32:1ffThis prophecy was given in 585 B.C., two months after the news of Jerusalem’s fall had reached the exiles in Babylon. Ezekiel prophesied numerous judgments upon many wicked nations. These judgments served a positive purpose: They showed that evil forces are continually being overcome and that one day God will overthrow all evil, making the world the perfect place he intended. They also serve as warnings that God alone is sovereign. Even the mightiest ruters, like Pharaoh, will fall before God. All are accountable to him.
Life Application Study BibleEzekielChapter 32
Ezekiel 32
New Living Translation · Life Application Study Bible · Original pages: 1351, 1352, 1353
A few verse numbers on this page were hard to read in the scan and are marked with a dotted underline — compare with the original page image if in doubt.
32Ezekiel 32
A Warning for Pharaoh
13 On March 3,* during the twelfth year of King Jehoiachin’s captivity, this message came to me from the LORD:
2“Son of man, mourn for Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and givehim this message:“You think of yourself as a strong young lion among the nations,but you are really just a sea monster,heaving around in your own rivers,stirring up mud with your feet.
3Therefore, this is what the Sovereign LORD says:I will send many peopleto catch you in my netand haul you out of the water.
4I will leave you stranded on the land to die.All the birds of the heavens will land on you,and the wild animals of the whole earthwill gorge themselves on you.
5I will scatter your flesh on the hillsand fill the valleys with your bones.
6T will drench the earth with your gushing bloodall the way to the mountains,filling the ravines to the brim.
7When I blot you out,I will veil the heavens and darken the stars.I will cover the sun with a cloud,and the moon will not give you its light.
8T will darken the bright stars overheadand cover your land in darkness.I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken!
9“{ will disturb many hearts when I bring news of your downfall to distant nations you have never seen. 10Yes, I will shock many lands, and their kings will be terrified at your fate. They will shudder in fear for their lives as I brandish my sword before them on the day of your fall.
11For this is what the Sovereign LORD says:“The sword of the king of Babylonwill come against you.
12T will destroy your hordes with the swords of mighty warriors—the terror of the nations.They will shatter the pride of Egypt,and all its hordes will be destroyed.
13J will destroy all your flocks and herdsthat graze beside the streams.Never again will people or animalsmuddy those waters with their feet.
14Then I will let the waters of Egypt become calm again,and they will flow as smoothly as olive oil,says the Sovereign LORD.1 And when I destroy Egyptand strip you of everything you ownand strike down all your people,then you will know that I am the LORD.
16Yes, this is the funeral songthey will sing for Egypt.Let all the nations mourn.Let them mourn for Egypt and its hordes.I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken!”
Egypt Falls into the Pit
1717On March 17,* during the twelfth year, another message came to me from the LORD: 18“Son of man, weep for the hordes of Egypt and for the other mighty nations.* For I will send them down to the world below in company with those who descend to the pit.
19Say to them,‘O Egypt, are you lovelier than the other nations?No! So go down to the pit and lie there among the outcasts.*’
20The Egyptians will fall with the many who have died by the sword, for the sword is drawn against them. Egypt and its hordes will be dragged away to their judgment. 21Down in the grave* mighty leaders wil! mockingly welcome Egypt and its allies, saying, ‘They have come down; they lie among the outcasts, hordes slaughtered by the sword.’ 22“ Assyria lies there surrounded by the graves of its army, those who were slaughtered by the sword. 23Their graves are in the depths of the pit, and they are surrounded by their allies. They struck terror in the hearts of people everywhere, but now they have been slaughtered by the sword. 24“Flam lies there surrounded by the graves of all its hordes, those who were slaughtered by the sword. They struck terror in the hearts of people everywhere, but now they have descended as outcasts to the world below. Now they lie in the pit and share the shame of those who have gone before them. 25They have a resting place among the slaughtered, surrounded by the graves of all their hordes. Yes, they terrorized the nations while they lived, but now they lie in shame with others in the pit, all of them outcasts, slaughtered by the sword. 26“Meshech and Tubal are there, surrounded by the graves of all their hordes. They once struck terror in the hearts of people everywhere. But now they are outcasts, all slaughtered by the sword. 27They are not buried in honor like their fallen heroes, who went down to the grave* with their weapons—their shields covering their bodies* and their swords beneath their heads. Their guilt rests upon them because they brought terror to everyone while they were still alive. 28” You too, Egypt, will lie crushed and broken among the outcasts, all slaughtered by the sword. 29”Edom is there with its kings and princes. Mighty as they were, they also lie among those slaughtered by the sword, with the outcasts who have gone down to the pit. 30“All the princes of the north and the Sidonians are there with others who have died. Once a terror, they have been put to shame. They lie there as outcasts with others who were slaughtered by the sword. They share the shame of all who have descended to the pit. 31“When Pharaoh and his entire army arrive, he will take comfort that he is not alone in having his hordes killed, says the Sovereign Lor. 32Although I have caused his terror to fall upon all the living, Pharaoh and his hordes will lie there among the outcasts who were slaughtered by the sword. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken!”
C. MESSAGES OF HOPE (33:1—-48:35)
This section begins a new direction in Ezekiel’s prophecies. Ezekiel is reminded that he is the nation’s watchman. Before Jerusalem’s fall, he told the people of their punishment and dispersion. Now he is to proclaim the hope of restoration, but even this message does not improve the people's response. They listen to him with curiosity and then live as they please. Today we have the good news of forgiveness, but how easy it is to ignore the message and continue to live sinful lives. 1. Restoring the people of God
Ezekiel as Israel’s Watchman
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Textual footnotes
- lunar calendar. This event occurred on March 3, 585 B.c.; also see note on 1:1.
- calendar (see 32:1). This would put this message at the end of King Jehoiachin's twelfth year of captivity, on
- March 17, 585 B.c.; also see note on 1:1. Greek version reads On the fifteenth day of the first month, which would put
- this message on April 27, 586 8.c., at the beginning of Jehoiachin’s twelfth year.
- is uncertain.
- 32:1 Hebrew On the first day of the twelfth month, of the ancient Hebrew
- 32:17 Hebrew On the fifteenth day of the month, presumably in the twelfth month of the ancient Hebrew lunar
- 32:18 The meaning of the Hebrew
- 32:19 Hebrew the uncircumcised; also in 32:21, 24, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30,32.
- 32:21 Hebrew in Sheol.
- 32:27a Hebrew to Sheol.
- 32:27b The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
Life Application Notes 7 notes
32:2Although Pharaoh thought of himself as a strong young lion, in God’s eyes he was nothing but a crocodile (“sea monster”) muddying the water. God's judgment would reduce Pharaoh to his true size. Anyone who defies God will face his judgment.
32:18The Hebrews believed in an afterlife for all people, good and bad. Ezekiel predicted that Egypt would share the same fate as that of the evil nations already sent to the “pit.” The words here are more poetic than doctrinal (see Job 24:19; Psalm 16:10; lsaiah 38:10, and the note on Matthew 25:46). The Egyptians had a preoccupation with the afterlife and built pyramids to ensure the pharaohs’ comfort in the next life. God alone controls our future and life after death.
32:21-32In these verses, Ezekiel conducts a guided tour of the “grave”—the region of the afterlife. In the grave, all of God's enemies are condemned in judgment; many of them experience the fate they so quickly imposed on others. Though Babylon is not mentioned, Ezekiel’s readers would have concluded that if all the other nations would be judged for their rebellion against God, Babylon would be judged as well. These words would comfort the captives.
32:24-26Elam was a nation of fierce warriors from the region east of Assyria. They were conquered by Nebuchadnezzar (Jeremiah 49:34-39) and eventually rebuilt themselves and became part of Persia. Meshech and Tubal were territories located in the eastern region of Asia Minor, now eastern and central Turkey. In chapters 38 and 39 they are described as allies of Gog, the chief prince of a confederacy. They are included with the evil nations that will be judged for fighting against God’s people.
32:30The princes of the north were probably the princes of the Phoenician city-states.
32:32After reading Ezekiel's prophecies against all these foreign nations, we may wonder if he was blindly loyal to his own nation. But Ezekiel spoke only when God gave him a message (3:27). Besides, God’s prophets pronounced judgment on God's sinful people just as much as on God’s enemies. But if Babylon was God’s enemy, why isn’t it mentioned in Ezekiel’s judgments? Perhaps because (1) God wanted to foster a spirit of cooperation between the exiles and Babylon in order to preserve his people; (2) God was still using Babyion to refine his own people; (3) God wanted to use Daniel, a powerful official in Babylon, to draw the Babylonians to him.