Ezekiel 32:1 - Meaning and Application

Here, the prophet is told to take up a lament for Pharaoh, king of Egypt (Ezekiel 32:2). This teaches ministers to keep a serious spirit and to often mourn over the fall and ruin of sinners, people who have not wanted this sad day, but should fear it. If we want to move others with the things of God, we must show that we are moved ourselves by the misery sin brings on people. We should weep and tremble for those who will not weep and tremble for themselves, hoping to stir them to do so.

He is also told to explain why this lament is fitting. Pharaoh had been a troublemaker among the nations, including his own nation, which he ought to have protected. He is compared to a young lion among the nations (Ezekiel 32:2), loud and threatening like a lion roaring. Great rulers, when they act with cruelty and oppression, are counted by God no better than wild beasts. He is also like a sea monster, or crocodile, in the waters, stirring up unrest like Leviathan, the great sea creature, that makes the deep boil like a pot (Job 41:31). When Pharaoh went to war with the Cyrenians, though it was unnecessary, he came out with his armies and troubled the waters. He disturbed his own kingdom and the nearby nations, muddying the rivers and making them foul. A restless desire for power and a bitter spirit often bring great disorder to the world.

But the one who troubles others must expect trouble himself, for the Lord is righteous (Joshua 7:25). Pharaoh is like a great monster in the river, hard to catch, but God has a net for him that is large and strong enough to enclose him (Ezekiel 32:3). God says, “I will spread my net over you,” meaning the Babylonian army, a large company of many people. They will drag him out of his strong places and tear him from his land. They will throw him onto dry ground, out of his proper place, where he cannot live and will die like a fish out of water. Then he will become food for birds and beasts, as was foretold earlier (Ezekiel 29:5). What can the strongest fish do when it lies gasping outside the water?

The slaughter will be so great that the flesh of this great creature will lie upon the mountains (Ezekiel 32:5), and the valleys will be filled with his body. So many of Pharaoh’s soldiers will be killed that their dead bodies will cover the hills, and heaps of them will lie in the valleys. Blood will flow in such amounts that it will seem to swell the rivers in the lowlands. Or the meaning may be that Pharaoh himself is so huge in pride and power that, when he is laid low, he fills a whole valley. The blood pouring from this great sea monster will, as it were, water the land of Egypt, where he now swims and plays (Ezekiel 32:6). The rivers will be full of him. Earlier judgments on Pharaoh were described as the breaking of Leviathan’s heads in the waters (Psalm 74:13-14). But now the judgment goes further: this old serpent is not only wounded in the head, he is crushed to pieces.

The fall of Egypt will also deeply affect the surrounding nations, and they will be shaken by it, just as the fall of Assyria had done earlier (Ezekiel 31:15-16). When Pharaoh, who had been like a blazing torch, is put out, everything around him will grow dark (Ezekiel 32:7). The heavens will seem covered in blackness, the stars darkened, the sun eclipsed, and the moon deprived of its borrowed light. Since the world below gets its light from above, when the lights of heaven are darkened, darkness falls on the land, and so it will be with Egypt (Ezekiel 32:8). This seems to recall the plague of darkness that once came on Egypt for three days, just as the turning of the waters into blood was recalled earlier. When people forget former judgments, it is right that those judgments should come again.

When the leaders and officials who guide public affairs are stripped of wisdom and made foolish, and when the things that bring peace are hidden from their eyes, then their lights are darkened and the land is left in gloom. This was foretold in Isaiah 19:13, where the princes of Zoan are said to have become fools. When news of Egypt’s fall spreads to distant countries, people in places they did not know will be deeply affected (Ezekiel 32:9). First, they will be vexed to see such an old, rich, and powerful kingdom humbled, and the pride of worldly glory stained. Many hearts will be troubled to see the word of the God of Israel fulfilled in Egypt’s destruction, and to see that all the gods of Egypt could not save it. The ruin of wicked people is a grief to others.

Second, they will be amazed at Egypt’s fall (Ezekiel 32:10). They will wonder that such wealth and power can come to nothing, like the fall of Babylon in Revelation 18:17. Those who admire the splendor of this world will be shocked when that splendor collapses. But those who know how empty earthly things are will not be surprised.

Third, they will be afraid. Even their kings, who think safety is their special right, will be terribly frightened for Egypt, and will feel their own houses are in danger when a neighbor’s house burns. When God says, “I will brandish my sword before them,” they will tremble for their own lives. When God’s judgment sword is drawn against some people, it is also waved before others as a warning. If they do not learn from it and change, they will at least be made afraid and shaken. They will tremble at every moment because of Egypt’s fall. When others are ruined by sin, we should fear for ourselves, since we are guilty too and exposed to the same judgment. Who can stand before this holy Lord God?

The desolation itself is then plainly foretold. The instruments of that destruction are very frightening. It is the sword of the king of Babylon, that warlike and victorious king, that will come against Egypt (Ezekiel 32:11). It will be the swords of the mighty, the terrible men from among the nations, all of them together (Ezekiel 32:12), an army before which no one can stand.

People who love war and are always eager for conflict should expect, sooner or later, to meet someone stronger than they are. Pharaoh had been quick to quarrel with his neighbor and to come out with his rivers, that is, with his armies (Ezekiel 32:2). Now God will give him more trouble than he wanted.

The signs of Egypt’s ruin are described here in a very dreadful way, much like what we saw earlier (Ezekiel 29:10-12; 30:7). First, Egypt’s whole population will be destroyed. Not just a few will be chosen out as examples, but all will be cut off. The many people of a nation will not protect them from God’s power, and a great crowd does not earn his pity.

Second, Egypt’s glory will be taken away, including the splendor of its court, the very things it was proud of. Giving up the world’s showy honors is really a kindness to ourselves, because they are easy to lose and they often fool the people who admire them. Third, the cattle of Egypt, which used to graze by the rivers, will be destroyed (Ezekiel 32:13), either by the sword or by being taken as plunder. Egypt was famous for its horses, so the Chaldeans would find them especially valuable. The rivers will no longer be crowded with people and animals coming to drink.

Fourth, Egypt’s waters, which used to flow quickly, will become deep, slow, and heavy, and they will run like oil (Ezekiel 32:14). This is a picture of deep sadness covering the whole nation. Even the rivers are described as moving quietly, like mourners, as if they have forgotten their fast motion. Fifth, the whole land of Egypt will be stripped of its wealth. It will be emptied of the things it once had in abundance (Ezekiel 32:15), grain, cattle, and all the rich produce of the land. When the people who live there are struck down, the ground is left untended, and what has been gathered becomes easy spoil for the invader.

God can quickly empty those who have the most of this world’s goods and are most attached to them. The Egyptians were full of pride in their rich and fruitful land and its many products. Anyone who talked with them could see how much that abundance filled their minds and hearts. But God can soon make a land empty of the very things it seemed full of. That is why it is wise to store up treasures in heaven.

When the land is made empty, it will teach them something. Then they will know that I am the Lord. A clear lesson in the emptiness of the world, and in how quickly all earthly things pass away, helps us know God better as our true portion and happiness. It will also become a sorrow to all around them. The daughters of the nations will mourn over her (Ezekiel 32:16), either because they were allied with Egypt and share her troubles, or because they admired her and now sympathize with her grief. They will lament for Egypt and all her multitude, and such a great ruin will stir their pity. The more we widen the things that delight us, the more occasions we give ourselves for sorrow.