Old Testament · Prophets

Ezekiel chapter 29

In the tenth year, in the tenth month, on the twelfth day, a from Yahweh came to me:“, Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and against him and against all of Egypt.Speak and say: This is what Yahweh, the , declares — I am against you, Pharaoh king of Egypt, you sprawled in your rivers, who says, ‘My belongs to me — I made it for myself.’But I will set and make the cling to your scales. I will haul you up out of your rivers — you and all the fish stuck to your scales.I will fling you into the — you and all the fish of your rivers. You will fall on the open ground, never gathered up, never collected. I have given you as food to the wild animals and the birds of the sky.Then everyone living in Egypt will . Because you were a for the people of Israel —when they gripped you by the hand, you and tore open their whole shoulder; when they leaned on you, you snapped and made all their legs buckle.So this is what Yahweh, the Lord of all, declares: Watch — I am bringing a against you, and I will cut off from you both people and animals.The land of Egypt will become a , and they will know that I am Yahweh. Because you said, ‘The Nile is mine — I made it’ —so I am against you and against your rivers. I will turn the land of Egypt into ruins — a dried-up, desolate waste — from to , all the way to the border of .No human foot will pass through it, no animal hoof will pass through it. It will be uninhabited for .I will make the land of Egypt a desolation among desolated lands, and its cities will lie in ruins among ruined cities for forty years. I will the Egyptians among the nations and disperse them across foreign lands.But this is what Yahweh, the Lord of all, declares: At the end of forty years I will gather the Egyptians from the peoples where they were scattered.I will restore the fortunes of Egypt and bring them back to the land of , the land of their origin, and there they will be a .It will be the lowest of kingdoms and never again rise above the other nations. I will make them so small that they will never again rule over the nations.Egypt will never again be something the people of Israel trust in. Instead, it will be a in turning to Egypt for help. Then they will know that I am Yahweh, the Lord of all.”In the twenty-seventh year, in the first month, on the first day, a message from Yahweh came to me:“Son of man, king of Babylon drove his army in a grueling campaign against . Every head was and every shoulder rubbed raw. But neither he nor his army got any reward from Tyre for the campaign he waged against it.So this is what Yahweh, the Lord of all, declares: Watch — I am handing the land of Egypt over to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. He will carry off its wealth, seize its plunder, and strip its spoils — and that will be the for his army.I have given him the land of Egypt as payment for his labor, because they were — this is the of Yahweh, the Lord of all.On that day I will cause a to sprout for the people of Israel, and I will among them. Then they will know that I am Yahweh.”