Ezekiel 19

Lament for the Princes of Israel

1 "As for you, take up a lamentation for the princes of Israel2 and say,
'What was your mother?
A lioness among lions!
She lay down among young lions,
She reared her cubs.

3 'When she brought up one of her cubs,
He became a lion,
And he learned to tear his prey;
He devoured men.

4 'Then nations heard about him;
He was captured in their pit,
And they brought him with hooks
To the land of Egypt.

5 'When she saw, as she waited,
That her hope was lost,
She took another of her cubs
And made him a young lion.

6 'And he walked about among the lions;
He became a young lion,
He learned to tear his prey;
He devoured men.

7 'He destroyed their fortified towers
And laid waste their cities;
And the land and its fullness were appalled
Because of the sound of his roaring.

8 'Then nations set against him
On every side from their provinces,
And they spread their net over him;
He was captured in their pit.

9 'They put him in a cage with hooks
And brought him to the king of Babylon;
They brought him in hunting nets
So that his voice would be heard no more
On the mountains of Israel.

10 'Your mother was like a vine in your vineyard,
Planted by the waters;
It was fruitful and full of branches
Because of abundant waters.

11 'And it had strong branches fit for scepters of rulers,
And its height was raised above the clouds
So that it was seen in its height with the mass of its branches.

12 'But it was plucked up in fury;
It was cast down to the ground;
And the east wind dried up its fruit.
Its strong branch was torn off
So that it withered;
The fire consumed it.

13 'And now it is planted in the wilderness,
In a dry and thirsty land.

14 'And fire has gone out from its branch;
It has consumed its shoots and fruit,
So that there is not in it a strong branch,
A scepter to rule.'"
This is a lamentation, and has become a lamentation.

Ezekiel 19

Lament for the Princes of Israel

1 “And you, singt a lament for the princes of Israel,

2 and say:
“‘What a lioness was your mother among the lions!
She lay among young lions;s she reared her cubs.

3 She reared one of her cubs; he became a young lion.
He learned to tear prey; he devoured people.t

4 The nations heard about him; he was trapped in their pit.
They brought him with hooks to the land of Egypt.s

5 “‘When she realized that she waited in vain, her hope was lost.
She took another of her cubss and made him a young lion.

6 He walked about among the lions; he became a young lion.
He learned to tear prey; he devoured people.

7 He broke downs their strongholdss and devastated their cities.
The land and everything in it was frightened at the sound of his roaring.

8 The nations – the surrounding regions – attacked him.
They threw their net over him; he was caught in their pit.

9 They put him in a collar with hooks;t
they brought him to the king of Babylon;
they brought him to prisons
so that his voice would not be heard
any longer on the mountains of Israel.

10 “‘Your mother was like a vine in your vineyard,s planted by water.
It was fruitful and full of branches because it was well-watered.

11 Its boughs were strong, fitt for rulers’ scepters; it reached up into the clouds.
It stood out because of its height and its many branches.t

12 But it was plucked up in anger; it was thrown down to the ground.
The east winds dried up its fruit;
its strong branches broke off and withered –
a fire consumed them.

13 Now it is planted in the wilderness,
in a dry and thirsty land.s

14 A fire has gone out from its branch; it has consumed its shoot and its fruit.t
No strong branch was left in it, nor a scepter to rule.’
This is a lament song, and has become a lament song.”