Those who uphold Egypt shall Fall

God continues the prophecy against Egypt along with her allies Ethiopia, Libya, Lydia, Chub and so on. Again, Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon is mentioned as the instrument of God's judgment, and also recognized as the most terrible of nations. They will destroy Egypt and her allies and make her land desolate. Also, the river which is very important to Egypt, will become dry.

God also revealed again that the reasons for his fury is their worshipping of idols and also their arrogance. By the judgments, they will be brought down and their arrogance broken. To be more specific God also mentioned that He will break Pharoah's arms so that he cannot hold a sword to lead his people. On the other hand, God will strengthen the hand of the king of Babylon.





Ezekiel 30
Egypt and Her Allies Will Fall

1 The word of the Lord came to me again, saying, 2 “Son of man, prophesy and say, ‘Thus says the Lord God:
“Wail, ‘Woe to the day!’
3 For the day is near,
Even the day of the Lord is near;
It will be a day of clouds, the time of the Gentiles.
4 The sword shall come upon Egypt,
And great anguish shall be in Ethiopia,
When the slain fall in Egypt,
And they take away her wealth,
And her foundations are broken down.
5 “Ethiopia, Libya,[a] Lydia,[b] all the mingled people, Chub, and the men of the lands who are allied, shall fall with them by the sword.”

6 ‘Thus says the Lord:

“Those who uphold Egypt shall fall,
And the pride of her power shall come down.
From Migdol to Syene
Those within her shall fall by the sword,”
Says the Lord God.
7 “They shall be desolate in the midst of the desolate countries,
And her cities shall be in the midst of the cities that are laid waste.
8 Then they will know that I am the Lord,
When I have set a fire in Egypt
And all her helpers are destroyed.
9 On that day messengers shall go forth from Me in ships
To make the careless Ethiopians afraid,
And great anguish shall come upon them,
As on the day of Egypt;
For indeed it is coming!”
10 ‘Thus says the Lord God:

“I will also make a multitude of Egypt to cease
By the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.
11 He and his people with him, the most terrible of the nations,
Shall be brought to destroy the land;
They shall draw their swords against Egypt,
And fill the land with the slain.
12 I will make the rivers dry,
And sell the land into the hand of the wicked;
I will make the land waste, and all that is in it,
By the hand of aliens.
I, the Lord, have spoken.”
13 ‘Thus says the Lord God:

“I will also destroy the idols,
And cause the images to cease from Noph;[c]
There shall no longer be princes from the land of Egypt;
I will put fear in the land of Egypt.
14 I will make Pathros desolate,
Set fire to Zoan,
And execute judgments in No.[d]
15 I will pour My fury on Sin,[e] the strength of Egypt;
I will cut off the multitude of No,
16 And set a fire in Egypt;
Sin shall have great pain,
No shall be split open,
And Noph shall be in distress daily.
17 The young men of Aven[f] and Pi Beseth shall fall by the sword,
And these cities shall go into captivity.
18 At Tehaphnehes[g] the day shall also be darkened,[h]
When I break the yokes of Egypt there.
And her arrogant strength shall cease in her;
As for her, a cloud shall cover her,
And her daughters shall go into captivity.
19 Thus I will execute judgments on Egypt,
Then they shall know that I am the Lord.”’”


Proclamation Against Pharaoh

20 And it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the first month, on the seventh day of the month, that the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 21 “Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and see, it has not been bandaged for healing, nor a splint put on to bind it, to make it strong enough to hold a sword. 22 Therefore thus says the Lord God: ‘Surely I am against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and will break his arms, both the strong one and the one that was broken; and I will make the sword fall out of his hand. 23 I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and disperse them throughout the countries. 24 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 will groan before him with the groanings of a mortally wounded man. 25 Thus I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, but the arms of Pharaoh shall fall down; they shall know that I am the Lord, when I put My sword into the hand of the king of Babylon and he stretches it out against the land of Egypt. 26 I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations and disperse them throughout the countries. Then they shall know that I am the Lord.’”

And I will make the land of Egypt Utterly Waste and Desolate, from Migdol to Syene

God speaks a proclamation against Israel's ancient enemy, Egypt. The first part of the prophesy against Egypt concerns making Egypt into a desolate place and a wilderness. It mentions about fish and the river reflecting on the fact that Egypt depends heavily on the river system. The Egyptian were also proud concerning the river, which God seeks to dispel. Also the judgment of God will bring Egypt down such that she will never recover her glorious days of the past, as evident in today's Egypt. Also this will be a message for Israel, who at previous times, trusted Egypt for her protection.

After destroying Tyre, the Babylonians would also turn toward Egypt. God will use Nebuchadnezzar and reward him with Egypt by bring him to plunder Egypt. As with the other nations, this judgment will let the people see the power and might of the Almighty God, especially to many of those people who reject God.




Ezekiel 29
Proclamation Against Egypt

1 In the tenth year, in the tenth month, on the twelfth day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, set your face against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and prophesy against him, and against all Egypt. 3 Speak, and say, ‘Thus says the Lord God:

“Behold, I am against you,
O Pharaoh king of Egypt,
O great monster who lies in the midst of his rivers,
Who has said, ‘My River[a] is my own;
I have made it for myself.’
4 But I will put hooks in your jaws,
And cause the fish of your rivers to stick to your scales;
I will bring you up out of the midst of your rivers,
And all the fish in your rivers will stick to your scales.
5 I will leave you in the wilderness,
You and all the fish of your rivers;
You shall fall on the open field;
You shall not be picked up or gathered.[b]
I have given you as food
To the beasts of the field
And to the birds of the heavens.
6 “Then 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.
7 When they took hold of you with the hand,
You broke and tore all their shoulders;[c]
When they leaned on you,
You broke and made all their backs quiver.”
8 ‘Therefore thus says the Lord God: “Surely I will bring a sword upon you and cut off from you man and beast. 9 And the land of Egypt shall become desolate and waste; then they will know that I am the Lord, because he said, ‘The River is mine, and I have made it.’ 10 Indeed, therefore, I am against you and against your rivers, and I will make the land of Egypt utterly waste and desolate, from Migdol[d] to Syene, as far as the border of Ethiopia. 11 Neither foot of man shall pass through it nor foot of beast pass through it, and it shall be uninhabited forty years. 12 I will make the land of Egypt desolate in the midst of the countries that are desolate; and among the cities that are laid waste, her cities shall be desolate forty years; and I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations and disperse them throughout the countries.”

13 ‘Yet, thus says the Lord God: “At the end of forty years I will gather the Egyptians from the peoples among whom they were scattered. 14 I will bring back the captives of Egypt and cause them to return to the land of Pathros, to the land of their origin, and there they shall be a lowly kingdom. 15 It shall be the lowliest of kingdoms; it shall never again exalt itself above the nations, for I will diminish them so that they will not rule over the nations anymore. 16 No longer shall it be the confidence of the house of Israel, but will remind them of their iniquity when they turned to follow them. Then they shall know that I am the Lord God.”’”

Babylonia Will Plunder Egypt

17 And it came to pass in the twenty-seventh year, in the first month, on the first day of the month, that the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 18 “Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon caused his army to labor strenuously against Tyre; every head was made bald, and every shoulder rubbed raw; yet neither he nor his army received wages from Tyre, for the labor which they expended on it. 19 Therefore thus says the Lord God: ‘Surely I will give the land of Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; he shall take away her wealth, carry off her spoil, and remove her pillage; and that will be the wages for his army. 20 I have given him the land of Egypt for his labor, because they worked for Me,’ says the Lord God.

21 ‘In that day I will cause the horn of the house of Israel to spring forth, and I will open your mouth to speak in their midst. Then they shall know that I am the Lord.’”