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Ezekiel 29-31
New King James Version
Ezekiel 29-31
New King James Version
Proclamation Against Egypt
29 In the tenth year, in the tenth month, on the twelfth day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, (A)set your face against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and prophesy against him, and (B)against all Egypt. 3 Speak, and say, ‘Thus says the Lord God:
(C)“Behold, I am against you,
O Pharaoh king of Egypt,
O great (D)monster who lies in the midst of his rivers,
(E)Who has said, ‘My [a]River is my own;
I have made it for myself.’
4 But (F)I will put hooks in your jaws,
And cause the fish of your rivers to stick to your scales;
I will bring you up out of the midst of your rivers,
And all the fish in your rivers will stick to your scales.
5 I will leave you in the wilderness,
You and all the fish of your rivers;
You shall fall on the [b]open (G)field;
(H)You shall not be picked up or [c]gathered.
(I)I have given you as food
To the beasts of the field
And to the birds of the heavens.
6 “Then all the inhabitants of Egypt
Shall know that I am the Lord,
Because they have been a (J)staff of reed to the house of Israel.
7 (K)When they took hold of you with the hand,
You broke and tore all their [d]shoulders;
When they leaned on you,
You broke and made all their backs quiver.”
8 ‘Therefore thus says the Lord God: “Surely I will bring (L)a sword upon you and cut off from you man and beast. 9 And the land of Egypt shall become (M)desolate and waste; then they will know that I am the Lord, because he said, ‘The River is mine, and I have made it.’ 10 Indeed, therefore, I am against you and against your rivers, (N)and I will make the land of Egypt utterly waste and desolate, (O)from [e]Migdol to Syene, as far as the border of Ethiopia. 11 (P)Neither foot of man shall pass through it nor foot of beast pass through it, and it shall be uninhabited forty years. 12 (Q)I will make the land of Egypt desolate in the midst of the countries that are desolate; and among the cities that are laid waste, her cities shall be desolate forty years; and I will (R)scatter the Egyptians among the nations and disperse them throughout the countries.”
13 ‘Yet, thus says the Lord God: “At the (S)end of forty years I will gather the Egyptians from the peoples among whom they were scattered. 14 I will bring back the captives of Egypt and cause them to return to the land of Pathros, to the land of their origin, and there they shall be a (T)lowly kingdom. 15 It shall be the lowliest of kingdoms; it shall never again exalt itself above the nations, for I will diminish them so that they will not rule over the nations anymore. 16 No longer shall it be (U)the confidence of the house of Israel, but will remind them of their iniquity when they turned to follow them. Then they shall know that I am the Lord God.” ’ ”
Babylonia Will Plunder Egypt
17 And it came to pass in the twenty-seventh year, in the first month, on the first day of the month, that the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 18 “Son of man, (V)Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon caused his army to labor strenuously against Tyre; every head was made (W)bald, and every shoulder rubbed raw; yet neither he nor his army received wages from Tyre, for the labor which they expended on it. 19 Therefore thus says the Lord God: ‘Surely I will give the land of Egypt to (X)Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; he shall take away her wealth, carry off her spoil, and remove her pillage; and that will be the wages for his army. 20 I have given him the land of Egypt for his labor, because they (Y)worked for Me,’ says the Lord God.
21 ‘In that day (Z)I will cause the [f]horn of the house of Israel to spring forth, and I will (AA)open your mouth to speak in their midst. Then they shall know that I am the Lord.’ ”
Egypt and Her Allies Will Fall
30 The word of the Lord came to me again, saying, 2 “Son of man, prophesy and say, ‘Thus says the Lord God:
(AB)“Wail, ‘Woe to the day!’
3 For (AC)the day is near,
Even the day of the Lord is near;
It will be a day of clouds, the time of the Gentiles.
4 The sword shall come upon Egypt,
And great anguish shall be in [g]Ethiopia,
When the slain fall in Egypt,
And they (AD)take away her wealth,
And (AE)her foundations are broken down.
5 “Ethiopia, [h]Libya, [i]Lydia, (AF)all the mingled people, Chub, and the men of the lands who are allied, shall fall with them by the sword.”
6 ‘Thus says the Lord:
“Those who uphold Egypt shall fall,
And the pride of her power shall come down.
(AG)From [j]Migdol to Syene
Those within her shall fall by the sword,”
Says the Lord God.
7 “They(AH) shall be desolate in the midst of the desolate countries,
And her cities shall be in the midst of the cities that are laid waste.
8 Then they will know that I am the Lord,
When I have set a fire in Egypt
And all her helpers are destroyed.
9 On that day (AI)messengers shall go forth from Me in ships
To make the [k]careless Ethiopians afraid,
And great anguish shall come upon them,
As on the day of Egypt;
For indeed it is coming!”
10 ‘Thus says the Lord God:
(AJ)“I will also make a multitude of Egypt to cease
By the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.
11 He and his people with him, (AK)the most terrible of the nations,
Shall be brought to destroy the land;
They shall draw their swords against Egypt,
And fill the land with the slain.
12 (AL)I will make the rivers dry,
And (AM)sell the land into the hand of the wicked;
I will make the land waste, and all that is in it,
By the hand of aliens.
I, the Lord, have spoken.”
13 ‘Thus says the Lord God:
“I will also (AN)destroy the idols,
And cause the images to cease from [l]Noph;
(AO)There shall no longer be princes from the land of Egypt;
(AP)I will put fear in the land of Egypt.
14 I will make (AQ)Pathros desolate,
Set fire to (AR)Zoan,
(AS)And execute judgments in [m]No.
15 I will pour My fury on [n]Sin, the strength of Egypt;
(AT)I will cut off the multitude of [o]No,
16 And (AU)set a fire in Egypt;
Sin shall have great pain,
No shall be split open,
And Noph shall be in distress daily.
17 The young men of [p]Aven and Pi Beseth shall fall by the sword,
And these cities shall go into captivity.
18 (AV)At [q]Tehaphnehes the day shall also be [r]darkened,
When I break the yokes of Egypt there.
And her arrogant strength shall cease in her;
As for her, a cloud shall cover her,
And her daughters shall go into captivity.
19 Thus I will (AW)execute judgments on Egypt,
Then they shall know that I am the Lord.” ’ ”
Proclamation Against Pharaoh
20 And it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the first month, on the seventh day of the month, that the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 21 “Son of man, I have (AX)broken the arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and see, (AY)it has not been bandaged for healing, nor a [s]splint put on to bind it, to make it strong enough to hold a sword. 22 Therefore thus says the Lord God: ‘Surely I am (AZ)against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and will (BA)break his arms, both the strong one and the one that was broken; and I will make the sword fall out of his hand. 23 (BB)I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and disperse them throughout the countries. 24 I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon and put My sword in his hand; but I will break Pharaoh’s arms, and he will groan before him with the groanings of a mortally wounded man. 25 Thus I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, but the arms of Pharaoh shall fall down; (BC)they shall know that I am the Lord, when I put My sword into the hand of the king of Babylon and he stretches it out against the land of Egypt. 26 (BD)I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations and disperse them throughout the countries. Then they shall know that I am the Lord.’ ”
Egypt Cut Down Like a Great Tree(BE)
31 Now it came to pass in the (BF)eleventh year, in the third month, on the first day of the month, that the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, say to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his multitude:
(BG)‘Whom are you like in your greatness?
3 (BH)Indeed Assyria was a cedar in Lebanon,
With fine branches that shaded the forest,
And of high stature;
And its top was among the thick boughs.
4 (BI)The waters made it grow;
Underground waters gave it height,
With their rivers running around the place where it was planted,
And sent out [t]rivulets to all the trees of the field.
5 ‘Therefore (BJ)its height was exalted above all the trees of the field;
Its boughs were multiplied,
And its branches became long because of the abundance of water,
As it sent them out.
6 All the (BK)birds of the heavens made their nests in its boughs;
Under its branches all the beasts of the field brought forth their young;
And in its shadow all great nations [u]made their home.
7 ‘Thus it was beautiful in greatness and in the length of its branches,
Because its roots reached to abundant waters.
8 The cedars in the (BL)garden of God could not hide it;
The fir trees were not like its boughs,
And the [v]chestnut trees were not like its branches;
No tree in the garden of God was like it in beauty.
9 I made it beautiful with a multitude of branches,
So that all the trees of Eden envied it,
That were in the garden of God.’
10 “Therefore thus says the Lord God: ‘Because you have increased in height, and it set its top among the thick boughs, and (BM)its heart was [w]lifted up in its height, 11 therefore I will deliver it into the hand of the (BN)mighty one of the nations, and he shall surely deal with it; I have driven it out for its wickedness. 12 And aliens, (BO)the most terrible of the nations, have cut it down and left it; its branches have fallen (BP)on the mountains and in all the valleys; its boughs lie (BQ)broken by all the rivers of the land; and all the peoples of the earth have gone from under its shadow and left it.
13 ‘On (BR)its ruin will remain all the birds of the heavens,
And all the beasts of the field will come to its branches—
14 So that no trees by the waters may ever again exalt themselves for their height, nor set their tops among the thick boughs, that no tree which drinks water may ever be high enough to reach up to them.
‘For (BS)they have all been delivered to death,
(BT)To the depths of the earth,
Among the children of men who go down to the Pit.’
15 “Thus says the Lord God: ‘In the day when it (BU)went down to [x]hell, I caused mourning. I covered the deep because of it. I restrained its rivers, and the great waters were held back. I caused Lebanon to [y]mourn for it, and all the trees of the field wilted because of it. 16 I made the nations (BV)shake at the sound of its fall, when I (BW)cast it down to [z]hell together with those who descend into the Pit; and (BX)all the trees of Eden, the choice and best of Lebanon, all that drink water, (BY)were comforted in the depths of the earth. 17 They also went down to hell with it, with those slain by the sword; and those who were its strong arm (BZ)dwelt in its shadows among the nations.
18 (CA)‘To which of the trees in Eden will you then be likened in glory and greatness? Yet you shall be brought down with the trees of Eden to the depths of the earth; (CB)you shall lie in the midst of the uncircumcised, with those slain by the sword. This is Pharaoh and all his multitude,’ says the Lord God.”
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 29:3 The Nile
- Ezekiel 29:5 Lit. face of the field
- Ezekiel 29:5 So with MT, LXX, Vg.; some Heb. mss., Tg. buried
- Ezekiel 29:7 So with MT, Vg.; LXX, Syr. hand
- Ezekiel 29:10 Or the tower
- Ezekiel 29:21 Strength
- Ezekiel 30:4 Heb. Cush
- Ezekiel 30:5 Heb. Put
- Ezekiel 30:5 Heb. Lud
- Ezekiel 30:6 Or the tower
- Ezekiel 30:9 Or secure
- Ezekiel 30:13 Ancient Memphis
- Ezekiel 30:14 Ancient Thebes
- Ezekiel 30:15 Ancient Pelusium
- Ezekiel 30:15 Ancient Thebes
- Ezekiel 30:17 Ancient On, Heliopolis
- Ezekiel 30:18 Tahpanhes, Jer. 43:7
- Ezekiel 30:18 So with many Heb. mss., Bg., LXX, Syr., Tg., Vg.; MT refrained
- Ezekiel 30:21 Lit. bandage
- Ezekiel 31:4 Or channels
- Ezekiel 31:6 Lit. dwelled
- Ezekiel 31:8 Or plane, Heb. armon
- Ezekiel 31:10 Proud
- Ezekiel 31:15 Or Sheol
- Ezekiel 31:15 Lit. be darkened
- Ezekiel 31:16 Or Sheol
Ezekiel 29-31
New International Version
Ezekiel 29-31
New International Version
A Prophecy Against Egypt
Judgment on Pharaoh
29 In the tenth year, in the tenth month on the twelfth day, the word of the Lord came to me:(A) 2 “Son of man, set your face against(B) Pharaoh king of Egypt(C) and prophesy against him and against all Egypt.(D) 3 Speak to him and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘I am against you, Pharaoh(E) king of Egypt,
you great monster(F) lying among your streams.
You say, “The Nile(G) belongs to me;
I made it for myself.”
4 But I will put hooks(H) in your jaws
and make the fish of your streams stick to your scales.
I will pull you out from among your streams,
with all the fish sticking to your scales.(I)
5 I will leave you in the desert,
you and all the fish of your streams.
You will fall on the open field
and not be gathered(J) or picked up.
I will give you as food
to the beasts of the earth and the birds of the sky.(K)
6 Then all who live in Egypt will know that I am the Lord.
“‘You have been a staff of reed(L) for the people of Israel. 7 When they grasped you with their hands, you splintered(M) and you tore open their shoulders; when they leaned on you, you broke and their backs were wrenched.[a](N)
8 “‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will bring a sword against you and kill both man and beast.(O) 9 Egypt will become a desolate wasteland. Then they will know that I am the Lord.
“‘Because you said, “The Nile(P) is mine; I made it,(Q)” 10 therefore I am against you(R) and against your streams, and I will make the land of Egypt(S) a ruin and a desolate waste(T) from Migdol(U) to Aswan,(V) as far as the border of Cush.[b](W) 11 The foot of neither man nor beast will pass through it; no one will live there for forty years.(X) 12 I will make the land of Egypt desolate(Y) among devastated lands, and her cities will lie desolate forty years among ruined cities. And I will disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them through the countries.(Z)
13 “‘Yet this is what the Sovereign Lord says: At the end of forty years I will gather the Egyptians from the nations where they were scattered. 14 I will bring them back from captivity and return them to Upper Egypt,(AA) the land of their ancestry. There they will be a lowly(AB) kingdom.(AC) 15 It will be the lowliest of kingdoms and will never again exalt itself above the other nations.(AD) I will make it so weak that it will never again rule over the nations. 16 Egypt will no longer be a source of confidence(AE) for the people of Israel but will be a reminder(AF) of their sin in turning to her for help.(AG) Then they will know that I am the Sovereign Lord.(AH)’”
Nebuchadnezzar’s Reward
17 In the twenty-seventh year, in the first month on the first day, the word of the Lord came to me:(AI) 18 “Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar(AJ) king of Babylon drove his army in a hard campaign against Tyre; every head was rubbed bare(AK) and every shoulder made raw.(AL) Yet he and his army got no reward from the campaign he led against Tyre. 19 Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am going to give Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar king(AM) of Babylon, and he will carry off its wealth. He will loot and plunder(AN) the land as pay for his army.(AO) 20 I have given him Egypt(AP) as a reward for his efforts because he and his army did it for me, declares the Sovereign Lord.(AQ)
21 “On that day I will make a horn[c](AR) grow for the Israelites, and I will open your mouth(AS) among them. Then they will know that I am the Lord.(AT)”
A Lament Over Egypt
30 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, prophesy and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘Wail(AU) and say,
“Alas for that day!”
3 For the day is near,(AV)
the day of the Lord(AW) is near—
a day of clouds,
a time of doom for the nations.
4 A sword will come against Egypt,(AX)
and anguish will come upon Cush.[d](AY)
When the slain fall in Egypt,
her wealth will be carried away
and her foundations torn down.(AZ)
5 Cush and Libya,(BA) Lydia and all Arabia,(BB) Kub and the people(BC) of the covenant land will fall by the sword along with Egypt.(BD)
6 “‘This is what the Lord says:
“‘The allies of Egypt will fall
and her proud strength will fail.
From Migdol to Aswan(BE)
they will fall by the sword within her,
declares the Sovereign Lord.
7 “‘They will be desolate
among desolate lands,
and their cities will lie
among ruined cities.(BF)
8 Then they will know that I am the Lord,
when I set fire(BG) to Egypt
and all her helpers are crushed.(BH)
9 “‘On that day messengers will go out from me in ships to frighten Cush(BI) out of her complacency. Anguish(BJ) will take hold of them on the day of Egypt’s doom, for it is sure to come.(BK)
10 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘I will put an end to the hordes of Egypt
by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar(BL) king of Babylon.(BM)
11 He and his army—the most ruthless of nations(BN)—
will be brought in to destroy the land.
They will draw their swords against Egypt
and fill the land with the slain.(BO)
12 I will dry up(BP) the waters of the Nile(BQ)
and sell the land to an evil nation;
by the hand of foreigners
I will lay waste(BR) the land and everything in it.
I the Lord have spoken.
13 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘I will destroy the idols(BS)
and put an end to the images in Memphis.(BT)
No longer will there be a prince in Egypt,(BU)
and I will spread fear throughout the land.
14 I will lay(BV) waste Upper Egypt,
set fire to Zoan(BW)
and inflict punishment on Thebes.(BX)
15 I will pour out my wrath on Pelusium,
the stronghold of Egypt,
and wipe out the hordes of Thebes.
16 I will set fire(BY) to Egypt;
Pelusium will writhe in agony.
Thebes will be taken by storm;
Memphis(BZ) will be in constant distress.
17 The young men of Heliopolis(CA) and Bubastis
will fall by the sword,
and the cities themselves will go into captivity.
18 Dark will be the day at Tahpanhes(CB)
when I break the yoke of Egypt;(CC)
there her proud strength will come to an end.
She will be covered with clouds,
and her villages will go into captivity.(CD)
19 So I will inflict punishment(CE) on Egypt,
and they will know that I am the Lord.’”
Pharaoh’s Arms Are Broken
20 In the eleventh year, in the first month on the seventh day, the word of the Lord came to me:(CF) 21 “Son of man, I have broken the arm(CG) of Pharaoh(CH) king of Egypt. It has not been bound up to be healed(CI) or put in a splint so that it may become strong enough to hold a sword. 22 Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against Pharaoh king of Egypt.(CJ) I will break both his arms, the good arm as well as the broken one, and make the sword fall from his hand.(CK) 23 I will disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them through the countries.(CL) 24 I will strengthen(CM) the arms of the king of Babylon and put my sword(CN) in his hand, but I will break the arms of Pharaoh, and he will groan(CO) before him like a mortally wounded man. 25 I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, but the arms of Pharaoh will fall limp. Then they will know that I am the Lord, when I put my sword(CP) into the hand of the king of Babylon and he brandishes it against Egypt.(CQ) 26 I will disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them through the countries. Then they will know that I am the Lord.(CR)”
Pharaoh as a Felled Cedar of Lebanon
31 In the eleventh year,(CS) in the third month on the first day, the word of the Lord came to me:(CT) 2 “Son of man, say to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his hordes:
“‘Who can be compared with you in majesty?
3 Consider Assyria,(CU) once a cedar in Lebanon,(CV)
with beautiful branches overshadowing the forest;
it towered on high,
its top above the thick foliage.(CW)
4 The waters(CX) nourished it,
deep springs made it grow tall;
their streams flowed
all around its base
and sent their channels
to all the trees of the field.(CY)
5 So it towered higher(CZ)
than all the trees of the field;
its boughs increased
and its branches grew long,
spreading because of abundant waters.(DA)
6 All the birds of the sky
nested in its boughs,
all the animals of the wild
gave birth(DB) under its branches;
all the great nations
lived in its shade.(DC)
7 It was majestic in beauty,
with its spreading boughs,
for its roots went down
to abundant waters.(DD)
8 The cedars(DE) in the garden of God
could not rival it,
nor could the junipers
equal its boughs,
nor could the plane trees(DF)
compare with its branches—
no tree in the garden of God
could match its beauty.(DG)
9 I made it beautiful
with abundant branches,
the envy of all the trees of Eden(DH)
in the garden of God.(DI)
10 “‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because the great cedar towered over the thick foliage, and because it was proud(DJ) of its height, 11 I gave it into the hands of the ruler of the nations, for him to deal with according to its wickedness. I cast it aside,(DK) 12 and the most ruthless of foreign nations(DL) cut it down and left it. Its boughs fell on the mountains and in all the valleys;(DM) its branches lay broken in all the ravines of the land. All the nations of the earth came out from under its shade and left it.(DN) 13 All the birds settled on the fallen tree, and all the wild animals lived among its branches.(DO) 14 Therefore no other trees by the waters are ever to tower proudly on high, lifting their tops above the thick foliage. No other trees so well-watered are ever to reach such a height; they are all destined(DP) for death,(DQ) for the earth below, among mortals who go down to the realm of the dead.(DR)
15 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: On the day it was brought down to the realm of the dead I covered the deep springs with mourning for it; I held back its streams, and its abundant waters were restrained. Because of it I clothed Lebanon with gloom, and all the trees of the field withered away.(DS) 16 I made the nations tremble(DT) at the sound of its fall when I brought it down to the realm of the dead to be with those who go down to the pit. Then all the trees(DU) of Eden,(DV) the choicest and best of Lebanon, the well-watered trees, were consoled(DW) in the earth below.(DX) 17 They too, like the great cedar, had gone down to the realm of the dead, to those killed by the sword,(DY) along with the armed men who lived in its shade among the nations.
18 “‘Which of the trees of Eden can be compared with you in splendor and majesty? Yet you, too, will be brought down with the trees of Eden to the earth below; you will lie among the uncircumcised,(DZ) with those killed by the sword.
“‘This is Pharaoh and all his hordes, declares the Sovereign Lord.’”
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 29:7 Syriac (see also Septuagint and Vulgate); Hebrew and you caused their backs to stand
- Ezekiel 29:10 That is, the upper Nile region
- Ezekiel 29:21 Horn here symbolizes strength.
- Ezekiel 30:4 That is, the upper Nile region; also in verses 5 and 9
New King James Version (NKJV) 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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