And the word of Jehovah came to me, saying,

Son of man, put forth a riddle, and utter a parable to the house of Israel;

And say, Thus says the Lord Jehovah, A great eagle with great wings, long pinions, and full plumage of many colors came to Lebanon and took away the top of the cedar.

He cropped off its topmost young twig and brought it to a land of merchants; he set it in a city of traders.

He also took some of the seed of the land and put it in a fertile field; he took it and set it by abundant waters like a willow,

That it might sprout and become a low, running vine with its branches turned toward him and its roots under him. And it became a vine and produced offshoots and sent forth boughs.

And there was another great eagle with great wings and much plumage; and then this vine bent its roots toward him, and from the beds where it was planted it sent out its branches toward him that he might water it.

In a good field by abundant waters it had been transplanted so that it would produce branches and bear fruit, that it might be a magnificent vine.

Say then, Thus says the Lord Jehovah, Will it thrive? Will he not pull up its roots and cut off its fruit so that it withers? All its fresh sprouting leaves will wither, even without great strength or a mighty people pulling it up from its roots.

And indeed, though it has been transplanted, will it thrive? Will it not wither completely once the east wind touches it? In the beds where it was planted it will wither.

Moreover the word of Jehovah came to me, saying,

Say now to the rebellious house, Do you not know what these things mean? Say, Indeed the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem, and he took its king and its rulers and brought them to him at Babylon.

And he took someone of the royal seed and made a covenant with him and put him under an oath. He also took the mighty men of the land,

That the kingdom might be humble, that it might not lift itself up, but by keeping his covenant, it might stand.

But he rebelled against him by sending his messengers to Egypt that they might give him horses and many people. Will he prosper? Will he who does these things escape? Can he break the covenant and slip away?

As I live, declares the Lord Jehovah, surely in the land of the king who made him king, whose oath he despised and whose covenant he broke, with him in the midst of Babylon he will die.

And Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company will not aid him in battle, when they cast up mounds and build siegeworks to cut off many lives.

Indeed, he despised the oath by breaking the covenant; yes, he even gave his hand and yet did all these things; he will not slip away.

Therefore thus says the Lord Jehovah, As I live, surely My oath, which he despised, and My covenant, which he broke, I will bring upon his head.

And I will spread My net over him, and he will be caught in My snare; and I will bring him to Babylon and will enter into judgment with him there concerning his unfaithfulness by which he has been unfaithful to Me.

And all his choice men with all his armies will fall by the sword, and those who are left will be scattered into every wind; and you will know that I, Jehovah, have spoken.

Thus says the Lord Jehovah, I will also take a twig from the lofty top of the cedar and will set it out; from the topmost of its young twigs I will crop off a tender one, and I will transplant it upon a high and prominent mountain.

On the high mountain of Israel I will transplant it; and it will bear branches and produce fruit and will become a magnificent cedar; and under it all birds of every kind will nest; in the shade of its branches they will nest.

And all the trees of the field will know that I, Jehovah, have brought down the exalted tree and have exalted the lowly tree, that I have dried up the green tree and have made the dry tree bud. I, Jehovah, have spoken, and I will do it.