30:1 The word of the Lord came to me:
Ezekiel wanted to make sure that his readers understood that these prophecies were not his own opinion.
30:2 “Son of man, prophesy and say, ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: “ ‘Wail, “Alas, the day is here!”
Ezekiel was called a “son of man,” because he was born into the human family of Adam. Jehovah is sovereign over all of nations, including Egypt and her surrounding allies. The day of judgment had arrived.
30:3 For the day is near, the day of the Lord is near; it will be a day of storm clouds, it will be a time of judgment for the nations.
The Day of the Lord usually looks forward to the Great Tribulation. However, in this context it refers to the judgment of Egypt during the reign of King Nebuchadnezzar. Egypt and many other nations would be judged.
30:4 A sword will come against Egypt and panic will overtake Ethiopia when the slain fall in Egypt and they carry away her wealth and dismantle her foundations.
Egypt and Ethiopia were usually enemies, but they joined together in a military alliance against Babylon. King Nebuchadnezzar would attack and destroy both of them.
30:5 Ethiopia, Put, Lud, all the foreigners, Libya, and the people of the covenant land will die by the sword along with them.
Ethiopia, Put (Libya), and Lud (Lydia) were allies of Egypt. They would all be killed by the Babylonians.
30:6 “ ‘This is what the Lord says: Egypt’s supporters will fall; her confident pride will crumble. From Migdol to Syene they will die by the sword within her, declares the sovereign Lord.
The allies and mercenary soldiers who assisted Egypt would be defeated by the Babylonians. Migdol and Syene were Egyptian cities on the northern and southern extremities of Egypt. All of the people living in and between these cities would be killed by the swords of the Babylonian invasion force.
30:7 They will be desolate among desolate lands, and their cities will be among ruined cities.
All of the Egyptian cities would be depopulated.
30:8 They will know that I am the Lord when I ignite a fire in Egypt and all her allies are defeated.
When Egypt and all of her allies are defeated, then the whole world would know that Jehovah is the one true God.
30:9 On that day messengers will go out from me in ships to frighten overly confident Ethiopia; panic will overtake them on the day of Egypt’s doom; for beware—it is coming!
“On that day” is the day of Egypt’s destruction. Messengers would leave Egypt and travel to Ethiopia on ships. The messengers would report to Ethiopia about the destruction of Egypt. Ethiopia would panic, because she would know that she would be next on Babylon’s list.
30:10 “ ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: I will put an end to the hordes of Egypt, by the hand of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon.
Jehovah is sovereign over all nations, including Egypt and Babylon. The hordes of Egypt were her allies and mercenary soldiers. King Nebuchadnezzar would attack and kill all of them.
30:11 He and his people with him, the most terrifying of the nations, will be brought there to destroy the land. They will draw their swords against Egypt, and fill the land with corpses.
Babylon and her allies were so militarily strong and brutal, that they terrified the other nations. They would leave bloody corpses all over Egypt.
30:12 I will dry up the waterways and hand the land over to evil men. I will make the land and everything in it desolate by the hand of foreigners. I, the Lord, have spoken!
Jehovah would dry up the Egyptian canals. He would hand the Egyptians over to a nation who was even more evil than themselves. The land of Egypt would be destroyed and left desolate. Since Jehovah spoke it, then it would happen.
30:13 “ ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: I will destroy the idols, and put an end to the gods of Memphis. There will no longer be a prince from the land of Egypt; so I will make the land of Egypt fearful.
Jehovah is sovereign over all nations, including the Egyptians. Memphis was a major city and the first capital of united Egypt. Later, Memphis became an important religious center. Jehovah would destroy Memphis. Her many false demonic gods would not be able to protect her from Jehovah’s onslaught. When Memphis was destroyed, then the other Egyptian cities would experience the emotion of fear. If the Egyptian gods could not protect Memphis, then the other Egyptian cities knew that they would be the next to fall.
30:14 I will desolate Pathros, I will ignite a fire in Zoan, and I will execute judgments on Thebes.
Pathros was a metaphor for upper Egypt. Zoan was the royal residence city in the Delta region. Thebes was a major city and a former capital in southern Egypt. Nebuchadnezzar would destroy these three major Egyptian cities.
30:15 I will pour out my anger upon Pelusium, the stronghold of Egypt; I will cut off the hordes of Thebes.
Pelusium was a major military center and guarded the northern entrance to Egypt. Ezekiel called it the stronghold of Egypt.
30:16 I will ignite a fire in Egypt; Syene will writhe in agony, Thebes will be broken down, and Memphis will face enemies every day.
Syene, Thebes, and Memphis would all be defeated by the Babylonians.
30:17 The young men of On and of Pi-beseth will die by the sword; and the cities will go into captivity.
On was also known as Heliopolis, meaning “the city of the sun.” It was another major religious city of Egypt.
Pi-beseth was also known as Bubastis. It was a large city located in lower Egypt. It served briefly as the capital of Egypt. It was also an important religious center.
30:18 In Tahpanhes the day will be dark when I break the yoke of Egypt there. Her confident pride will cease within her; a cloud will cover her, and her daughters will go into captivity.
Tahpanhes was an Egyptian city near the present Suez Canal. The Pharaoh lived there in Jeremiah’s day. Jeremiah condemned both Tahpanhes and Memphis. Jeremiah was forced to go to this city with other Jewish exiles after Governor Gedaliah was assassinated.
Egypt was about to go through some dark days of her history. The pride and confidence of Egypt would be shattered. Her daughters would go into the Babylonian captivity, meaning that the Egyptian daughters would still procreate and keep the Egyptian nation alive.
30:19 I will execute judgments on Egypt. Then they will know that I am the Lord.’ ”
When Jehovah fulfilled these prophecies, then Egypt would know that Jehovah is the Lord.
30:20 In the eleventh year, in the first month, on the seventh day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me:
Jehovah gave more prophecies to Ezekiel on April 29, 587 B.C. This day was almost four months after Ezekiel’s first prophecy against Egypt.
30:21 “Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Look, it has not been bandaged for healing or set with a dressing so that it might become strong enough to grasp a sword.
Jehovah once again addressed Ezekiel as a “son of man,” meaning that he was a human being born into the line of Adam. Jehovah broke the arm of Pharaoh Hophra by allowing the Babylonians to defeat Egypt.
30:22 Therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says: Look, I am against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and I will break his arms, the strong arm and the broken one, and I will make the sword drop from his hand.
Jehovah is sovereign over all nations, including Egypt. Egypt broke her arm in her feeble attempt to rescue Israel. Since she promised to help Israel but refused to do so, then God would break Pharaoh’s other arm as well. This meant that Pharaoh Hophra would not possess the strength to protect his own nation of Egypt or much less her allies.
30:23 I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and disperse them among foreign countries.
Since Egypt did not keep her promise to Israel, she would also be scattered into foreign nations.
30:24 I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, and I will place my sword in his hand, but I will break the arms of Pharaoh, and he will groan like the fatally wounded before the king of Babylon.
Jehovah would strengthen the arms of Babylon and break the arms of Egypt. Jehovah is the One who decides the victor in all wars. The United Nations needs to keep this in mind when they level anti-Semitic sanctions against modern Israel.
30:25 I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, but the arms of Pharaoh will fall limp. Then they will know that I am the Lord when I place my sword in the hand of the king of Babylon and he extends it against the land of Egypt.
After Babylon defeated Egypt, then Egypt knew that Jehovah is Lord.
30:26 I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations and disperse them among foreign countries. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”
After Jehovah scattered the Egyptians into other nations, then the Egyptians knew that Jehovah is Lord.