Study Desk

'But Zedekiah rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar by sending his ambassadors to Egypt so that they might give him horses and many troops. Will he succeed? Will he who does such things escape? Can he indeed break the covenant [with Babylon] and [still] escape?

"Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, each one in accordance with his conduct," says the Lord GOD. "Repent (change your way of thinking) and turn away from all your transgressions, so that sin may not become a stumbling block to you.

'They put him in a cage with hooks and chains 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.

'And it had strong branches for the scepters of rulers, And its height was raised above the thick branches and into the clouds So that it was seen [easily] in its height with the mass of its branches.

'But the vine was uprooted in [godly] wrath [by His representative] And it was thrown down to the ground; The east wind dried up its fruit. Its strong branch was broken off So that it withered; The fire [of God's judgment] consumed it.

'And the fire [of Zedekiah's rebellion] has gone out from its branch; It has consumed the vine's shoots and fruit, So that it has in it no [longer a] strong branch As a scepter to rule.'" This is a dirge (funeral poem to be sung), and has become a dirge.

and I pronounced them unclean because of their offerings [to their idols], in that they made all their firstborn pass through the fire [as pagan sacrifices], so that I might make them desolate, in order that they might know [without any doubt] that I am the LORD."'

"The sword [of Babylon] is ready to be polished so that it may be handled and put to use; the sword is sharpened and polished to be put in the hand of the slayer (Nebuchadnezzar).

"Therefore, son of man, prophesy and strike your hands together; and let the sword be doubled the third time [in intensity], the sword for the slain. It is the sword for the great slaughter which surrounds them [so that no one can escape, even by hiding in their inner rooms],

so that hearts may melt, and many will fall at their gates. I have given the glittering sword. Ah! It is made [to flash] like lightning; it is pointed and sharpened for slaughter.

"Therefore, thus says the Lord GOD, 'Because you have caused your guilt to be remembered, in that your rebellion is uncovered, so that your sins appear in everything that you do—because you have come to mind, you will be seized with the hand [of the enemy].

"You shall say, 'Thus says the Lord GOD, "A city that sheds blood in her midst, so that her time [of doom] will come, and makes idols to defile her, contrary to her interest!

'Thus I will put an end to your lewdness and your prostitution brought from the land of Egypt, so that you will not lift up your eyes to them or remember Egypt [with longing] anymore.'

"Then set the empty pot (Jerusalem) back on the coals So that it may be hot And its bronze may glow And its filthiness may be melted And its rust (scum) may be consumed.

"I will give it, along with the children of Ammon, to the people of the East as a possession, so that the children of Ammon will not be remembered among the nations [any longer].

then I will bring you down with those who descend into the pit (the place of the dead), to the people of old, and I will make you [Tyre] live in the depths of the earth, like the ancient ruins, with those who go down to the pit, so that you will not be inhabited; but I will set glory and splendor in the land of the living.

"Your sail was of fine embroidered linen from Egypt So that it became your distinguishing mark (insignia); Your [ship's] awning [which covered you] was blue and purple from the coasts of Elishah [of Asia Minor].

"Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and behold, it has not been bound up to heal or wrapped with a bandage, so that it may be strong to hold and wield the sword.

'I made it beautiful with the great mass of its branches, So that all the trees of Eden which were in the garden of God were jealous of it (Assyria).

so that none of the trees by the waters may exalt themselves because of their height, nor set their top among the clouds, nor their well-watered mighty ones stand [arrogantly] in their height. For they have all been handed over to death, to the earth beneath, among the sons of men, with those who go down to the pit (the grave)."