Lament for the Princes of Israel
19
1 “And you, sing1 a lament for the princes of Israel, 2 and say:
“‘What a lioness was your mother among the lions!
She lay among young lions;2 she reared her cubs. 3 She reared one of her cubs; he became a young lion.
He learned to tear prey; he devoured people.3 4 The nations heard about him; he was trapped in their pit.
They brought him with hooks to the land of Egypt.4 5 “‘When she realized that she waited in vain, her hope was lost.
She took another of her cubs5 and made him a young lion. 6 He walked about among the lions; he became a young lion.
He learned to tear prey; he devoured people.
7 He broke down6 their strongholds7 and devastated their cities. The land and everything in it was frightened at the sound of his roaring.
8 The nations – the surrounding regions – attacked him.
They threw their net over him; he was caught in their pit.
9 They put him in a collar with hooks;8 they brought him to the king of Babylon;
they brought him to prison9 so that his voice would not be heard
any longer on the mountains of Israel.
10 “‘Your mother was like a vine in your vineyard,10 planted by water. It was fruitful and full of branches because it was well-watered.
11 Its boughs were strong, fit11 for rulers’ scepters; it reached up into the clouds. It stood out because of its height and its many branches.12 12 But it was plucked up in anger; it was thrown down to the ground.
The east wind13 dried up its fruit; its strong branches broke off and withered –
a fire consumed them.
13 Now it is planted in the wilderness,
in a dry and thirsty land.14 14 A fire has gone out from its branch; it has consumed its shoot and its fruit.15 No strong branch was left in it, nor a scepter to rule.’
This is a lament song, and has become a lament song.”