Ezekiel 19:1-9

A Lament for the Princes of Israel

1 And you, 1take up a lamentation for the princes of Israel,
2 and say: What was your mother? 2A lioness! Among lions she crouched; in the midst of young lions she reared her cubs.
3 And she brought up one of her cubs; 3he became a young lion, 4and he learned to catch prey; he devoured men.
4 The nations heard about him; 5he was caught in their pit, 6and they brought him with hooks to the land of Egypt.
5 When she saw that she waited in vain, that her hope was lost, 7she took another of her cubs and made him a young lion.
6 He prowled among the lions; he became a young lion, and he learned to catch prey; he devoured men,
7 and seized[a] their widows. He laid waste their cities, and the land was appalled and all who were in it at the sound of his roaring.
8 8Then the nations set against him from provinces on every side; 9they spread their net over him; 10he was taken in their pit.
9 With hooks 11they put him in a cage[b] and 12brought him to the king of Babylon; they brought him into custody, that his voice should no more be heard on 13the mountains of Israel.

Ezekiel 19:1-9 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO EZEKIEL 19

The subject matter of this chapter is a lamentation for the princes and people of the Jews, on account of what had already befallen them, and what was yet to come, Eze 19:1. The mother of the princes is compared to a lioness, and they to lions; who, one after another, were taken and carried captive, Eze 19:2-9; again, their mother is compared to a vine, and they to branches and rods for sceptres, destroyed by an east wind, and consumed by fire, Eze 19:10-14.

Cross References 13

  • 1. Ezekiel 26:17; Ezekiel 27:2, 32; Ezekiel 28:12; Ezekiel 32:2; Amos 5:1; [Jeremiah 7:29]
  • 2. [Genesis 49:9]
  • 3. [Ezekiel 22:25; Ezekiel 32:2; 2 Kings 23:30, 31]
  • 4. Ezekiel 22:25, 27
  • 5. Lamentations 4:20
  • 6. [2 Kings 23:33, 34; Jeremiah 22:11, 12]
  • 7. 2 Kings 23:34, 36
  • 8. [2 Chronicles 36:6]
  • 9. See Ezekiel 12:13
  • 10. [See ver. 4 above]
  • 11. [See ver. 8 above]
  • 12. [Jeremiah 22:26, 27]
  • 13. See Ezekiel 6:2

Footnotes 2

The English Standard Version is published with the permission of Good News Publishers.