Ezekiel 19

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A Sad Song About Israel

19 <1> [God said to me,] "You must sing this sad song about the leaders of Israel.

<2> "'Your mother is like a female lion,

lying there with the male lions.

She went to lie down with

the young male lions and had many babies.

<3> One of her cubs gets up.

He has grown to be a strong young lion.

He has learned to catch his food.

He killed and ate a man.

<4> "'The people heard him roar,

and they caught him in their trap.

They put hooks in his mouth,

and carried the young lion to Egypt.

<5> "'The mother lion had hoped that cub would become the leader,

but now she lost all hope.

So she took another of her cubs

and trained him to be a lion.

<6> He hunted with the adult lions

and became a strong young lion.

He learned to catch his food.

He killed and ate a man.

<7> He attacked the palaces

and destroyed the cities.

Everyone in that country was too scared to speak when they heard his growl.

<8> Then the people who lived around him set a trap for him,

and they caught him in their trap.

<9> They put hooks on him and locked him up.

They had him in their trap,

so they took him to the king of Babylon.

And now, you cannot hear his roar

on the mountains of Israel.

<10> "'Your mother is like a grapevine

planted near the water.

She had plenty of water,

so she grew many strong vines.

<11> Then she grew large branches.

They were like a strong walking stick.

They were like a king's scepter.[98]

The vine grew taller and taller.

It had many branches and reached to the clouds.

<12> But the vine was pulled up by the roots,

and thrown down to the ground.

The hot east wind blew and dried its fruit.

The strong branches broke, and they were thrown into the fire.

<13> "'Now that grapevine is planted in the desert.

It is a very dry and thirsty land.

<14> A fire started in the large branch

and spread to destroy all of its vines and fruit.

So there was no strong walking stick.

There was no king's scepter.'

This was a sad song about death, and it was sung as a sad song about death."