Ezekiel 29:19

19 Therefore thus saith the Lord God: Behold, I will set Nabuchodonosor the king of Babylon in the land of Egypt: and he shall take her multitude, and take the booty thereof for a prey, and rifle the spoils thereof: and it shall be wages for his army.

Ezekiel 29:19 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 29:19

Therefore thus saith the Lord God
Since this was the case, that the king of Babylon had been working for nothing, and had spent much blood and treasure, as well as time, to little purpose and advantage to himself; behold, I will give the land of Egypt to Nebuchadrezzar king of
Babylon;
which will make him a sufficient recompence for his loss of time, men, and money, before Tyre; and though the conquest of Egypt was made easy to him, by the internal divisions and wars which were among the Egyptians; yet these were suffered, and ordered by the providence of God, to bring about this his will, by way of righteous punishment of the Egyptians, for their treachery to his people, and other sins: and he shall take her multitude,
of soldiers, and of inhabitants, and carry them captive: and take her spoil, and take her prey;
that which the Egyptians had spoiled other nations of and made a prey of that should now become the spoil and prey of the Chaldeans: and it shall be the wages for his army;
with this the king of Babylon would be able to pay off the arrears of his army; which had lain so long against Tyre; or this would be a recompence to them for all the hardships they there sustained.

Ezekiel 29:19 In-Context

17 And it came to pass in the seven and twentieth year in the first month, in the first of the month: that the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
18 Son of man, Nabuchodonosor king of Babylon hath made his army to undergo hard service against Tyre: every head was made bald, and every shoulder was peeled and there hath been no reward given him, nor his army for Tyre, for the service that he rendered me against it.
19 Therefore thus saith the Lord God: Behold, I will set Nabuchodonosor the king of Babylon in the land of Egypt: and he shall take her multitude, and take the booty thereof for a prey, and rifle the spoils thereof: and it shall be wages for his army.
20 And for the service that he hath done me against it: I have given him the land of Egypt, because he hath laboured for me, saith the Lord God.
21 In that day a horn shall bud forth to the house of Israel, and I will give thee an open mouth in the midst of them: and they shall know that I am the Lord.
The Douay-Rheims Bible is in the public domain.