Ezequiel 19

A lament for the princes of Israel

¹And you, raise a lament over the princes of Israel, ²and say: What a lioness your mother was! \q She lay down among lions; \q among young lions she reared her cubs.^{a 3}She raised one of her cubs, and he became a young lion. \q He learned to tear prey, and he devoured people. ⁴The nations heard about him, and he was caught in their pit. \q They led him with hooks to the land of Egypt. ⁵When she saw that she had waited in vain and her hope was gone, \q she took another of her cubs and made him into a young lion.^{b 6}He prowled among the lions and became a young lion. \q He learned to tear prey, and he devoured people. ⁷He preyed on their widows \q and laid waste their cities. \q The land and everything in it was appalled at the sound of his roaring.^{c 8}Then nations from the provinces on every side set themselves against him. \q They spread their net over him, and he was caught in their pit. ⁹With hooks they put him in a cage \q and brought him to the king of Babylon. \q They put him in a stronghold, \q so that his roar would no longer be heard on the mountains of Israel.

The vine uprooted

¹⁰Your mother was like a vine in your blood, planted beside water. \q It bore fruit and was full of branches \q because there was plenty of water.^{d 11}Its branches were strong, fit to be rulers’ scepters. \q It towered high above the thick branches; \q it stood out for its height \q and its many branches. ¹²But it was uprooted in wrath and thrown to the ground. \q The east wind dried up its fruit; \q its strong branch was broken off and withered, and fire consumed it. ¹³Now it is planted in the desert, \q in a dry and thirsty land. ¹⁴Fire has gone out from one of its branches and consumed its shoots and fruit. \q No strong branch is left on it, no scepter for ruling. \q This is a lament, and it has become a lament.