Ezekiel 31:2

2 "Human being, say to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his hordes: 'Whom are you like in your greatness?

Ezekiel 31:2 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 31:2

Son of man, speak unto Pharaoh king of Egypt
To Pharaohhophra, the then reigning king; not to him personally by word of mouth, for the prophet was now in Chaldea; but by delivering out a prophecy concerning him, and which he might have an opportunity of sending to him: and to his multitude;
the multitude of his subjects, of which he boasted, and in whom he trusted: whom art thou like in thy greatness?
look over all the records of time, and into all the empires, kingdoms, and states that have been; draw a comparison between thyself and the greatest potentate that ever was; fancy thyself to be equal to him; this will not secure thee from ruin and destruction; for as they have been humbled, and are fallen, so wilt thou be: pitch for instance on the Assyrian monarch, whose empire has been the most ancient, extensive, and flourishing, and yet now crushed; and as thou art like him in greatness, at least thou thinkest so, so thou art in pride, and wilt be in thine end; to assure of which is the drift of the following account of the king of Assyria.

Ezekiel 31:2 In-Context

1 On the first day of the third month of the eleventh year, the word of ADONAI came to me:

2 "Human being, say to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his hordes: 'Whom are you like in your greatness?

3 Like Ashur, a cedar in the L'vanon. It had beautiful branches, dense foliage, its tall crown surrounded by leafy boughs.

4 The water nourished it; the deep made it grow, sending its rivers round the place where it was planted, sending its streams to all the trees in the fields.

5 So it grew taller than any other tree, its branches grew in number and spread far and wide, for it had plenty of water to make them grow.