Ezekiel 32
New Living Translation
A Warning for Pharaoh
32 On March 3,[a] during the twelfth year of King Jehoiachin’s captivity, this message came to me from the Lord: 2 “Son of man, mourn for Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and give him this message:
“You think of yourself as a strong young lion among the nations,
but you are really just a sea monster,
heaving around in your own rivers,
stirring up mud with your feet.
3 Therefore, this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
I will send many people
to catch you in my net
and haul you out of the water.
4 I will leave you stranded on the land to die.
All the birds of the heavens will land on you,
and the wild animals of the whole earth
will gorge themselves on you.
5 I will scatter your flesh on the hills
and fill the valleys with your bones.
6 I will drench the earth with your gushing blood
all the way to the mountains,
filling the ravines to the brim.
7 When I blot you out,
I will veil the heavens and darken the stars.
I will cover the sun with a cloud,
and the moon will not give you its light.
8 I will darken the bright stars overhead
and cover your land in darkness.
I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!
9 “I will disturb many hearts when I bring news of your downfall to distant nations you have never seen. 10 Yes, I will shock many lands, and their kings will be terrified at your fate. They will shudder in fear for their lives as I brandish my sword before them on the day of your fall. 11 For this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“The sword of the king of Babylon
will come against you.
12 I will destroy your hordes with the swords of mighty warriors—
the terror of the nations.
They will shatter the pride of Egypt,
and all its hordes will be destroyed.
13 I will destroy all your flocks and herds
that graze beside the streams.
Never again will people or animals
muddy those waters with their feet.
14 Then I will let the waters of Egypt become calm again,
and they will flow as smoothly as olive oil,
says the Sovereign Lord.
15 And when I destroy Egypt
and strip you of everything you own
and strike down all your people,
then you will know that I am the Lord.
16 Yes, this is the funeral song
they will sing for Egypt.
Let all the nations mourn.
Let them mourn for Egypt and its hordes.
I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!”
Egypt Falls into the Pit
17 On March 17,[b] during the twelfth year, another message came to me from the Lord: 18 “Son of man, weep for the hordes of Egypt and for the other mighty nations.[c] For I will send them down to the world below in company with those who descend to the pit. 19 Say to them,
‘O Egypt, are you lovelier than the other nations?
No! So go down to the pit and lie there among the outcasts.[d]’
20 The Egyptians will fall with the many who have died by the sword, for the sword is drawn against them. Egypt and its hordes will be dragged away to their judgment. 21 Down in the grave[e] mighty leaders will mockingly welcome Egypt and its allies, saying, ‘They have come down; they lie among the outcasts, hordes slaughtered by the sword.’
22 “Assyria lies there surrounded by the graves of its army, those who were slaughtered by the sword. 23 Their graves are in the depths of the pit, and they are surrounded by their allies. They struck terror in the hearts of people everywhere, but now they have been slaughtered by the sword.
24 “Elam lies there surrounded by the graves of all its hordes, those who were slaughtered by the sword. They struck terror in the hearts of people everywhere, but now they have descended as outcasts to the world below. Now they lie in the pit and share the shame of those who have gone before them. 25 They have a resting place among the slaughtered, surrounded by the graves of all their hordes. Yes, they terrorized the nations while they lived, but now they lie in shame with others in the pit, all of them outcasts, slaughtered by the sword.
26 “Meshech and Tubal are there, surrounded by the graves of all their hordes. They once struck terror in the hearts of people everywhere. But now they are outcasts, all slaughtered by the sword. 27 They are not buried in honor like their fallen heroes, who went down to the grave[f] with their weapons—their shields covering their bodies[g] and their swords beneath their heads. Their guilt rests upon them because they brought terror to everyone while they were still alive.
28 “You too, Egypt, will lie crushed and broken among the outcasts, all slaughtered by the sword.
29 “Edom is there with its kings and princes. Mighty as they were, they also lie among those slaughtered by the sword, with the outcasts who have gone down to the pit.
30 “All the princes of the north and the Sidonians are there with others who have died. Once a terror, they have been put to shame. They lie there as outcasts with others who were slaughtered by the sword. They share the shame of all who have descended to the pit.
31 “When Pharaoh and his entire army arrive, he will take comfort that he is not alone in having his hordes killed, says the Sovereign Lord. 32 Although I have caused his terror to fall upon all the living, Pharaoh and his hordes will lie there among the outcasts who were slaughtered by the sword. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!”
Footnotes
- 32:1 Hebrew On the first day of the twelfth month, of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar. This event occurred on March 3, 585 B.c.; also see note on 1:1.
- 32:17 Hebrew On the fifteenth day of the month, presumably in the twelfth month of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar (see 32:1). This would put this message at the end of King Jehoiachin’s twelfth year of captivity, on March 17, 585 B.c.; also see note on 1:1. Greek version reads On the fifteenth day of the first month, which would put this message on April 27, 586 B.c., at the beginning of Jehoiachin’s twelfth year.
- 32:18 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
- 32:19 Hebrew the uncircumcised; also in 32:21, 24, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 32.
- 32:21 Hebrew in Sheol.
- 32:27a Hebrew to Sheol.
- 32:27b The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
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
- Ezekiel 32:2 Lit fouled by stamping
- Ezekiel 32:4 Lit surface of the field
- Ezekiel 32:4 Lit from
- Ezekiel 32:10 Or feel desolate
- Ezekiel 32:14 Lit go, walk
- Ezekiel 32:16 Or chant
- Ezekiel 32:16 Or chant
- Ezekiel 32:16 Or chant
- Ezekiel 32:20 Or The sword is given
- Ezekiel 32:21 Lit rams
- Ezekiel 32:22 Lit his
- Ezekiel 32:22 Lit him
- Ezekiel 32:25 As in ancient versions; M.T. he was
- Ezekiel 32:29 Or leaders
- Ezekiel 32:29 Or in
- Ezekiel 32:30 Or princes
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