A Prophecy Against the King of Tyre

28 The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man(A), say to the ruler of Tyre, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“‘In the pride of your heart
    you say, “I am a god;
I sit on the throne(B) of a god
    in the heart of the seas.”(C)
But you are a mere mortal and not a god,
    though you think you are as wise as a god.(D)
Are you wiser than Daniel[a]?(E)
    Is no secret hidden from you?
By your wisdom and understanding
    you have gained wealth for yourself
and amassed gold and silver
    in your treasuries.(F)
By your great skill in trading(G)
    you have increased your wealth,(H)
and because of your wealth
    your heart has grown proud.(I)

“‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“‘Because you think you are wise,
    as wise as a god,
I am going to bring foreigners against you,
    the most ruthless of nations;(J)
they will draw their swords against your beauty and wisdom(K)
    and pierce your shining splendor.(L)
They will bring you down to the pit,(M)
    and you will die a violent death(N)
    in the heart of the seas.(O)
Will you then say, “I am a god,”
    in the presence of those who kill you?
You will be but a mortal, not a god,(P)
    in the hands of those who slay you.(Q)
10 You will die the death of the uncircumcised(R)
    at the hands of foreigners.

I have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord.’”

11 The word of the Lord came to me: 12 “Son of man, take up a lament(S) concerning the king of Tyre and say to him: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“‘You were the seal of perfection,
    full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.(T)
13 You were in Eden,(U)
    the garden of God;(V)
every precious stone(W) adorned you:
    carnelian, chrysolite and emerald,
    topaz, onyx and jasper,
    lapis lazuli, turquoise(X) and beryl.[b]
Your settings and mountings[c] were made of gold;
    on the day you were created they were prepared.(Y)
14 You were anointed(Z) as a guardian cherub,(AA)
    for so I ordained you.
You were on the holy mount of God;
    you walked among the fiery stones.
15 You were blameless in your ways
    from the day you were created
    till wickedness was found in you.
16 Through your widespread trade
    you were filled with violence,(AB)
    and you sinned.
So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God,
    and I expelled you, guardian cherub,(AC)
    from among the fiery stones.
17 Your heart became proud(AD)
    on account of your beauty,
and you corrupted your wisdom
    because of your splendor.
So I threw you to the earth;
    I made a spectacle of you before kings.(AE)
18 By your many sins and dishonest trade
    you have desecrated your sanctuaries.
So I made a fire(AF) come out from you,
    and it consumed you,
and I reduced you to ashes(AG) on the ground
    in the sight of all who were watching.(AH)
19 All the nations who knew you
    are appalled(AI) at you;
you have come to a horrible end
    and will be no more.(AJ)’”

A Prophecy Against Sidon

20 The word of the Lord came to me: 21 “Son of man, set your face against(AK) Sidon;(AL) prophesy against her 22 and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“‘I am against you, Sidon,
    and among you I will display my glory.(AM)
You will know that I am the Lord,
    when I inflict punishment(AN) on you
    and within you am proved to be holy.(AO)
23 I will send a plague upon you
    and make blood flow in your streets.
The slain will fall within you,
    with the sword against you on every side.
Then you will know that I am the Lord.(AP)

24 “‘No longer will the people of Israel have malicious neighbors who are painful briers and sharp thorns.(AQ) Then they will know that I am the Sovereign Lord.

25 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: When I gather(AR) the people of Israel from the nations where they have been scattered,(AS) I will be proved holy(AT) through them in the sight of the nations. Then they will live in their own land, which I gave to my servant Jacob.(AU) 26 They will live there in safety(AV) and will build houses and plant(AW) vineyards; they will live in safety when I inflict punishment(AX) on all their neighbors who maligned them. Then they will know that I am the Lord their God.(AY)’”

A Prophecy Against Egypt

Judgment on Pharaoh

29 In the tenth year, in the tenth month on the twelfth day, the word of the Lord came to me:(AZ) “Son of man, set your face against(BA) Pharaoh king of Egypt(BB) and prophesy against him and against all Egypt.(BC) Speak to him and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“‘I am against you, Pharaoh(BD) king of Egypt,
    you great monster(BE) lying among your streams.
You say, “The Nile(BF) belongs to me;
    I made it for myself.”
But I will put hooks(BG) in your jaws
    and make the fish of your streams stick to your scales.
I will pull you out from among your streams,
    with all the fish sticking to your scales.(BH)
I will leave you in the desert,
    you and all the fish of your streams.
You will fall on the open field
    and not be gathered(BI) or picked up.
I will give you as food
    to the beasts of the earth and the birds of the sky.(BJ)

Then all who live in Egypt will know that I am the Lord.

“‘You have been a staff of reed(BK) for the people of Israel. When they grasped you with their hands, you splintered(BL) and you tore open their shoulders; when they leaned on you, you broke and their backs were wrenched.[d](BM)

“‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will bring a sword against you and kill both man and beast.(BN) Egypt will become a desolate wasteland. Then they will know that I am the Lord.

“‘Because you said, “The Nile(BO) is mine; I made it,(BP) 10 therefore I am against you(BQ) and against your streams, and I will make the land of Egypt(BR) a ruin and a desolate waste(BS) from Migdol(BT) to Aswan,(BU) as far as the border of Cush.[e](BV) 11 The foot of neither man nor beast will pass through it; no one will live there for forty years.(BW) 12 I will make the land of Egypt desolate(BX) among devastated lands, and her cities will lie desolate forty years among ruined cities. And I will disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them through the countries.(BY)

13 “‘Yet this is what the Sovereign Lord says: At the end of forty years I will gather the Egyptians from the nations where they were scattered. 14 I will bring them back from captivity and return them to Upper Egypt,(BZ) the land of their ancestry. There they will be a lowly(CA) kingdom.(CB) 15 It will be the lowliest of kingdoms and will never again exalt itself above the other nations.(CC) I will make it so weak that it will never again rule over the nations. 16 Egypt will no longer be a source of confidence(CD) for the people of Israel but will be a reminder(CE) of their sin in turning to her for help.(CF) Then they will know that I am the Sovereign Lord.(CG)’”

Nebuchadnezzar’s Reward

17 In the twenty-seventh year, in the first month on the first day, the word of the Lord came to me:(CH) 18 “Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar(CI) king of Babylon drove his army in a hard campaign against Tyre; every head was rubbed bare(CJ) and every shoulder made raw.(CK) Yet he and his army got no reward from the campaign he led against Tyre. 19 Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am going to give Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar king(CL) of Babylon, and he will carry off its wealth. He will loot and plunder(CM) the land as pay for his army.(CN) 20 I have given him Egypt(CO) as a reward for his efforts because he and his army did it for me, declares the Sovereign Lord.(CP)

21 “On that day I will make a horn[f](CQ) grow for the Israelites, and I will open your mouth(CR) among them. Then they will know that I am the Lord.(CS)

A Lament Over Egypt

30 The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, prophesy and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“‘Wail(CT) and say,
    “Alas for that day!”
For the day is near,(CU)
    the day of the Lord(CV) is near—
a day of clouds,
    a time of doom for the nations.
A sword will come against Egypt,(CW)
    and anguish will come upon Cush.[g](CX)
When the slain fall in Egypt,
    her wealth will be carried away
    and her foundations torn down.(CY)

Cush and Libya,(CZ) Lydia and all Arabia,(DA) Kub and the people(DB) of the covenant land will fall by the sword along with Egypt.(DC)

“‘This is what the Lord says:

“‘The allies of Egypt will fall
    and her proud strength will fail.
From Migdol to Aswan(DD)
    they will fall by the sword within her,
declares the Sovereign Lord.
“‘They will be desolate
    among desolate lands,
and their cities will lie
    among ruined cities.(DE)
Then they will know that I am the Lord,
    when I set fire(DF) to Egypt
    and all her helpers are crushed.(DG)

“‘On that day messengers will go out from me in ships to frighten Cush(DH) out of her complacency. Anguish(DI) will take hold of them on the day of Egypt’s doom, for it is sure to come.(DJ)

10 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“‘I will put an end to the hordes of Egypt
    by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar(DK) king of Babylon.(DL)
11 He and his army—the most ruthless of nations(DM)
    will be brought in to destroy the land.
They will draw their swords against Egypt
    and fill the land with the slain.(DN)
12 I will dry up(DO) the waters of the Nile(DP)
    and sell the land to an evil nation;
by the hand of foreigners
    I will lay waste(DQ) the land and everything in it.

I the Lord have spoken.

13 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“‘I will destroy the idols(DR)
    and put an end to the images in Memphis.(DS)
No longer will there be a prince in Egypt,(DT)
    and I will spread fear throughout the land.
14 I will lay(DU) waste Upper Egypt,
    set fire to Zoan(DV)
    and inflict punishment on Thebes.(DW)
15 I will pour out my wrath on Pelusium,
    the stronghold of Egypt,
    and wipe out the hordes of Thebes.
16 I will set fire(DX) to Egypt;
    Pelusium will writhe in agony.
Thebes will be taken by storm;
    Memphis(DY) will be in constant distress.
17 The young men of Heliopolis(DZ) and Bubastis
    will fall by the sword,
    and the cities themselves will go into captivity.
18 Dark will be the day at Tahpanhes(EA)
    when I break the yoke of Egypt;(EB)
    there her proud strength will come to an end.
She will be covered with clouds,
    and her villages will go into captivity.(EC)
19 So I will inflict punishment(ED) on Egypt,
    and they will know that I am the Lord.’”

Pharaoh’s Arms Are Broken

20 In the eleventh year, in the first month on the seventh day, the word of the Lord came to me:(EE) 21 “Son of man, I have broken the arm(EF) of Pharaoh(EG) king of Egypt. It has not been bound up to be healed(EH) or put in a splint so that it may become strong enough to hold a sword. 22 Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against Pharaoh king of Egypt.(EI) I will break both his arms, the good arm as well as the broken one, and make the sword fall from his hand.(EJ) 23 I will disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them through the countries.(EK) 24 I will strengthen(EL) the arms of the king of Babylon and put my sword(EM) in his hand, but I will break the arms of Pharaoh, and he will groan(EN) before him like a mortally wounded man. 25 I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, but the arms of Pharaoh will fall limp. Then they will know that I am the Lord, when I put my sword(EO) into the hand of the king of Babylon and he brandishes it against Egypt.(EP) 26 I will disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them through the countries. Then they will know that I am the Lord.(EQ)

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 28:3 Or Danel, a man of renown in ancient literature
  2. Ezekiel 28:13 The precise identification of some of these precious stones is uncertain.
  3. Ezekiel 28:13 The meaning of the Hebrew for this phrase is uncertain.
  4. Ezekiel 29:7 Syriac (see also Septuagint and Vulgate); Hebrew and you caused their backs to stand
  5. Ezekiel 29:10 That is, the upper Nile region
  6. Ezekiel 29:21 Horn here symbolizes strength.
  7. Ezekiel 30:4 That is, the upper Nile region; also in verses 5 and 9

28 The word of the Lord came again unto me, saying,

Son of man, say unto the prince of Tyrus, Thus saith the Lord God; Because thine heart is lifted up, and thou hast said, I am a God, I sit in the seat of God, in the midst of the seas; yet thou art a man, and not God, though thou set thine heart as the heart of God:

Behold, thou art wiser than Daniel; there is no secret that they can hide from thee:

With thy wisdom and with thine understanding thou hast gotten thee riches, and hast gotten gold and silver into thy treasures:

By thy great wisdom and by thy traffick hast thou increased thy riches, and thine heart is lifted up because of thy riches:

Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Because thou hast set thine heart as the heart of God;

Behold, therefore I will bring strangers upon thee, the terrible of the nations: and they shall draw their swords against the beauty of thy wisdom, and they shall defile thy brightness.

They shall bring thee down to the pit, and thou shalt die the deaths of them that are slain in the midst of the seas.

Wilt thou yet say before him that slayeth thee, I am God? but thou shalt be a man, and no God, in the hand of him that slayeth thee.

10 Thou shalt die the deaths of the uncircumcised by the hand of strangers: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord God.

11 Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

12 Son of man, take up a lamentation upon the king of Tyrus, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord God; Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty.

13 Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created.

14 Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire.

15 Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee.

16 By the multitude of thy merchandise they have filled the midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned: therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God: and I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.

17 Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee.

18 Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee.

19 All they that know thee among the people shall be astonished at thee: thou shalt be a terror, and never shalt thou be any more.

20 Again the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

21 Son of man, set thy face against Zidon, and prophesy against it,

22 And say, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I am against thee, O Zidon; and I will be glorified in the midst of thee: and they shall know that I am the Lord, when I shall have executed judgments in her, and shall be sanctified in her.

23 For I will send into her pestilence, and blood into her streets; and the wounded shall be judged in the midst of her by the sword upon her on every side; and they shall know that I am the Lord.

24 And there shall be no more a pricking brier unto the house of Israel, nor any grieving thorn of all that are round about them, that despised them; and they shall know that I am the Lord God.

25 Thus saith the Lord God; When I shall have gathered the house of Israel from the people among whom they are scattered, and shall be sanctified in them in the sight of the heathen, then shall they dwell in their land that I have given to my servant Jacob.

26 And they shall dwell safely therein, and shall build houses, and plant vineyards; yea, they shall dwell with confidence, when I have executed judgments upon all those that despise them round about them; and they shall know that I am the Lord their God.

29 In the tenth year, in the tenth month, in the twelfth day of the month, the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

Son of man, set thy face against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and prophesy against him, and against all Egypt:

Speak, and say, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I am against thee, Pharaoh king of Egypt, the great dragon that lieth in the midst of his rivers, which hath said, My river is mine own, and I have made it for myself.

But I will put hooks in thy jaws, and I will cause the fish of thy rivers to stick unto thy scales, and I will bring thee up out of the midst of thy rivers, and all the fish of thy rivers shall stick unto thy scales.

And I will leave thee thrown into the wilderness, thee and all the fish of thy rivers: thou shalt fall upon the open fields; thou shalt not be brought together, nor gathered: I have given thee for meat to the beasts of the field and to the fowls of the heaven.

And all the inhabitants of Egypt shall know that I am the Lord, because they have been a staff of reed to the house of Israel.

When they took hold of thee by thy hand, thou didst break, and rend all their shoulder: and when they leaned upon thee, thou brakest, and madest all their loins to be at a stand.

Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will bring a sword upon thee, and cut off man and beast out of thee.

And the land of Egypt shall be desolate and waste; and they shall know that I am the Lord: because he hath said, The river is mine, and I have made it.

10 Behold, therefore I am against thee, and against thy rivers, and I will make the land of Egypt utterly waste and desolate, from the tower of Syene even unto the border of Ethiopia.

11 No foot of man shall pass through it, nor foot of beast shall pass through it, neither shall it be inhabited forty years.

12 And I will make the land of Egypt desolate in the midst of the countries that are desolate, and her cities among the cities that are laid waste shall be desolate forty years: and I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and will disperse them through the countries.

13 Yet thus saith the Lord God; At the end of forty years will I gather the Egyptians from the people whither they were scattered:

14 And I will bring again the captivity of Egypt, and will cause them to return into the land of Pathros, into the land of their habitation; and they shall be there a base kingdom.

15 It shall be the basest of the kingdoms; neither shall it exalt itself any more above the nations: for I will diminish them, that they shall no more rule over the nations.

16 And it shall be no more the confidence of the house of Israel, which bringeth their iniquity to remembrance, when they shall look after them: but they shall know that I am the Lord God.

17 And it came to pass in the seven and twentieth year, in the first month, in the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

18 Son of man, Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon caused his army to serve a great service against Tyrus: every head was made bald, and every shoulder was peeled: yet had he no wages, nor his army, for Tyrus, for the service that he had served against it:

19 Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will give the land of Egypt unto Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon; and he shall take her multitude, and take her spoil, and take her prey; and it shall be the wages for his army.

20 I have given him the land of Egypt for his labour wherewith he served against it, because they wrought for me, saith the Lord God.

21 In that day will I cause the horn of the house of Israel to bud forth, and I will give thee the opening of the mouth in the midst of them; and they shall know that I am the Lord.

30 The word of the Lord came again unto me, saying,

Son of man, prophesy and say, Thus saith the Lord God; Howl ye, Woe worth the day!

For the day is near, even the day of the Lord is near, a cloudy day; it shall be the time of the heathen.

And the sword shall come upon Egypt, and great pain shall be in Ethiopia, when the slain shall fall in Egypt, and they shall take away her multitude, and her foundations shall be broken down.

Ethiopia, and Libya, and Lydia, and all the mingled people, and Chub, and the men of the land that is in league, shall fall with them by the sword.

Thus saith the Lord; They also that uphold Egypt shall fall; and the pride of her power shall come down: from the tower of Syene shall they fall in it by the sword, saith the Lord God.

And they shall be desolate in the midst of the countries that are desolate, and her cities shall be in the midst of the cities that are wasted.

And they shall know that I am the Lord, when I have set a fire in Egypt, and when all her helpers shall be destroyed.

In that day shall messengers go forth from me in ships to make the careless Ethiopians afraid, and great pain shall come upon them, as in the day of Egypt: for, lo, it cometh.

10 Thus saith the Lord God; I will also make the multitude of Egypt to cease by the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon.

11 He and his people with him, the terrible of the nations, shall be brought to destroy the land: and they shall draw their swords against Egypt, and fill the land with the slain.

12 And I will make the rivers dry, and sell the land into the hand of the wicked: and I will make the land waste, and all that is therein, by the hand of strangers: I the Lord have spoken it.

13 Thus saith the Lord God; I will also destroy the idols, and I will cause their images to cease out of Noph; and there shall be no more a prince of the land of Egypt: and I will put a fear in the land of Egypt.

14 And I will make Pathros desolate, and will set fire in Zoan, and will execute judgments in No.

15 And I will pour my fury upon Sin, the strength of Egypt; and I will cut off the multitude of No.

16 And I will set fire in Egypt: Sin shall have great pain, and No shall be rent asunder, and Noph shall have distresses daily.

17 The young men of Aven and of Pibeseth shall fall by the sword: and these cities shall go into captivity.

18 At Tehaphnehes also the day shall be darkened, when I shall break there the yokes of Egypt: and the pomp of her strength shall cease in her: as for her, a cloud shall cover her, and her daughters shall go into captivity.

19 Thus will I execute judgments in Egypt: and they shall know that I am the Lord.

20 And it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the first month, in the seventh day of the month, that the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

21 Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and, lo, it shall not be bound up to be healed, to put a roller to bind it, to make it strong to hold the sword.

22 Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I am against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and will break his arms, the strong, and that which was broken; and I will cause the sword to fall out of his hand.

23 And I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and will disperse them through the countries.

24 And I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, and put my sword in his hand: but I will break Pharaoh's arms, and he shall groan before him with the groanings of a deadly wounded man.

25 But I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, and the arms of Pharaoh shall fall down; and they shall know that I am the Lord, when I shall put my sword into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall stretch it out upon the land of Egypt.

26 And I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and disperse them among the countries; and they shall know that I am the Lord.