Ezekiel 17

1The word of Yahweh came to me:

2“Son of man, pose a riddle and tell a parable to the house of Israel.

3Say, ‘This is what Lord Yahweh says: A great eagle with great wings and long feathers, full of plumage of many colors, came to Lebanon and took the top of the cedar.

4He broke off its topmost shoot and carried it to a land of merchants, where he set it in a city of traders.

5Then he took some of the seed of the land and put it in fertile soil. He set it like a willow beside abundant waters.

6It sprouted and became a spreading vine, low in height. Its branches turned toward him, and its roots stayed under him. So it became a vine; it produced branches and sent out shoots.

7But there was another great eagle with great wings and thick plumage. Now this vine bent its roots toward him and sent out its branches toward him from the beds where it was planted, so that he might water it.

8It had been planted in good soil beside abundant waters, so that it could produce branches, bear fruit, and become a splendid vine.’

9Say, ‘This is what Lord Yahweh says: Will it thrive? Will he not pull up its roots and strip off its fruit, so that it withers? All its fresh sprouting leaves will wither. It will not take a strong arm or many people to pull it up by its roots.

10Even if it is transplanted, will it thrive? Will it not wither completely when the east wind strikes it? It will wither in the beds where it sprouted.’”

11Then the word of Yahweh came to me:

12“Say to the rebellious house, ‘Do you not know what these things mean?’ Say, ‘The king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and took its king and its officials and brought them back with him to Babylon.

13Then he took one of the royal family and made a covenant with him, putting him under oath. He also took away the leading men of the land,

14so that the kingdom would be kept low and not rise up again, and would survive only by keeping his covenant.

15But the king rebelled against him by sending his envoys to Egypt to get horses and a large army. Will he succeed? Will the one who does such things escape? Can he break the covenant and still escape?

16As surely as I live, declares Lord Yahweh, he will die in Babylon, in the land of the king who put him on the throne, whose oath he despised and whose covenant he broke.

17Pharaoh with his mighty army and great horde will not help him in war, when siege ramps are thrown up and siege works are built to cut off many lives.

18He despised the oath by breaking the covenant. He gave his hand in pledge and yet did all these things. He will not escape.

19Therefore this is what Lord Yahweh says: As surely as I live, I will bring down on his head my oath that he despised and my covenant that he broke.

20I will spread my net over him, and he will be caught in my snare. I will bring him to Babylon and enter into judgment with him there for the unfaithfulness he committed against me.

21All the fugitives among all his troops will fall by the sword, and the survivors will be scattered to every wind. Then you will know that I, Yahweh, have spoken.

22This is what Lord Yahweh says: I myself will take a sprig from the lofty top of the cedar and plant it. I will break off a tender shoot from the top of its young twigs, and I myself will plant it on a high and towering mountain.

23On the high mountain of Israel I will plant it, and it will produce branches, bear fruit, and become a majestic cedar. Birds of every kind will live under it; they will nest in the shade of its branches.

24All the trees of the field will know that I am Yahweh. I bring down the tall tree and make the low tree tall. I dry up the green tree and make the dry tree flourish. I, Yahweh, have spoken, and I will do it.’”