Ezekiel 30:20-26

Victory for Babylon

20 In the ¹eleventh * year, in the first month, on the seventh of the month, the word of the LORD came to me saying,

21 "Son of man, I have ²broken the arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and, behold, it has not been ³bound up for healing or wrapped with a bandage, that it may be strong to hold the sword.

22 "Therefore thus says the Lord GOD, 'Behold, I am ⁴against Pharaoh king of Egypt and will break his arms, both the strong and the ⁵broken; and I will make the sword ⁶fall from his hand.

23 'I will ⁷scatter the Egyptians among the nations and disperse them among the lands.

24 'For I will ⁸strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon and put ⁹My sword in his hand; and I will break the arms of Pharaoh, so that he will groan before him with the groanings of a wounded man.

25 'Thus I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, but the arms of Pharaoh will fall. Then they will know that I am the LORD, when I put My sword into the hand of the king of Babylon and he ¹⁰stretches it out against the land of Egypt.

26 'When I scatter the Egyptians among the nations and disperse them among the lands, then they will know that I am the LORD.' "

Ezekiel 30:20-26 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO EZEKIEL 30

This chapter is a continuation of the prophecy against Egypt, both against the country and the king of it. It is introduced with expressions of lamentation, because of the destruction coming on, Eze 30:1-3, and not only Egypt, and the cities thereof, should be destroyed, but all her friends, associates, and allies; the Ethiopians, Lydians, Lybians, and others, Eze 30:4-9. Nebuchadnezzar and his army were to be the instruments of her ruin, Eze 30:10-12, particular cities are mentioned by name, which should suffer much, and become desolate, Eze 30:13-19 and then Pharaoh king of Egypt himself is threatened with broken arms, and his people to be scattered among the nations, Eze 30:20-23, and the king of Babylon is again mentioned, whose arms should be strengthened to do all this, Eze 30:24-26.

Cross References

• 1. Ezekiel 26:1; Ezekiel 29:1, 17; Ezekiel 31:1
• 2. Psalms 10:15; Psalms 37:17; Ezekiel 30:24
• 3. Jeremiah 30:13; Jeremiah 46:11
• 4. Jeremiah 46:25; Ezekiel 29:3
• 5. 2 Kings 24:7; Jeremiah 37:7
• 6. Jeremiah 46:21
• 7. Ezekiel 29:12; Ezekiel 30:17, 18, 26
• 8. Nehemiah 6:9; Isaiah 45:1, 5; Ezekiel 30:10, 25; Zechariah 10:12
• 9. Ezekiel 30:11, 25; Zephaniah 2:12
• 10. Joshua 8:18; 1 Chronicles 21:16; Isaiah 5:25

Footnotes

• [a] Lit "to give healing"
• [b] Lit "to put a bandage, to wrap it"