1 And the word {devar: utterance, message} of the LORD {YHWH, Revelation-Giver} came to me, saying:
2 Son of man {ben-adam: human messenger}, pose a riddle {chidah: enigmatic saying} and speak a parable to the house of Israel.
3 And you shall say: “Thus says the Lord GOD {Adonai YHWH, Sovereign Ruler}, the great eagle, great in wings, long in pinion, full of feathers that had the variegation {harikmah: colorful embroidery}, came to Lebanon and took the top of the cedar.”
4 He plucked {qataf: snatched off} the very top of its young shoots and brought it to the land of Canaan; in a city of merchants {rochlim: traders} he set it.
5 And he took seed {zera: native grain} from the land and planted it in a field {bisdezara: sowing field}; he set it by abundant waters and made it grow as a willow.
6 And it sprouted {vayyitzmach: grew up rapidly} and became a spreading vine of low stature {komah: height or standing}, so that its branches turned toward him, and its roots were under it; and it became a vine and produced branches and sent out tendrils.
7 And there was another great eagle {nesher: large predatory bird}, great in wings and abundant in plumage. And behold, this vine bent its roots toward him and stretched out its branches to him to be watered from the beds of its planting {mattaha: place of rooting}.
8 She was planted in a good field by many waters {mayim: abundant irrigation}, to produce a branch and to bear fruit, and to become a noble vine {gefen addaret: splendid vine}.
9 Say, “Thus says the Lord God {YHWH Adonai, Sovereign Master}: Will it thrive {titzlach: prosper, advance}? Will he not pull up its roots {sharasheha: foundation, source} and cut off its fruit so that all the leaves of its growth wither? It will wither, and by no strong arm or by many people will it be lifted up from its roots.”
10 And behold, it is planted—will it prosper? When the east wind {ruach: sudden gale} touches it, it will dry up utterly on the beds of its growth {tsimchah: sprouting}.
11 And the word of the LORD {YHWH, Divine Communicator} came to me, saying {leimor: speech introducer}.
12 Say now to the house of rebellion {meri: defiance}, "Do you not know what these things mean? Say, 'Behold, the king of Babylon has come to Jerusalem and has taken her king and her princes {sareh: royal officials}, and he has brought them to him, to Babylon.'"
13 And he took from the royal seed {hammelukhah: royal lineage} and made a covenant {berit: binding agreement} with him; he brought him under an oath and also took the mighty ones of the land.
14 This was to make the kingdom {mamlakhah: sovereign realm} lowly so that it would not lift itself up, but would keep its covenant {berit: binding agreement} and stand.
15 But he rebelled against him by sending his envoys {mala’khaiv: messengers sent with authority} to Egypt to obtain horses and a great people. Will he succeed? Will the one who does these things escape? Can he break a covenant {berit: binding agreement, often sworn before God} and be delivered?
16 As I live—declares the Lord GOD {YHWH Adonai, Sovereign Judge}—surely in the place of the king who made him king, whose oath he despised {bazah: treated with contempt}, and whose covenant he broke, with him in the midst of Babylon, he shall die.
17 And not with a great army or with a numerous assembly will Pharaoh {par'oh: Egyptian king} accomplish it for him in the war when a rampart is poured out and a siege wall is built to cut off many lives {nefashot: souls and lives}.
18 And he despised the oath {alah: solemn vow} to break the covenant, and behold, he gave his hand {natan yado: pledged commitment}; and for all these things he will not escape.
19 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD {Adonai YHWH, Sovereign Judge}: As I live {khay: oath formula}, surely my oath—which he has despised—and my covenant—which he has broken—I will place it upon his head.
20 And I {YHWH, Sovereign Judge} will spread my net over him, and he will be caught in my snare; and I will bring him to Babylon, and I will enter into judgment with him there for his unfaithfulness {maalo: breach of covenant trust}.
21 And all the picked men of his troops, in all his bands, shall fall by the sword, and those who remain will be scattered to every wind; and you will know that I, the LORD {YHWH, Sovereign Judge}, have spoken {dibarti: declared by authority}.
22 Thus says the Lord GOD {Adonai YHWH, Sovereign Master}: I Myself will take from the top of the lofty cedar and set it; from the top of its young twigs I will pluck a tender {raḥ: soft, delicate} one, and I Myself will plant it on a high and lofty mountain.
23 On the high mountain of Israel I will plant it, and it will send out branches {anaf: extending growth} and produce fruit and will become a mighty cedar {erez: symbol of strength and longevity}; and beneath it will dwell every bird of every wing, and in the shade of its branches they will nest.
24 And all the trees of the field will know that I, the LORD {YHWH, Supreme Exalter}, have brought down the high tree, have raised up the low tree {shafal: humbled}, have dried up the moist tree, and have made the dry tree flourish. I, the LORD, have spoken and I have done it.