 1 The Word of the Lord came to me saying, 2 Son of man, put out a riddle and speak a parable to the house of Israel. 3 Say, Thus says the Lord God: A great eagle with great wings, long of pinion, full of feathers, who had different colors, came to Lebanon and took the highest branch of the cedar. 4 He plucked off the top of its young twigs and carried it into a land of traders. He set it in a city of merchants. 5 He also took of the seed of the land and planted it in a fruitful field. He placed it by great waters and set it as a willow tree. 6 It grew and became a spreading low vine, whose branches turned toward him. And its roots were under him. So it became a vine and brought out branches and shot out boughs. 7 There was also another great eagle with great wings and many feathers. And behold, this vine bent its roots toward him and shot out its branches toward him, that he might water it, away from the beds of its planting. 8 It was planted in a good soil by great waters, that it might bring out branches, and that it might bear fruit, to be a splendid vine. 9 Say, Thus says the Lord God: Shall it prosper? Shall he not pull up its roots and cut off its fruit, and wither it? All the leaves of its sprouting shall wither, and not with great arm, nor by many people shall any raise it by its roots. 10 Behold, being planted, shall it prosper? Shall it not utterly wither when the east wind touches it? It shall wither in the beds where it sprouted. 11 The Word of the Lord came to me saying, 12 Say now to the rebellious house: Do you not know what these things mean? Tell them, Behold, the king of Babylon has come to Jerusalem and has taken its king and its rulers, and brings them to himself to Babylon. 13 He has taken of the king's family and made a covenant with him, and taken an oath from him. He has also taken the mighty of the land. 14 This so that the kingdom might be low and that it might not lift itself up. But by keeping his covenant it might stand. 15 But he rebelled against him in sending his ambassadors into Egypt, to give him horses and many people. Shall he be blessed? Shall he who does such things escape? Or shall he break the covenant and be delivered? 16 As I live, says the Lord God, surely in the place of the king who made him king, whose oath he despised and whose covenant he broke, even with him in the midst of Babylon he shall die. 17 Nor shall Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company work for him in the war, by pouring out siege mounds and building forts, to cut off many persons. 18 He has despised the oath by breaking the covenant. And, behold, he had given his hand, and has done all these, he shall not escape. 19 Therefore thus says the Lord God: As I live, surely my oath that he has despised, and my covenant that he has broken, I will even repay it on his own head. 20 I will spread my net on him and he will be taken in my snare and I will bring him to Babylon and I will judge him there with his sin that he has sinned against me. 21 All his fugitives with all his bands will fall by the sword and those who remain will be scattered toward all winds. Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken. 22 Thus says the Lord God: I, even I, will also take of the top of the highest cedar and will set it; I will crop off from the first of its young twigs a tender one, and will plant it on a high and lofty mountain. 23 I will plant it on a mountain in a high place of Israel. It will bear boughs and fruit and be a majestic cedar. Every bird of every wing will live under it. They will live in the shadow of its branches. 24 All the trees of the field will know that I the Lord have brought down the high tree and have exalted the low tree and have dried up the green tree and have made the dry tree to flourish. I the Lord have spoken and acted.
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