Ezekiel 32:13

Eze 32:13 I will destroy also all the beasts thereof from beside the great waters; neither shall the foot of man trouble them any more, nor the hoofs of beasts trouble them.

Ver. 13. All the beasts thereof.] Egypt, a most moist and fat country, was full of cattle.

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 32:13-14. I will also destroy the beasts thereof — Their horses, in which they trusted so much, Isa 31:3, and other cattle, feeding in their rich pastures by the river sides. Neither shall the foot of man, nor the hoofs of beasts, &c. — The country shall be so deserted that the waters of the river shall not be fouled by man or beast. But we may understand the prophet here as speaking metaphorically, and by the beasts of Egypt, intending its armies, which had frequently troubled the neighbouring nations, but which, it is here said, should trouble them no more; for when Egypt should be made desolate, and the number both of men and beasts should be diminished by their wars and confusions, then they should neither have the will nor the power to give their neighbours any further molestation; but the nations around them should enjoy quietness, like that of a river which smoothly glides along, and never has its streams fouled or disturbed: see Eze 32:2. Then will I make their waters deep, &c. — The nations which used to be harassed and troubled by the Egyptians, shall then enjoy great peace and quietness.

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

(See on Eze 29:11). The picture is ideally true, not to be interpreted by the letter. The political ascendency of Egypt was to cease with the Chaldean conquest [FAIRBAIRN]. Henceforth Pharaoh must figuratively no longer trouble the waters by man or beast, that is, no longer was he to flood other peoples with his overwhelming forces.

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

(13) Will destroy also all the beasts thereof from beside the great waters.—The figurative description of this and the following verses is taken from the vast herds of cattle in Egypt going to the river to drink, and trampling the banks and disturbing the water with their feet (comp. Eze_32:2). These represent the restless activity and stir of Egyptian life, and its constant disturbance of surrounding nations. With its conquest all this ceases, and, restrained within its own boundaries, Egypt shall no longer be a disturber.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

13. The desolation of Egypt shall be complete, man and beast swept away; cf. Zep_1:3. These pictures both of desolation and felicity are always ideal; cf. Eze_29:11.

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.

I will destroy also all the beasts thereof from beside the great waters,.... Which used to graze beside the river Nile, and the canal, of it, in the plains and meadows, valley, and hills, which these ran by; meaning both horses, which Egypt abounded with, and would be good booty for the Chaldeans, and oxen and sheep, which they would kill for present use, or drive away for future service:

neither shall the foot of man trouble them any more, nor the hoofs of beasts trouble them; there should so few remain of men and beasts, that the waters of the rivers would not be disturbed, either by men passing over them, and doing any business upon them, or by beasts drinking at them.

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

All the beasts thereof; the sheep and oxen devoured by hungry Chaldean soldiers, or else driven away; the horses taken up to mount the horsemen of the Chaldee army, whose own horses were tired or spoiled.

Beside the great waters; the pastures lying along the river’s side, and along their canals, should be emptied of all cattle, with which once they were full.

Neither shall the foot of man throttle them; there should be so few men left in Egypt, that they should not, as formerly, disturb the waters by digging, swimming, or rowing on them; or, no more trouble the waters with the passing of mighty armies over them to invade their neighbours.

Nor the hoofs of beasts trouble them; so few horses or cows, that they should not at watering times, or in the heat of the day, foul the waters by running into them, and stamping or trampling in them; but the waters shall continue pure and undisturbed.

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

Vers. 13, 14. The unvisited river; or, life at a low level.

The great river appropriately represented the great nation which it enriched; and the picture of the fall of the kingdom includes the desertion of the banks of these "great waters" by man and beast (Ver. 14); and also the sinking of the river itself: "Then will I cause their waters to subside" (Fairbairn"s translation). Such a river as the Nile may well illustrate

I A NOBLE LIFE. It is a source of beauty and fertility, and therefore of enrichment, to the land through which it runs. Itself an object of delight to the eye, it is the source of verdure all along its banks. By its overflow, or through simple agricultural appliances, it waters the whole district in which it flows, and makes all the difference between barrenness and abundance. Thousands of animals drink of it and bathe in it, while the inhabitants of town and village flock to its banks in their various necessities. A noble human life may be all this in a higher sphere.

1. It may add very considerably to that spiritual worth and beauty on which Christ looks down with Divine satisfaction.

2. It may be the source of all kinds of good of health, of sustenance, of knowledge, of wisdom, of purity, of piety; of life at its best below, of the beginning of the life eternal.

3. It is a constant source of blessing. As the river runs, not spasmodically, but night and day, continually sending forth its refreshing and nourishing moisture into the land, so a true, Christian life is incessantly and unconsciously communicating good, in many forms, to those around it.

II A LIFE PITIFULLY REDUCED. A very pitiful sight would be a river in such a state as that here imagined (rather than foreseen). Instead of being what it once was, it is now to the prophet"s eye a diminished stream, its waters are low (not deep, but sunk; the verb is properly to "sink and lie far beneath its banks; and they am such that no beast cares to drink of them; no man approaches to use them for the purposes of human life, whether of nourishment or of cleansing. The river is useless, worthless, abandoned to itself. How much more pitiable is the life that has been reduced; the life that has sunk, that moves not any longer on the higher plane of heavenly wisdom, but only on the low and muddy levels of selfishness, of covetousness, of a base indulgence; the life that has shriveled up into a poor dirty stream, no longer reflecting the beauty that is about it or the glory that is above it; the life that is unvisited, that no man cares to consult, by which no virtuous man directs his own, from which no man gains any strength, or impetus, or pure refreshment, which does no man any spiritual good; the life that is severely left alone!

III THE CAUSE OF ITS DECLINE. If any river be thus actually reduced (as in Ezekiel"s thought), it is because it is no longer fed as it once was by the rains of heaven. If a noble human life is thus reduced, it is because it is no longer supplied from above. It lacks the truth, the influences, the sustaining power, which should come to it from God. These may be cut off by some serious sin; or they may be withdrawn because we no longer keep open the channels through which they come.

1. Keep the mind open to all Divine wisdom and the heart to all holy influences.

2. Draw down the renewing rains of Heaven by constant communion and earnest prayer.

3. See that no "great transgression" diverts the waters; and the river of our life will flow on to the sea, without loss to its beauty or its power. C.

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

All the beasts - The sheep, and oxen devoured, or driven away: the horses taken up to mount the horsemen, whose own horses were tired, or spoiled. Great waters - The pasture lying along the river side. Trouble them - There shall be so few men left in Egypt, that they shall not as formerly, disturb the waters by digging, swimming, or rowing on them. Nor the hoofs - So few horses or cows, that they shall not at watering-times, or in the heat of the day, foul the waters.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

General Information:

Yahweh continues speaking.

from beside the plentiful waters

"in the places where there is a lot of water"

the foot of man will no longer stir the waters up

The foot here is a synecdoche for the whole person. AT: "people will no longer stir the waters up with their feet" (See: Synecdoche)

stir the waters

make clear water muddy

the hooves of cattle stir them

The hoof is a synecdoche for cattle. AT: "cattle stir them with their hooves" (See: Metonymy)

Then I will calm their waters

Possible meanings are 1) "I will make the water calm" or 2) "I will make the water clear." When no one stirs up the water, the dirt settles down and the water becomes clear.

make their rivers run like oil

Oil flows slowly and smoothly. AT: "make the rivers run smoothly like oil" (See: Simile)

translationWords

livestock

hoof

cow

oil

Lord Yahweh

declare

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

from beside...waters of other countries that you used to sully.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.