Ezekiel 17
17
A Parable of Two Eagles and a Vine
1 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, offer a riddle,#sn The verb occurs elsewhere in the OT only in Judg 14:12-19, where Samson supplies a riddle. and tell a parable to the house of Israel. 3 Say to them: ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says:#tn The parable assumes the defection of Zedekiah to Egypt and his rejection of Babylonian lordship.
“‘A great eagle#sn The great eagle symbolizes Nebuchadnezzar (17:12). with broad wings, long feathers,#tn Hebrew has two words for wings; it is unknown whether they are fully synonymous or whether one term distinguishes a particular part of the wing such as the wing coverts (nearest the shoulder), secondaries (mid-feathers of the wing) or primaries (last and longest section of the wing).
with full plumage which was multi-hued,#tn This term was used in 16:10, 13, and 18 of embroidered cloth.
came to Lebanon#sn In the parable Lebanon apparently refers to Jerusalem (17:12). and took the top of the cedar.
4 He plucked off its topmost shoot;
he brought it to a land of merchants
and planted it in a city of traders.
5 He took one of the seedlings#tn Heb “took of the seed of the land.” For the vine imagery, “seedling” is a better translation, though in its subsequent interpretation the “seed” refers to Zedekiah through its common application to offspring. of the land,
placed it in a cultivated plot;#tn Heb “a field for seed.”
a shoot by abundant water,
like a willow he planted it.
6 It sprouted and became a vine,
spreading low to the ground;#tn Heb “short of stature.”
its branches turning toward him,#tn That is, the eagle. its roots were under itself.#tn Or “him,” i.e., the eagle.
So it became a vine; it produced shoots and sent out branches.
7 “‘There was another great eagle#sn The phrase another great eagle refers to Pharaoh Hophra.
with broad wings and thick plumage.
Now this vine twisted its roots toward him
and sent its branches toward him
to be watered from the soil where it was planted.
8 In a good field, by abundant waters, it was planted
to grow branches, bear fruit, and become a beautiful vine.
9 “‘Say to them: This is what the sovereign Lord says:
“‘Will it prosper?
Will he not rip out its roots
and cause its fruit to rot#tn The Hebrew root occurs only here in the OT and appears to have the meaning of “strip off.” In application to fruit the meaning may be “cause to rot.” and wither?
All its foliage#tn Heb “all the טַרְפֵּי (tarpey) of branches.” The word טַרְפֵּי occurs only here in the Bible; its precise meaning is uncertain. will wither.
No strong arm or large army
will be needed to pull it out by its roots.#tn Or “there will be no strong arm or large army when it is pulled up by the roots.”
10 Consider! It is planted, but will it prosper?
Will it not wither completely when the east wind blows on it?
Will it not wither in the soil where it sprouted?’”
11 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 12 “Say to the rebellious house of Israel:#tn The words “of Israel” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation as a clarification of the referent.sn The book of Ezekiel frequently refers to the Israelites as a rebellious house (Ezek 2:5, 6, 8; 3:9, 26-27; 12:2-3, 9, 25; 17:12; 24:3). ‘Don’t you know what these things mean?’#sn The narrative description of this interpretation of the riddle is given in 2 Kgs 24:11-15. Say: ‘See here, the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem#map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4. and took her king and her officials prisoner and brought them to himself in Babylon. 13 He took one from the royal family,#tn Or “descendants”; Heb “seed” (cf. v. 5). made a treaty with him, and put him under oath.#tn Heb “caused him to enter into an oath.” He then took the leaders of the land 14 so it would be a lowly kingdom which could not rise on its own but must keep its treaty with him in order to stand. 15 But this one from Israel’s royal family#tn Heb “he”; the referent (the member of the royal family, v. 13) has been specified in the translation for clarity. rebelled against the king of Babylon#tn Heb “him”; the referent (the king of Babylon) has been specified in the translation for clarity. by sending his emissaries to Egypt to obtain horses and a large army. Will he prosper? Will the one doing these things escape? Can he break the covenant and escape?
16 “‘As surely as I live, declares the sovereign Lord, surely in the city#tn Heb “place.” of the king who crowned him, whose oath he despised and whose covenant he broke – in the middle of Babylon he will die! 17 Pharaoh with his great army and mighty horde will not help#tn Heb “deal with” or “work with.” him in battle, when siege ramps are erected and siege-walls are built to kill many people. 18 He despised the oath by breaking the covenant. Take note#tn The word הִנֵּה (hinneh, traditionally “behold”) indicates being aware of or taking notice of something. – he gave his promise#sn Heb “hand.” “Giving one’s hand” is a gesture of promise (2 Kgs 10:15). and did all these things – he will not escape!
19 “‘Therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says: As surely as I live, I will certainly repay him#tn Heb “place it on his head.” for despising my oath and breaking my covenant! 20 I will throw my net over him and he will be caught in my snare; I will bring him to Babylon and judge him there because of the unfaithfulness he committed against me. 21 All the choice men#tc Some manuscripts and versions read “choice men,” while most manuscripts read “fugitives”; the difference arises from the reversal, or metathesis, of two letters, מִבְרָחָיו (mivrakhyv) for מִבְחָריו (mivkharyv). among his troops will die#tn Heb “fall.” by the sword and the survivors will be scattered to every wind. Then you will know that I, the Lord, have spoken!
22 “‘This is what the sovereign Lord says:
“‘I will take a sprig#sn The language is analogous to messianic imagery in Isa 11:1; Zech 3:8; 6:4 although the technical terminology is not the same. from the lofty top of the cedar and plant it.#tc The LXX lacks “and plant it.”
I will pluck from the top one of its tender twigs;
I myself will plant it on a high and lofty mountain.
23 I will plant it on a high mountain of Israel,
and it will raise branches and produce fruit and become a beautiful cedar.
Every bird will live under it;
Every winged creature will live in the shade of its branches.
24 All the trees of the field will know that I am the Lord.
I make the high tree low; I raise up the low tree.
I make the green tree wither, and I make the dry tree sprout.
I, the Lord, have spoken, and I will do it!’”
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Ezekiel 17: NET
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Ezekiel 17
17
1 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
2 "Son of man, propose an enigma and describe a parable to the house of Israel,
3 and you shall say: Thus says the Lord God: A large eagle, with great wings and elongated pinions, full of feathers with many colors, came to Lebanon. And he took the kernel of the cedar.
4 He tore off the summit of its branches, and he transported it to the land of Canaan; he placed it in a city of merchants.
5 And he took from the seed of the land and placed it in the ground for seed, so that it might take firm root above many waters; he placed it at the surface.
6 And when it had germinated, it increased into a more extensive vine, low in height, with its branches facing toward itself. And its roots were underneath it. And so, it became a vine, and sprouted branches, and produced shoots.
7 And there was another large eagle, with great wings and many feathers. And behold, this vine seemed to bend its roots towards him, extending its branches toward him, so that he might irrigate it from the garden of its germination.
8 It had been planted in a good land, above many waters, so that it would produce branches and bear fruit, so that it would become a large vine.
9 Speak: Thus says the Lord God: What if it does not prosper? Should he not pull up its roots, and strip off its fruit, and dry up all the branches that it has produced, and let it wither, though he is without a strong arm and without many people to pull it up by the root?
10 Behold, it has been planted. What if it does not prosper? Should it not be dried up when the burning wind touches it, and should it not wither in the garden of its germination?"
11 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
12 "Say to the provoking house: Do you not know what these things signify? Say: Behold, the king of Babylon arrives in Jerusalem. And he will take away its king and princes, and he will lead them away to himself in Babylon.
13 And he will take one from the offspring of the king, and he will strike a pact with him and receive an oath from him. Moreover, he will take away the strong ones of the land,
14 so that it may be a lowly kingdom, and may not lift itself up, and may instead keep his pact and serve it.
15 But, withdrawing from him, he sent messengers to Egypt, so that it would give him horses and many people. Should he who has done these things prosper and obtain safety? And should he who has broken the pact go free?
16 As I live, says the Lord God, in the place of the king, who appointed him as king, whose oath he has made void, and whose pact he has broken, under which he was living with him, in the midst of Babylon, he shall die.
17 And not with a great army, nor with many people will Pharaoh undertake a battle against him, when he will cast up ramparts and build defenses, in order to put to death many souls.
18 For he has despised an oath, in that he broke the pact. And behold, he had given his hand. And so, since he has done all these things, he shall not escape.
19 Because of this, thus says the Lord God: As I live, I will place upon his head the oath that he has spurned and the pact that he has betrayed.
20 And I will spread my net over him, and he will be captured in my dragnet. And I will lead him into Babylon, and I will judge him there for the transgression by which he has despised me.
21 And all his fugitives, with all his procession, will fall by the sword. Then the remainder will be scattered into every wind. And you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken."
22 Thus says the Lord God: "I myself will take from the kernel of the exalted cedar, and I will establish it. I will tear off a tender twig from the top of its branches, and I will plant it on a mountain, lofty and exalted.
23 On the sublime mountains of Israel, I will plant it. And it shall spring forth in buds and bear fruit, and it shall be a great cedar. And all the birds will live under it, and every bird will make its nest under the shadow of its branches.
24 And all the trees of the regions will know that I, the Lord, have brought low the sublime tree, and have exalted the lowly tree, and have dried up the green tree, and have caused the dry tree to flourish. I, the Lord, have spoken and acted."
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