“‘A great eagle 2 with broad wings, long feathers, 3
with full plumage which was multi-hued, 4
came to Lebanon 5 and took the top of the cedar.
17:5 He took one of the seedlings 6 of the land,
placed it in a cultivated plot; 7
a shoot by abundant water,
like a willow he planted it.
1 tn The parable assumes the defection of Zedekiah to Egypt and his rejection of Babylonian lordship.
2 sn The great eagle symbolizes Nebuchadnezzar (17:12).
3 tn Hebrew has two words for wings; it is unknown whether they are fully synonymous or whether one term distinguishes a particular part of the wing such as the wing coverts (nearest the shoulder), secondaries (mid-feathers of the wing) or primaries (last and longest section of the wing).
4 tn This term was used in 16:10, 13, and 18 of embroidered cloth.
5 sn In the parable Lebanon apparently refers to Jerusalem (17:12).
6 tn Heb “took of the seed of the land.” For the vine imagery, “seedling” is a better translation, though in its subsequent interpretation the “seed” refers to Zedekiah through its common application to offspring.
7 tn Heb “a field for seed.”