The In-Dept Study of the Bible
Ezekiel 17
1 Yahweh’s word came to me, saying,
2 “Son of man, tell a riddle, and speak a
parable to the house of Israel;
3 and say, ‘The Lord Yahweh says: “A
great eagle with great wings and long
feathers, full of feathers which had
various colors, came to Lebanon and took the
top of the cedar.
4 He cropped off the topmost of its young
twigs, and carried it to a land of traffic. He
planted it in a city of merchants.
5 He also took some of the seed of
the land and planted it in fruitful soil. He
placed it beside many waters. He set it as a
willow tree.
6 It grew and became a spreading vine
of low stature, whose branches turned toward him,
and its roots were under him.
So it became a vine, produced branches,
and shot out sprigs.
7 There was also another great eagle with
great wings and many feathers.
Behold, this vine bent its roots toward
him, and shot outits branches toward him,
from the ground where it was planted,that
he might water it.
8 It was planted in a good soil by many
waters, that it might produce branches
and thatit might bear fruit, thatit might be
a good vine.
9 “Say, ‘The Lord Yahweh says: “Will it
prosper? Won’t he pull up its roots and cut
off its fruit, that it may wither, that all its
fresh springing leaves may wither? It can’t
be raised from its roots by a strong arm or
many people.
10 Yes, behold, being planted, will it prosper?
Won’t it utterly wither when the
east wind touches it? It will wither in the
ground where it grew.
11 Moreover Yahweh’s word came to me,
saying,
12 “Say now to the rebellious house,
‘Don’t you know what these things mean?’
Tell them, ‘Behold, the king of Babylon
came to Jerusalem, and took its king, and
its princes, and brought them to him to
Babylon.
13 He took one of the royal offspring,†
and made a covenant with him. He also
brought him under an oath, and took away
the mighty of the land,
14 that the kingdom might be brought
low, that it might not lift itself up, but that
by keeping his covenant it might stand.
15 But he rebelled against him in sending
his ambassadors into Egypt, that they
might give him horses and many people.
Will he prosper? Will he who does such
things escape? Will he break the covenant,
and still escape?
16 As I live,’ says the Lord Yahweh,
‘surely in the place where the king dwells
who made him king, whose oath he despised,
and whose covenant he broke, even with him
in the middle of Babylon he will die.
17 Pharaoh with his mighty army and
great company won’t help him in the war,
when they cast up mounds and build forts
to cut off many persons.
18 For he has despised the oath by breaking
the covenant; and behold, he had given
his hand, and yet has done all these things.
He won’t escape.
19 “Therefore the Lord Yahweh says: ‘As I
live, I will surely bring on his own head my
oath that he has despised and my covenant
that he has broken.
20 I will spread my net on him, and he
will be taken in my snare. I will bring him
to Babylon, and will enter into judgment
with him there for his trespass that he has
trespassed against me.
21 All his fugitives inall his bands willfall
by the sword, and those who remain will
be scattered toward every wind. Then you
will know that I, Yahweh, have spoken it.’
22 “The Lord Yahweh says: ‘I will also
take some of the lofty top of the cedar, and
will plant it. I will crop off from the topmost
of its young twigs a tender one, and
I will plant it on a high and lofty mountain.
23 I will plant it in the mountain of
the height of Israel; and it will produce
boughs, and bear fruit, and be a good
cedar. Birds of every kind will dwell in the
shade of its branches.
24 All the trees of the field will know that
I, Yahweh, have brought down the high
tree, have exalted the low tree, have dried
up the green tree, and have made the dry
tree flourish. “ ‘I, Yahweh, have spoken and have done
it.’ ”