The Babylonian Exile

And there is a word of Jehovah unto me, saying:

`Say, I pray thee, to the rebellious house, Have ye not known what these are ? Say, Lo, come hath the king of Babylon to Jerusalem, And he taketh its king, and its princes, And bringeth them to himself to Babylon.

And he taketh of the seed of the kingdom, And maketh with him a covenant, And bringeth him in to an oath, And the mighty of the land he hath taken,

That the kingdom may be humble, That it may not lift itself up, To keep his covenant--that it may stand.

And he rebelleth against him, To send his messengers to Egypt, To give to him horses, and much people, Doth he prosper? doth he escape who is doing these things? And hath he broken covenant and escaped?

I live--an affirmation of the Lord Jehovah, Doth he not--in the place of the king who is causing him to reign, Whose oath he hath despised, And whose covenant he hath broken, With him--in the midst of Babylon--die?

And not with a great force, and with a numerous assembly, Doth Pharaoh maintain him in battle, By pouring out a mount, and in building a fortification, To cut off many souls.

And he despised the oath--to break covenant, And lo, he hath given his hand, And all these he hath done, he escapeth not.

Therefore, thus said the Lord Jehovah: I live--Mine oath that he hath despised, And My covenant that he hath broken, Have I not put it on his head?

And I have spread out for him My snare, And he hath been caught in My net, And I have brought him in to Babylon, And pleaded with him there his trespass, That he hath trespassed against Me.

And all his fugitives, with all his bands, By sword do fall, and those remaining, To every wind they are spread out, And ye have known that I, Jehovah, have spoken.

Thus said the Lord Jehovah: I have taken of the foliage of the high cedar, And I have set it , From the top of its tender shoots a tender one I crop, And I--I have planted it on a mountain high and lofty.

In a mountain--the high place of Israel, I plant it, And it hath borne boughs, and yielded fruit, And become a goodly cedar, And dwelt under it have all birds of every wing, In the shade of its thin shoots they dwell.

And known have all trees of the field That I, Jehovah, have made low the high tree, I have set on high the low tree, I have dried up the moist tree, And I have caused the dry tree to flourish, I, Jehovah, have spoken, and have done it !'

`And there is a word of Jehovah unto me, saying:

`What--to you, ye--using this simile Concerning the ground of Israel, saying: Fathers do eat unripe fruit, And the sons' teeth are blunted?

I live--an affirmation of the Lord Jehovah, Ye have no more the use of this simile in Israel.

Lo, all the souls are Mine, As the soul of the father, So also the soul of the son--they are Mine, The soul that is sinning--it doth die.

And a man, when he is righteous, And hath done judgment and righteousness,

On the mountains he hath not eaten, And his eyes he hath not lifted up Unto idols of the house of Israel, And the wife of his neighbour defiled not, And to a separated woman cometh not near,

A man--he doth not oppress, His pledge to the debtor he doth return, Plunder he doth not take away, His bread to the hungry he doth give, And the naked doth cover with a garment,

In usury he doth not give, and increase taketh not, From perversity he turneth back his hand, True judgment he doth between man and man.

In My statutes he doth walk, And My judgments he hath kept--to deal truly, Righteous is he, he surely liveth, An affirmation of the Lord Jehovah.

And--he hath begotten a son, A burglar--a shedder of blood, And he hath made a brother of one of these,

And he all those hath not done, For even on the mountains he hath eaten, And the wife of his neighbour he hath defiled,