A Prophecy Against Egypt
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In the tenth year, in the tenth month on the twelfth day,
the word of the LORD came to me:
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"Son of man, set your face against Pharaoh king of Egypt
and prophesy against all Egypt.
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Speak to him and say: 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says:" 'I am against you,
Pharaoh king of Egypt, you great monster lying among your streams.
You say, "The Nile is mine; I made it for myself."
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But I will put hooks in your jaws and make the fish of your streams stick to your scales.
I will pull you out from among your streams, with all the fish sticking to your scales.
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I will leave you in the desert, you and all the fish of your streams.
You will fall on the open field and not be gathered or picked up.
I will give you as food to the beasts of the earth and the birds of the air.
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Then all who live in Egypt will know that I am the LORD.
" 'You have been a staff of reed for the house of Israel.
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When they grasped you with their hands, you splintered and you tore open
their shoulders; when they leaned on you, you broke and their backs were wrenched.
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" 'Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says:
I will bring a sword against you and kill your men and their animals.
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Egypt will become a desolate wasteland. Then they will know that I am the LORD.
" 'Because you said, "The Nile is mine; I made it,"
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therefore I am against you and against your streams, and I will make the land
of Egypt a ruin and a desolate waste from Migdol to Aswan, as far as the border
of Cush.
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No foot of man or animal will pass through it, no one will live there for forty years.
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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.
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" 'Yet this is what the Sovereign LORD says: At the end of forty years
I will gather the Egyptians from the nations where they were scattered.
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I will bring them from captivity and return them to Upper Egypt, the land of
their ancestry. There they will be a lowly kingdom.
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It will be the lowest of kingdoms and will never again exalt itself above
the other nations. I will make it so weak that it will never again rule over the nations.
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Egypt will no longer be a source of confidence for the people of Israel
but will be a reminder of their sin in turning to her for help.
Then they will know that I am the Sovereign LORD.' "
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In the twenty-seventh year, in the first month on the first day,
the word of the LORD came to me:
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"Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon drove his army a hard campaign
against Tyre; every head was rubbed bare and every shoulder made raw.
Yet he and his army got no reward from the campaign he led against Tyre.
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Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says:
I am going to give Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he will carry off
its wealth. He will not loot and plunder as pay for his army.
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I have given him Egypt as a reward for his efforts
because he and his army did it for me, declares the Sovereign LORD.
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"On that day I will make a horn grow for the house of Israel,
and I will open your mouth among them.
Then they will know that I am the LORD."
