Ezekiel 30:10

Eze 30:10 Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will also make the multitude of Egypt to cease by the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon.

Ver. 10. I will also make the multitude.] Or, The great noise and hurry. They shall have no more cause to complain that they are too many of them, so that they cannot one live by another.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Eze 30:10-12. I will make the multitude of Egypt to cease — I will diminish the number of its inhabitants. I will make the rivers dry — The fertility of Egypt depending on the rise and overflowing of the Nile, the meaning of the metaphor is, I will destroy the plenty, prosperity, and strength of Egypt. And sell the land into the hand of the wicked — Namely, the haughty and cruel Babylonians. To sell, signifies here to deliver up, as men do goods which they sell. Compare Deu 32:30; Jdg 2:14; and Jdg 4:9.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The executors of the judgment. - Eze 30:10. Thus saith the Lord Jehovah, And I will put an end to the tumult of Egypt through Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. Eze 30:11. He and his people with him, violent of the nations, will be brought to destroy the land; they will draw their swords against Egypt, and fill the land with slain. Eze 30:12. And I will make the rivers dry, and sell the land into the hand of wicked men, and lay waste the land and its fulness by the hand of foreigners; I Jehovah have spoken it. - המון cannot be understood as signifying either the multitude of people only, or the abundance of possessions alone; for השׁבּית is not really applicable to either of these meanings. They are evidently both included in the המון, which signifies the tumult of the people in the possession and enjoyment of their property (cf. Eze 26:13). The expression is thus specifically explained in Eze 30:11 and Eze 30:12. Nebuchadnezzar will destroy the land with his men of war, slaying the people with its possessions. עריצי, as in Eze 28:7. מוּבאים, as in Eze 23:42. 'הריק וגו, cf. Eze 12:14, Eze 12:28; 7. חלל...מלאוּ, as in Eze 11:6. יארים, the arms and canals of the Nile, by which the land was watered, and on which the fertility and prosperity of Egypt depended. The drying up of the arms of the Nile must not be restricted, therefore, to the fact that God would clear away the hindrances to the entrance of the Chaldeans into the land, but embraces also the removal of the natural resources on which the country depended. מכר, to sell a land or people into the hand of any one, i.e., to deliver it into his power (cf. Deu 32:30; Jdg 2:14, etc.). For the fact itself, see Isa 19:4-6. For 'השׁמּתי וגו, see Eze 19:7.

Keil & Delitzsch — Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament (1861–1891) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API. (Old Testament only.)

the multitude--the large population.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

10. The instrument whom Jehovah uses is here named for the first time, except in the later passage, ch. Eze_29:17-21.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Thus saith the Lord God, I will make the multitude of Egypt to cease,.... The vast numbers of people that inhabited Egypt; some of its cities were very populous, especially the city No, after mentioned; but now the numbers should be greatly lessened, and the whole land sadly depopulated: or the "noise" (r), "tumult", and hurry of it; which is very great where there are large numbers of people, and which ceases when they are cut off. The Syriac version renders it, the riches of Egypt. Now the instrument God would make use of to do all this is mentioned by name, as follows,

by the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon; the then greatest monarch in the world.

(r) "strepitum", Vatablus, Cocceius.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

The multitude; the numerous families and tribes. To cease; to dwindle and decrease.

By the hand; by the army, power, and conduct of Nebuchadrezzar.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

10, 11. Compare Ezekiel 28, 29.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Vers. 10, 11. By the hand of Nebuchadnezzar. Hitherto (on the assumption that Eze_29:17-21) stands by itself, and that we are still in the prophetic message of (Eze_29:1-16) the predictions have been general. Now Ezekiel, following in the footsteps of Jeremiah, (Eze 46) specifies the Chaldean king and his people, the terrible of the nations (as in Eze_28:7 Eze_31:12, et al.) as those who were to execute the Divine judgments.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The Sentence Carried Out

v. 10. Thus saith the Lord God, I will also make the multitude of Egypt, the large population of the country, with all the wealth possessed by them, to cease by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, who would, in every way, put an end to the prosperity of the country.

v. 11. He and his people with him, the terrible of the nations, for the Chaldean soldiers were known for the fierceness of their fighting, shall be brought to destroy the land, that being the expressed object of their campaign; and they shall draw their swords against Egypt and fill the land with the slain, those pierced through in the ruthless slaughter.

v. 12. And I will make the rivers dry, thereby taking away from the land some of its natural means of defense and the sources of its prosperity, Deu 32:30, and sell the land into the hand of the wicked, like a slave sold into the power of a strange master; and I will make the land waste, and all that is therein, by the hand of strangers, so that everything would be beaten down and ruined; I, the Lord, have spoken it. The description is given from the standpoint of the Egyptians, for according to their conception the Chaldeans were not only strangers, but wicked as well.

v. 13. Thus saith the Lord God, I will also destroy the idols, Isa 19:1, and I will cause their images to cease out of Noph, that is, Memphis, the ancient capital of Lower Egypt; and there shall be no more a prince of the land of Egypt, namely, with the glory of time ancient Pharaohs, who were, at the same time, clothed with divine honor; and I will put a fear in the land of Egypt, so that they would be continually under its burden, without a native prince to assist them. Cf Jer 46:25.

v. 14. And I will make Pathros, that is, Upper Egypt, desolate and will set fire in Zoan, the old Tanis, on a branch of the Nile in Lower Egypt, and will execute judgments in No, or No-Amon, that is, Thebes, the very ancient metropolis of Upper Egypt.

v. 15. And I will pour my fury upon Sin, that is, Pelusium, on one of the branches of the Nile in its delta, the strength of Egypt, for, being surrounded with swamps, it was hard to attack, and thus kept many an enemy back from the northeastern frontier; and I will cut off the multitude of No.

v. 16. And I will set fire in Egypt, bitter and destructive warfare: Sin shall have great pain, and No shall be rent asunder, overthrown as if by highway robbers, and Noph shall have distresses daily, literally, "and Noph—besiegers by day," overrunning the city with an utter disregard of any defense. Note the continual change from Upper to Lower Egypt, to emphasize the fact that every part of Egypt would be included in time punishment meted out by the Lord.

v. 17. The young men of Aven, of Heliopolis, the great city of idols in Lower Egypt, and of Pibeseth, of Boubastis, on a canal in the delta of the Nile, the center of cat-worship in Egypt, shall fall by the sword, although both of them were known on account of their valiant garrisons; and these cities shall go into captivity, that is, the inhabitants, those not belonging to the warrior caste.

v. 18. At Tehaphnehes, that is, Taphne, a border city near Pelusium, also the day shall be darkened, with the shadow of the approaching calamity, when I shall break there the yokes of Egypt, Cf Lev 20:13, so that Egypt would never again be a mistress of nations, keeping them in slavery. It was in the last-named city that the hand of Jews under the leadership of Johanan had dragged the unwilling Jeremiah, and so they were also included in the Lord’s punishment upon Egypt. And the pomp of her strength, of which Egypt had boasted throughout the centuries, shall cease in her; as for her, a cloud shall cover her, namely, that of this catastrophe, and her daughters, her cities with their inhabitants, shall go into captivity.

v. 19. Thus will I execute judgments in Egypt, according to the entire description of the paragraph; and they shall know that I am the Lord, this knowledge being forced upon their unwilling minds by the almighty evidences of God’s wrath.

Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The Lord Yahweh says this

The word "this" refers to what follows. See how you translated this in Ezekiel 5:5.

I will make an end of the multitudes of Egypt

"I will make it so that Egypt will no longer have many people."

by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar

Here "the hand" represents Nebuchadnezzar's military power. Nebuchadnezzar will be the one who brings this punishment about.

He and his army with him ... will be brought to destroy the land

This can be stated in active form. AT: "I will bring Nebuchadnezzar and his army ... to destroy the land" (See: Active or Passive)

He and his army ... will be brought to destroy the land

This can be stated in active form. AT: "I will cause him and his army ... to go destroy the land of Egypt" (See: Active or Passive)

He and his army with him, the terror of nations

Yahweh calls Nebuchadnezzar "the terror of the nations" because all of the nations are greatly afraid of his army. AT: "He and his army with him, the one who terrifies many nations" (See: Abstract Nouns)

they will draw out their swords against Egypt

Here "draw out their swords" represents fighting with their swords. AT: "they will use their swords and fight against Egypt" (See: Metonymy)

fill the land with those who have been killed

This is an exaggeration to show that the Babylonians will kill very many Egyptians. There will be so many dead Egyptians that it will seem that their dead bodies cover all of the land of Egypt. AT: "kill so many people that it will seem like dead bodies are everywhere" (See: Hyperbole and Generalization)

translationWords

hand

Nebuchadnezzar

king

Babylon

nation

die

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.