What historical evidence supports the fulfillment of Ezekiel 29:19? Prophetic Text (Ezekiel 29:19) “Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Behold, I will give the land of Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. He will carry off its wealth, plundering it for his army; and it will be his wages.’” Chronological Context Of The Oracle Ezekiel dates the pronouncement to “the twenty-seventh year, in the first month, on the first day” (29:17) — 1 Nisan 571 BC in modern reckoning. Tyre had resisted Babylon for thirteen years (ca. 586–573 BC). God promises Nebuchadnezzar compensation for that costly siege: Egypt’s treasures. Background: Nebuchadnezzar Ii And The Ancient Near Eastern Theater • Nebuchadnezzar II (605–562 BC) already dominated Syria-Palestine. • Pharaoh Apries (Hophra, 589–570 BC) and later Amasis (570–526 BC) tried to stir anti-Babylon coalitions. • Babylon’s move against Egypt in 568/567 BC secured the empire’s southwestern border and collected spoils for troops now owed “wages.” Babylonian Cuneiform Confirmation 1. Babylonian Chronicle BM 33041 (published by D. J. Wiseman, Chronicles of Chaldean Kings, plate XI) records: “Year 37 of Nebuchadnezzar … he marched against Egypt (mi-sir) to wage war.” Though the reverse is broken, the entry unmistakably dates the invasion. 2. Administrative tablets (e.g., NBC 4897; Strm Kambys 400) mention “the year after the king went to Egypt,” proving the campaign was momentous enough to serve as a chronological anchor in commercial documents. 3. Contract text BM 30427 closes with the formula “in the year Nebuchadnezzar plundered Egypt,” echoing Ezekiel’s exact terminology. Jewish Historiographical Testimony Josephus, Antiquities 10.180–182, quoting the earlier Babylonian priest-historian Berossus: “Nebuchadnezzar, after he had taken Tyre, made an expedition against Egypt, conquered it, and slew the king who then reigned.” Josephus supplies the very sequence Ezekiel gives: Tyre first, Egypt next. Greco-Egyptian Historical Witnesses • Diodorus Siculus 1.68.6: “Nebuchadnezzar the king of the Chaldeans invaded Egypt with a mighty force, laid waste much of it, and carried off captive a multitude of prisoners together with rich booty.” • Herodotus 2.159–161 describes Amasis’ extensive military reorganization “after a terrible disaster had befallen Egypt,” a strong allusion to the Babylonian incursion immediately preceding his reign. • A fragment of the historian Megasthenes (preserved in Eusebius, Praep. Ev. 9.41) corroborates a Chaldean victory that brought back “immense spoil out of Egypt.” Archaeological Footprints In Egypt’S Eastern Delta • Tell el-Maskhuta (biblical Succoth) and Tell Defenneh (Tahpanhes) both show a destruction burn layer in the late-6th-century BC horizon, accompanied by quantities of Mesopotamian trilobate bronze arrowheads typical of the Neo-Babylonian army. • In the fortress at Kom el-Hisn, scarabs and stamped bricks bearing Nebuchadnezzar’s name (nabu-ku-du-ur-ri-uṣur) have been recovered, strengthening the argument for a Babylonian presence on Egyptian soil. • Papyrus Rylands 9, a Greek mercenary pay-list from circa 565 BC, registers emergency troop payments “since the Babylonians came,” indicating economic shock consistent with large-scale plunder. Corroborating Biblical References Jeremiah 43:10-13; 46:13-26 foretold the same event, naming Nebuchadnezzar as God’s “servant” who would “smash the obelisks of Heliopolis and burn the temples of the gods of Egypt.” The convergence of Ezekiel and Jeremiah—written in different locations yet predicting the identical outcome—amplifies prophetic credibility. Synthesis: How The Evidence Maps Onto Ezekiel 29:19 1. Date match: Ezekiel’s oracle (571 BC) precedes the Babylonian campaign dated by cuneiform (568/567 BC). 2. Agent match: Both prophecy and records name Nebuchadnezzar. 3. Action match: “Carry off its wealth”—explicitly mirrored in contract-texts and Greek accounts emphasizing booty and captives. 4. Purpose match: Babylonian documents treat the plunder as payment for troops, exactly the “wages” motif in Ezekiel. |
    |