Ezekiel 32
Good News Translation
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 (A)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[a] 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:
“Do you think you are more beautiful than anyone else?
You will go down to the world of the dead
and lie there among the ungodly.
20 “The people of Egypt will fall with those who are killed in battle. A sword is ready to kill them all.[b] 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,[c] who went fully armed to the world of the dead, their swords placed under their heads and their shields[d] 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.
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 32:17 One ancient translation of the first month; Hebrew does not have these words.
- Ezekiel 32:20 Probable text A sword … all; Hebrew unclear.
- Ezekiel 32:27 Some ancient translations of ancient times; Hebrew of the uncircumcised.
- Ezekiel 32:27 Probable text shields; Hebrew iniquities.
Ezekiel 32
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Lamentation over Pharaoh and Egypt
32 In the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me: 2 Mortal, raise a lamentation over Pharaoh king of Egypt and say to him:
You consider yourself a lion among the nations,
but you are like a dragon in the seas;
you thrash about in your streams,
trouble the water with your feet,
and foul your[a] streams.(A)
3 Thus says the Lord God:
In an assembly of many peoples
I will throw my net over you,
and I[b] will haul you up in my dragnet.(B)
4 I will throw you on the ground;
on the open field I will fling you
and will cause all the birds of the air to settle on you,
and I will let the wild animals of the whole earth gorge themselves on you.(C)
5 I will strew your flesh on the mountains
and fill the valleys with your carcass.[c]
6 I will drench the land with your flowing blood
up to the mountains,
and the watercourses will be filled with you.(D)
7 When I blot you out, I will cover the heavens
and make their stars dark;
I will cover the sun with a cloud,
and the moon shall not give its light.(E)
8 All the shining lights of the heavens
I will darken above you
and put darkness on your land,
says the Lord God.
9 I will trouble the hearts of many peoples
as I carry you captive[d] among the nations,
into countries you have not known.(F)
10 I will make many peoples appalled at you;
their kings shall shudder because of you.
When I brandish my sword before them,
they shall tremble every moment
for their lives, each one of them,
on the day of your downfall.(G)
11 For thus says the Lord God:
The sword of the king of Babylon shall come against you.(H)
12 I will cause your hordes to fall
by the swords of mighty ones,
all of them most terrible among the nations.
They shall bring to ruin the pride of Egypt,
and all its hordes shall perish.(I)
13 I will destroy all its livestock
from beside abundant waters,
and no human foot shall trouble them any more,
nor shall the hoofs of cattle trouble them.(J)
14 Then I will make their waters clear
and cause their streams to run like oil, says the Lord God.
15 When I make the land of Egypt desolate
and when the land is stripped of all that fills it,
when I strike down all who live in it,
then they shall know that I am the Lord.(K)
16 This is a lamentation; it shall be chanted.
The women of the nations shall chant it.
Over Egypt and all its hordes they shall chant it,
says the Lord God.(L)
Dirge over Egypt
17 In the twelfth year, in the first month,[e] on the fifteenth day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me:
18 Mortal, wail over the hordes of Egypt
and send them down,
with Egypt[f] and the daughters of majestic nations,
to the world below,
with those who go down to the Pit.(M)
19 “Whom do you surpass in beauty?
Go down! Be laid to rest with the uncircumcised!”(N)
20 They shall fall among those who are killed by the sword. Egypt[g] has been handed over to the sword; both it and its hordes will be carried away.[h] 21 The mighty chiefs shall speak of them, with their helpers, out of the midst of Sheol: “They have come down; they lie still, the uncircumcised, killed by the sword.”(O)
22 Assyria is there and all its company, their graves all around it, all of them killed, fallen by the sword.(P) 23 Their graves are set in the uttermost parts of the Pit. Its company is all around its grave, all of them killed, fallen by the sword, who spread terror in the land of the living.(Q)
24 Elam is there and all its hordes around its grave, all of them killed, fallen by the sword, who went down uncircumcised into the world below, who spread terror in the land of the living. They bear their shame with those who go down to the Pit.(R) 25 They have made Elam[i] a bed among the slain with all its hordes, their graves all around it, all of them uncircumcised, killed by the sword, for terror of them was spread in the land of the living, and they bear their shame with those who go down to the Pit; they are placed among the slain.(S)
26 Meshech and Tubal are there, and all their multitude, their graves all around them, all of them uncircumcised, pierced by the sword, for they spread terror in the land of the living.(T) 27 And they do not lie with the fallen warriors of long ago[j] who went down to Sheol with their weapons of war, whose swords were laid under their heads and whose shields[k] are upon their bones; for the terror of the warriors was in the land of the living.(U) 28 So you shall be broken and lie among the uncircumcised, with those who are killed by the sword.
29 Edom is there, its kings and all its princes, who for all their might are laid with those who are killed by the sword; they lie with the uncircumcised, with those who go down to the Pit.(V)
30 The princes of the north are there, all of them, and all the Sidonians, who have gone down in shame with the slain, for all the terror that they caused by their might; they lie uncircumcised with those who are killed by the sword and bear their shame with those who go down to the Pit.(W)
31 When Pharaoh sees them, he will be consoled for all his hordes—Pharaoh and all his army, killed by the sword, says the Lord God. 32 For he[l] spread terror in the land of the living; therefore he shall be laid to rest among the uncircumcised, with those who are slain by the sword—Pharaoh and all his multitude, says the Lord God.
Footnotes
- 32.2 Heb their
- 32.3 Gk Vg: Heb they
- 32.5 Symmachus Syr Vg: Heb your height
- 32.9 Gk: Heb bring your destruction
- 32.17 Gk: Heb lacks in the first month
- 32.18 Heb it
- 32.20 Heb It
- 32.20 Cn: Heb carry away both it and its hordes
- 32.25 Heb it
- 32.27 Gk OL: Heb of the uncircumcised
- 32.27 Cn: Heb iniquities
- 32.32 Cn: Heb I
Ezekiel 32
Complete Jewish Bible
32 On the first day of the twelfth month of the twelfth year, the word of Adonai came to me: 2 “Human being, raise a lament for Pharaoh king of Egypt; say to him,
‘You compared yourself to a lion among the nations;
In fact, you are more like a crocodile in the lakes.
You burst out of your streams,
churn the water with your feet
and foul their streams.’
3 “So here is what Adonai Elohim says:
‘With many nations assembled,
I will spread my net over you,
and they will haul you up in my dragnet.
4 Then I will throw you on the shore,
hurl you into an open field,
make all the birds in the air settle on you
and let the animals of the whole earth eat their fill of you.
5 I will leave your flesh on the mountains
and fill the valleys with your rotting carcass.
6 I will drench the land in which you swim
with your blood, as far as the mountains;
the waterways will be full of you.
7 When I extinguish you, I will cover the sky
and make its stars black;
I will cover the sun with a cloud,
and the moon will not give its light.
8 All the shining lights in the sky
I will darken above you;
I will spread darkness over your land,’
says Adonai Elohim.
9 “‘I will anger many peoples
when I bring your destroyed ones
in among the nations,
into countries you have not known.
10 I will make many peoples aghast at you;
their kings will shudder in horror over you
when I brandish my sword before them.
On the day of your downfall
they will tremble continuously,
each man in fear of his life.’
11 “For Adonai Elohim says this:
‘The sword of the king of Bavel
will come against you.
12 With the swords of the warriors
I will cause your hordes to fall.
They are all the most barbarous of the nations,
and they will shatter the glory of Egypt —
all its hordes will be destroyed.
13 I will destroy all her cattle
beside her plentiful waters.
No human foot will trouble them again,
nor the hoof of any animal.
14 Then I will make their water clear
and cause their streams to flow like oil,’
says Adonai Elohim.
15 ‘When I make the land of Egypt a ruined waste,
a land stripped of all that filled it;
when I strike all those who live there;
they will know that I am Adonai.
16 This is the lament that they will raise;
the daughters of the nations will use it to mourn;
they will chant it for Egypt and all its hordes,’
says Adonai Elohim.”
17 On the fifteenth day of the month in the twelfth year, the word of Adonai came to me:
18 “Human being, wail for the hordes of Egypt;
send them with the daughters of mighty nations
down to the underworld,
with those who descend to the pit.
19 Are you more beautiful than the others?
Go down, lie with the uncircumcised dead!
20 They will fall among those killed by the sword;
she is given to the sword; pull her down with her hordes.
21 From the depths of Sh’ol the mightiest warriors
will speak of him with those who helped him.
They went down; they lie still,
the uncircumcised, killed by the sword.
22 “Ashur is there with her hordes;
their graves are all around them,
all of them slain, killed by the sword.
23 Their graves are in the deepest parts of the pit,
her hordes are all around her grave,
all of them slain, killed by the sword,
those who terrorized the land of the living.
24 “‘Eilam is there, with her hordes around her grave,
all of them slain, killed by the sword,
descended uncircumcised to the underworld,
those who terrorized the land of the living;
they bear their shame together with those
who descended to the pit.
25 They have given her a bed among the slain with her hordes;
her graves are all around them,
all of them uncircumcised, killed by the sword,
because they terrorized the land of the living;
they bear their shame with those who descended to the pit;
they are put among those who were slain.
26 “Meshekh and Tuval with her horde is there,
her graves are all around them,
all of them uncircumcised, killed by the sword,
because they terrorized the land of the living.
27 They do not lie with the fallen warriors
of the uncircumcised who descended to Sh’ol
with their weapons of war,
their swords laid under their heads,
and their crimes upon their bones;
because these warriors terrorized the land of the living.
28 But you will lie broken among the uncircumcised,
with those who were killed by the sword.
29 “There is Edom, her kings and all her princes,
who, despite all their power, are laid with those
who were killed by the sword, with the uncircumcised,
with those who descended to the pit.
30 “There are all the princes of the north, all of them,
and the Tzidoni, who descended with the slain,
ashamed of all the terror they caused by their power;
they lie uncircumcised with those killed by the sword,
bearing their shame with those who descended to the pit.
31 “All of these Pharaoh will see,
and he will be consoled about his hordes,
Pharaoh and all his army, slain by the sword,”
says Adonai Elohim.
32 “For I have put my terror in the land of the living,
and he will lie among the uncircumcised,
with those killed by the sword,
Pharaoh and all his hordes,”
says Adonai Elohim.
Ezekiel 32
The Message
A Cloud Across the Sun
32 1-2 In the twelfth year, on the first day of the twelfth month, God’s Message came to me: “Son of man, sing a funeral lament over Pharaoh king of Egypt. Tell him:
“‘You think you’re a young lion
prowling through the nations.
You’re more like a dragon in the ocean,
snorting and thrashing about.
3-10 “‘God, the Master, says:
“‘I’m going to throw my net over you
—many nations will get in on this operation—
and haul you out with my dragnet.
I’ll dump you on the ground
out in an open field
And bring in all the crows and vultures
for a sumptuous carrion lunch.
I’ll invite wild animals from all over the world
to gorge on your guts.
I’ll scatter hunks of your meat in the mountains
and strew your bones in the valleys.
The country, right up to the mountains,
will be drenched with your blood,
your blood filling every ditch and channel.
When I blot you out,
I’ll pull the curtain on the skies
and shut out the stars.
I’ll throw a cloud across the sun
and turn off the moonlight.
I’ll turn out every light in the sky above you
and put your land in the dark.
Decree of God, the Master.
I’ll shake up everyone worldwide
when I take you off captive to strange and far-off countries.
I’ll shock people with you.
Kings will take one look and shudder.
I’ll shake my sword
and they’ll shake in their boots.
On the day you crash, they’ll tremble,
thinking, “That could be me!”
To Lay Your Pride Low
11-15 “‘God, the Master, says:
“‘The sword of the king of Babylon
is coming against you.
I’ll use the swords of champions
to lay your pride low,
Use the most brutal of nations
to knock Egypt off her high horse,
to puncture that hot-air pomposity.
I’ll destroy all their livestock
that graze along the river.
Neither human foot nor animal hoof
will muddy those waters anymore.
I’ll clear their springs and streams,
make their rivers flow clean and smooth.
Decree of God, the Master.
When I turn Egypt back to the wild
and strip her clean of all her abundant produce,
When I strike dead all who live there,
then they’ll realize that I am God.’
16 “This is a funeral song. Chant it.
Daughters of the nations, chant it.
Chant it over Egypt for the death of its pomp.”
Decree of God, the Master.
17-19 In the twelfth year, on the fifteenth day of the first month, God’s Message came to me:
“Son of man, lament over Egypt’s pompous ways.
Send her on her way.
Dispatch Egypt
and her proud daughter nations
To the underworld,
down to the country of the dead and buried.
Say, ‘You think you’re so high and mighty?
Down! Take your place with the heathen in that unhallowed grave!’
20-21 “She’ll be dumped in with those killed in battle. The sword is bared. Drag her off in all her proud pomp! All the big men and their helpers down among the dead and buried will greet them: ‘Welcome to the grave of the heathen! Join the ranks of the victims of war!’
22-23 “Assyria is there and its congregation, the whole nation a cemetery. Their graves are in the deepest part of the underworld, a congregation of graves, all killed in battle, these people who terrorized the land of the living.
24-25 “Elam is there in all her pride, a cemetery—all killed in battle, dumped in her heathen grave with the dead and buried, these people who terrorized the land of the living. They carry their shame with them, along with the others in the grave. They turned Elam into a resort for the pompous dead, landscaped with heathen graves, slaughtered in battle. They once terrorized the land of the living. Now they carry their shame down with the others in deep earth. They’re in the section set aside for the slain in battle.
26-27 “Meshech-tubal is there in all her pride, a cemetery in uncircumcised ground, dumped in with those slaughtered in battle—just deserts for terrorizing the land of the living. Now they carry their shame down with the others in deep earth. They’re in the section set aside for the slain. They’re segregated from the heroes, the old-time giants who entered the grave in full battle dress, their swords placed under their heads and their shields covering their bones, those heroes who spread terror through the land of the living.
28 “And you, Egypt, will be dumped in a heathen grave, along with all the rest, in the section set aside for the slain.
29 “Edom is there, with her kings and princes. In spite of her vaunted greatness, she is dumped in a heathen grave with the others headed for the grave.
30 “The princes of the north are there, the whole lot of them, and all the Sidonians who carry their shame to their graves—all that terror they spread with their brute power!—dumped in unhallowed ground with those killed in battle, carrying their shame with the others headed for deep earth.
31 “Pharaoh will see them all and, pompous old goat that he is, take comfort in the company he’ll keep—Pharaoh and his slaughtered army. Decree of God, the Master.
32 “I used him to spread terror in the land of the living and now I’m dumping him in heathen ground with those killed by the sword—Pharaoh and all his pomp. Decree of God, the Master.”
Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Copyright © 1998 by David H. Stern. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson