ROOTED - Wednesday, May 20, 2026

Ezekiel 23:4-8

4  Oholah was the name of the elder and Oholibah the name of
her sister. They became mine, and they bore sons and daughters. As
for their names, Oholah is Samaria, and Oholibah is Jerusalem.

5 “Oholah played the whore while she was mine, and she
lusted after her lovers the Assyrians, warriors 6 clothed
in purple, governors and commanders, all of them desirable young
men, horsemen riding on horses. 7 She bestowed
her whoring upon them, the choicest men of Assyria all of them, and she defiled
herself with all the idols of everyone after whom she lusted. 8 She
did not give up her whoring that she had begun in Egypt; for in her youth
men had lain with her and handled her virgin bosom and poured out their whoring
lust upon her.

Reflection: Oholah and Oholibah

Written By: Pastor Jesse Caro

Ooooohhh… this was a tough chapter to read!!! Oholah and Oholibah
are portrayed as sisters and are pictures of the northern and southern kingdom
(Oholah=Israel/ Oholibah=Judah). These sisters are both “women of ill repute”
according to the Ol’ King James Version… a polite way of saying the more blunt
and crass word: “whore.” We have written about this several times as we journey
through the Old Testament. God has a penchant for using this word as an image
and symbol of what it means to be unfaithful to God. One cannot imagine a more
debased symbolism for reckless living: detached from real relationship and
unconcerned with disease, reputation, values, or purity. The central orienting
factor in this lifestyle is selfish satisfaction of oneself.

This is surely the most damning and descriptive section of the
Bible in which “loose living” and lewdness are so blatantly front and center. “Whore,”
“whoring,” and “whoredom” are repeated in such succession and cadence that it
becomes a drum beat of judgment on God’s people. These words are hard to read
and often are not spoken in polite company. But God’s Word does not hold back
or spare us of the cold fact. God is disgusted by the actions (the whoring) of
his people. His impolite description puts us ill-at-ease as we read Ezekiel’s
words. This is not sugar coated, and God does not put easy-to-read language on
the page… like “sin” or “unfaithfulness.” Nope! We must contend with the harsh
truth. GOD HATES UNFAITHFULNESS… and He means to describe it bluntly.



As we read chapters like this, may we take stock of our own lives and repent of
our own unfaithfulness (I will refrain from using God’s descriptions here).

Prayer

Lord, forgive us for our tendencies to be unfaithful to you!