Ezekiel 29–32

Introduction

I said last week that we were entering a new section of the book of Ezekiel. For the first 24 chapters, the Lord’s message through Ezekiel to his people in exile in Babylon was about Jerusalem and how the Lord was going to destroy the city by sending Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, to attack it. And the people who were in the city would be killed by famine or sword or by fire. The Lord was determined to destroy them for their persistent rebellion, because instead of worshipping him, they worshipped false gods and idols. Instead of trusting in him to save them from trouble, they trusted in other nations and their gods. Instead of walking in the ways of the Lord, they were guilty of all kinds of wickedness. And instead of listening to the Lord’s prophets and returning to him in repentance, they persisted in their rebellion. And so, the Lord was determined to destroy them. And when the land was cleansed of those wicked people, the Lord would let the exiles return to the Promised Land.

And so, the Lord’s message was not all doom and disaster. It was doom and disaster for those in Jerusalem who refused to repent and to return to him. But there was also a message of hope for those who were already in exile, because even though they too were sinners who deserved to be destroyed, God was being gracious to them and he was going to let them live and he was going to bring them back to the Promised Land.

That’s what the first 24 chapters have been about more or less. But a new section of the book began in chapter 25 and it continues to chapter 32. And in this part of the book of Ezekiel we have a series of oracles about the nations. So, the Lord is still speaking to his people in exile. But he’s not speaking to them about Jerusalem now. He’s speaking to them about the nations.

And last week, we spent our time on chapters 25 to 28 and the Lord’s message about Ammon and Moab and Edom and Philistia and Tyre and Sidon. And the Lord’s message about the nations was a message of judgment. He was going to destroy them for their animosity towards his people and for their foolish pride. Some of them were pleased when they heard what had happened to the people of Israel and Judah. They were delighted to see God’s people suffer. And the king of Tyre in particular was guilty of foolish pride. He claimed to be a god; or, at least, he claimed to be godlike. And so, for their foolish pride and for their animosity towards God’s people, God was going to destroy them and reduce them to rubble.

That was the Lord’s message about the nations in chapters 25 to 28 which we studied last week. And in today’s passage — chapters 29 to 32 — his message is all about Egypt. And once again it’s a message of judgment.

Now, if you’re counting, you’ll have noticed that the Lord refers to seven nations in these chapters. And today’s passage about Egypt also contains seven oracles. And that’s no doubt significant, because in the ancient world and in the Bible the number seven signified completion and fullness. For instance, by the seventh day, God completed his work of creating the world. Or in the book of Revelation, the Lord writes to the seven churches; and the seven churches stand for every church in every generation. And so, when the Lord proclaims these oracles about the seven nations, he’s really proclaiming a message about every nation. Every nation of the world will be destroyed. None will last for ever. Every one will come to nothing.

This was true of the nations in the past and it’s true of the nations in our generation. None of them will last for ever, because there’s only one kingdom which will last for ever and it’s the kingdom of God. And so, do you remember Nebuchadnezzar’s dream in Daniel 2? He saw a great statue which was composed of different kinds of metal and its feet were made of iron and clay. And then a rock was cut out, but not by human hands, and it struck the statue and demolished it. The statue was destroyed, but the rock grew and grew and it became a mountain that filled the earth. And Daniel explained to Nebuchadnezzar that the statue stood for the kingdoms of the world and the rock stood for God’s kingdom. And just as the statue was destroyed, so the kingdoms of the earth will be destroyed, but God’s kingdom will grow and grow until it fills the earth.

And the Lord’s oracles about the seven nations is making a similar point. Not just these seven nations, but every nation will be destroyed. None will last. None is eternal. There’s only one eternal kingdom and it’s the kingdom of God. And God rules his kingdom by his Son, Jesus Christ, who sits enthroned at God’s right hand side in heaven. And he’s extending the kingdom of God throughout the world through the reading and preaching of his word and by his Spirit who enables men and women and boys and girls to give up their sinful rebellion and to trust in Christ the Saviour for salvation. And all who give up their sinful rebellion and trust in Christ are added to his kingdom and become members of this worldwide and everlasting kingdom. And his kingdom will continue to grow until he comes again and his enemies are defeated and his rule extends throughout a renewed and purified and perfected creation.

And so, these are exciting chapters. This is an exciting message from the Lord. No earthly kingdom will last, but the kingdom of God will last for ever.

Chapter 29

Let’s go through these chapters together. And as I’ve already said, today’s chapters are all about Egypt and they contain seven oracles. Each oracle — apart from one of them — begins with a date stamp. And chapter 29 comprises two oracles: one begins at verse 1 and the other begins at verse 17.

In the first one, the Lord tells Ezekiel to set his face against Pharaoh, the king of Egypt and to prophesy against him and against all Egypt. And the Lord’s message to them is that he is against Pharaoh. That’s in verse 3. He likens the king of Egypt to a great monster, lying among the streams of the Nile. The word translated ‘monster’ can also be translated serpent. The ESV says ‘dragon’. We’re probably to think of a crocodile. And this crocodile-like king boasts that the Nile is his, because he made it for himself. Like the king of Tyre, he’s claiming to be godlike. He’s like a god because he created the Nile.

However, because the Lord is against him, the Lord will put hooks in his jaw and he will make the fish of the stream stick to him. The Lord is probably referring there either to the people of Egypt or to other nations who allied themselves to Egypt. And so, when the Lord pulls the king of Egypt from the Nile, he will pull them out too. And they’ll be dumped in the desert where they’ll become food for the beasts of the earth and for the birds of the air. And what the Lord means is that they will be conquered and taken away from the land of Egypt.

And the reason for the Lord’s judgment on them is not only because of the proud boasting of the king, but it’s because they have been a staff of reed for the house of Israel. Do you see that in verse 6? He means that in the past Israel lent on Egypt. They relied on Egypt to help them. In fact, we learn from Jeremiah 37 that when Jerusalem was under siege, the Egyptian army marched out to help Jerusalem and for a time the Babylonians withdrew. But this was not God’s will for Jerusalem and Egypt should not have tried to help them. And by calling Egypt a staff of reed, the Lord is saying Egypt is weak. Egypt is only a reed, which breaks easily. And when it breaks, it splinters and hurts whoever is holding it. Egypt will cause Jerusalem more harm than good.

And in verses 8 to 16, the Lord makes clear what he will do to Egypt. Because he is against them, he will make the land of Egypt a ruin and a desolate waste. No one will live there for forty years. And the Lord will disperse the people among the nations and scatter them through the countries. Just as the Lord sent his people into exile, so he will do to Egypt.

But then at the end of the forty years, he will gather the Egyptians from the nations and he’ll let them return to the land of their ancestry. So, he’ll let them return to the land of Egypt. But they will remain a lowly kingdom. They will never again be exalted over the other nations. The Lord will leave them weak so that they will not rule over the other nations. No one will ever rely on them again or place their trust in them as the Israelites once did. And sure enough, the once great nation of Egypt, with its Pharaoh’s and their wealth and their pyramids, is nothing now. It has no influence in the world.

That’s the first oracle. The second is from verses 17 to 21 and in this one, the Lord says about King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon that he drove his army in a hard campaign against Tyre. Every head was rubbed bare and every should made raw. In other words, battling Tyre was hard work. It wore Nebuchadnezzar’s men down. It was a real struggle. But what did they get for their hard work? The Lord is depicting Nebuchadnezzar and his men as his workers. He hired them to do a job for him, but the payment they received was not enough to compensate them for their hard work and labour. And it’s as if the Lord feels bad for them and he wants to put things right. He wants to give them something else to make up for the little they received from Tyre. And so, this is what the Sovereign Lord says to Nebuchadnezzar and his men: I’m going to give you Egypt. I’m going to give you the wealth of Egypt to make up for the little you received from attacking Tyre. You deserve more for your hard work and I’m going to give you more. Take Egypt.

And so, the Lord says in verse 19 that Nebuchadnezzar will carry off Egypt’s wealth. He will loot and plunder the land as pay for his army. The Lord will give him Egypt as a reward for his efforts.

And look what the Lord says in verse 20. He says that Nebuchadnezzar did it for me. That is, he did it for the Lord. He attacked Tyre and Egypt for the Lord. Nebuchadnezzar did not realise that he was serving the Lord. When Nebuchadnezzar attacked Tyre and Egypt, he thought it was his own idea and that he was doing it for himself. But the Lord God Almighty — who directs all his creatures and all their actions and who holds the king’s heart in his hand — was directing Nebuchadnezzar and the Lord enabled the Babylonians to succeed. They were the Lord’s instrument which he used to punish Tyre and to punish Egypt.

This is our God. He is the great king who rules over all of his creation. He sustains all things and he directs all things and he can use the wicked plans of wicked men to fulfil his own good and holy plans.

Chapter 30

We come now to chapter 30 which also contains two oracles: one beginning in verse 1 and the other beginning in verse 20.

And in the first one, Ezekiel is instructed to announce the day of the Lord for Egypt. In other words, he was to annouce that the day was coming when the Lord will destroy Egypt. So, wail and say ‘Alas’, because the day is near: the day of the Lord, a day of clouds and a time of doom for the nations. And in particular, a sword is coming against Egypt and anguish will come upon Cush. Cush was one of Egypt’s allies and the Lord refers to other allied nations in verse 5. When he mentions ‘the people of the covenant land’, he could be referring to Judah, but it’s more likely he’s referring generally to those nations who have allied themselves to Egypt and enter into a covenant with it.

And he says in verse 5 that when the slain fall in Egypt, her wealth will be carried away and her foundation will be torn down. So, there will be nothing left of Egypt. And in verse 6 he says that her allies will also fall. From the north to the south, they will fall by the sword and the land will be desolate and the cities will be ruined.

According to verse 10, the Lord will put an end to the hordes of Egypt. And he will do it by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar. He and his most ruthless army will be brought in by God to destroy Egypt. They’ll draw their swords and fill the land with the slain. In verse 12 the Lord says that he will lay waste the land and everything in it. Nebuchadnezzar is only the instrument, or the weapon, in the hand of the Lord.

In verses 13 to 19 he refers to different places throughout Egypt to make the point that the devastation will be total. The whole land will be covered in clouds and the people in the villages will go into captivity. And in this way, the Lord will inflict punishment on Egypt.

The fourth oracle is from verse 20 to the end of the chapter. And in this one the Lord tells Ezekiel that he has broken Pharaoh’s arm. He means he has broken his strength. And therefore he is not strong enough to hold a sword to defend himself. In fact, the Lord is going to break both his arms so that he will become totally powerless. On the other hand, the Lord will strengthen the arms of Nebuchadnezzar and he will give Nebuchadnezzar his sword to use against Egypt. And the Egyptians will be dispersed among the nations and they will be scattered among the countries. Once again, it is the Lord who will do it, although he will do it by means of Nebuchadnezzar, his instrument.

Chapter 31

Let’s move on now to chapter 31 which contains the fifth oracle about Egypt. And in this oracle, the Lord asks who can compare to Egypt in its majesty? So, it was a magnificent nation. And he compares Egypt to Assyria, which was once like a great cedar tree with beautiful branches. It towered on high and the waters nourished it and made it grow tall. It towered higher and higher until it was higher than the other trees. And all the other nations lived in its shade. He says that the cedars in the garden of God could not rival this tree. No tree in God’s garden of Eden could match its beauty. God made it great.

So, he’s talking about Assyria which was once a great and mighty nation. And he’s saying that Egypt was like Assyria.

But look now at verses 10 and 11. Because Assyria was like a tree that towered on high and because it became proud, the Lord handed it over to ruler of the nations. That is, he handed it over to Nebuchadnezzar to deal with it according to its wickedness. And so, Nebuchadnezzar cut it dow. Assyria was toppled and destroyed. According to verse 16, the other nations trembled at the sound of its fall. And the other trees — or the other nations — were consoled when it collapsed because they were afraid of Assyria. Meanwhile the tree and those who lived in its shade — Assyria and its allies — went down to the grave.

So, the Lord is comparing Assyria to a mighty tree which was cut down. Assyria was cut down by Nebuchadnezzar. However, the Lord is also saying that Egypt is like Assyria. Just as Assyria was once great, so Egypt was a great and mighty nation. But it too will be cut down and destroyed. The Egyptians will lie among the uncircumcised, which was a way of saying that will lie down among the godless nations.

Chapter 32

We turn now to chapter 32 which contains the sixth and seventh oracles about Egypt. The sixth one begins in verse 1 and the seventh one begins in verse 17.

And in verses 1 and 2 the Lord tells Ezekiel to take up a lament for Pharaoh. He compares Pharaoh to a lion and to a monster or crocodile among the streams of the Nile. But the Lord is going to send a great throng of people to capture him. The Lord will throw him on the land and hurl him on an open field where wild animals and birds will feed on him. God will drench the land with the king’s blood and he’ll fill the ravines with his flesh. And there will be darkness over the land as if the whole earth and sky is mourning for him. And the Lord will cause many peoples to be appalled at him and the kings of other nations will shudder, because they will realise that what happened to Pharaoh can happen to them. They will all tremble when the Lord brings Pharaoh down.

And from verse 11 the Lord makes clear that he will bring Pharaoh down by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar. The Lord will act through Nebuchadnezzar to make Egypt desolate and to strip the land of everything in it. The Lord will strike Egypt by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar.

And so, Ezekiel must take up a lament for Egypt. And the daughters of the nations will also lament for it.

And so, we come to the final oracle which begins in verse 17. And this one is about how Egypt will go down to the pit, to the place of the dead. And when Egypt goes down there, the Egyptians will discover that they are not alone. According to verse 22, Assyria will be there. According to verse 24, Elam will be there. According to verse 26, Meshech and Tubal will be there. According to verse 29, Edom will be there. According to verse 30, all the princes of the north and the Sidonians will be there.

And so, according to verse 31, Pharaoh and his army will see them all when they join them in the pit of death. And they will be consoled, because they’re not alone. Once they terrorised the people in the land of the living, but in the end they will be laid among the godless nations in the place of the dead.

Conclusion

As I was preparing for this sermon, I re-read part of a book by Herman Bavinck’s nephew, J.H. Bavinck. I’ve mentioned both Bavincks before. Herman was a Dutch theologian who died in 1921. His nephew, J.H. Bavinck, was a missionary and a missiologist. He died in 1964. And this week I re-read parts of his book, Between the Beginning and the End, which he wrote during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands and which is about the history of the world.

J.H. Bavinck makes the point that God is the great king over his creation. As the psalmist says:

[1] Oh come, let us sing to the LORD;
let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!
[2] Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;
let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!
[3] For the LORD is a great God,
and a great King above all gods.
[4] In his hand are the depths of the earth;
the heights of the mountains are his also.
[5] The sea is his, for he made it,
and his hands formed the dry land.

So, the Lord is a great God and a great King. He rules over his creation and, in the beginning, all parts of his creation were attuned to one another so that there was no dissonance or disturbance or anything to spoil the wonderful harmony of all the parts. And God created us to rule the world on his behalf and to develop the world and to unfold all of its potential and the powers contained within it. We were to fathom and understand creation’s hidden depths and to bring it to its full potential. And so, God made us a little lower than himself and crowned us with glory and honour, giving us dominion over the works of his hands, as the psalmist says.

However, Adam and Eve, our first parents, rebelled against God our King. They wanted to become like God and they disobeyed his clear command concerning the Tree of Knowledge. And since what Adam did affects us all, then we fell with him into a state of sin and misery so that now all of us are sinners when we’re born and we sin against the Lord our Maker continually. And the perfect unity and harmony of God’s good creation has been lost and everything has been spoiled.

But God has not abandoned his creation. And in due course he set apart the nation of Israel to be a kind of foretaste of his kingdom on the earth. And through the prophets he announced his plan to unite people from all over the world into his kingdom which will encompass the whole creation.

However, says Bavinck, throughout the course of history there have also been secular powers that work together to form empires which have no other goal than to establish a human kingdom. And a human kingdom is an imitation of God’s kingdom, because the intention is also to create unity and order and harmony in the world. And it’s to bring lots of different people together under a leader. But it’s about bringing people together under a human leader instead of under God. And these human empires are kingdoms without God. So, instead of seeking to live under God and to serve him, the members of these kingdoms disregard him.

And yet, these human empires will never accomplish their aim to bring unity and order to this world, because we live in a fallen world of sin. And, as Bavinck says, sin always leads to disintegration and fragmentation and disorder. It leads to conflict and war and persecution.

I should add here that God normally restrains these earthly empires and their rulers and he keeps them from being as bad as they might be. He gracious restrains them and he even enables earthly leaders to do good in the world so that they don’t only do what is evil.

But, in the end these human empires will fall. And that’s because the Lord himself is against every human empire and every earthly kingdom and nation and person who does not acknowledge him. He will hold the people of the world accountable for what they have done. As we see from these oracles about the nations in Ezekiel, God will judge the people for their sins and for their foolish pride and he will bring these earthly empires and kingdoms and nations to an end. Egypt was once a great nation, but the Lord was determined to destroy it and to make it nothing.

And so, instead of relying on earthly leaders to restore unity and harmony to this fallen world, we should look to the Lord our God, who is the only one who is able to unite all things. And we should trust in his Son, who came into the world as one of us to give up his life on the cross to pay for our sins and to make peace for us with God. He came to unite heaven and earth by means of the sacrifice of himself on the cross. And after he died, he was raised from the dead and was exalted to God’s right hand to rule over God’s kingdom, which he’s now building on the earth. And he sends his preachers into all the world to declare peace and forgiveness to all who will give up their rebellion and who will yield their lives to him. And in his kingdom, which is an everlasting kingdom, there is true unity and peace and order, because not only are we reconciled to God, but we receive his Spirit who works in us to enable us to love and serve one another and to pardon each other just as we have been pardoned by God. He enables us by his Spirit to live in harmony with one another and to love each other as God has loved us in Christ.

And then, when Christ comes again, we’ll be perfectly restored to the image of God and we’ll love God perfectly and we’ll love one another perfectly and we’ll live together in perfect harmony for ever and for ever. We’ll rule with Christ our Saviour over the new creation and there will be no-one who sets himself up as a rival to God and there will be nothing to spoil the perfect peace and harmony and happiness of our life with God in the new heavens and earth.

And so, while the Lord commands us in the meantime to submit to earthly authorities, we’re to remember that the kingdoms of this world will not last and the only kingdom that will last is the kingdom of God. And so, we’re to place all our hope in Christ our King and we’re to pray for his kingdom to come throughout the earth.