A Lament for Egypt
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The word of the LORD came to me:
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"Son of man, prophesy and say: 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says:
" 'Wail and say, "Alas for that day!"
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For the day is near, the day of the LORD is near - a day of clouds,
a time of doom for the nations.
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A sword will come against Egypt, and anguish will come upon Cush.
When the slain fall in egypt, her wealth will be carried away
and her foundations torn down.
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Cush and Put, Lydia and all Arabia, Libya and the people of the covenant
land will fall by the sword along with Egypt.
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" 'This is what the LORD says: " 'The allies of Egypt will fall and her proud
strength will fail. From Migdol to Aswan they will fall by the sword within her,
declares the Sovereign LORD.
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" 'They will be desolate among desolate lands,
and their cities will lie among ruined cities.
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Then they will know that I am the LORD,
when I set fire to Egypt and all her helpers are crushed.
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" 'On that day messengers will go o ut from me in ships to frighten Cush
out of her complacency. Anguish will take hold of them on
the day of Egypt's doom, for it is sure to come.
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" 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: " 'I will put an end to
the hordes of Egypt by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.
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He and his army - the most ruthless of nations - will be brought in to destroy
the land. They will draw their swords against Egypt and fill the land with the slain.
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I will dry up the streams of the Nile and sell the land to evil men;
by the hand of foreigners I will lay waste the land and everything in it.
I the LORD have spoken.
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" 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says:
" 'I will destroy the idols and put an end to the images in Memphis.
No longer will there be a prince in Egypt,
and I will spread fear throughout the land.
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I will lay waste Upper Egypt, set fire to Zoan and inflict punishment on Thebes.
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I will pour out my wrath on Pelusium, the stronghold of Egypt,
and cut off the hordes of Thebes.
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I will set fire to Egypt; Pelusium will writhe in agony.
Thebes will be taken by storms; Memphis will be in constant distress.
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The young men of Heliopokis and Bubastis will fall by the sword,
and the cities themselves will go into captivity.
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Dark will be the day at Tahpanhes when I break the yoke of Egypt;
there her proud strength will come to an end.
She will be covered with clouds, and her villages will go into captivity.
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So I will inflict punishment on Egypt, and they will know that I am the LORD.
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In the eleventh year, in the first month on the seventh day
the word of the LORD came to me:
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"Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt.
It has not been bound up for healing or put in a splint so as to
become strong enough to hold a sword.
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Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says:
I am against Pharaoh king of Egypt. I will break both his arms,
the good arm as well as the broken one, and make the sword fall from his hand.
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I will disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them through the countries.
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I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon and put my sword in his hand,
but I will break the arms of Pharaoh, and he will groan before him
like a mortally wounded man.
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I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon,
but the arms of Pharaoh will fall limp. Then they will know
that I am theLORD, when I put my sword into the hand of
the king of Babylon and he brandishes it against Egypt.
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I will disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them through
the countries. Then they will know that I am the LORD."