Eze 17 | NASB1995 | STEP | Now the word of the Lord came to me saying ,

Ezekiel 17

Parable of Two Eagles and a Vine

1 Now the word of the Lord came to me saying, 2 “Son of man, propound a riddle and speak a ^aparable to the house of Israel, 3 ^{▼▼ Lit and you shall say}saying, ‘Thus says the Lord ^{▼▼ Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord , and so throughout the ch}God, “A great ^deagle with ^egreat wings, long pinions and a full plumage of many colors came to ^fLebanon and took away the top of the cedar. 4 “He plucked off the topmost of its young twigs and brought it to a land of merchants; he set it in a city of traders. 5 “He also took some of the seed of the land and planted it in ^{▼▼ Lit a field of seed
,} ^hfertile soil. He ^{▼▼ Lit took}placed it beside abundant waters; he set it like a ^jwillow. 6 “Then it sprouted and became a low, spreading vine with its branches turned toward him, but its roots remained under it. So it became a vine and yielded shoots and sent out branches.

7 “But there was ^{▼▼ So with several ancient versions; M.T. one}another great eagle with great wings and much plumage; and behold, this vine bent its roots toward him and sent out its branches toward him from the beds where it was ^lplanted, that he might water it. 8 “It was planted in good ^{▼▼ Lit field}soil beside abundant waters, that it might yield branches and bear fruit and become a splendid vine.”’ 9 “Say, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “Will it thrive? Will he not pull up its roots and cut off its fruit, so that it withers— so that all its sprouting leaves wither? And neither by great ^{▼▼ Lit arm}strength nor by many people can it be raised from its roots again. 10 “Behold, though it is planted, will it thrive? Will it not ^ocompletely wither as soon as the east wind strikes it— wither on the beds where it grew?”’”

Zedekiah’s Rebellion

11 Moreover, the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 12 “Say now to the ^prebellious house, ‘Do you not ^qknow what these things mean?’ Say, ‘Behold, the ^rking of Babylon came to Jerusalem, took its king and princes and brought them to him in Babylon. 13 ‘He took one of the royal ^{▼▼ Lit seed
,} ^tfamily and made a covenant with him, ^{▼▼ Lit and caused him to enter into an oath}putting him under ^voath. He also took away the ^wmighty of the land, 14 that the kingdom might ^xbe ^{▼▼ Lit low}in subjection, not exalting itself, but keeping his covenant that it might continue. 15 ‘But he ^zrebelled against him by sending his envoys to Egypt that they might give him horses and many ^{▼▼ Lit people}troops. Will he succeed? Will he who does such things ^abescape? Can he indeed break the covenant and escape? 16 ‘As I live,’ declares the Lord God, ‘Surely in the ^{▼▼ Lit place}country of the king who ^{▼▼ Lit made him king}put him on the throne, whose oath he ^aedespised and whose covenant he broke, ^{▼▼ Lit with him in Babylon
,} ^agin Babylon he shall die. 17 ‘ ^ahPharaoh with his mighty army and great company will not ^{▼▼ Lit act with}help him in the war, when they cast up ramps and build siege walls to cut off many lives. 18 ‘Now he despised the oath by breaking the covenant, and behold, he ^{▼▼ Lit gave his hand
,} ^akpledged his allegiance, yet did all these things; he shall not escape.’” 19 Therefore, thus says the Lord God, “As I live, surely My oath which he despised and My covenant which he broke, I will ^{▼▼ Lit give it}inflict on his head. 20 “I will spread My ^amnet over him, and he will be ^ancaught in My snare. Then I will bring him to Babylon and ^aoenter into judgment with him there regarding the unfaithful act which he has committed against Me. 21 “All the ^{▼▼ So many ancient mss and versions; M.T. fugitives
,} ^aqchoice men in all his troops will fall by the sword, and the survivors will be scattered to every wind; and you will know that I, the Lord, have spoken.”

22 Thus says the Lord God, “I will also take a sprig from the lofty top of the cedar and set it out; I will pluck from the topmost of its young twigs a tender one and I will plant it on a ^arhigh and lofty mountain. 23 “On the high mountain of Israel I will plant it, that it may bring forth boughs and bear fruit and become a stately ^ascedar. And birds of every ^{▼▼ Lit wing}kind will ^{▼▼ Lit dwell}nest under it; they will ^{▼▼ Lit dwell}nest in the shade of its branches. 24 “All the ^awtrees of the field will know that I am the Lord; I bring down the high tree, exalt the low tree, dry up the green tree and make the dry tree ^axflourish. I am the Lord; I have spoken, and I will perform it.”