בַּשָּׁנָה הָעֲשִׂירִית בָּעֲשִׂרִי בִּשְׁנֵים עָשָׂר לַחֹדֶשׁ הָיָה דְבַר־יְהוָה אֵלַי לֵאמֹר׃ 29:1
Ezek. 29:1 In the tenth year, in the twelfth day of the tenth month, the word of the Lord occurred to me saying,
בֶּן־אָדָם שִׂים פָּנֶיךָ עַל־פַּרְעֹה מֶלֶךְ מִצְרָיִם וְהִנָּבֵא עָלָיו וְעַל־מִצְרַיִם כֻּלָּהּ׃ 29:2
Ezek. 29:2 “Human, set your face toward Pharoah, king of Egypt, and prophesy about him and about Egypt, all of it.”
This chapter appears to be out of time sequence. In Chapter 26 Ezekiel described his revelation as having been in the eleventh year. Now we’re back in the tenth year, the 12th day of the month Tevet. Some commentators think this is because the destruction of Phoenicia occurred before that of the Egyptians; so Ezekiel transcribed his experience related to them first. I find it difficult to accept that logic. I don’t think all the chapters are sequenced according to when their prophesies were fulfilled. As I said in relation to Ezek. 28:26, I believe there are at least some Ezekiel prophesies about the end times.
דַּבֵּר וְאָמַרְתָּ כֹּה־אָמַר אֲדֹנָי יְהוִה הִנְנִי עָלֶיךָ פַּרְעֹה מֶלֶךְ־מִצְרַיִם הַתַּנִּים הַגָּדֹול הָרֹבֵץ בְּתֹוךְ 29:3
יְאֹרָיו אֲשֶׁר אָמַר לִי יְאֹרִי וַאֲנִי עֲשִׂיתִנִי׃
Ezek. 29:3 “Speak, and you shall say, ‘Thus says the Master, the Lord:
Behold, I am against you, Pharoah, king of Egypt,
the great serpent stretched out in the middle of his rivers,
who says, ‘My river is mine, and I made it for me.’
וְנָתַתִּי (חַחִיִּים) [חַחִים] בִּלְחָיֶיךָ וְהִדְבַּקְתִּי דְגַת־יְאֹרֶיךָ בְּקַשְׂקְשֹׂתֶיךָ וְהַעֲלִיתִיךָ מִתֹּוךְ יְאֹרֶיךָ 29:4
וְאֵת כָּל־דְּגַת יְאֹרֶיךָ בְּקַשְׂקְשֹׂתֶיךָ תִּדְבָּק׃
Ezek. 29:4 ‘So I will put hooks in your jaws and make the fish of your rivers cling to your scales, and I will raise you up from the middle of your rivers and you will be stuck with every fish of your rivers in your scales.’
The error of an extra yad in the word in the parentheses is corrected in the brackets.
וּנְטַשְׁתִּיךָ הַמִּדְבָּרָה אֹותְךָ וְאֵת כָּל־דְּגַת יְאֹרֶיךָ עַל־פְּנֵי הַשָּׂדֶה תִּפֹּול לֹא תֵאָסֵף וְלֹא תִקָּבֵץ לְחַיַּת 29:5 הָאָרֶץ וּלְעֹוף הַשָּׁמַיִם נְתַתִּיךָ לְאָכְלָה׃
Ezek. 29:5 ‘Then I will abandon you to the wilderness,
you, and all the fish of your rivers.
You shall fall on the surface of the field;
you shall not be removed
and you shall not be gathered;
I give you to the animals of the earth
and to the fowl of the skies for food.’
וְיָדְעוּ כָּל־יֹשְׁבֵי מִצְרַיִם כִּי אֲנִי יְהוָה יַעַן הֱיֹותָם מִשְׁעֶנֶת קָנֶה לְבֵית יִשְׂרָאֵל׃ 29:6
Ezek. 29:6 And all the inhabitants of Egypt
may know that I am the Lord,
because of their having been a support of reed
for the house of Israel.’
The word “reed” indicates a really weak support, actually no support at all.
בְּתָפְשָׂם בְּךָ (בַכַּפך) [בַכַּף] תֵּרֹוץ וּבָקַעְתָּ לָהֶם כָּל־כָּתֵף וּבְהִשָּׁעֲנָם עָלֶיךָ תִּשָּׁבֵר וְהַעֲמַדְתָּ לָהֶם 29:7 כָּל־מָתְנָיִם׃
Ezek. 29:7 Upon their taking hold on you with a hand,
you would collapse and tear every shoulder of theirs,
and upon their leaning on you,
you would break, and force all their loins to endure.
The error of an inappropriate chaf suffix contained within the parentheses is corrected in the brackets.
לָכֵן כֹּה אָמַר אֲדֹנָי יְהוִה הִנְנִי מֵבִיא עָלַיִךְ חָרֶב וְהִכְרַתִּי מִמֵּךְ אָדָם וּבְהֵמָה׃ 29:8
Ezek. 29:8 ‘Therefore, thus says the Master, the Lord: Behold, I am bringing a sword upon you, and I will cut off human and beast from you.’
וְהָיְתָה אֶרֶץ־מִצְרַיִם לִשְׁמָמָה וְחָרְבָּה וְיָדְעוּ כִּי־אֲנִי יְהוָה יַעַן אָמַר יְאֹר לִי וַאֲנִי עָשִׂיתִי׃ 29:9
Ezek. 29:9 ‘And the land of Egypt shall be for a desolation and a wasteland, and they shall know that I am the Lord, because he said, ‘The river that I made is mine.’
לָכֵן הִנְנִי אֵלֶיךָ וְאֶל־יְאֹרֶיךָ וְנָתַתִּי אֶת־אֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם לְחָרְבֹות חֹרֶב שְׁמָמָה מִמִּגְדֹּל סְוֵנֵה וְעַד־גְּבוּל 29:10 כּוּשׁ׃
Ezek. 29:10 ‘For this, behold, I am against you and against your rivers, so I will make the land of Egypt for wastelands of drought, a desolation from Migdal to Syene and up to the border of Ethiopia.’
לֹא תַעֲבָר־בָּהּ רֶגֶל אָדָם וְרֶגֶל בְּהֵמָה לֹא תַעֲבָר־בָּהּ וְלֹא תֵשֵׁב אַרְבָּעִים שָׁנָה׃ 29:11
Ezek. 29:11 ‘No human foot shall pass on it, and no animal foot shall pass on it, and it shall not be inhabited forty years.’
וְנָתַתִּי אֶת־אֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם שְׁמָמָה בְּתֹוךְ אֲרָצֹות נְשַׁמֹּות וְעָרֶיהָ בְּתֹוךְ עָרִים מָחֳרָבֹות תִּהְיֶיןָ שְׁמָמָה 29:12 אַרְבָּעִים שָׁנָה וַהֲפִצֹתִי אֶת־מִצְרַיִם בַּגֹּויִם וְזֵרִיתִים בָּאֲרָצֹות׃
Ezek. 29:12 ‘And I shall make the land of Egypt a desolation among the lands being made desolate, and its cities among the cities being made desolate; they shall be a desolation forty years; and I shall scatter the Egyptians among the nations and disperse them throughout the countries.’
כִּי כֹּה אָמַר אֲדֹנָי יְהוִה מִקֵּץ אַרְבָּעִים שָׁנָה אֲקַבֵּץ אֶת־מִצְרַיִם מִן־הָעַמִּים אֲשֶׁר־נָפֹצוּ שָׁמָּה׃ 29:13
Ezek. 29:13 ‘For thus says the Master, the Lord: After the end of forty years I shall gather the Egyptians from the nations to which they were scattered,
וְשַׁבְתִּי אֶת־שְׁבוּת מִצְרַיִם וַהֲשִׁבֹתִי אֹתָם אֶרֶץ פַּתְרֹוס עַל־אֶרֶץ מְכוּרָתָם וְהָיוּ שָׁם מַמְלָכָה 29:14
שְׁפָלָה׃
Ezek. 29:14 and I will turn back the captivity of Egypt and allow them to reoccupy the land of Pathros, by the land of their origin, and they shall be a humble kingdom there.’
If I haven’t mentioned it before, Pathros apparently denotes northern Egypt.
מִן־הַמַּמְלָכֹות תִּהְיֶה שְׁפָלָה וְלֹא־תִתְנַשֵּׂא עֹוד עַל־הַגֹּויִם וְהִמְעַטְתִּים לְבִלְתִּי רְדֹות בַּגֹּויִם׃ 29:15
Ezek. 29:15 ‘It shall be the most humble of kingdoms, so that it could not lift itself again above the nations, and I will make them too few to have dominion among the nations.’
וְלֹא יִהְיֶה־עֹוד לְבֵית יִשְׂרָאֵל לְמִבְטָח מַזְכִּיר עָוֹן בִּפְנֹותָם אַחֲרֵיהֶם וְיָדְעוּ כִּי אֲנִי אֲדֹנָי יְהוִה׃ 29:16
Ezek. 29:16 ‘And it shall not be for security any more for the house of Israel, an iniquitous reminder because of their turning away after them. Then they may know that I am the Master, the Lord.’”
וַיְהִי בְּעֶשְׂרִים וָשֶׁבַע שָׁנָה בָּרִאשֹׁון בְּאֶחָד לַחֹדֶשׁ הָיָה דְבַר־יְהוָה אֵלַי לֵאמֹר׃ 29:17
Ezek. 29:17 And it was in the twenty-seventh year, in the first month, on the month's first day; the word of the Lord occurred to me saying,
At this point we seem to have momentarily moved seventeen years later.
בֶּן־אָדָם נְבוּכַדְרֶאצַּר מֶלֶךְ־בָּבֶל הֶעֱבִיד אֶת־חֵילֹו עֲבֹדָה גְדֹלָה אֶל־צֹר כָּל־רֹאשׁ מֻקְרָח וְכָל־כָּתֵף 29:18 מְרוּטָה וְשָׂכָר לֹא־הָיָה לֹו וּלְחֵילֹו מִצֹּר עַל־הָעֲבֹדָה אֲשֶׁר־עָבַד עָלֶיהָ׃
Ezek. 29:18 “Human, Nebuchadrezzar, king of Babylon, had his army serve a great service concerning Tyre. Every head had been made bald, and every shoulder peeled, but no reward had been his or his army's because of Tyre for the service that he performed concerning it.”
לָכֵן כֹּה אָמַר אֲדֹנָי יְהוִה הִנְנִי נֹתֵן לִנְבוּכַדְרֶאצַּר מֶלֶךְ־בָּבֶל אֶת־אֶרֶץ מִצְרָיִם וְנָשָׂא הֲמֹנָהּ וְשָׁלַל 29:19 שְׁלָלָהּ וּבָזַז בִּזָּהּ וְהָיְתָה שָׂכָר לְחֵילֹו׃
Ezek. 29:19 “Therefore thus says the Master, the Lord: Behold, I am giving the land of Egypt to Nebuchadrezzar, king of Babylon, and he shall carry off its abundance and pull out its spoil and plunder its booty, and that shall be his army's reward.”
פְּעֻלָּתֹו אֲשֶׁר־עָבַד בָּהּ נָתַתִּי לֹו אֶת־אֶרֶץ מִצְרָיִם אֲשֶׁר עָשׂוּ לִי נְאֻם אֲדֹנָי יְהוִה׃ 29:20
Ezek. 29:20 “His compensation that he had served because of it, the land of Egypt I give to him, by which they acted for Me, declares the Master, the Lord.”
בַּיֹּום הַהוּא אַצְמִיחַ קֶרֶן לְבֵית יִשְׂרָאֵל וּלְךָ אֶתֵּן פִּתְחֹון־פֶּה בְּתֹוכָם וְיָדְעוּ כִּי־אֲנִי יְהוָה׃ 29:21
Ezek. 29:21 “On that day I shall make a horn spring up for the house of Israel, and for you I shall produce an opening of the mouth in their midst, and they shall know that I am the Lord.”
This last verse seems to say something interesting, as well as inspire a question. What do you suppose the term horn represents? Some commentators think it may be a symbol for power and prosperity for Israel. Others think it may be symbolic of Cyrus, king of Persia, who encouraged the rebuilding of the Temple. Although there’s a problem with it, I’m inclined toward the latter as a mystery we can’t fathom. What is the mystery? Ezekiel didn’t live until the end of the Babylonian exile. But we are told that the Lord will open Ezekiel’s mouth at that time. I believe this supports my suspicion that Ezekiel didn’t prophesy aloud. He wrote his revelations down but didn’t reveal them orally. So if the horn does represenbt Cyrus, then the opening of the mouth of Ezekiel must be merely symbolic. It may mean that this book will be discovered at that time.
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