Ezekiel 19

19 ¹ As for you, take up a lament for the princes of Israel, ² and say: What was your mother? A lioness among lions! She lay down among the young lions and raised her cubs. ¹ 1 v2 The lioness is Judah's royal house, and her cubs are her kings — this whole chapter is a mourning song picturing the fall of Judah's last rulers. ³ She brought up one of her cubs and he became a young lion. He learned to tear his prey he devoured men. ⁴ The nations heard of him he was caught in their pit and they led him away with hooks to the land of Egypt. ⁵ When she saw that she had waited in vain, that her hope was lost, she took another of her cubs and made him a young lion. ⁶ He prowled among the lions he became a young lion. He learned to tear his prey he devoured men. ⁷ He broke down their strongholds and laid waste their cities. The land and all who lived in it were appalled at the sound of his roaring. ⁸ Then the nations set upon him from all the surrounding provinces they spread their net over him and he was caught in their pit. ⁹ With hooks they put him in a cage and brought him to the king of Babylon. They brought him into the strongholds so that his voice would no longer be heard on the mountains of Israel. ¹⁰ Your mother was like a vine in your vineyard, planted by the waters, fruitful and full of branches because of abundant water. ¹¹ It had strong branches fit for rulers' scepters. It towered high among the thick boughs and was visible for its height amid the mass of its branches. ¹² But it was uprooted in fury and thrown to the ground the east wind dried up its fruit. Its strong branches were stripped off and withered the fire consumed them. ¹³ Now it is planted in the wilderness, in a dry and thirsty land. ¹⁴ Fire has burst out from its stem and consumed its branches and its fruit so that no strong branch is left in it, no scepter for ruling. This is a lament and it has become a lament.