English Standard Version ESV
The Message Bible MSG
1 The word of the LORD came to me:
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God's Message came to me:
2 "Son of man, propound a riddle, and speak a parable to the house of Israel;
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"Son of man, make a riddle for the house of Israel. Tell them a story.
3 say, Thus says the Lord GOD: A great eagle with great wings and long pinions, rich in plumage of many colors, came to Lebanon and took the top of the cedar.
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Say, 'God, the Master, says: "'A great eagle with a huge wingspan and long feathers, In full plumage and bright colors, came to Lebanon And took the top off a cedar,
4 He broke off the topmost of its young twigs and carried it to a land of trade and set it in a city of merchants.
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broke off the top branch, Took it to a land of traders, and set it down in a city of shopkeepers.
5 Then he took of the seed of the land and planted it in fertile soil. He placed it beside abundant waters. He set it like a willow twig,
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Then he took a cutting from the land and planted it in good, well-watered soil, like a willow on a riverbank.
6 and it sprouted and became a low spreading vine, and its branches turned toward him, and its roots remained where it stood. So it became a vine and produced branches and put out boughs.
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It sprouted into a flourishing vine, low to the ground. Its branches grew toward the eagle and the roots became established - A vine putting out shoots, developing branches.
7 "And there was another great eagle with great wings and much plumage, and behold, this vine bent its roots toward him and shot forth its branches toward him from the bed where it was planted, that he might water it.
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"'There was another great eagle with a huge wingspan and thickly feathered. This vine sent out its roots toward him from the place where it was planted. Its branches reached out to him so he could water it from a long distance.
8 It had been planted on good soil by abundant waters, that it might produce branches and bear fruit and become a noble vine.
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It had been planted in good, well-watered soil, And it put out branches and bore fruit, and became a noble vine.
9 "Say, Thus says the Lord GOD: Will it thrive? Will he not pull up its roots and cut off its fruit, so that it withers, so that all its fresh sprouting leaves wither? It will not take a strong arm or many people to pull it from its roots.
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"'God, the Master, says, Will it thrive? Won't he just pull it up by the roots and leave the grapes to rot And the branches to shrivel up, a withered, dead vine? It won't take much strength or many hands to pull it up.
10 Behold, it is planted; will it thrive? Will it not utterly wither when the east wind strikes it--wither away on the bed where it sprouted?"
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Even if it's transplanted, will it thrive? When the hot east wind strikes it, won't it shrivel up? Won't it dry up and blow away from the place where it was planted?'"
11 Then the word of the LORD came to me:
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God's Message came to me:
12 "Say now to the rebellious house, Do you not know what these things mean? Tell them, behold, the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem, and took her king and her princes and brought them to him to Babylon.
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"Tell this house of rebels, 'Do you get it? Do you know what this means?'
13 And he took one of the royal offspringand made a covenant with him, putting him under oath (the chief men of the land he had taken away),
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He took one of the royal family and made a covenant with him, making him swear his loyalty. The king of Babylon took all the top leaders into exile
14 that the kingdom might be humble and not lift itself up, and keep his covenant that it might stand.
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to make sure that this kingdom stayed weak - didn't get any big ideas of itself - and kept the covenant with him so that it would have a future.
15 But he rebelled against him by sending his ambassadors to Egypt, that they might give him horses and a large army. Will he thrive? Can one escape who does such things? Can he break the covenant and yet escape?
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"'But he rebelled and sent emissaries to Egypt to recruit horses and a big army. Do you think that's going to work? Are they going to get by with this? Does anyone break a covenant and get off scot-free?
16 "As I live, declares the Lord GOD, surely in the place where the king dwells who made him king, whose oath he despised, and whose covenant with him he broke, in Babylon he shall die.
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"'As sure as I am the living God, this king who broke his pledge of loyalty and his covenant will die in that country, in Babylon.
17 Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company will not help him in war, when mounds are cast up and siege walls built to cut off many lives.
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Pharaoh with his big army - all those soldiers! - won't lift a finger to fight for him when Babylon sets siege to the city and kills everyone inside.
18 He despised the oath in breaking the covenant, and behold, he gave his hand and did all these things; he shall not escape.
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Because he broke his word and broke the covenant, even though he gave his solemn promise, because he went ahead and did all these things anyway, he won't escape.
19 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: As I live, surely it is my oath that he despised, and my covenant that he broke. I will return it upon his head.
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"'Therefore, God, the Master, says, As sure as I am the living God, because the king despised my oath and broke my covenant, I'll bring the consequences crashing down on his head.
20 I will spread my net over him, and he shall be taken in my snare, and I will bring him to Babylon and enter into judgment with him there for the treachery he has committed against me.
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I'll send out a search party and catch him. I'll take him to Babylon and have him brought to trial because of his total disregard for me.
21 And all the pick of his troops shall fall by the sword, and the survivors shall be scattered to every wind, and you shall know that I am the LORD; I have spoken."
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All his elite soldiers, along with the rest of the army, will be killed in battle, and whoever is left will be scattered to the four winds. Then you'll realize that I, God, have spoken.
22 Thus says the Lord GOD: "I myself will take a sprig from the lofty top of the cedar and will set it out. I will break off from the topmost of its young twigs a tender one, and I myself will plant it on a high and lofty mountain.
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"'God, the Master, says, I personally will take a shoot from the top of the towering cedar, a cutting from the crown of the tree, and plant it on a high and towering mountain,
23 On the mountain height of Israel will I plant it, that it may bear branches and produce fruit and become a noble cedar. And under it will dwell every kind of bird; in the shade of its branches birds of every sort will nest.
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on the high mountain of Israel. It will grow, putting out branches and fruit - a majestic cedar. Birds of every sort and kind will live under it. They'll build nests in the shade of its branches.
24 And all the trees of the field shall know that I am the LORD; I bring low the high tree, and make high the low tree, dry up the green tree, and make the dry tree flourish. I am the LORD; I have spoken, and I will do it."
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All the trees of the field will recognize that I, God, made the great tree small and the small tree great, made the green tree turn dry and the dry tree sprout green branches. I, God, said it - and I did it.'"
The English Standard Version is published with the permission of Good News Publishers.
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.