John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible.
Ezekiel 30:1
INTRODUCTION TO EZEKIEL 30
This chapter is a continuation of the prophecy against Egypt, both against the country and the king of it. It is introduced with expressions of lamentation, because of the destruction coming on,
Eze 30:1, and not only Egypt, and the cities thereof, should be destroyed, but all her friends, associates, and allies; the Ethiopians, Lydians, Lybians, and others, Eze 30:4. Nebuchadnezzar and his army were to be the instruments of her ruin,
Eze 30:10, particular cities are mentioned by name, which should suffer much, and become desolate, Eze 30:13 and then Pharaoh king of Egypt himself is threatened with broken arms, and his people to be scattered among the nations, Eze 30:20, and the king of Babylon is again mentioned, whose arms should be strengthened to do all this, Eze 30:24.
Ver. 1. The word of the Lord came again unto me,.... Whether this prophecy was delivered about the time of that in the former part of the preceding chapter, namely, in the tenth year, tenth month, and twelfth day of it; or whether about the time that was which is recorded in the latter part of the chapter, in the seven and twentieth year of Jehoiachin's captivity, is not easy to say; I am inclined to think it was about the time of the latter, since the time of the fulfilment of it is said to be near, Eze 30:3:
saying: as follows:
Ezekiel 30:2
Ver. 2. Son of man, prophesy and say, thus saith the Lord God,.... Prophesy against Egypt's king and inhabitants, and in the name of the Lord thus speak against them:
howl ye; ye Egyptians, and also ye Ethiopians, and all others after named, which should share in the destruction of Egypt; this is said to give them notice of it, and prepare them for it:
woe worth the day! or, "alas for the day!" {d} O the unhappy day! what a sad dismal day is this! O that we should ever live to see such wretched times!
{d} Mwyl hh "bah diei", Munster, Vatablus; "heu diei", Cocceius, Starckius.
Ezekiel 30:3
Ver. 3. For the day is near,.... The day of Egypt's destruction, the time fixed for it:
even the day of the Lord is near; the day appointed by him, and in which he would make himself known by the judgments he executed: Kimchi observes, that, the same year this prophecy was delivered, Egypt was given into the hands of the king of Babylon:
a cloudy day; or; "a day of cloud" {e}; which was seldom seen in Egypt in a literal sense, rarely having any rain, their country being watered by the Nile; but now, in a figurative sense, the clouds would gather thick and black, and threaten with a horrible tempest of divine wrath, and of ruin and destruction:
it shall be the time of the Heathen: both when the Heathen nation of the Chaldeans should distress and conquer others; and when Heathen nations, as the Egyptians, Ethiopians, and others, should be destroyed by them. The Targum is,
"it shall be the time of the breaking or destruction of the people.''
{e} Nne Mwy "dies nubis", V. L. Pagniaus, Montanus, Cocceius, Starckius.
Ezekiel 30:4
Ver. 4. And the sword shall come upon Egypt,.... The sword of the Chaldeans shall come upon the Egyptians, by which they should be cut off; it having a commission from the Lord for that purpose:
and great pain shall be in Ethiopia, when the slain shall fall in Egypt; Ethiopia being a neighbouring nation to Egypt, shall be in a panic when it shall hear of the sword of the Chaldeans being in Egypt, and of the ravages made by it, of the multitudes slain with it; fearing it will be their turn next to fall into the same hands, and in the same manner; and the rather, not only as they were neighbours, but allies:
and they shall take away her multitude; that is, the Chaldeans shall carry captive vast numbers of the Egyptians; such as fell not by the sword should not escape the hand of the enemy, but be taken and carried into other lands. Egypt was a very populous country; according to Agrippa's speech in Josephus {f}, there were in it 7,500,000 persons from Ethiopia to Alexandria, besides the inhabitants of the latter, as might be gathered from the tribute each person paid; hence they are compared to the trees of a forest that cannot be searched, and to grasshoppers innumerable, Jer 46:23, but now their numbers should be lesser:
and her foundations shall be broken down; either in a literal sense, the foundations of the cities, towers, and fortified places in Egypt, should be undermined and destroyed, and consequently the buildings on them must sink and fall; or in a figurative sense, her king, princes, magistrates, laws, and government, which are the support of a state, should be removed, and be of no more service.
{f} De Bello Jud. l. 2. c. 16. sect. 4.
Ezekiel 30:5
Ver. 5. Ethiopia, Lybia, and Lydia,.... Or, "Cush, Phut, and Lud". Cush and Phut were both sons of Ham, from whom Egypt is sometimes called the land of Ham; and Lud or Ludim was the son of Mizraim, the son of Ham, the common name of Egypt in Scripture, Ge 10:6. Cush is by us rendered Ethiopia; and is thought by some to be a part of Arabia, which lay near to Egypt. Phut and Lud are properly enough rendered Lybia and Lydia; and both these, with Ethiopia, are represented as the allies and confederates of Egypt, Jer 46:9.
And all the mingled people; the Syriac version renders it, "all Arabia": and so Symmachus, according to Jerom; though others think they are the Carians, Ionians, and other Greeks, which Pharaohapries got together to fight with Amasis {g}: and "Chub"; or "Cub"; the inhabitants of this piece are thought to be the Cobii of Ptolemy {h}, who dwelt in Mareotis, a country of Egypt; though some, by a change of a letter, would have them to be the Nubians, a people in Africa; and so the Arabic version here reads it. Of these Strabo {i} says, on the left of the stream of the Nile dwell the Nubians, a large nation in Lybia; and which he afterwards mentions along with the Troglodytes, Blemmyes, Megabarians, and Ethiopians, that dwell above Syene: and so Ptolemy {k} speaks of them along with the Megabarians, and as inhabiting to the west of the Avalites: and Pliny {l} calls them Nubian Ethiopians, whom he places near the Nile: and a late traveller {m} in those parts informs us that the confines of Egypt and Nubia are about eight miles above the first cataract (of the Nile); Nubia begins at the villages of Ellkalabsche, and of Teffa; the first is to the east of the Nile, and the second to the west.
And the men of the land that is in league shall fall with them by the sword; all the nations above mentioned, with whomsoever should be found that were confederates with Egypt, should share the same fate with them. The Septuagint render it, "and those of the children of my covenant"; as if the Jews were meant that were in Egypt, who are sometimes called "the children of the covenant", and of "the promise", Ac 3:25, and so some interpret the place; but it takes in all the allies of Egypt, and does not design the Jews, at least not them only.
{g} See Prideaux's Connexion, part 1. p. 93. {h} Geograph. l. 4. c. 5. {i} Geograph. l. 17. p. 541, 563. {k} Geograph. l. 5. c. 8. {l} Nat. Hist. l. 6. c. 30. {m} Norden's Travels in Egypt and Nubia, vol. 2. p. 131, 132.
Ezekiel 30:6
Ver. 6. Thus saith the Lord, they also that uphold Egypt shall fall,.... That is, by the sword; either their allies and auxiliaries without, that supported the Egyptians with men and money; or their principal people within, their nobles that supported their state with their estates, their counsellors with their wisdom, their soldiers with their valour and courage:
and the pride of her power shall come down; or the power they were proud of, the dominion and grandeur they boasted of; the greatness of their king, and the largeness of their empire, with the wealth and riches of it:
from the tower of Syene shall they fall in it by the sword, saith the Lord God; or rather, from "Migdol to Syene"; so the Septuagint and Arabic versions, from one end of Egypt to the other; the sword would ravage, and multitudes fall by it, in all cities and towns, between the one and the other; which denotes the general slaughter that should be made; See Gill on "Eze 29:10".
Ezekiel 30:7
Ver. 7. And they shall be desolate in the midst of the countries that are desolate,.... Or among them, shall be ranked with them, and be as desolate as they are; as Judea and other countries, ravaged by the same enemy:
and her cities shall be in the midst of the cities that are wasted; undergo the same fate as they have done, as Jerusalem and others. The cities of Egypt were very numerous; Diodorus Siculus {n} says, that in ancient times Egypt had cities and villages of note, more than 18,000. Herodotus {o} writes, that it was said, that under King Amasis there were 20,000 cities in it; and the first mentioned writer {p} says, under Ptolemy Lagus they were reckoned more than 30,000; and, according to Theocritus {q}, under Ptolemy Philadelphus they were 33,339.
{n} Bibl. l. 1. p. 19. {o} Euterpe, sive l. 2. c. 177. {p} Bibl. l. 1. p. 19. {q} Idyll. 17. v. 82.
Ezekiel 30:8
Ver. 8. And they shall know that I am the Lord,.... The Egyptians shall know the Lord to be the true God, and acknowledge him to be omniscient and omnipotent, that should so exactly foretell their destruction, and accomplish it:
when I have set a fire in Egypt: a war there; the heat of battle, very devouring and consuming, as well as very grievous and terrible, as fire is. The Targum is,
"when I shall give (or set) people that are strong as fire against Egypt;''
the army of the Chaldeans:
and when all her helpers shall be destroyed; her auxiliaries, the neighbouring nations in alliance with them, before mentioned.
Ezekiel 30:9
Ver. 9. In that day shall messengers go forth from me in ships,.... Either by the river Nile, or by the Red sea, to Arabia Felix, which some think is meant by Ethiopia. Cush or Ethiopia was encompassed about with water, so that there was no coming to it but by ships; see Ge 2:13, compare with this Isa 18:1, the messengers here were either such who under a divine impulse, or however by the providence of God, were directed to go to Ethiopia, and tell them the news of the destruction of Egypt; or these were messengers sent by the king of Babylon, to demand a surrender of their country to him; or it may design him himself, and his army, who marched thither to subdue that country also, after the conquest of Egypt. So the Targum,
"at that time messengers shall go forth from before me with legions;''
and because all this was by the appointment and providence of God, they are represented as messengers sent by him:
to make the careless Ethiopians afraid; with the news of the fall of Egypt their confederate, and of a mighty army coming against them; who had dwelt securely and confidently, at ease and unconcerned, without any sense of danger, or fear of any enemy:
and great pain shall come upon them, as in the day of Egypt; either as of old, when the plagues were on Egypt, and especially when they were drowning in the Red sea; or as of late, when the sword was in Egypt, and ravaging there:
for, lo, it cometh; the same day was coming on them as came on Egypt, the day of the Lord, a cloudy one, and the time of the Heathen; it was certain, just at hand, and there was no escaping it; see Eze 30:3.
Ezekiel 30:10
Ver. 10. Thus saith the Lord God, I will make the multitude of Egypt to cease,.... The vast numbers of people that inhabited Egypt; some of its cities were very populous, especially the city No, after mentioned; but now the numbers should be greatly lessened, and the whole land sadly depopulated: or the "noise" {r}, "tumult", and hurry of it; which is very great where there are large numbers of people, and which ceases when they are cut off. The Syriac version renders it, the riches of Egypt. Now the instrument God would make use of to do all this is mentioned by name, as follows,
by the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon; the then greatest monarch in the world.
{r} Nwmh ta "strepitum", Vatablus, Cocceius.
Ezekiel 30:11
Ver. 11. He and his people with him,.... He and his army, consisting chiefly of Chaldeans; though there were of other nations among them, as were in his army when he besieged Jerusalem, as seems to be suggested in the next clause:
the terrible of the nations shall be brought to destroy the land; the Chaldeans, the most fierce, cruel, and terrible of all people, and others the most terrible that could be collected out of all nations under the yoke of the king of Babylon; and all of them terrible to the nations against whom they came, as now against Egypt to destroy it; see Hab 1:6:
and they shall draw their swords against Egypt, and fill the land with the slain; go through the land with their drawn swords, and kill all they meet; and not put them up till they have quite depopulated the land, and filled it with dead carcasses.
Ezekiel 30:12
Ver. 12. And I will make the rivers dry,.... Egypt was a country that abounded with rivers; however, with canals cut from the river Nile; its wealth and riches very much depended here on, partly on account of the multitude of fishes taken out of them, and the paper reeds that grew upon their banks; but chiefly because the whole land, was watered by them, and made exceeding fruitful, rain being not so common in it; so that to dry up the riven was in effect to take away their substance and dependence; besides, hereby the way was made easy and passable for the enemy; there was nothing to obstruct him, he could overrun and ravage the land at pleasure:
and sell the land into the hand of the wicked; the Chaldeans under Nebuchadnezzar, who were wicked idolaters, men of flagitious lives, and of merciless and cruel dispositions; who would show no favour to the inhabitants of the land, when delivered up to them, which is called a selling it; for, as things sold are delivered to the buyer, so should this land be to them; which though they had no right to it before, yet by the event of war, and disposal of divine Providence, came to have a property in it, given them by him who is the proprietor of all lands; and after them into the hands of the Persians, under Cambyses, and Ochus; who were very wicked and cruel princes, and may be reckoned among the terrible or violent ones of the nations in the preceding verse; and then into the hands of the Grecian, Romans, Saracen, Mamaluck, and now the Turks, all very wicked people:
and I will make the land waste, and all that is therein, by the hand of strangers; the Babylonians, people of another country and distant, of another language, and with whom they had no commerce, alliance, and friendship, and so would not spare them, and their land, when in their possession; and so all the rest above mentioned, into whose hands they successively fell:
I the Lord have spoken it; determined it, prophesied of it; and it shall come to pass, as it did accordingly.
Ezekiel 30:13
Ver. 13. Thus saith the Lord God, I will also destroy the idols,.... With which Egypt abounded, making an idol of all sorts of creatures, rational and irrational, animate and inanimate, and in which they trusted; wherefore these being destroyed, they had nothing to put their confidence in:
I will cause their images to cease out of Noph; called Moph, Ho 9:6 and which we there rightly render Memphis, as many versions do here, and was very famous for idolatry: here stood the temple of Serapis, and the temple of other idols; here Isis and Osiris were worshipped; and it was in Jerom's time, as he says, the metropolis of the Egyptian superstition. It was built by Menes {s}, the Mizraim of the Scriptures, the first king of Egypt; though Diodorus Siculus {t} makes Uchoreus to be the founder of it. Some interpreters take this city to be the same with what is now called Alkair, or Grand Cairo; or, however, that this is built upon the same spot, or near the same place that was, in which I have followed them on Isa 19:13 whereas Cairo stands right over against old Memphis, the Nile being between them, on the east side of it, and Memphis on the west; as is clear from Herodotus {u}, and from the charts of Dr. Shaw, and Mr. Norden; and who observe, that some take the place of it to have been where a village now stands, Dr. Shaw calls Geza, and Mr. Norden Gize:
and there shall be no more a prince of the land of Egypt; that is, a native of that country; or that should rule over the whole of it, and in that grandeur the kings of Egypt had before; or, however, not dwell in Memphis, which was the seat of the kings of Egypt, but now should be so no more: when Egypt was conquered by Nebuchadnezzar, it was under the Babylonians; and then under the Persians; and then under the Greeks; and afterwards under the Romans; since under the Saracens and Mamalucks; and now in the hands of the Turks; so that it never recovered its former glory; and indeed, after Nectanebus was driven out of it by Ochus, king of Persia, it never after had a king:
and I will put a fear in all the land of Egypt; a panic in all the inhabitants of it; as soon as they shall hear of the king of Babylon entering into it, their courage, bravery, and fortitude, shall at once leave them, and they shall be dispirited, and have no heart to defend themselves, and oppose the enemy.
{s} Herodot, Euterpe, sive l. 2. c. 99. {t} Bibliothec. l. 1. p. 46. {u} Euterpe, sive l. 2. c. 99.
Ezekiel 30:14
Ver. 14. And I will make Pathros desolate,.... A country in Egypt;
See Gill on "Eze 29:14", perhaps it was the first place that Nebuchadnezzar entered, and so went from place to place in the order hereafter mentioned:
and I will set fire in Zoan; or Tunis, a famous city in Egypt in the times of Moses, Nu 13:22. The Targum and Septuagint version call it Tanis here; and from hence a nome in Egypt was called the Tanitic nome. This city was burnt down by the king of Babylon: the place now built on the spot is called Mansourah, as Dr. Shaw {w} says:
and I will execute judgment in No. The Vulgate Latin version renders it Alexandria; and so does the Targum; of which place Jarchi, Kimchi, and Ben Melech interpret it; and so does Jerom; which, though built after these times by Alexander, and called so after his name, yet is supposed to be built on or near the place where ancient No stood. The city is now called Scanderoon, or Scanderea; the Turks calling Alexander Scander: here the judgments of God were executed in the destruction of it by the Chaldean army; and great devastations have been made in it since it was rebuilt by Alexander, by the Saracens, who destroyed all places where they came; so that, as Dr. Shaw {x} observes, it is somewhat extraordinary that the greatest part of the ancient walls, together with their respective turrets, should have continued entire quite down to this time. The Septuagint version calls it Diospolis, or the city of Jupiter, as does the Arabic version, that is, of Jupiter Hammon; the city of Thebes, where he was worshipped; as it is in a following verse called Hammon No; though Hillerus {y} thinks neither of these places are meant, neither Alexandria nor Diospolis; but Memphis, as it is rendered by the Septuagint in the next verse;
See Gill on "Na 3:8".
{w} Travels, p. 304. Ed. 2. {x} Ib. p. 292. {y} Onomastic. Sacr. p. 571, &c.
Ezekiel 30:15
Ver. 15. And I will pour out my fury upon Sin, the strength of Egypt,.... Either the city Sais, as the Septuagint and Arabic versions; or rather Pelusium, as the Vulgate Latin version, so called from "pelos" which signifies "clay" in the Greek language; and the same "Sin" signifies in the Chaldee, Ps 18:43, and as now called Tineh, from
Nyj, "clay": it had a very fine haven, and may be called the strength of Egypt, it lying at the entrance of it; and having a strong fortified tower, it was difficult to enter into it; but could not stand before the wrath and fury of the Lord of hosts, when he sent the Chaldeans to it. It is thought by some to be the same with Pithom, built by the first of the pastor kings of Egypt, and fortified by him, Ex 1:11, according to Manetho {z}, he put into it a garrison of two hundred and forty thousand men; and the same writer says it contained ten thousand acres of land; according to Adrichomius {a}, it was two and a half miles in compass, and near it was a vast hollow, which extended to Mount Cassius, and which made the way into Egypt on that side difficult; and is now, as he says, called "campus de Gallo"; in which he is mistaken, as well as Thevenot, and others, who take it to be the same with Damieta:
and I will cut off the multitude of No; the numerous inhabitants of it; hence called "populous No", Na 3:8, or "Hamon No";
See Gill on "Eze 30:14"; here, as before observed, the Septuagint version renders it Memphis; as does also the Arabic version. Some take it, as before, to be the Egyptian Thebes, where was a temple dedicated to Jupiter Hammon; and which city, Pausanias {b} says, was reduced to nothing in his time.
{z} Apud Joseph. contr. Apion. l. 1. c. 14. {a} Theatrum Terrae Sanctae, p. 122, 123. {b} Arcadica, sive l. 8. p. 509. Vid. Juvenal. Satyr. 15. ver. 6.
Ezekiel 30:16
Ver. 16. And I will set fire in Egypt,.... Kindle a war there, which shall consume it; see Eze 30:8:
Sin shall have great pain; as a woman in travail, seeing its destruction is just at hand; the same with Pelusium, as before:
and No shall be rent asunder, the walls of it shall be broken down by the enemy, or a breach shall be made in it, like the breach of waters which were about it; see Na 3:8:
and Noph shall have distresses daily: that is, Memphis, as before; enemies shall surround it daily, as the Targum; shall besiege and distress it, until it is taken: or, "in the daytime"; their enemies should not come as thieves in the night, openly in the day. Abendana interprets it of their unfortunate day, their star being unlucky.
Ezekiel 30:17
Ver. 17. The young men of Aven and of Phibeseth shall fall by the sword,.... Aven is the same with On, of which Potipherah was priest in Joseph's time and whose daughter he married, Ge 41:45, the same with Heliopolis, or Bethshemesh, the city of the sun, see Jer 43:13,
See Gill on "Jer 43:13"; where was the temple of the sun, and where it was worshipped; and so it is rendered by the Septuagint, Vulgate Latin, and Arabic versions. It is called here "Aven", or "vanity", because of the vain and idolatrous worship here performed. Phibeseth is the Bubastis of Herodotus, and called by other writers Bubastus; hence there was a nome or province in Egypt called the Bubastic nome, mentioned by Ptolemy {c}, and others. In this was a temple built to the honour of Diana, where she was worshipped and Herodotus {d} says, that Bubastis, in the Greek tongue, is Diana; here she was worshipped in the form of a cat; and Stephanus {e} observes, that the Egyptians call a cat Bubastus; and it is also said that dead cats salted were buried in this city, as being sacred: according to Diodorus Siculus {f}, it was built for the sake of Isis; and Hillerus {g} says, that in the Abyssine language it was called "Phy' mly' sith"; that is, the portion of the wife, namely of Isis married to Osiris, by whom this city was built to the honour of her; as appears by the pillar of Isis, on which these words are inscribed,
"for me the city of Bubastia is built; be glad, be glad, O Egypt, which brought me up.''
This place is now called Bishbesh, according to Dr. Shaw {h}: now the young men of both these places, though they might exert themselves in the defence of them, yet should fail therein, and fall by the sword of the Chaldeans:
and these cities shall go into captivity; the rest of the inhabitants of the cities of Aven and Pibeseth, that shall not fall by the sword, shall be carried captive into other lands. Joseph Kimchi supplies "women" instead of "cities"; and thinks, that as the males are mentioned before, the females are understood here. The Targum is,
"they that served them shall go into captivity;''
that served the idols worshipped in these cities.
{c} Geograph. l. 4. c. 5. {d} Euterpe, sive l. 2. c. 59, 138, 156. {e} De Urbibus. {f} Bibliothec l. 1. p. 24. {g} Onomastic. Sacr. p. 672. {h} Travels, p. 306. Ed. 2.
Ezekiel 30:18
Ver. 18. At Tehaphnehes also the day shall be darkened,.... The same with Hanes in Isa 30:4 and Tahapanes in Jer 2:16 and Tahpanhes,
Jer 43:7, it was a royal seat of the kings of Egypt: there was in Solomon's time a queen of Egypt of this name, and perhaps it might be so called from her, 1Ki 11:19. It is generally thought to be the Daphne of Pelusium, it being near that city; though Junius takes it to be a place in another part of Egypt, at a great distance, which Herodotus {i} calls Tahcompso, an island encompassed by the Nile; and by Ptolemy {k} called Metacompso: now at this place the day should be darkened; or should "restrain" {l}, as it may be rendered; that is, its light; it should be a calamitous and mournful time with the inhabitants of it:
when I shall break there the yokes of Egypt; the yokes they put upon the necks of others, who now should be freed from them: or, "the sceptres of Egypt", as the Vulgate Latin version renders it; the regalia of their kings, which might lie in this place; it being a royal seat where Pharaoh had a house, as appears from Jer 43:9:
and the pomp of her strength shall cease in her; all that grandeur and magnificence which appeared in the courts of the kings of Egypt in this place:
as for her, a cloud shall cover her; as for this city, a cloud of calamity shall cover it, so as its glory shall not be seen. The Targum is,
"a king with his army shall cover her as a cloud ascends and covers the earth:''
and her daughters shall go into captivity; which may be taken either in a literal sense for the daughters of the inhabitants of this place, which must be a great affliction to their tender parents, to have them forced away by rude soldiers, and carried captive into distant lands; or in a figurative sense, for the villages and the inhabitants of them round about this city; it being usual to represent a city as a mother, and its villages as daughters; and so the Targum, Jarchi, and Kimchi interpret it.
{i} Euterpe, sive l. 2. c. 29. {k} Geograph. l. 4. c. 5. {l} Kvx "prohibuit", Montanus; "vitavit", Munster; "cohibuit", Cocceius; "probibebit, arcebit", Vatablus; so Ben Melech.
Ezekiel 30:19
Ver. 19. Thus will I execute judgments in Egypt,.... In the several provinces, and in the several cities of it before mentioned, and in all other places; even the judgments of fire, famine, sword, and captivity:
and they shall know that I am the Lord; God omniscient and omnipotent, by the, judgments executed; and own the same: this more especially they did, when the Gospel was preached among them, and many were converted by it in the times of the apostles.
Ezekiel 30:20
Ver. 20. And it came to pass in the eleventh year,.... Of Zedekiah's reign, and Jehoiachin's captivity; some little time after the prophecy in Eze 19:1, here the prophecies come into their order again, being interrupted by those of a much later date, at the end of the preceding chapter, and the former part of this:
in the first month, in the seventh day of the month; the month Nisan, which answers to part of March, and part of April; the seventh day must be about the twenty ninth of March; but, according to Bishop Usher {m}, it was on the twenty sixth of April, on the third day of the week (Tuesday), in 3416 A.M. or before Christ 588: this was given out three months and two days before Jerusalem was taken:
that the word of the Lord came unto me, saying; as follows:
{m} Annales Vet. Test. A. M. 3416.
Ezekiel 30:21
Ver. 21. Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt,.... Not Pharaohnecho, king of Egypt, whose army was overthrown at Carchemish by the king of Babylon, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim; when the latter took from the former all that belonged to him between the river of Egypt and the river Euphrates; by which he was so weakened and dispirited, that he could not stir any more out of his own land,
Jer 46:2 and of him Jarchi and Kimchi interpret it; but Pharaohhophra, or Apries, who was defeated by the Cyreneans, and saved himself by flight; See Gill on "Eze 29:4":
and, lo, it shall not be bound up to be healed, to put a roller to bind it; a metaphor taken from chirurgeons, who, having set broken bones, put on a bandage or rollers of linen, or such like stuff, to keep them tight; but nothing of this kind should be done; hereby suggesting that Egypt should receive such a blow or wound as would be incurable; see
Jer 46:11:
to make it strong to hold the sword; which it should not be able to do, or to make war any more, at least with success, or to defend itself.
Ezekiel 30:22
Ver. 22. Therefore thus saith the Lord God, behold, I am against Pharaoh king of Egypt,.... The then present king of Egypt, whose name was Hophra or Apries, Jer 44:30:
and I will break his arms, the strong, and that which was broken: both his arms, the sound and the broken one, his whole power, strength, and dominion; meaning that that part of his kingdom which lay between the two rivers of Egypt and Euphrates, that had been taken away by the king of Babylon, should remain so; and the other part of his kingdom should fall a prey to him also:
and I will cause the sword to fall out of his hand; so that he should be so far from being so able to make use of the sword, that he should not be able to hold it; it should drop out of his hand; nor should he be able to take it up again, and make war, either offensive or defensive.
Ezekiel 30:23
Ver. 23. And I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations,.... Among the several provinces of Babylon, and other places, where the Chaldeans should carry or send them:
and will disperse them through the countries: the same thing repeated in different words for the confirmation of it.
Ezekiel 30:24
Ver. 24. And I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon,.... Give him a commission to make war; direct his councils; supply him with all necessaries; animate and encourage his soldiers; and give him success in all his enterprises:
and put my sword in his hand; which confirms the above sense, that he should have power and authority from the Lord to attack the king of Egypt, and should gain a victory over him; since it was not his own sword he drew, but the sword of the Lord of hosts; which coming from him, and having his commission, cannot fail of doing execution;
but will break Pharaoh's arms; as before in Eze 30:21:
and he shall groan before him with the groanings of a deadly wounded man; that is, before the king of Babylon; by whom, as an instrument, his arms shall be broken, and his power destroyed; and he be like a man in the agonies of death, just expiring, not able to speak, but groaning out his life under the inexpressible anguish of broken bones, and none to set them.
Ezekiel 30:25
Ver. 25. But I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon,.... Which is repeated for the sake of confirmation:
and the arms of Pharaoh shall fall down: as when a man's arms are broken; and he shall not be able to lift them up and defend himself:
and they shall know that I am the Lord; namely, the Egyptians, as in
Eze 30:19:
when I shall have put my sword into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall stretch it out on the land of Egypt; that is, when he shall have a commission to carry the war into Egypt; and he shall spread desolation over all the land, cutting off the inhabitants of it everywhere, as before described in this chapter.
Ezekiel 30:26
Ver. 26. And I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and disperse them among the countries,.... Of which they might assure themselves, since the Lord had before spoken it, and here again repeats it:
and they shall know that I am the Lord; whose name alone is Jehovah, and does whatsoever he pleases; sets up kings, and puts them down; strengthens and weakens kingdoms just as seems good in his sight; none having any power but what is given by him, and which he can take away when he thinks fit.
John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible.
Ezekiel 31:1
INTRODUCTION TO EZEKIEL 31
This chapter contains a confirmation of the preceding prophecy, of the ruin of the king of Egypt, by the example of the king of Assyria, to whom he was like in grandeur and pride, and would be in his fall. The time of the prophecy is observed, Eze 31:1, the prophet is ordered to give the following relation to the king of Egypt, Eze 31:2 in which the king of Assyria is compared to a large and flourishing cedar, for the extent of his dominions, the prosperous state of his empire, and his exaltation above all other princes, which drew upon him their envy
Eze 31:3, wherefore because of his pride, his heart being lifted up with these things, Eze 31:10, ruin came upon him; which is described by the instruments and manner of it, and the effects following it; mourning and fear in some, solace and comfort to others, and destruction to his associates, Eze 31:11, wherefore Pharaoh is called upon to consider all this, who was like to him in greatness and pride, and should have the like fate with him; nor could his greatness any more secure him than it did the Assyrian monarch, Eze 31:18.
Ver. 1. And it came to pass in the eleventh year,.... Of Zedekiah's reign, and Jeconiah's captivity:
in the third month, in the first day of the month: the month Sivan, which began on the twentieth of our May, and answers to part of May, and part of June; this was about seven weeks after the former prophecy, and about five weeks before the destruction of Jerusalem; according to Bishop Usher {n}, this was on the nineteenth of June, on the first day of the week, in 3416 A.M. or before Christ 588:
that the word of the Lord came unto me, saying; as follows:
{n} Annales Vet. Test. A. M. 3416.
Ezekiel 31:2
Ver. 2. Son of man, speak unto Pharaoh king of Egypt,.... To Pharaohhophra, the then reigning king; not to him personally by word of mouth, for the prophet was now in Chaldea; but by delivering out a prophecy concerning him, and which he might have an opportunity of sending to him:
and to his multitude; the multitude of his subjects, of which he boasted, and in whom he trusted:
whom art thou like in thy greatness? look over all the records of time, and into all the empires, kingdoms, and states that have been; draw a comparison between thyself and the greatest potentate that ever was; fancy thyself to be equal to him; this will not secure thee from ruin and destruction; for as they have been humbled, and are fallen, so wilt thou be: pitch for instance on the Assyrian monarch, whose empire has been the most ancient, extensive, and flourishing, and yet now crushed; and as thou art like him in greatness, at least thou thinkest so, so thou art in pride, and wilt be in thine end; to assure of which is the drift of the following account of the king of Assyria.
Ezekiel 31:3
Ver. 3. Behold, the Assyrian was a cedar in Lebanon,.... Here grew the tallest, most stately, broad and flourishing ones. This sense is, that he was as one of them; comparable to one, for his exaltation and dignity; for the largeness of his dominion, the flourishing circumstances of it, and its long duration; that empire having lasted from the times of Nimrod unto a few years of the present time; for this is to be understood, either of the monarchy itself, or of Esarhaddon; or rather of Chynilidanus, or Saracus, the last king of it. The Septuagint, and Arabic versions render it the "cypariss" in Lebanon; but not that, but the cedar, grew there, and which best suits the comparison:
with fair branches; meaning not children, nor nobles, nor subjects; but provinces, many and large, which were subject to this monarch:
and with a shadowing shroud; power, dominion, authority, a mighty army sufficient to protect all that were under his government, and subject to it:
and of an high stature: exalted above all the kings and kingdoms of the earth:
and his top was among the thick boughs; his kingly power, headship, and dominion, was over a multitude of petty princes and states, comparable to the thick boughs and branches of a tree: or, "among the clouds"; as the Septuagint and Arabic versions render it; above the heights of which the Assyrian monarch attempted to ascend, Isa 14:14.
Ezekiel 31:4
Ver. 4. The waters made him great,.... The waters of the river Tigris, near to which stood the city of Nineveh, the metropolis of the Assyrian monarchy; the traffic brought by which river made it rich and great, and the whole empire, and the king of it:
the deep set him up on high, with her rivers running round about his plants; the vast trade by sea, the profits and commodities of which were conveyed through various rivers, which ran about the provinces of the empire, which were as plants in a field; and by which they were enriched, and the whole empire, and the king of it, were raised to a prodigious pitch of wealth and power:
and sent out little rivers to all the trees of the field; so that the common people, comparable to the trees of the field for their number and usefulness, all received profit and advantage hereby: or else by waters and the deep may be meant the multitude of people, as in
Re 17:15, which increased his kingdom, filled his provinces, supplied his colonies, and enlarged his power and riches. The Targum is,
"by the people he was multiplied; by his auxiliaries he became strong; he subjected kings under his government; and his governors he appointed over all the provinces of the earth.''
Ezekiel 31:5
Ver. 5. Therefore his height was exalted above all the trees of the field,.... His majesty, grandeur, and glory, were advanced above all princes, nobles, and people; all ranks and degrees of men, let them be compared to trees taller or lower:
and his boughs were multiplied, and his branches became long; the provinces of his empire became more numerous, and were spread far and near, and reached to distant countries:
because of the multitude of waters, when he shot forth; either the vast number of people, which were daily increasing, and were sent out to people distant colonies, newly subdued or planted; or because of the great traffic which was carried on in different parts, and the advantages arising from it. The Targum is,
"therefore he was lifted up in his strength above all the kings of the earth, and his army was multiplied, and his auxiliaries prevailed over many people, through his victories''
Ezekiel 31:6
Ver. 6. All the fowls of the heavens made their nests in his boughs,.... People from all parts of the world, under the whole heavens, flocked to his dominions, and settled themselves in one province or another; promising themselves protection, prosperity, and peace under his government:
and under his branches did all the beasts of the field bring forth their young; even people of a more savage disposition, being either conquered by him, and placed in his provinces; or coming thither of their own accord, took up their residence there, built houses, planted vineyards, married wives, begat children, and settled their families there:
and under his shadow dwelt all great nations; under his protection, care, and government, many large kingdoms and states were; yea, all were either subject to him, or sought to be his friends and allies: this explains the above figurative expressions. The Targum is,
"by his army he subdued all the strong towers; and under his governors he subjected all the provinces of the earth; and in the shadow of his kingdom dwelt all the numerous people.''
Ezekiel 31:7
Ver. 7. Thus was he fair in his greatness,.... Amiable, lovely, delightful to look upon in the greatness of his majesty, in his royal glory and dignity:
in the length of his branches; in the extent of his empire, and the provinces of it:
for his root was by great waters; his kingdom was well established, firmly rooted among a multitude of people; from whom he had a large revenue to support his throne and government, and the dignity of it; by tribute, taxes, customs, and presents; and through the large trade and traffic of his subjects in different parts, from whence he received great profit and advantage. The Targum is,
"and he became victorious by his auxiliaries, by the multitude of his mighty ones, so that his terror was upon many people.''
Ezekiel 31:8
Ver. 8. The cedars in the garden of God could not hide him,.... That is, could not rise so high as this cedar, and overtop him, and obscure his glory; even those that were most excellent, which grew in Eden, near to which Babylon stood, and where a mighty king dwelt. The sense is, that the greatest kings and potentates in the whole world, which is like a garden planted by the Lord, were not equal to the king of Assyria, and much less exceeded him in grandeur, wealth, and power:
the fir trees were not like his boughs: lesser kings and princes, comparable to fir trees for the beauty, regularity, order, and flourishing condition of their kingdoms; yet these were but petty states, and not to be compared even with the provinces of the king of Assyria:
and the chesnut trees were not like his branches; lesser states still: which, though well set, and well spread, and full of people, yet not answerable to some countries that were in the provinces that belonged to the Assyrian empire:
not any tree in the garden of God was like unto him in his beauty; no king, prince, or potentate whatever in the whole world, was to be compared to him for royal majesty and greatness. The Targum is,
"mighty kings could not prevail against him, because of the strength of his power, which he had from the Lord; rulers could not stand before his army, and mighty men could not prevail against his auxiliaries, because of the strength of power he had from the Lord; there is none like to him in his strength.''
Ezekiel 31:9
Ver. 9. I have made him fair by the multitude of his branches,.... Or provinces, the extensiveness of his dominions: all his power and strength, riches and wealth, grandeur and glory, and the vast dominions he was possessed of, were all from the Lord; as whatever kings have are, though they are too apt to ascribe it to themselves; but all are from him, by whom kings reign:
so that all the trees of Eden, that were in the garden of God, envied him; all the kings of the earth, though they dared not openly speak against him, or oppose him; yet they inwardly grieved at and secretly grudged his grandeur and majesty, superior to theirs, and wished themselves in his stead; and could gladly have done anything, were it in their power, to eclipse his glory, and bring him lower. This is the case of all that are in any eminence, or are conspicuous to others, or in any exalted station above others, be it what it will; whether they have superior gifts and endowments of mind; or greater riches, and larger possessions; or are in high places of honour, trust, and profit. The Targum is,
"I have made him beautiful by the multitude of his mighty ones; and all the kings of the east trembled before him, because of the strength of his power, which he had from the Lord.''
Ezekiel 31:10
Ver. 10. Therefore thus saith the Lord God,.... Having described the greatness of the Assyrian monarch; now follows the account of his fall, and the cause of it, pride:
because thou hast lifted up thyself in height; this is either an address to Pharaoh king of Egypt, who, though he did not rise up so high as the Assyrian monarch in glory and grandeur; yet he lifted up himself, and thought himself superior to any; which reason he must be brought down: or the words are directed to the Assyrian monarch, by a change of person frequent in Scripture; who, though he was raised by the Lord to the height of honour and dignity he was, yet ascribed it to himself:
and he hath shot up his top among the thick boughs; the multitude of provinces over which he became head and governor;
See Gill on "Eze 31:3":
and his heart is lifted up in his height; with pride, insolence, and contempt of God and men; of which see the instances in
Isa 10:8.
Ezekiel 31:11
Ver. 11. I have therefore delivered him into the hand of the mighty one of the Heathen,.... Or, into the hand of the mightiest of the nations {o}; the mightiest prince among them. Some understand this of Arbaces the Mede, by whom Sardanapalus had been defeated long before this time: others of Merodachbaladan king Babylon, by whom Esarhaddon the Assyrian monarch was vanquished; or rather Nebuchadnezzar, who was called Nabopolassar; who, in the first year {p} of his reign, in conjunction with Cyaxares king of Media, took Nineveh, the metropolis of the Assyrian monarchy; and this was by the appointment of God, and under the direction of his providence, and through the success he gave to the arms of these princes, according to his own decrees and prophecies. Some render it, "into the hand of the god of the nations" {q}; yet meaning either Cyaxares or Nebuchadnezzar; so called because of their great power and might, and which they had from the Lord:
he shall surely deal with him; or, "in doing he shall do to him" {r}; he shall do with him as he pleases he shall easily manage him, though so powerful; and deal with him according to his deserts; or, as the Targum, he shall take vengeance on him, as he did:
I have driven him out for his wickedness; out of his court and palace; out of his royal city Nineveh; out of his kingdom and dominions; and he shall reside and reign no more there; and all this for his wickedness, pride, and oppression, and other sins: when God strips men of their honour, riches, power, and dominion, it is because of their abuse of them; for some sin, or sins, or wickedness they have been guilty of, both against him and men; and therefore it is but just and righteous in him to dethrone such princes, and drive them from their seats.
{o} Myywg la dyb "in manum fortissimi gentium", Pagninus, Junius & Tremellius, Polanus; "potentissimi", Piscator. {p} Seder Olam Rabba, p. 69. {q} "In manum dei gentium", Montanus, Starckius; "deo gentium", Castalio. {r} wl hvey wve "faciendo faciet ei", Pagninus, Montanus; "faciendo faciebat ipsi", Starckius.
Ezekiel 31:12
Ver. 12. And strangers, the terrible of the nations, have cut him off,.... Cut off the boughs and branches of this cedar, and cut him down to the ground; that is, utterly destroyed him, his empire and monarchy: these "strangers" were the Medes, who lived in a country distant from Assyria; and "the terrible of the nations", the cruel and merciless Chaldeans, the soldiers of the king of Babylon's army; see Eze 30:11:
and have left him upon the mountains, like a tree cut down there, and its boughs and branches lopped off, which roll down from thence into the valleys, and by the rivers of water signifying his depression from a high and exalted state to a very low one, as follows:
and in all the valley his branches are fallen, and his boughs are broken by all the rivers of the land; signifying that many provinces and countries under his dominion were broken off, and by force taken away from him; or they broke off and revolted of themselves, and either set up for themselves, and recovered their former power and authority; or gave up themselves to the conqueror. The Targum is,
"and in all valleys his army fell, and his auxiliaries were scattered by all the rivers of the land:''
and all the people of the earth are gone down from his shadow, and have left him: those that joined themselves to his empire, put themselves under his protection, or sought his friendship and alliance, now withdrew themselves from him, and left him alone to shift for himself; as frightened birds and beasts will do, when a tree is cut down and fallen, in the boughs or under the shadow of which they dwelt. The Targum paraphrases it,
"from the shadow of his kingdom.''
Ezekiel 31:13
Ver. 13. Upon his ruin shall all the fowls of the heaven remain,.... Or, "on his fall" {s}; the fall of this tree: and all the beasts of the field shall be upon his branches as when a tree is cut down, and its lopped off branches and boughs lie here and there, either the birds and beasts that before dwelt in it or under it, though for a while frightened away, return unto it; or others come: the birds come and sit upon the boughs, and pick up what they can find on them; and the beasts browse upon the branches: this may signify that even those people who before put themselves under the protection of this monarch, or sought alliance with him, now preyed upon his dominions; or the Medes and Babylonians, the conquerors, seized on the provinces of the empire, and plundered them of their riches, The Targum understands it literally of the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the field, feeding upon the carcasses of the slain; which is no bad sense of the passage; thus,
"upon the fall of his slain all the fowls of heaven have dwelt, and upon the carcasses of his army all the beasts of the field have rested.''
{s} wtlpm le "super prolapse ejus", Cocceius; "super cadivum truncum ejus", Junius & Tremellius.
Ezekiel 31:14
Ver. 14. To the end that none of all the trees by the waters exalt themselves for their height,.... The end proposed by the Lord in the destruction of the king of Assyria, and the use to be made of it, is this; that the kings of the earth take warning hereby, who rule over a multitude of people, comparable to waters, and who abound in riches and wealth; that they are not elated with pride and vanity, because of their exalted estate, their grandeur, and dignity; and do not behave insolently against God, on whom they depend; nor haughtily and in an oppressive manner towards their own subjects, over whom they rule:
neither shoot up their top among the thick boughs; affect universal monarchy, as he did; and set up themselves over all kingdoms and states, as he had over them, and make all subject to them:
neither their trees stand up in their height, that drink water; that is, kings and potentates, who rule over the people, and are supplied and supported by them in their exalted stations, by the tribute and taxes they pay them and so abound in riches and power, should not trust in the height of honour and power they are raised to, and treat contemptuously God and man; but consider what they are, that they are but men, and are in slippery places, where there is no standing long, and especially when death comes, as follows:
for they are delivered unto death in the nether parts of the earth; they are mortal by nature, as other men; they are appointed to die, and will be delivered into the hands of death, when the time is come, who will not spare them because of their crowns and sceptres; and when they will be laid in the grave, in the lowest parts of the earth, who used to sit upon elevated thrones of state:
in the midst of the children of men, with those that go down to the pit; the grave, where they are upon a level with the poorest and meanest of their subjects. The Targum is,
"that all the kings of the east might not be lifted up with their strength, nor exercise tyranny over the kingdoms; nor all that hold a kingdom lift up themselves in their own strength, for all are delivered unto death, &c.''
Ezekiel 31:15
Ver. 15. Thus saith the Lord God, in the day when he went down to the grave,.... The Assyrian monarch; when his monarchy was destroyed, and he ceased to be king, and was stripped of all his majesty, power, and authority, and was as one dead, and laid in the grave, and buried:
I caused a mourning: that is, for him, in the waters, and among the trees, among the people and the kings of the earth, as follows:
I covered the deep for him; with mourning, with thick darkness, which set him up on high Eze 31:4:
and I restrained the floods thereof, and the great waters were stayed; which made him great, Eze 31:4, signifying by all this that the kingdoms of the world, comparable to the sea, of which his monarchy consisted, and all the inhabitants and people of them, comparable to floods and great waters, were affected with the fall of this great monarch, and thrown into consternation by it; not knowing what the event of things would be, stood still, and knew not what course to take; all business was stopped, especially all traffic by sea, and all trade and commerce every where; a stagnation of everything for a while:
and I caused Lebanon to mourn for him; where he was a cedar,
Eze 31:3, this may respect the whole empire he was head of, particularly the kingdom of Syria, on the borders of which Lebanon was; and was a part of the Assyrian empire, which must mourn and be concerned at the fall of it:
and all the trees of the field fainted for him: all the kings of the earth that were in alliance with him, or subject to him, trembled for fear that their destruction would be next; or as doubtful and concerned what would be their condition, under the yoke of another. The Targum is,
"tribulation covered the world, and the provinces were forsaken, and many people trembled, and all the kings of the people smote the shoulder because of him.''
Ezekiel 31:16
Ver. 16. I made the nations to shake at the sound of his fall,.... As, when a large cedar was cut down and fell in Lebanon, the noise of it was heard at a distance; so when this mighty monarch and monarchy fell, the nations of the world, and the kings of them, heard of it far and near, and shook through fear of what would be the consequence, lest they should fall also in like manner:
when I cast him down to hell, or "the grave",
with them that descend into the pit; in common with other men that die, and are buried: it may refer to his subjects and soldiers that perished with him, who were slain by the sword, and were buried with him, and he with them; no distinction being made between them:
and all the trees of Eden, the choice and best of Lebanon, all that drink water; the greatest kings and potentates of the world, the chief and principal of the Assyrian empire; all that ruled over multitudes of people, and partook of their wealth and riches, and were supported in grandeur and dignity; who had been in the state of the dead before this time:
shall be comforted in the nether parts of the earth; when they see so mighty a monarch depressed, and brought as low as they, into the same state of meanness and contempt; as it is some kind of solace for persons in distress to have partners with them: this is a poetic expression, representing the dead as rejoicing to see others in the same condition with themselves. The Targum is,
"all the kings of the east, the governors, and those that are rich in substance, all that hold a kingdom, are comforted in the lower part of the earth.''
Ezekiel 31:17
Ver. 17. They also went down to hell with him,.... To the grave with him; many of his nobles, princes, generals, soldiers, and subjects:
unto them that be slain with the sword; to be buried and lie with them who had fallen by the sword, as a just punishment for their iniquities:
and they that were his arm; either that leaned on his arm, were dependents upon him; or his ministers, his instruments, whom he employed under him as his deputies, to govern the several provinces that belonged to him; or rather his allies and auxiliaries, who helped and assisted him on occasion:
that dwelt under his shadow in the midst of the Heathen; in the midst of the nations subject to the Assyrian empire; such who put themselves under the protection of it, lived comfortably under it, and continued with it to the last; these shared the same fate as that did. The Targum is,
"his governors are broken, whom he strengthened in the midst of the kingdom.''
Ezekiel 31:18
Ver. 18. To whom art thou thus like in glory and in greatness among the trees of Eden?.... Among all the kings and potentates of the earth; pitch on whom you will, say which of them all, even the greatest of them for majesty and glory, for wealth and riches, power and authority, and extent of dominion, you are equal to; name the king of Assyria, if you please, before described, though you are not equal to him; and if you were, this would not secure you from ruin; since, as great as he was, he fell, and so will you: this is said to Pharaoh king of Egypt, and is an application of the preceding parable to him; suggesting, that let him be as high as any ever was, or he could imagine himself to be:
yet shall thou be brought down with the trees of Eden unto the nether parts of the earth; the grave, and lie in the same depressed and humble state as the greatest monarchs that ever were on earth do:
thou shalt lie in the midst of the uncircumcised; the wicked, as the Targum; the uncircumcised in heart; who belong not to God, or his people, and have no communion with either, but are shut out of the kingdom of heaven, and have their portion with devils and damned spirits:
with them that be slain by the sword; in a way of judgment for their sins:
this is Pharaoh, and all his multitude, saith the Lord God; this account represents Pharaoh, his grandeur, his pride, and his ruin; this shows what will be the end of him, and of his numerous subjects. The Septuagint and Arabic versions render it, "so will be Pharaoh", &c. in like manner will he fall, and all his people with him; for the Lord God has said it, and it shall assuredly come to pass. The Targum is,
"to whom art thou like now in glory and greatness among the kings of the east? and thou shall be brought down with the kings of the east into the lower part of the earth; in the midst of sinners thou shalt sleep, with those that are slain by the sword; this is Pharaoh, and all his multitude, saith the Lord God.''
John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible.
Ezekiel 32:1
INTRODUCTION TO EZEKIEL 32
This chapter contains two more prophecies concerning the destruction of Egypt. The date of the first is given, Eze 22:1, in which the king of Egypt is compared to a large fish taken in a net, and brought to land, and left on it, to be the prey of the fowls of the air and beasts of the field, Eze 32:2, and the ruin of that kingdom is further amplified by the casting of it on the mountains and valleys; by the land flowing with its blood; by the darkness of the heavens; by the vexation in the hearts of many people; and by the amazement of kings and nations,
Eze 32:5, the means and instruments of all which will be the king of Babylon and his army, Eze 32:11, the devastation made by him, which would be such as would cause lamentation in other nations, is described,
Eze 32:13, then follows the other prophecy, whose date is given,
Eze 32:17, the prophet is bid to lament the fall of Egypt, which is represented under the funeral of a corpse, Eze 32:18, saluted by those gone down to the grave before, or were become desolate; which are mentioned, to assure Egypt of its destruction, Eze 32:21 as the Assyrian empire, and all its provinces, Eze 32:22, the Persians and Medes, with all their dominions, Eze 32:24, the posterity of Meshech and Tubal, or the Scythians, those warlike people, Eze 32:26, the Edomites, the princes of the north, and all the Zidonians, Eze 32:29 which would be a comfort, though a poor one to the king of Egypt and his subjects, to have such company with them, Eze 32:31.
Ver. 1. And it came to pass in the twelfth year,.... Of Jeconiah's captivity, above a year and a half after the taking of Jerusalem; the Syriac version reads in the eleventh year:
in the twelfth month, in the first day of the month; the month Adar, which answers to part of our February, and part of March; the Septuagint version reads it the tenth month: according to Bishop Usher {t}, this was on the twenty second of March, on the fourth day of the week (Wednesday), 3417 A.M.or 587 years before Christ:
that the word of the Lord came unto me, saying; as follows:
{t} Annales Vet. Test. A. M. 3417.
Ezekiel 32:2
Ver. 2. Son of man, take up a lamentation for Pharaoh king of Egypt,.... Pharaohhophra, or Apries; say a funeral dirge for him; this is ordered, not out of honour and respect to him, or in compassion for his misery and ruin, but to assure him of it:
and say unto him, thou art like a young lion of the nations; for strength and fierceness, for cruelty and tyranny, which he exercised, not in one nation only, but in many; a lively emblem of the beast of Rome, spiritually called Egypt and Sodom, compared to a leopard, bear, and lion, Re 11:8:
and thou art as a whale in the seas; or rather "like a crocodile" {u}, which was common in the rivers of Egypt, but not the whale; which also has not scales, nor does it go upon land, nor is it taken in a net; all which is said of this creature here, and in Eze 29:3 and to the crocodile there is an allusion in the name of Pharaoh, in the Arabic language, as Noldius from Camius observes {w}; see Eze 29:3:
and thou camest forth with thy rivers; or, "by thy rivers" {x}; as the crocodile in the river Nile, by the arms of it, or canals made out of it, sometimes went out from thence to other parts: or, "out of thy rivers" {y} upon the land, as the crocodile does; so the king of Egypt went forth with his armies out of his own land, into other countries, to disturb them, as follows: or rather, "camest forth in thy rivers" {z}; as the crocodile puts forth its head out of the water for respiration:
and thou troublest the waters with thy feet, and foulest their rivers; just as the feet of men or beasts, in shallow waters, raise up the mud or clay at the bottom, and so foul them; this best agrees with the crocodile, which has feet; Grotius thinks, for this reason, the sea horse is intended; the meaning is, that Pharaoh with his soldiers entered other nations, made war upon them, and disturbed their peace and tranquillity. The Targum is,
"thou hast been strong among the people, as a whale in the seas, thou hast fought with thine army; and thou hast moved the people with thine auxiliaries, and thou hast wasted their provinces.''
{u} Myntk "similis es crocodile", Noldius, Ebr. Concord. Part. p. 375. {w} Ibid. No. 1306. {x} Kytwrhnb "per flumina tua", Vatablus, Junius & Tremellius, Polanus. {y} "Ex fluminibus tuis", Starckius. {z} "In fluviis tuis", V. L. Piscator; "in fluminibus tuis", Cocceius
Ezekiel 32:3
Ver. 3. Thus saith the Lord God,.... The Lord God Almighty, who is able to manage this fierce and turbulent creature, this mighty monarch and disturber of the nations:
I will therefore spread out my net over thee with a company of many people; meaning the Chaldean army, which the Lord would instigate, and by his providence bring against the king of Egypt, and surround him as fishes in a net, and take him and his people; see Eze 12:13:
and they shall bring thee up in my net; out of his rivers, out of his fortresses, out of his own land, and carry him captive, or destroy him.
Ezekiel 32:4
Ver. 4. Then will I leave thee upon the land,.... Like a fish that is drawn out of the waters with a net or hook, and laid on dry land, and left gasping and expiring, where it cannot long live:
I will cast thee forth on the open field; the same in different words, signifying that his army should fall in battle by the sword of the Cyreneans, or Chaldeans, or both, and be left on the surface of the earth unburied:
and will cause all the fowls of the heavens to remain upon thee, and I will fill the beasts of the whole earth with thee; which may be understood either literally of the fowls of the air, that should light upon the slain carcasses, and rest on them till they had satisfied themselves with their flesh; and of the beasts of the field that should gather about them from all parts, and fill themselves with them; see
Re 19:17 or figuratively of the soldiers of the enemy's army, that should plunder them, and enrich themselves with the spoil.
Ezekiel 32:5
Ver. 5. And I will lay thy flesh upon the mountains,.... The remainder of it, left by the birds and beasts of prey, and who might carry it thither; or it intends such of the Egyptians who should flee to the mountains for safety, but should fall by the hands of the enemy there. So the Targum,
"and I will give the flesh of thy slain upon the mountains.''
And fill the valleys with thy height; his huge army, and with which he prided and lifted up himself, and thought himself safe in; which should fall in such great numbers as to cover the plains and valleys where the battle was fought. Jarchi observes, that the word for "height" has with some the signification of "worms"; and so the Syriac version renders it, "and the valleys shall be filled with thy worms"; bred in the carcasses of the slain: and so the Vulgate Latin version, "with corrupt matter"; such as issues out of putrefied wounds. The Targum very rightly paraphrases it,
"the valleys shall be filled with the carcasses of thine army.''
Ezekiel 32:6
Ver. 6. And I will also water with thy blood the land wherewith thou swimmest,.... Where he resided, over which he ruled; alluding to his being compared to a fish, a whale, or a crocodile; and which land abounded with all good things, and he with them; instead of being watered with the waters of the Nile, by which it became fruitful, it should now be flooded with the blood of his army:
even to the mountains; an hyperbolical expression, signifying the vast quantity of blood that should be shed; see the like in Re 14:20:
and the rivers shall be full of them; of the carcasses of his army, and of the blood of them; they should lie about everywhere, on mountains and valleys, on the land and in the rivers; and which should now be turned into blood, as the rivers of Egypt of old were; and which figure is used to express the destruction of the antichristian states; see Ex 7:20.
Ezekiel 32:7
Ver. 7. And when I shall put thee out,.... As a candle is put out, or some great light or blazing torch is extinguished; such was the king of Egypt in his splendour and glory; but now should be like a lamp put out in obscure darkness, and all his brightness and glory removed from him,
Job 18:5:
I will cover the heaven, and make the stars thereof dark; with the smoke that should arise at the extinguishing of this lamp; or they should be covered with mourning, or clad in black, at the destruction of this monarch and his monarchy:
I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not give her light; all which figures are sometimes made use of to denote the dissolution of kingdoms and states: the "heaven" being an emblem of a kingdom itself; the "sun" of an emperor or king, or kingly power; the "moon" of the queen, or of the priesthood; the "stars" of nobles, princes, counsellors, and such like eminent persons, useful in government; who being destroyed or removed, the light and glory, the prosperity and happiness of a kingdom, are gone; see
Isa 13:10. The Targum is,
"tribulation shall cover thee when I shall extinguish the splendour of the glory of thy kingdom from heaven; and the people of thine army shall be lessened, who are many as the stars; a king with his army shall cover thee as a cloud that ascends and covers the sun, and as the moon, whose light does not shine in the day.''
Ezekiel 32:8
Ver. 8. All the bright lights of heaven will I make dark over thee,.... Or, "all the lights of the light" {a}; the rest of the luminaries of heaven; the other five planets, as Kimchi, besides the sun and moon:
and set darkness upon thy land, saith the Lord God; as there must needs be, the sun, moon, and stars, and all the lights of heaven, being darkened above: there seems to be an allusion to the thick darkness that was formerly over the land of Egypt; and this is a figure and representation of that darkness that shall be in the kingdom of the beast, or spiritual Egypt, yet to come; see Ex 10:21. The Targum is,
"tribulation as darkness shall cover thy land.''
{a} rwa yrwam lk "omnia luminaria lucis", Pagninus, Montanus, Cocceius.
Ezekiel 32:9
Ver. 9. I will also vex the hearts of many people,.... With anger and grief, with fear and dread, with consternation and amazement:
when I shall bring thy destruction among the nations; or, "thy breach" {b}; the news of it, the tidings of their destruction; which by one means or another should come to their ears, and fill them with concern and great anxiety of mind, so rich and powerful a kingdom being subdued, and the king of Babylon made so great thereby, and fearing they fall a prey unto him also. The Targum renders it,
"when I shall bring the broken of thy war;''
that is, the soldiers that should be wounded in battle, their limbs broke, and they taken captive, and brought among the nations, dismal spectacles to look at; and which should be brought
into countries, which thou hast not known; at a distance from Egypt, and which had no commerce nor communication with them, nor were their friends and allies; yet as their destruction would reach their ears, so it would affect their hearts, and fill them with vexation and grief; not so much on account of Egypt, as the growing power of Nebuchadnezzar, and the danger they were in of falling into his hands.
{b} Krbv "fractionem tuam", Piscator, Cocceius, Starckius.
Ezekiel 32:10
Ver. 10. Yea, I will make many people amazed at thee,.... That so potent a state, and such a flourishing kingdom, should at once be so easily subdued and conquered: and their kings shall be horribly afraid for thee; because of her destruction, lest their turn should be next; so the kings of the earth will be afraid when God's judgments are executed on mystical Egypt; see Re 18:9:
when I shall brandish my sword before them; the sword of the king of Babylon after mentioned, called the Lord's, because it was by his appointment and permission, and came by the direction of his providence, and was succeeded by his power: this glittering sword being brandished over Egypt, in the sight of the nations round about, was terrible to them; dreading that it would not be put up until it was sheathed in them, or they felt the effects of it:, or, "when I shall cause it to fly before them" {c}; in their sight, and upon the borders of their countries; expressive of the swiftness of its motion, the sudden destruction it brought on Egypt, and its nearness to them. The Targum is,
"when I shall bring upon thee those that kill with the sword.''
And they shall tremble at every moment; from moment to moment, or continually; they shall never be free from fear:
every man for his own life, in the day of thy fall; not kings for their subjects, or subjects for their kings, but every man for himself; expecting every moment that the sword which flew and ravaged through Egypt, and now hovered over them, would be instantly plunged in them.
{c} wppweb "cum volare fecero", Munster, Tigurine version. Abendaus mentions such a sense of the word.
Ezekiel 32:11
Ver. 11. For thus saith the Lord God, the sword of the king of Babylon shall come upon thee. Upon Pharaoh and his kingdom; having a commission and a direction from the Lord, and which would be the instrument of the destruction before threatened. The Targum is,
"those that slay with the sword of the king of Babylon shall come upon or against thee;''
his army, sword in hand.
Ezekiel 32:12
Ver. 12. By the swords of the mighty will I cause thy multitude to fall,.... Pharaoh's numerous subjects; or his army, as the Targum; the vast number of soldiers in it, whose carcasses should fall in battle by the sword of the Chaldeans, the mighty men of Nebuchadnezzar's army:
the terrible of the nations all of them; which army consisted of men of several nations, and those the most terrible, fierce, and cruel, by whose swords this slaughter should be made:
and they shall spoil the pomp of Egypt; cut off the king, the princes of the blood, the nobility and gentry, the prime of the nation; plunder the king's palace of all the wealth and riches in it, the treasury of the kingdom; destroy the metropolis of it; demolish its cities and fortified places, and take away all its strength and glory:
and all the multitude thereof shall be destroyed: all the people of the land, high and low, rich and poor; the destruction shall be general, all ranks and degrees of men shall share in it.
Ezekiel 32:13
Ver. 13. I will destroy also all the beasts thereof from beside the great waters,.... Which used to graze beside the river Nile, and the canal, of it, in the plains and meadows, valley, and hills, which these ran by; meaning both horses, which Egypt abounded with, and would be good booty for the Chaldeans, and oxen and sheep, which they would kill for present use, or drive away for future service:
neither shall the foot of man trouble them any more, nor the hoofs of beasts trouble them; there should so few remain of men and beasts, that the waters of the rivers would not be disturbed, either by men passing over them, and doing any business upon them, or by beasts drinking at them.
Ezekiel 32:14
Ver. 14. Then will l make their waters deep,.... Either the water, of Egypt literally, the waters of the Nile: no canals being cut from it, to carry the water to the several parts of the land, the land being depopulated, and no business done: or, figuratively, other nations, compared to waters for their numbers, who before had been disturbed by the Egyptians; but now they being destroyed, these would be at ease, like troubled waters, which subside, and: become deep and clear, when there is none to trouble them:
and cause their, rivers to run like oil, saith the Lord God; very slowly, as if, they were mourning the unhappy condition of the land; or smoothly, clearly, undisturbed, as before. The Targum is,
"there will I cause the people to rest, and I will lead their kings quietly, saith the Lord God.''
Ezekiel 32:15
Ver. 15. When I shall make the land of Egypt desolate,.... The cities being demolished, the inhabitants destroyed with the sword, or carried captive:
and the country shall be destitute of that whereof it was full; men and cattle, corn and other fruits of the earth, wealth and riches, pomp and grandeur:
when I shall smite all them that dwell therein; with the sword of the Chaldeans:
then shall they know that I am the Lord for God is known in the perfections of his nature, omnipotence, omniscience, holiness, justice, &c. by the judgments he executes; for this is not to be understood of a spiritual knowledge of him, but of a terrible conviction of the truth of his being and attributes, by the awful dispensations of his providence.
Ezekiel 32:16
Ver. 16. This is the lamentation with which they shall lament her,.... The Egyptians themselves, or rather they that are after mentioned. The Targum is,
"the prophet said, a lamentation is this prophecy, and it shall be for a lamentation;''
he was bid at the beginning of it to take up a lamentation, and now at the end of it he pronounces it to be one, and that it should be sung as such:
the daughters of the nations shall lament for her; either literally understood, it being the business and custom of women to say or sing the funeral dirge, or the lamentation at the interment of the deceased; or figuratively, the inhabitants of other nations. So Ben Melech and the Targum,
"the villages of the people shall lament her'';
that is, the inhabitants of them, who were in alliance with Egypt, and under its protection:
they shall lament for her, even for Egypt, and for all her multitude; for the desolation of the land, and for the vast numbers of people that should be slain with the sword, or carried captive:
saith the Lord God; which is added for the confirmation of it; for what he has spoken shall be done.
Ezekiel 32:17
Ver. 17. It came to pass also the twelfth year,.... Another prophecy of the like kind was delivered out the same year as before:
in the fifteenth day of the month; of the twelfth month, the month Adar, which is not here expressed, because mentioned before, Eze 32:1, it was about a fortnight after the other prophecy. The Septuagint and Arabic versions read it,
"it came to pass in the twelfth year, the first month, the fifteenth day of the month;''
according to which this prophecy was before the other, which is not to be supposed.
Ezekiel 32:18
Ver. 18. Son of man, wail for the multitude of Egypt,.... Sing a funeral song or dirge, or compose one, to be sung by the mourning women, on account of the vast numbers of the inhabitants of Egypt that shall be slain; for the prophet himself would not mourn, but rejoice, on this occasion; but this is said to show the certainty of the destruction, and the lamentation that would be made on that account:
and cast them down, even her and the daughters of the famous nations; Egypt, and all those countries, and the inhabitants of them, that were in alliance and friendship with her; that is, declare by prophecy that they shall be cast down and destroyed, or be brought down from the height of grandeur and prosperity in which they now were:
unto the nether parts of the earth, with them that go down to the pit; not unto stately sepulchres built on high, such as were made for the kings of Egypt; but unto common pits or graves, dug in the lower parts of the earth, where the meaner and common sort of people were buried; there should be no distinction between them and others, they should have one common burial. The Targum is,
"son of man, prophesy concerning the multitude of Egypt, and break her, even her, and the villages of the mighty people; prophesy that they shall be delivered unto the lowest earth, with those that go down to the pit of the house of perdition.''
Ezekiel 32:19
Ver. 19. Whom dost thou pass in beauty?.... This question the prophet is bid to put to Egypt; what nation is there, or has been, that thou excellest in wisdom, in riches, or in strength, in the multitude of subjects, or extent of dominions, that thou thinkest thyself secure from destruction? look over other kingdoms and states mightier than thou, or at least equal to thee, and see how they are brought to ruin, and expect that this will quickly be thy case:
go down, and be thou laid with the uncircumcised; go down to the grave, and take thy place, and lie there among the wicked and most profligate of mankind, and such as might be most despised by the Egyptians, since they used circumcision. The Targum is,
"go down and sleep with sinners.''
Ezekiel 32:20
Ver. 20. They shall fall in the midst of them that are slain by the sword,.... The Egyptians shall fall in battle by the sword of the Chaldeans:
she is delivered to the sword; Egypt is given to the sword, to perish by it, for her sins, according to the just appointment of God:
draw her and all her multitudes; to the place of burial; not in pomp and splendour, as great persons are drawn in hearses; but in great disgrace, as carcasses are dragged unto a common pit or grave, and cast into it: this is said to the Chaldeans, who had a commission from the Lord to slay Egypt, and to bury her, and all her people.
Ezekiel 32:21
Ver. 21. The strong among the mighty shall speak to him,.... The strongest of them, such who have excelled others in strength and courage, famous for military exploits, who have been generals of armies, great warriors, and conquerors; and yet with all their might and strength could not withstand death, but were subdued by it, and brought down to the grave; these are, by a poetical figure, represented as meeting Pharaoh king of Egypt, when he came to his grave, saluting and welcoming him to the state of the dead in which they were; taking a sort of comfort in it, and insulting him as being as weak as they; see
Isa 14:9, which they should do
out of the midst of hell, or the grave, "Hades", the state of the dead:
with them that help him; the associates, allies, and friends of Pharaoh, his auxiliaries that fell with him, and were brought to the grave at the same time with him; these should be greeted, saluted, and welcomed in like manner:
they are gone down; to the grave; those mighty ones that are represented as speaking, and the Egyptians and their helpers who are spoken to:
they lie uncircumcised; among them that are so, Eze 32:19:
slain by the sword; of their enemies, who got the victory over them.
Ezekiel 32:22
Ver. 22. Ashur is there, and all her company,.... In the state of the dead, or in a most desolate and ruinous condition; the great Assyrian monarchy, the kings of it, the princes, nobles, generals, soldiers, and the vast number of subjects in all the dominions of it; all his army, as the Targum; this, with what follows, shows who the mighty are, that should meet and address the king of Egypt at his funeral:
his graves are about him; either the graves of Pharaoh and his multitude are round about the graves of the Assyrian monarch and his subjects, as Kimchi; or rather the graves of his subjects and soldiers are round about him: it seems to represent the king of Assyria as having a more stately monument, and the graves of his people as lesser ones round about him, but all in the same condition:
all of them slain, fallen by the sword of their enemies, the Medes and the Babylonians, by whom the Assyrian monarchy was destroyed.
Ezekiel 32:23
Ver. 23. Whose graves are set in the sides of the pit,.... Or vault, where lay the king of Assyria, and those who fell by the sword with him, who are represented as lying in graves all around him; the nearest to him those who were in the highest posts, and most valiant and courageous, and next the common soldiers, as follows:
and her company is round about her grave not Pharaoh's company round about the grave of the Assyrian monarch; but the company of the king of Assyria, or his army, as the Targum, round about grave; or lying about in the ruins of his kingdom:
all of them slain, fallen by the sword, which caused terror in the land of the living; even they who now are in the state of the dead, and can no more disturb and distress any, while they were alive, or in the world, struck terror in all neighbouring states and kingdoms; threatening destruction to them, and obliging them to submit to their tyranny and exactions. Jarchi interprets this of the land of Israel; and the Jewish writers commonly understand by the land of the living the land of Canaan wherever they meet with it; because here men worshipped the living God, and lived before him; and the inhabitants of this land were often terrified by the king of Assyria. So the Targum,
"because they ruled in the land of Israel.''
Ezekiel 32:24
Ver. 24. There is Elam and all her multitude round about her grave,.... The kingdom of the Medes and Persians lying in ruin, and the potent kings thereof in the state of the dead; with their army, as the Arabic version, slain and destroyed, and placed round about the grave of the king of Persia; for of him rather it is to be understood than of the king of Assyria, or of Egypt, as some:
all of them slain, fallen by the sword; either of the Scythians in the reign of Cyaxares; or of Nebuchadnezzar a few years before this, in the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah; see Jer 49:34:
which are gone down uncircumcised into the nether parts of the earth; unholy persons, profane sinners, destitute of the grace of God; who were gone down into the grave, and even into hell and everlasting destruction, as their sins deserved:
which caused their terror in the land of the living; made a great noise in the world, and struck a panic in neighbouring nations, invaded and conquered by them; this they did while living, but now, being in the state of the dead, nothing was to be feared from them: yet have they borne their shame with them that go down to the pit; were obliged to submit to death, and a shameful one, by the hands of their conquerors, and to be laid with ignominy in the grave with others, without any mark of distinction; all being upon a level, cast into the same pit of destruction, and into the lower parts of it; though their king might have a magnificent sepulchre erected for him, as follows:
Ezekiel 32:25
Ver. 25. They have set her bed in the midst of the slain, with all her multitude,.... The grave is called a bed, Isa 57:2, whereon is put the sepulchral chest or coffin, in which the body is laid, and rests as on a bed. It may here design a stately sepulchre or coffin in it, with a magnificent monument over it for the king of Elam, with his army, and the generals of it slain in battle, placed all around him, in less stately beds, coffins, and graves, as explained in the next clause:
her graves are round about him; the king of Persia and his grave, surrounded with the graves of his soldiers and officers:
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; which is repeated for the confirmation of it:
he is put in the midst of them that be slain; the king of Elam or Persia; he is laid among the slain, having fallen with them, and his grave is placed in the midst of them.
Ezekiel 32:26
Ver. 26. There is Meshech, Tubal, and all her multitude,.... The Scythians, a powerful and warlike people; and all their armies, as the Targum; with their leaders, generals, and commanders, as lying in their graves next to the Assyrians and Elamites, or
her graves are round about him; not the king of Egypt, nor the king of Assyria, nor the king of Persia; but the chief commander of the Scythians, called the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, Eze 38:2:
all of them slain by the sword; of Halyattes, king of Lydia, and Cyaxares, king of Media, who was assisted by the former in subduing the Scythians:
though they caused their terror in the land of the living; as they did in Media, and other countries, and especially in some parts of Asia.
Ezekiel 32:27
Ver. 27. And they shall not lie with the mighty that are fallen of the uncircumcised,.... That is, shall not lie in such state, or be buried with such pomp and magnificence, and have such sepulchral monuments erected to their memory, as other heroes among the Heathens have had; such as the mighty kings of Assyria and Persia before mentioned:
which are gone down to hell, or "the grave",
with their weapons of war; which were never taken from them, and which they held in their hands to the last, being never conquered, and died at last a natural death, and not by the sword; or which were carried in state before their hearse at the time of interment, as is the custom to this day so to do at the funeral of great warriors, generals, and officers:
and they have laid their swords under their heads; as a sign and token, as Jarchi says, that the sword did not rule over them, that they did not fall by it; either their statues and sepulchral monuments were adorned with these, and other instruments of war, as was the grave of Misenus by Aeneas {d}; and as is still the custom where the heads of such mighty ones are laid, to engrave them on them: or, literally, their swords and other weapons of war were put in their graves under their heads; as it was usual, in former times, in some places to put swords, shields, and other armour, in the graves of military men, as were in the grave of Theseus, on the bier of Alexander the great, and others, as reported by Plutarch, Diodorus Siculus, and Sophocles {e}: now the Scythians were not buried: after this grand and pompous manner:
but their iniquities shall be upon their bones; or the punishment of their sin should be, that their bones should lie unburied and scattered about, or be dug up and broke to pieces, and treated with inhumanity and contempt, as a just reward for their savageness, and cruelty:
though they were the terror of the mighty in the land of the living: not only the terror of the common people, but even of the most powerful kings and mighty warriors.
{d} Vid. Virgil. Aeneid. l. 6. & Seneca, l. 4. controvers. 4. {e} Vid. Lydium de Re Militari, l. 6. c. 7. p. 250, 251. & Kirchman, de Funer. Roman. l. 3. c. 18.
Ezekiel 32:28
Ver. 28. Yea, thou shalt be broken in the midst of the uncircumcised,.... Kimchi, and so others, think this is said to Pharaoh king of Egypt; but rather it respects the prince of the Scythians, who should fall into the hands of Heathens, and be destroyed by them:
and shalt lie with them that are slain with the sword; be buried with them, or in like manner as they are; and not as mighty warriors, who die a natural death in their own country, and are buried in a stately and magnificent manner; but like those that fall by the sword of the enemy, and are thrown into one common pit.
Ezekiel 32:29
Ver. 29. There is Edom, her kings, and all her princes,.... In the next place, near the graves of the above mentioned, and in the same ruinous and desolate condition, lie the famous kingdom of Idumea, and the several kings and dukes of it, from the first setting of it up, to its last destruction prophesied of, Eze 25:12, of many of which mention is made, Ge 36:15:
which with their might are laid by them that are slain with the sword; who, notwithstanding their powerful armies, and prowess and skill in war, yet are conquered, and destroyed, and laid in graves in like manner as all others slain by the, sword of the enemy are:
they shall lie with the uncircumcised; for though they themselves were circumcised, being the descendants of Esau the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, on whose seed circumcision was enjoined; yet this did not secure them from a violent death, and an ignominious burial; they being uncircumcised in heart, wicked and ungodly men, and so should be joined in their death and burial with such:
and with them that go down to the pit; the common receptacle of the slain.
Ezekiel 32:30
Ver. 30. There be the princes of the north,..... The kings of Babylon, according to Kimchi, which lay north of Judea; or the princes of Syria, Damascus, and Tyre, especially the latter, which commonly goes along with Zidon, being near it, as follows:
and all the Zidonians. The Vulgate Latin version renders it, "and all the hunters"; but wrongly; as also the Septuagint and Arabic versions, which read the princes or soldiers of Assyria. The Zidonians or inhabitants of Zidon are meant as the Targum; a famous maritime city, as Tyre also was, in Phoenicia:
which are gone down with the slain; into the grave, being conquered and destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar; see Eze 28:21:
with their terror they are ashamed of their might, the number and strength of their armies, the valour and courage of their soldiers, and the fortifications of their cities, in which they trusted, and of which they boasted; but yet could not preserve them from ruin:
and they lie uncircumcised with them that be slain by the sword; in common with other profane and wicked persons that have fallen by the sword as they have done:
and bear their shame with them that go down to the pit;
See Gill on "Eze 32:24".
Ezekiel 32:31
Ver. 31. Pharaoh shall see them, and shall be comforted over his multitude,.... That is, when Pharaoh is brought to the grave, and into the state of the dead, he shall look about him, and see who lie by him; and he shall behold the above mentioned kings of Assyria, Persia, Idumea, and the princes of Tyre and Zidon, and all their mighty armies, generals and soldiers, in the same condition with himself; and this shall be some solace to him in his own death, and at the loss of so great a kingdom, such numerous subjects, and a vast army, that others as rich, as powerful as himself, lie in the same low and miserable condition; though such comfort as this must be poor comfort indeed! and yet this is all the comfort wicked men have in hell, that they have company with them there:
even Pharaoh and all his army slain by the sword. Pharaohhophra and his numerous army slain by the sword of the king of Babylon. This explains who is meant by Pharaoh and his multitude: and that this would certainly be his case it is added,
saith the Lord God; he hath spoken it, and it shall be done; whose words are continued in the next verse.
Ezekiel 32:32
Ver. 32. For I have caused my terror in the land of the living,.... Or, "his terror" {f}; there is a double reading. The Keri or marginal reading, which we follow has it "my terror" {g}; but the Cetib or writing is his terror; and so read the Septuagint. Syriac, and Arabic versions; both may be taken, and the sense be, I have caused or suffered him, Pharaoh king of Egypt, to be a terror to the nations about him, particularly to the land of Israel, which the Targum expressly mentions as the land of the living; and now I will terrify him who has terrified others:
and he shall be laid in the midst of the uncircumcised with those that are slain with the sword; shall have a common burial with other Heathen nations; even with such, who, in a way of judgment, have perished by the sword of their victorious enemies, as he will:
even Pharaoh and all his multitude, saith the Lord God; the king of Egypt, his subjects, and his soldiers, as numerous as they are; and thus ends this doleful ditty, and funeral dirge or lamentation, composed, taken up, and sung for Pharaoh as ordered, thereby to assure him of his certain destruction.
{f} wtytx "terrorem ejus", Grotius; "consternationem ejus", Starckius. {g} ytytx "terrorem meum", Pagninus, Munster, Tigurine version, Junius & Tremellius, Polanus.