Ezekiel 31:4

4 The waters gave it drink, the primordial deep lifted it high, Gushing out rivers around the place where it was planted, And then branching out in streams to all the trees in the forest.

Ezekiel 31:4 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 31:4

The waters made him great
The waters of the river Tigris, near to which stood the city of Nineveh, the metropolis of the Assyrian monarchy; the traffic brought by which river made it rich and great, and the whole empire, and the king of it: the deep set him up on high, with her rivers running round about his
plants;
the vast trade by sea, the profits and commodities of which were conveyed through various rivers, which ran about the provinces of the empire, which were as plants in a field; and by which they were enriched, and the whole empire, and the king of it, were raised to a prodigious pitch of wealth and power: and sent out little rivers to all the trees of the field;
so that the common people, comparable to the trees of the field for their number and usefulness, all received profit and advantage hereby: or else by waters and the deep may be meant the multitude of people, as in ( Revelation 17:15 ) , which increased his kingdom, filled his provinces, supplied his colonies, and enlarged his power and riches. The Targum is,

``by the people he was multiplied; by his auxiliaries he became strong; he subjected kings under his government; and his governors he appointed over all the provinces of the earth.''

Ezekiel 31:4 In-Context

2 "Son of man, tell Pharaoh king of Egypt, that pompous old goat: "'Who do you, astride the world, think you really are?

3 Look! Assyria was a Big Tree, huge as a Lebanon cedar, beautiful limbs offering cool shade, Skyscraper high, piercing the clouds.

4 The waters gave it drink, the primordial deep lifted it high, Gushing out rivers around the place where it was planted, And then branching out in streams to all the trees in the forest.

5 It was immense, dwarfing all the trees in the forest - Thick boughs, long limbs, roots delving deep into earth's waters.

6 All the birds of the air nested in its boughs. All the wild animals gave birth under its branches. All the mighty nations lived in its shade.