Ezekiel 16:1-24

YAHWEH spoke again to me, saying, “Son of man, confront Jerusalem concerning all the despicable things they have done. Tell them, ‘Lord YAHWEH says to you: Your ancestral origins were in the land where the Canaanites lived. Your father was an Amorite and your mother a Hittite. On the day you were born, there was no one there to cut your umbilical cord or wash you clean in water. There was no one there to rub you with salt and oil or wrap you in a baby blanket. No one did anything to help you. No one felt sorry for you or showed sympathy for you. Instead, you were dumped into an open field and forgotten. From the day you were born you were rejected and unloved.’ ” “ ‘Then I passed by, and I saw you there squirming in your blood. And as you lay there covered with blood, I spoke over you: “Live!” And I made you grow and flourish like the grass of the fields. You grew up and developed until you produced the most beautiful of features. You developed the breasts and hair of a young woman, but you were still quite naked and exposed. Then later, I passed by again and looked upon you. And behold, I saw that your time had come—you were now old enough for love. So, I spread the edge of my robe over you and covered your nakedness. I gave you my sacred oath. I, Lord YAHWEH, made a divine covenant with you, saying, “You will be mine,” and I took you as my own and promised to care for you. Then I washed the blood off you and anointed you with fragrant oil. I dressed you in beautiful, embroidered gowns, fine leather shoes, a fine linen headband, and wrapped you in rich fabric. I adorned you with jewels, beautiful bracelets, and necklaces. I gave you a nose ring and earrings and placed a sparkling crown on your head. You were decked with gold and silver jewelry and dressed in luxurious linen and rich embroidered cloth. Your meals were feasts, made with the best bread, honey, and oil. You grew more and more beautiful, and you rose to be queen. And you became famous throughout the world because the splendor I lavished on you made your beauty perfect, declares Lord YAHWEH.’ ” “ ‘But you became confident in your own beauty and used your fame to act like a prostitute. You offered your sexual favors to each one who came along—and you became his! You took some of your fine clothes to decorate the tents on the high places where you worked as a prostitute. You also took your gold and silver jewelry, which I had given you, and made yourself male images and acted like a prostitute with them. You took your embroidered clothes and used these to dress them up, and you offered them my sacred oil and my sacred incense. I gave you food made with the best flour, olive oil, and honey. But you offered it as a fragrant incense to these idols. I, Lord YAHWEH, declare: that is exactly what you did! You even took the sons and daughters I had given you and sacrificed them as food for the idols. As if your prostitution was not bad enough, you slaughtered my children and burned them as offerings to idols! While you were doing the things I hate and behaving like a prostitute, you entirely forgot how you were when you were young. I found you naked and exposed, squirming in your own blood. “ ‘Now I, Lord YAHWEH, say you are doomed! Not only did you do these evil things, in every city square you built an elevated shrine for the worship of idols.