Chapter 16

Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,²

Son of man, cause Jerusalem to know⁵⁴ her abominations,

And say,¹ Thus saith¹ the Lord GOD unto Jerusalem; Thy birth and thy nativity [is] of the land of Canaan; thy father [was] an Amorite, and thy mother an Hittite.

And [as for] thy nativity, in the day thou wast born⁹¹ thy navel was not cut,²⁷ neither wast thou washed²⁷ in water to supple [thee]; thou wast not salted⁹⁰ at all,⁹¹ nor swaddled²⁷ at all.⁹¹

None eye pitied¹ thee, to do² any of these unto thee, to have compassion² upon thee; but thou wast cast out⁹³ in the open field, to the lothing of thy person, in the day that thou wast born.⁹¹

And when I passed⁴ by thee, and saw⁴ thee polluted¹¹⁴ in thine own blood, I said⁴ unto thee [when thou wast] in thy blood, Live;³ yea, I said⁴ unto thee [when thou wast] in thy blood, Live.³

I have caused¹ thee to multiply as the bud of the field, and thou hast increased⁴ and waxen great,⁴ and thou art come⁴ to excellent ornaments: [thy] breasts are fashioned,⁸ and thine hair is grown,¹⁴ whereas thou [wast] naked and bare.

Now when I passed⁴ by thee, and looked⁴ upon thee, behold, thy time [was] the time of love; and I spread⁴ my skirt over thee, and covered¹⁷ thy nakedness: yea, I sware¹¹ unto thee, and entered⁴ into a covenant with thee, saith⁷ the Lord GOD, and thou becamest mine.

Then washed⁴ I thee with water; yea, I throughly washed away⁴ thy blood from thee, and I anointed⁴ thee with oil.

I clothed⁵⁵ thee also with broidered work, and shod⁴ thee with badgers' skin, and I girded⁴ thee about with fine linen, and I covered¹⁷ thee with silk.

I decked⁴ thee also with ornaments, and I put⁴ bracelets upon thy hands, and a chain on thy neck.

And I put⁴ a jewel on thy forehead, and earrings in thine ears, and a beautiful crown upon thine head.

Thus wast thou decked⁴ with gold and silver; and thy raiment [was of] fine linen, and silk, and broidered work; thou didst eat¹ fine flour, and honey, and oil: and thou wast exceeding ³⁹⁶⁶ beautiful,⁴ and thou didst prosper⁴ into a kingdom.

And thy renown went forth⁴ among the heathen for thy beauty: for it [was] perfect through my comeliness, which I had put¹ upon thee, saith⁷ the Lord GOD.

But thou didst trust⁴ in thine own beauty, and playedst the harlot⁴ because of thy renown, and pouredst out⁴ thy fornications on every one that passed by;⁶ his it was.

And of thy garments thou didst take,⁴ and deckedst⁴ thy high places with divers colours,⁷ and playedst the harlot⁴ thereupon: [the like things] shall not come,⁶ neither shall it be [so].

Thou hast also taken⁴ thy fair jewels of my gold and of my silver, which I had given¹ thee, and madest⁴ to thyself images of men, and didst commit whoredom⁴ with them,

And tookest⁴ thy broidered garments, and coveredst¹⁷ them: and thou hast set¹ mine oil and mine incense before them.

My meat also which I gave¹ thee, fine flour, and oil, and honey, [wherewith] I fed⁵² thee, thou hast even set¹ it before them for a sweet savour: and [thus] it was, saith⁷ the Lord GOD.

Moreover thou hast taken⁴ thy sons and thy daughters, whom thou hast borne¹ unto me, and these hast thou sacrificed⁴ unto them to be devoured.² [Is this] of thy whoredoms a small matter,

That thou hast slain⁴ my children, and delivered⁴ them to cause them to pass through⁵³ [the fire] for them?

And in all thine abominations and thy whoredoms thou hast not remembered¹ the days of thy youth, when thou wast naked and bare, [and] wast polluted¹¹⁴ in thy blood.

And it came to pass after all thy wickedness, (woe, woe unto thee! saith⁷ the Lord GOD;)

[That] thou hast also built⁴ unto thee an eminent place, and hast made⁴ thee an high place in every street.

Thou hast built¹ thy high place at every head of the way, and hast made thy beauty to be abhorred,¹⁷ and hast opened¹⁷ thy feet to every one that passed by,⁶ and multiplied⁵⁵ thy whoredoms.

Thou hast also committed fornication⁴ with the Egyptians ⁴⁷¹⁴ thy neighbours, great of flesh; and hast increased⁵⁵ thy whoredoms, to provoke me to anger.⁵³

Behold, therefore I have stretched out¹ my hand over thee, and have diminished⁴ thine ordinary [food], and delivered⁴ thee unto the will of them that hate⁶ thee, the daughters of the Philistines, which are ashamed¹² of thy lewd way.

Thou hast played the whore⁴ also with the Assyrians, ⁸⁰⁴ because thou wast unsatiable; ⁷⁶⁵⁴ yea, thou hast played the harlot⁴ with them, and yet couldest not be satisfied.¹

Thou hast moreover multiplied⁵⁵ thy fornication in the land of Canaan unto Chaldea; and yet thou wast not satisfied¹ herewith.

How weak⁶ is thine heart, saith⁷ the Lord GOD, seeing thou doest² all these [things], the work of an imperious whorish⁶ woman;

In that thou buildest² thine eminent place in the head of every way, and makest¹ thine high place in every street; and hast not been as an harlot,⁶ in that thou scornest¹⁵ hire;

[But as] a wife that committeth adultery,¹⁸ [which] taketh⁴ strangers⁵ instead of her husband!

They give⁴ gifts to all whores:⁶ but thou givest¹ thy gifts to all thy lovers,¹⁸ and hirest⁴ them, that they may come² unto thee on every side for thy whoredom.

And the contrary is in thee from [other] women in thy whoredoms, whereas none followeth thee to commit whoredoms:²⁷ and in that thou givest² a reward, and no reward is given⁸ unto thee, therefore thou art⁴ contrary.

Wherefore, O harlot,⁶ hear³ the word of the LORD:

Thus saith¹ the Lord GOD; Because thy filthiness was poured out,⁹ and thy nakedness discovered¹¹ through thy whoredoms with thy lovers,¹⁸ and with all the idols of thy abominations, and by the blood of thy children, which thou didst give¹ unto them;

Behold, therefore I will gather¹⁸ all thy lovers,¹⁸ with whom thou hast taken pleasure,¹ and all [them] that thou hast loved,¹ with all [them] that thou hast hated;¹ I will even gather¹⁴ them round about against thee, and will discover¹⁴ thy nakedness unto them, that they may see¹ all thy nakedness.

And I will judge¹ thee, as women that break wedlock⁶ and shed⁶ blood are judged; and I will give¹ thee blood in fury and jealousy.

And I will also give¹ thee into their hand, and they shall throw down¹ thine eminent place, and shall break down¹⁴ thy high places: they shall strip⁵² thee also of thy clothes, and shall take¹ thy fair jewels, and leave⁵² thee naked and bare.

They shall also bring up⁵² a company against thee, and they shall stone¹ thee with stones, and thrust thee through¹⁴ with their swords.

And they shall burn¹ thine houses with fire, and execute¹ judgments upon thee in the sight of many women: and I will cause thee to cease⁵² from playing the harlot,⁶ and thou also shalt give⁴ no hire any more.

So will I make my fury toward thee to rest,⁵² and my jealousy shall depart¹ from thee, and I will be quiet,¹ and will be no more angry.⁴

Because thou hast not remembered¹ the days of thy youth, but hast fretted⁴ me in all these [things]; behold, therefore I also will recompense¹ thy way upon [thine] head, saith⁷ the Lord GOD: and thou shalt not commit¹ this lewdness above all thine abominations.

Behold, every one that useth proverbs⁶ shall use [this] proverb⁴ against thee, saying,² As [is] the mother, [so is] her daughter.

Thou [art] thy mother's daughter, that lotheth⁶ her husband and her children; and thou [art] the sister of thy sisters, which lothed¹ their husbands and their children: your mother [was] an Hittite, and your father an Amorite.

And thine elder sister [is] Samaria, she and her daughters that dwell⁶ at thy left hand: and thy younger sister, that dwelleth⁶ at thy right hand, [is] Sodom and her daughters.

Yet hast thou not walked¹ after their ways, nor done¹ after their abominations: but, as [if that were] a very ^{6962 1} little [thing], thou wast corrupted⁵⁵ more than they in all thy ways.

[As] I live, saith⁷ the Lord GOD, Sodom thy sister hath not done,¹ she nor her daughters, as thou hast done,¹ thou and thy daughters.

Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread, and abundance of idleness⁵³ was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen⁵² the hand of the poor and needy.

And they were haughty,⁴ and committed⁴ abomination before me: therefore I took them away⁵⁵ as I saw¹ [good].

Neither hath Samaria committed¹ half of thy sins; but thou hast multiplied⁵⁵ thine abominations more than they, and hast justified¹⁷ thy sisters in all thine abominations which thou hast done.¹

Thou also, which hast judged¹⁴ thy sisters, bear³ thine own shame for thy sins that thou hast committed more abominable⁵² than they: they are more righteous⁴ than thou: yea, be thou confounded³ also, and bear³ thy shame, in that thou hast justified¹⁵ thy sisters.

When I shall bring again¹ their captivity, ⁷⁶²² the captivity ⁷⁶²² of Sodom and her daughters, and the captivity ⁷⁶²² of Samaria and her daughters, then [will I bring again] the captivity ⁷⁶²² of thy captives in the midst of them:

That thou mayest bear⁴ thine own shame, and mayest be confounded⁸ in all that thou hast done,¹ in that thou art a comfort¹⁵ unto them.

When thy sisters, Sodom and her daughters, shall return⁴ to their former estate, and Samaria and her daughters shall return⁴ to their former estate, then thou and thy daughters shall return⁴ to your former estate.

For thy sister Sodom was not mentioned by thy mouth in the day of thy pride,

Before thy wickedness was discovered,¹¹ as at the time of [thy] reproach of the daughters of Syria, and all [that are] round about her, the daughters of the Philistines, which despise⁵ thee round about.

Thou hast borne¹ thy lewdness and thine abominations, saith⁷ the LORD.

For thus saith¹ the Lord GOD; I will even deal¹ with thee as thou hast done,¹ which hast despised¹ the oath in breaking⁵³ the covenant.

Nevertheless I will remember¹ my covenant with thee in the days of thy youth, and I will establish⁵² unto thee an everlasting covenant.

Then thou shalt remember¹ thy ways, and be ashamed,⁸ when thou shalt receive² thy sisters, thine elder and thy younger: and I will give¹ them unto thee for daughters, but not by thy covenant.

And I will establish⁵² my covenant with thee; and thou shalt know¹ that I [am] the LORD:

That thou mayest remember,⁴ and be confounded,¹ and never open thy mouth any more because of thy shame, when I am pacified¹⁵ toward thee for all that thou hast done,¹ saith⁷ the Lord GOD.