Say introduces what God wants Ezekiel to tell the Israelites.

Thus says the Lord GOD is the traditional formula for a prophet delivering a message from God. Lord renders the Hebrew word ʾadonai, and GOD renders “Yahweh” (YHWH in Hebrew). For languages in which it is impossible for God to speak of himself in the third person, they may use the first person here; for example, Good News Translation begins this verse with “to let them know what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying to them.”

A great eagle with great wings and long pinions …: A great eagle is literally “The great eagle” (New American Bible, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh). The Hebrew text introduces a large eagle as the main subject of the story with the definite article. In English it is not appropriate to use the definite article with a new topic, so most English translations follow English discourse rules by saying “A great eagle” (Revised Standard Version/New Revised Standard Version, New International Version, Revised English Bible), “A large eagle” (Contemporary English Version), or “A giant eagle” (New Century Version). But it is better to draw attention to the main subject more strongly by beginning with an expression such as “There was this very large eagle” (similarly Good News Translation). Translators will do well to follow the discourse requirements of their own language and find the most appropriate way of focusing attention on the main subject of a story. In many cultures the eagle is known as the king of the birds. It is large and flies very high and swiftly. It catches and eats small animals and birds (see the comments on 1.10). Where the eagle is not known, translators are free to choose a local large bird of prey, or a local bird that may be characterized as the king of the birds. Many translators use a general expression such as “large bird of prey.” This eagle was great, which means it was large even compared with other eagles. It had great wings and long pinions. These two expressions are almost synonymous, although the Hebrew word for pinions can sometimes mean “feathers” (Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version, New International Version, New Living Translation, New Century Version). Here these two expressions refer to the strong wings and broad wingspan of the large eagle, so they may be rendered “strong wings and a wide wingspread.”

Rich in plumage of many colors: The Hebrew word for plumage generally refers to all the feathers of a bird, but here it points specifically to the feathers of the head. This eagle was rich in plumage, that is, it had many feathers around its head, and they were of many colors (which renders the same Hebrew word translated “embroidered” in 16.10). It is acceptable to describe these feathers as “beautiful” (Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version). This whole phrase may be rendered “it had many beautifully-colored feathers around its head.”

The eagle came to Lebanon, the large mountain range to the north of Israel, famous for the cedar forests that grew on it. If translators use “Lebanon,” readers may think of the modern country of Lebanon. To avoid this misunderstanding, Good News Translation has “the Lebanon Mountains,” which is a helpful model.

And took the top of the cedar means the eagle broke off the crown or top branch of a cedar tree. Contemporary English Version says “It broke the top branch off a cedar tree.” The cedar tree is a beautiful tree that can grow up to 30 meters (100 feet) high and its trunk can be more than 2 meters (7 feet) in diameter. Its timber is especially valuable for building. The cedar will not be known in many parts of the world, but yet it is frequently referred to in the Bible. In some languages translators may say “large tree called cedar.” As with eagle, the Hebrew text uses the definite article with cedar, but in English the cedar is better rendered “a cedar tree” (Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version) since it is first mentioned here in the story.

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 .