A Lament for Egypt

1Again the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 2“Son of man, prophesy and declare that this is what the Lord GOD says:

Wail, ‘Alas

for that day!’

3For the day is near,

the Day of the LORD is near.

It will be a day of clouds,

a time of doom for the nations.a

4A sword will come against Egypt,

and there will be anguish in Cushb

when the slain fall in Egypt,

its wealth is taken away,

and its foundations are torn down.

5Cush, Put, and Lud,c

and all the various peoples,

as well as Libya and the men of the covenant land,

will fall with Egypt by the sword.

6For this is what the LORD says:

The allies of Egypt will fall,

and her proud strength will collapse.

From Migdol to Syened

they will fall by the sword within her,

declares the Lord GOD.

7They will be desolate among desolate lands,

and their cities will lie among ruined cities.

8Then they will know that I am the LORD

when I set fire to Egypt

and all her helpers are shattered.

9On that day messengers will go out from Me in ships to frighten Cush out of complacency. Anguish will come upon them on the day of Egypt’s doom.e For it is indeed coming.

10This is what the Lord GOD says:

I will put an end to the hordes of Egypt

by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.

11He and his people with him,

the most ruthless of the nations,

will be brought in to destroy the land.

They will draw their swords against Egypt

and fill the land with the slain.

12I will make the streams dry up

and sell the land to the wicked.

By the hands of foreigners I will bring desolation

upon the land and everything in it.

I, the LORD, have spoken.

13This is what the Lord GOD says:

I will destroy the idols

and put an end to the images in Memphis.f

There will no longer be a prince in Egypt,

and I will instill fear in that land.

14I will lay waste Pathros,

set fire to Zoan,

and execute judgment on Thebes.g

15I will pour out My wrath on Pelusium,h

the stronghold of Egypt,

and cut off the crowds of Thebes.

16I will set fire to Egypt,

Pelusium will writhe in anguish,

Thebes will be split open,

and Memphis will face daily distress.

17The young men of On and Pi-besethi

will fall by the sword,

and those cities will go into captivity.

18The day will be darkened in Tahpanhes

when I break the yoke of Egypt

and her proud strength comes to an end.

A cloud will cover her,

and her daughters will go into captivity.

19So I will execute judgment on Egypt,

and they will know that I am the LORD.”

Pharaoh’s Power Broken

20In the eleventh year, on the seventh day of the first month, the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 21“Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt. See, it has not been bound up for healing, or splinted for strength to hold the sword.

22Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: Behold, I am against Pharaoh king of Egypt. I will break his arms, both the strong one and the one already broken, and will make the sword fall from his hand. 23I will disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them throughout the lands.

24I will strengthen the arms of Babylon’s king and place My sword in his hand, but I will break the arms of Pharaoh, who will groan before him like a mortally wounded man. 25I will strengthen the arms of Babylon’s king, but Pharaoh’s arms will fall limp.

Then they will know that I am the LORD, when I place My sword in the hand of Babylon’s king, and he wields it against the land of Egypt. 26I will disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them throughout the lands. Then they will know that I am the LORD.”