Ezekiel - Chapter 32

Ezekiel 32.1 And it came to pass in the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, in the first day of the month, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Ezekiel 32.2 Son of man, take up a lamentation for Pharaoh king of Egypt, and say unto him, Thou art like a young lion of the nations, and thou art as a whale in the seas: and thou camest forth with thy rivers, and troubledst the waters with thy feet, and fouledst their rivers. Ezekiel 32.3 Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will therefore spread out my net over thee with a company of many people; and they shall bring thee up in my net. Ezekiel 32.4 Then will I leave thee upon the land, I will cast thee forth upon the open field, and will cause all the fowls of the heaven to remain upon thee, and I will fill the beasts of the whole earth with thee. Ezekiel 32.5 And I will lay thy flesh upon the mountains, and fill the valleys with thy height. Ezekiel 32.6 I will also water with thy blood the land wherein thou swimmest, even to the mountains; and the rivers shall be full of thee. Ezekiel 32.7 And when I shall put thee out, I will cover the heaven, and make the stars thereof dark; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not give her light. Ezekiel 32.8 All the bright lights of heaven will I make dark over thee, and set darkness upon thy land, saith the Lord GOD. Ezekiel 32.9 I will also vex the hearts of many people, when I shall bring thy destruction among the nations, into the countries which thou hast not known. Ezekiel 32.10 Yea, I will make many people amazed at thee, and their kings shall be horribly afraid for thee, when I shall brandish my sword before them; and they shall tremble at every moment, every man for his own life, in the day of thy fall. Ezekiel 32.11 For thus saith the Lord GOD; The sword of the king of Babylon shall come upon thee. Ezekiel 32.12 By the swords of the mighty will I cause thy multitude to fall, the terrible of the nations, all of them: and they shall spoil the pomp of Egypt, and all the multitude thereof shall be destroyed. Ezekiel 32.13 I will destroy also all the beasts thereof from beside the great waters; neither shall the foot of man trouble them any more, nor the hoofs of beasts trouble them. Ezekiel 32.14 Then will I make their waters deep, and cause their rivers to run like oil, saith the Lord GOD. Ezekiel 32.15 When I shall make the land of Egypt desolate, and the country shall be destitute of that whereof it was full, when I shall smite all them that dwell therein, then shall they know that I am the LORD. Ezekiel 32.16 This is the lamentation wherewith they shall lament her: the daughters of the nations shall lament her: they shall lament for her, even for Egypt, and for all her multitude, saith the Lord GOD. Ezekiel 32.17 It came to pass also in the twelfth year, in the fifteenth day of the month, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Ezekiel 32.18 Son of man, wail for the multitude of Egypt, and cast them down, even her, and the daughters of the famous nations, unto the nether parts of the earth, with them that go down into the pit. Ezekiel 32.20 They shall fall in the midst of them that are slain by the sword: she is delivered to the sword: draw her and all her multitudes. Ezekiel 32.21 The strong among the mighty shall speak to him out of the midst of hell with them that help him: they are gone down, they lie uncircumcised, slain by the sword. Ezekiel 32.22 Asshur is there and all her company: his graves are about him: all of them slain, fallen by the sword: Ezekiel 32.23 Whose graves are set in the sides of the pit, and her company is round about her grave: all of them slain, fallen by the sword, which caused terror in the land of the living. Ezekiel 32.24 There is Elam and all her multitude round about her grave, all of them slain, fallen by the sword, which are gone down uncircumcised into the nether parts of the earth, which caused their terror in the land of the living; yet have they borne their shame with them that go down to the pit. Ezekiel 32.26 There is Meshech, Tubal, and all her multitude: her graves are round about him: all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword, though they caused their terror in the land of the living. Ezekiel 32.27 And they shall not lie with the mighty that are fallen of the uncircumcised, which are gone down to hell with their weapons of war: and they have laid their swords under their heads, but their iniquities shall be upon their bones, though they were the terror of the mighty in the land of the living. Ezekiel 32.28 Yea, thou shalt be broken in the midst of the uncircumcised, and shalt lie with them that are slain with the sword. Ezekiel 32.29 There is Edom, her kings, and all her princes, which with their might are laid by them that were slain by the sword: they shall lie with the uncircumcised, and with them that go down to the pit. Ezekiel 32.30 There be the princes of the north, all of them, and all the Zidonians, which are gone down with the slain; with their terror they are ashamed of their might; and they lie uncircumcised with them that be slain by the sword, and bear their shame with them that go down to the pit. Ezekiel 32.31 Pharaoh shall see them, and shall be comforted over all his multitude, even Pharaoh and all his army slain by the sword, saith the Lord GOD. Ezekiel 32.32 For I have caused my terror in the land of the living: and he shall be laid in the midst of the uncircumcised with them that are slain with the sword, even Pharaoh and all his multitude, saith the Lord GOD.

Ezekiel : Chapter 32

Reflection on Ezekiel 32 and the Destiny of Egypt Chapter 32 of the book of Ezekiel concludes the prophecies against Egypt with two poignant laments. How does God illustrate the ultimate destiny of this nation? This striking text uses the imagery of a slain sea monster and a descent into hell. At the heart of this chapter, profound themes emerge, such as the inevitability of death, the final leveling of all nations, and divine judgment. Ezekiel 32 also lists other nations that have fallen from Sheol. In this spirit, let us meditate together on five biblical passages that shed light on the solemn truths of this final chapter.

Isaiah 14:9-10

"Sheol below is alive to welcome you upon your arrival; it awakens the spirits of the dead to welcome it, all those who were rulers in the world; it raises from their thrones all those who were kings of the nations. They will all answer it, 'You too have become weak like us! He has become like us!'" »

This passage from Isaiah describes the descent into Sheol in a similar way to Ezekiel's lamentation over Pharaoh in Ezekiel 32. It emphasizes the common fate of all the powerful in the face of death.

Revelation 19:17-18

"I saw an angel standing in the sun and calling out with a loud voice to all the birds flying in mid-heaven, 'Come, gather yourselves together to the great banquet of God, to eat the flesh of kings, of commanders, and of mighty men, the flesh of horses and of their riders, the flesh of all men, free and bond, small and great.' »

This vision from Revelation echoes the language of Ezekiel 32 about birds feeding on the bodies of the dead, testifying to the divine judgment awaiting the oppressors of this world.

Jeremiah 25:33

“In that day those slain by the Lord will be scattered from one end of the earth even to the other end of the earth. They will not be mourned for, nor gathered, nor buried, but they will be like dunghill on the face of the earth.” »

Jeremiah uses imagery similar to that of Ezekiel 32 to describe divine judgment, recalling the gravity of rebellion against God.

Psalms 49:14

"Like sheep, they are destined for the grave, and death will guide them. In the morning, the righteous will triumph over them! Their bodies will rot in the grave, far from their luxurious homes." »

This psalm reflects the theme of Ezekiel 32 about the final destiny of the proud, affirming God's sovereignty over all created things.

Daniel 7:11

"I kept watching because of the arrogant words the horn was speaking. I watched until the animal was killed and its body was destroyed and thrown into the fire. »

Daniel's vision of the judgment of the powerful nations aligns with Ezekiel's prophecy in Ezekiel 32, affirming that God is the ultimate judge and that divine justice will be served.

As we meditate on these passages, we are invited to reflect on the gravity of divine judgment and the fleeting nature of human glory. May these profound truths lead us to a life of faith and humility before our Creator.