Ezekiel 25-32

Good News Translation

Prophecy against Ammon

25 ^(A)The Lord spoke to me. ² “Mortal man,” he said, “denounce the country of Ammon. ³ Tell them to listen to what I, the Sovereign Lord, am saying: You were delighted to see my Temple profaned, to see the land of Israel devastated, to see the people of Judah go into exile. ⁴ Because you were glad, I will let the tribes from the eastern desert conquer you. They will set up their camps in your country and settle there. They will eat the fruit and drink the milk that should have been yours. ⁵ I will turn the city of Rabbah into a place to keep camels, and the whole country of Ammon will become a place to keep sheep, so that you will know I am the Lord.

⁶ “This is what the Sovereign Lord is saying: You clapped your hands and jumped for joy. You despised the land of Israel. ⁷ Because you did, I will hand you over to other nations who will rob you and plunder you. I will destroy you so completely that you will not be a nation any more or have a country of your own. Then you will know that I am the Lord.”

Prophecy against Moab

^8 (B)The Sovereign Lord said, “Because Moab^[a] has said that Judah is like all the other nations, ⁹ I will let the cities that defend the border of Moab be attacked, including even the finest cities—Beth Jeshimoth, Baal Meon, and Kiriathaim. ¹⁰ I will let the tribes of the eastern desert conquer Moab, together with Ammon, so that Moab^[b] will no longer be a nation. ¹¹ I will punish Moab, and they will know that I am the Lord.”

Prophecy against Edom

^12 (C)The Sovereign Lord said, “The people of Edom took cruel revenge on Judah, and that revenge has brought lasting guilt on Edom. ¹³ Now I announce that I will punish Edom and kill every person and animal there. I will make it a wasteland, from the city of Teman to the city of Dedan, and the people will be killed in battle. ¹⁴ My people Israel will take revenge on Edom for me, and they will make Edom feel my furious anger. Edom will know what it means to be the object of my revenge.” The Sovereign Lord has spoken.

Prophecy against Philistia

^15 (D)The Sovereign Lord said, “The Philistines have taken cruel revenge on their agelong enemies and destroyed them in their hate. ¹⁶ And so I am announcing that I will attack the Philistines and wipe them out. I will destroy everyone left living there on the Philistine Plain. ¹⁷ I will punish them severely and take full revenge on them. They will feel my anger. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”

Prophecy against Tyre

26 ^(E)On the first day of the … month^[c] of the eleventh year of our exile, the Lord spoke to me. ² “Mortal man,” he said, “this is what the people in the city of Tyre are cheering about. They shout, ‘Jerusalem is shattered! Her commercial power is gone! She won't be our rival any more!’

³ “Now then, this is what I, the Sovereign Lord, am saying: I am your enemy, city of Tyre. I will bring many nations to attack you, and they will come like the waves of the sea. ⁴ They will destroy your city walls and tear down your towers. Then I will sweep away all the dust and leave only a bare rock. ⁵ Fishermen will dry their nets on it, there where it stands in the sea. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken. The nations will plunder Tyre, ⁶ and with their swords they will kill those who live in her towns on the mainland. Then Tyre will know that I am the Lord.”

⁷ The Sovereign Lord says, “I am going to bring the greatest king of all—King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia—to attack Tyre. He will come from the north with a huge army, with horses and chariots and with cavalry. ⁸ Those who live in the towns on the mainland will be killed in the fighting. The enemy will dig trenches, build earthworks, and make a solid wall of shields against you. ⁹ They will pound in your walls with battering rams and tear down your towers with iron bars. ¹⁰ The clouds of dust raised by their horses will cover you. The noise of their horses pulling wagons and chariots will shake your walls as they pass through the gates of the ruined city. ¹¹ Their cavalry will storm through your streets, killing your people with their swords. Your mighty pillars will be thrown to the ground. ¹² Your enemies will help themselves to your wealth and merchandise. They will pull down your walls and shatter your luxurious houses. They will take the stones and wood and all the rubble, and dump them into the sea. ^13 (F)I will put an end to all your songs, and I will silence the music of your harps. ¹⁴ I will leave only a bare rock where fishermen can dry their nets. The city will never be rebuilt. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken.”

¹⁵ The Sovereign Lord has this to say to the city of Tyre: “When you are being conquered, the people who live along the coast will be terrified at the screams of those who are slaughtered. ^16 (G)All the kings of the seafaring nations will come down from their thrones. They will take off their robes and their embroidered clothes and sit trembling on the ground. They will be so terrified at your fate that they will not be able to stop trembling. ¹⁷ They will sing this funeral song for you:

¹⁹ The Sovereign Lord says: “I will make you as desolate as ruined cities where no one lives. I will cover you with the water of the ocean depths. ²⁰ I will send you down to the world of the dead to join the people who lived in ancient times. I will make you stay in that underground world among eternal ruins, keeping company with the dead. As a result you will never again be inhabited and take your place^[e] in the land of the living. ^21 (H)I will make you a terrifying example, and that will be the end of you. People may look for you, but you will never be found.” The Sovereign Lord has spoken.

A Funeral Song for Tyre

27 The Lord said to me, ² “Mortal man, sing a funeral song for Tyre, ³ that city which stands at the edge of the sea and does business with the people living on every seacoast. Tell her what the Sovereign Lord is saying:

¹⁰ “Soldiers from Persia, Lydia, and Libya served in your army. They hung their shields and their helmets in your barracks. They are the men who won glory for you. ¹¹ Soldiers from Arvad guarded your walls, and troops from Gamad guarded your towers. They hung their shields on your walls. They are the ones who made you beautiful.

¹² “You did business in Spain and took silver, iron, tin, and lead in payment for your abundant goods. ¹³ You did business in Greece, Tubal, and Meshech and traded your goods for slaves and for articles of bronze. ¹⁴ You sold your goods for workhorses, war-horses, and mules from Beth Togarmah. ¹⁵ The people of Rhodes^[f] traded with you; people of many coastal lands gave you ivory and ebony in exchange for your goods. ¹⁶ The people of Syria bought your merchandise and your many products. They gave emeralds, purple cloth, embroidery, fine linen, coral, and rubies in payment for your wares. ¹⁷ Judah and Israel paid for your goods with wheat,^[g] honey, olive oil, and spices. ^18-19 The people of Damascus bought your merchandise and your products, paying for them with wine from Helbon and wool from Sahar.^[h] They traded wrought iron and spices for your goods. ²⁰ The people of Dedan traded saddle blankets for your goods. ²¹ The Arabians and the rulers of the land of Kedar paid for your merchandise with lambs, sheep, and goats. ²² For your goods the merchants of Sheba and Raamah traded jewels, gold, and the finest spices. ²³ The cities of Haran, Canneh, and Eden, the merchants of Sheba, the cities of Asshur and Chilmad—they all traded with you. ²⁴ They sold you luxurious clothing, purple cloth, and embroidery, brightly colored carpets, and well-made cords and ropes. ^25 (I)Your merchandise was carried in fleets of the largest cargo ships.

³⁵ “Everyone who lives along the coast is shocked at your fate. Even their kings are terrified, and fear is written on their faces. ³⁶ You are gone, gone forever, and merchants all over the world are terrified, afraid that they will share your fate.”

Prophecy against the King of Tyre

28 The Lord spoke to me. ² “Mortal man,” he said, “tell the ruler of Tyre what I, the Sovereign Lord, am saying to him: Puffed up with pride, you claim to be a god. You say that like a god you sit on a throne, surrounded by the seas. You may pretend to be a god, but, no, you are mortal, not divine. ³ You think you are wiser than Danel,^[i] that no secret can be kept from you. ⁴ Your wisdom and skill made you rich with treasures of gold and silver. ⁵ You made clever business deals and kept on making profits. How proud you are of your wealth!

⁶ “Now then, this is what I, the Sovereign Lord, am saying: Because you think you are as wise as a god, ⁷ I will bring ruthless enemies to attack you. They will destroy all the beautiful things you have acquired by skill and wisdom. ⁸ They will kill you and send you to a watery grave. ⁹ When they come to kill you, will you still claim that you are a god? When you face your murderers, you will be mortal and not at all divine. ¹⁰ You will die like a dog at the hand of godless foreigners. I, the Sovereign Lord, have given the command.”

The Fall of the King of Tyre

¹¹ The Lord spoke to me again. ¹² “Mortal man,” he said, “grieve for the fate that is waiting for the king of Tyre. Tell him what I, the Sovereign Lord, am saying: You were once an example of perfection. How wise and handsome you were! ¹³ You lived in Eden, the garden of God, and wore gems of every kind: rubies and diamonds; topaz, beryl, carnelian, and jasper; sapphires, emeralds, and garnets. You had ornaments of gold. They were made for you^[j] on the day you were created. ¹⁴ I put a terrifying angel there to guard you.^[k] You lived on my holy mountain and walked among sparkling gems. ¹⁵ Your conduct was perfect from the day you were created until you began to do evil. ¹⁶ You were busy buying and selling, and this led you to violence and sin. So I forced you to leave my holy mountain, and the angel who guarded you drove you away from the sparkling gems. ¹⁷ You were proud of being handsome, and your fame made you act like a fool. Because of this I hurled you to the ground and left you as a warning to other kings. ¹⁸ You did such evil in buying and selling that your places of worship were corrupted. So I set fire to the city and burned it to the ground. All who look at you now see you reduced to ashes. ¹⁹ You are gone, gone forever, and all the nations that had come to know you are terrified, afraid that they will share your fate.”

Prophecy against Sidon

^20 (J)The Lord said to me, ²¹ “Mortal man, denounce the city of Sidon. ²² Tell the people there what I, the Sovereign Lord, say about them: I am your enemy, Sidon; people will praise me because of what I do to you. They will know that I am the Lord, when I show how holy I am by punishing those who live in you. ²³ I will send diseases on you and make blood flow in your streets. You will be attacked from every side, and your people will be killed. Then you will know that I am the Lord.”

Israel Will Be Blessed

²⁴ The Lord said, “None of the surrounding nations that treated Israel with scorn will ever again be like thorns and briers to hurt Israel. And they will know that I am the Sovereign Lord.”

²⁵ The Sovereign Lord said, “I will bring back the people of Israel from the nations where I scattered them, and all the nations will know that I am holy. The people of Israel will live in their own land, the land that I gave to my servant Jacob. ²⁶ They will live there in safety. They will build houses and plant vineyards. I will punish all their neighbors who treated them with scorn, and Israel will be secure. Then they will know that I am the Lord their God.”

Prophecy against Egypt

29 ^(K)On the twelfth day of the tenth month of the tenth year of our exile, the Lord spoke to me. ² “Mortal man,” he said, “denounce the king of Egypt. Tell him how he and all the land of Egypt will be punished. ³ Say that this is what the Sovereign Lord is telling the king of Egypt: I am your enemy, you monster crocodile, lying in the river. You say that the Nile is yours and that you made it.^{[l] 4} I am going to put a hook through your jaw and make the fish in your river stick fast to you. Then I will pull you up out of the Nile, with all the fish sticking to you. ⁵ I will throw you and all those fish into the desert. Your body will fall on the ground and be left unburied. I will give it to the birds and animals for food. ^6 (L)Then all the people of Egypt will know that I am the Lord.”

The Lord says, “The Israelites relied on you Egyptians for support, but you were no better than a weak stick. ⁷ When they leaned on you, you broke, pierced their armpits, and made them wrench their backs.^{[m] 8} Now then, I, the Sovereign Lord, am telling you that I will have troops attack you with swords, and they will kill your people and your animals. ⁹ Egypt will become an empty wasteland. Then you will know that I am the Lord.

“Because you said that the Nile is yours and you made it, ¹⁰ I am your enemy and the enemy of your Nile. I will make all of Egypt an empty wasteland, from the city of Migdol in the north to the city of Aswan in the south, all the way to the Ethiopian^[n] border. ¹¹ No human being or animal will walk through it. For forty years nothing will live there. ¹² I will make Egypt the most desolate country in the world. For forty years the cities of Egypt will lie in ruins, ruins worse than those of any other city. I will make the Egyptians refugees. They will flee to every country and live among other peoples.”

¹³ The Sovereign Lord says, “After forty years I will bring the Egyptians back from the nations where I have scattered them, ¹⁴ and I will let them live in southern Egypt, their original home. There they will be a weak kingdom, ¹⁵ the weakest kingdom of all, and they will never again rule other nations. I will make them so unimportant that they will not be able to bend any other nation to their will. ¹⁶ Israel will never again depend on them for help. Egypt's fate will remind Israel how wrong it was to rely on them. Then Israel will know that I am the Sovereign Lord.”

King Nebuchadnezzar Will Conquer Egypt

¹⁷ On the first day of the first month of the twenty-seventh year of our exile, the Lord spoke to me. ¹⁸ “Mortal man,” he said, “King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia launched an attack on Tyre. He made his soldiers carry such heavy loads that their heads were rubbed bald and their shoulders were worn raw, but neither the king nor his army got anything for all their trouble. ¹⁹ So now this is what I, the Sovereign Lord, am saying: I am giving the land of Egypt to King Nebuchadnezzar. He will loot and plunder it and carry off all the wealth of Egypt as his army's pay. ²⁰ I am giving him Egypt in payment for his services, because his army was working for me. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken.

²¹ “When that happens, I will make the people of Israel strong and let you, Ezekiel, speak out where everyone can hear you, so that they will know that I am the Lord.”

The Lord Will Punish Egypt

30 The Lord spoke to me again. ² “Mortal man,” he said, “prophesy and announce what I, the Sovereign Lord, am saying. You are to shout these words:

⁵ “That war will also kill the soldiers hired from Ethiopia,^[p] Libya, Lydia, Arabia, Kub, and even from among my own people.”

⁶ The Lord says, “From Migdol in the north to Aswan in the south, all Egypt's defenders will be killed in battle. Egypt's proud army will be destroyed. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken. ⁷ The land will be the most desolate in the world, and its cities will be left totally in ruins. ⁸ When I set fire to Egypt and all her defenders are killed, then they will know that I am the Lord.

⁹ “When that day comes and Egypt is destroyed, I will send messengers in ships to arouse the unsuspecting people of Ethiopia,^[q] and they will be terrified. That day is coming!”

¹⁰ The Sovereign Lord says, “I will use King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia to put an end to Egypt's wealth. ¹¹ He and his ruthless army will come to devastate the land. They will attack Egypt with swords, and the land will be full of corpses. ¹² I will dry up the Nile and put Egypt under the power of evil people. Foreigners will devastate the whole country. I, the Lord, have spoken.”

¹³ The Sovereign Lord says, “I will destroy the idols and the false gods in Memphis. There will be no one to rule Egypt, and I will terrify all the people. ¹⁴ I will make southern Egypt desolate and set fire to the city of Zoan in the north. I will punish the capital city of Thebes. ¹⁵ I will let the city of Pelusium, Egypt's great fortress, feel my fury. I will destroy the wealth of Thebes. ¹⁶ I will set fire to Egypt, and Pelusium will be in agony. The walls of Thebes will be broken down, and the city will be flooded.^{[r] 17} The young men of the cities of Heliopolis and Bubastis will die in the war, and the other people will be taken prisoner. ¹⁸ Darkness will fall on Tahpanhes when I break the power of Egypt and put an end to the strength they were so proud of. A cloud will cover Egypt, and the people of all her cities will be taken prisoner. ¹⁹ When I punish Egypt in this way, they will know that I am the Lord.”

The Broken Power of the King of Egypt

²⁰ On the seventh day of the first month of the eleventh year of our exile, the Lord spoke to me. ²¹ “Mortal man,” he said, “I have broken the arm of the king of Egypt. No one has bandaged it or put it in a sling so that it could heal and be strong enough to hold a sword again. ²² Now then, this is what I, the Sovereign Lord, say: I am the enemy of the king of Egypt. I am going to break both his arms—the good one and the one already broken—and the sword will fall from his hand. ²³ I am going to scatter the Egyptians throughout the world. ²⁴ Then I will make the arms of the king of Babylonia strong and put my sword in his hands. But I will break the arms of the king of Egypt, and he will groan and die in front of his enemy. ²⁵ Yes, I will weaken him and strengthen the king of Babylonia. When I give him my sword and he points it toward Egypt, everyone will know that I am the Lord. ²⁶ I will scatter the Egyptians throughout the world. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”

Egypt Is Compared to a Cedar Tree

31 On the first day of the third month of the eleventh year of our exile, the Lord spoke to me. ² “Mortal man,” he said, “say to the king of Egypt and all his people:

¹⁰ “Now then, I, the Sovereign Lord, will tell you what is going to happen to that tree that grew until it reached the clouds.^[u] As it grew taller it grew proud; ¹¹ so I have rejected it and will let a foreign ruler have it. He will give that tree what it deserves for its wickedness. ¹² Ruthless foreigners will cut it down and leave it. Its branches and broken limbs will fall on every mountain and valley in the country. All the nations that have been living in its shade will go away. ¹³ The birds will come and perch on the fallen tree, and the wild animals will walk over its branches. ¹⁴ And so from now on, no tree, no matter how well-watered it is, will grow that tall again or push its top through the clouds^[v] and reach such a height. All of them are doomed to die like mortals, doomed to join those who go down to the world of the dead.”

¹⁵ This is what the Sovereign Lord says: “On the day when the tree goes to the world of the dead, I will make the underground waters cover it as a sign of mourning. I will hold back the rivers and not let the many streams flow out. Because the tree has died, I will bring darkness over the Lebanon Mountains and make all the trees of the forest wither. ¹⁶ When I send it down to the world of the dead, the noise of its downfall will shake the nations. All the trees of Eden and all the choice, well-watered trees of Lebanon who have gone to the world below will be pleased at its downfall. ¹⁷ They will go with it to the world of the dead to join those that have already fallen. And all who live under its shadow will be scattered among the nations.^[w]

¹⁸ “The tree is the king of Egypt and all his people. Not even the trees in Eden were so tall and impressive. But now, like the trees of Eden, it will go down to the world of the dead and join the ungodly and those killed in battle. I have spoken,” says the Sovereign Lord.

The King of Egypt Is Compared to a Crocodile

32 On the first day of the twelfth month of the twelfth year of our exile, the Lord spoke to me. ² “Mortal man,” he said, “give a solemn warning to the king of Egypt. Give him this message from me: You act like a lion among the nations, but you are more like a crocodile splashing through a river. You muddy the water with your feet and pollute the rivers. ³ When many nations gather, I will catch you in my net and let them drag the net ashore. ⁴ I will throw you out on the ground and bring all the birds and animals of the world to feed on you. ⁵ I will cover mountains and valleys with your rotting corpse. ⁶ I will pour out your blood until it spreads over the mountains and fills the streams. ^7 (N)When I destroy you, I will cover the sky and blot out the stars. The sun will hide behind the clouds, and the moon will give no light. ⁸ I will put out all the lights of heaven and plunge your world into darkness. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken.

⁹ “Many nations will be troubled when I spread the news of your destruction through countries you never heard of. ¹⁰ What I do to you will shock many nations. When I swing my sword, kings will shudder with fright. On the day you fall, all of them will tremble in fear for their own lives.”

¹¹ The Sovereign Lord says to the king of Egypt, “You will face the sword of the king of Babylonia. ¹² I will let soldiers from cruel nations draw their swords and kill all your people. All your people and everything else that you are proud of will be destroyed. ¹³ I will slaughter your cattle at every water hole. There will be no people or cattle to muddy the water any more. ¹⁴ I will let your waters settle and become clear and let your rivers run calm. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken. ¹⁵ When I make Egypt a desolate wasteland and destroy all who live there, they will know that I am the Lord. ¹⁶ This solemn warning will become a funeral song. The women of the nations will sing it to mourn for Egypt and all its people. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken.”

The World of the Dead

¹⁷ On the fifteenth day of the first month^[x] of the twelfth year of our exile, the Lord spoke to me. ¹⁸ “Mortal man,” he said, “mourn for all the many people of Egypt. Send them down with the other powerful nations to the world of the dead. ¹⁹ Say to them:

²⁰ “The people of Egypt will fall with those who are killed in battle. A sword is ready to kill them all.^{[y] 21} The greatest heroes and those who fought on the Egyptian side welcome the Egyptians to the world of the dead. They shout: ‘The ungodly who were killed in battle have come down here, and here they lie!’

²² “Assyria is there, with the graves of her soldiers all around. They were all killed in battle, ²³ and their graves are in the deepest parts of the world of the dead. All her soldiers fell in battle, and their graves surround her tomb. Yet once they terrified the land of the living.

²⁴ “Elam is there, with the graves of her soldiers all around. They were all killed in battle, and they went down, uncircumcised, to the world of the dead. In life they spread terror, but now they lie dead and disgraced. ²⁵ Elam lies down among those killed in battle, and the graves of her soldiers are all around her. They are all uncircumcised, all killed in battle. In life they spread terror, but now they lie dead and disgraced, sharing the fate of those killed in battle.

²⁶ “Meshech and Tubal are there, with the graves of their soldiers all around. They are all uncircumcised, all killed in battle. Yet once they terrified the living. ²⁷ They were not given honorable burial like the heroes of ancient times,^[z] who went fully armed to the world of the dead, their swords placed under their heads and their shields^[aa] over their bodies. These heroes were once powerful enough to terrify the living.

²⁸ “That is how the Egyptians will lie crushed among the uncircumcised who were killed in battle.

²⁹ “Edom is there with her kings and rulers. They were powerful soldiers, but now they lie in the world of the dead with the uncircumcised who were killed in battle.

³⁰ “All the princes of the north are there, and so are the Sidonians. Their power once spread terror, but now they go down in disgrace with those killed in battle and are laid to rest, uncircumcised. They share the disgrace of those who go down to the world of the dead.

³¹ “The sight of all these who were killed in battle will be a comfort to the king of Egypt and his army,” says the Sovereign Lord.

³² “I caused the king of Egypt to terrorize the living, but he and all his army will be killed and laid to rest with all the uncircumcised who die in battle.” The Sovereign Lord has spoken.