Commentary on Ezekiel Part 8 (No. F026viii)

Chapter 29

¹In the tenth year, in the tenth month, on the twelfth day of the month, the word of the LORD came to me: ²"Son of man, set your face against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and prophesy against him and against all Egypt; ³speak, and say, Thus says the Lord GOD: "Behold, I am against you, Pharaoh king of Egypt, the great dragon that lies in the midst of his streams, that says, 'My Nile is my own; I made it.' ⁴I will put hooks in your jaws, and make the fish of your streams stick to your scales; and I will draw you up out of the midst of your streams, with all the fish of your streams which stick to your scales. ⁵And I will cast you forth into the wilderness, you and all the fish of your streams; you shall fall upon the open field, and not be gathered and buried. To the beasts of the earth and to the birds of the air I have given you as food. ⁶"Then all the inhabitants of Egypt shall know that I am the LORD. Because you have been a staff of reed to the house of Israel; ⁷when they grasped you with the hand, you broke, and tore all their shoulders; and when they leaned upon you, you broke, and made all their loins to shake; ⁸therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will bring a sword upon you, and will cut off from you man and beast; ⁹and the land of Egypt shall be a desolation and a waste. Then they will know that I am the LORD. "Because you said, 'The Nile is mine, and I made it,' ¹⁰therefore, behold, I am against you, and against your streams, and I will make the land of Egypt an utter waste and desolation, from Migdol to Syene, as far as the border of Ethiopia. ¹¹No foot of man shall pass through it, and no foot of beast shall pass through it; it shall be uninhabited forty years. ¹²And I will make the land of Egypt a desolation in the midst of desolated countries; and her cities shall be a desolation forty years among cities that are laid waste. I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and disperse them among the countries. ¹³"For thus says the Lord GOD: At the end of forty years I will gather the Egyptians from the peoples among whom they were scattered; ¹⁴and I will restore the fortunes of Egypt, and bring them back to the land of Pathros, the land of their origin; and there they shall be a lowly kingdom. ¹⁵It shall be the most lowly of the kingdoms, and never again exalt itself above the nations; and I will make them so small that they will never again rule over the nations. ¹⁶And it shall never again be the reliance of the house of Israel, recalling their iniquity, when they turn to them for aid. Then they will know that I am the Lord GOD." ¹⁷In the twenty-seventh year, in the first month, on the first day of the month, the word of the LORD came to me: ¹⁸"Son of man, Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon made his army labor hard against Tyre; every head was made bald and every shoulder was rubbed bare; yet neither he nor his army got anything from Tyre to pay for the labor that he had performed against it. ¹⁹Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will give the land of Egypt to Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon; and he shall carry off its wealth and despoil it and plunder it; and it shall be the wages for his army. ²⁰I have given him the land of Egypt as his recompense for which he labored, because they worked for me, says the Lord GOD. ²¹"On that day I will cause a horn to spring forth to the house of Israel, and I will open your lips among them. Then they will know that I am the LORD."

Intent of Chapter 29

29:1-32:32

The Fall of Egypt (No. 036)

The prophecy of the Fall of Egypt is examined in five sections from Ezekiel chapters 29 to 32. From the paper we see that it is:

“a pivotal prophecy in world history. It concerned the nation of Egypt. Egypt was used as a key nation in world history for a number of reasons. Firstly it was one of the most ancient of kingdoms and secondly because it represented the conflict of world systems, which were typified in Daniel under the headings the king of the North and the king of the South. The prophecy concerning Egypt is found in Ezekiel 29:1 to 32:32. This prophecy is followed immediately by the warning of the watchmen in Ezekiel 33:1ff. This is a warning to Israel following on from the prophecy concerning the fall of Egypt. This is done to reinforce the point that the fulfilment of the prophecy concerning Egypt is pivotal to the last days. The prophecy has been held up to be a failed prophecy for reasons that shall be explained.”

29:1-16 Against Pharaoh

10^th year of Jehoiakin’s captivity 589 BCE

From the text at #036 we see that:

“The interrelated nature of the prophecies is perhaps exemplified by the placement of the text of Ezekiel 28:25 to 29:21 between Exodus 9:35 and 10:1 in the Soncino commentaries. There are a number of important observations to be linked with this text. Ezekiel 28:25-26 talks of the restoration of Israel and the restoration is seen as being linked to the fall of Egypt from these texts. The commentaries by Kimchi on verse 25 hold that it declares the retribution of the Lord on those who had harmed Israel. Rashi holds verse 26 to My servant Jacob to refer to:

Exiled Israel who will be restored to their land, a land spacious and ample with undefined borders, as promised by God to the patriarch Jacob (cf. Gen. 28:14).

The warning to Egypt commences in Ezekiel 29.

29:1-3 “In the tenth year [of the reign of Zedekiah (Kimshi)], in the tenth month, on the twelfth day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me: ²"Son of man, set your face against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and prophesy against him and against all Egypt; ³speak, and say, Thus says the Lord God: "Behold, I am against you, Pharaoh, king of Egypt, the great dragon that lies in the midst of his streams, that says, 'My Nile is my own; I made it.'

Kimchi’s allocation to Zedekiah is based on the assumption that Zedekiah’s reign commenced with Jehoiakin’s captivity.

“The great dragon was held to refer to the king of Egypt with the Nile representing Egypt itself (by Rashi and Kimshi, Soncino). We are thus dealing with the concept of rulership of Egypt. The real rulership of Egypt stemmed from the angelic Host as they were given dominion over the nations by God (see below). The rulership of Egypt rested in Prince Mastema according to the midrashim and traditions (see esp. Jubilees 48:13ff.). Thus Yahweh [Yahovah] fought the battle between the forces of God and the forces of the fallen Host under Mastema. The Canaanite rulership was in Prince Yam and the battles in the wilderness and for Israel occurred between Yahweh and the Host on behalf of God.” (036 ibid).

Hophra’s attack on Babylonian forces 588 BCE failed to relieve Jerusalem also (vv 6-9; Jer. 37:1-10). Hophra is depicted as the great sea dragon (Heb. Tannin Isa, 27:1; Job ch 41). God will catch him and let his body become carrion (32:1-8). His streams refers to the Nile Delta and canals. Fish of your streams The Egyptians and their mercenaries.

29:4 “Rashi and Kimshi hold that the words the fish of thy rivers refers to the fact that the princes and the common people will perish with the king (or the ruler here represented as a dragon; see Soncino). Job 41:15 states quite categorically of Leviathan that his scales are his pride. Thus the removal of the dragon is also the downfall of his Host who adhere to him in pride, perhaps of his strength or self-reliance or elevation of will in rebellion (there is no softness in the scales of his underbelly (Isaiah da Trani))” (ibid).

29:5 “The text into the wilderness is held, by Kimshi, to refer to the fact that the people are to fall in land battles. Fish cannot live on dry land and thus the removal of their basis of support underlies this concept. The spiritual nature of the support, in that the river is a spiritual system, and the fish are representative of people, is not fully developed, but is nevertheless understood by the great Jewish authorities.” (ibid)

29:6 “Israel had, throughout its history, looked upon Egypt instead of God. Generally this was when they were to be dealt with for their sins using the nations, which God had chosen to raise up from the north (see also Soncino; and cf. Isa. 36:6).” (ibid)

29:7 “Once a man's support is gone he is forced to stand alone so says Rashi and Kimshi (Soncino)”.

29:8-11

v. 9 The Nile is mine, and I made it, - pride is an offence to God punished by humiliation cf. Soncino

v. 10 from Migdol to Syene, as far as the border of Ethiopia [From Migdol or the fortress near Pelusium on the northern border (cf. Ex. 14:2; Jer. 44:1)] to Syene [or Sewneh or Assouan on the border of Ethiopia at the first cataract of the Nile.]

v. 11 No foot of man shall pass through it, and no foot of beast shall pass through it; it shall be uninhabited forty years.

This period of forty years (cf. Ezek. 4:6; Num. 14:33 where the desolation of Judea is predicted for a similar period) is a key to understanding the prophecy. There is also an understanding that this period relates to the promised famine in Egypt. Egypt was prophesied (according to tradition; the Midrash) to have forty-two years of famine in the days of Joseph; but at the end of the second year (cf. Gen. 45:6) Jacob migrated to Egypt and the famine ceased. Rashi and Kimshi held that the remaining forty years would be suffered over this period; see Soncino. The significance is that this text was always understood to have a split meaning or dual application. The concept is that Israel is a deliverer in the form of Messiah in the last days, as the seed of Jacob. The recovery of Egypt was foretold through other prophets (cf. Isa. 19:24; Jer. 46:26).

29:12 And I will make the land of Egypt a desolation in the midst of desolated countries; and her cities shall be a desolation forty years among cities that are laid waste. I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and disperse them among the countries.

The state of desolation in Egypt will be so extreme that it will appear patently so even in comparison with other lands which have been ravaged by an invading army (Soncino).

29:13 "For thus says the Lord God: At the end of forty years I will gather the Egyptians from the peoples among whom they were scattered;

The Soncino makes the following comment on this text: After forty years Egypt will be restored, though only to rank as a weak kingdom with its former pride shattered. The restoration at the end of the period named probably coincides with the decline of the Babylonian empire. The end of both systems is thus coincidental – one being used to destroy the other.

29:14 and I will restore the fortunes of Egypt, and bring them back to the land of Pathros, the land of their origin; and there they shall be a lowly kingdom.

I will restore the fortunes is rendered in the Soncino: I will turn the captivity (the dual meaning is noted in Ezek. 16:53). Land of their origin is rendered, by Rashi and Kimshi, as the land of their sojourn. Pathros or the south land was the name of Upper Egypt (comp. Jer. 44:1 n. Herodotus considers it to be the place from where Egyptian rule developed (Soncino).

29:15-16 It shall be the most lowly of the kingdoms, and never again exalt itself above the nations; and I will make them so small that they will never again rule over the nations. ¹⁶And it shall never again be the reliance of the house of Israel, recalling their iniquity, when they turn to them for aid. Then they will know that I am the Lord God."

Kimshi notes this as a lack of trust in God by putting their trust in Egypt (Soncino). Because Egypt was a source of pride and stumbling to Israel, they would be made so low that they would never again be equal to other nations. They would not only be low but also inferior to all (Soncino; see also Ezek. 21:28 and Num. 5:15). The phrase they will know is taken (by Metsudath David) to be the nations in general.

29:17-21 Egypt as Wages for Nebuchadnezzar

Ezekiel 29:17-18 In the twenty-seventh year [from the Seder Olam this is understood as the twenty-seventh year of Nebuchadnezzar or 578 BCE, modern scholars note this as from verse 1 i.e. 586 BCE hence 571/0 BCE OARSV n., in the first month, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me: ¹⁸Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon made his army labour hard against Tyre; every head was made bald [by carrying loads (R, K)] and every shoulder was rubbed bare [by heavy burdens; they were worn out by the length of the siege (R, K)]; yet neither he nor his army got anything from Tyre to pay for the labour that they had performed against it [The spoil of Tyre was carried away by inundation from the sea (R, K)].

This was shortly after Ahmosis II (Amasis II. (Amoses). 664-610 BCE. 610-595 BC. 595-589 BCE) forced Hophra to make him co-regent (OARSV n,). “God made Amasis the hook which He put in the jaws of Pharaoh Hophra (Apries), who was dethroned and strangled, in spite of his proud boast that "even a god could not wrest from him his kingdom" (Herodotus, 2:169). Compare Isaiah 51:9-10. Rahab, "the insolent," is Egypt's poetical name (Psalms 87:4; Psalms 89:10; Isaiah 51:9; Psalms 74:13-14 (Fausett’s Bible Dictionary, Egypt).

Herodotus holds that Amasis handed Hophra over to the Egyptian mob who strangled him. The ancient system is to be removed and no trace is to be left. This will become obvious as global warming and the wars of the last days coupled with earthquakes and tsunamis under the vials of Rev. 066iv wipe out the civilisations of this world.

Ezekiel 29:19-20 Therefore, thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will give the land of Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; and he shall carry off its wealth and despoil it, and plunder it; and it shall be the wages for his army. ²⁰I have given him the land of Egypt as his recompense for which he laboured, because they worked for me, say the Lord God.

The text they wrought for me or because they worked for me is curiously interpreted as because of the evil they wrought unto Me in becoming the unreliable support of Israel (R, K following the Targum). These commentators, following the Targum, thus transpose the concept of God using the nation, which is of itself a Gentile system, as a punishment on Egypt. A.J. (Soncino) thus does not understand that all nations were God's instruments, including Babylon.

Ezekiel 29:21 "On that day I will cause a horn to spring forth to the house of Israel, and I will open your lips among them. Then they will know that I am the Lord."

Kimshi understood the text to refer to Cyrus who is termed God's anointed, i.e. the Messiah (cf. Isa. 14:1; see Soncino). Kimshi understood that the restoration of Egypt was to coincide with the dawn of Egypt's release from captivity. Thus the rabbinical commentators understood that this was a dual prophecy, which related to the restoration. The Soncino notes that:

Ezekiel predicts in general terms that in the future Israel will be restored to his former glory.

The OARSV n. understands Horn to refer to the restoration of the Davidic line in Israel (Ps. 132:17) (see also From David and the Exilarchs to the House of Windsor (No. 067)). Thus the sequence was understood to go beyond the Babylonians. Here we have the pivotal point of the prophecy being established. This attack on Egypt can be established with absolute historical accuracy and of itself forms the commencement of the dating system. The year in question is 605 BCE. Egypt had in fact been given into the hands of the Assyrians from 669-663 BCE. This Assyrian invasion was to be taken up in the prophecy but did not of itself form the pivotal date and thus was mentioned after the subsequent invasion by Nebuchadnezzar and not before that invasion as one would have expected. The explanation will become obvious later. Again, and importantly, from these conflicts, it is highly unlikely that an Israelite resettlement from 667-665 BCE would have taken place with a major campaign under way in the south.

More importantly it is from these invasions that a horn springs forth in Israel (Cyrus to the rabbis; but as the Lord's anointed it was sequential over the nations) and speaks so that the nations know that God rules (v. 21). Ezekiel was dumb and his speech was held for prophecy. God was also silent until He dealt with Israel (from Ezek. 3:26-27 and 24:27). The prophecies concerning other nations were from Ezekiel 29 to 32. Ezekiel 33 then is the Watchmen chapter for the warning of Israel. The warning of Israel in the last days and the subsequent restoration is the major subject of Ezekiel's prophecies. It is absurd to suggest that the prophecies of the nations from Ezekiel 29 to 32 are confined to 669-525 BCE and are incomplete, and then suggest that Ezekiel deals with End-Time and Restoration or Millennial prophecies. Ezekiel is by this reasoning rendered meaningless.

Chapter 30

¹The word of the LORD came to me: ²"Son of man, prophesy, and say, Thus says the Lord GOD: "Wail, 'Alas for the day!' ³For the day is near, the day of the LORD is near; it will be a day of clouds, a time of doom for the nations. ⁴A sword shall come upon Egypt, and anguish shall be in Ethiopia, when the slain fall in Egypt, and her wealth is carried away, and her foundations are torn down. ⁵Ethiopia, and Put, and Lud, and all Arabia, and Libya, and the people of the land that is in league, shall fall with them by the sword. ⁶"Thus says the LORD: Those who support Egypt shall fall, and her proud might shall come down; from Migdol to Syene they shall fall within her by the sword, says the Lord GOD. ⁷And she shall be desolated in the midst of desolated countries and her cities shall be in the midst of cities that are laid waste. ⁸Then they will know that I am the LORD, when I have set fire to Egypt, and all her helpers are broken. ⁹"On that day swift messengers shall go forth from me to terrify the unsuspecting Ethiopians; and anguish shall come upon them on the day of Egypt's doom; for, lo, it comes! ¹⁰"Thus says the Lord GOD: I will put an end to the wealth of Egypt, by the hand of Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon. ¹¹He and his people with him, the most terrible of the nations, shall be brought in to destroy the land; and they shall draw their swords against Egypt, and fill the land with the slain. ¹²And I will dry up the Nile, and will sell the land into the hand of evil men; I will bring desolation upon the land and everything in it, by the hand of foreigners; I, the LORD, have spoken. ¹³"Thus says the Lord GOD: I will destroy the idols, and put an end to the images, in Memphis; there shall no longer be a prince in the land of Egypt; so I will put fear in the land of Egypt. ¹⁴I will make Pathros a desolation, and will set fire to Zo'an, and will execute acts of judgment upon Thebes. ¹⁵And I will pour my wrath upon Pelusium, the stronghold of Egypt, and cut off the multitude of Thebes. ¹⁶And I will set fire to Egypt; Pelusium shall be in great agony; Thebes shall be breached, and its walls broken down. ¹⁷The young men of On and of Pibe'seth shall fall by the sword; and the women shall go into captivity. ¹⁸At Tehaph'nehes the day shall be dark, when I break there the dominion of Egypt, and her proud might shall come to an end; she shall be covered by a cloud, and her daughters shall go into captivity. ¹⁹Thus I will execute acts of judgment upon Egypt. Then they will know that I am the LORD." ²⁰In the eleventh year, in the first month, on the seventh day of the month, the word of the LORD came to me: ²¹"Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and lo, it has not been bound up, to heal it by binding it with a bandage, so that it may become strong to wield the sword. ²²Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and will break his arms, both the strong arm and the one that was broken; and I will make the sword fall from his hand. ²³I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and disperse them throughout the lands. ²⁴and I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, and put my sword in his hand; but I will break the arms of Pharaoh, and he will groan before him like a man mortally wounded. ²⁵I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, but the arms of Pharaoh shall fall; and they shall know that I am the LORD. When I put my sword into the hand of the king of Babylon, he shall stretch it out against the land of Egypt; ²⁶and I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations and disperse them throughout the countries. Then they will know that I am the LORD."

Intent of Chapter 30

30:1-26 The Fall of Egypt (P036).

30:1-5

vv. 1-3 The Day of the Lord (No. 192) since the Time of Amos has been God’s Judgment Day to some Jews (Am. 5:18-20) (15:5; Isa. 2:12; Jer. 30:7; Zeph. 1:14-18). Later it became the day of Israel’s Restoration and remained doomsday for the Gentiles (OARSV n.). This was because of the failure of Judaism to understand the purpose and types of the Resurrections (143A & 143B) and the Plan of God in Salvation (001A) and F066v).

No date is assigned for this prophecy. This text is similar wording to Joel 2:1-2 speaking of the last days. We are dealing here with the time of doom for the nations. This passage does not refer to a nation but to nations. God dealt with Egypt but this prophecy is expansive and refers to the time when God will deal with the world nations and their system of which Egypt was archetypal. Hence the prophecy refers to the time of the end. Thus the prophecy extends over a long period and not just over the immediate conquests from 605 BCE as might have been supposed. Egypt, a world power and centre of pagan worship, is to lose both attributes. Babylon is the instrument (see Soncino). The day of the Lord in verse 3 is understood to be:… the occasion when God's judgement will be passed upon the world (Soncino) a day of clouds. As the clouds herald a storm, so will the day of the Lord bring drastic punishment upon those who deserve it.

the time of the nations. All heathen peoples will be involved Egypt among them (Soncino).

30:4-5 Sword – 21:3-17. Put – (27:10 [with Cush as Ethiopia (Isa. 66:19)] (see ##45A; 45B; 45C; 45D; 45E). OARSV n. correctly says that Lud is probably not Lydia in Asia Minor but should be sought for in North East Africa. Also “and all [the mingled people cf. Jer. 25:24] Arabia, and Libya [actually Cub a nation that has not been identified], and the people of the land that is in league, shall fall with them by the sword. [Here we are dealing with an extended league of nations who stand with Egypt in those times, the identity of some being only guessed at].

30:6-9 We see here that Egypt’s mercenaries (27:10-11) will collapse before the onslaught and Egypt will be redued to Ashes (28:18). Migdol to Syene (see 29:10 n.).

Lofthouse comments: God speaks as though He had come in person into Egypt, like another and more terrible Nebuchadnezzar. The Jewish commentators more correctly explain that it is at My will, on My orders (Soncino). The consensus appears to be also that the tidings of the approaching doom will be of as much concern to the Ethiopian as it was at Egypt's collapse. The Ethiopians and the lands to the south will not escape this terror. This prophecy then relates directly to the Babylonian invasion of 605 BCE – thus establishing the concept of an extended time-frame pivotal to that invasion.

30:10-12 Nebuchadrezzar (26:7) King of the most terrible of the nations (28:7; 31:12; 32:12) is God’s instrument (as Nebuchadnezzar) (Jer. 27:6). Note: The Nile has not been known to be dry to date and so we see reduced flows from Aswan but the final crisis will be more serious than has been seen. Egypt is thus sent into captivity because it has been a source of religious stumbling to Israel and the world.

30:13-19 All Egypt will be destroyed. Memphis, the ancient captial of Lower Egypt and its idols [Ptah and Apis], Pathros, see Jer. 44:1 n. Zoan in the Greek period Tanis or San was in the northeast delta region on the eastern bank of the second arm of the Nile (cf. Num. 13:22; Ps. 78:12, 43).

Thebes is present day Karnak [termed No-amon in Nahum 3:8, cf. Amon of No, (Jer. 46:25), being associated with the worship of Amon]. Pelusium [Sin] a stronghold of Egypt, east of Zoan. On is Heliopolis (ancient Goshen) (Jer. 43:13 n.). Pibeseth – Bubastis. Tehaphnehes – Tahpanes (Jer. 43:7).

vv. 13-16 Deals with Egypt as a source of idols and false worship. [No] Thebes shall be [rent asunder] breached, and its walls broken down [literally Noph the adversaries of by day].

The actual wording of the text is found in the Soncino. The concepts are not understood by the commentators because the meaning of the Egyptian hieroglyphs was not available to them. The Book of the Dead is as we now know: The Chapters of the Coming Forth By Day. Thus the adversaries of by day had a religious significance not understood at that time.

30:17-19 The young men of On [or Aven; Heliopolis the centre of sun worship, hence Beth-shemesh or the House of the sun; see Soncino] and of Pibeseth [or Bubastis, Tel Basta, the city of the cat shaped idol, near Cairo] shall fall by the sword; and the women shall go into captivity. ¹⁸At Tehaphnehes [see also Jer. 2:16; 43:7 ff] the day shall be dark, when I break there the dominion of Egypt, and her proud might shall come to an end; she shall be covered by a cloud, and her daughters [Targum renders the inhabitants of her towns] shall go into captivity. ¹⁹Thus I will execute acts of judgment upon Egypt. Then they will know that I am the Lord." [Thus vindicating the Sovereignty of God.]

All the cities enumerated from verses 13-18 were centres of different forms of idolatry. The reference here in verse 18 is to the covering of Egypt by a cloud and her daughters shall go into captivity. Specifically it states there shall no longer be a prince in the land of Egypt. But there were princes after the fall of Egypt. This is either a false prophecy or it deals with an extended time-frame involving the last days. Bearing in mind that we are dealing with the sequence from the fall of the Covering Cherub symbolised by Tyre, and that Egypt, which is symbolic of the world systems, was destroyed as the wages of the labour involved in the destruction. The symbolism develops and should be interpreted to be the sequence leading up to the Messianic advent, where he would preach deliverance to the captive etc. and proclaim the Acceptable year of the Lord (Jubilee) (Lk. 4:18) as a primary activity within the period involved and finally take captivity captive (Eph. 4:8). Israel under the cloud, which was and is Messiah, would be set in its own land and joined with aliens who will cleave to the house of Jacob. The peoples will take captive those who were their captors and they will rule over those who oppressed them (Isa. 14:1-2). This action commenced from the invasion of the Babylonians under Nebuchadnezzar, but the end result will be also the final destruction of the Babylonians and their religious system (Rev. 17:5 and 18:2), and the whole world will be at peace (Isa. 14:3-7). This prophecy in Isaiah 14 is the well-known prophecy that relates not only to Babylon but also to the destruction of Satan, the current Morning Star or Lightbringer, in the Messianic advent (Isa. 14:8-21). The city referred to in Josephus, Acts of the Jews XV, II, 2, was another city on the Tigris adjoining Baghdad, both of which were also later referred to as Babylon. When Revelation 18:2 was written Babylon had been long destroyed yet it was referred to in latter-day prophecy. Similarly Peter wrote from Babylon (1Pet. 5:13) where Satan's seat was. Thus the prophecies connect the entire structure of Daniel's statue of Daniel 2 as extensions of the Babylonian system. Revelation could hardly be referring as a future event to something that had happened some 600 years beforehand. That is hardly prophecy. Moreover, we are talking about world religious systems, which are conjoint with the civil empires. There is no doubt whatsoever that the empires referred to in Daniel 7:3-8 are explanatory to the structure in Daniel 2 (F027ii) and that they embrace the Roman system as the empire of iron and that the empire of iron and clay was its successor. That empire can only have been the Holy Roman Empire. Moreover, Daniel 7:9 shows that these systems proceed into the last days and the casting down of the thrones before the Ancient of Days and the subsequent judgment. Daniel 7:11 also interprets who the horn of Israel was as referred to in Ezekiel 29:21. The little horn of Daniel 7:8,11 was the false prophet at the last days and the destruction of the beast. The other beasts or nation systems of Daniel 2 were allowed to live a little longer, but their dominion was taken away. This is the millennial restoration of Messiah. (see F027vii) (F027xiii)

30:20-26 11^th year; 587 BCE. (See Note to Chapter 1 (Part I F026.)

Nebuchadnezzar had broken one arm of Hophra the previous year (see 29:1-16 above). The next time he will break both arms. The key to the prophecy is given here. The arms of the Egyptians are broken. Both arms are broken and one arm was broken beforehand to weaken Egypt. The symbolism is given this way to make it evident that the prior break under the Assyrians was not the pivotal invasion to which the prophecy referred. It is axiomatic that a nation’s arms are broken by the defeat of its forces, which are themselves referred to as arms of that nation's force. Thus we are looking at three invasions of Egypt; the first one being a preliminary action. Egypt was conquered by the king of Nubia in 750 BCE, who became the first pharaoh of the 25th dynasty. (See Colin McEvedy, World History Fact Finder, pp. 20ff. for easy references.) Thus the Nubians were involved.

The Soncino holds that the prior break was the advance of Pharaoh Hophra to relieve Jerusalem, while it was besieged by the Babylonians. The Egyptian army withdrew and the Babylonians renewed the attack (Jer. 27:5ff.). Egypt's decisive defeat at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar is recorded in 2Kings 24:7. The scope of the prophecy is larger than this would allow. The prophecy involves the Assyrians who were defeated and absorbed by the Babylonians, hence the break, which was irreparable, probably preceded the minor defeat of Hophra mentioned in Soncino.

Egypt had become a powerful kingdom after Ahmose, prince of Thebes, had defeated the Hyksos (c. 1600-1500 BCE) and expelled them from Egypt and thus founding the so-called 18th dynasty, which marks the beginning of Egypt's New Kingdom. Pharaohs Tutmoses I and III of Egypt (1500-1400 BCE) took Egyptian power to its greatest extent by conquering Palestine and Syria up to the Euphrates and Nubia up to the fourth cataract in the Nile (McEvedy, p. 16). The 18th dynasty lost Syria and petered out with the religious reformations of Akhnaton and his son Tutankhamen. We now know without doubt, through DNA testing and historical records, that these kings were Hg. R1b Hittites.

The 19th dynasty was commenced by Rameses (Ramesses) I. Ramesses II attempted to reconquer Syria in the 13th. century BCE but was rebuffed by the Hittites. In the 12th century BCE, the Egyptians, under Ramesses III, first pharaoh of the 20th dynasty, rebuffed an invasion of the Pereset or Peoples of the Sea who then settled in Israel. Israel had to recognise their supremacy as the Philistines. Their success seems to have been due to iron weapons. Thus the iron-age began.

In the 11th century BCE Egypt became divided between the pharaohs of the 21st dynasty ruling from Tanis in the Delta and the High Priests of Thebes ruling Upper Egypt. Nubia was independent. This period saw and perhaps enabled the emergence of the monarchy under Saul in Israel. Saul's task was formidable as he had to unite Israel and free it from the overlordship of the Philistines. The task was thus set by God as being one of systematic consolidation of the Levant, firstly by Saul and then by David, so that the Temple could be built by Solomon (see ##282A, 282B, 282C; 282D; 282E). The period under David and Solomon saw Israel at its greatest. However, the unity could not exist without sound leadership. In 924 BCE Shishonk, first pharaoh of the 22nd dynasty, extracted tribute from Judah and Israel. Egypt's weakening of Judah and Israel in fact sowed the seeds of its own destruction.

The 9th century BCE saw Assyria make a new bid for supremacy under Shalmaneser III who fought a coalition under Hadad of Damascus, Irhuleni of Hamath and Ahab of Israel. In 879 BCE Assurnasirpal II built the second Assyrian capital at Kalah (modern Nimrud) replacing Nineveh.

In 841 BCE Shalmaneser III takes tribute from the Levant including Israel. In 806 BCE Adadnirari III took Damascus but Assyrian supremacy in the Levant collapsed because of the war with the kingdom of Urartu or Ararat, north of Assyria, which had formed as a power in the 9th century BCE (see McEvedy, p. 19).

Thus we return to the conditions that set the scene for the emergence of the major power struggles between North and South in the 8th century BCE. As we said, in 750 BCE, the king of Nubia conquered Egypt establishing the 25th dynasty. In 732 BCE the Assyrian Tiglath Pileser III annexed Damascus making Israel and Judah tributary states. In 729 BCE Tiglath Pileser III annexed Babylon and Shalmaneser V (from 724-721 BCE) annexed Israel in 722 BCE. His successor Sargon II deported the ten tribes.

In 710 BCE the Cimmerians invaded trans-Caucasia from the Russian steppes. They devastated Urartu and the kingdom of Phrygia in Anatolia. In 705 BCE Sargon II was killed fighting the Cimmerians.

In 701 BCE Sennacharib's army unexpectedly withdrew from a punitive campaign in Judah. In 720 BCE Sargon II had established the Assyrian capital at Dur Sharrukin or Fort Sargon. In 701 BCE Sennacherib abandoned Fort Sargon and made Nineveh the capital again. There is thus a seeming reconcentration on the prophecies concerning Nineveh.

In 669-663 BCE the Assyrian empire reached its furthest extent with the conquest of Egypt by Esarhaddon and Assurbanipal. A satellite 26th dynasty was established at Sais in the Egyptian Delta.

During the 7th century BCE with the rising power of Assyria the Phoenicians recognised the suzerainty of Carthage among the western colonists. The Scyths also invaded trans-Caucasia during this period. The Assyrians were also under threat from the Elamites, one of the tribes to the east in Persia.

In 646 BCE Assurbanipal crushed Elam which was occupied by the Persians on their retreat.

In 626 BCE the downfall of the Assyrian empire began with the revolt of Babylon on the death of Assurbanipal. In 614 BCE Assur was sacked by the Medes. In 612 BCE Nineveh was sacked by the Babylonians and Medes. In 610 BCE the Babylonians overthrew the last Assyrian army at Harran and ended the Assyrian state.

This phase marked the pivotal point in the empires of history. The prophecy of Daniel 2 deals with the emergence of the new world kingdoms commencing with the Babylonian head of gold under Nebuchadnezzar. The background to the later empires was emerging from behind the scenes. During the period 750-701 BCE there had been waves of Greek immigrants to southern Italy and Sicily founding Syracuse, Catania, Reggio, Tarentum and Sybaris. In the 7th century BCE they emigrated to the shores of Propontis or the Sea of Marmara: this period saw the foundation of Chalcedon, Byzantium, Abydos and Lampascus.

Rome had been established, traditionally, from 753 BCE being associated with the emergence of the Etruscan city-states to the north. Thus the stage is set for the emergence of the empires of Daniel 2, the four great beasts of Daniel 7 (F027vii) and 8 (F027viii). The sequence is first set by the detailing of the Babylonian empire under Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 4 (F027iv). This kingdom was to be bound as a stump and left until seven times had passed over it (Dan. 4:25) so that it could be demonstrated that the Most High rules the kingdom of men (Dan. 4:26).

This prophecy was kept in the first instance for seven years, but the time sequence of seven times refers to the period of seven times 360 days (a prophetic year) or 2,520 years. This prophecy is important and will become evident as we progress. The major or key battle for the prophecy then begins from Nebuchadnezzar in 605 BCE. Thus the first arm of Egypt was broken by the Babylonians, having been broken previously by the Assyrians. Pharaoh Necho had marched to support the Assyrians at the battle of Harran in 610 BCE being subjugated by them in 669-663 BCE. He was opposed by Israel and killed King Josiah at Megiddo (609 BCE). Thus the significance of Megiddo is established in the last conflict. In 605 BCE Necho of Egypt was defeated by the Babylonian king (as prince regent reigning conjointly in 605 BCE) at the battle of Carchemish. Thus Egypt was conquered but was not entered by the army. This key battle marked the invasion by the Babylonians, which then involved a structured period of some forty years. Egypt then began to build its independence again. In 567 BCE, some 38 years after the first defeat, Nebuchadnezzar again defeated Egypt. Thus the first forty-year period of the broken arms was completed.

In 598 BCE Nebuchadnezzar took Jerusalem and deported Jews to Babylonia but left the Jewish state intact. In 587 BCE he again took Jerusalem and destroyed the first Temple. Thus the significance of the prophecy can be seen to have direct relation to the Temple and cover the key nations involved. The full significance will emerge as we develop the prophecy.

Babylon was itself conquered by the Medes and Persians under Cyrus whom God raised up for the purpose not only of destroying the Babylonians, but also of restoring Israel and establishing the basis for the reconstruction of the Temple. This activity involving Cyrus was also pivotal in the understanding of the sequence of the last days. From this restoration and reconstruction, the period for the ministry of Messiah was to be determined and interlinked to the Sign of Jonah and the destruction of the Temple in 70 CE. The restoration and the destruction of Jerusalem followed on from the prophecy of the seventy weeks of years (Dan. 9:25) (F027ix). The seventy weeks of years ceased with the destruction in 70 CE. It did not end in 27 CE as is wrongly taught by modern Christianity (from the forgery in the KJV).

The forty years, from Messiah's death to the destruction of the Temple and Jerusalem in 70 CE, thus completed the second element of the first phase of the sign of Jonah (see the paper The Sign of Jonah and the History of the Reconstruction of the Temple (No. 013)). The phases of the Sign of Jonah span the last forty jubilees of the 6,000 year period, a cycle of some 2,000 years. The symbolism of the three periods of forty jubilees totalling 6,000 years was identified in the life of Moses as outlined in the paper Moses and the Gods of Egypt (No. 105).

30:23-26 Thus the power of Egypt was to be broken. From Ezekiel 30:26, their power was broken so that they might know that Eloah is the Most High God (Prov. 30:4-5). Assyria, itself proud and the example of self-exaltation and arrogance, was held up to Egypt as the example or prototype of Egypt's doom.

Chapter 31

¹In the eleventh year, in the third month, on the first day of the month, the word of the LORD came to me: ²"Son of man, say to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his multitude: "Whom are you like in your greatness? ³Behold, I will liken you to a cedar in Lebanon, with fair branches and forest shade, and of great height, its top among the clouds. ⁴The waters nourished it, the deep made it grow tall, making its rivers flow round the place of its planting, sending forth its streams to all the trees of the forest. ⁵So it towered high above all the trees of the forest; its boughs grew large and its branches long, from abundant water in its shoots. ⁶All the birds of the air made their nests in its boughs; under its branches all the beasts of the field brought forth their young; and under its shadow dwelt all great nations. ⁷It was beautiful in its greatness, in the length of its branches; for its roots went down to abundant waters. ⁸The cedars in the garden of God could not rival it, nor the fir trees equal its boughs; the plane trees were as nothing compared with its branches; no tree in the garden of God was like it in beauty. ⁹I made it beautiful in the mass of its branches, and all the trees of Eden envied it, that were in the garden of God. ¹⁰"Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Because it towered high and set its top among the clouds, and its heart was proud of its height, ¹¹I will give it into the hand of a mighty one of the nations; he shall surely deal with it as its wickedness deserves. I have cast it out. ¹²Foreigners, the most terrible of the nations, will cut it down and leave it. On the mountains and in all the valleys its branches will fall, and its boughs will lie broken in all the watercourses of the land; and all the peoples of the earth will go from its shadow and leave it. ¹³Upon its ruin will dwell all the birds of the air, and upon its branches will be all the beasts of the field. ¹⁴All this is in order that no trees by the waters may grow to lofty height or set their tops among the clouds, and that no trees that drink water may reach up to them in height; for they are all given over to death, to the nether world among mortal men, with those who go down to the Pit. ¹⁵"Thus says the Lord GOD: When it goes down to Sheol I will make the deep mourn for it, and restrain its rivers, and many waters shall be stopped; I will clothe Lebanon in gloom for it, and all the trees of the field shall faint because of it. ¹⁶I will make the nations quake at the sound of its fall, when I cast it down to Sheol with those who go down to the Pit; and all the trees of Eden, the choice and best of Lebanon, all that drink water, will be comforted in the nether world. ¹⁷They also shall go down to Sheol with it, to those who are slain by the sword; yea, those who dwelt under its shadow among the nations shall perish. ¹⁸Whom are you thus like in glory and in greatness among the trees of Eden? You shall be brought down with the trees of Eden to the nether world; you shall lie among the uncircumcised, with those who are slain by the sword. "This is Pharaoh and all his multitude, says the Lord GOD."

Intent of Chapter 31

Ezekiel 31 continues:

31:1-4 Allegory of the Cedar (comp. ch 17)

God, through Ezekiel, uses an ancient Babylonian myth to emphasise that as with Tyre (28:1-5), the cause for Egypt’s fall was pride and unreliability which is really a criticism of the Fallen Host who controlled them (vv. 1-2).

v. 3 Behold, I will liken you to [the Assyrian was (MT)] a cedar in Lebanon, with fair branches and forest shade, and of great height, [the term ashshuris emended into te'ashshur, the tree mentioned in Isa. 41:19 translated larch; see also 27:6]. ⁴The waters nourished it, and the deep made it grow tall, making its rivers flow round the place of its planting, sending forth its streams to all the trees of the forest”

This text refers to the subterranean reservoir of waters from which the trees drew their nourishment. The Soncino continues this thought process that the great rivers not only filled the great rivers for the cedar but also filled the smaller canals which nourished the other trees. Thus Assyria received an exceptionally large supply so that its might was increased above theirs. Thus the allocation of the strength of the nations is being discussed. The concept of the nation systems is not the thing being discussed; it is the rulers of those systems of the Host, which derived their power, originally, from the Spirit of God.

31:5-14 The confusion caused by this text is significant. Assyria is used as a prototype of the fall of Egypt and yet the inheritors of the Assyrians, namely the Babylonians, whom the Greeks termed also Assyrians, were to be the instrument. Furthermore the Babylonians were to be the head of gold of Daniel 2 which was the start of a series of empires, which themselves would be destroyed and replaced by the Messianic kingdom. The significance is thus difficult to follow in the simple terms of nation against nation. It must be understood that God appoints the Host and allocates power and punishment. This text shows a much deeper meaning to the prophecy than at first might be supposed.

The significance of the rebellion of the Host is clearly alluded to by the bracketing of the key texts with direct references to the anointed Lucifer or Lightbearer – the current Morning Star. The drinking of water is a direct reference to the allocation of the Holy Spirit from God through Jesus Christ to mankind. The Host had that Spirit and rebelled, attempting to overthrow God. The Spirit, channelled through the elohim of the Host, caused the trees or stars of the Host to grow great. Mankind will be given that Spirit and will be guided by the horror of the results of the rebellion. The fact that the Spirit was given to the Host and caused them to grow great should not be misconstrued as contributing to the pride of Satan and hence a cause of evil. The greatness of the Host attributed to the Holy Spirit is not a cause of evil. The fact that the elect can sin in spite of their possession of the Spirit is the same concept. The Spirit is not a cause of evil. Free moral agency does not cause sin; it merely permits the misuse of power even in those who have the Holy Spirit. Thus Satan and Christ could sin and Satan did sin. See the Problem of Evil (No. 118).

The elect are to partake of the waters of the Spirit, which is referred to as waters.

Isaiah 12:3 Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation (KJV).

God's promise to Jacob was given at Isaiah 44:3 where God said:

Isaiah 44:3 I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit out upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring (KJV).

The Holy Spirit (No. 117) is poured out being likened to water. These springs of water are noted in Isaiah 49:10 which is quoted in Revelation 7:16 where the Lamb shall lead the elect to living fountains of water. This is a direct reference to the Holy Spirit and the fact that it is channelled through the intermediary elohim of the Host. The Lord is the fountain of living water (Jer. 17:13). This is the river of the water of life (Rev. 22:1). From God it is then channelled to each of the Host through His intermediary elohim, in our case Jesus Christ. Christ said that from him living waters flowed (Jn. 4:10-14; 7:38; cf. Isa. 12:3; 55:1; 58:11; Ezek. 47:1) speaking of the Spirit (Jn. 7:39). Christ developed the concept of the perennial waters of the restoration from Jeremiah 2:13 and 17:13 where God was the fountain of living water, and also Zechariah 14:8. Christ's voice is as the sound of many waters (Rev. 1:15). In the restoration those fountains of living waters shall flow from Jerusalem (Zech. 14:18) issuing from the sanctuary (Ezek. 47:12). There is an angel of the waters from Revelation 16:5. All these matters are determined according to the Plan of Salvation (No. 001A) through His Predestination (No. 296).

The comments in Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Revelation have a literal and a spiritual connotation. Israel is spiritually cleaned by water from Ezekiel 36:25. The elect partake of the water of life without price (Rev. 22:17). This is the foundational understanding of baptism and rebirth in the Holy Spirit as referred to in Matthew 28:19-20 (and above.) The struggle of the spiritual powers is also noted in Zechariah 9:9-17 in direct reference to Messiah. Messiah will liberate Israel and establish it forever. The significant references in this text are in verse 11:

Zechariah 9:11 As for thee also, by the blood of thy covenant I have sent forth thy prisoners out of the pit where there is no water (KJV).

“The reference to the pit where there is no water is again a reference to the waters of the Spirit, which is withheld from the pit and the fallen Host; thus giving emphasis to the concept in Ezekiel. The conflict that is specifically mentioned in Zechariah is that of Israel and Greece in verse 13. We are referring to the spiritual battle that was to ensue for the minds of the elect using Greek systems to undermine the spiritual understanding of the elect through theological structures, which impugned the nature of God and the biblical position. Trinitarianism is directly the result of Greek philosophical structures, which have no biblical basis.” (#136 op.cit).

The end result of this struggle is seen from Zechariah 9:15.

Zechariah 9:15-16 The Lord of Hosts shall defend them; and they shall devour, and subdue with sling stones; and they shall drink, and make a noise as though with wine; and they shall be filled like bowls, and as the corners of the altar. ¹⁶And the Lord their God shall save them in that day as the flock of His People: for they shall be as the stones of a crown, lifted up as the ensign upon His land.

They will be full of the Holy Spirit and they will be points of safety as were the horns of the altar. They will be the priesthood of Israel. This time at the end sees the absence of shepherds (Zech. 10:2). The anger of the Lord is kindled against the shepherds and against the goats (Zech. 10:3). The war of the last days is detailed also in Zechariah 10:3-12. The houses of Judah and Ephraim are made as mighty men and the Lord will call Ephraim. The Lord says in Zechariah 10:8-12:

Zechariah 10:8-12 I will hiss [signal; RSV] for them, and gather them; for I have redeemed them: and they shall increase as they have increased. ⁹And I will sow them among the people and they will remember Me in far countries; and they shall live with their children, and turn again. ¹⁰And I will bring them again also out of the land of Egypt, and gather them out of Assyria; and I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon; and place shall not be found for them. ¹¹And he shall pass through the sea with affliction, and shall smite the waves in the sea, and all the deeps of the river shall dry up: and the pride of Assyria shall be brought down, and the sceptre of Egypt shall depart away. ¹²And I will strengthen them in the Lord; and they shall walk up and down in His name, saith the Lord.

The concepts in this passage refer to the wars of the end and the restoration of the millennial or Messianic Kingdom. The new exodus and gathering of Israel takes place with the destruction of the world systems, which are typified by Egypt and then Assyria. The “deeps of the river drying up” is a direct reference to the Nile being dried up as it is stated in Ezekiel 30:12. The desolation of Egypt from Migdol to Syene refers to the stretch of the Nile to Assouan or Assawan at the dam site. This has yet to occur.

The struggle of the spiritual powers of the Host is further detailed in the analogy that is used between Israel, Egypt and Babylon. The prophecy of the destruction of the world powers, and their angelic overlords, is shown to be replaced with the Messianic Kingdom. This can be seen also from Ezekiel 17:1-2 (F026v).

This riddle (or perplexing problem put forward for solution) is combined with a parable (which is the comparison of one thing with another). Thus this text is a divine mystery which demands solution and which compares type against anti-type. This text refers firstly to Great Eagles. This is traditionally inferred as the king of Babylon. The king of Babylon is not just a physical king. It refers also to the prime type of the supernatural rulers. The Great Eagles are the Cherubim (Ex. 25:20; 37:9) or Archangels of the Elohim. The Great Eagle of Israel was Jesus Christ the Angel of Yahovah upon whose wings Israel was brought out of Egypt (Ex. 19:4) and which helped Israel as the church in the wilderness (Rev. 12:14). Similarly, when the Son of Man comes in glory, there will the (angelic) eagles be gathered (Mat. 24:28; Lk. 17:37). The punishment for idolatry and disobedience in Deuteronomy 28:49 was to have a nation brought against Israel as swift as the eagle flies. These nations under the angelic Host are used to punish nations. The meanings of the text are examined below.

Ezekiel 17:3-4 And say, 'Thus saith the Lord God; "A great eagle with great wings, longwinged, full of feathers, which had divers colours, came unto Lebanon, and took the highest branch of the cedar: ⁴He cropped off the top of his young twigs, and carried it into a land of traffick; he set it in a city of merchants.

Traditionally this refers to the captivity of Jehoiachin whom he took to Babylon (Jeconiah or Coniah) (see also v. 12 and Jer. 22:23-24). Ezekiel 17:5-6 traditionally refers to the establishment of Zedekiah as the vassal king of Israel. The text in 17:7-8 re the other Great Eagle, as we see in the note there, refers to Egypt and Pharaoh Hophra. Zedekiah had given his oath of allegiance to the Babylonians but turned to Egypt.

Ezekiel 17:9-21 Shows the destruction of Zedekiah which is recorded in Jeremiah. Israel did not want to obey the directives and punishment of God. They had sinned and God had punished them; yet He would have spared the Temple and the position of Judah if they had kept His statutes and obeyed those whom He had raised up. They did not obey and turned to the Egyptian system for aid in overcoming the empirical system which God had allowed to be established and which He had shown through Daniel that He would allow to continue until the restoration under Messiah, which is the event depicted in Daniel 2. The great figure has differing parts of the body in different metals representing different qualities of the empirical systems. But they are all part of the same body, which continues over the entire period of the Gentiles until that empirical system is destroyed by Messiah. Thus the stump of the Babylonians was bound for seven times. However, the stump was a composite of the Assyrians, the Medes and the Persians who succeeded Nebuchadnezzar. That Aryan system which had taken over from the semitic Babylonians entered Europe as the Roman and then the Holy Roman Empires, in the north, in Central Europe.

The body of Daniel 2 is not composed of separate bodies; it is one body comprised of different parts. Its greatest power is achieved in the last days when the greatness of the Assyro-Babylonian system is again restored to deal with Israel who became again an apostate people. The restoration of Israel occurs through the Branch (which is also referred to in Zech. 3:8 and 6:12). This Branch is himself the cedar or spiritual ruler of Israel. Ezekiel 17:22-24 continues to deal with Israel and the Highest of its lineage. This end result is the taking of the highest branch of the cedar that is Israel. This royal lineage is to become Messiah who is the goodly cedar. Under Messiah shall dwell all living things. The systems of the world are to be destroyed. The cedar that was the original Morning Star (the covering Cherub Azazel or Satan) is replaced by the line of David, the new Morning Star who is Messiah (Rev. 22:16). Those who dwell under his branches are given to share in the Morning Star (Rev. 2:28).

The sequence of this transition is given in the parables of the fall of Egypt and the ultimate use and destruction of the Babylonian systems. Satan's rebel systems are used against Satan's systems. It is then easier to see the symbolism of the cedars and the use of the analogy of the Pit and of Sheol or the Grave and the ultimate sequence of the resurrections. The watercourses deal with the control of the nations through the channelling of the Spirit, as it is available to the Host. 31:15-18 thus has greater significance. There are a number of concepts here. The trees of Eden referred to are those who once were partakers of the divine nature but rebelled. They went down to the Pit. All of the nations likewise go down to the Pit, to Sheol, in death. Eden is not used here in reference to Assyria on the basis that Assyria encompassed the areas of Eden. Eden was the Levant. It fed both the Tigris-Euphrates systems and also the areas of the South into Egypt and North Africa. Eden is not and has not been used to refer to Assyria. The drinkers of water will be comforted in the nether world. Thus we are dealing with the concepts of the various stages of the resurrection determined by the Holy Spirit. The allocation of waters is also allocated to, and is stopped from being accessed by many. Thus the uncircumcised and the trees of Eden lie with the world's system and their rulers both physical and spiritual. It should be obvious that physical trees are not comforted in the nether world.

Our battle is against spiritual wickedness from Ephesians 6:12:

For we do not contend against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spiritual host of wickedness in the heavenly places.

It should thus be obvious that we are dealing with a major spiritual struggle for the restoration of the Kingdom of God. That struggle involves supernatural powers, which are the powers that actually rule this world. The prophecies thus deal with those entities as actual realities. Modern Christianity seeks to deny the reality of the fallen Host as rulers of this world. They have the words of the faith but deny its power. There is going to be a titanic struggle for the restoration of this planet, which will almost destroy it. That work is not for the faint hearted. We have seen already some who seek to deny the reality of the prophecies and who hope to avoid the struggle by pretending that it will not happen. We saw this attitude pandered to in previous churches, where the various strategies employed involved places of safety or raptures or earthly kingdoms of the Church. God is our strength and the rock of our salvation. For the elect's sake He will intervene to save this planet and for no other reason. He has declared His will and He will accomplish it. The reason that people will not repent over this process is that they deny the reality of what is happening to them. It was for this reason that they sought to kill the prophets. They killed the messenger in the mistaken belief that if they pretended that it was not going to happen then it would not happen. They shut their ears so that they would not hear and so God will shut His over that period.

Chapter 32

¹In the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, on the first day of the month, the word of the LORD came to me: ²"Son of man, raise a lamentation over Pharaoh king of Egypt, and say to him: "You consider yourself a lion among the nations, but you are like a dragon in the seas; you burst forth in your rivers, trouble the waters with your feet, and foul their rivers. ³Thus says the Lord GOD: I will throw my net over you with a host of many peoples; and I will haul you up in my dragnet. ⁴And I will cast you on the ground, on the open field I will fling you, and will cause all the birds of the air to settle on you, and I will gorge the beasts of the whole earth with you. ⁵I will strew your flesh upon the mountains, and fill the valleys with your carcass. ⁶I will drench the land even to the mountains with your flowing blood; and the watercourses will be full of you. ⁷When I blot you out, I will cover the heavens, and make their stars dark; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not give its light. ⁸All the bright lights of heaven will I make dark over you, and put darkness upon your land, says the Lord GOD. ⁹"I will trouble the hearts of many peoples, when I carry you captive among the nations, into the countries which you have not known. ¹⁰I will make many peoples appalled at you, and their kings shall shudder because of you, when I brandish my sword before them; they shall tremble every moment, every one for his own life, on the day of your downfall. ¹¹For thus says the Lord GOD: The sword of the king of Babylon shall come upon you. ¹²I will cause your multitude to fall by the swords of mighty ones, all of them most terrible among the nations. "They shall bring to nought the pride of Egypt, and all its multitude shall perish. ¹³I will destroy all its beasts from beside many waters; and no foot of man shall trouble them any more, nor shall the hoofs of beasts trouble them. ¹⁴Then I will make their waters clear, and cause their rivers to run like oil, says the Lord GOD. ¹⁵When I make the land of Egypt desolate and when the land is stripped of all that fills it, when I smite all who dwell in it, then they will know that I am the LORD. ¹⁶This is a lamentation which shall be chanted; the daughters of the nations shall chant it; over Egypt, and over all her multitude, shall they chant it, says the Lord GOD." ¹⁷In the twelfth year, in the first month, on the fifteenth day of the month, the word of the LORD came to me: ¹⁸"Son of man, wail over the multitude of Egypt, and send them down, her and the daughters of majestic nations, to the nether world, to those who have gone down to the Pit: ¹⁹'Whom do you surpass in beauty? Go down, and be laid with the uncircumcised.' ²⁰They shall fall amid those who are slain by the sword, and with her shall lie all her multitudes. ²¹The mighty chiefs shall speak of them, with their helpers, out of the midst of Sheol: 'They have come down, they lie still, the uncircumcised, slain by the sword.' ²²"Assyria is there, and all her company, their graves round about her, all of them slain, fallen by the sword; ²³whose graves are set in the uttermost parts of the Pit, and her company is round about her grave; all of them slain, fallen by the sword, who spread terror in the land of the living. ²⁴"Elam is there, and all her multitude about her grave; all of them slain, fallen by the sword, who went down uncircumcised into the nether world, who spread terror in the land of the living, and they bear their shame with those who go down to the Pit. ²⁵They have made her a bed among the slain with all her multitude, their graves round about her, all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword; for terror of them was spread in the land of the living, and they bear their shame with those who go down to the Pit; they are placed among the slain. ²⁶"Meshech and Tubal are there, and all their multitude, their graves round about them, all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword; for they spread terror in the land of the living. ²⁷And they do not lie with the fallen mighty men of old who went down to Sheol with their weapons of war, whose swords were laid under their heads, and whose shields are upon their bones; for the terror of the mighty men was in the land of the living. ²⁸So you shall be broken and lie among the uncircumcised, with those who are slain by the sword. ²⁹"Edom is there, her kings and all her princes, who for all their might are laid with those who are slain by the sword; they lie with the uncircumcised, with those who go down to the Pit. ³⁰"The princes of the north are there, all of them, and all the Sido'nians, who have gone down in shame with the slain, for all the terror which they caused by their might; they lie uncircumcised with those who are slain by the sword, and bear their shame with those who go down to the Pit. ³¹"When Pharaoh sees them, he will comfort himself for all his multitude, Pharaoh and all his army, slain by the sword, says the Lord GOD. ³²For he spread terror in the land of the living; therefore he shall be laid among the uncircumcised, with those who are slain by the sword, Pharaoh and all his multitude, says the Lord GOD."

Intent of Chapter 32

vv. 1-8 The Kingdom is given to Christ and is seized in power and is accompanied by the destruction of the Earth systems. We saw this process in the paper The Fall of Egypt: the Prophecy of Pharaoh's Broken Arms (No. 036) from Ezekiel 32:1-8.

We are now able to see the significant battles that are being waged in the Host over a continual period. The war we face is not a physical battle, but is rather against principalities and powers that are in rebellion to the will of God. The wars are detailed for us in Bible prophecy and we have a responsibility as stewards of the Mysteries of God to understand and expound those mysteries. As previously explained this prophecy was chosen as the central framework precisely because it is held up as failed prophecy and precisely because it is not understood by mankind. The framework could as easily have been Revelation or Daniel or Isaiah using all of the others to explain the sequence. The fact of the matter is that they are all interrelated and point to the Kingdom of God. That Kingdom will be established on this planet in power and glory. It is however, necessary to warn the world of the process. As explained in the paper The Warning of the Last Days (No. 044) God does nothing before He warns those concerned through His servants the prophets (Am. 3:7). This prophecy was given in a sequence over 2,000 years ago. It is being fulfilled on a continuing basis. Nothing will stop that.

32:1-8 In this text we are given the same sequence as that for the last days. Christ says much the same thing in Matthew 24:29-31.

Matthew 24:29-31 "Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken; ³⁰then will appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory; ³¹and he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. (RSV)

The expression from one end of heaven to the other is not to be taken to infer some heavenly rapture. The text refers to the four corners of the earth. They will be gathered to Zion.

Luke 21:24-27 states that Christ will come in a cloud in power and great glory after the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. The people will be led into captivity from Jerusalem, and it will be trodden down by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled:

Luke 21:24-27 they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led captive among all nations; and Jerusalem will be trodden down by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. ²⁵"And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and upon the earth distress of nations in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, ²⁶men fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. ²⁷And then they will see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. (RSV)

The texts here reflect the sense of Revelation 5:12-13.

Revelation 5:12-13 saying with a loud voice, "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!" ¹³And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all therein, saying, "To him who sits upon the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might for ever and ever!" (RSV)

Also Isaiah 13:10 says:

Isaiah 13:10For the stars of the heavens and their constellations will not give their light; the sun will be dark at its rising and the moon will not shed its light. (RSV)

God is specifically detailing the day of the Lord here. The build up to the prophecy in Isaiah 14 is thus for the end of the age and Messianic. Isaiah 14 has direct application to Ezekiel 28. The sequence in Ezekiel 29 to 32 relates to the period between the times of the Gentiles and the days of the Watchmen in Ezekiel 33. These chapter groupings are not without significance. The periods of these prophecies are the same periods dealt with in Daniel 2 which shows beyond question that the sequence commences with Nebuchadnezzar but ends with the destruction of the ten king system of the empire of iron and clay in the last days, thus beginning the millennial reign of Messiah.

Also Joel 2:10 states of the day of the Lord at this end time:

Joel 2:10The earth quakes before them, the heavens tremble. The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining. (RSV)

Also Zephaniah 1:15 states:

Zephaniah 1:15 A day of wrath is that day, a day of distress and anguish, a day of ruin and devastation, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness, (RSV)

Daniel 7:13-14 reflects Luke 21:27.

Daniel 7:13-14 I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. ¹⁴And to him was given dominion and glory and kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed. (RSV)

Ezekiel then continues in vv 32:9-16 concerning Egypt.

The reference at verse 14 to making the waters clear and their rivers run like oil refers again to the Holy Spirit using the analogy of the pouring out of the oil into the lamps of the elect. Here it is to the nations after the restoration and the Spirit is poured out on mankind.

We are looking at the nations, the Gentiles chanting over the demise of the Egyptian system. This is thus not an ordinary captivity or an ordinary destruction.

The Lord delivers the second judgment in Ezekiel 32:17-23, which details the nations involved in the destruction. The nations are mentioned in this prophecy, which was actually given before the first half of the chapter and had been arranged in the later order, perhaps because it seemed that was more logical an arrangement. However, the extended time-frame involved is disguised further by this arrangement.

Here the prophecy commences to include other nations not part of the early groupings. Elam went into Egypt also when the Medes and Persians had conquered Egypt. This conquest was the second phase or the other arm of the conquest. This occurred in 525 BCE under Cambyses. In 550 BCE Cyrus of Persia (The Lord's anointed, Isa. 45:1) defeated the Medes and became paramount king of Iran (hence Persia). In 546 BCE he defeated Croesus and took Lydia. He annexed Babylonia in 539 BCE and established the supremacy of the Persian Empire in the East. In 525 BCE Cyrus' son Cambyses succeeded him and invaded Egypt. Thus the second arm of the first prophecy was fulfilled.

Ezekiel 32:24-25 continues in regard to Elam.

The question arises as to why Elam is distinguished in the prophecy and made to stand distinct when the nation formed only part of the Medo-Persian Empire. Elam was the oldest of the kingdoms and had not been annexed to the Assyrian empire. With the demise of the Assyrians, Elam fell prey to the Persians under Prince Sispis, or Teispes of the Achæmenidæ, who placed himself on the throne at Shushan (Historian's History of the World, Vol. 1, p. 437). Thus Cambyses inherited the throne of the Elamites.

The answer as to why Elam is distinguished in the prophecy is, more probably, that it has dual application and refers to an extended order of peoples outside of the Medo-Persians or Iranians proper, as there is some question as to the extent of the Elamites.

The Median hordes were undisciplined and no match for the Assyrians. Cyaxares the Mede remodelled the army based on the Assyrian. The Medians then invaded and besieged Nineveh. The siege of Nineveh was forced to be abandoned by the invasion of Media by the Scyths from the north. Thus a second siege had to be made from 609 BCE. The Median army under Cyaxares besieged Nineveh with the aid of the Babylonians (according to Berosus the Chaldean). The Babylonian king's son Nebuchaddrezzar (or Nebuchadnezzar) had married the daughter of the king of the Medes. Thus the Medes were the major force in the destruction of the Assyrians and not the Persians, who were not involved in this siege and indeed told Herodotus nothing of it.

With the fall of Assyria, the dominion of the north and the countries of Asia Minor as far as the Halys passed to the Medes. All other provinces of the Assyrians as far as the Mediterranean Sea, including Asshur, Harran and Carchemish fell to Babylonia (Historian's History of the World, ibid., p. 444).

Thus the Babylonians themselves were the inheritors of the Assyrian and the Greeks referred to them as Assyrians (ibid., p. 445).

The Semitic empire of the Assyro-Babylonians could only be propped up by the force of the power of Nebuchadnezzar and his successors were inadequate for this task. They could neither prevent the spread of the Medes nor the Persians. With the Persian conquest of the Elamites and under the genius of Cyrus who had been selected and named by God, an empire was founded which embraced the four ancient empires – the Median, the Elamite, the Assyro-Babylonian, and the Egyptian. Thus the sceptre of western Asia passed to the Aryans (ibid.).

At this point the prophecies found in Nahum (see esp. Nah. 3:19) and Zephaniah 2:13-15 were completed in their first application. These prophecies have a latter day application.

It is also worthy of note that the prophecies of Nahum regarding the fall of Assyria were seen, by the first century Jewish community, as involving Ephraim and Manasseh in the last days. Manasseh was held to be referred to as Amon (Nah. 3:8a) with the rivers being or referring to its great men. Manasseh was to go into captivity (from Nah. 3:10) before the wicked of Ephraim (Nah. 3:11a). Their men would die by the sword (see Vermes, The Dead Sea Scrolls in English, pp. 232-234).

The prophecy in Ezekiel appears to break down here as the next text involves nations, which were not remotely on the scene during the period of the first two forty-year periods. The next group is that of Meshech and Tubal. This nation group did not occupy Egypt in the invasions from 605-525 BCE, and had no part in Egypt until the 20th century. ( 32:26-28)

This sequence of nations is a later grouping. The failure of the text as a completed prophecy has led some biblical scholars, in the face of the claims of the sceptics, to rationalise the text away by attempting to explain the nations referred to as being subsidiary groups allied to the ancient nations. The concept that this prophecy is pivotal and ongoing is far too uncomfortable for most Bible students.

The text reads that they do not lie with the fallen mighty men of old. Thus we are dealing with a later aspect of the prophecy. The concept of not lying with the mighty men of old clearly has the implication that they went to the pit in two stages. We are also dealing with a distinction between the types of warfare involved. The mighty men of old went down to Sheol with their weapons whereas this seems not to be the case in these later groupings.

The assertion that the mighty men of old refers to the Nephilim or the giants of Genesis 6:4 does not solve the problem, but rather compounds it and opens up the argument to the application of the offspring of the fallen Host being separated in the process of the resurrections. Isaiah 26:13-14 in fact denies the resurrection to the Rephaim or Nephilim. Rephaim was in fact interpreted as deceased or dead.

Isaiah 26:13-14 O Lord our God, other Lords beside Thee have had dominion over us: but by thee only will we make mention of thy name. ¹⁴They are dead, they shall not live; they are deceased, they shall not rise: therefore hast Thou visited and destroyed them, and made all their memory to perish (KJV).

See the papers The Nephilim (No. 154) and The Resurrection of the Dead (No. 143).

Isaiah 27 goes on to discuss the slaying of Leviathan in the day of the Lord. This Leviathan, the piercing and crooked serpent, the dragon that is in the sea shall be slain or bound as in Revelation 20:4. Then shall Israel take root throughout the world. In that day the Lord will beat off or harvest as one would olives, the Children of Israel from the channel of the River, or the Tigris-Euphrates, to the stream of Egypt.

Isaiah 27:13 says:

Isaiah 27:13 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the great trumpet shall be blown, and they shall come which were ready to perish which were in the land of Assyria, and the outcasts in the land of Egypt, and shall worship the Lord in the holy mount at Jerusalem.

Isaiah 28 then goes on to talk of the crushing of the pride of the drunkards of Ephraim. Thus the end days involve war in Ephraim. The prophecy is clearly interrelated to that of Ezekiel and the destruction of Egypt. Moreover, the last days are indisputably involved and developed.

The nations that are involved in the fall of Egypt and seem to be distinguished from the earlier groupings involve, as we have seen, Meshech and Tubal. Meshech and Tubal were the sons of Japheth (Gen. 10:2). They were identified with the Gomerite peoples of the steppes now known as the Russians. Included in this group of Gomerites was the Ashkenazi who formed the later Khazar Jewish kingdom. The song of ascents spoke of the problems with these people in Psalm 120:5. Ezekiel 38:2 identifies Gog and Magog as chief princes of Meshech and Tubal yet Magog was their brother from Genesis 10:2. We are thus dealing with a nation that absorbed the Magogites as their chief tribe.

These groups extended into Asia Minor as did the Elamites. The next group of people to be listed are the Edomites.

Ezekiel 32:29 "Edom is there, her kings and all her princes, who for all their might are laid with those who are slain by the sword; they lie with the uncircumcised, with those who go down to the Pit. (RSV)

The Edomites did not go into Egypt and the only national groups that could be said to have become involved with this group were that of the Ottoman Turks. The time-frame is thus well into the last days.

32:30-32 The next group to be dealt with confirms this view. This group is comprised of the princes of the north. The group here is a composite army comprised of the princes of the north and also the Sidonians. The princes of the north are not simply an aggregation of the northern kingdoms of the Medo-Persians.

This section deals with a much wider and later basis. The fact that the prophecy deals with a group listed after those of Meshech and Tubal in the later times as we see above, which is after the complete demise of the early empires, indicates the relocated powers of their systems. Thus the power of the European system is combined with the remnant of the Phoenician system, which was based on or descended from Tyre and Sidon. In 1000 BCE these systems and the Israelite alliance traded with the Americas. We know that they imported tobacco and cocaine into the Middle East (cf. recent research on mummies in Germany and Britain ca. 2000).

The Phoenician systems were in the last great aggregation based from Carthage and their power was broken in the Mediterranean by the Punic wars. There is little doubt, however, that the Carthaginians had spread west into the Atlantic and had been mining Britain and trading with Ireland for centuries. According to Edwards (Christian England, Vol. 1, p. 20), Carthage understood the spread of Christianity to be beyond Rome to those areas. Tertullian of Carthage in Against the Jews boasts that:

'parts of Britain inaccessible to the Romans were indeed conquered by Christ'.

(See Establishment of the Church under the Seventy (No. 122D) and Origin of the Christian Church in Britain (No. 266).)

We are thus dealing with a spread of the Sidonians, which is extended to and joined with the Princes of the North. The extent of the Sidonians also takes in the original areas, from Sidon extending throughout the Lebanon, which takes place in the wars of the end.

The fact of the involvement of these national groups in their entirety for example of Meshech and Tubal rule out any minor mercenary activity with the Babylonians and Medo-Persians in the first phase of eighty years. Coupled with the other incomplete aspects it was concluded that this is a failed prophecy and Scripture has been broken. The reality was that it has wide ranging application over the period or time of the Gentiles as has been identified from Daniel and the other prophets.

The next task is to identify the phases because that process will establish the sequence of the wars of the last days. The commencement of the Fourth Cherub (F026iii) begins in the Gospels at F040, F040i, F041, F042, F043 and are summarised at F043vi and F066.

The prophecies now spread into the Last Days as we see in the Second Phase of the Prophecy of Pharaoh’s Broken Arms: the Fall of Egypt (No. 036) and on to the Wars of the Last Days (No. 036_2) and also to Wars of the End Part I: Wars of Amelek (No. 141C); Completion of the Sign of Jonah (No. 013B); Daniel F027ii, iv, xi, xii, xiii; Commentary on Habbakuk (F035); Haggai F037; and Trumpets (No. 136)

*****

Bullinger’s Notes on Ezekiel Chs 29-32 (for KJV)

Chapter 29

Verse 1

In the tenth year , &c.: i.e. a year and two days after the siege of Jerusalem began (Jeremiah 39:1 ), and six months, less three days, before its fall. See notes on p. 1105.

the LORD . Hebrew. Jehovah . App-4 .

Verse 2

Son of man . See note on Ezekiel 2:1 .

Pharaoh . Namely, Pharaoh Hophra, called Apries by the Greeks. Compare Jeremiah 44:30 . He besieged and captured Gaza (Jeremiah 47:1 ); attacked Zidon and encountered the prince of Tyre on the sea (Herodotus, ii. 161: compare 2 Kings 24:7 . Jeremiah 46:2 ); and said, "no god could deprive him of his kingdom" (Herodotus, H. 169). Zedekiah relied on him. See Jeremiah 37:5-8 . Egypt was thus the cause of Jerusalem's destruction. See Jeremiah 44:30 ; and compare Jeremiah 46:25 , Jeremiah 46:26 .

Verse 3

the Lord God. Hebrew. Adonai Jehovah . See note on Ezekiel 2:4 .

Behold . Figure of speech Asterismos . App-6 .

the great dragon = the great crocodile, to which Egypt was likened on Roman coins. Compare Isaiah 51:9 , where "Rehab" is used of Egypt (Isaiah 30:7 ).

My river = the Nile.

I have made it . Referring probably to the artificial system of canals and water-ways.

Verse 4

fish. Symbols of Pharaoh's subjects

Verse 6

shall know . See note on Ezekiel 6:7 .

a staff of reed . This was by inciting Israel to resist and rebel against Assyria by promises of help which failed. See 2 Kings 18:21 .Isaiah 20:5 , Isaiah 20:6 ; Isaiah 30:6 , Isaiah 30:7 ; Isaiah 31:3 .Jeremiah 2:36 ; Jeremiah 37:7 .

the house of Israel . See note on Exodus 16:3 .

Verse 7

to be at a stand = to come to a stand, or to halt. Ginsburg thinks, to shake" ( Isa 69:2 ).

Verse 8

I Will bring a sword. This phrase is peculiar to Ezekiel. See Ezekiel 5:17 ; Ezekiel 6:3 ; Ezekiel 11:8 ; Ezekiel 14:17 ; Ezekiel 29:8 ; Ezekiel 33:2 ; In Leviticus it is: "I will draw out the sword after you". Compare Leviticus 26:33 .

man. Hebrew, 'adam . App-14 .

Verse 10

from the tower of Syene = from Migdol to Syene. Compare Ezekiel 30:6 .

the tower = Migdol. See note on Exodus 14:2 for "Migdol", and compare Jeremiah 44:1 . In the north of Egypt.

of Syene = to Syene. Hebrew. Seveneh. Now Assouan, in the south.

Verse 13

will I gather . Therefore they could not be the people known as gipsies.

people = peoples.

Verse 14

bring again, &c = turn the fortunes, &c. See note on Deuteronomy 30:3 ,

the captivity of Egypt or, the Egyptian captives. Note the discrimination shown in these prophecies. Some were never to be restored; others were to be resuscitated.

Pathros = Upper, or Southern Egypt.

habitation = nativity.

base = low.

Verse 15

basest = lowest.

Verse 16

iniquity. Hebrew ` avah . App-44 .

they shall know, &c. See note on Ezekiel 6:10 .

Verse 17

the seven and twentieth year . See the table, p. 1105.

Verse 18

Nebuebadrezzar. caused his army , &c. That this was fulfilled is shown by Prof. Sayre, The Egypt of the Hebrews (1896), p. 130, who quotes an inscription which describes this campaign, which took place (it says) in the thirty = seventh year of his reign. He defeated Pharaoh Amasis. For this spelling ("Nebuchadrezzar ") see note on Ezekiel 26:4 .

head was made bald. Probably from the helmet worn in so long a war.

shoulder was peeled . From bearing arms so long.

Verse 19

I will give . See note on Ezekiel 29:18 , above. it shall be the wages. See the Structure on p. 1147.

Verse 20

saith the Lord GOD [is) Adonai Jehovah's oracle.

Verse 21

in the midst. Compare Ezekiel 3:26 , Ezekiel 3:27 ; Ezekiel 24:27 .

Chapter 30

Verse 1

the LORD . Hebrew. Jehovah . App-4 .

Verse 2

Son of man. See note on Ezekiel 2:1 .

the Lord GOD. Hebrew. Adonai Jehovah . See note on Ezekiel 2:4 .

worth. This is the past tense ( weorth ) of Anglo-Saxon weorthan , to become. It means Woe he to the day! Hebrew = Alas for the day!

Verse 3

the day of the LORD . See notes on Isaiah 2:12 ; Isaiah 13:6 ; and Revelation 1:10 .

the time of, &c.: i.e. the season in which their power shall be judged and broken.

heathen = nations.

Verse 4

Ethiopia. Hebrew Cush, allied with Egypt. Compare Ezekiel 30:9 ; and Jeremiah 46:9 . Also resorted to for help by Israel.

Verse 5

Libya . Lydia. Hebrew Phut . . . Led. Compare Ezekiel 27:10 . Genesis 10:6 . These were an African people. Compare Jeremiah 46:9 . Nahum 3:9 .

mingled people = mixed multitude: i.e. the allies of Babylon. Compare Jeremiah 25:20 .

Chub . Perhaps Caba, in Mauretania, or Cobe, in Ethiopia.

men = sons.

Verse 6

the tower , &c. See note on Ezekiel 29:10 .

saith the Lord GOD = [is] Adonai Jehovah's oracle.

Verse 9

from Me = frorn before Me.

in ships . Going up the Nile. The Septuagint reads "hastening" or "running"; but note that Ethiopia sent messengers in ships to promise help to Judah, but Jehovah sent His messengers in ships to prophesy her judgment.

as in the day . Many codices (including the Hillel Codex, A.D. 600, quoted in the Masserah), with three early printed editions, Septuagint, Syriac, and Vulgate, read "in the day". Other codices. with seven early printed editions and Aramaean, read "as (or like, or about the time of) the day".

lo . Figure of speech Asterismos App-6 .

Verse 10

Nebuchadreszar. See notes on Ezekiel 26:7 , and Ezekiel 29:18 .

Verse 12

wicked. Hebrew. ra'a . App-44 .

Verse 13

idols = manufactured gods.

images = things of nought.

Noph = Memphis. Now Abu Sir .

Verse 14

Pathros . Upper, or Southern Egypt.

Zoan = Tanis: now San; an ancient Egyptian city in Lower Egypt (Numbers 13:22 .Psalms 78:12; Psalms 78:12 ). See note on Isaiah 30:4 .

No . No Ammon. Now Thebes (Nahum 3:8 ). Compare Jeremiah 46:25 .

Verse 15

Sin = Pelasium, in the Egyptian delta. See Ezekiel 29:10 . the multitude of No. Heb Hamon = No. Compare Ezekiel 30:14 .

Verse 17

Aven = On, or Heliopolis (Beth = shemesh, city or house of the Sun), north of Memphis.

Pi-beseth . In some codices written as one word; in others as two words: Pi being "the" in Coptic, and Pasht = the Egyptian goddess Artemis . Now Tel Basta , in the Delta, north of Memphis.

Verse 18

Tehaphnehes . See note on Jeremiah 43:7 . Greek name Daphne . Now Tel Defenneh . See App-87 .

the yokes of Egypt. The yokes imposed by Egypt on other peoples. Genitive of Origin. See App-17 .; and Compare Ezekiel 34:27 .

Verse 20

the eleventh year. About four months before the fall of Jerusalem. See table on p. 1106.

Verse 21

a roller = a bandage.

Verse 22

Behold. Figure of speech Asterismos . App-6 .

Verse 25

they shall know , &c. See note on Ezekiel 6:10 .

Chapter 31

Verse 1

the eleventh year . See note on Ezekiel 30:20 , and p. 1105. the third month. About two months before the fall of Jerusalem.

the LORD. Hebrew. Jehovah . App-4 .

Verse 2

Son of man . See note on Ezekiel 2:1 .

Verse 3

Behold. Figure of speech Asterismos . App-6

the Assyrian. Ginsburg thinks this should read teashshur (= a box = tree) instead of ' ashshur (= an Assyrian). There is no article; and Egypt is the subject here, not Assyria. See note on Ezekiel 27:6 , and compare Isaiah 41:19 ; Isaiah 60:13 . The subject is the proud exaltation of Egypt, which is likened to a box or cypress, exalting itself into a cedar of Lebanon.

shroud = foliage.

Verse 4

waters . . . deep : i.e. the water = ways, and the Nile. Compare Ezekiel 31:15 .

Verse 5

branches. Hebrew text reads "branch" (singular); but margin, with some codices and four early printed editions, road "branches" (plural) Occurs only in Ezekiel.

Verse 6

boughs = arms. Occurs only here and in 31:8.

Verse 8

the garden of God. Reference to Pentateuch (Genesis 2:8 ). God. Hebrew. Elohim . App-4 .

Verse 9

Eden. Reference to Pentateuch (Genesis 2:0 ). Compare Ezekiel 28:13 . App-92 .

Verse 10

thus smith, he. See note on Ezekiel 44:9 .

the Lord God. Hebrew Adonai Jehovah. See note on Ezekiel 2:4 .

thou . Pharaoh,

he . Ashur.

Verse 11

heathen = nations.

for. Many codices, with five early printed editions, Syriac, and Vulgate, read "according to", as our text does. Other codices, with four early printed editions and Aramaean, read "in".

wickedness = lawlessness. Hebrew. rasha. App-44 .

Verse 12

strangers = foreigners.

rivers = torrents. Hebrew ' aphikim . See note on" channels", 2 Samuel 22:16 .

Verse 14

all. All the trees. So in Ezekiel 31:16 .

children = sons.

men. Hebrew ' adam . App-14 .

Verse 15

the grave. Hebrew. Sheol . App-35 .

Verse 16

I east gim down = I caused tint to descend.

hell = Sheol. Same word as "the grave" in Ezekiel 31:15 . the pit. Hebrew. bor . Showing the sense in which Sheol is used in Ezekiel 31:15 and Ezekiel 31:16 . See notes on "well", Genesis 21:19 ; and "pit", Isaiah 14:19 .

Verse 17

and they that were his arm. Septuagint and Syriac rend "and his seed".

Verse 18

saith the Lord GOD = [is] Adonai Jehovah's oracle.

Chapter 32

Verse 1

the twelfth year. See the table on p. 1105.

twelfth month . About one year and a half after the fall of Jerusalem.

the LORD. Hebrew. Jehovah . App-4 .

Verse 2

Son of man. See note on Ezekiel 2:1 .

Thou art like = Thou bast been likened to.

and thou art = yet art thou. The contrast is between what was noble and less noble.

whale = crocodile

seas = a collection of waters, like the branches of the Nile. Compare Isaiah 27:1 .

rivers. Heb, nahar . Not the same word as in Ezekiel 32:6 .

Verse 3

the Lord GOD . Hebrew. Adonai Jehovah , See note on Ezekiel 2:4 .

company = gathered host. Compare Ezekiel 16:40 .

many: or, mighty.

people = peoples.

Verse 4

fill = satisfy.

Verse 5

height = thy high heap i.e. of thy slain.

Verse 6

wherein thou swimmest : or, of thy overflowing.

rivers = torrents, or ravines. Hebrew ' aphikim , See note on 2 Samuel 22:16 . Not the same word as in Ezekiel 32:2 .

Verse 7

put thee out = extinguish thee.

I will cover , &c. Compare Isaiah 13:10 ; Isaiah 14:12 .Joel 2:10 ; Joel 3:15 .Amos 8:9 . Revelation 6:12-14 .

Verse 8

bright lights = light = bearers. Ref, to Pentateuch (Genesis 1:14 ). App-92 , Hebrew. ma'or .

saith the Lord GOD = [is] Adonai Jehovah's oracle.

Verse 10

every man . Hebrew. 'ish . App-14 .

life = soul. Hebrew. nephesh , App-13 .

Verse 13

man. Hebrew. 'adam. App-14 .

Verse 14

deep = subside.

Verse 17

the month: i.e. the twelfth month. See Ezekiel 32:1 .

Verse 18

cast them down = cause them to descend: i.e. by Heb, idiom declare (by the dirge) that they shall descend. See note on Ezekiel 14:8 , Ezekiel 14:9 ; Ezekiel 20:28 .

nether = lower.

the pit. Hebrew. bor = a grave dug in the earth. See note on 31. is, showing the meaning of Sheol in Ezekiel 32:21 .

Verse 19

the uncircumcised. This word is repeated ten times in this chapter, and always in connection with an ignominious death (verses: Ezekiel 32:19 , Ezekiel 32:21 , Ezekiel 32:24-30 , Eze 19:32 ). Compare Jeremiah 9:25 , Jeremiah 9:26 .

Verse 20

slain by the sword. Note the Figure of speech Cycloidea ( App-6 ), by which these words occur as a refrain twelve times in the following verses (twelve being the number of governmental perfection or completion. See App-10 ).

draw her = drag her away: i.e. to the grave.

Verse 21

The strong = The strongest, or chiefeet.

shall speak, &c, Note the Figure of speech Prosopopoeia ( App-6 ), by which dead people are represented as speaking.

hell = the grave. Hebrew. Sheol . App-35 .

Verse 22

Asshur : i.e. the great empire of Assyria.

graves . Hebrew. keber = burying-places, or sepulchres. See App-36 . Same word as in verses: Ezekiel 32:23 , Ezekiel 32:25 , Ezekiel 32:26 .

Verse 23

company = gathered host.

in the land of the living. Used here as the opposite of the land of the dead. See note on Ezekiel 26:20 . The expression occurs six times in this chapter.

Verse 25

multitude. The 1611 edition of the Authorized Version reads multitudes" (plural)

Verse 27

with their weapons of war. This determines the nature of the place here described as "the grave", "the pit", and "Sheol".

iniquities. Hebrew ' avah . App-44 .

Verse 28

broken: or, overthrown.

Verse 32

caused. Hebrew nathan = given: as distinct from their terror. See note on Ezekiel 20:25 .

My. Hebrew text has "His"; margin "My".

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