Ezekiel 19:1–9

And you, take up a lamentation for the princes of Israel, and say:

What was your mother? A lioness!

Among lions she crouched;

in the midst of young lions

she reared her cubs.

And she brought up one of her cubs;

he became a young lion,

and he learned to catch prey;

he devoured men.

The nations heard about him;

he was caught in their pit,

and they brought him with hooks

to the land of Egypt.

When she saw that she waited in vain,

that her hope was lost,

she took another of her cubs

and made him a young lion.

He prowled among the lions;

he became a young lion,

and he learned to catch prey;

he devoured men,

and seized their widows.

He laid waste their cities,

and the land was appalled and all who were in it

at the sound of his roaring.

Then the nations set against him

from provinces on every side;

they spread their net over him;

he was taken in their pit.

With hooks they put him in a cage

and brought him to the king of Babylon;

they brought him into custody,

that his voice should no more be heard

on the mountains of Israel.

“Take up a lament concerning the princes of Israel and say:

“ ‘What a lioness was your mother

among the lions!

She lay down among them

and reared her cubs.

She brought up one of her cubs,

and he became a strong lion.

He learned to tear the prey

and he became a man-eater.

The nations heard about him,

and he was trapped in their pit.

They led him with hooks

to the land of Egypt.

“ ‘When she saw her hope unfulfilled,

her expectation gone,

she took another of her cubs

and made him a strong lion.

He prowled among the lions,

for he was now a strong lion.

He learned to tear the prey

and he became a man-eater.

He broke down their strongholds

and devastated their towns.

The land and all who were in it

were terrified by his roaring.

Then the nations came against him,

those from regions round about.

They spread their net for him,

and he was trapped in their pit.

With hooks they pulled him into a cage

and brought him to the king of Babylon.

They put him in prison,

so his roar was heard no longer

on the mountains of Israel.

“As for you, take up a lament for the princes of Israel, and say:

What was your mother? A lioness!

She lay down among the lions;

she reared her cubs among the young lions.

She brought up one of her cubs,

and he became a young lion.

After he learned to tear prey,

he devoured people.

When the nations heard about him,

he was caught in their pit.

Then they led him away with hooks

to the land of Egypt.

When she saw that she waited in vain,

that her hope was lost,

she took another of her cubs

and made him a young lion.

He prowled among the lions,

and he became a young lion.

After he learned to tear prey,

he devoured people.

He devastated their strongholds

and destroyed their cities.

The land and everything in it shuddered

at the sound of his roaring.

Then the nations from the surrounding provinces

set out against him.

They spread their net over him;

he was caught in their pit.

They put a wooden yoke on him with hooks

and led him away to the king of Babylon.

They brought him into the fortresses

so his roar could no longer be heard

on the mountains of Israel.

“Sing this funeral song for the princes of Israel:

“What is your mother?

A lioness among lions!

She lay down among the young lions

and reared her cubs.

She raised one of her cubs

to become a strong young lion.

He learned to hunt and devour prey,

and he became a man-eater.

Then the nations heard about him,

and he was trapped in their pit.

They led him away with hooks

to the land of Egypt.

“When the lioness saw

that her hopes for him were gone,

she took another of her cubs

and taught him to be a strong young lion.

He prowled among the other lions

and stood out among them in his strength.

He learned to hunt and devour prey,

and he, too, became a man-eater.

He demolished fortresses

and destroyed their towns and cities.

Their farms were desolated,

and their crops were destroyed.

The land and its people trembled in fear

when they heard him roar.

Then the armies of the nations attacked him,

surrounding him from every direction.

They threw a net over him

and captured him in their pit.

With hooks, they dragged him into a cage

and brought him before the king of Babylon.

They held him in captivity,

so his voice could never again be heard

on the mountains of Israel.

“And you, raise a lament about the leaders of Israel, and you must say,

‘What a lioness was your mother

among the lions.

She lay down in the midst of young lions,

and she reared her lion cubs.

And she raised up one from her cubs;

he became a fierce lion,

and he learned to tear prey;

he ate humans.

And nations heard about him;

in their pit he was caught,

and they brought him with hooks

to the land of Egypt.

And she saw that she was waiting in vain;

her hope was destroyed,

and she took one from her cubs,

and she made him a fierce lion.

And he walked about in the midst of lions;

he became a fierce lion,

and he learned to tear prey;

he ate humans.

And he knew their widows,

and he devastated their cities,

and the land was appalled, and everyone in it

at the sound of his roar.

And nations set out against him

from the surrounding provinces,

and they spread their net over him,

and he was caught in their pit.

And they put him in a collar with hooks,

and they brought him to the king of Babylon;

they brought him into a prison,

so that his voice would not be heard any longer

on the mountains of Israel.

Moreover take thou up a lamentation for the princes of Israel, And say, What is thy mother? A lioness: she lay down among lions, she nourished her whelps among young lions. And she brought up one of her whelps: it became a young lion, and it learned to catch the prey; it devoured men. The nations also heard of him; he was taken in their pit, and they brought him with chains unto the land of Egypt. Now when she saw that she had waited, and her hope was lost, then she took another of her whelps, and made him a young lion. And he went up and down among the lions, he became a young lion, and learned to catch the prey, and devoured men. And he knew their desolate palaces, and he laid waste their cities; and the land was desolate, and the fulness thereof, by the noise of his roaring. Then the nations set against him on every side from the provinces, and spread their net over him: he was taken in their pit. And they put him in ward in chains, and brought him to the king of Babylon: they brought him into holds, that his voice should no more be heard upon the mountains of Israel.