Study Desk

The word of the LORD came to me again, saying,

The word of the Lord came again unto me, saying,

"Son of man, there were two women, the daughters of one mother;

Son of man, there were two women, the daughters of one mother:

and they prostituted themselves in Egypt. They prostituted themselves in their youth; there their breasts were squeezed and there their virgin breasts were handled.

And they committed whoredoms in Egypt; they committed whoredoms in their youth: there were their breasts pressed, and there they bruised the teats of their virginity.

"Their names were Oholah the elder and Oholibah her sister. And they became Mine, and they gave birth to sons and daughters. And as for their names, Samaria is Oholah and Jerusalem is Oholibah.

And the names of them were Aholah the elder, and Aholibah her sister: and they were mine, and they bare sons and daughters. Thus were their names; Samaria is Aholah, and Jerusalem Aholibah.

"Oholah prostituted herself while she was Mine; and she lusted after her lovers, after the Assyrians, her neighbors,

And Aholah played the harlot when she was mine; and she doted on her lovers, on the Assyrians her neighbours,

who were clothed in purple, governors and officials, all of them handsome young men, horsemen riding on horses.

Which were clothed with blue, captains and rulers, all of them desirable young men, horsemen riding upon horses.

"She bestowed her obscene practices on them, all of whom were the choicest men of Assyria; and with all whom she lusted after, with all their idols she defiled herself.

Thus she committed her whoredoms with them, with all them that were the chosen men of Assyria, and with all on whom she doted: with all their idols she defiled herself.

"She did not abandon her obscene practices from the time in Egypt; for in her youth men had slept with her, and they handled her virgin breasts and poured out their obscene practice on her.

Neither left she her whoredoms brought from Egypt: for in her youth they lay with her, and they bruised the breasts of her virginity, and poured their whoredom upon her.

"Therefore, I handed her over to her lovers, to the Assyrians, after whom she lusted.

Wherefore I have delivered her into the hand of her lovers, into the hand of the Assyrians, upon whom she doted.

"They uncovered her nakedness; they took her sons and her daughters, but they killed her with the sword. So she became a subject of gossip among women, and they executed judgments on her.

These discovered her nakedness: they took her sons and her daughters, and slew her with the sword: and she became famous among women; for they had executed judgment upon her.

"Now her sister Oholibah saw this, yet she was more corrupt in her lust than she, and her obscene practices were more than the prostitution of her sister.

And when her sister Aholibah saw this, she was more corrupt in her inordinate love than she, and in her whoredoms more than her sister in her whoredoms.

"She lusted after the Assyrians, governors and officials, the ones near, opulently dressed, horsemen riding on horses, all of them handsome young men.

She doted upon the Assyrians her neighbours, captains and rulers clothed most gorgeously, horsemen riding upon horses, all of them desirable young men.

"And I saw that she had defiled herself; they both took the same way.

Then I saw that she was defiled, that they took both one way,

"So she increased her obscene practices. And she saw men carved on the wall, images of the Chaldeans drawn in bright red,

And that she increased her whoredoms: for when she saw men pourtrayed upon the wall, the images of the Chaldeans pourtrayed with vermilion,

wearing belts around their waists, with flowing turbans on their heads, all of them looking like officers, like the Babylonians in Chaldea, the land of their birth.

Girded with girdles upon their loins, exceeding in dyed attire upon their heads, all of them princes to look to, after the manner of the Babylonians of Chaldea, the land of their nativity:

"And when she saw them she lusted after them and sent messengers to them in Chaldea.

And as soon as she saw them with her eyes, she doted upon them, and sent messengers unto them into Chaldea.

"And the Babylonians came to her to the bed of love and defiled her with their obscene practice. And when she had been defiled by them, she turned away from them in disgust.

And the Babylonians came to her into the bed of love, and they defiled her with their whoredom, and she was polluted with them, and her mind was alienated from them.

"She exposed her obscene practices and exposed her nakedness; then I turned away from her in disgust, just as I had turned away from her sister in disgust.

So she discovered her whoredoms, and discovered her nakedness: then my mind was alienated from her, like as my mind was alienated from her sister.

"Yet she multiplied her obscene practices, remembering the days of her youth, when she prostituted herself in the land of Egypt.

Yet she multiplied her whoredoms, in calling to remembrance the days of her youth, wherein she had played the harlot in the land of Egypt.

"She lusted after their lovers, whose flesh is like the flesh of donkeys and whose discharge is like the discharge of horses.

For she doted upon their paramours, whose flesh is as the flesh of asses, and whose issue is like the issue of horses.

"So you longed for the outrageous sin of your youth, when the Egyptians handled your breasts because of the breasts of your youth.

Thus thou calledst to remembrance the lewdness of thy youth, in bruising thy teats by the Egyptians for the paps of thy youth.

"Therefore, Oholibah, this is what the Lord GOD says: 'Behold I am going to incite your lovers against you, from whom you turned away in disgust, and I will bring them against you from every side:

Therefore, O Aholibah, thus saith the Lord God ; Behold, I will raise up thy lovers against thee, from whom thy mind is alienated, and I will bring them against thee on every side;

the Babylonians and all the Chaldeans, Pekod and Shoa and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them; handsome young men, governors and officials all of them, officers and men of renown, all of them riding on horses.

The Babylonians, and all the Chaldeans, Pekod, and Shoa, and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them: all of them desirable young men, captains and rulers, great lords and renowned, all of them riding upon horses.

'And they will come against you with weapons, chariots, and wagons, and with a contingent of peoples. They will attack you on every side with shield, buckler, and helmet; and I will commit the judgment to them, and they will judge you according to their customs.

And they shall come against thee with chariots, wagons, and wheels, and with an assembly of people, which shall set against thee buckler and shield and helmet round about: and I will set judgment before them, and they shall judge thee according to their judgments.

'I will set My jealousy against you, so that they may deal with you in wrath. They will remove your nose and your ears; and your survivors will fall by the sword. They will take your sons and your daughters; and your survivors will be consumed by the fire.

And I will set my jealousy against thee, and they shall deal furiously with thee: they shall take away thy nose and thine ears; and thy remnant shall fall by the sword: they shall take thy sons and thy daughters; and thy residue shall be devoured by the fire.

'They will also strip you of your clothes and take away your beautiful jewelry.

They shall also strip thee out of thy clothes, and take away thy fair jewels.

'So I will remove from you your outrageous sin and your prostitution that you brought from the land of Egypt, so that you will not raise your eyes to them or remember Egypt anymore.'

Thus will I make thy lewdness to cease from thee, and thy whoredom brought from the land of Egypt: so that thou shalt not lift up thine eyes unto them, nor remember Egypt any more.

"For this is what the Lord GOD says: 'Behold, I am going to hand you over to those whom you hate, to those from whom you turned away in disgust.

For thus saith the Lord God ; Behold, I will deliver thee into the hand of them whom thou hatest, into the hand of them from whom thy mind is alienated:

'They will deal with you in hatred, take all your property, and leave you naked and bare. And the nakedness of your prostitution will be exposed, both your outrageous sin and your obscene practices.

And they shall deal with thee hatefully, and shall take away all thy labour, and shall leave thee naked and bare: and the nakedness of thy whoredoms shall be discovered, both thy lewdness and thy whoredoms.

'These things will be done to you because you have adulterously pursued the nations, because you have defiled yourself with their idols.

I will do these things unto thee, because thou hast gone a whoring after the heathen, and because thou art polluted with their idols.

'You have walked in the way of your sister; therefore I will put her cup in your hand.'

Thou hast walked in the way of thy sister; therefore will I give her cup into thine hand.

"This is what the Lord GOD says: 'You will drink your sister's cup, Which is deep and wide. You will be laughed at and held in derision; Because it contains much.

Thus saith the Lord God ; Thou shalt drink of thy sister's cup deep and large: thou shalt be laughed to scorn and had in derision; it containeth much.

'You will be filled with drunkenness and grief, A cup of horror and desolation, The cup of your sister Samaria.

Thou shalt be filled with drunkenness and sorrow, with the cup of astonishment and desolation, with the cup of thy sister Samaria.

'And you will drink it and drain it. Then you will gnaw on its fragments And tear your breasts; for I have spoken,' declares the Lord GOD.

Thou shalt even drink it and suck it out, and thou shalt break the sherds thereof, and pluck off thine own breasts: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord God .

"Therefore, this is what the Lord GOD says: 'Because you have forgotten Me and discarded Me behind your back, suffer on your own part the punishment for your outrageous sin and your obscene practices.'"

Therefore thus saith the Lord God ; Because thou hast forgotten me, and cast me behind thy back, therefore bear thou also thy lewdness and thy whoredoms.

Moreover, the LORD said to me, "Son of man, will you judge Oholah and Oholibah? Then declare to them their abominations.

The Lord said moreover unto me; Son of man, wilt thou judge Aholah and Aholibah? yea, declare unto them their abominations;

"For they have committed adultery, and blood is on their hands. So they have committed adultery with their idols, and even made their sons, whom they bore to Me, pass through the fire to them as food.

That they have committed adultery, and blood is in their hands, and with their idols have they committed adultery, and have also caused their sons, whom they bare unto me, to pass for them through the fire, to devour them.

"Again, they have done this to Me: they have defiled My sanctuary on the same day, and have profaned My Sabbaths.

Moreover this they have done unto me: they have defiled my sanctuary in the same day, and have profaned my sabbaths.

"For when they slaughtered their children for their idols, they entered My sanctuary on the same day to profane it; and behold, this is what they did within My house.

For when they had slain their children to their idols, then they came the same day into my sanctuary to profane it; and, lo, thus have they done in the midst of mine house.

"Furthermore, they have even sent for men who come from a great distance, to whom a messenger was sent; and behold, they came—for whom you bathed, put makeup on your eyes, and adorned yourselves with jewelry;

And furthermore, that ye have sent for men to come from far, unto whom a messenger was sent; and, lo, they came: for whom thou didst wash thyself, paintedst thy eyes, and deckedst thyself with ornaments,

and you sat on a splendid couch with a table arranged in front of it on which you had set My incense and My oil.

And satest upon a stately bed, and a table prepared before it, whereupon thou hast set mine incense and mine oil.

"And the sound of a carefree multitude was with her; and heavy drinkers were brought from the wilderness with people from the multitude of humanity. And they put bracelets on the wrists of the women and beautiful crowns on their heads.

And a voice of a multitude being at ease was with her: and with the men of the common sort were brought Sabeans from the wilderness, which put bracelets upon their hands, and beautiful crowns upon their heads.

"Then I said concerning her who was worn out by adulteries, 'Will they now commit adultery with her when she is like this?'

Then said I unto her that was old in adulteries, Will they now commit whoredoms with her, and she with them?

"But they went in to her as they would go in to a prostitute. This is how they went in to Oholah and to Oholibah, the lewd women.

Yet they went in unto her, as they go in unto a woman that playeth the harlot: so went they in unto Aholah and unto Aholibah, the lewd women.

"But they, righteous people, will judge them with the judgment of adulteresses and with the judgment of women who shed blood, because they are adulteresses and blood is on their hands.

And the righteous men, they shall judge them after the manner of adulteresses, and after the manner of women that shed blood; because they are adulteresses, and blood is in their hands.

"For this is what the Lord GOD says: 'Bring up a contingent against them and turn them over to terror and plunder.

For thus saith the Lord God ; I will bring up a company upon them, and will give them to be removed and spoiled.

'The contingent will stone them with stones and cut them down with their swords; they will kill their sons and their daughters and burn their houses with fire.

And the company shall stone them with stones, and dispatch them with their swords; they shall slay their sons and their daughters, and burn up their houses with fire.

'So I will eliminate outrageous conduct from the land, so that all women will take warning and not commit outrageous sin as you have done.

Thus will I cause lewdness to cease out of the land, that all women may be taught not to do after your lewdness.

'Your outrageous conduct will be repaid to you, and you will bear the guilt for your idols; so you will know that I am the Lord GOD.'"

And they shall recompense your lewdness upon you, and ye shall bear the sins of your idols: and ye shall know that I am the Lord God .