the First Week of Advent
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King James Version (1611 Edition)
Ezekiel 16
1 Againe the worde of the Lord came vnto me, saying; 2 Son of man, cause Ierusalem to know her abominations, 3 And say, Thus saith the Lord God vnto Ierusalem; Thy birth and thy natiuitie is of the land of Canaan, thy father was an Amorite, and thy mother an Hittite. 4 And as for thy natiuity in the day thou wast borne, thy nauell was not cut, neither wast thou washed in water to supple thee: thou wast not salted at all, nor swadled at all. 5 None eye pitied thee to doe any of these vnto thee, to haue compassion vpon thee, but thou wast cast out in the open field, to the lothing of thy person, in the day that thou wast borne.
6 And when I passed by thee, and saw thee polluted in thine owne blood, I said vnto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Liue: yea I said vnto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Liue. 7 I haue caused thee to multiply as the bud of the field, and thou hast increased and waxen great, and thou art come to excellent ornaments: thy breasts are fashioned, and thine haire is growen, whereas thou wast naked and bare. 8 Now when I passed by thee, and looked vpon thee, behold, thy time was the time of loue, and I spread my skirt ouer thee, and couered thy nakednesse: yea, I sware vnto thee, and entred into a couenant with thee, sayth the Lord God, and thou becamest mine. 9 Then washed I thee with water: yea, I throughly washed away thy blood from thee, and I anointed thee with oyle. 10 I clothed thee also with broidred worke, & shod thee with badgers skin, and I girded thee about with fine linen, and I couered thee with silke. 11 I decked thee also with ornaments, and I put bracelets vpon thine hands, and a chaine on thy necke. 12 And I put a iewell on thy forehead, and eare-rings in thine eares, and a beautifull crowne vpon thine head. 13 Thus wast thou decked with gold and siluer, and thy raiment was of fine linen & silke, and broidered worke, thou didst eate fine floure and honie and oyle, and thou wast exceeding beautiful, and thou didst prosper into a kingdome. 14 And thy renowme went foorth among the heathen for thy beautie: for it was perfect through my comelinesse which I had put vpon thee, sayth the Lord God.
15 But thou diddest trust in thine owne beauty, and playedst the harlot, because of thy renowne, and powredst out thy fornications on euery one that passed by; his it was. 16 And of thy garments thou diddest take, and deckedst thy high places with diuers colours, and playedst the harlot thereupon: the like things shall not come, neither shall it be so. 17 Thou hast also taken thy faire iewels of my gold and of my siluer, which I had giuen thee, and madest to thy selfe images of men, and diddest commit whoredome with them, 18 And tookest thy broidered garments and coueredst them: and thou hast set mine oyle and mine incense before them. 19 My meate also which I gaue thee, fine flowre, and oyle, and honie wherewith I fed thee, thou hast euen set it before them for a sweete sauour: and thus it was, saith the Lord God. 20 Moreouer thou hast taken thy sonnes and thy daughters, whom thou hast borne vnto me, and these hast thou sacrificed vnto them to be deuoured: is this of thy whoredomes a small matter, 21 That thou hast slaine my children, and deliuered them to cause them to passe through the fire for them? 22 And in all thine abominations and thy whooredomes, thou hast not remembred the dayes of thy youth, when thou wast naked and bare, and wast polluted in thy blood. 23 And it came to passe after all thy wickednesse (woe, woe vnto thee, saith the Lord God.) 24 That thou hast also built vnto thee an eminent place, and hast made thee an high place in euery streete. 25 Thou hast built thy high place at euery head of the way, and hast made thy beauty to be abhorred, and hast opened thy feete to euery one that passed by, and multiplied thy whooredomes. 26 Thou hast also committed fornication with the Egyptians thy neighbours great of flesh, & hast increased thy whooredomes, to prouoke me to anger. 27 Behold therefore, I haue stretched out my hand ouer thee, and haue diminished thine ordinarie foode, and deliuered thee vnto the will of them that hate thee, the daughters of the Philistines, which are ashamed of thy lewd way. 28 Thou hast played the whoore also with the Assyrians, because thou wast vnsatiable: yea thou hast played the harlot with them, and yet couldest not be satisfied. 29 Thou hast moreouer multiplied thy fornication in the land of Canaan vnto Caldea, and yet thou wast not satisfied heerewith. 30 How weake is thine heart, saith the Lord God, seeing thou doest all these things, the work of an imperious whorish woman? 31 In that thou buildest thine eminent place in the head of euery way, and makest thine high place in euery streete, and hast not beene as an harlot, in that thou scornest hire: 32 But as a wife that committeth adulterie, which taketh strangers in steede of her husband. 33 They giue gifts to all whores, but thou giuest thy gifts to all thy louers, and hyrest them, that they may come vnto thee on euery side for thy whoredome. 34 And the contrary is in thee from other women in thy whoredomes, whereas none followeth thee to commit whoredomes: and in that thou giuest a reward, and no reward is giuen vnto thee: therefore thou art contrary.
35 Wherefore, O harlot, heare the word of the Lord. 36 Thus saith the Lord God; Because thy filthinesse was powred out, and thy nakednesse discouered through thy whoredomes with thy louers, and with all the idols of thy abominations, and by the blood of thy children, which thou diddest giue vnto them, 37 Behold therefore, I will gather all thy louers, with whom thou hast taken pleasure, and all them that thou hast loued, with all them that thou hast hated: I will euen gather them round about against thee, and will discouer thy nakednesse vnto them, that they may see all thy nakednesse. 38 And I will iudge thee, as women that breake wedlocke and shead blood are iudged, and I will giue thee blood in fury and iealousie. 39 And I will also giue thee into their hand, and they shal throw downe thine eminent place, and shall breake downe thy high places: they shall strip thee also of thy clothes, and shall take thy faire iewels, and leaue thee naked and bare. 40 They shall also bring vp a companie against thee, and they shall stone thee with stones, and thrust thee thorough with their swords. 41 And they shall burne thine houses with fire, and execute iudgements vpon thee in the sight of many women: and I wil cause thee to cease from playing the harlot, and thou also shalt giue no hire any more. 42 So will I make my fury towards thee to rest, and my iealousie shall depart from thee, and I will be quiet, and will be no more angry. 43 Because thou hast not remembred the dayes of thy youth, but hast fretted mee in all these things; behold therefore, I also will recompence thy way vpon thine head, saith the Lord God: and thou shalt not commit this lewdnesse, aboue all thine abominations.
44 Behold, euery one that vseth prouerbs, shall vse this prouerbe against thee, saying, As is the mother, so is her daughter. 45 Thou art thy mothers daughter, that lotheth her husband and her children, and thou art the sister of thy sisters which lothed their husbands, and their children: your mother was an Hittite, and your father an Amorite. 46 And thine elder sister is Samaria, she and her daughters, that dwell at thy left hand: and thy younger sister that dwelleth at thy right hand, is Sodom and her daughters. 47 Yet hast thou not walked after their wayes, nor done after their abominations: but as if that were a very litle thing, thou wast corrupted more then they in all thy wayes. 48 As I liue, saith the Lord God, Sodom thy sister hath not done, she nor her daughters, as thou hast done, thou and thy daughters. 49 Behold, this was the iniquitie of thy sister Sodom; Pride, fulnesse of bread, and aboundance of idlenesse was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poore and needy. 50 And they were hautie, and committed abomination before me: therefore I tooke them away, as I saw good. 51 Neither hath Samaria committed halfe of thy sinnes, but thou hast multiplied thine abominations more then they, and hast iustified thy sisters in all thine abominations, which thou hast done. 52 Thou also which hast iudged thy sisters, beare thine owne shame for thy sinnes, that thou hast committed more abominable then they: they are more righteous then thou: yea be thou confounded also, and beare thy shame, in that thou hast iustified thy sisters. 53 When I shall bring againe their captiuitie, the captiuitie of Sodom and her daughters, and the captiuitie of Samaria and her daughters, then will I bring againe the captiuity of thy captiues in the midst of them; 54 That thou mayest beare thine owne shame, and mayest be confounded in all that thou hast done, in that thou art a comfort vnto them. 55 When thy sisters, Sodom and her daughters shal returne to their former estate, and Samaria and her daughters shall returne to their former estate, then thou and thy daughters shall returne to your former estate. 56 For thy sister Sodom was not mentioned by thy mouth in the day of thy pride; 57 Before thy wickednesse was discouered, as at the time of thy reproch of the daughters of Syria, and all that are round about her, the daughters of the Philistines which despise thee round about. 58 Thou hast borne thy lewdnesse, and thine abominations, saith the Lord. 59 For thus saith the Lord God; I will euen deale with thee as thou hast done, which hast despised the oath in breaking the couenant.
60 Neuerthelesse I will remember my couenant with thee in the dayes of thy youth, and I will establish vnto thee an euerlasting couenant. 61 Then thou shalt remember thy wayes and be ashamed, when thou shalt receiue thy sisters, thine elder and thy younger, and I will giue them vnto thee for daughters, but not by thy couenant. 62 And I will establish my couenant with thee, and thou shalt know that I am the Lord: 63 That thou mayest remember, and bee confounded, and neuer open thy mouth any more: because of thy shame, when I am pacified toward thee, for all that thou hast done, sayeth the Lord God.