NOTES for Eze 17:1-24
Trust in the Lord has no place in the policy of the kings of Judah. They tried to balance between Babylon and Egypt, now forming alliances with them and now breaking them. The prophet warns that such methods will lead to Jerusalem's defeat. This warning can also apply to those who try to replace trust in God with their own resourcefulness. Our example should be the One whose appearance is foretold at the end of the chapter: the Cedar, in the shade of whose branches all the birds will dwell.