A Prophecy of Egypt’s Ruin
1In the tenth year, in the tenth month on the twelfth day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me: 2“Son of man, face Pharaoh king of Egypt and prophesy against him and against all of Egypt. 3Speak to him and say, ‘This is what the Lord God says:
Look, I am against you, Pharaoh king of Egypt,
the great monster lying in the middle of his Nile,
who says, “My Nile is my own;
I made it for myself.”
4I will put hooks in your jaws
and make the fish of your streams
cling to your scales.
I will haul you up
from the middle of your Nile,
and all the fish of your streams
will cling to your scales.
5I will leave you in the desert,
you and all the fish of your streams.
You will fall on the open ground
and will not be taken away
or gathered for burial.
I have given you
to the wild creatures of the earth
and the birds of the sky as food.
6“‘Then all the inhabitants of Egypt
will know that I am the Lord,
for they have been a staff made of reed
to the house of Israel.
7When Israel grasped you by the hand,
you splintered, tearing all their shoulders;
when they leaned on you,
you shattered and made all their hips unsteady.
8“‘Therefore, this is what the Lord God says: I am going to bring a sword against you and cut off both people and animals from you. 9The land of Egypt will be a desolate ruin. Then they will know that I am the Lord. Because you said, “The Nile is my own; I made it,” 10therefore, I am against you and your Nile. I will turn the land of Egypt into ruins, a desolate waste from Migdol to Syene, as far as the border of Cush. 11No human foot will pass through it, and no animal foot will pass through it. It will be uninhabited for forty years. 12I will make the land of Egypt a desolation among desolate lands, and its cities will be a desolation among ruined cities for forty years. I will disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them throughout the lands.
13“‘For this is what the Lord God says: At the end of forty years I will gather the Egyptians from the peoples where they were dispersed. 14I will restore the fortunes of Egypt and bring them back to the land of Pathros, the land of their origin. There they will be a lowly kingdom. 15Egypt will be the lowliest of kingdoms and will never again exalt itself over the nations. I will make them so small they cannot rule over the nations. 16It will never again be an object of trust for the house of Israel, drawing attention to their iniquity of turning to the Egyptians. Then they will know that I am the Lord God.’”
Babylon Receives Egypt as Compensation
17In the twenty-seventh year, in the first month, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me: 18“Son of man, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon made his army labor strenuously against Tyre. Every head was made bald and every shoulder chafed, but he and his army received no compensation from Tyre for the labor he expended against it. 19Therefore, this is what the Lord God says: I am going to give the land of Egypt to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, and he will carry off its wealth, seizing its spoil and taking its plunder. This will be his army’s compensation. 20I have given him the land of Egypt as the pay he labored for, since they worked for me.” This is the declaration of the Lord God. 21“In that day I will cause a horn to sprout for the house of Israel, and I will enable you to speak out among them. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”