The Babylonian Exile

The word of ADONAI came to me:

"Say to the rebellious house: 'Don't you know what these things mean?' Tell them: 'Here, the king of Bavel came to Yerushalayim, took its king and princes and brought them to himself in Bavel.

Then he took a member of the royal family and made a covenant with him, putting him under oath. He removed the powerful leaders of the land,

so that this kingdom of his would stay humble and not develop aspirations of its own; rather, it would keep his covenant and live accordingly.

But this man rebelled and sent representatives to Egypt, in order to obtain horses and a sizeable army. Can he succeed? Can someone who does such things escape punishment? Can he break the covenant and still escape punishment?

"'As I live,' says Adonai ELOHIM, 'in the place where the king who gave him his throne lives, whose oath he despised and whose covenant he broke, there with him in Bavel I swear that he will die.

Pharaoh with his mighty army and numerous troops will give him no help in the war, when they raise siege-works and build fortified towers to destroy many people;

because he despised the oath by breaking the covenant to which he had sworn allegiance; having done all these things, he will not escape unpunished.'

Therefore Adonai ELOHIM says: 'As I live, I swear that it is my oath he has despised and my covenant he has broken, and I will bring this on his own head.

I will spread my net over him, and he will be caught in my snare; I will bring him to Bavel and bring him to judgment there for breaking faith with me.

The elite troops among his forces will die by the sword, and those who survive will be scattered to every wind. Then you will know that I, ADONAI, said it.'

"Adonai ELOHIM says, 'From the top of this tall cedar, from its highest branch, I will take a shoot and plant it myself on a high and prominent mountain.

I will plant it on the highest mountain in Isra'el, where it will put out branches, bear fruit, and become a noble cedar. Under it will live all kinds of birds; winged creatures of every description will live there in the shadow of its branches.

Then all the trees of the field will know that I, ADONAI, bring down the tall tree and raise up the low tree, wither the green tree and make the withered tree bear fruit. I, ADONAI, have spoken; and I will do it.'"

The word of ADONAI came to me:

"What does it mean, that you keep quoting this proverb in the land of Isra'el 'When parents eat sour grapes, their children's teeth are set on edge'?

"As I live," says Adonai ELOHIM, "I swear that you will never again quote this proverb in Isra'el.

Look, all lives belong to me - both the parent's life and the child's life are equally mine - so it is the person who sins, himself, who must die.

"Consider someone who is righteous, who does what is lawful and right.

He doesn't eat on the mountains or raise his eyes toward the idols of the house of Isra'el; he doesn't defile his neighbor's wife or touch a woman during her time of menstrual impurity;

he doesn't wrong anyone; he returns any pledged property a debtor has given as collateral for a loan; he takes nothing by robbery, but gives his food to the hungry and clothing to those who need it;

he neither demands nor accepts interest on a loan; he refrains from what is evil; and he judges honestly between one person and another.

In short, he lives according to my laws and observes my rulings, so as to act faithfully. Such a person is righteous, and he will certainly live," says Adonai ELOHIM.

"Now suppose he is the father of a son who is a robber, a murderer, or who does any of these things to a brother -

whereas the father himself does none of them. He eats on the mountains, defiles his neighbor's wife,