Eze 17 | NASB2020 | 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, ask a riddle and present a ^aparable to the house of Israel, 3 ^{▼▼Lit and you shall say}saying, ‘This is what the Lord ^{▼▼Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord, and so throughout the ch}God says: “A great ^{▼▼I.e., Nebuchadnezzar
,} ^eeagle with ^fgreat wings, long pinions, and a full plumage of many colors came to ^{▼▼I.e., Jerusalem
,} ^hLebanon and took away the top of the ^{▼▼I.e., the line of David}cedar. 4 He broke off the ^{▼▼I.e., King Jehoiachin and the leaders}topmost of its young twigs and brought it to a land of merchants; he set it in a ^{▼▼I.e., Babylon}city of traders. 5 He also took ^{▼▼I.e., Zedekiah}from the seed of the land and planted ^{▼▼I.e., Zedekiah}it in ^{▼▼Lit a field of seed
,} ^ofertile soil, a ^{▼▼Or plant}meadow beside abundant waters; he set it like a ^qwillow. 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 produced shoots and sent out branches.

7 “But there was ^{▼▼As in several ancient versions; MT one}another great eagle with great wings and much plumage; and behold, this vine turned its roots toward him and sent out its branches toward him from the beds where it was ^splanted, so that he might water it. 8 It was planted in good ^{▼▼Lit field}soil beside abundant waters, so that it would produce branches and bear fruit, and become a splendid vine.”’ 9 Say, ‘This is what the Lord God says: “Will it thrive? Will he not pull up its roots and cut off its fruit, so that it withers--so that all its sprouting shoots 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 ^vcompletely 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 ^wrebellious house, ‘Do you not ^xknow what these things mean?’ Say, ‘Behold, the ^yking of Babylon came to Jerusalem, took its king and leaders, and brought them to him in Babylon. 13 Then he took one of the royal ^{▼▼Lit seed
,} ^aafamily and made a covenant with him, ^{▼▼Lit and caused him to enter into an oath}putting him under ^acoath. He also took away the ^admighty of the land, 14 so that the kingdom would ^aebe humbled, not exalting itself, but keeping his covenant so that it might continue. 15 But ^{▼▼I.e., Zedekiah}he ^agrevolted against ^{▼▼I.e., Nebuchadnezzar}him by sending his messengers to Egypt so that they might give him horses and many ^{▼▼Lit people}troops. Will he succeed? Will he who does these things ^ajescape? Can he indeed break the covenant and escape? 16 As I live,’ declares the Lord God, ‘In the ^{▼▼Lit place}country of the king who ^{▼▼Lit made him king}put him on the throne, whose oath he ^amdespised and whose covenant he broke, ^{▼▼Lit with him in Babylon
,} ^aoin Babylon he shall certainly die. 17 ^apPharaoh with his mighty army and great contingent will not ^{▼▼Lit act with}help him in the war, when they pile up assault ramps and build siege walls to eliminate many lives. 18 Now he despised the oath by breaking the covenant, and behold, he ^{▼▼Lit gave his hand
,} ^aspledged his allegiance, yet did all these things; he shall not escape.’” 19 Therefore, this is what the Lord God says: “As I live, My oath which he despised and My covenant which he broke, I will certainly ^{▼▼Lit give it}inflict on his head. 20 And I will spread My ^aunet over him, and he will be ^avcaught in My net. Then I will bring him to Babylon and ^awenter into judgment with him there regarding the unfaithful act which he has committed against Me. 21 All the ^{▼▼As in many mss and ancient versions; MT refugees
,} ^aychoice 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 This is what the Lord God says: “I will also take a sprig from the lofty top of the cedar and ^{▼▼Lit give}set it out; I will break off from the topmost of its young twigs a tender one, and I will plant it on a ^bahigh and lofty mountain. 23 On the high mountain of Israel I will plant it, so that it may bring forth branches and bear fruit, and become a stately ^bbcedar. And ^{▼▼Lit every bird}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 ^bgtrees 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 ^bhflourish. I am the Lord; I have spoken, and I will perform it.”