Ezekiel is commanded to lament for Pharaoh and Egypt, prophesying their violent destruction by the sword of Babylon, leading to widespread desolation and darkness. The Lord declares that Egypt, once mighty, will be cast down and consumed, its fall serving as a terrifying spectacle to other nations. Furthermore, Egypt's multitude will descend into the pit of Sheol, joining other uncircumcised nations already slain by the sword, bearing their shame in the nether parts of the earth.
Son of man, take up a lamentation for Pharaoh king of Egypt, and say unto him, Thou art like a young lion of the nations, and thou art as a whale in the seas: and thou camest forth with thy rivers, and troubledst the waters with thy feet, and fouledst their rivers.
Then will I leave thee upon the land, I will cast thee forth upon the open field, and will cause all the fowls of the heaven to remain upon thee, and I will fill the beasts of the whole earth with thee.
And when I shall put thee out, I will cover the heaven, and make the stars thereof dark; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not give her light.
Yea, I will make many people amazed at thee, and their kings shall be horribly afraid for thee, when I shall brandish my sword before them; and they shall tremble at every moment, every man for his own life, in the day of thy fall.
By the swords of the mighty will I cause thy multitude to fall, the terrible of the nations, all of them: and they shall spoil the pomp of Egypt, and all the multitude thereof shall be destroyed.
I will destroy also all the beasts thereof from beside the great waters; neither shall the foot of man trouble them any more, nor the hoofs of beasts trouble them.
When I shall make the land of Egypt desolate, and the country shall be destitute of that whereof it was full, when I shall smite all them that dwell therein, then shall they know that I am the LORD.
This is the lamentation wherewith they shall lament her: the daughters of the nations shall lament her: they shall lament for her, even for Egypt, and for all her multitude, saith the Lord GOD.
Son of man, wail for the multitude of Egypt, and cast them down, even her, and the daughters of the famous nations, unto the nether parts of the earth, with them that go down into the pit.
The strong among the mighty shall speak to him out of the midst of hell with them that help him: they are gone down, they lie uncircumcised, slain by the sword.
Whose graves are set in the sides of the pit, and her company is round about her grave: all of them slain, fallen by the sword, which caused terror in the land of the living.
There is Elam and all her multitude round about her grave, all of them slain, fallen by the sword, which are gone down uncircumcised into the nether parts of the earth, which caused their terror in the land of the living; yet have they borne their shame with them that go down to the pit.
They have set her a bed in the midst of the slain with all her multitude: her graves are round about him: all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword: though their terror was caused in the land of the living, yet have they borne their shame with them that go down to the pit: he is put in the midst of them that be slain.
There is Meshech, Tubal, and all her multitude: her graves are round about him: all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword, though they caused their terror in the land of the living.
And they shall not lie with the mighty that are fallen of the uncircumcised, which are gone down to hell with their weapons of war: and they have laid their swords under their heads, but their iniquities shall be upon their bones, though they were the terror of the mighty in the land of the living.
There is Edom, her kings, and all her princes, which with their might are laid by them that were slain by the sword: they shall lie with the uncircumcised, and with them that go down to the pit.
There be the princes of the north, all of them, and all the Zidonians, which are gone down with the slain; with their terror they are ashamed of their might; and they lie uncircumcised with them that be slain by the sword, and bear their shame with them that go down to the pit.
For I have caused my terror in the land of the living: and he shall be laid in the midst of the uncircumcised with them that are slain with the sword, even Pharaoh and all his multitude, saith the Lord GOD.
Study Notes for Ezekiel 32
Verse 1
This prophecy is dated approximately one month after the previous oracle (30:20) and marks the final word against Egypt in the book of Ezekiel. The timing, late in 585 B.C., places it shortly after the fall of Jerusalem, demonstrating God's consistent judgment on all nations.
Verse 2
Pharaoh is compared both to a 'young lion' (a symbol of aggressive power) and a 'whale' (Hebrew: *tannin*, a sea monster or dragon). This imagery links Pharaoh to primeval chaos, often associated with Egypt, whose aggressive foreign policy 'troubled the waters' of the nations.
Verse 3
The metaphor shifts from Pharaoh as a chaotic sea creature to God, the divine fisherman, using a 'net' to capture the monster. The 'company of many people' refers to the invading Babylonian forces used by God as his instrument of judgment.
Verse 4
The image of the monstrous carcass being cast onto the land and devoured by scavengers emphasizes the utter humiliation and dishonor of Pharaoh’s death, denying him a proper burial.
Verse 7
The judgment on Egypt is depicted using 'cosmic catastrophe' language (darkening the sun, moon, and stars). This hyperbole is common in prophetic literature and signifies a historical event so momentous that it overturns the established order of the world.
Verse 11
Ezekiel explicitly identifies the agent of God's judgment: Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon. This clarifies that the preceding cosmic imagery describes the devastating impact of the Babylonian invasion.
Verse 14
The violent imagery gives way to profound stillness, where the waters of the Nile (Egypt’s lifeblood) flow 'like oil'—slowly and undisturbed. This signifies the total cessation of human and animal activity and the end of Egypt’s economic vitality.
Verse 16
The lamentation itself is decreed by God to be sung by the 'daughters of the nations.' This ensures that Egypt’s humiliation will be widely known and remembered by its former allies and rivals.
Verse 17
This second oracle, given only two weeks after the first, shifts the focus from the physical destruction of Egypt to its fate in the afterlife. It describes a dramatic vision of the underworld (Sheol, 'the pit').
Verse 18
Ezekiel is commanded to 'wail' and 'cast them down' to Sheol, the common grave of humanity. The focus is on the vast 'multitude' of Egypt, reflecting the great size of its army and population.
Verse 19
The question 'Whom dost thou pass in beauty?' is a taunt, mocking Egypt’s former glory and self-perception. Being laid 'with the uncircumcised' is a critical insult, as circumcision was a mark distinguishing Israel from pagan nations, emphasizing Egypt's pagan disgrace.
Verse 21
The 'strong among the mighty' are the deceased kings and warriors of other nations already residing in Sheol. They greet Pharaoh with bitter irony, acknowledging him as a new, equally disgraced member of their company.
Verse 22
The description shifts to a roll call of nations already humbled in death. Assyria, the great imperial power of the previous century, is listed first, showing that no earthly might can escape the judgment of the grave.
Verse 24
Elam (a strong kingdom east of Babylon) is listed as another former terror now bearing 'shame' in the pit. The vision emphasizes that all nations, regardless of their past military might, share the same fate of humiliation.
Verse 26
Meshech and Tubal (peoples in modern Turkey, often associated with Gog in Ezekiel 38-39) are included, demonstrating the universal scope of God’s judgment extending even to nations on the periphery.
Verse 27
This verse may describe an elite section of Sheol reserved for honored pagan warriors who died bravely (implied by 'weapons of war' and 'swords under their heads'). However, even this honor is negated by the mention of their 'iniquities' and ultimate shame.
Verse 31
The comfort Pharaoh receives is purely ironic and hollow: he is comforted only because he sees that his great empire has fallen no further than all the other once-mighty nations. His fate is universal humiliation.
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