Ezekiel 23

Ezekiel 23:2

Son of man, there were two women, the daughters of one mother.

Son of man, Israel and Judah, which were in their original but one people, now, since their division, were and are two daughters of one and the same mother.

Ezekiel 23:3

And they committed whoredoms in Egypt; they committed whoredoms in their youth: there were their breasts pressed, and there they bruised the teats of their virginity.

They began to learn and practise idolatries in the land of Egypt; even from their first entrance into the calling of my people: there and then were they corrupted, with the gross superstitions of the heathen.

Ezekiel 23:4

And the names of them were Aholah the elder, and Aholibah her sister: and they were mine, and they bare sons and daughters. Thus were their names; Samaria is Aholah, and Jerusalem Aholibah.

Both of these divided people had their names from a tent or tabernacle: Israel, or the ten tribes, which is the greater part, is Aholah, His Own Tabernacle; which she would needs erect, according to her own device, to draw away clients from my temple: Judah is Aholibah, My Tent, or Tabernacle, fixed in her; because of the place of my worship, settled there: and both of these have their denominations from the two chief cities in them; Samaria the chief city of Israel is Aholah, and Jerusalem the chief city of Judah is Aholibah.

Ezekiel 23:5

And Aholah played the harlot when she was mine; and she doated on her lovers, on the Assyrians her neighbours.

And Israel, which is Aholah, played the spiritual harlot, while she professed to be mine; and was miscarried into gross idolatry, by the Assyrians her neighbours.

Ezekiel 23:6

Which were clothed with blue, captains and rulers, all of them desirable young men, horsemen riding upon horses.

Which were rich and proudly set forth; men of great account, both for their wealth, and power, and valour.

Ezekiel 23:8

Neither left she her whoredoms brought from Egypt: for in her youth they lay with her, and they bruised the breasts of her virginity, and poured their whoredom upon her.

FZEKIEL, CHAP. XXII. XXIII. Neither yet did she give over those superstitions, which she brought with her out of Egypt; for in her first beginnings, they corrupted her with their idolatrous services, and infected her with their abominations.

Ezekiel 23:10

She became famous among women.

And she became a noted and remarkable example of God’s judgments amongst the nations.

Ezekiel 23:11

And when her sister Aholibah saw this, she was more corrupt in her inordinate love than she, and in her whoredoms more than her sister in her whoredoms.

And when Judah and Jerusalem saw this, instead of being warned by her sister Israel, she drew her wicked practices into example, and became more lewd and idolatrous than she.

Ezekiel 23:12

She doted upon the Assyrians her neighbours, captains and rulers clothed most gorgeously, horsemen riding, &c.

She also fell into a sinful league with the Assyrians, and into love of their idolatries; being besotted with the admiration of their wealth, and power, and bravery. XXIII. 14, 15, 16. For when she saw men pourtrayed upon the wall, the images of the Chaldeans pourtrayed with vermilion, Girded with girdles upon their loins, exceeding in dyed attire upon their heads, all of them princes to look to, after the manner of the Babylonians of Chaldea, the land of their nativity: And as soon as she saw them with their eyes, she doted upon them, and sent messengers unto them into Chaldea. For when she did but see the pictures of the Chaldeans set forth in lively colours, by the hand of the painter, ere she was acquainted with their persons, She did no sooner see their habit and gorgeous attire, wherein they were set forth like so many princes to grace them in the eyes of the beholders, according to the proud fashions of the Babylonians of Chaldea, where they were born and bred: But presently, upon the first sight, like a wanton strumpet, she fell into extreme love with them, and dotage upon them; in such sort, that she could not be at rest, till she had sent ambassadors into Chaldea to treat of a league with them.

Ezekiel 23:17

And the Babylonians came to her into the bed of love, and they defiled her with their whoredom, and she was polluted with them, and her mind was alienated from them.

And those Babylonians easily condescended to the motion, and entered into terms of friendship with her; and by this means had opportunity to infect her with their foul idolatries.

Ezekiel 23:20

For she doted upon their paramours, whose flesh is as the flesh of asses, and whose issue is like the issue of horses.

For she was besotted with a lust after their spiritual whoredoms, who were most notoriously idolatrous, even above the common rank of the other heathen.

Ezekiel 23:21

Thus thou calledst to remembrance the lewdness of

thy youth, in bruising thy teats by the Egyptians for the paps of thy youth. Thus thou didst revive and recal the lewd abominations of thy first times; when the Egyptians defiled thee with their wicked idolatry.

Ezekiel 23:22

Behold, I will raise up thy lovers against thee, from whom thy mind is alienated, and I will bring them against thee on every side.

Behold, I will stir up against thee those nations, upon whom thou wert so fond, to beleague thyself with them; with whom thou art now fallen out, and art at deadly defiance; and I will bring them to invade thee on every side.

Ezekiel 23:25

They shall take away thy nose and thine ears; and thy remnant shall fall by the sword.

They shall set upon thee the marks of thine adultery: they shall slit thy nose and thine ears, for a harlot; and those, that shall escape the shameful reproaches of their whoredom, shall fall by the sword.

Ezekiel 23:26

They shall also strip thee out of thy clothes, and take away thy fair jewels.

They shall strip thee of all thine ornaments; and carry away all that wealth, wherein thou hast prided thyself.

Ezekiel 23:27

Thus will I make thy lewdness to cease from thee, and thy whoredom brought from the land of Egypt.

Thus will I make thee past the danger of committing lewdness against me any more, and of renewing thine old Egyptian idolatries.

Ezekiel 23:31

Therefore will I give her cup into thine hand.

I will make thee take deep of those grievous judgments, which thy sister Israel hath tasted of. So also verse 32, 33, 34.

Ezekiel 23:34

And thou shalt break the sherds thereof, and pluck off thine own breasts.

And how madly discontented soever thou shalt be with this judgment, yet shalt thou not be able to put it off; but shalt rather, in thine indignation, tear thine own breasts.

Ezekiel 23:40

And furthermore, that ye have sent for men to come from far, unto whom a messenger was sent; and, lo, they came: for whom thou didst wash thyself, paintedst thy eyes, and dechedst thyself with ornaments.

And furthermore, that, like a petulant harlot inflamed with lust, thou hast sent thy pander-like messengers afar off, to fetch thine idolatrous paramours unto thee; for whose lewd entertainment thou didst make all kind of lascivious preparation, addressing thyself to work this spiritual wickedness with them. So also verse 41.

Ezekiel 23:43

Then I said unto her that was old in adulteries, Will they now commit whoredoms with her, and she with them?

Then said I. This people of Judah is now grown old in her spiritual adulteries: it is more than time for her to leave off these sinful courses; and will she yet continue her whorish idolatries with other nations, and they with her?

Ezekiel 23:44

Yet they went in unto her, as they go in unto a woman that playeth the harlot: so went they in unto Aholah and unto Aholibah, the lewd women.

Yet I saw no end of those her odious fornications; but she persisteth in her abominable uncleannesses: the nations round about her consort with her in her idolatries: thus they do with Israel and Judah, without fear or shame.

Ezekiel 23:45

Because they are adulteresses, and blood is in their hands.

Because they are guilty, both of idolatries and murders, in a very shameful measure; in that they have shed the blood of their children, in sacrifices to their false gods.

Ezekiel 23:49

And ye shall bear the sins of your idols.

And ye shall bear the punishment of your odious idolatry.