Ezekiel 29
McGeeCHAPTERS 29 AND 30THEME: Prophecy against Egypt, lamentation for Egypt
Ezekiel 29:1
PROPHECY AGAINST EGYPTMany conservative commentators take the position that the prophecies concerning Egypt are of more interest than the one concerning Tyre. I must confess that I do not concur in thatthe prophecies concerning Tyre are remarkable. Also, the ones concerning Egypt are interesting, and we will find a remarkable prophecy in this chapter. Egypt was a great nation, and it had not been destroyed. It had maintained its integrity down through the centuries. It was one of the most ancient nations.
It did not need to put up a wall of defense. After all, the desert was a pretty good defense. There was only one entrance, and that was through the Nile River valley. All Egypt had to do for protection was put up a good defense there. You will find that the cities of Egypt were not walledwalls were not necessary. Now God says that the Egyptians will go into captivity for forty years. God takes a very definite position against the land of Egypt. It was this nation that had reduced His people to slavery in the brickyards and had introduced them to idolatry. Egypt had been a thorn in the flesh of Israel for years; yet Israel was constantly running to Egypt for help. For some reason the children of Israel seemed to lean upon Egypt. Now God says He is against Egypt and it will be destroyed.
Ezekiel 29:3
The crocodile, apparently, is the “great dragon” or sea monster here. Pharaoh is likened unto the crocodile that says, “This is my river.” It is interesting to note that Egypt worshiped all manner of birds, beasts, and bugs. You will notice that the plagues against Egypt (Exod. 7-11) were leveled against the gods which Egypt worshiped. I think that in spite of how terrible the plagues were, they also reveal that God has a sense of humor. Imagine worshiping Heka, the frog-headed goddess, and then waking up one morning and finding frogs all over your bedroom. What are you going to do? Start killing off your goddess? I think the Lord must have smiled at that. The Pharaoh mentioned here is Pharaoh Hophra, also called Apries in the Greek. He was the grandson of Pharaoh Nechoh, who defeated king Josiah in Judah at Megiddo; in fact, Josiah was slain in that battle. Kings Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, and Zedekiah all turned to Pharaoh Hophra when Jerusalem was besieged. The Egyptian army came up, went through Phoenicia, and forced the Chaledeans to raise the siege of Jerusalem. The prophet Jeremiah announced the doom of Pharaoh Hophra: “The LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, saith; Behold, I will punish the multitude of No, and Pharaoh, and Egypt, with their gods, and their kings; even Pharaoh, and all them that trust in him: And I will deliver them into the hand of those that seek their lives, and into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of his servants: and afterward it shall be inhabited, as in the days of old, saith the LORD” (Jer_46:25-26). You may find it interesting to note that the critic has made an issue of the fact that the prophecy of the destruction of Egypt was not fulfilled at this time. It was fulfilled seventeen years later. However, if you read the prophecy carefully, you will see that although the prophecy was given through Ezekiel at this time, nothing is said about immediate fulfillment. Egypt was destroyed seventeen years later as God said it would be. Now notice what God says will happen to Egypt:
Ezekiel 29:13
Seventeen years later, to be exact, the king of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar, came and took the Egyptians into captivity. They were in captivity for forty years, not seventy years like Israel.
Ezekiel 29:14
Now notice carefully this next verse
Ezekiel 29:15
Egypt had been the great power of the ancient world. They came out of the dawn of history as a great nation. Their monuments and tombs reveal the fact that they had a civilization that was second to none. It is believed today by many historians that the Greeks got a great deal of their information from the Egyptians. Egypt was a great nation, but God said, “I am going to let Nebuchadnezzar take you. Not only that, you are going to be in captivity for forty years, and at the end of that time you are going to return to your land, but you are going to be a base kingdomin fact, the basest of the kingdoms.” My friend, on our tours we visit many lands in the Near East, and we can see how accurate God’s prediction was. No one can go to Cairo without his heart being sick when he sees the poverty and the low levels to which the people have sunk.
Ezekiel 29:19
Babylon, you see, was to conquer all these nationsincluding Tyre, Egypt, and, of course, Israel. Babylon was the first great empire.