Thus says the Lord GOD: This new parable begins with the traditional opening words of a prophetic message (see Ezek 17.3). Likewise, at the end of verse 24 are the closing words of a prophetic message. The message contains several features of poetry, so many translations set it out in poetic lines (so New Revised Standard Version, Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version, La Bible Pléiade, Osty).

I myself will take a sprig from the lofty top of the cedar, and will set it out: I myself renders an emphatic Hebrew pronoun, which translators should reflect. Some translations include the adverb “too” (Revised English Bible, New American Bible, Moffatt) or “also” (New Century Version, New American Standard Bible) to tie in this parable with the previous one. The Hebrew waw conjunction (literally “And”) at the beginning of this sentence seems to justify such an adverb. Translators may include or omit it, depending on the demands of their language. There is no word for sprig (that is, small branch) in the Hebrew text; Revised Standard Version takes it from the third line of this verse. This is unnecessary because the Hebrew expression rendered the lofty top of the cedar can mean “the topmost branch of the cedar tree,” as in verse 3 (see the comments there). Here an additional word for lofty is included, which describes the branch as the highest one. And will set it out means God will plant the cedar branch in the ground. Revised English Bible says “and set it in the soil” (similarly New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh). The Septuagint omits this clause, but it is better to include it. A good model for these two clauses is “I myself will take the top branch of a cedar tree, and plant it in the ground.”

I will break off from the topmost of its young twigs a tender one, and I myself will plant it upon a high and lofty mountain: The topmost of its young twigs is the highest young branch (see Ezek 17.4). A tender one emphasizes that it is a soft, new shoot. I myself renders the same emphatic Hebrew pronoun as in the first line. The Hebrew expression for a high and lofty mountain uses two adjectives to describe how high this mountain is. New Century Version says “a very high mountain.” These two poetic lines are parallel to the first two, giving the same meaning but adding more details for emphasis. Take is more general than break off, the lofty top of the cedar is more general than the topmost of its young twigs a tender one, and set it out is more general than plant it upon a high and lofty mountain. This feature is completely lost in Good News Translation, but translators should try to retain it since it is an essential part of the Hebrew poetry.

A model for God’s words in this verse, showing some of the poetic nature, is:

• Now I [or, Yes, I] will take the highest branch [or, the very top] of a cedar tree,
and I will put it in the ground.
I will break off the very top twig, a tender new shoot,
and I [or, yes, I] will plant it on a very high mountain.

Quoted with permission from Gross, Carl & Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Ezekiel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .