Ezekiel 19:1-9

1‘Sing this sad funeral song for the leaders of Israel.

2Say this: “Your mother was like a great lion among the other lions. She lay among strong young lions. She helped her children to grow safely.

3She taught one of her children to catch animals for food. As he grew, he started to eat people.

4The people of other nations heard about him. They dug a hole and they caught him in their trap. They put hooks in him and they took him to Egypt.

5His mother waited for him to return home. He did not come and she stopped hoping for him. She helped another of her sons to become a strong young lion.

6He grew to be strong among the other lions. He learned to catch wild animals and to eat them. He also learned to eat people.

7He attacked their strong buildings and he destroyed their cities. When he roared, the noise frightened everyone in the land.

8Men from other nations near there came to attack him. They threw a net over him. They caught him in their trap.

9They tied hooks around his neck. They took him to the king of Babylon. There they put him in prison to stop him roaring. The people on the hills of Israel could not hear his voice any longer.