Tyndale Open Study NotesEzekiel 29

• This section contains a series of messages of judgment against nearby nations. There are six shorter messages against Judah's immediate neighbors, arranged in a clockwise order, followed by a final message against Egypt (Ezekiel 30–32). Through experiencing God's judgment, the nations would recognize God's control over everything. The nations might be used to carry out God's judgment on his people, but they would not avoid judgment themselves.

• One of the main purposes of these messages was to show that the negative part of God's promise to Abraham ("I will … curse those who curse you," Genesis 12:3) was still active. No one can harm God's people and avoid consequences, even when God's people are under his judgment.

• The seventh and final message of judgment against the nations targets Egypt, an old enemy and ally of Israel. This message is the longest and, like the one against Tyre, it addresses both Egypt and its ruler.

• Egypt often tempted Israel and Judah to turn away from their loyalty to the Lord. Soon after leaving Egypt, Israel fell into the trap of Egypt's idolatry. Egypt led Judah to rely on chariots and horses instead of the Lord, but Egypt was unreliable when it mattered most. The Lord judged Egypt for leading his people astray (compare Luke 17:1–2).

This day in the tenth year since the exile of Jehoiachin was approximately one year after the beginning of the siege of Jerusalem.

The message of judgment begins with a judgment against Pharaoh, who is called a great sea monster. In the ancient Near East, sea monsters were common in stories about the gods. These creatures represented chaos, which the gods had to control. In Genesis 1:21, however, sea creatures appear as part of God’s good creation. They are not enemies of God.

In this chapter, the image changes slightly. The sea monster also reflects Pharaoh as a great crocodile. He rests confidently in the streams that flow through the Nile River delta.

The image of the powerful crocodile leads to another image. The Lord will come like a great hunter.

Like Tyre, Egypt trusted in its watery defenses. But those waters would not protect it. The king of Egypt, who seemed strong and frightening, would be captured like an ordinary crocodile.

He would be dragged into the wilderness, which is a place of judgment. His allies are pictured as fish taken with him. There he would die. His body would be left in the open for wild animals and birds to eat.

Egypt’s sin is closely connected to Israel. Egypt is described as a staff made of reeds. A reed staff looks strong but breaks easily.

Egypt claimed it would support Israel, but it did not have the power or the will to help. It encouraged Israel to rebel against Assyria and Babylon but did not provide real help (compare 2 Kings 18:21).

Israel sinned by trusting in this weak support. But Egypt was also guilty. It gave false hope and would face God’s judgment.

God 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 exile until the time of Cyrus. This was about one generation later.

Judah would one day be fully restored. Egypt, however, would return as a weak and unimportant kingdom.

Israel would no longer trust Egypt for help. Instead, they would learn to trust the Lord. Egypt’s reduced position would remind Israel of its past mistake. They had trusted Egypt instead of trusting God.

This message came in the twenty-seventh year of King Jehoiachin’s captivity. This is the latest dated message in the book of Ezekiel. It is even later than Ezekiel’s vision of the temple in Ezekiel 40–48.

Nebuchadnezzar attacked Tyre (Ezekiel 26–28). His army worked very hard but gained little wealth from the city.

The Lord said that workers deserve their wages. So he would give Egypt to Babylon as payment for their work. Egypt would become their reward.

• Even when God judged other nations, he still focused on his own people. As Egypt grew weaker, God would make Israel strong again.

• I will cause a horn to sprout for the house of Israel: A horn was a common symbol of strength and dignity (see Psalm 132:17; compare Daniel 7:7–8; 8:3). This means that God would restore Israel’s strength and dignity.

  This restoration would also show that Ezekiel was a true prophet. Ezekiel had served the Lord faithfully. At times, people may have doubted him. In the end, they would see that his message was true.