Ezekiel 31
Christian Standard Bible
Downfall of Egypt and Assyria
31 In the eleventh year,(A) in the third month, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, say to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his hordes,
‘Who are you like in your greatness?
3 Think of Assyria, a cedar in Lebanon,(B)
with beautiful branches and shady foliage
and of lofty height.
Its top was among the clouds.[a]
4 The waters caused it to grow;
the underground springs made it tall,
directing their rivers all around
the place where the tree was planted
and sending their channels
to all the trees of the field.
5 Therefore the cedar became greater in height
than all the trees of the field.(C)
Its branches multiplied,
and its boughs grew long
as it spread them out
because of the abundant water.(D)
6 All the birds of the sky
nested in its branches,(E)
and all the animals of the field
gave birth beneath its boughs;
all the great nations lived in its shade.
7 It was beautiful in its size,
in the length of its limbs,
for its roots extended to abundant water.
8 The cedars in God’s garden could not eclipse it;(F)
the pine trees couldn’t compare with its branches,
nor could the plane trees match its boughs.
No tree in the garden of God
could compare with it in beauty.
9 I made it beautiful with its many limbs,
and all the trees of Eden,
which were in God’s garden, envied it.
10 “‘Therefore, this is what the Lord God says: Since it[b] towered high in stature and set its top among the clouds, and it[c] grew proud(G) on account of its height, 11 I determined to hand it over to a ruler of nations;(H) he would surely deal with it. I banished it because of its wickedness. 12 Foreigners, ruthless men from the nations,(I) cut it down and left it lying. Its limbs fell on the mountains and in every valley; its boughs lay broken in all the earth’s ravines. All the peoples of the earth left its shade and abandoned it. 13 All the birds of the sky nested on its fallen trunk, and all the animals of the field were among its boughs. 14 This happened so that no trees planted beside water would become great in height and set their tops among the clouds, and so that no other well-watered trees would reach them in height. For they have all been consigned to death, to the underworld, among the people[d] who descend to the Pit.(J)
15 “‘This is what the Lord God says: I caused grieving on the day the cedar went down to Sheol.(K) I closed off the underground deep because of it:[e] I held back the rivers of the deep, and its abundant water was restrained. I made Lebanon mourn on account of it, and all the trees of the field fainted because of it. 16 I made the nations quake at the sound of its downfall, when I threw it down to Sheol to be with those who descend to the Pit. Then all the trees of Eden,(L) the choice and best of Lebanon, all the well-watered trees, were comforted(M) in the underworld. 17 They too descended with it to Sheol, to those slain by the sword. As its allies[f][g] they had lived in its shade among the nations.
18 “‘Who then are you like in glory and greatness among Eden’s trees? You also will be brought down to the underworld to be with the trees of Eden. You will lie among the uncircumcised with those slain by the sword.(N) This is Pharaoh and all his hordes. This is the declaration of the Lord God.’”
Ezekiel 31
New American Standard Bible
Pharaoh Warned of Assyria’s Fate
31 In the (A)eleventh year, in the third month, on the first of the month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, say to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his (B)hordes,
‘Whom are you like in your greatness?
3 Behold, Assyria was a (C)cedar in Lebanon
With beautiful branches and forest shade,
And [a](D)very high,
And its top was among the [b]clouds.
4 The (E)waters made it grow, the [c]deep made it high.
With its rivers it continually [d]extended all around its planting place,
And sent out its channels to all the trees of the field.
5 Therefore (F)its height was loftier than all the trees of the field
And its boughs became many and its branches long
Because of (G)many waters [e]as it spread them out.
6 All the (H)birds of the sky nested in its twigs,
And under its branches all the animals of the field gave birth,
And all great nations lived under its shade.
7 So it was beautiful in its greatness, in the length of its branches;
For its [f]roots extended to many waters.
8 The (I)cedars in (J)God’s garden [g]could not match it;
The junipers [h]could not compare with its branches,
And the plane trees [i]could not match its branches.
No tree in (K)God’s garden [j]could compare with it in its beauty.
9 I made it beautiful with the multitude of its branches,
And all the trees of (L)Eden, which were in the (M)garden of God, were jealous of it.
10 ‘Therefore this is what the Lord [k]God says: “Because [l]it is tall in stature and has put its top among the [m]clouds, and its (N)heart is haughty in its loftiness, 11 I will hand it over to a [n](O)ruler of the nations; he will thoroughly deal with it. In accordance with its wickedness I have (P)driven it out. 12 (Q)Foreign (R)tyrants of the nations have cut it down and left it; on the (S)mountains and in all the valleys its branches have fallen, and its branches have been broken in all the ravines of the land. And all the peoples of the earth have (T)gone down from its shade and left it. 13 All the (U)birds of the sky will nest on its fallen trunk, and all the animals of the field will [o]rest on its fallen branches, 14 so that all the trees by the waters will not be exalted in their stature, nor put their tops among the [p]clouds, nor will any of their [q]well-watered mighty ones stand straight in their height. For they have all been turned over to death, to the (V)earth beneath, among [r]mankind, [s]with those who go down to the pit.”
15 ‘This is what the Lord God says: “On the day when it went down to Sheol I (W)caused mourning; I closed the [t]deep over it and held back its rivers. And its many waters were stopped up, and I made Lebanon mourn for it, and all the trees of the field wilted away on account of it. 16 I made the nations (X)quake from the sound of its fall when I made it (Y)go down to Sheol with those who go down to the pit; and all the [u]well-watered trees of Eden, the choicest and best of (Z)Lebanon, were (AA)comforted in the earth beneath. 17 They also (AB)went down with it to Sheol to those who were (AC)slain by the sword; and those who were its [v]strength lived (AD)in its shade among the nations.
18 “To which among the trees of Eden are you so alike in glory and greatness? Yet you will be brought down with the trees of Eden to the earth beneath; you will lie in the midst of the (AE)uncircumcised with those who were killed by the sword. (AF)This is Pharaoh and all his hordes!”’ declares the Lord God.”
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 31:3 Lit high of stature
- Ezekiel 31:3 As in LXX; MT thick boughs
- Ezekiel 31:4 I.e., subterranean waters
- Ezekiel 31:4 Lit was going
- Ezekiel 31:5 Lit in its sending forth
- Ezekiel 31:7 Lit root was
- Ezekiel 31:8 Lit did
- Ezekiel 31:8 Lit did
- Ezekiel 31:8 Lit were not like
- Ezekiel 31:8 Lit did
- Ezekiel 31:10 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord, and so throughout the ch
- Ezekiel 31:10 As in Syriac; MT you are
- Ezekiel 31:10 As in LXX; MT thick branches
- Ezekiel 31:11 Or mighty one
- Ezekiel 31:13 Lit be on
- Ezekiel 31:14 As in LXX; MT thick branches
- Ezekiel 31:14 Lit drinkers of water
- Ezekiel 31:14 Lit sons of mankind
- Ezekiel 31:14 Lit to
- Ezekiel 31:15 I.e., subterranean waters
- Ezekiel 31:16 Lit drinkers of water
- Ezekiel 31:17 Lit arm
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