Ezekiel 29:12

Ezekiel 29:12 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And I will make the land of Egypt desolate in the midst of the countries that are desolate, and her cities among the cities that are laid waste shall be desolate forty years: and I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and will disperse them through the countries.
• New International Version (NIV)I will make the land of Egypt desolate among devastated lands, and her cities will lie desolate forty years among ruined cities. And I will disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them through the countries.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And I will make the land of Egypt a desolation in the midst of desolated countries, and her cities shall be a desolation forty years among cities that are laid waste. I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and disperse them through the countries.
• New King James Version (NKJV)I will make the land of Egypt desolate in the midst of the countries that are desolate; and among the cities that are laid waste, her cities shall be desolate forty years; and I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations and disperse them throughout the countries.”

Context of Ezekiel 29:12

10Because of that, I have become the enemy of you and your streams. I will destroy the land of Egypt. It will be an empty place, and its buildings will become heaps of stones. I will do that everywhere, from Migdol to Aswan and as far as Ethiopia's border. 11No men or animals will walk through that land. Nobody will live there for 40 years. Egypt will become like a desert among empty lands. Its cities will be empty for 40 years, among cities that have become heaps of stones. I will cause the Egyptians to go and live among other nations in places far away. 13But this is what the Almighty Lord says: After 40 years, I will bring the Egyptians back from the places where I sent them. 14I will bring them back home to live in peace. I will bring them to Pathros, the land of their ancestors. There they will be a weak kingdom.

Ezekiel 29:12 word by word

וְנָתַתִּ֣י אֶת־אֶרֶץ֩ מִצְרַ֨יִם שְׁמָמָ֜ה בְּת֣וֹךְ׀ אֲרָצ֣וֹת נְשַׁמּ֗וֹת וְעָרֶ֙יהָ֙ בְּת֨וֹךְ עָרִ֤ים מָֽחֳרָבוֹת֙ תִּֽהְיֶ֣יןָ שְׁמָמָ֔ה אַרְבָּעִ֖ים שָׁנָ֑ה וַהֲפִצֹתִ֤י אֶת־מִצְרַ֙יִם֙ בַּגּוֹיִ֔ם וְֽזֵרִיתִ֖ים בָּאֲרָצֽוֹת׃ פRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And I will makeנָתַןnâthan · to give: makeH5414
• the landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
• of Egyptמִצְרַ֫יִםmitsrayim · EgyptH4714
• desolateשְׁמָמָהshemâmâh shimâmâh · devastationH8077
• in the midstתָּ֫וֶךְtâvek · midstH8432
• desolateשָׁמֵםshâmêm · be desolate: destroyedH8074
• and her citiesעִיר‛îyr ‛âr ‛âyar · cityH5892
• laid wasteחָרֵבchârab chârêb · to destroyH2717
• fortyאַרְבָּעִים'arbâ‛îym · fortyH705
• yearsשָׁנָהshâneh shânâh · yearH8141
• and I will scatterפּוּץpûts · to scatterH6327
• among the nationsגּוֹיgôy gôy · nationH1471
• and will disperseזָרָהzârâh · to scatterH2219

Cross-references for Ezekiel 29:12

• Ezekiel 30:7Egypt will become like a desert among other deserts. Its cities will become heaps of stones.
• Jeremiah 25:15The Lord, Israel's God, said to me, ‘Take this cup from me. It is full of wine that shows my great anger. Take it to the nations where I send you. Make them drink this wine of punishment.
• Jeremiah 27:6Now I choose to give all your countries to my servant Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon. He will rule over you and even over the wild animals.
• Ezekiel 30:23I will cause the Egyptian people to run away to live in foreign countries.
• Jeremiah 46:19You dear people of Egypt, be ready to travel as prisoners to a foreign land! Your enemy will destroy Memphis city. It will become a heap of stones where nobody lives.

Commentaries on Ezekiel 29:12

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 12Shall be desolate forty years - The country from Migdol or Magdolan, which was on the isthmus between the Mediterranean and the Red Sea, was so completely ruined, that it might well be called desert; and it is probable that this desolation continued during the whole of the reign of Amasis, which was just forty years. See Herod. lib. 3 c. 10; and see Calmet.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 10-12Verses 10-12 From the tower of Syene - Or, as in the margin, “Migdol” (“tower”) was about two miles from Suez. “Syene” was the most southern town in Egypt, on the borders of Ethiopia, in the Thebaid, on the eastern bank of the Nile. The modern Assvan lies a little to the northeast of the ancient Syene. We have no record of the circumstances of the Chaldsaean invasion of Egypt, but it is possible that it did not take place until after the fall of Tyre. We…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 8-13God announced that he would destroy the land of Egypt. The land would become empty and ruined. The destruction would stretch from Migdol in the north to Aswan in the south. This means the whole land of Egypt. Egypt would be empty for 40 years (compare Ezekiel 4:6). God would scatter the Egyptians among other nations. Later, he would bring them back to their land. The Babylonians likely invaded Egypt in 568 or 567 BC. They took prisoners, who remained in…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1212. As Israel passed through a term of wilderness discipline (compare Eze 20:35, &c.), which was in its essential features to be repeated again, so it was to be with Egypt [Fairbairn]. Some Egyptians were to be carried to Babylon, also many "scattered" in Arabia and Ethiopia through fear; but mainly the "scattering" was to be the dissipation of their power, even though the people still remained in their own land.Read the comment

Topics related to Ezekiel 29:12

• Egyptians

In the dictionaries

• Egypt
• Egypt, Egyptian
• Diminish
• Nebuchadnezzar
• Stick
• Isaiah

Commentaries on Ezekiel 29

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings