Ezekiel 32 Study Notes: Mourning Over Pharaoh and Egypt
Ezekiel sings a funeral song over Pharaoh, pictured as a sea creature that God catches in His net while the sky goes dark. Babylon’s king will crush Egypt’s pride, and a second lament shows Egypt going down to the grave beside other once-feared nations.
General
In the second lament (32:17-21), what does God picture as Egypt’s end?
Answer: Going down to lie with the slain among the uncircumcised
God tells Ezekiel to mourn for Egypt’s crowds and to send her down, in the words of the lament, to the Pit (a name for the grave and the realm of the dead). God asks Egypt whom she thinks she surpasses in beauty, and orders her down to rest with the uncircumcised (a term of disgrace for those outside God’s covenant) among those killed by the sword (32:18-20). Mighty leaders already among the dead speak of Egypt and those who helped her coming down to join them (32:21). The poem pictures a proud nation brought low in death, sharing the shame of the other fallen nations. The lament also mentions warriors of old laid to rest with their weapons, but Egypt is told it will lie among the uncircumcised and the slain (32:27-28). Isaiah paints a similar scene in which dead kings greet the fallen king of Babylon and tell him he has become as weak as they are (Isaiah 14:9-11). As the psalm says, no one carries his wealth with him when he dies (Psalm 49:17).
- Ezekiel 32:18-20 (BSB)““Son of man, wail for the multitudes of Egypt, and consign her and the daughters of the mighty nations to the depths of the earth with those who descend to the Pit: Whom do you surpass in beauty? Go down and be placed with the uncircumcised! They will fall among those slain by the sword. The sword is appointed! Let them drag her away along with all her multitudes.”Ezekiel is to mourn for Egypt and send her down to the Pit to lie with the uncircumcised and the slain.
- Ezekiel 32:21 (BSB)“Mighty chiefs will speak from the midst of Sheol about Egypt and her allies: ‘They have come down and lie with the uncircumcised, with those slain by the sword.’”Mighty leaders already in the realm of the dead speak of Egypt and her allies joining them.
- Isaiah 14:9-11 (BSB)“Sheol beneath is eager to meet you upon your arrival. It stirs the spirits of the dead to greet you—all the rulers of the earth. It makes all the kings of the nations rise from their thrones. They will all respond to you, saying, “You too have become weak, as we are; you have become like us!” Your pomp has been brought down to Sheol, along with the music of your harps. Maggots are your bed and worms your blanket.”Isaiah pictures the dead rulers greeting the fallen king of Babylon as one now no stronger than they are.
- Psalm 49:17 (BSB)“For when he dies, he will carry nothing away; his abundance will not follow him down.”The psalm says a man takes none of his riches with him at death.
Theological
How does the second lament (32:17-21) depict Egypt’s end?
Answer: Going down to lie with the slain among the uncircumcised
Ezekiel is told to wail over Egypt’s multitudes and to consign her to the depths with those who go down to the Pit, the grave and realm of the dead. God’s taunt asks whom she surpasses in beauty and orders her down to rest with the uncircumcised, among the fallen killed in battle (32:18-20). Mighty chiefs already in Sheol speak of Egypt and her helpers descending to join them (32:21). The poem portrays the proud nation brought low in death, its splendor ending in the common disgrace of the fallen. Where the warriors of old went down armed for battle, Egypt is told it will lie among the uncircumcised and the slain (32:27-28). Isaiah’s taunt over Babylon’s king, greeted in Sheol by the dead kings of the nations, uses the same imagery (Isaiah 14:9-11), and the psalmist observes that no one’s riches go down with him (Psalm 49:17).
- Ezekiel 32:18-20 (BSB)““Son of man, wail for the multitudes of Egypt, and consign her and the daughters of the mighty nations to the depths of the earth with those who descend to the Pit: Whom do you surpass in beauty? Go down and be placed with the uncircumcised! They will fall among those slain by the sword. The sword is appointed! Let them drag her away along with all her multitudes.”Ezekiel is to mourn for Egypt and send her down to the Pit to lie with the uncircumcised and the slain.
- Ezekiel 32:21 (BSB)“Mighty chiefs will speak from the midst of Sheol about Egypt and her allies: ‘They have come down and lie with the uncircumcised, with those slain by the sword.’”Mighty leaders already in the realm of the dead speak of Egypt and her allies joining them.
- Isaiah 14:9-11 (BSB)“Sheol beneath is eager to meet you upon your arrival. It stirs the spirits of the dead to greet you—all the rulers of the earth. It makes all the kings of the nations rise from their thrones. They will all respond to you, saying, “You too have become weak, as we are; you have become like us!” Your pomp has been brought down to Sheol, along with the music of your harps. Maggots are your bed and worms your blanket.”Isaiah pictures the dead rulers greeting the fallen king of Babylon as one now no stronger than they are.
- Psalm 49:17 (BSB)“For when he dies, he will carry nothing away; his abundance will not follow him down.”The psalm says a man takes none of his riches with him at death.
General
Who does the lament say will catch the sea monster in a net (32:3)?
Answer: The LORD Himself, with a great crowd of the nations
God says He will throw His own net over Pharaoh, with a vast crowd of peoples helping to haul him out of the water in it (32:3). The nations are the hands that pull the net, but the net belongs to God. After that, the creature is thrown out on dry land, where its power is gone (32:4-6). God had used the same picture for Judah’s prince, saying He would cast His net over that prince and trap him in His snare (Ezekiel 12:13), and in an earlier oracle He said He would put hooks in the monster’s jaws and pull it out of its rivers (Ezekiel 29:4). However mighty Egypt seemed, the LORD brings the schemes of the nations to nothing (Psalm 33:10).
- Ezekiel 32:3 (BSB)“This is what the Lord GOD says: ‘I will spread My net over you with a company of many peoples, and they will draw you up in My net.”God says the net is His, cast over Pharaoh with the help of many peoples.
- Ezekiel 12:13 (BSB)“But I will spread My net over him, and he will be caught in My snare. I will bring him to Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans; yet he will not see it, and there he will die.”God uses the same picture of His net and snare for the capture of Judah’s prince.
- Ezekiel 29:4 (BSB)“But I will put hooks in your jaws and cause the fish of your streams to cling to your scales. I will haul you up out of your rivers, and all the fish of your streams will cling to your scales.”In an earlier oracle God says He will put hooks in the monster’s jaws and haul it out of its rivers.
- Psalm 33:10 (BSB)“The LORD frustrates the plans of the nations; He thwarts the devices of the peoples.”The psalm declares that the LORD overturns the plans of the nations and peoples.
Theological
According to 32:3, who catches the sea monster in the net?
Answer: The LORD Himself, with a great crowd of the nations
The capture is God’s own work: He casts His net over Pharaoh, and a great assembly of peoples hauls him up in it (32:3). The nations serve as instruments, but the agency is divine, and the creature is then cast out on the land, its power ended (32:4-6). The same image of God’s net and snare is applied to Judah’s prince (Ezekiel 12:13), and the earlier oracle speaks of hooks in the monster’s jaws hauling it from its streams (Ezekiel 29:4). The scene displays God’s sovereign rule over the nations, whose schemes He frustrates (Psalm 33:10).
- Ezekiel 32:3 (BSB)“This is what the Lord GOD says: ‘I will spread My net over you with a company of many peoples, and they will draw you up in My net.”God says the net is His, cast over Pharaoh with the help of many peoples.
- Ezekiel 12:13 (BSB)“But I will spread My net over him, and he will be caught in My snare. I will bring him to Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans; yet he will not see it, and there he will die.”God uses the same picture of His net and snare for the capture of Judah’s prince.
- Ezekiel 29:4 (BSB)“But I will put hooks in your jaws and cause the fish of your streams to cling to your scales. I will haul you up out of your rivers, and all the fish of your streams will cling to your scales.”In an earlier oracle God says He will put hooks in the monster’s jaws and haul it out of its rivers.
- Psalm 33:10 (BSB)“The LORD frustrates the plans of the nations; He thwarts the devices of the peoples.”The psalm declares that the LORD overturns the plans of the nations and peoples.
General
True or False: The lament says that when God puts Pharaoh out like a light, He will darken the sun, the moon and the stars over him (32:7-8).
Answer: True
This is true. God says that when He snuffs Pharaoh out, He will veil the sky, darken the stars, hide the sun behind a cloud, keep the moon from shining, and bring darkness over Egypt (32:7-8). This is the prophets’ way of describing how great a nation’s fall is when God judges it, as if the lights of the sky went out. Many peoples will be shaken to the core, and their rulers will tremble with dread when God swings His sword before them (32:9-10). Isaiah uses the same darkened sky in his oracle against Babylon (Isaiah 13:10), Amos speaks of the sun going down at noon on the day of judgment (Amos 8:9), and Ezekiel had already called Egypt’s judgment a day of the LORD, a cloudy day bringing ruin to the peoples (Ezekiel 30:3).
- Ezekiel 32:7-8 (BSB)“When I extinguish you, I will cover the heavens and darken their stars. I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon will not give its light. All the shining lights in the heavens I will darken over you, and I will bring darkness upon your land,’ declares the Lord GOD.”When God snuffs out Pharaoh, He darkens the sun, moon and stars over him and over his land.
- Ezekiel 32:9-10 (BSB)“‘I will trouble the hearts of many peoples, when I bring about your destruction among the nations, in countries you do not know. I will cause many peoples to be appalled over you, and their kings will shudder in horror because of you when I brandish My sword before them. On the day of your downfall each of them will tremble every moment for his life.’”Many peoples are troubled and their kings shudder when God brings Egypt down.
- Isaiah 13:10 (BSB)“For the stars of heaven and their constellations will not give their light. The rising sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light.”In his oracle against Babylon, Isaiah uses the same darkened sun, moon and stars to picture God’s judgment.
- Amos 8:9 (BSB)“And in that day, declares the Lord GOD, I will make the sun go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in the daytime.”Amos also describes the day of God’s judgment as the sun setting at noon.
- Ezekiel 30:3 (BSB)“For the day is near, the Day of the LORD is near. It will be a day of clouds, a time of doom for the nations.”Ezekiel had already announced that the LORD’s day was near, dark with clouds and bringing ruin on the nations.
Theological
True or False: In 32:7-8 God says that in extinguishing Pharaoh He will darken the sun, moon and stars.
Answer: True
This is true. When God extinguishes Pharaoh, He will veil the sky, darken the stars, veil the sun with cloud, withhold the moon’s light, and set darkness on Egypt’s land (32:7-8). This is the prophetic language of cosmic upheaval, used to convey the magnitude of God’s judgment on a great power. Peoples are troubled and kings shudder when He brandishes His sword before them (32:9-10). Isaiah applies the same imagery to Babylon’s fall (Isaiah 13:10), Amos to the day of God’s judgment on Israel (Amos 8:9), and Ezekiel had already described Egypt’s doom as a day of the LORD, a cloudy day bringing ruin to the peoples (Ezekiel 30:3).
- Ezekiel 32:7-8 (BSB)“When I extinguish you, I will cover the heavens and darken their stars. I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon will not give its light. All the shining lights in the heavens I will darken over you, and I will bring darkness upon your land,’ declares the Lord GOD.”When God snuffs out Pharaoh, He darkens the sun, moon and stars over him and over his land.
- Ezekiel 32:9-10 (BSB)“‘I will trouble the hearts of many peoples, when I bring about your destruction among the nations, in countries you do not know. I will cause many peoples to be appalled over you, and their kings will shudder in horror because of you when I brandish My sword before them. On the day of your downfall each of them will tremble every moment for his life.’”Many peoples are troubled and their kings shudder when God brings Egypt down.
- Isaiah 13:10 (BSB)“For the stars of heaven and their constellations will not give their light. The rising sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light.”In his oracle against Babylon, Isaiah uses the same darkened sun, moon and stars to picture God’s judgment.
- Amos 8:9 (BSB)“And in that day, declares the Lord GOD, I will make the sun go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in the daytime.”Amos also describes the day of God’s judgment as the sun setting at noon.
- Ezekiel 30:3 (BSB)“For the day is near, the Day of the LORD is near. It will be a day of clouds, a time of doom for the nations.”Ezekiel had already announced that the LORD’s day was near, dark with clouds and bringing ruin on the nations.
General
In the lament God gave Ezekiel to sing over Pharaoh, what is the sea monster doing in its rivers (32:2)?
Answer: Thrashing about and stirring the streams into mud
A lament is a funeral song. Here God tells Ezekiel to sing one over Pharaoh while he is still on the throne, as though his fall had already happened. Pharaoh is compared to a lion in the midst of the peoples and to a great creature of the sea that thrashes about in its rivers, churning the water with its feet and fouling the streams with mud (32:2). The picture is of a restless power that stirs up trouble and muddies everything it touches, not one that guards or carries anyone. Ezekiel had already called Pharaoh a great monster lying in his rivers, who boasted that he had made the Nile himself (Ezekiel 29:3). Isaiah uses a similar image for the wicked, who are like a restless sea that throws up mud and filth (Isaiah 57:20).
- Ezekiel 32:2 (BSB)““Son of man, take up a lament for Pharaoh king of Egypt and say to him: ‘You are like a lion among the nations; you are like a monster in the seas. You thrash about in your rivers, churning up the waters with your feet and muddying the streams.’”Ezekiel’s lament pictures Pharaoh as a lion among the nations and a sea creature fouling the waters.
- Ezekiel 29:3 (BSB)“Speak to him and tell him that this is what the Lord GOD says: Behold, I am against you, O Pharaoh king of Egypt, O great monster who lies among his rivers, who says, ‘The Nile is mine; I made it myself.’”An earlier oracle had already named Pharaoh a great monster in his rivers who claimed the Nile as his own making.
- Isaiah 57:20 (BSB)“But the wicked are like the storm-tossed sea, for it cannot be still, and its waves churn up mire and muck.”Isaiah likewise compares the wicked to a restless sea that churns up mud.
Theological
In the lament for Pharaoh, what activity characterizes the sea monster (32:2)?
Answer: Thrashing about and stirring the streams into mud
The chapter opens with a lament, a funeral dirge, raised over Pharaoh in advance of his fall. He is likened to a lion in the midst of the peoples and to a great sea creature, thrashing in his rivers, churning the waters with his feet, and fouling the streams (32:2). The image is one of turbulent, self-assertive power that disturbs and pollutes rather than protects. It develops the earlier oracle in which Pharaoh is the great monster sprawled among his rivers, claiming to have made the Nile (Ezekiel 29:3), and it resembles Isaiah’s description of the wicked as a restless sea that casts up mire (Isaiah 57:20).
- Ezekiel 32:2 (BSB)““Son of man, take up a lament for Pharaoh king of Egypt and say to him: ‘You are like a lion among the nations; you are like a monster in the seas. You thrash about in your rivers, churning up the waters with your feet and muddying the streams.’”Ezekiel’s lament pictures Pharaoh as a lion among the nations and a sea creature fouling the waters.
- Ezekiel 29:3 (BSB)“Speak to him and tell him that this is what the Lord GOD says: Behold, I am against you, O Pharaoh king of Egypt, O great monster who lies among his rivers, who says, ‘The Nile is mine; I made it myself.’”An earlier oracle had already named Pharaoh a great monster in his rivers who claimed the Nile as his own making.
- Isaiah 57:20 (BSB)“But the wicked are like the storm-tossed sea, for it cannot be still, and its waves churn up mire and muck.”Isaiah likewise compares the wicked to a restless sea that churns up mud.
General
Whose sword does God say will come against Egypt (32:11)?
Answer: The king of Babylon
God announces that Babylon’s king will attack Egypt with the sword. God says Egypt’s crowds will be cut down by mighty warriors from the most brutal of nations, who will crush Egypt’s pride (32:11-12). Babylon would hold the sword, but God is the one bringing the judgment. God also states its purpose: when He makes Egypt desolate, people will know that He is the LORD (32:15). In the previous oracle God had said He would place His own sword in the grip of Babylon’s king and let him wield it against Egypt (Ezekiel 30:24-25). Jeremiah also foretold that Egypt would be handed over to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon (Jeremiah 46:26).
- Ezekiel 32:11-12 (BSB)“For this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘The sword of the king of Babylon will come against you! I will make your hordes fall by the swords of the mighty, the most ruthless of all nations. They will ravage the pride of Egypt and all her multitudes will be destroyed.”God announces that Babylon’s king will come against Egypt and that its pride will be ruined.
- Ezekiel 32:15 (BSB)“‘When I make the land of Egypt a desolation and empty it of all that filled it, when I strike down all who live there, then they will know that I am the LORD.’”God states the goal of Egypt’s desolation: that people will know He is the LORD.
- Ezekiel 30:24-25 (BSB)“I will strengthen the arms of Babylon’s king and place My sword in his hand, but I will break the arms of Pharaoh, who will groan before him like a mortally wounded man. I will strengthen the arms of Babylon’s king, but Pharaoh’s arms will fall limp. Then they will know that I am the LORD, when I place My sword in the hand of Babylon’s king, and he wields it against the land of Egypt.”God had already said He would put His own sword in the hand of Babylon’s king against Egypt.
- Jeremiah 46:26 (BSB)“I will deliver them into the hands of those who seek their lives—of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and his officers. But after this, Egypt will be inhabited as in days of old, declares the LORD.”Jeremiah likewise foretold that Egypt would be handed over to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.
Theological
Which king’s sword does God announce against Egypt in 32:11?
Answer: The king of Babylon
Babylon’s king will come against Egypt with the sword; through mighty warriors from the most brutal of nations, God will cut down Egypt’s hordes and ruin her pride (32:11-12). The human instrument is Babylon, but the first-person verbs belong to God: He causes the fall, and He states its goal, that when Egypt is made desolate people will know that He is the LORD (32:15). The preceding oracle has God placing His own sword in the grip of Babylon’s king (Ezekiel 30:24-25), and Jeremiah likewise foresaw Egypt delivered into Nebuchadnezzar’s hand (Jeremiah 46:26). God rules sovereignly over empires and uses them to carry out His just purposes.
- Ezekiel 32:11-12 (BSB)“For this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘The sword of the king of Babylon will come against you! I will make your hordes fall by the swords of the mighty, the most ruthless of all nations. They will ravage the pride of Egypt and all her multitudes will be destroyed.”God announces that Babylon’s king will come against Egypt and that its pride will be ruined.
- Ezekiel 32:15 (BSB)“‘When I make the land of Egypt a desolation and empty it of all that filled it, when I strike down all who live there, then they will know that I am the LORD.’”God states the goal of Egypt’s desolation: that people will know He is the LORD.
- Ezekiel 30:24-25 (BSB)“I will strengthen the arms of Babylon’s king and place My sword in his hand, but I will break the arms of Pharaoh, who will groan before him like a mortally wounded man. I will strengthen the arms of Babylon’s king, but Pharaoh’s arms will fall limp. Then they will know that I am the LORD, when I place My sword in the hand of Babylon’s king, and he wields it against the land of Egypt.”God had already said He would put His own sword in the hand of Babylon’s king against Egypt.
- Jeremiah 46:26 (BSB)“I will deliver them into the hands of those who seek their lives—of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and his officers. But after this, Egypt will be inhabited as in days of old, declares the LORD.”Jeremiah likewise foretold that Egypt would be handed over to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.
General
True or False: The nations Egypt joins in the Pit are described again and again as powers that once spread terror among the living (32:23-32).
Answer: True
This is true. As the lament names the nations already lying in the grave, it keeps repeating that these powers once made the living tremble, yet now they lie among the fallen and carries its shame (32:23-30). Their might could not keep them from falling. Pharaoh will look on them and take comfort, the grim comfort of not being alone in disgrace. Then God says that the dread now loosed among the living is His own, and Pharaoh with his whole army will join the fallen (32:31-32). In the end, the fear that belongs to God outlasts every human empire. Isaiah pictures people staring at a fallen king who once rocked the world and made kingdoms quake (Isaiah 14:16-17). God humbles rulers and is held in awe by earthly kings (Psalm 76:12), and He will be lifted high over every nation (Psalm 46:10).
- Ezekiel 32:23 (BSB)“Her graves are set in the depths of the Pit, and her company is all around her grave. All of them are slain, fallen by the sword—those who once spread terror in the land of the living.”Assyria lies among the slain in the Pit, though she once brought terror to the land of the living.
- Ezekiel 32:31-32 (BSB)“Pharaoh will see them and be comforted over all his multitude—Pharaoh and all his army, slain by the sword, declares the Lord GOD. For I will spread My terror in the land of the living, so that Pharaoh and all his multitude will be laid to rest among the uncircumcised, with those slain by the sword, declares the Lord GOD.””Pharaoh will see the others and take comfort, and God says it is His terror that now fills the land of the living.
- Isaiah 14:16-17 (BSB)“Those who see you will stare; they will ponder your fate: “Is this the man who shook the earth and made the kingdoms tremble, who turned the world into a desert and destroyed its cities, who refused to let the captives return to their homes?””Isaiah pictures onlookers gazing at the fallen king who once made the world and its realms quake.
- Psalm 76:12 (BSB)“He breaks the spirits of princes; He is feared by the kings of the earth.”The psalm says God humbles proud rulers and is held in awe by the world’s kings.
- Psalm 46:10 (BSB)““Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted over the earth.””God declares that He will be lifted high among the peoples and over all the world.
Theological
True or False: The lament repeatedly describes the nations lying in the Pit as powers that once made the living tremble (32:23-32).
Answer: True
This is true. The refrain of 32:23-30 is that the nations now lying among the fallen once struck dread into the living, and now they carry their shame with all who go down to the Pit. Their fearsome power ends in disgrace. Pharaoh will look on them and be consoled over his multitude, a bleak comfort in shared ruin; and God declares that the dread now loosed among the living is His own, and that Pharaoh and his whole host will join the fallen (32:31-32). The fear that empires wielded was borrowed and temporary; the dread that belongs to God is final. Isaiah’s onlookers gaze at the fallen tyrant who once made kingdoms quake (Isaiah 14:16-17); the psalmist praises the God who breaks the spirit of princes and is held in awe by earthly kings (Psalm 76:12), and who will be lifted high over every nation (Psalm 46:10).
- Ezekiel 32:23 (BSB)“Her graves are set in the depths of the Pit, and her company is all around her grave. All of them are slain, fallen by the sword—those who once spread terror in the land of the living.”Assyria lies among the slain in the Pit, though she once brought terror to the land of the living.
- Ezekiel 32:31-32 (BSB)“Pharaoh will see them and be comforted over all his multitude—Pharaoh and all his army, slain by the sword, declares the Lord GOD. For I will spread My terror in the land of the living, so that Pharaoh and all his multitude will be laid to rest among the uncircumcised, with those slain by the sword, declares the Lord GOD.””Pharaoh will see the others and take comfort, and God says it is His terror that now fills the land of the living.
- Isaiah 14:16-17 (BSB)“Those who see you will stare; they will ponder your fate: “Is this the man who shook the earth and made the kingdoms tremble, who turned the world into a desert and destroyed its cities, who refused to let the captives return to their homes?””Isaiah pictures onlookers gazing at the fallen king who once made the world and its realms quake.
- Psalm 76:12 (BSB)“He breaks the spirits of princes; He is feared by the kings of the earth.”The psalm says God humbles proud rulers and is held in awe by the world’s kings.
- Psalm 46:10 (BSB)““Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted over the earth.””God declares that He will be lifted high among the peoples and over all the world.