Ezekiel 19:5-9

Ezekiel 19:5-9

[5] Now when she saw  that she had waited,  and her hope  was lost,  then she took  another  of her whelps,  and made  him a young lion.  [6] And he went up and down  among  the lions,  he became a young lion,  and learned  to catch  the prey,  and devoured  men.  [7] And he knew  their desolate palaces,  and he laid waste  their cities;  and the land  was desolate,  and the fulness  thereof, by the noise  of his roaring.  [8] Then the nations  set  against him on every side  from the provinces,  and spread  their net  over him: he was taken  in their pit.  [9] And they put  him in ward  in chains,  and brought  him to the king  of Babylon:  they brought  that his voice  should no more be heard  upon the mountains  of Israel. 

What does Ezekiel 19:5-9 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

With the death of this cub the lioness took another of her offspring and made him dominant. He gained his position among the other rulers of the area and also became violent and destructive, like the first cub. He so devastated his own land that the people in it despaired. His neighbors also trapped this lion and took him captive to Babylon thus ending his reign.
This describes the career of King Jehoiachin, who also ruled over Judah for only three months (in598-597 B.C.). Probably the writer omitted referring to King Jehoiakim, the intervening king, because he was not taken into exile like Jehoahaz and Jehoiachin. Other interpreters believe King Jehoiakim is the person in view. [1] The Babylonians captured Jehoiachin and took him into exile in597 B.C. Later he enjoyed a measure of freedom, but he never returned to rule over Judah ( 2 Kings 24:8-17; 2 Kings 25:27-30; 2 Chronicles 36:8-10).