Ezekiel 32

This is the last chapter of the oracles of judgment against foreign nations in Ezekiel, which begin in chapter 25. It concludes the series of prophecies against Egypt that began in chapter 29. The preceding chapter, Ezekiel 31, warned Pharaoh by likening Assyria to a fallen cedar. In this chapter a lament (a song of mourning for the dead) is taken up over Pharaoh himself.

Outline

• Verses 1–2 The word of the LORD comes on the first day of the twelfth month of the twelfth year. The nations regarded Pharaoh as a young lion, but in reality he is a great crocodile of the seas (KJV "whale") who fouls the rivers.
• Verses 3–6 The LORD hauls him out with a net and casts him upon the open field. Birds and beasts feed on him, and his blood fills the mountains and the rivers.
• Verses 7–10 The sun, moon, and stars are darkened. At the news of his downfall, many nations and kings tremble in fear.
• Verses 11–15 The sword of the king of Babylon comes upon Egypt. Egypt's pride is broken, the land is made desolate, and the people will know that he is the LORD.
• Verse 16 The daughters of the nations will chant this lament.
• Verses 17–21 A second word comes on the fifteenth day of an unspecified month in the twelfth year. The multitude of Egypt goes down to the nether parts of the earth and lies with the uncircumcised and those slain by the sword.
• Verses 22–30 Already lying there are Assyria, Elam, Meshech and Tubal, Edom, the princes of the north, and the Sidonians. These are the ones who caused terror in the land of the living.
• Verses 31–32 Pharaoh sees them and is comforted. He too, with all his army, lies among those slain by the sword.

Key Verses

• Ezekiel 32:2 "thou art as a whale in the seas": contrasts the majesty the nations saw in Pharaoh with the reality as God sees it.
• Ezekiel 32:7 "I will cover the heaven, and make the stars thereof dark": portrays the fall of a nation as cosmic darkness.
• Ezekiel 32:15 "then shall they know that I am the LORD": a recurring expression in Ezekiel that states the purpose of the judgment.

People and Places

• Pharaoh: The king of Egypt. The text does not give his name.
• King of Babylon: Not named in this text, though the earlier passage Ezekiel 30:10 mentions Nebuchadnezzar explicitly.
• Sheol: The place to which the dead descend, also called "the pit" and "the nether parts of the earth" in the text.
• Elam: A nation east of Babylon.
• Meshech and Tubal: Peoples generally associated with Asia Minor.
• Sidon: A Phoenician city on the Mediterranean coast.

Points for Reflection

• The date of the second oracle: Verse 17 does not specify the month. Some ancient versions are reported to read "the first month."
• Sequence relative to the news of Jerusalem's fall: The date in verse 1 is later than the date given in Ezekiel 33:21 for the arrival of the news that Jerusalem had fallen. For this reason some interpreters hold that this chapter's prophecies were delivered after the fall of the city.
• The expression "the uncircumcised": Egypt is known to have practiced circumcision. Many interpreters therefore read the expression as an idiom for a shameful death.
• Interpreting the depiction of Sheol: Many regard the scene as poetic imagery. Some caution against building a doctrine of the state of the dead on this passage alone.
• The darkening of the heavens: The image of the sun and moon being darkened also appears in Isaiah 13:10 and Joel 2:10 and carries forward into Matthew 24:29. For this reason the passage is sometimes read in connection with the Day of the LORD tradition.