17 (A)In the twenty-seventh year, in the first month, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me: 18 (B)“Son of man, (C)Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon made his army labor hard against Tyre. Every head was made bald, and every shoulder was rubbed bare, yet neither he nor his army got anything from Tyre to pay for the labor that he had performed against her. 19 Therefore thus says the Lord God: (D)Behold, I will give the land of Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; (E)and he shall carry off its wealth[a] (F)and despoil it and plunder it; and it shall be the wages for his army. 20 (G)I have given him the land of Egypt as his payment for which he labored, because they worked for me, declares the Lord God.

21 “On that day (H)I will cause a horn to spring up for the house of Israel, and (I)I will open your lips among them. (J)Then they will know that I am the Lord.”

A Lament for Egypt

30 The word of the Lord came to me: (K)“Son of man, prophesy, and say, Thus says the Lord God:

(L)“Wail, ‘Alas for the day!’
    (M)For the day is near,
    (N)the day of the Lord is near;
it will be (O)a day of clouds,
    a time of doom for[b] the nations.
(P)A sword shall come upon Egypt,
    (Q)and anguish shall be in (R)Cush,
when the slain fall in Egypt,
    and (S)her wealth[c] is carried away,
    and (T)her foundations are torn down.

(U)Cush, and (V)Put, and Lud, and (W)all Arabia, and Libya,[d] and the people of the land that is in league,[e] shall fall with them by the sword.

“Thus says the Lord:
(X)Those who support Egypt shall fall,
    and (Y)her proud might shall come down;
(Z)from Migdol to Syene
    they shall fall within her by the sword,
declares the Lord God.
(AA)And they shall be desolated in the midst of desolated countries,
    and their cities shall be in the midst of cities that are laid waste.
(AB)Then they will know that I am the Lord,
    when (AC)I have set fire to Egypt,
    and (AD)all her helpers are broken.

“On that day (AE)messengers shall go out from me in ships to terrify the unsuspecting (AF)people of Cush, and (AG)anguish shall come upon them on the day of Egypt's doom;[f] for, behold, it comes!

10 “Thus says the Lord God:

(AH)“I will put an end to the wealth of Egypt,
    by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.
11 He and his people with him, (AI)the most ruthless of nations,
    shall be brought in to destroy the land,
(AJ)and they shall draw their swords against Egypt
    and fill the land with the slain.
12 And (AK)I will (AL)dry up the Nile
    and will sell the land into the hand of (AM)evildoers;
(AN)I will bring desolation upon the land and everything in it,
    by the hand of (AO)foreigners;
(AP)I am the Lord; I have spoken.

13 “Thus says the Lord God:

(AQ)“I will destroy the idols
    and put an end to the images in (AR)Memphis;
(AS)there shall no longer be a prince from the land of Egypt;
    so (AT)I will put fear in the land of Egypt.
14 I will make (AU)Pathros a desolation
    and will set fire to (AV)Zoan
    (AW)and will execute judgments on (AX)Thebes.
15 And I will pour out my wrath on Pelusium,
    the stronghold of Egypt,
    and cut off the multitude[g] of Thebes.
16 And I will set fire to Egypt;
    Pelusium shall be in great agony;
Thebes shall be breached,
    and (AY)Memphis shall face enemies[h] by day.
17 The young men of On and of Pi-beseth shall fall by the sword,
    and the women[i] shall go into captivity.
18 At (AZ)Tehaphnehes (BA)the day shall be dark,
    when I break there the yoke bars of Egypt,
and (BB)her proud might shall come to an end in her;
    she shall be covered by a cloud,
    and her daughters shall go into captivity.
19 Thus (BC)I will execute judgments on Egypt.
    (BD)Then they will know that I am the Lord.”

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 29:19 Or multitude
  2. Ezekiel 30:3 Hebrew lacks doom for
  3. Ezekiel 30:4 Or multitude; also verse 10
  4. Ezekiel 30:5 With Septuagint; Hebrew Cub
  5. Ezekiel 30:5 Hebrew and the sons of the land of the covenant
  6. Ezekiel 30:9 Hebrew the day of Egypt
  7. Ezekiel 30:15 Or wealth
  8. Ezekiel 30:16 Or distress
  9. Ezekiel 30:17 Or the cities; Hebrew they

Nebuchadnezzar Praises God

[a] King Nebuchadnezzar to all (A)peoples, nations, and languages, (B)that dwell in all the earth: (C)Peace be multiplied to you! It has seemed good to me to show the (D)signs and wonders that the (E)Most High God has done for me.

How great are (F)his signs,
    how mighty his (G)wonders!
(H)His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
    (I)and his dominion endures from generation to generation.

Nebuchadnezzar's Second Dream

[b] I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at ease in my house and prospering in my palace. I saw a dream that made me afraid. As I lay in bed the fancies and (J)the visions of my head alarmed me. So (K)I made a decree that (L)all the wise men of Babylon should be brought before me, that they might make known to me the interpretation of the dream. Then (M)the magicians, the enchanters, the Chaldeans, and the astrologers came in, and I told them the dream, but (N)they could not make known to me its interpretation. At last Daniel came in before me—he who was named (O)Belteshazzar after the name of my god, and in whom is (P)the spirit of the holy gods[c]—and I told him the dream, saying, “O Belteshazzar, (Q)chief of the magicians, because I know that (R)the spirit of the holy gods is in you and that no (S)mystery is too difficult for you, tell me (T)the visions of my dream that I saw and their interpretation. 10 (U)The visions of my head as I lay in bed were these: I saw, and (V)behold, a tree in the midst of the earth, and its height was great. 11 (W)The tree grew and became strong, and its top reached to heaven, and it was visible to the end of the whole earth. 12 (X)Its leaves were beautiful and its fruit abundant, and in it was food for all. (Y)The beasts of the field found shade under it, and (Z)the birds of the heavens lived in its branches, and all flesh was fed from it.

13 “I saw in (AA)the visions of my head as I lay in bed, and behold, (AB)a watcher, (AC)a holy one, came down from heaven. 14 He (AD)proclaimed aloud and said thus: (AE)‘Chop down the tree and (AF)lop off its branches, (AG)strip off its leaves and scatter its fruit. (AH)Let the beasts flee from under it and the birds from its branches. 15 But leave the stump of its roots in the earth, bound with a band of iron and bronze, amid the tender grass of the field. Let him be wet with the dew of heaven. Let his portion be with the beasts in the grass of the earth. 16 Let his mind be changed from a man's, and let a beast's mind be given to him; (AI)and let seven periods of time (AJ)pass over him. 17 The sentence is by the decree of (AK)the watchers, the decision by the word of (AL)the holy ones, to the end that the living may know that the Most High (AM)rules the kingdom of men (AN)and gives it to whom he will and (AO)sets over it the lowliest of men.’ 18 This dream I, King Nebuchadnezzar, saw. And you, O (AP)Belteshazzar, tell me the interpretation, because (AQ)all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to make known to me the interpretation, but you are able, for (AR)the spirit of the holy gods is in you.”

Daniel Interprets the Second Dream

19 Then Daniel, whose name was (AS)Belteshazzar, was (AT)dismayed for a while, and (AU)his thoughts alarmed him. The king answered and said, “Belteshazzar, let not the dream or the interpretation alarm you.” Belteshazzar answered and said, “My lord, (AV)may the dream be for those who hate you (AW)and its interpretation for your enemies! 20 (AX)The tree you saw, which grew and became strong, so that its top reached to heaven, and it was visible to the end of the whole earth, 21 (AY)whose leaves were beautiful and its fruit abundant, and in which was food for all, under which beasts of the field found shade, and in whose branches the birds of the heavens lived— 22 (AZ)it is you, O king, who have grown and become strong. (BA)Your greatness has grown and reaches to heaven, (BB)and your dominion to the ends of the earth. 23 And because the king saw (BC)a watcher, a holy one, coming down from heaven and saying, (BD)‘Chop down the tree and destroy it, but leave the stump of its roots in the earth, bound with a band of iron and bronze, in the tender grass of the field, and let him be wet with the dew of heaven, and let his portion be with the beasts of the field, till (BE)seven periods of time pass over him,’ 24 this is the interpretation, O king: It is a decree of the Most High, which has come upon my lord the king, 25 (BF)that you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. You shall be made (BG)to eat grass like an ox, and you shall be wet with the dew of heaven, and (BH)seven periods of time shall pass over you, till (BI)you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will. 26 And as it was commanded (BJ)to leave the stump of the roots of the tree, your kingdom shall be confirmed for you from the time that you know that Heaven rules. 27 Therefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable to you: break off your sins by (BK)practicing righteousness, (BL)and your iniquities by showing mercy to the oppressed, (BM)that there may perhaps be a lengthening of your prosperity.”

Nebuchadnezzar's Humiliation

28 All this came upon King Nebuchadnezzar. 29 At the end of twelve months he was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, 30 and the king answered and said, (BN)“Is not this great Babylon, which I have built by (BO)my mighty power as a royal residence and for (BP)the glory of my majesty?” 31 (BQ)While the words were still in the king's mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, “O King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: The kingdom has departed from you, 32 (BR)and you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. And you shall be made to eat grass like an ox, and seven periods of time shall pass over you, (BS)until you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will.” 33 Immediately the word was fulfilled against Nebuchadnezzar. (BT)He was driven from among men and ate grass like an ox, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven till his hair grew as long as eagles' feathers, and his nails were like birds' claws.

Nebuchadnezzar Restored

34 (BU)At the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and (BV)my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High, and praised and honored (BW)him who lives forever,

(BX)for his dominion is an everlasting dominion,
    and (BY)his kingdom endures from generation to generation;
35 (BZ)all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing,
    and (CA)he does according to his will among the host of heaven
    and among the inhabitants of the earth;
(CB)and none can stay his hand
    or (CC)say to him, “What have you done?”

36 At the same time (CD)my reason returned to me, and for (CE)the glory of my kingdom, (CF)my majesty and splendor returned to me. (CG)My counselors and (CH)my lords sought me, and I was established in my kingdom, and still more greatness was (CI)added to me. 37 Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, (CJ)praise and extol and honor the (CK)King of heaven, (CL)for all his works are right and his ways are just; and (CM)those who walk in pride he is able to humble.

Footnotes

  1. Daniel 4:1 Ch 3:31 in Aramaic
  2. Daniel 4:4 Ch 4:1 in Aramaic
  3. Daniel 4:8 Or Spirit of the holy God; also verses 9, 18

Jehoiachin Released from Prison

27 (A)And in the thirty-seventh year of (B)the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, graciously (C)freed[a] Jehoiachin king of Judah from prison. 28 And he spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat above the seats of the kings who were with him in Babylon. 29 So Jehoiachin put off his prison garments. And every day of his life (D)he dined regularly at the king's table, 30 and for his allowance, a regular allowance was given him by the king, according to his daily needs, as long as he lived.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. 2 Kings 25:27 Hebrew reign, lifted up the head of

Jehoiachin Released from Prison

31 (A)And in the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-fifth day of the month, Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, graciously freed[a] (B)Jehoiachin king of Judah and brought him out of prison. 32 And he spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat above the seats of (C)the kings who were with him in Babylon. 33 So Jehoiachin put off his prison garments. And every day of his life he dined regularly at the king's table, 34 and for his allowance, a regular allowance was given him by the king, according to his daily needs, until the day of his death, as long as he lived.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 52:31 Hebrew reign, lifted up the head of

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