Oholah and Oholibah’s Sin and Its Consequences

1The word of the Lord came to me again, saying, 2“Son of man, there were two women, the daughters of one mother; 3and they played the harlot in Egypt. They played the harlot in their youth; there their breasts were pressed and there their virgin bosom was handled. 4Their names were Oholah the elder and Oholibah her sister. And they became Mine, and they bore sons and daughters. And as for their names, Samaria is Oholah and Jerusalem is Oholibah.

5“Oholah played the harlot while she was Mine; and she lusted after her lovers, after the Assyrians, her neighbors, 6who were clothed in purple, governors and officials, all of them desirable young men, horsemen riding on horses. 7She bestowed her harlotries on them, all of whom were the choicest men of Assyria; and with all whom she lusted after, with all their idols she defiled herself. 8She did not forsake her harlotries from the time in Egypt; for in her youth men had lain with her, and they handled her virgin bosom and poured out their lust on her. 9Therefore, I gave her into the hand of her lovers, into the hand of the Assyrians, after whom she lusted. 10They uncovered her nakedness; they took her sons and her daughters, but they slew her with the sword. Thus she became a byword among women, and they executed judgments on her.

11“Now her sister Oholibah saw this, yet she was more corrupt in her lust than she, and her harlotries were more than the harlotries of her sister. 12She lusted after the Assyrians, governors and officials, the ones near, magnificently dressed, horsemen riding on horses, all of them desirable young men. 13I saw that she had defiled herself; they both took the same way. 14So she increased her harlotries. And she saw men portrayed on the wall, images of the Chaldeans portrayed with vermilion, 15girded with belts on their loins, with flowing turbans on their heads, all of them looking like officers, like the Babylonians in Chaldea, the land of their birth. 16When she saw them she lusted after them and sent messengers to them in Chaldea. 17The Babylonians came to her to the bed of love and defiled her with their harlotry. And when she had been defiled by them, she became disgusted with them. 18She uncovered her harlotries and uncovered her nakedness; then I became disgusted with her, as I had become disgusted with her sister. 19Yet she multiplied her harlotries, remembering the days of her youth, when she played the harlot in the land of Egypt. 20She lusted after their paramours, whose flesh is like the flesh of donkeys and whose issue is like the issue of horses. 21Thus you longed for the lewdness of your youth, when the Egyptians handled your bosom because of the breasts of your youth.

22“Therefore, O Oholibah, thus says the Lord God, ‘Behold I will arouse your lovers against you, from whom you were alienated, and I will bring them against you from every side: 23the Babylonians and all the Chaldeans, Pekod and Shoa and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them; desirable young men, governors and officials all of them, officers and men of renown, all of them riding on horses. 24They will come against you with weapons, chariots and wagons, and with a company of peoples. They will set themselves against you on every side with buckler and shield and helmet; and I will commit the judgment to them, and they will judge you according to their customs. 25I will set My jealousy against you, that they may deal with you in wrath. They will remove your nose and your ears; and your survivors will fall by the sword. They will take your sons and your daughters; and your survivors will be consumed by the fire. 26They will also strip you of your clothes and take away your beautiful jewels. 27Thus I will make your lewdness and your harlotry brought from the land of Egypt to cease from you, so that you will not lift up your eyes to them or remember Egypt anymore.’ 28For thus says the Lord God, ‘Behold, I will give you into the hand of those whom you hate, into the hand of those from whom you were alienated. 29They will deal with you in hatred, take all your property, and leave you naked and bare. And the nakedness of your harlotries will be uncovered, both your lewdness and your harlotries. 30These things will be done to you because you have played the harlot with the nations, because you have defiled yourself with their idols. 31You have walked in the way of your sister; therefore I will give her cup into your hand.’ 32Thus says the Lord God,

‘You will drink your sister’s cup,

Which is deep and wide.

You will be laughed at and held in derision;

It contains much.

33You will be filled with drunkenness and sorrow,

The cup of horror and desolation,

The cup of your sister Samaria.

34You will drink it and drain it.

Then you will gnaw its fragments

And tear your breasts;

for I have spoken,’ declares the Lord God. 35Therefore, thus says the Lord God, ‘Because you have forgotten Me and cast Me behind your back, bear now the punishment of your lewdness and your harlotries.’ ”

36Moreover, the Lord said to me, “Son of man, will you judge Oholah and Oholibah? Then declare to them their abominations. 37For they have committed adultery, and blood is on their hands. Thus they have committed adultery with their idols and even caused their sons, whom they bore to Me, to pass through the fire to them as food. 38Again, they have done this to Me: they have defiled My sanctuary on the same day and have profaned My sabbaths. 39For when they had slaughtered their children for their idols, they entered My sanctuary on the same day to profane it; and lo, thus they did within My house.

40“Furthermore, they have even sent for men who come from afar, to whom a messenger was sent; and lo, they came—for whom you bathed, painted your eyes and decorated yourselves with ornaments; 41and you sat on a splendid couch with a table arranged before it on which you had set My incense and My oil. 42The sound of a carefree multitude was with her; and drunkards were brought from the wilderness with men of the common sort. And they put bracelets on the hands of the women and beautiful crowns on their heads.

43“Then I said concerning her who was worn out by adulteries, ‘Will they now commit adultery with her when she is thus?’ 44But they went in to her as they would go in to a harlot. Thus they went in to Oholah and to Oholibah, the lewd women. 45But they, righteous men, will judge them with the judgment of adulteresses and with the judgment of women who shed blood, because they are adulteresses and blood is on their hands.

46“For thus says the Lord God, ‘Bring up a company against them and give them over to terror and plunder. 47The company will stone them with stones and cut them down with their swords; they will slay their sons and their daughters and burn their houses with fire. 48Thus I will make lewdness cease from the land, that all women may be admonished and not commit lewdness as you have done. 49Your lewdness will be requited upon you, and you will bear the penalty of worshiping your idols; thus you will know that I am the Lord God.’ ”

18Now where there is forgiveness of these things, there is no longer any offering for sin.

A New and Living Way

19Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, 20by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh, 21and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. 23Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; 24and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, 25not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.

Christ or Judgment

26For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27but a terrifying expectation of judgment and the fury of a fire which will consume the adversaries. 28Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 29How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace? 30For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge His people.” 31It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

32But remember the former days, when, after being enlightened, you endured a great conflict of sufferings, 33partly by being made a public spectacle through reproaches and tribulations, and partly by becoming sharers with those who were so treated. 34For you showed sympathy to the prisoners and accepted joyfully the seizure of your property, knowing that you have for yourselves a better possession and a lasting one. 35Therefore, do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. 36For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised.

37For yet in a very little while,

He who is coming will come, and will not delay.

38But My righteous one shall live by faith;

And if he shrinks back, My soul has no pleasure in him.

39But we are not of those who shrink back to destruction, but of those who have faith to the preserving of the soul.

PSALM 109

Vengeance Invoked upon Adversaries.

For the choir director. A Psalm of David.

1O God of my praise,

Do not be silent!

2For they have opened the wicked and deceitful mouth against me;

They have spoken against me with a lying tongue.

3They have also surrounded me with words of hatred,

And fought against me without cause.

4In return for my love they act as my accusers;

But I am in prayer.

5Thus they have repaid me evil for good

And hatred for my love.

6Appoint a wicked man over him,

And let an accuser stand at his right hand.

7When he is judged, let him come forth guilty,

And let his prayer become sin.

8Let his days be few;

Let another take his office.

9Let his children be fatherless

And his wife a widow.

10Let his children wander about and beg;

And let them seek sustenance far from their ruined homes.

11Let the creditor seize all that he has,

And let strangers plunder the product of his labor.

12Let there be none to extend lovingkindness to him,

Nor any to be gracious to his fatherless children.

13Let his posterity be cut off;

In a following generation let their name be blotted out.

14Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the Lord,

And do not let the sin of his mother be blotted out.

15Let them be before the Lord continually,

That He may cut off their memory from the earth;

16Because he did not remember to show lovingkindness,

But persecuted the afflicted and needy man,

And the despondent in heart, to put them to death.

17He also loved cursing, so it came to him;

And he did not delight in blessing, so it was far from him.

18But he clothed himself with cursing as with his garment,

And it entered into his body like water

And like oil into his bones.

19Let it be to him as a garment with which he covers himself,

And for a belt with which he constantly girds himself.

20Let this be the reward of my accusers from the Lord,

And of those who speak evil against my soul.

21But You, O God, the Lord, deal kindly with me for Your name’s sake;

Because Your lovingkindness is good, deliver me;

22For I am afflicted and needy,

And my heart is wounded within me.

23I am passing like a shadow when it lengthens;

I am shaken off like the locust.

24My knees are weak from fasting,

And my flesh has grown lean, without fatness.

25I also have become a reproach to them;

When they see me, they wag their head.

26Help me, O Lord my God;

Save me according to Your lovingkindness.

27And let them know that this is Your hand;

You, Lord, have done it.

28Let them curse, but You bless;

When they arise, they shall be ashamed,

But Your servant shall be glad.

29Let my accusers be clothed with dishonor,

And let them cover themselves with their own shame as with a robe.

30With my mouth I will give thanks abundantly to the Lord;

And in the midst of many I will praise Him.

31For He stands at the right hand of the needy,

To save him from those who judge his soul.

13Take his garment when he becomes surety for a stranger;

And for an adulterous woman hold him in pledge.