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, “Son of man, say to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his (B)hordes,

‘Whom are you like in your greatness?
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.
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.
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.
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.
So it was beautiful in its greatness, in the length of its branches;
For its [f]roots extended to many waters.
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.
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.

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Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 31:3 Lit high of stature
  2. Ezekiel 31:3 As in LXX; MT thick boughs
  3. Ezekiel 31:4 I.e., subterranean waters
  4. Ezekiel 31:4 Lit was going
  5. Ezekiel 31:5 Lit in its sending forth
  6. Ezekiel 31:7 Lit root was
  7. Ezekiel 31:8 Lit did
  8. Ezekiel 31:8 Lit did
  9. Ezekiel 31:8 Lit were not like
  10. Ezekiel 31:8 Lit did

Pharaoh to Be Slain

31 (A)In the eleventh year, in the third month, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me: (B)“Son of man, say to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to (C)his multitude:

(D)“Whom are you like in your greatness?
    Behold, (E)Assyria was a (F)cedar in (G)Lebanon,
with beautiful branches and (H)forest shade,
    (I)and of towering height,
    its top among the clouds.[a]
The waters nourished it;
    the deep made it grow tall,
making (J)its rivers flow
    around the place of its planting,
sending forth its streams
    to all the trees of the field.
So (K)it towered high
    above all the trees of the field;
its boughs grew large
    and its branches long
    from (L)abundant water in its shoots.
(M)All the birds of the heavens
    made their nests in its boughs;
under its branches all the beasts of the field
    gave birth to their young,
and under its shadow
    lived all great nations.
It was (N)beautiful in its greatness,
    in the length of its branches;
(O)for its roots went down
    to abundant waters.
(P)The cedars (Q)in the garden of God could not rival it,
    nor the fir trees equal its boughs;
neither were the plane trees
    like its branches;
no tree (R)in the garden of God
    was its equal in beauty.
I made it beautiful
    in the mass of its branches,
and all the trees of (S)Eden envied it,
    that were in the garden of God.

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Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 31:3 Or its top went through the thick boughs