1A message from the LORD came to me. The LORD said,2‘Son of man, once there were two women. They had the same mother.3They became prostitutes in Egypt. They have been unfaithful to me since they were young. In that land they allowed their breasts to be touched. They permitted their virgin breasts to be kissed.4The older sister was named Oholah. The younger one was Oholibah. They belonged to me. Sons and daughters were born to them. Oholah stands for Samaria. And Oholibah stands for Jerusalem.5‘Oholah was unfaithful to me even while she still belonged to me. She longed for her Assyrian lovers. They included soldiers6who wore blue uniforms. They also included governors and commanders. All of them were young and handsome. They rode horses.7She gave herself as a prostitute to all Assyria’s finest warriors. She made herself impure with the statues of the gods of everyone she longed for.8She started being a prostitute in Egypt. And she never stopped. When she was young, men had sex with her. They kissed her virgin breasts. They used up all their sinful desires on her.9‘So I handed her over to her Assyrian lovers. She longed for them.10They stripped her naked. They took away her sons and daughters. And they killed her with their swords. Other women laughed when that happened. I was the one who had punished her.11‘Her sister Oholibah saw it. But her evil desire for sexual sin was worse than her sister’s.12She too longed for the men of Assyria. They included governors and commanders. They included soldiers who wore fancy uniforms. They also included men who rode horses. All of them were young and handsome.13I saw that she too made herself impure. So both sisters did the same evil things.14‘But Oholibah went even further with her sexual sins. She saw pictures of men drawn on a wall. They were figures of Babylonians drawn in red.15They had belts around their waists. They wore flowing turbans on their heads. All of them looked like Babylonian chariot officers. They were from the land of the Chaldeans.16As soon as she saw the pictures, she longed for the men. So she sent messengers to them in Babylon.17Then the Babylonians came to her. They went to bed with her. They had sex with her. They made her impure when they had sex with her. After they did it, she became sick of them. So she turned away from them.18She acted like a prostitute who had no shame at all. She openly showed her naked body. I became sick of what she was doing. So I turned away from her. I had also turned away from her sister.19But Oholibah offered her body to her lovers again and again. She remembered the days when she was a young prostitute in Egypt.20There she had longed for her lovers. Their private parts seemed as big as those of donkeys. And their flow of semen appeared to be as much as that of horses.21So you wanted to return to the days when you were young. You longed for the time when you first became impure in Egypt. That was when you allowed your breasts to be kissed. And you permitted your young breasts to be touched.’22So the LORD and King says, ‘Oholibah, I will stir up your lovers against you. You became sick of them. You turned away from them. But I will bring them against you from every side.23They include the Babylonians and all the Chaldeans. They include the men from Pekod, Shoa and Koa. They also include all the Assyrians. They are young and handsome. Some of them are governors and commanders. Others are chariot officers. Still others are very high officials. All of them ride horses.24So a huge army will come against you with weapons, chariots and wagons. They will take up positions against you on every side. They will carry large and small shields. They will wear helmets. I will turn you over to them to be punished. They will punish you in their own way.25I will pour out my jealous anger on you. And the army’s anger will burn against you. They will cut off your noses and ears. Some of you who are left will be killed by swords. They will take away your sons and daughters. Others of you who are left will be burned up.26The army will also strip off your clothes. They will take your fine jewellery away from you.27You became an impure prostitute in Egypt. But I will put a stop to all of that. You will no longer want to do any of it. You will not remember Egypt anymore.’28The LORD and King says, ‘I am about to hand you over to people you hate. You became sick of them. You turned away from them.29They will punish you because they hate you so much. They will take away from you everything you have worked for. They will leave you completely naked. Then everyone will see that you are a prostitute who has no shame at all. You were impure. You offered your body to your lovers again and again.30That is why you will be punished. You longed for lovers in other nations. You made yourself impure by worshipping their gods.31You did the same things your sister Oholah did. So I will put her cup in your hand. It is filled with the wine of my anger.’32The LORD and King says to Oholibah, ‘You will drink from your sister’s cup. It is large and deep. It is filled with the wine of my anger. So others will laugh at you. They will make fun of you.33You will become drunk and sad. The cup of my anger will completely destroy you. It is the same cup your sister Samaria drank from.34You will drink from it until it is empty. Then you will chew on its pieces. And you will claw at your breasts. I have spoken,’ announces the LORD and King.35So the LORD and King says, ‘You have forgotten me. You have turned your back on me. You have been impure. You have acted like a prostitute. So I will punish you.’36The LORD said to me, ‘Son of man, are you going to judge Oholah and Oholibah? Then tell them they have done many evil things. I hate those things.37They have committed adultery. Their hands are covered with the blood of the people they have murdered. They have worshipped other gods. They have not been faithful to me. They have even sacrificed their children as food to other gods. Those children belonged to me.38Here are some other things the sisters have done to me. They have made my temple “unclean”. They have misused my Sabbath days.39They have sacrificed their children to their gods. On that same day they entered my temple and made it “unclean”. That is what they have done in my house.40‘They even sent messengers to bring men from far away. When the men arrived, Oholibah took a bath. She put makeup on her eyes. She put her jewellery on.41She sat down on a beautiful couch. A table was in front of it. There she put the incense and olive oil that belonged to me.42‘The noise of a carefree crowd was all around her. Men who drink too much were brought from the desert. Other men were brought along with them. They put bracelets on the wrists of the two sisters. They put beautiful crowns on their heads.43Then I spoke about Oholibah. She was worn out by adultery. I said, “Let them use her as a prostitute. After all, that is what she is.”44So they slept with her. In fact, they slept with both of these impure women, Oholah and Oholibah. They slept with them just as men sleep with prostitutes.45But judges who are right with God will sentence the sisters to be punished. They will be punished in the same way as women who commit adultery and murder. After all, they have committed adultery. And their hands are covered with the blood of the people they have murdered.’46The LORD and King says, ‘Bring an angry crowd against the sisters. Hand them over to those who will terrify them and steal everything they have.47The crowd will kill them by throwing stones at them. They will use swords to cut them down. They will kill their sons and daughters. And they will burn down their houses.48‘So I will put an end to impurity in the land. Then all its women will be warned. They will not want to be like the sisters.49Those sisters will be punished because of the impure things they have done. They will be judged because they have worshipped other gods. Then they will know that I am the LORD and King.’
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)