Ezekiel 23:5

5 "Oholah started whoring while she was still mine. She lusted after Assyrians as lovers: military men

Ezekiel 23:5 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 23:5

And Aholah played the harlot when she was mine
His married wife, and so ought to have cleaved to him alone: or, under me {o}; under his cover, power, and protection, and therefore it was their interest to serve him only: or, "instead of me" F16; or, as the Syriac version, "besides me": they worshipped other gods in the room of the true God, or other gods besides him. The Targum is,

``and Aholah erred from my worship;''
the ten tribes fell into idolatry, when they were God's professing people: and she doted on her lovers;
whom she loved even to madness; she was mad with love, to the idols, temples, altars, and idolatrous worship of the Heathens; particularly doted "on the Assyrians her neighbours"; who were become so by the conquest of Syria; and these they treated as their neighbours, and sought to have them to be their allies and confederates; courted their help and assistance, and gave them much money for that purpose; as Menahem gave to Pul king of Assyria a thousand talents of silver, to confirm the kingdom in his hand, ( 2 Kings 15:19 ) .
FOOTNOTES:

F15 (ytxt) "sub me", Pagninus, Montanus, Munster, Tigurine version. Piscator, Cocceius, Starckius.
F16 "Exteros excipiens loco meo", Junius & Tremellius, Polanus.

Ezekiel 23:5 In-Context

3 They became whores in Egypt, whores from a young age. Their breasts were fondled, their young bosoms caressed.
4 The older sister was named Oholah, the younger was Oholibah. They were my daughters, and they gave birth to sons and daughters. "Oholah is Samaria and Oholibah is Jerusalem
5 "Oholah started whoring while she was still mine. She lusted after Assyrians as lovers: military men
6 smartly uniformed in blue, ambassadors and governors, good-looking young men mounted on fine horses.
7 Her lust was unrestrained. She was a whore to the Assyrian elite. She compounded her filth with the idols of those to whom she gave herself in lust.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.