Ezekiel 19
About EzekielWritten by AI
Ezekiel is a book of prophecy from exile. Ezekiel was a priest taken to Babylon with King Jehoiachin in 597 BC. Five years later, by the River Kebar, he saw a stunning vision of God's glory and was called as a prophet. His messages are carefully dated, running from about 593 to 571 BC, and are usually held to be his own.
The book moves in three parts. Chapters 1 to 24 warn that Jerusalem will fall, and show God's glory leaving the temple. Chapters 25 to 32 speak to the surrounding nations. After news arrives that the city has fallen, chapters 33 to 48 turn to hope: a new heart, dry bones brought to life, and a renewed temple where God dwells.
Expect strange visions and acted signs. Ezekiel lies on his side, shaves his head, and loses his wife as a sign. Watch for the repeated phrase that they will know that I am the LORD. The whole book is about God making Himself known.
Before you read Ezekiel 19Written by AI
A funeral song for Judah's princes. A lioness raises cubs that become fierce lions, but each is captured, one taken to Egypt and one to Babylon, likely meaning Jehoahaz and Jehoiachin. Then Judah is a vine once fruitful, now uprooted and burned.
A Lament for the Princes of Israel
“As for you, take up a lament for the princes of Israel and say:
‘What was your mother?
A lioness among the lions!
She lay down among the young lions;
she reared her cubs.
She brought up one of her cubs,
and he became a young lion.
After learning to tear his prey,
he devoured men.
When the nations heard of him,
he was trapped in their pit.
With hooks they led him away
to the land of Egypt.
When she saw that she had waited in vain,
that her hope was lost,
she took another of her cubs
and made him a young lion.
He prowled among the lions,
and became a young lion.
After learning to tear his prey,
he devoured men.
He broke down their strongholds
and devastated their cities.
The land and everything in it
shuddered at the sound of his roaring.
Then the nations set out against him
from the provinces on every side.
They spread their net over him;
he was trapped in their pit.
With hooks they caged him
and brought him to the king of Babylon.
They brought him into captivity
so that his roar was heard no longer
on the mountains of Israel.
Your mother was like a vine in your vineyard,
planted by the water;
it was fruitful and full of branches
because of the abundant waters.
It had strong branches, fit for a ruler’s scepter.
It towered high above the thick branches,
conspicuous for its height
and for its dense foliage.
But it was uprooted in fury,
cast down to the ground,
and the east wind dried up its fruit.
Its strong branches were stripped off
and they withered;
the fire consumed them.
Now it is planted in the wilderness,
in a dry and thirsty land.
Fire has gone out from its main branch
and devoured its fruit;
on it no strong branch remains
fit for a ruler’s scepter.’
This is a lament and shall be used as a lament.”