וַיְהִי דְבַר־ה' אֵלַי לֵאמֹֽר׃

The word of the Lord was with me, saying:

בֶּן־אָדָם הוֹדַע אֶת־יְרֽוּשָׁלִַם אֶת־תּֽוֹעֲבֹתֶֽיהָ

Son of man, inform Jerusalem of its abominations. Although this section deals with the history of the entire nation, the prophecy is addressed to Jerusalem because the Kingdom of Israel no longer exists.

וְאָֽמַרְתָּ כֹּֽה־אָמַר אֲדֹנָי אֱלוֹהִים לִירוּשָׁלִַם מְכֹֽרֹתַיִךְ וּמׂלְדֹתַיִךְ מֵאֶרֶץ הַֽכְּנַֽעֲנִי אָבִיךְ הָֽאֱמֹרִי וְאִמֵּךְ חִתִּֽית

Say: So said the Lord God to Jerusalem, here likened to a woman: Your origins and your birth were in the land of the Canaanites; your father was an Emorite and your mother a Hitite. Your transgressions and corrupt actions reflect your Canaanite moral origins. Others maintain that the Emorite father and Hitite mother are references to the genealogies of Abraham and Sarah respectively. Alternatively, Abraham and Sarah are characterized in this manner because they relied on the Emorites and Hitites for their status and security in the land of Canaan. This verse can also be interpreted as a reference to the city of Jerusalem, whose original inhabitants were Emorites and Hitites.

וּמוֹלְדוֹתַיִךְ בְּיוֹם הוּלֶּדֶת אוֹתָךְ לֹֽא־כָרַּת שָׁרֵּךְ וּבְמַיִם לֹֽא־רֻחַצְתְּ לְמִשְׁעִי וְהָמְלֵחַ לֹא הֻמְלַחַתְּ וְהָחְתֵּל לֹא חֻתָּֽלְתְּ

As for the matter of your birth, on the day you were born your umbilical cord was not cut properly, which is the first act performed on a newborn infant, and you were not washed in water for cleansing. You were not salted, as it was customary to spread and rub salt upon the skin of a new baby, and you were not swaddled with cloth. You were born in the most neglectful conditions imaginable. Israel, the infant of this metaphor, was transformed from a large family into a nation during the exile in Egypt. The nation was not born by means of a revolution, or from a privileged class or a group of exalted status. They became their own national entity when the people were lowly, penniless slaves, with no meaningful past or future, living their precarious lives entirely in the present.

לֹא־חָסָה עָלַיִךְ עַיִן לַֽעֲשׂוֹת לָךְ אַחַת מֵאֵלֶּה לְחֻמְלָה עָלָיִךְ וַֽתֻּשְׁלְכִי אֶל־פְּנֵי הַשָּׂדֶה בְּגֹעַל נַפְשֵׁךְ בְּיוֹם הֻלֶּדֶת אֹתָֽךְ

No eye pitied you, to do any of these to you, to have compassion upon you; you were cast upon the open field in the loathsomeness of your body, when your body was filthy and covered in blood, on the day of your birth.

וָאֶֽעֱבֹר עָלַיִךְ וָֽאֶרְאֵךְ מִתְבּוֹסֶסֶת בְּדָמָיִךְ וָאֹמַר לָךְ בְּדָמַיִךְ חֲיִי וָאֹמַר לָךְ בְּדָמַיִךְ חֲיִֽי

I, God, passed by you and saw you wallowing in your blood, abandoned and wretched, and I said to you: In your blood, you shall live; I said to you: In your blood, you shall live. The blood in which you wallow does not signify your end; rather, it signifies the beginning of your life. While blood was spilled all around you, I commanded you to live, thereby endowing you with the ability to survive in deplorable conditions.

רְבָבָה כְּצֶמַח הַשָּׂדֶה נְתַתִּיךְ וַתִּרְבִּי וַֽתִּגְדְּלִי וַתָּבֹאִי בַּֽעֲדִי עֲדָיִים שָׁדַיִם נָכֹנוּ וּשְׂעָרֵךְ צִמֵּחַ וְאַתְּ עֵרֹם וְעֶרְיָֽה

I rendered you numerous like the plants of the field. You grew like wild vegetation, which spreads even if no one waters or cultivates it. And you increased and grew, and you came to great beauty, possessed of naturally beautiful features: Your breasts developed and your hair grew, but you were still naked and bare, abandoned and impoverished. In other words, your life still had little purpose and direction.

וָאֶֽעֱבֹר עָלַיִךְ וָֽאֶרְאֵךְ וְהִנֵּה עִתֵּךְ עֵת דֹּדִים וָֽאֶפְרֹשׂ כְּנָפִי עָלַיִךְ וָֽאֲכַסֶּה עֶרְוָתֵךְ וָֽאֶשָּׁבַֽע לָךְ וָֽאָבוֹא בִבְרִית אֹתָךְ נְאֻם אֲדֹנָי אֱלוֹהִים וַתִּֽהְיִי־לִֽי

I passed by you again, after you had matured, and I saw you, and behold, your time was a time of love. In those days, women would often marry soon after puberty. And I spread My hem over you and took you under My care and promised to take you as a wife, and I covered your nakedness, and I swore to you and entered into a covenant with you – the utterance of the Lord God – and you became Mine, as a wife. This neglected child, who did not have much of a chance to survive, grew up without parents, teachers, education, or love. However, in her early adolescence, she came under the protection and care of the great Master who sought to honor her, and ultimately she became His partner in marriage, as it were. The bridegroom-mentor continued to care for His bride and beautify her.

וָֽאֶרְחָצֵךְ בַּמַּיִם וָֽאֶשְׁטֹף דָּמַיִךְ מֵֽעָלָיִךְ וָֽאֲסֻכֵךְ בַּשָּֽׁמֶן

I washed you with water and rinsed your blood from upon you, and I anointed you with oil.

וָֽאַלְבִּישֵׁךְ רִקְמָה וָֽאֶנְעֲלֵךְ תָּחַשׁ וָֽאֶחְבְּשֵׁךְ בּשֵּׁשׁ וַֽאֲכַסֵּךְ מֶֽשִׁי

I clothed you in garments adorned with embroidery and vibrant colors, and shod you with choice taḥash, and I wrapped you with linen and covered you with robes of silk. You left Egypt, not as a band of slaves fleeing their master, but as a free nation that was privileged to receive the kindness and revelation of God. These garments and materials possibly allude to the materials utilized in the construction of the Tabernacle, which embodied Israel’s unique closeness to God.

וָֽאֶעְדֵּךְ עֶדִי וָֽאֶתְּנָה צְמִידִים עַל־יָדַיִךְ וְרָבִיד עַל־גְּרוֹנֵֽךְ

I decked you with ornaments, and I placed bracelets on your hands and a chain on your neck. In ancient Egypt, a gold chain was a symbol of authority and status.

וָֽאֶתֵּן נֶזֶם עַל־אַפֵּךְ וַֽעֲגִילִים עַל־אָזְנָיִךְ וַֽעֲטֶרֶת תִּפְאֶרֶת בְּרֹאשֵֽׁךְ

I placed a ring on your nose, earrings on your ears, and a crown of splendor on your head.

וַתַּעְדִּי זָהָב וָכֶסֶף וּמַלְבּוּשֵׁךְ שֵׁשׁ וָמֶשִׁי וְרִקְמָה סֹלֶת וּדְבַשׁ וָשֶׁמֶן אָכָלְתְּ וַתִּיפִי בִּמְאֹד מְאֹד וַֽתִּצְלְחִי לִמְלוּכָֽה

You were decked with gold and silver, and your raiment was of linen, silk, and embroidery; you ate fine flour, honey, and oil; you became exceedingly beautiful, and you became fit for royalty. Your steady development qualified you for a kingdom of your own.

וַיֵּצֵא לָךְ שֵׁם בַּגּוֹיִם בְּיָפְיֵךְ כִּי כָּלִיל הוּא בַּֽהֲדָרִי אֲשֶׁר־שַׂמְתִּי עָלַיִךְ נְאֻם אֲדֹנָי אֱלוֹהִים

Your renown went forth among the nations due to your beauty, as it was perfect, not only due to your natural beauty, but also due to My grandeur that I placed upon you – the utterance of the Lord God.

וַתִּבְטְחִי בְיָפְיֵךְ וַתִּזְנִי עַל שְׁמֵךְ וַתִּשְׁפְּכִי אֶת־תַּזְנוּתַיִךְ עַל־כָּל־עוֹבֵר לוֹ־יֶהִי

The ideal picture that has been depicted thus far changes sharply: But you relied on your beauty and whored through your renown. You exploited your reputation of beauty among the nations for abominable purposes like a harlot, and you engaged in licentiousness and poured out your harlotries on every passerby, to be his. The prophet is referring to Israel’s lack of faith in God, which is analogous not merely to a wife who abandons her husband for another man but to a harlot who is available to everyone. Jerusalem did not entirely abandon the faith of Israel but added the idolatry of the surrounding regions to its worship.

וַתִּקְחִי מִבְּגָדַיִךְ וַתַּעֲשִׂי־לָךְ בָּמוֹת טְלֻאוֹת וַתִּזְנִי עֲלֵיהֶם לֹא בָאוֹת וְלֹא יִהְיֶה

You took from your garments that I gave you and made for yourself from them cushioned shrines, covered with various garments, and you whored on them. This bed of licentiousness is a metaphor for idol worship, conduct entirely unacceptable and that which should not happen and will not be.

וַתִּקְחִי כְּלֵי תִפְאַרְתֵּךְ מִזְּהָבִי וּמִכַּסְפִּי אֲשֶׁר נָתַתִּי לָךְ וַתַּעֲשִׂי־לָךְ צַלְמֵי זָכָר וַתִּזְנִי־בָם

You took the vessels of your splendor that were fashioned of My gold and of My silver which I gave to you, and you made for yourself male images from them, and you whored with them. The worship of idolatry is described here in extremely crude terms.

וַתִּקְחִי אֶת־בִּגְדֵי רִקְמָתֵךְ וַתְּכַסִּים וְשַׁמְנִי וּקְטָרְתִּי נָתַתְּ לִפְנֵיהֶם

You took the garments of your embroidery and covered your idols with them, and My oil and My incense you placed before them.

וְלַחְמִי אֲשֶׁר־נָתַתִּי לָךְ סֹלֶת וָשֶׁמֶן וּדְבַשׁ הֶאֱכַלְתִּיךְ וּנְתַתִּיהוּ לִפְנֵיהֶם לְרֵיחַ נִיחֹחַ וַיֶּהִי נְאֻם ה' אֱלוֹהִים

And My bread that I gave you, choice flour, oil, and honey that I fed you and with which I sustained you, you regularly placed it before them for an offering and a pleasing aroma, and so it was, despite the perversion of the matter – the utterance of the Lord God.

וַתִּקְחִי אֶת־בָּנַיִךְ וְאֶת־בְּנוֹתַיִךְ אֲשֶׁר יָלַדְתְּ לִי וַתִּזְבָּחִים לָהֶם לֶאֱכוֹל הַמְעַט מִתַּזְנוּתָיִךְ

You took your sons and your daughters, whom you bore to Me, and you slaughtered them for them, your paramours, to devour through the worship of Molekh and similar rites, which involved child sacrifice. Were your harlotries trivial

וַתִּשְׁחֲטִי אֶת־בָּנָי וַתִּתְּנִים בְּהַעֲבִיר אוֹתָם לָהֶם !

that you also slaughtered My children and gave them, in passing them through fire to them, your gods?

וְאֵת כָּל־תּוֹעֲבֹתַיִךְ וְתַזְנֻתַיִךְ לֹא זָכַרְתְּ אֶת־יְמֵי נְעוּרָיִךְ בִּהְיוֹתֵךְ עֵרֹם וְעֶרְיָה מִתְבּוֹסֶסֶת בְּדָמֵךְ הָיִית

With all your abominations and your harlotries, when you gave all you had to others, you did not remember the days of your youth, when you were naked and bare and you were wallowing in your blood.

וַיְהִי אַחֲרֵי כָּל־רָעָתֵךְ אוֹי אוֹי לָךְ נְאֻם ה' אֱלוֹהִים

It was that all the possessions, success, and beauty that I granted you to support your growth have all gone after all your evil, as they have been given in some form to idolatry; woe, woe to you – the utterance of the Lord God.

וַתִּבְנִי־לָךְ גָּב וַתַּעֲשִׂי־לָךְ רָמָה בְּכָל־רְחוֹב

You built for yourself an elevated place and made for yourself a high place, a shrine, in every square.

אֶל־כָּל רֹאשׁ דֶּרֶךְ בָּנִית רָמָתֵךְ וַתְּתַעֲבִי אֶת־יָפְיֵךְ וַתְּפַשְּׂקִי אֶת־רַגְלַיִךְ לְכָל־עוֹבֵר וַתַּרְבִּי אֶת־תַּזְנוּתָיִךְ

At the head of every path you built your shrine, and you made your beauty an abomination and spread your legs for every passerby, and you multiplied your harlotries. In their spiritual emptiness and enthusiasm for foreign forms of worship, Israel adopted every type of idolatry available and did not reject any of them.

וַתִּזְנִי אֶל־בְּנֵי־מִצְרַיִם שְׁכֵנַיִךְ גִּדְלֵי בָשָׂר וַתַּרְבִּי אֶת־תַּזְנֻתֵךְ לְהַכְעִיסֵנִי

You whored with the sons of Egypt, your neighbors, great of flesh, a reference to the male member, and you multiplied your harlotry to anger Me. Israel participated in the worship of Egyptian gods and learned from the Egyptians.

וְהִנֵּה נָטִיתִי יָדִי עָלַיִךְ וָאֶגְרַע חֻקֵּךְ וָאֶתְּנֵךְ בְּנֶפֶשׁ שׂנְאוֹתַיִךְ בְּנוֹת פְּלִשְׁתִּים הַנִּכְלָמוֹת מִדַּרְכֵּךְ זִמָּה

Behold, due to these sins, I have extended My hand against you and diminished your portion of sustenance that I provide you, and I have delivered you to the will of those who hate you, the daughters of the neighboring Philistines, to do to you as they wish. Indeed, Israel was attacked many times by its Philistine enemies who, even though they were idolaters, were ashamed of your lewd conduct, because you do not suffice with imitating their practices; rather, you surpass them in your abominations.

וַתִּזְנִי אֶל־בְּנֵי אַשּׁוּר מִבִּלְתִּי שָׂבְעָתֵךְ וַתִּזְנִים וְגַם לֹא שָׂבָעַתְּ

You whored with the Assyrians, by forming cultural, religious, and diplomatic ties with them, without satisfying yourself. Even after King Solomon established formal ties with Egypt, this was not enough for Jerusalem, as Ahaz king of Judah later requested assistance from Assyria to wage war against the Kingdom of Israel and the Arameans, albeit without success. You whored with them, yet you were not satisfied. The Kingdom of Judah did not suffice with its ties to Assyria, and it sought to expand its alliances to include other kingdoms.

וַתַּרְבִּי אֶת־תַּזְנוּתֵךְ אֶל־אֶרֶץ כְּנַעַן כַּשְׂדִּימָה וְגַם־בְּזֹאת לֹא שָׂבָעַתְּ

You expanded your harlotries in a different direction, to the land of Canaan, or, alternatively, to the land of merchants, to Chaldea, Babylon (see 17:4, 12), and even with that you were not satisfied. The nation of Israel jumped from one relationship to another. It sampled all the different cultures and idolatries, yet nothing satisfied it.

מָה אֲמֻלָה לִבָּתֵךְ נְאֻם ה' אֱלוֹהִים בַּעֲשׂוֹתֵךְ אֶת־כָּל־אֵלֶּה מַעֲשֵׂה אִשָּׁה זוֹנָה שַׁלָּטֶת

How feeble is your heart – the utterance of the Lord God – as you performed all of these, the work of an imperious, licentious woman, who publicly engages in licentious actions,

בִּבְנוֹתַיִךְ גַּבֵּךְ בְּרֹאשׁ כָּל־דֶּרֶךְ וְרָמָתֵךְ עָשִׂית בְּכָל־רְחוֹב וְלֹא־הָיִית כַּזּוֹנָה לְקַלֵּס אֶתְנָן

as you built your high place, your high places of worship, at the head of every path and your shrine in every square. Israel is like a fornicator who establishes a bed for herself in every location. But you were not like a harlot to disdain a fee. When a harlot receives her pay, she pretends to ignore it because it is contemptible in her eyes. You, however, do not act in that manner. Some explain that a harlot feigns scorning the pay she is given in order to receive more, but you are so eager to engage in harlotry that any payment is satisfactory in your eyes.

הָאִשָּׁה הַמְנָאָפֶת תַּחַת אִישָׁהּ תִּקַּח אֶת־ זָרִים

You are likened to an adulterous wife, who desires and takes strangers instead of her husband and is prepared to pay them.

לְכָל זֹנוֹת יִתְּנוּ נֵדֶה וְאַתְּ נָתַתְּ אֶת־נְדָנַיִךְ לְכָל־מְאַהֲבַיִךְ וַתִּשְׁחֳדִי אוֹתָם לָבוֹא אֵלַיִךְ מִסָּבִיב בְּתַזְנוּתָיִךְ

To all harlots they, the lovers, give gifts, but in contrast, you have given your gifts to all your lovers. The nation of Israel was enticed to worship idolatry without compensation. And in fact, you secretly bribed them to come to you from all around with your abundance of harlotries.

וַיְהִי בָךְ הֵפֶךְ מִן־הַנָּשִׁים בְּתַזְנוּתַיִךְ וְאַחֲרַיִךְ לֹא זוּנָּה וּבְתִתֵּךְ אֶתְנָן וְאֶתְנַן לֹא נִתַּן־לָךְ וַתְּהִי לְהֶפֶךְ

There was about you the opposite of other promiscuous women in your harlotries, and after you there will be no harlotry. From the beginning of your career of harlotry, no other prostitute was as licentious as you, in that you gave a fee and a fee was not given to you; you became the opposite of a typical whore. The worship rituals and customs of the other nations became widespread in Israel, not because those nations sought to influence Israel, but rather it was Israel that sought relations with those nations and their worship rituals.

לָכֵן זוֹנָה שִׁמְעִי דְּבַר־ה'

Ezekiel prophesies about the fate of sinful Jerusalem: Therefore, harlot, hear the word of the Lord.

כֹּה־אָמַר ה' אֱלוֹהִים יַעַן הִשָּׁפֵךְ נְחֻשְׁתֵּךְ וַתִּגָּלֶה עֶרְוָתֵךְ בְּתַזְנוּתַיִךְ עַל מְאַהֲבָיִךְ וְעַל כָּל־גִּלּוּלֵי תוֹעֲבוֹתַיִךְ וְכִדְמֵי בָנַיִךְ אֲשֶׁר נָתַתְּ לָהֶם

So said the Lord God: Because of the outpouring of your nether regions [neh·], your nakedness was uncovered through your harlotries with your lovers and with all the idols of your abominations, and because of the blood of your children, that you gave to them, sacrificed to these idols, I will act in the manner described in the following verse. Some explain that the metaphor neḥoshet, literally bronze, is an allusion to the bottom of a pot, and so here Israel is likened to a pot whose cooked food has been emptied, thereby revealing the bronze bottom.

לָכֵן הִנְנִי מְקַבֵּץ אֶת־כָּל־מְאַהֲבַיִךְ אֲשֶׁר עָרַבְתְּ עֲלֵיהֶם וְאֵת כָּל־אֲשֶׁר אָהַבְתְּ עַל כָּל־אֲשֶׁר שָׂנֵאת וְקִבַּצְתִּי אֹתָם עָלַיִךְ מִסָּבִיב וְגִלֵּיתִי עֶרְוָתֵךְ אֲלֵהֶם וְרָאוּ אֶת־כָּל־עֶרְוָתֵךְ

Therefore, behold, I am gathering all your lovers to whom you had been pleasant. This refers to all the nations in the region with whom Israel developed relations and whose idolatrous ceremonies they enjoyed. And I will gather all whom you loved with all whom you hated, and I will gather them upon you all around, and I will uncover your nakedness, disgrace, to them, and they will see all your nakedness. Your lovers, Jerusalem, will be invited to observe your chastisement. In this manner, the shame of your sins and the ensuing retribution will be publicized before all.

וּשְׁפַטְתִּיךְ מִשְׁפְּטֵי נֹאֲפוֹת וְשֹׁפְכֹת דָּם וּנְתַתִּיךְ דַּם חֵמָה וְקִנְאָה

I will judge you with the judgment of adulteresses and murderesses. Israel committed both of these sins, as mentioned by all of the prophets. And I will subject you to blood, fury, and jealousy.

וְנָתַתִּי אֹתָךְ בְּיָדָם וְהָרְסוּ גַבֵּךְ וְנִתְּצוּ רָמֹתַיִךְ וְהִפְשִׁיטוּ אוֹתָךְ בְּגָדַיִךְ וְלָקְחוּ כְּלֵי תִפְאַרְתֵּךְ וְהִנִּיחוּךְ עֵירֹם וְעֶרְיָה

I will deliver you into their hand, to all of your lovers. The surrounding nations with whom you established ties will participate in your punishment, and they will destroy your elevated place, the high places that you constructed for idol worship, and shatter your shrines, strip you of your garments, and take the vessels of your splendor, and leave you naked and bare. They will strip you of all your possessions. All places of worship, including the one that was actually dedicated to God, will be destroyed, and all material property will be plundered. The hatred of your lovers and their appropriation of everything you own will return you to your original state, and you will once again be left abandoned and naked as you were at your birth.

וְהֶעֱלוּ עָלַיִךְ קָהָל וְרָגְמוּ אוֹתָךְ בָּאָבֶן וּבִתְּקוּךְ בְּחַרְבוֹתָם

They will raise an assembly against you to participate in your judgment. They will ascend against you for battle, and they will stone you with stones and pierce you with their swords.

וְשָׂרְפוּ בָתַּיִךְ בָּאֵשׁ וְעָשׂוּ־בָךְ שְׁפָטִים לְעֵינֵי נָשִׁים רַבּוֹת וְהִשְׁבַּתִּיךְ מִזּוֹנָה וְגַם־אֶתְנַן לֹא תִתְּנִי־עוֹד

They will burn your houses in fire, and administer punishments to you before the eyes of many women. I will stop you from being a harlot, and you shall also no longer give a fee. Since you will have nothing left to give in compensation, you will be forced to refrain from harlotry.

וַהֲנִחֹתִי חֲמָתִי בָּךְ וְסָרָה קִנְאָתִי מִמֵּךְ וְשָׁקַטְתִּי וְלֹא אֶכְעַס עוֹד

After your punishment, and when your desire to commit acts of licentiousness ceases, I will assuage My fury upon you, and My jealousy will turn from you; I will be calm, and I will be angry no longer.

יַעַן אֲשֶׁר לֹא־זָכַרְתְּ אֶת־יְמֵי נְעוּרַיִךְ וַתִּרְגְּזִי־לִי בְּכָל אֵלֶּה וְגַם־אֲנִי הֵא דַּרְכֵּךְ בְּרֹאשׁ נָתַתִּי נְאֻם ה' אֱלוֹהִים וְלֹא עָשִׂית אֶת־הַזִּמָּה עַל כָּל־תּוֹעֲבֹתָיִךְ

Because you did not remember the days of your youth, and you provoked Me with all these sins of yours, behold, I too have brought your way upon your head – the utterance of the Lord God – and you still did not rectify the lewdness along with all your abominations.

הִנֵּה כָּל־הַמֹּשֵׁל עָלַיִךְ יִמְשֹׁל לֵאמֹר כְּאִמָּה בִּתָּהּ

Behold, all who cite proverbs will cite this proverb about you, saying: As the mother, so her daughter.

בַּת־אִמֵּךְ אַתְּ גֹּעֶלֶת אִישָׁהּ וּבָנֶיהָ וַאֲחוֹת אֲחוֹתֵךְ אַתְּ אֲשֶׁר גָּעֲלוּ אַנְשֵׁיהֶן וּבְנֵיהֶן אִמְּכֶן חִתִּית וַאֲבִיכֶן אֱמֹרִי

The prophet elaborates: You are your mother’s daughter, who loathes her husband and her children. You continue the legacy of your mother, who estranged herself from her husband and children, and you are also like your sisters’ sister, who loathed their husbands and their children. Ezekiel reveals the identity of these relatives: Your mother was a Hitite, and your father an Emorite. You, Israel, originate from an admixture of nations with an inferior culture, the peoples of Canaan and Het.

וַאֲחוֹתֵךְ הַגְּדוֹלָה שֹׁמְרוֹן הִיא וּבְנוֹתֶיהָ הַיּוֹשֶׁבֶת עַל־שְׂמֹאולֵךְ וַאֲחוֹתֵךְ הַקְּטַנָּה מִמֵּךְ הַיּוֹשֶׁבֶת מִימִינֵךְ סְדֹם וּבְנוֹתֶיהָ

Your elder sister, greater in status and the size of her land, is Samaria, she and her daughters, the suburbs, who dwells to your left, to the north; and your sister who is younger than you, who dwells to your right, to the south, is Sodom and her daughters. You, Jerusalem, are located in between your elder sister, whom you know from the recent past, and your younger sister, also present in your historical consciousness.

וְלֹא בְדַרְכֵיהֶן הָלַכְתְּ וּכְתוֹעֲבוֹתֵיהֶן עָשִׂית כִּמְעַט קָט וַתַּשְׁחִתִי מֵהֶן בְּכָל־דְּרָכָיִךְ

But you did not only follow their ways and act in accordance with their abominations; in a very short while you acted more corruptly than them in all your ways. Not only have you emulated the deeds of the people of Samaria and Sodom, the repulsiveness of your actions even surpassed theirs.

חַי־אָנִי נְאֻם ה' אֱלוֹהִים אִם־עָשְׂתָה סְדֹם אֲחוֹתֵךְ הִיא וּבְנוֹתֶיהָ כַּאֲשֶׁר עָשִׂית אַתְּ וּבְנוֹתָיִךְ

As I live – the utterance of the Lord God – Sodom, your sister, she and her daughters, Gomorrah, Adma, and Tzevoyim, surely did not do as you and your daughters have done.

הִנֵּה־זֶה הָיָה עֲוֹן סְדֹם אֲחוֹתֵךְ גָּאוֹן שִׂבְעַת־לֶחֶם וְשַׁלְוַת הַשְׁקֵט הָיָה לָהּ וְלִבְנוֹתֶיהָ וְיַד־עָנִי וְאֶבְיוֹן לֹא הֶחֱזִיקָה

Behold, this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters had pride, which was due to its surfeit of bread and tranquil calm, but she did not support the hand of the poor and indigent. The people of Sodom kept all they had for themselves.

וַתִּגְבְּהֶינָה וַתַּעֲשֶׂינָה תוֹעֵבָה לְפָנָי וָאָסִיר אֶתְהֶן כַּאֲשֶׁר רָאִיתִי

They, Sodom and its daughters, were haughty and performed an abomination before Me, and I removed them in accordance with that which I saw, their arrogant deeds.

וְשֹׁמְרוֹן כַּחֲצִי חַטֹּאתַיִךְ לֹא חָטָאָה וַתַּרְבִּי אֶת־תּוֹעֲבוֹתַיִךְ מֵהֵנָּה וַתְּצַדְּקִי אֶת־אֲחוֹתַיִךְ בְּכָל־תּוֹעֲבֹתַיִךְ אֲשֶׁר עָשִׂית

Samaria, even half your sins she did not sin; you multiplied your abominations more than they, and you vindicated your sisters with all your abominations that you performed. Relative to you, your two sisters appear almost righteous. You are more immoral than they were, as you have blended together myriad cultures of idolatry. You have been enticed by influences from every direction: Assyria, Babylonia, Egypt, and Canaan.

גַּם־אַתְּ שְׂאִי כְלִמָּתֵךְ אֲשֶׁר פִּלַּלְתְּ לַאֲחוֹתֵךְ בְּחַטֹּאתַיִךְ אֲשֶׁר־הִתְעַבְתְּ מֵהֵן תִּצְדַּקְנָה מִמֵּךְ וְגַם־אַתְּ בּוֹשִׁי וּשְׂאִי כְלִמָּתֵךְ בְּצַדֶּקְתֵּךְ אַחְיוֹתֵךְ

You too, bear your humiliation which you adjudged for your sister. You maintained that Samaria should be ashamed, but you are more deserving of shame than she, as through your sins, in which you acted more abominably than they, they are more righteous than you. And again, you too, be ashamed and bear your humiliation, as you have vindicated your sisters. The people of Jerusalem considered Samaria and Sodom cities of sin, but in comparison to Jerusalem, they could be deemed righteous.

וְשַׁבְתִּי אֶת־שְׁבִיתְהֶן אֶת־שְׁבוּת סְדֹם וּבְנוֹתֶיהָ וְאֶת־שְׁבוּת שֹׁמְרוֹן וּבְנוֹתֶיהָ וּשְׁבוּת שְׁבִיתַיִךְ בְּתוֹכָהְנָה

Ultimately, I will restore their returnees as well, the captives of Sodom and her daughters and the captives of Samaria and her daughters, and the captives of your returnees in their midst. When redemption arrives, Sodom and Samaria will be rebuilt, and you will be rehabilitated together with them,

לְמַעַן תִּשְׂאִי כְלִמָּתֵךְ וְנִכְלַמְתְּ מִכֹּל אֲשֶׁר עָשִׂית בְּנַחֲמֵךְ אֹתָן

so that you will bear your humiliation, and you will be humiliated because of everything that you did, as you consoled them. They find comfort of sorts in the fact that you suffered more than they did.

וַאֲחוֹתַיִךְ סְדֹם וּבְנוֹתֶיהָ תָּשֹׁבְןָ לְקַדְמָתָן וְשֹׁמְרוֹן וּבְנוֹתֶיהָ תָּשֹׁבְןָ לְקַדְמָתָן וְאַתְּ וּבְנוֹתַיִךְ תְּשֻׁבֶינָה לְקַדְמַתְכֶן

Your sisters, Sodom and her daughters, will return to their former state, Samaria and her daughters will return to their former state, and you and your daughters will be restored to your former state.

וְלוֹא הָיְתָה סְדֹם אֲחוֹתֵךְ לִשְׁמוּעָה בְּפִיךְ בְּיוֹם גְּאוֹנָיִךְ

Your sister Sodom was not an adage in your mouth on the day of your pride. During your period of greatness, you did not sufficiently contemplate Sodom’s sins and subsequent destruction,

בְּטֶרֶם תִּגָּלֶה רָעָתֵךְ כְּמוֹ עֵת חֶרְפַּת בְּנוֹת־אֲרָם וְכָל־סְבִיבוֹתֶיהָ בְנוֹת פְּלִשְׁתִּים הַשָּׁאטוֹת אוֹתָךְ מִסָּבִיב

before your evildoing was revealed, like at the time of the disgrace of the daughters of Aram and all its surroundings, the daughters of the Philistines, who demean you from all around. You should have learned and internalized what happened in Sodom and refrained from abominations before the cities of Aram and its surrounding areas, as well as the Philistine cities, scorned your dissolute, unrestrained culture. Alternatively, the verse is asking why Israel did not repent when Aram and the Philistines were attacking them and plundering their possessions.

אֶת־זִמָּתֵךְ וְאֶת־תּוֹעֲבוֹתַיִךְ אַתְּ נְשָׂאתִים נְאֻם ה'

Your lewdness and your abominations you have borne – the utterance of the Lord. You alone are responsible for your worship of idolatry.

כִּי כֹה אָמַר ה' אֱלוֹהִים וְעָשִׂיתִ אוֹתָךְ כַּאֲשֶׁר עָשִׂית אֲשֶׁר־בָּזִית אָלָה לְהָפֵר בְּרִית

For so said the Lord God: I will do to you as you have done, as you scorned an oath to breach a covenant that you established with Me at Mount Sinai. The harshness of your punishment corresponds to the severity of your actions.

וְזָכַרְתִּי אֲנִי אֶת־בְּרִיתִי אוֹתָךְ בִּימֵי נְעוּרָיִךְ וַהֲקִימוֹתִי לָךְ בְּרִית עוֹלָם

But, although you have disgraced the covenant, I will remember My covenant that I established with you in the days of your youth, and I will uphold an everlasting covenant with you. I will save you and will no longer be angry with you.

וְזָכַרְתְּ אֶת־דְּרָכַיִךְ וְנִכְלַמְתְּ בְּקַחְתֵּךְ אֶת־אֲחוֹתַיִךְ הַגְּדֹלוֹת מִמֵּךְ אֶל הַקְּטַנּוֹת מִמֵּךְ וְנָתַתִּי אֶתְהֶן לָךְ לְבָנוֹת וְלֹא מִבְּרִיתֵךְ

You will remember your ways and be humiliated because of them when you take your sisters who are older than you, Samaria and its daughters, with those sisters who are younger than you, Sodom and its daughters, and I will give them to you as daughters and they will be under your rule, but not because you deserve it, as you have been neglectful of your covenant.

וַהֲקִימֹתִי אֲנִי אֶת־בְּרִיתִי אִתָּךְ וְיָדַעַתְּ כִּי־אֲנִי ה'

But I, I will fulfill My covenant with you, and you will know that I am the Lord,

לְמַעַן תִּזְכְּרִי וָבֹשְׁתְּ וְלֹא יִהְיֶה־לָּךְ עוֹד פִּתְחוֹן פֶּה מִפְּנֵי כְּלִמָּתֵךְ בְּכַפְּרִי־לָךְ לְכָל־אֲשֶׁר עָשִׂית נְאֻם ה' אֱלוֹהִים

so that you will remember and be ashamed, and you will no longer be able to open your mouth because of your humiliation. Most importantly, this will occur when I atone for you for everything that you have done – the utterance of the Lord God.