^23:14But she increased her prostitution. She saw men carved on the wall, images of the Chaldeans carved in bright red,¹²^23:15wearing belts on their waists and flowing turbans on their heads, all of them looking like officers, the image of Babylonians¹³ whose native land is Chaldea. ^23:16When she saw them,¹⁴ she lusted after them and sent messengers to them in Chaldea.¹⁵^23:17The Babylonians crawled into bed with her.¹⁶ They defiled her with their lust; after she was defiled by them, she¹⁷ became disgusted with them. ^23:18When she lustfully exposed her nakedness,¹⁸ I¹⁹ was disgusted with her, just as I²⁰ had been disgusted with her sister. ^23:19Yet she increased her prostitution, remembering the days of her youth when she engaged in prostitution in the land of Egypt. ^23:20She lusted after their genitals—as large those of donkeys,²¹ and their seminal emission was as strong as that of stallions. ^23:21This is how you assessed²² the obscene conduct of your youth, when the Egyptians fondled²³ your nipples and squeezed²⁴ your young breasts.

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Footnotes

12 The only other occurrence of the Hebrew term is in Jer 22:14.
13 Heb “the sons of Babel.”
14 Heb “at the appearance of her eyes.”
15 The Chaldeans were prominent tribal groups of Babylonia. The imagery is reminiscent of events in the reigns of Hezekiah (2 Kgs 20:12–15) and Jehoiakim (2 Kgs 23:34–24:1).
16 Heb “The sons of Babel came to her on a bed of love.”
17 Heb “her soul.”
18 Heb “She exposed her harlotry and she exposed her nakedness.”
19 Heb “my soul.”
20 Heb “my soul.”
21 Heb “She lusted after their concubines (?) whose flesh was the flesh of donkeys.” The phrase “their concubines” is extremely problematic here. The pronoun is masculine plural, suggesting that the Egyptian men are in view, but how concubines would fit into the picture envisioned here is not clear. Some suggest that Ezekiel uses the term in an idiomatic sense of “paramour,” but this still fails to explain how the pronoun relates to the noun. It is more likely that the term refers here to the Egyptians’ genitals. The relative pronoun that follows introduces a more specific description of their genitals.
22 Or “you took note of.” The Hebrew verb פָּקַד (paqad) in the Qal implies evaluating something and then acting in light of that judgment; here the prophet depicts Judah as approving of her youthful unfaithfulness and then magnifying it at the present time. Some translations assume the verb should be repointed as a Niphal, rendering “you missed” or by extension “you longed for,” but such an extension of the Niphal “to be missing” is otherwise unattested.
23 Heb “when (they) did,” but the verb makes no sense here and is better emended to “when (they) fondled,” a verb used in vv. 3 and 8. See L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (), 2:.
24 Heb “for the sake of,” but the expression is awkward and is better emended to read “to squeeze.” See L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (), 2:.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

But she carried her whoring further. She saw men portrayed on the wall, the images of the Chaldeans portrayed in vermilion, wearing belts on their waists, with flowing turbans on their heads, all of them having the appearance of officers, a likeness of Babylonians whose native land was Chaldea. When she saw them, she lusted after them and sent messengers to them in Chaldea. And the Babylonians came to her into the bed of love, and they defiled her with their whoring lust. And after she was defiled by them, she turned from them in disgust. When she carried on her whoring so openly and flaunted her nakedness, I turned in disgust from her, as I had turned in disgust from her sister. Yet she increased her whoring, remembering the days of her youth, when she played the whore in the land of Egypt and lusted after her lovers there, whose members were like those of donkeys, and whose issue was like that of horses. Thus you longed for the lewdness of your youth, when the Egyptians handled your bosom and pressed your young breasts.”

NIVNew International Version (2011)

“But she carried her prostitution still further. She saw men portrayed on a wall, figures of Chaldeans portrayed in red, with belts around their waists and flowing turbans on their heads; all of them looked like Babylonian chariot officers, natives of Chaldea. As soon as she saw them, she lusted after them and sent messengers to them in Chaldea. Then the Babylonians came to her, to the bed of love, and in their lust they defiled her. After she had been defiled by them, she turned away from them in disgust. When she carried on her prostitution openly and exposed her naked body, I turned away from her in disgust, just as I had turned away from her sister. Yet she became more and more promiscuous as she recalled the days of her youth, when she was a prostitute in Egypt. There she lusted after her lovers, whose genitals were like those of donkeys and whose emission was like that of horses. So you longed for the lewdness of your youth, when in Egypt your bosom was caressed and your young breasts fondled.

CSBChristian Standard Bible

But she increased her promiscuity when she saw male figures carved on the wall, images of the Chaldeans, engraved in bright red, wearing belts on their waists and flowing turbans on their heads; all of them looked like officers, a depiction of the Babylonians in Chaldea, their native land. At the sight of them she lusted after them and sent messengers to them in Chaldea. Then the Babylonians came to her, to the bed of love, and defiled her with their lust. But after she was defiled by them, she turned away from them in disgust. When she flaunted her promiscuity and exposed her nakedness, I turned away from her in disgust just as I turned away from her sister. Yet she multiplied her acts of promiscuity, remembering the days of her youth when she acted like a prostitute in the land of Egypt and lusted after their lovers, whose sexual members were like those of donkeys and whose emission was like that of stallions. So you revisited the depravity of your youth, when the Egyptians caressed your nipples to enjoy your youthful breasts.

NLTNew Living Translation

“Then she carried her prostitution even further. She fell in love with pictures that were painted on a wall—pictures of Babylonian military officers, outfitted in striking red uniforms. Handsome belts encircled their waists, and flowing turbans crowned their heads. They were dressed like chariot officers from the land of Babylonia. When she saw these paintings, she longed to give herself to them, so she sent messengers to Babylonia to invite them to come to her. So they came and committed adultery with her, defiling her in the bed of love. After being defiled, however, she rejected them in disgust.

“In the same way, I became disgusted with Oholibah and rejected her, just as I had rejected her sister, because she flaunted herself before them and gave herself to satisfy their lusts. Yet she turned to even greater prostitution, remembering her youth when she was a prostitute in Egypt. She lusted after lovers with genitals as large as a donkey’s and emissions like those of a horse. And so, Oholibah, you relived your former days as a young girl in Egypt, when you first allowed your breasts to be fondled.

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

And she increased her whorings, and she saw men carved on the wall, images of Chaldeans carved in red, belted with a belt at their waist with turbans on their heads, all of them giving the appearance of adjutants, the image of the Babylonians; Chaldea was the land of their birth. And she lusted for them when her eyes saw them, and she sent messengers to them at Chaldea. And so the Babylonians came to her for the bed of lovemaking; and they defiled her with their fornication, and she was defiled by them, and she turned from them. And she revealed her whorings, and she revealed her nakedness, and so I turned from her just as I turned from her sister. Yet she increased her whorings, recalling the days of her childhood when she was prostituted in the land of Egypt. And she lusted after her male lovers whose genitalia were the genitalia of male donkeys and their seminal emission was the seminal emission of horses. And you longed after the obscene conduct of your youth when your bosom was caressed by Egypt, fondling your young breasts.

KJV 1900King James Version

And that she increased her whoredoms: for when she saw men pourtrayed upon the wall, the images of the Chaldeans pourtrayed with vermilion, Girded with girdles upon their loins, exceeding in dyed attire upon their heads, all of them princes to look to, after the manner of the Babylonians of Chaldea, the land of their nativity: And as soon as she saw them with her eyes, she doted upon them, and sent messengers unto them into Chaldea. And the Babylonians came to her into the bed of love, and they defiled her with their whoredom, and she was polluted with them, and her mind was alienated from them. So she discovered her whoredoms, and discovered her nakedness: then my mind was alienated from her, like as my mind was alienated from her sister. Yet she multiplied her whoredoms, in calling to remembrance the days of her youth, wherein she had played the harlot in the land of Egypt. For she doted upon their paramours, whose flesh is as the flesh of asses, and whose issue is like the issue of horses. Thus thou calledst to remembrance the lewdness of thy youth, in bruising thy teats by the Egyptians for the paps of thy youth.

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