Ezekiel 31

 

וַיְהִי בְּאַחַת עֶשְׂרֵה שָׁנָה בַּשְּׁלִישִׁי בְּאֶחָד לַחֹדֶשׁ הָיָה דְבַר־יְהוָה אֵלַי לֵאמֹר׃   31:1

Ezek. 31:1   And it was in the eleventh year in the third month in the month's first day the word of the Lord occurred to me saying,

This is two months later than the last reference to time, which was in Ezek. 30:20.  It is the month of Sivan.

בֶּן־אָדָם אֱמֹר אֶל־פַּרְעֹה מֶלֶךְ־מִצְרַיִם וְאֶל־הֲמֹונֹו אֶל־מִי דָּמִיתָ בְגָדְלֶךָ׃   31:2

Ezek. 31:2   “Human, say about Pharoah, king of Egypt, and about his abundance,

                       ‘To whom are you comparable

                                in your greatness?’”

הִנֵּה אַשּׁוּר אֶרֶז בַּלְּבָנֹון יְפֵה עָנָף וְחֹרֶשׁ מֵצַל וּגְבַהּ קֹומָה וּבֵין עֲבֹתִים הָיְתָה צַמַּרְתֹּו׃   31:3

Ezek. 31:3   “Behold, Assyria was a cedar in Lebanon,

                                fair of bow,

                      with shadow-casting wooded height

                                and pride of stature,

                       and its top was between interwoven foliage.”

מַיִם גִּדְּלוּהוּ תְּהֹום רֹמְמָתְהוּ אֶת־נַהֲרֹתֶיהָ הֹלֵךְ סְבִיבֹות מַטָּעָהּ וְאֶת־תְּעָלֹתֶיהָ שִׁלְחָה אֶל כָּל־עֲצֵי   31:4   הַשָּׂדֶה׃

Ezek. 31:4   “Waters nourished it,

                                the depth made it grow high,

                       her rivers moving all around her plantation

                                and her streams sending out

                        to all the trees of the field.”

עַל־כֵּן גָּבְהָא קֹמָתֹו מִכֹּל עֲצֵי הַשָּׂדֶה וַתִּרְבֶּינָה סַרְעַפֹּתָיו וַתֶּאֱרַכְנָה (פֹארֹתֹו) [פֹארֹתָיו] מִמַּיִם   31:5        רַבִּים בְּשַׁלְּחֹו׃

Ezek. 31:5   “Because of this, its stature was exalted

                                more than all the trees of the field,

                       that its boughs were numerous

                                and its shoots prolonged,

                       from the waters abundant at its shooting forth.”

The word in the parentheses is spelled as singular, and presumably, it should be plural (translated as its shoots).  The correct spelling is in the brackets.

בִּסְעַפֹּתָיו קִנְנוּ כָּל־עֹוף הַשָּׁמַיִם וְתַחַת פֹּארֹתָיו יָלְדוּ כֹּל חַיַּת הַשָּׂדֶה וּבְצִלֹּו יֵשְׁבוּ כֹּל גֹּויִם רַבִּים׃   31:6

Ezek. 31:6   “In its boughs nested all fowl of the skies,

                                 and beneath its branches

                       every beast of the field brought forth young,

                                 and all great nations dwelled in its shadow.”

וַיְּיִף בְּגָדְלֹו בְּאֹרֶךְ דָּלִיֹּותָיו כִּי־הָיָה שָׁרְשֹׁו אֶל־מַיִם רַבִּים׃   31:7

Ezek. 31:7   “So it was fair in its greatness,

                                  in the length of its branches,

                       for its root was by abundant waters.”

אֲרָזִים לֹא־עֲמָמֻהוּ בְּגַן־אֱלֹהִים בְּרֹושִׁים לֹא דָמוּ אֶל־סְעַפֹּתָיו וְעַרְמֹנִים לֹא־הָיוּ כְּפֹארֹתָיו כָּל־עֵץ   31:8   בְּגַן־אֱלֹהִים לֹא־דָמָה אֵלָיו בְּיָפְיֹו׃

Ezek. 31:8   “The cedars in the garden of God did not eclipse it;

                                  the cypresses did not compare to its branches,

                       and the plane trees were not like its branches;

                                  no tree in the garden of God

                       was comparable to it in its beauty.”

יָפֶה עֲשִׂיתִיו בְּרֹב דָּלִיֹּותָיו וַיְקַנְאֻהוּ כָּל־עֲצֵי־עֵדֶן אֲשֶׁר בְּגַן הָאֱלֹהִים׃   31:9

Ezek. 31:9   “I made it fair

                                  with the abundance of its branches

                       so that all the trees of Eden

                                   in the garden of God envied it.”

לָכֵן כֹּה אָמַר אֲדֹנָי יְהוִה יַעַן אֲשֶׁר גָּבַהְתָּ בְּקֹומָה וַיִּתֵּן צַמַּרְתֹּו אֶל־בֵּין עֲבֹותִים וְרָם לְבָבֹו בְּגָבְהֹו׃   31:10

Ezek. 31:10   “Therefore, thus says the Master, the Lord:  For the reason that you were exalted in stature, but it extended its treetop to between the interwoven foliage and its heart was uplifted by its grandeur,

וְאֶתְּנֵהוּ בְּיַד אֵיל גֹּויִם עָשֹׂו יַעֲשֶׂה לֹו כְּרִשְׁעֹו גֵּרַשְׁתִּהוּ׃   31:11

Ezek. 31:11   then I had delivered it into the hand of the mightiest of nations -- surely he could do to it according to its guilt -- I had cast it out.”

וַיִּכְרְתֻהוּ זָרִים עָרִיצֵי גֹויִם וַיִּטְּשֻׁהוּ אֶל־הֶהָרִים וּבְכָל־גֵּאָיֹות נָפְלוּ דָלִיֹּותָיו וַתִּשָּׁבַרְנָה פֹארֹתָיו   31:12         בְּכֹל אֲפִיקֵי הָאָרֶץ וַיֵּרְדוּ מִצִּלֹּו כָּל־עַמֵּי הָאָרֶץ וַיִּטְּשֻׁהוּ׃

Ezek. 31:12   “And strangers have cut it off, the awe-inspiring ones of the nations, and abandoned it; in among the mountains and in all the valleys its branches have fallen and its boughs lie broken in all the ravines of the land.  And all the peoples of the earth have come down out of its shadow and left it.”

עַל־מַפַּלְתֹּו יִשְׁכְּנוּ כָּל־עֹוף הַשָּׁמָיִם וְאֶל־פֹּארֹתָיו הָיוּ כֹּל חַיַּת הַשָּׂדֶה׃   31:13

Ezek. 31:13   “Upon its carcass shall dwell all fowl of the skies, and by its branches shall be all beast of the field.”

לְמַעַן אֲשֶׁר לֹא־יִגְבְּהוּ בְקֹומָתָם כָּל־עֲצֵי־מַיִם וְלֹא־יִתְּנוּ אֶת־צַמַּרְתָּם אֶל־בֵּין עֲבֹתִים וְלֹא־יַעַמְדוּ   31:14   אֵלֵיהֶם בְּגָבְהָם כָּל־שֹׁתֵי מָיִם כִּי־כֻלָּם נִתְּנוּ לַמָּוֶת אֶל־אֶרֶץ תַּחְתִּית בְּתֹוךְ בְּנֵי אָדָם אֶל־יֹורְדֵי בֹור׃

Ezek. 31:14   “In order that all trees of waters will not become arrogant because of their stature and not extend their tops to between interwoven foliage and not continue their mightiest ones in their grandeur, all drinkers of water; for all of them are given to death, to the lowest regions of the earth among the children of men, to the descenders of the pit.”

כֹּה־אָמַר אֲדֹנָי יְהוִה בְּיֹום רִדְתֹּו שְׁאֹולָה הֶאֱבַלְתִּי כִּסֵּתִי עָלָיו אֶת־תְּהֹום וָאֶמְנַע נַהֲרֹותֶיהָ   31:15                וַיִּכָּלְאוּ מַיִם רַבִּים וָאַקְדִּר עָלָיו לְבָנֹון וְכָל־עֲצֵי הַשָּׂדֶה עָלָיו עֻלְפֶּה׃

Ezek. 31:15   “Thus says the Master, the Lord:  On the day of its decent to Sheol I caused the deep to mourn; I put a cover over it, and I restrained her rivers and the abundant waters were shut up, and I caused Lebanon to mourn for it, and each of the trees of the field wilted because of it.”

מִקֹּול מַפַּלְתֹּו הִרְעַשְׁתִּי גֹויִם בְּהֹורִדִי אֹתֹו שְׁאֹולָה אֶת־יֹורְדֵי בֹור וַיִּנָּחֲמוּ בְּאֶרֶץ תַּחְתִּית   31:16                 כָּל־עֲצֵי־עֵדֶן מִבְחַר וְטֹוב־לְבָנֹון כָּל־שֹׁתֵי מָיִם׃

Ezek. 31:16   “From the crash of its falling I made nations shake with My sending it down to Sheol with the descenders of the pit, and all the trees of Eden consoled themselves in the lowest regions of the earth, the choicest and best of Lebanon, all drinkers of water.”

גַּם־הֵם אִתֹּו יָרְדוּ שְׁאֹולָה אֶל־חַלְלֵי־חָרֶב וּזְרֹעֹו יָשְׁבוּ בְצִלֹּו בְּתֹוךְ גֹּויִם׃   31:17

Ezek. 31:17   “They also descended to Sheol, to those slain of the sword who were his arm; they had dwelled in its shadow among the nations.”

אֶל־מִי דָמִיתָ כָּכָה בְּכָבֹוד וּבְגֹדֶל בַּעֲצֵי־עֵדֶן וְהוּרַדְתָּ אֶת־עֲצֵי־עֵדֶן אֶל־אֶרֶץ תַּחְתִּית בְּתֹוךְ עֲרֵלִים   31:18

 תִּשְׁכַּב אֶת־חַלְלֵי־חֶרֶב הוּא פַרְעֹה וְכָל־הֲמֹונֹה נְאֻם אֲדֹנָי יְהוִה׃

Ezek. 31:18   “To which are you compared as such in glory and in greatness among the trees of Eden!  Yet you are to be brought down with the trees of Eden to the lowest regions of the earth. In the midst of the uncircumcised you shall lie with those slain of the sword.  This is Pharoah with all his abundance, declares the Master, the Lord.”

All of this chapter is intended for the ear of Pharoah -- Egypt.  Assyria is the example for him of his fate.

 

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