Ezekiel 30

1 Yahweh gave me another message. [He said, ]

And the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

2 “You human, prophesy [about what will happen to Egypt]. Say, ‘This is what Yahweh the Lord says: “Weep and wail [DOU], because terrible things will happen some day.

Son of man, prophesy, and say, Thus says the Lord; Woe, woe [worth] the day!

3 That day is near, the day when I, Yahweh, [will punish people]; it will be a day of [dark] clouds and disaster for [many] nations.

For the day of the Lord is near, a day of cloud; it shall be the end of the nations.

4 [An enemy army] [PRS] will come to attack Egypt with their swords, and there will be great distress [among the people] in Ethiopia. [Many] people will be killed in Egypt; everything valuable will be taken away, and [even] the foundations [of the buildings] will be torn down.

And the sword shall come upon the Egyptians, and there shall be tumult in Ethiopia, and in Egypt [men] shall fall down slain together, and her foundations shall fall.

5 [Soldiers of] Ethiopia, Libya, Lydia, and from all of Arabia, and [all the other] groups who are their allies, will be killed in the battles.”

Persians, and Cretans, and Lydians, and Libyans, and all the mixed multitude, and they of the children of my covenant, shall fall by the sword therein.

6 This is what [I], Yahweh say: “The allies of Egypt will be defeated, and the power that [the people of Egypt] are proud of will end. From Migdol [city in the north] to Aswan [city in the south], the soldiers of Egypt will be killed by their enemies’ swords”; [that is what I], Yahweh the Lord, declare.

And the supports of Egypt shall fall; and the pride of her strength shall come down from Magdol to Syene: they shall fall by the sword in it, says the Lord.

7 Egypt will become the most deserted country in the world, and its cities will be ruined, surrounded by ruined cities [in nearby nations].

And it shall be made desolate in the midst of desolate countries, and their cities shall be [desolate] in the midst of desolate cities:

8 Then, when I cause [everything in] Egypt to be burned in fires, and all their allies are defeated, people will know that I, Yahweh, [have the power to do what I say that I will do].

and they shall know that I am the Lord, when I shall send fire upon Egypt, and [when] all that help her shall be broken.

9 At that time, I will send messengers to go [swiftly up the Nile River] in boats to cause the people of Ethiopia who (are complacent/confident/think that nothing terrible will happen to them) to become afraid. They will be terrified [PRS] when Egypt is destroyed; and it will soon be that time!”

In that day shall messengers go forth hasting to destroy Ethiopia utterly, and there shall be tumult amongst them in the day of Egypt: for, behold it comes.

10 This is what [I], Yahweh the Lord, say: “By the power of [MTY] of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon I will get rid of very many people in Egypt.

Thus says the Lord God; I will also destroy the multitude of the Egyptians by the hand of Nabuchodonosor king of Babylon,

11 Nebuchadnezzar and his army, whose soldiers are extremely ruthless, will come to destroy Egypt. They will pull out their swords and fill Egypt with [the corpses of] those whom they have killed.

his [hand] and his people's; [they are] plagues sent forth from the nations to destroy the land: and they all shall unsheath their swords against Egypt, and the land shall be filled with slain.

12 I will cause the Nile [River] to become dry, and I will sell the nation to evil men. By the power [MTY] of foreigners I will ruin the land and everything that is in it. [That will surely happen because] I, Yahweh, have predicted it.”

And I will make their rivers desolate, and will destroy the land and the fulness of it by the hands of strangers: I the Lord have spoken.

13 This is [also] what [I], Yahweh the Lord, say: “I will cause the idols and statues [of idols] [DOU] in Memphis [city] to be destroyed. No longer will there be a king in Egypt, and all over the land, people will be terrified. I will cause [the people of] Egypt to be very afraid.

For thus says the Lord God; I will also destroy the nobles from Memphis, and the princes of Memphis out of the land of Egypt; and they shall be no more.

14 I will cause the Pathros [area in southern Egypt] to be abandoned. I will start fires in Zoan [city in northeast Egypt] and punish [the people in] Thebes, [the capital of southern Egypt].

And I will destroy the land of Phathore, and will send fire upon Tanis, and will execute vengeance on Diospolis.

15 I will pour out my punishment [MTY] on [the fortress in] Pelusium [at the eastern end of Egypt], and I will get rid of very many people in Thebes.

And I will pour out my wrath upon Sais the strength of Egypt, and will destroy the multitude of Memphis.

16 I will burn Egypt by fires; [the people in] Pelusium will suffer severe pain. [Enemies] will conquer Thebes, and [the people in] Memphis will constantly be terrified.

And I will send fire upon Egypt; and Syene shall be sorely troubled; and there shall be a breaking in Diospolis, and waters shall be poured out.

17 [Many] young men in Heliopolis and Bubastis [cities in northern Egypt] will be killed by [their enemies] swords, and the others [from those cities] will be captured and taken [to Babylon].

The youths of Heliopolis and Bubastum shall fall by the sword, and the women shall go into captivity.

18 It will be a dark day [of destruction] at Tahpenes [city in northeast Egypt] when I cause the power [MET] of Egypt to end; that country will no longer be proud of being strong. [It will be as though] a dark cloud will cover Egypt, because the people of its villages will be captured and forced to go [to Babylon].”

And the day shall be darkened in Taphnae, when I have broken there the sceptres of Egypt: and the pride of her strength shall perish there: and a cloud shall cover her, and her daughters shall be taken prisoners.

19 That is how I will punish Egypt, and people will know that I, Yahweh, [have the power to do what I say that I will do].’”

And I will execute judgement on Egypt; and they shall know that I am the Lord.

20 Almost eleven years [after we had been taken to Babylon], on the seventh day of the first month [of that year], Yahweh gave me another message. [He said, ]

And it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the first month, on the seventh [day] of the month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

21 “You human, I [have enabled the army of Nebuchadnezzar to defeat the army of] the King of Egypt. [It is as though] I have broken one of the arms of the King of Egypt, and it has not been bandaged in order that it could be healed, and it has not been put in splints in order that [after it heals] the arm will be strong [enough] to hold a sword.

Son of man, I have broken the arms of Pharao, king of Egypt; and, behold, it has not been bound up to be healed, to have a plaster put upon it, [or] to be strengthened to lay hold of the sword.

22 Therefore, this is what [I], Yahweh the Lord, say: ‘I am the enemy of the King of Egypt. [I will completely destroy the power of Egypt; it is as though] now I will break both of the king’s arms, the good/strong one and the broken one, and cause the sword to fall from his hand.

Therefore thus says the Lord God; Behold, I am against Pharao king of Egypt, and I will break his strong and outstretched arms, and will strike down his sword out of his hand.

23 I will cause the people of Egypt to be scattered among the nations [DOU].

And I will disperse the Egyptians amongst the nations, and will utterly scatter them amongst the countries.

24 [It is as though] I will strengthen the arms of the King of Babylon and put a sword in his hand, and [as though] I will break the arms of the king of Egypt, and he will groan in front of the King of Babylon like [SIM] a soldier who is wounded and about to die.

And I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, and put my sword into his hand: and he shall bring it upon Egypt, and shall take her plunder and seize her spoils.

25 I will cause the power [MTY] of the King of Babylon to become greater, and the power of the king of Egypt will be useless [MET]. When that happens, when I give power to the army of the King of Babylon, they will use that power to attack Egypt.

Yes, I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, and the arms of Pharao shall fail: and they shall know that I am the Lord, when I have put my sword into the hands of the king of Babylon, and he shall stretch it out over the land of Egypt.

26 I will cause the people of Egypt to be scattered among the nations [DOU]. And when that happens, the people [of Egypt] will know that I, Yahweh, [have the power to do what I say that I will do] [DOU].’”

And I will disperse the Egyptians amongst the nations, and utterly scatter them amongst the countries; and they all shall know that I am the Lord.