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Scriptural Text [& Editorial]
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Commentary & Explanation
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Footnotes ~ References ~ JST
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CHAPTER 23
Two sisters, Samaria and Jerusalem, committed whoredoms by worshipping
idols—Both are destroyed by their lewdness.
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1 THE word of the LORD came again unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, there were two women, the
adaughters of one mother:
3 And they committed whoredoms in Egypt; they committed whoredoms in their youth: there were their breasts pressed, and there they bruised the teats of their virginity.
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4 And the names of them were
aAholah the
eldera, and
bAholibah her
sister: and they were mine, and they bare sons and daughters. Thus
were their names; Samaria is Aholah, and Jerusalem
Aholibah.
5 And Aholah played the harlot when she was
mine; and she doted on her lovers, on the aAssyrians
her neighbours,
6 Which were clothed with blue, captains and rulers, all of them desirable young men, horsemen riding upon horses.
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4a Aholah the elder What is
the significance of Aholah, that is Samaria or the Kingdom of Israel being
set as the elder which would equate to being 'firstborn'? Although but an
alegorical metaphore, the placement of Ephraim as elder and Judah as younger
certainly cannot be according to the actual birth ages of Rachel and Leah,
the actual two sisters of the same mother. Nor could it reference the actual
age differential between Judah son of Jacob and Ephraim son of Joseph son of
Jacob. If any meaning might it be that Ephraim was made as the first born
of Jacob pertaining to the covenant of Israel and thus in this respect Judah
would take the position of the younger 'devotee' to the covenant? If this
is the case, this does further project that the covenant of Abraham came
down to and by Jacob to Joseph and thence to Ephraim and not to Judah
(see: Messiah ben David ~ Messiah ben Joseph).
Or could it merely mean that Samaria first played the harlot then did Judah,
but what difference is this in the age of the mothers of each?
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7 Thus she committed her whoredoms with them, with all them that were the chosen men of Assyria, and with all on whom she doted: with all their idols she defiled herself.
8 Neither left she her whoredoms brought from Egypt: for in her youth they lay with her, and they bruised the breasts of her virginity, and poured their whoredom upon her.
9 Wherefore I have delivered her into the hand of her lovers, into the hand of the Assyrians, upon whom she doted.
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10 These discovered her nakedness: they took her sons and her daughters, and slew her with the sword: and she became famous among women; for they had executed judgment upon her.
11 And when her sister Aholibah saw this, she was more corrupt in her inordinate love than she, and in her whoredoms more than her sister in her whoredoms.
12 She doted upon the
aAssyrians her neighbours, captains and rulers
clothed most gorgeously, horsemen riding upon horses, all of them desirable
young men.
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13 Then I saw that she was defiled, that they took both one way,
14 And that she increased her whoredoms: for when she saw men pourtrayed upon the wall, the images of the Chaldeans pourtrayed with vermilion,
15 Girded with girdles upon their loins, exceeding in dyed attire upon their heads, all of them princes to look to, after the manner of the Babylonians of Chaldea, the land of their nativity:
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16 And as soon as she saw them with her eyes, she doted upon them, and sent messengers unto them into Chaldea.
17 And the Babylonians came to her into the
bed of love, and they defiled her with their whoredom, and she was
apolluted with them, and her mind was alienated
bfrom them.
18 So she discovered her whoredoms, and discovered her nakedness: then my mind was alienated from her, like as my mind was alienated from her sister.
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19 Yet she multiplied her whoredoms, in calling to remembrance the days of her youth, wherein she had played the harlot in the land of Egypt.
20 For she doted upon their paramours, whose flesh is as the flesh of asses, and whose issue is like the issue of horses.
21 Thus thou calledst to remembrance the lewdness of thy youth, in bruising thy teats by the Egyptians for the paps of thy youth.
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22 ¶ Therefore, O Aholibah, thus saith the
Lord GOD; Behold, I will raise up thy lovers against thee,
afrom whom thy mind is alienated, and I will bring them
bagainst thee on every side;
23 The Babylonians, and all the Chaldeans, Pekod, and Shoa, and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them: all of them desirable young men, captains and rulers, great lords and renowned, all of them riding upon horses.
24 And they shall come against thee with
chariots, wagons, and wheels, and with an assembly of people, which
shall set against thee buckler and shield and helmet round about: and I will
set judgment before them, and they shall ajudge thee
according to their judgments.
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25 And I will set my jealousy against thee,
and they shall deal furiously with thee: they shall take away thy nose and
thine ears; and thy remnant shall afall by the sword: they
shall take thy sons and thy daughters; and thy residue shall be devoured by
the fire.
26 They shall also astrip
thee out of thy clothes, and take away thy fair jewels.
27 Thus will I make thy lewdness to cease from
thee, and thy whoredom brought from the land of Egypt: so that thou
shalt not lift up thine eyes unto them, nor remember Egypt any more.
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28 For thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will
deliver thee into the hand of them whom thou ahatest,
into the hand of them from whom thy mind is alienated:
29 And they shall deal with thee hatefully, and shall take away all thy labour, and shall leave thee naked and bare: and the nakedness of thy whoredoms shall be discovered, both thy lewdness and thy whoredoms.
30 I will do these things unto thee,
because thou hast gone a awhoring after the heathen,
and because thou art polluted with their idols.
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31 Thou hast walked in the way of thy sister;
therefore will I give her acup into thine hand.
32 Thus saith the Lord GOD; Thou shalt drink of thy sister's cup deep and large: thou shalt be laughed to scorn and had in derision; it containeth much.
33 Thou shalt be filled with
adrunkenness and sorrow, with the cup of astonishment and
desolation, with the cup of thy sister Samaria.
34 Thou shalt even drink it and suck it out, and thou shalt break the sherds thereof, and pluck off thine own breasts: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.
35 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because
thou hast aforgotten me, and cast me behind thy back,
therefore bbear thou also thy lewdness and thy
whoredoms.
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36 ¶ The LORD said moreover unto me; Son of man, wilt thou judge Aholah and Aholibah? yea, declare unto them their abominations;
37 That they have committed
aadultery, and blood is in their hands, and with
their idols have they committed badultery, and have also
caused their sons, whom they bare unto me, to pass for them through the
fire, to devour them.
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38 Moreover this they have done unto me: they
have adefiled my sanctuary in the same day, and have
profaned my sabbaths.
39 For when they had slain their children to
their idols, then they came the same day into my sanctuary to
aprofane it; and, lo, thus have they done in the midst of
mine bhouse.
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40 And furthermore, that ye have sent for men
to come from far, unto whom a messenger was sent; and, lo, they came:
for whom thou didst wash thyself, paintedst thy eyes, and deckedst thyself
with aornaments,
41 And satest upon a stately bed, and a table prepared before it, whereupon thou hast set mine incense and mine oil.
42 And a voice of a multitude being at ease
was with her: and with the men of the common sort were brought
aSabeans from the wilderness, which put bracelets upon
their hands, and beautiful crowns upon their heads.
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43 Then said I unto her that was old in adulteries, Will they now commit whoredoms with her, and she with them?
44 Yet they went in unto her, as they go in unto a woman that playeth the harlot: so went they in unto Aholah and unto Aholibah, the lewd women.
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45 ¶ And the righteous men, they shall
ajudge them after the manner of adulteresses, and after the
manner of women that shed blood; because they are adulteresses, and
blood is in their hands.
46 For thus saith the Lord GOD; I will bring up a company upon them, and will give them to be removed and spoiled.
47 And the company shall stone them with
stones, and dispatch them with their swords; they shall slay their
asons and their daughters, and burn up their houses with
fire.
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48 Thus will I cause lewdness to cease out of the land, that all women may be taught not to do after your lewdness.
49 And they shall recompense your lewdness
upon you, and ye shall bear the sins of your aidols: and ye
shall know that I am the Lord GOD.
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