A Lament for Pharaoh

1In the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me: 2“Son of man, lamenta for Pharaoh king of Egypt and say to him,

‘You compare yourself to a lion of the nations,

butA you are like a monsterB b in the seas.

You thrash about in your rivers,

churn up the waters with your feet,

and muddy theC rivers.

3“ ‘This is what the Lord God says:

I will spread my net over youa

with an assembly of many peoples,

and theyA will haul you up in my net.

4I will abandon you on the land

and throw you onto the open field.

I will cause all the birds of the sky

to settle on you

and let the wild creatures of the entire earth

eat their fill of you.a

5I will put your flesh on the mountainsa

and fill the valleys with your carcass.

6I will drench the land

with the flow of your blood,

even to the mountains;

the ravines will be filled with your gore.

7“ ‘When I snuff you out,

I will cover the heavens

and darken their stars.

I will cover the sun with a cloud,a

and the moon will not give its light.

8I will darken all the shining lights

in the heavens over you,

and will bring darkness on your land.

This is the declaration of the Lord God.

9“ ‘I will trouble the hearts of many peoples,

when I bring about your destruction

among the nations,

in countries you have not known.

10I will cause many peoples to be appalled at you,

and their kings will shudder with fear because of youa

when I brandish my sword in front of them.

On the day of your downfall

each of them will tremble

every momentb for his life.

11“ ‘For this is what the Lord God says:

The sword of Babylon’s king

will come against you!

12I will make your hordes fall

by the swords of warriors,

all of them ruthless men from the nations.a

They will ravage Egypt’s pride,

and all its hordes will be destroyed.

13I will slaughter all its cattle

that are beside many waters.

No human foot will churn them again,

and no cattle hooves will disturb them.a

14Then I will let their waters settle

and will make their rivers flow like oil.

This is the declaration of the Lord God.

15When I make the land of Egypt a desolation,

so that it is emptied of everything in it,

when I strike down all who live there,

then they will know that I am the Lord.a

16“ ‘The daughters of the nations will chant that lament.a They will chant it over Egypt and all its hordes. This is the declaration of the Lord God.’ ”

Egypt in Sheol

17In the twelfth year,A on the fifteenth day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me: 18“Son of man, wail over the hordes of Egypt and bring Egypt and the daughters of mighty nations down to the underworld,A to be with those who descend to the Pit:a

19Who do you surpass in loveliness?

Go down and be laid to rest with the uncircumcised!

20They will fall among those slain by the sword.

A sword is appointed!a

They drag her and all her hordes away.

21Warrior leaders will speak

from the middle of Sheol

about himA and his allies:

‘They have come down;

the uncircumcised lie

slain by the sword.’a

22“Assyria is there with her whole assembly;

her graves are all around her.

All of them are slain, fallen by the sword.

23Her graves are set in the deepest regions of the Pit,

and her assembly is all around her burial place.

All of them are slain, fallen by the sword —

those who once spread terror

in the land of the living.

24“Elama is there

with all her hordes around her grave.

All of them are slain, fallen by the sword —

those who went down to the underworld uncircumcised,

who once spread their terror

in the land of the living.

They bear their disgrace

with those who descend to the Pit.

25Among the slain

they prepare a bed for Elam

with all her hordes.

Her graves are all around her.

All of them are uncircumcised,

slain by the sword,

although their terror was once spread

in the land of the living.

They bear their disgrace

with those who descend to the Pit.

They are placed among the slain.

26“Meshech and Tubala a are there,

with all their hordes.

Their graves are all around them.

All of them are uncircumcised, slain by the sword,

although their terror was once spread

in the land of the living.

27They do not lie down

with the fallen warriors of the uncircumcised,A

who went down to Sheol

with their weapons of war,

whose swords were placed under their headsB

and their shieldsC

rested on their bones,

although the terror of these warriors

was once in the land of the living.

28But you will be shattered

and will lie down among the uncircumcised,

with those slain by the sword.a

29“Edoma is there, her kings and all her princes,

who, despite their strength, have been placed

among those slain by the sword.

They lie down with the uncircumcised,

with those who descend to the Pit.

30All the leaders of the northa

and all the Sidoniansb are there.

They went down in shame with the slain,

despite the terror their strength inspired.

They lie down uncircumcised

with those slain by the sword.

They bear their disgrace

with those who descend to the Pit.

31“Pharaoh will see them

and be comforteda over all his hordes —

Pharaoh and his whole army,

slain by the sword.”

This is the declaration of the Lord God.

32“For I will spread myA terror

in the land of the living,

so Pharaoh and all his hordes

will be laid to rest among the uncircumcised,

with those slain by the sword.”

This is the declaration of the Lord God.