them with her eyes, she doted upon them, and sent messengers unto them into Chaldea.17And the Babylonians came to her into the bed of love, and they defiled her with their whoredom, and she was polluted with them, and her mind was alienated from them.18So she discovered her whoredoms, and discovered her nakedness: then my mind was alienated from her, like as my mind was alienated from her sister.19Yet she multiplied her whoredoms, in calling to remembrance the days of her youth, wherein she had played the harlot in the land of Egypt.20For she doted upon their paramours, whose flesh is as the flesh of asses, and whose issue is like the issue of horses.21Thus thou calledst to remembrance the lewdness of thy youth, in bruising thy teats by the Egyptians for the paps of thy youth.22Therefore, O Aholibah, thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will raise up thy lovers against thee, from whom thy mind is alienated, and I will bring them against thee on every side;23The Babylonians, and all the Chaldeans, Pekod, and Shoa, and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them: all of them desirable young men, captains and rulers, great lords and renowned, all of them riding upon horses.24And they shall come against thee with chariots, wagons, and wheels, and with an assembly of people, which shall set against thee buckler and shield and helmet round about: and I will set judgment before them, and they shall judge thee according to their judgments.25And I will set my jealousy against thee, and they shall deal furiously with thee: they shall take away thy nose and thine ears; and thy remnant shall fall by the sword: they shall take thy sons and thy daughters; and thy residue shall be devoured by the fire.26They shall also strip thee out of thy clothes, and take away thy fair jewels.27Thus will I make thy lewdness to cease from thee, and thy whoredom brought from the land of Egypt: so that thou shalt not lift up thine eyes unto them, nor remember Egypt any more.28For thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will deliver thee into the hand of them whom thou hatest, into the hand of them from whom thy mind is alienated:29And they shall deal with thee hatefully, and shall take away all thy labour, and shall leave thee naked and bare: and the nakedness of thy whoredoms shall be discovered, both thy lewdness and thy whoredoms.30I will do these things unto thee, because thou hast gone a whoring after the heathen, and because thou art polluted with their idols.31Thou hast walked in the way of thy sister; therefore will I give her cup into thine hand.32Thus saith the Lord GOD; Thou shalt drink of thy sister' cup deep and large: thou shalt be laughed to scorn and had in derision; it containeth much.33Thou shalt be filled with drunkenness and sorrow, with the cup of astonishment and desolation, with the cup of thy sister Samaria.34Thou shalt even drink it and suck it out, and thou shalt break the sherds thereof, and pluck off thine own breasts: for I have spoken it , saith the Lord GOD.35Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because thou hast forgotten me, and cast me behind thy back, therefore bear thou also thy lewdness and thy whoredoms.36The LORD said moreover unto me; Son of man, wilt thou judge Aholah and Aholibah? yea, declare unto them their abominations;37That they have committed adultery, and blood is in their hands, and with their idols have they committed adultery, and have also caused their sons, whom they bare unto me, to pass for them through the fire , to devour them .38Moreover this they have done unto me: they have defiled my sanctuary in the same day, and have profaned my sabbaths.39For when they had slain their children to their idols, then they came the same day into my sanctuary to profane it; and, lo, thus have they done in the midst of mine house.40And furthermore, that ye have sent for men to come from far, unto whom a messenger was sent; and, lo, they came: for whom thou didst wash thyself, paintedst thy eyes, and deckedst thyself with ornaments,41And satest upon a stately bed, and a table prepared before it, whereupon thou hast set mine incense and mine oil.42And a voice of a multitude being at ease was with her: and with the men of the common sort were brought Sabeans from the wilderness, which put bracelets upon their hands, and beautiful crowns upon their heads.43Then said I unto her that was old in adulteries, Will they now commit whoredoms with her, and she with them ?44Yet they went in unto her, as they go in unto a woman that playeth the harlot: so went they in unto Aholah and unto Aholibah, the lewd women.45And the righteous men, they shall judge them after the manner of adulteresses, and after the manner of women that shed blood; because they are adulteresses, and blood is in their hands.46For thus saith the Lord GOD; I will bring up a company upon them, and will give them to be removed and spoiled.47And the company shall stone them with stones, and dispatch them with their swords; they shall slay their sons and their daughters, and burn up their houses with fire.48Thus will I cause lewdness to cease out of the land, that all women may be taught not to do after your lewdness.49And they shall recompense your lewdness upon you, and ye shall bear the sins of your idols: and ye shall know that I am the Lord GOD.
Ezekiel 23
English Standard Version
Oholah and Oholibah
1The word of the Lord came to me:2“Son of man, there were two women, the daughters of one mother. (Eze 2:1; Eze 16:45)3They played the whore in Egypt; they played the whore in their youth; there their breasts were pressed and their virgin bosoms[1] handled. (Eze 16:15; Eze 16:22)4Oholah was the name of the elder 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. (Eze 16:8; Eze 16:46; Eze 23:37)5“Oholah played the whore while she was mine, and she lusted after her lovers the Assyrians, warriors (Nu 5:19; 2Ki 15:19; 2Ki 17:3; Ho 2:5; Ho 8:9)6clothed in purple, governors and commanders, all of them desirable young men, horsemen riding on horses. (Isa 5:28; Eze 23:23; Eze 38:15)7She bestowed her whoring upon them, the choicest men of Assyria all of them, and she defiled herself with all the idols of everyone after whom she lusted.8She did not give up her whoring that she had begun in Egypt; for in her youth men had lain with her and handled her virgin bosom and poured out their whoring lust upon her. (Eze 23:3; Eze 23:19)9Therefore I delivered her into the hands of her lovers, into the hands of the Assyrians, after whom she lusted. (2Ki 15:29; 2Ki 17:4; 2Ki 17:23; 2Ki 18:9)10These uncovered her nakedness; they seized her sons and her daughters; and as for her, they killed her with the sword; and she became a byword among women, when judgment had been executed on her. (Eze 5:8; Eze 16:14; Eze 16:37; Eze 23:25; Eze 23:29)11“Her sister Oholibah saw this, and she became more corrupt than her sister[2] in her lust and in her whoring, which was worse than that of her sister. (Jer 3:8; Jer 3:11; Eze 16:47)12She lusted after the Assyrians, governors and commanders, warriors clothed in full armor, horsemen riding on horses, all of them desirable young men. (Eze 23:6)13And I saw that she was defiled; they both took the same way.14But she carried her whoring further. She saw men portrayed on the wall, the images of the Chaldeans portrayed in vermilion, (2Ki 20:12; 2Ki 24:1; Eze 8:10; Eze 16:17; Eze 16:29)15wearing belts on their waists, with flowing turbans on their heads, all of them having the appearance of officers, a likeness of Babylonians whose native land was Chaldea.16When she saw them, she lusted after them and sent messengers to them in Chaldea. (Isa 57:9; Eze 23:14; Eze 23:40)17And the Babylonians came to her into the bed of love, and they defiled her with their whoring lust. And after she was defiled by them, she turned from them in disgust. (Isa 57:7; Eze 17:15; Eze 23:22; Eze 23:28; Eze 23:41)18When she carried on her whoring so openly and flaunted her nakedness, I turned in disgust from her, as I had turned in disgust from her sister.19Yet she increased her whoring, remembering the days of her youth, when she played the whore in the land of Egypt (Eze 16:15; Eze 23:3)20and lusted after her lovers there, whose members were like those of donkeys, and whose issue was like that of horses.21Thus you longed for the lewdness of your youth, when the Egyptians handled your bosom and pressed[3] your young breasts.”22Therefore, O Oholibah, thus says the Lord God: “Behold, I will stir up against you your lovers from whom you turned in disgust, and I will bring them against you from every side: (Eze 16:37; Eze 23:17)23the Babylonians and all the Chaldeans, Pekod and Shoa and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them, desirable young men, governors and commanders all of them, officers and men of renown, all of them riding on horses. (Jer 50:21; Eze 23:6; Eze 23:12)24And they shall come against you from the north[4] with chariots and wagons and a host of peoples. They shall set themselves against you on every side with buckler, shield, and helmet; and I will commit the judgment to them, and they shall judge you according to their judgments. (2Ki 19:32; 2Ki 25:6; Eze 9:5)25And I will direct my jealousy against you, that they may deal with you in fury. They shall cut off your nose and your ears, and your survivors shall fall by the sword. They shall seize your sons and your daughters, and your survivors shall be devoured by fire. (Eze 23:10; Eze 23:29)26They shall also strip you of your clothes and take away your beautiful jewels. (Eze 16:39)27Thus I will put an end to your lewdness and your whoring begun in the land of Egypt, so that you shall not lift up your eyes to them or remember Egypt anymore. (Eze 16:41; Eze 23:3; Eze 23:19; Eze 23:48)28“For thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will deliver you into the hands of those whom you hate, into the hands of those from whom you turned in disgust, (Eze 16:37; Eze 23:17; Eze 23:22)29and they shall deal with you in hatred and take away all the fruit of your labor and leave you naked and bare, and the nakedness of your whoring shall be uncovered. Your lewdness and your whoring (Eze 16:7; Eze 16:22; Eze 16:37; Eze 16:39; Eze 23:10; Eze 23:25)30have brought this upon you, because you played the whore with the nations and defiled yourself with their idols. (Ex 34:15; Eze 6:9)31You have gone the way of your sister; therefore I will give her cup into your hand. (Jer 25:15; Eze 23:9)32Thus says the Lord God: “You shall drink your sister’s cup that is deep and large; you shall be laughed at and held in derision, for it contains much;33you will be filled with drunkenness and sorrow. A cup of horror and desolation, the cup of your sister Samaria; (Isa 51:17; Jer 13:13; Eze 23:4; Re 14:10)34you shall drink it and drain it out, and gnaw its shards, and tear your breasts; for I have spoken, declares the Lord God. (Ps 75:8)35Therefore thus says the Lord God: Because you have forgotten me and cast me behind your back, you yourself must bear the consequences of your lewdness and whoring.” (1Ki 14:9; Jer 2:32; Eze 14:10; Eze 16:58; Eze 22:12; Eze 23:49)36The Lord said to me: “Son of man, will you judge Oholah and Oholibah? Declare to them their abominations. (Eze 2:1; Eze 20:4; Eze 22:2)37For they have committed adultery, and blood is on their hands. With their idols they have committed adultery, and they have even offered up[5] to them for food the children whom they had borne to me. (Eze 7:23; Eze 16:20; Eze 16:38; Eze 22:2)38Moreover, this they have done to me: they have defiled my sanctuary on the same day and profaned my Sabbaths. (Eze 5:11; Eze 20:13)39For when they had slaughtered their children in sacrifice to their idols, on the same day they came into my sanctuary to profane it. And behold, this is what they did in my house. (2Ki 21:4; Jer 23:11; Eze 16:20; Eze 16:36; Eze 23:37; Eze 44:7)40They even sent for men to come from afar, to whom a messenger was sent; and behold, they came. For them you bathed yourself, painted your eyes, and adorned yourself with ornaments. (2Ki 9:30; Jer 4:30; Eze 16:11; Eze 23:16)41You sat on a stately couch, with a table spread before it on which you had placed my incense and my oil. (Es 1:6; Pr 7:17; Eze 16:18; Ho 2:8)42The sound of a carefree multitude was with her; and with men of the common sort, drunkards[6] were brought from the wilderness; and they put bracelets on the hands of the women, and beautiful crowns on their heads. (Isa 22:2; Eze 16:11; Eze 16:12)43“Then I said of her who was worn out by adultery, ‘Now they will continue to use her for a whore, even her!’[7]44For they have gone in to her, as men go in to a prostitute. Thus they went in to Oholah and to Oholibah, lewd women!45But righteous men shall pass judgment on them with the sentence of adulteresses, and with the sentence of women who shed blood, because they are adulteresses, and blood is on their hands.” (Eze 16:38; Eze 23:24)46For thus says the Lord God: “Bring up a vast host against them, and make them an object of terror and a plunder. (De 28:25; Eze 7:21; Eze 16:40)47And the host shall stone them and cut them down with their swords. They shall kill their sons and their daughters, and burn up their houses. (Jos 7:24; 2Ch 36:17; 2Ch 36:19; Eze 16:40; Eze 24:21)48Thus will I put an end to lewdness in the land, that all women may take warning and not commit lewdness as you have done. (Eze 16:41; Eze 23:27)49And they shall return your lewdness upon you, and you shall bear the penalty for your sinful idolatry, and you shall know that I am the Lord God.” (Eze 6:7; Eze 23:35)