NETfree - Ezekiel - 19

19:1  "And you, sing a lament for the princes of Israel,

19:2  and say:"'What a lioness was your mother among the lions! She lay among young lions; she reared her cubs.

19:3  She reared one of her cubs; he became a young lion. He learned to tear prey; he devoured people.

19:4  The nations heard about him; he was trapped in their pit. They brought him with hooks to the land of Egypt.

19:5  "'When she realized that she waited in vain, her hope was lost. She took another of her cubs and made him a young lion.

19:6  He walked about among the lions; he became a young lion. He learned to tear prey; he devoured people.

19:7  He broke down their strongholds and devastated their cities. The land and everything in it was frightened at the sound of his roaring.

19:8  The nations - the surrounding regions - attacked him. They threw their net over him; he was caught in their pit.

19:9  They put him in a collar with hooks; they brought him to the king of Babylon; they brought him to prison so that his voice would not be heard any longer on the mountains of Israel.

19:10  "'Your mother was like a vine in your vineyard, planted by water. It was fruitful and full of branches because it was well-watered.

19:11  Its boughs were strong, fit for rulers' scepters; it reached up into the clouds. It stood out because of its height and its many branches.

19:12  But it was plucked up in anger; it was thrown down to the ground. The east wind dried up its fruit; its strong branches broke off and withered - a fire consumed them.

19:13  Now it is planted in the wilderness, in a dry and thirsty land.

19:14  A fire has gone out from its branch; it has consumed its shoot and its fruit. No strong branch was left in it, nor a scepter to rule.' This is a lament song, and has become a lament song."