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Ezekiel 32
New English Translation

Lamentation over Pharaoh and Egypt

32 In the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, on the first of the month,[a] the Lord’s message came to me: 2 “Son of man, sing a lament for Pharaoh king of Egypt, and say to him:

“‘You were like a lion[b] among the nations,
but you are a monster in the seas;
you thrash about in your streams,
stir up the water with your feet,
and muddy your[c] streams.

3 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“‘I will throw my net over you[d] in the assembly of many peoples;
and they will haul you up in my dragnet.
4 I will leave you on the ground,
I will fling you on the open field,
I will allow[e] all the birds of the sky to settle[f] on you,
and I will permit[g] all the wild animals[h] to gorge themselves on you.
5 I will put your flesh on the mountains,
and fill the valleys with your maggot-infested carcass.[i]
6 I will drench the land with the flow
of your blood up to the mountains,
and the ravines will be full of your blood.[j]
7 When I extinguish you, I will cover the sky;
I will darken its stars.
I will cover the sun with a cloud,
and the moon will not shine.[k]
8 I will darken all the lights in the sky over you,
and I will darken your land,
declares the Sovereign Lord.
9 I will disturb[l] many peoples,
when I bring about your destruction among the nations,
among countries you do not know.
10 I will shock many peoples with you,
and their kings will shiver with horror because of you.
When I brandish my sword before them,
every moment each one will tremble for his life, on the day of your fall.

11 “‘For this is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“‘The sword of the king of Babylon[m] will attack[n] you.
12 By the swords of the mighty warriors I will cause your hordes to fall—
all of them are the most terrifying among the nations.
They will devastate the pride of Egypt,
and all its hordes will be destroyed.
13 I will destroy all its cattle beside the plentiful waters;
and no human foot will disturb[o] the waters[p] again,
nor will the hooves of cattle disturb them.
14 Then I will make their waters calm,[q]
and will make their streams flow like olive oil, declares the Sovereign Lord.
15 When I turn the land of Egypt into desolation
and the land is destitute of everything that fills it,
when I strike all those who live in it,
then they will know that I am the Lord.’
16 This is a lament; they will chant it.
The daughters of the nations will chant it.
They will chant it over Egypt and over all her hordes,
declares the Sovereign Lord.”

17 In the twelfth year, on the fifteenth day of the month,[r] the Lord’s message came to me: 18 “Son of man, wail[s] over the horde of Egypt. Bring it down;[t] bring[u] her[v] and the daughters of powerful nations down to the lower parts of the earth, along with those who descend to the Pit. 19 Say to them,[w] ‘Whom do you surpass in beauty?[x] Go down and be laid to rest with the uncircumcised!’ 20 They will fall among those killed by the sword. The sword is drawn; they carry her and all her hordes away. 21 The bravest of the warriors will speak to him from the midst of Sheol along with his allies, saying: ‘The uncircumcised have come down; they lie still, killed by the sword.’

22 “Assyria is there with all her assembly around her grave,[y] all of them struck down by the sword.[z] 23 Their[aa] graves are located in the remote slopes of the Pit.[ab] Her assembly is around her grave, all of them struck down by the sword, those who spread terror in the land of the living.

24 “Elam is there with all her hordes around her grave; all of them struck down by the sword. They went down uncircumcised to the lower parts of the earth, those who spread terror in the land of the living. Now they will bear their shame with those who descend to the Pit. 25 Among the dead they have made a bed for her, along with all her hordes around her grave.[ac] All of them are uncircumcised, killed by the sword, for their terror had spread in the land of the living. They bear their shame along with those who descend to the Pit; they are placed among the dead.

26 “Meshech Tubal is there, along with all her hordes around her grave.[ad] All of them are uncircumcised, killed by the sword, for they spread their terror in the land of the living. 27 They do not lie with the fallen warriors of ancient times,[ae] who went down to Sheol with their weapons of war, having their swords placed under their heads and their shields on their bones,[af] when the terror of these warriors was in the land of the living.

28 “But as for you, in the midst of the uncircumcised you will be broken, and you will lie with those killed by the sword.

29 “Edom is there with her kings and all her princes. Despite their might they are laid with those killed by the sword; they lie with the uncircumcised and those who descend to the Pit.

30 “All the leaders of the north are there, along with all the Sidonians; despite their might they have gone down in shameful terror with the dead. They lie uncircumcised with those killed by the sword, and bear their shame with those who descend to the Pit.

31 “Pharaoh will see them and be consoled over all his hordes who were killed by the sword, Pharaoh and all his army, declares the Sovereign Lord. 32 Indeed, I terrified him in the land of the living, yet he will lie in the midst of the uncircumcised with those killed by the sword, Pharaoh and all his hordes, declares the Sovereign Lord.”

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 32:1 sn This would be March 3, 585 b.c.
  2. Ezekiel 32:2 tn The lion was a figure of royalty (Ezek 19:1-9).
  3. Ezekiel 32:2 tc The Hebrew reads, “their streams”; the LXX reads, “your streams.”
  4. Ezekiel 32:3 tn The expression “throw my net” is common in Ezekiel (12:13; 17:20; 19:8).
  5. Ezekiel 32:4 tn Or “cause.”
  6. Ezekiel 32:4 tn Heb “live.”
  7. Ezekiel 32:4 tn Or “cause.”
  8. Ezekiel 32:4 tn Heb “the beasts of the field,” referring to wild as opposed to domesticated animals.
  9. Ezekiel 32:5 tc The Hebrew text is difficult here, apparently meaning “your height.” Following Symmachus and the Syriac, it is preferable to emend the text to read “your maggots.” See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 2:203.
  10. Ezekiel 32:6 tn Heb “from you.”
  11. Ezekiel 32:7 tn Heb “will not shine its light.” For similar features of cosmic eschatology, see Joel 2:10; 3:15; Amos 5:18-20; Zeph 1:5.
  12. Ezekiel 32:9 tn Heb “I will provoke the heart of.”
  13. Ezekiel 32:11 sn The king of Babylon referred to here was Nebuchadnezzar (Ezek 21:19).
  14. Ezekiel 32:11 tn Heb “approach.”
  15. Ezekiel 32:13 tn Heb “muddy.”
  16. Ezekiel 32:13 tn Heb “them,” that is, the waters mentioned in the previous line. The translation clarifies the referent.
  17. Ezekiel 32:14 tn Heb “sink,” that is, to settle and become clear, not muddied.
  18. Ezekiel 32:17 tn March 17, 585 b.c. The LXX adds “first month.”
  19. Ezekiel 32:18 tn The Hebrew verb is used as a response to death (Jer 9:17-19; Amos 5:16).
  20. Ezekiel 32:18 sn Through this prophetic lament given by God himself, the prophet activates the judgment described therein. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 2:217, and L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:136-37.
  21. Ezekiel 32:18 tn Heb “Bring him down, her and the daughters of the powerful nations, to the earth below.” The verb “bring down” appears in the Hebrew text only once. Because the verb takes several objects here, the repetition of the verb in the translation improves the English style.
  22. Ezekiel 32:18 tn This apparently refers to personified Egypt.
  23. Ezekiel 32:19 tc The LXX places this verse after v. 21.tn The words “say to them” are added in the translation for clarity to indicate the shift in addressee from the prophet to Egypt.
  24. Ezekiel 32:19 tn Heb “pleasantness.”
  25. Ezekiel 32:22 tn Heb “around him his graves.” The masculine pronominal suffixes are problematic; the expression is best emended to correspond to the phrase “around her grave” in v. 23. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 2:219.
  26. Ezekiel 32:22 tn Heb “all of them slain, the ones felled by the sword.” See as well vv. 23-24.
  27. Ezekiel 32:23 tn Heb “whose.”
  28. Ezekiel 32:23 tn The only other occurrence of the phrase “remote slopes of the Pit” is in Isa 14:15.
  29. Ezekiel 32:25 tn Heb “around him her graves,” but the expression is best emended to read “around her grave” (see vv. 23-24).
  30. Ezekiel 32:26 tn Heb “around him her graves,” but the expression is best emended to read “around her grave” (see vv. 23-24).
  31. Ezekiel 32:27 tc Heb “of the uncircumcised.” The LXX reads, probably correctly, “from of old” rather than “of the uncircumcised.” The phrases are very similar in spelling. The warriors of Meshech Tubal are described as uncircumcised, so it would be odd for them to not be buried with the uncircumcised. Verse 28 specifically says that they would lie with the uncircumcised.
  32. Ezekiel 32:27 tc Heb “and their iniquities were over their bones.” The meaning of this statement is unclear. In light of the parallelism (see “swords”) it is preferable to emend עֲוֹנֹתָם (ʿavonotam; “their iniquities”) to צִנּוֹתָם or צִנָּתָם (tsinnotam or tsinnatam; “their shields” or “their shield”) See L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:135.
Close LSB

Ezekiel 32
Legacy Standard Bible

A Lament over Pharaoh and Egypt

32 And it happened in the (A)twelfth year, in the twelfth month, on the first of the month, that the word of Yahweh came to me saying, 2 “Son of man, take up a (B)lamentation over Pharaoh king of Egypt and say to him,

‘You liken yourself to a young (C)lion of the nations,
Yet you are like the (D)monster in the seas;
And you (E)burst forth in your rivers
And muddied the waters with your feet
And [a]fouled their rivers.’”

3 Thus says Lord Yahweh,

“So I will (F)spread My net over you
With an assembly of many peoples,
And they shall bring you up in My net.
4 I will abandon you on the land;
I will hurl you on the [b]open field.
And I will cause all the (G)birds of the sky to dwell on you,
And I will satisfy the beasts of the whole earth [c]with you.
5 I will put your flesh (H)on the mountains
And fill the valleys with your refuse.
6 I will also make the land drink the discharge of your (I)blood
As far as the mountains,
And the ravines will be full of you.
7 And when I (J)extinguish you,
I will (K)cover the heavens and darken their (L)stars;
I will cover the (M)sun with a cloud,
And the moon will not give its light.
8 All the shining (N)lights in the heavens
I will darken over you
And will give darkness on your land,”
Declares Lord Yahweh.

9 “I will also (O)vex the hearts of many peoples when I (P)bring your destruction among the nations, into lands which you have not known. 10 I will make many peoples [d](Q)appalled at you, and their kings will be horribly afraid of you when I brandish My sword before them; and (R)they will tremble every moment, every man for his own life, on the day of your downfall.”

11 For (S)thus says Lord Yahweh, “The sword of the king of Babylon will come upon you. 12 By the swords of the mighty ones I will cause your multitude to fall; all of them are (T)ruthless ones of the nations,

And they will (U)devastate the lofty pride of Egypt,
And all its multitude will be destroyed.
13 I will also make all its cattle perish from beside many waters;
And (V)the foot of man will not muddy them anymore,
And the hoofs of beasts will not muddy them.
14 Then I will make their waters settle
And will cause their rivers to [e]run like oil,”
Declares Lord Yahweh.
15 “When I make the land of Egypt a (W)desolation,
And the land is desolate of its fullness,
When I strike all those who inhabit it,
Then they shall (X)know that I am Yahweh.

16 This is a (Y)lamentation, and they shall [f]lament over it. The daughters of the nations shall [g]lament over it. Over Egypt and over all her multitude they shall [h]lament over it,” declares Lord Yahweh.

17 Now it happened in the (Z)twelfth year, on the (AA)fifteenth of the month, that the word of Yahweh came to me saying, 18 “Son of man, (AB)wail for the hordes of Egypt and (AC)bring it down, her and the daughters of the powerful nations, to the (AD)nether world, with those who go down to the pit;

19 ‘Whom do you surpass in beauty?
Go down and make your bed with the (AE)uncircumcised.’

20 They shall fall in the midst of those who are slain by the sword. [i]She is given over to the sword; they have (AF)drawn her and all her multitude away. 21 The [j](AG)dominant among the mighty ones shall speak of him and his helpers from the midst of Sheol, ‘They have gone down, they lie still, the uncircumcised, slain by the sword.’

22 “(AH)Assyria is there and all her assembly; [k]her graves are round about [l]her. All of them are slain, fallen by the sword, 23 whose (AI)graves are put in the remotest parts of the pit, and her assembly is all round about her grave. All of them are slain, fallen by the sword, who put terror in the land of the living.

24 “(AJ)Elam is there and all her multitude all around her grave; all of them slain, fallen by the sword, who went down uncircumcised to the (AK)lower parts of the earth, who put their terror in the (AL)land of the living and (AM)bore their dishonor with those who went down to the pit. 25 They have put a (AN)bed for her among the slain with all her multitude. Her graves are all around it; all of them are uncircumcised, slain by the sword (although their terror was put in the land of the living), and they bore their dishonor with those who go down to the pit; [m]they were put in the midst of the slain.

26 “(AO)Meshech, (AP)Tubal, and all their multitude are there; their graves are all around them. All of them were slain by the sword (AQ)uncircumcised, though they put their terror in the land of the living. 27 (AR)Nor do they lie beside the fallen (AS)mighty ones of the uncircumcised, who went down to Sheol with their weapons of war and whose swords were put under their heads; but the punishment for their (AT)iniquity rested on their bones, though the terror of these mighty ones was once in the land of the living. 28 But as for you, in the midst of the uncircumcised you will be broken and lie with those slain by the sword.

29 “There also is (AU)Edom, its kings, and all its [n]princes, who [o]for all their might are put with those slain by the sword; they will lie with the uncircumcised and with those who go down to the pit.

30 “There also are the [p]chiefs of the (AV)north, all of them, and all the (AW)Sidonians, who in spite of the terror resulting from their might, in shame went down with the slain. So they lay down uncircumcised with those slain by the sword and bore their dishonor with those who go down to the pit.

31 “These Pharaoh will see, and he will be (AX)comforted for all his multitude slain by the sword, even Pharaoh and all his military force,” declares Lord Yahweh. 32 “Though I put a terror of him in the land of the living, yet he will be made to lie down among the uncircumcised along with those slain by the sword, even Pharaoh and all his hordes,” declares Lord Yahweh.

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 32:2 Lit fouled by stamping
  2. Ezekiel 32:4 Lit surface of the field
  3. Ezekiel 32:4 Lit from
  4. Ezekiel 32:10 Or feel desolate
  5. Ezekiel 32:14 Lit go, walk
  6. Ezekiel 32:16 Or chant
  7. Ezekiel 32:16 Or chant
  8. Ezekiel 32:16 Or chant
  9. Ezekiel 32:20 Or The sword is given
  10. Ezekiel 32:21 Lit rams
  11. Ezekiel 32:22 Lit his
  12. Ezekiel 32:22 Lit him
  13. Ezekiel 32:25 As in ancient versions; M.T. he was
  14. Ezekiel 32:29 Or leaders
  15. Ezekiel 32:29 Or in
  16. Ezekiel 32:30 Or princes
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