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Texts -- Ezekiel 31:1-15 (NET)

Context
A Cedar in Lebanon
31:1 In the eleventh year , in the third month, on the first day of the month , the word of the Lord came to me: 31:2 “Son of man , say to Pharaoh king of Egypt and his hordes : “‘Who are you like in your greatness ? 31:3 Consider Assyria , a cedar in Lebanon , with beautiful branches , like a forest giving shade , and extremely tall ; its top reached into the clouds . 31:4 The water made it grow ; underground springs made it grow tall. Rivers flowed all around the place it was planted , while smaller channels watered all the trees of the field . 31:5 Therefore it grew taller than all the trees of the field ; its boughs grew large and its branches grew long , because of the plentiful water in its shoots . 31:6 All the birds of the sky nested in its boughs ; under its branches all the beasts of the field gave birth , in its shade all the great nations lived . 31:7 It was beautiful in its loftiness , in the length of its branches ; for its roots went down deep to plentiful waters . 31:8 The cedars in the garden of God could not eclipse it, nor could the fir trees match its boughs ; the plane trees were as nothing compared to its branches ; no tree in the garden of God could rival its beauty . 31:9 I made it beautiful with its many branches ; all the trees of Eden , in the garden of God , envied it. 31:10 “‘Therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says : Because it was tall in stature , and its top reached into the clouds , and it was proud of its height , 31:11 I gave it over to the leader of the nations . He has judged it thoroughly , as its sinfulness deserves. I have thrown it out . 31:12 Foreigners from the most terrifying nations have cut it down and left it to lie there on the mountains . In all the valleys its branches have fallen , and its boughs lie broken in the ravines of the land . All the peoples of the land have departed from its shade and left it. 31:13 On its ruins all the birds of the sky will live , and all the wild animals will walk on its branches . 31:14 For this reason no watered trees will grow so tall ; their tops will not reach into the clouds, nor will the well-watered ones grow that high . For all of them have been appointed to die in the lower parts of the earth ; they will be among mere mortals , with those who descend to the pit . 31:15 “‘This is what the sovereign Lord says : On the day it went down to Sheol I caused observers to lament . I covered it with the deep and held back its rivers ; its plentiful water was restrained . I clothed Lebanon in black for it, and all the trees of the field wilted because of it.

Pericope

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Bible Dictionary

  • Egypt

    [ebd] the land of the Nile and the pyramids, the oldest kingdom of which we have any record, holds a place of great significance in Scripture. The Egyptians belonged to the white race, and their original home is still a matter of ...
    [nave] EGYPT The country of: Called Rahab, Psa. 87:4; 89:10; Land of Ham, Psa. 105:23; 106:22. Limits of, Ezek. 29:10. Fertility of, Gen. 13:10. Productions of, Num. 11:5; Psa. 78:47; Prov. 7:16; Isa. 19:5-9. Irrigation employ...

  • GLORY

    [isbe] GLORY - glo'-ri (substantive): I. METHOD OF TREATMENT II. GENERAL USE OF THE TERM 1. As Applied to External Things 2. As Applied to Yahweh III. THE USES OF KABHODH 1. Material Wealth 2. Human Dignity and Majesty 3. "My Soul"...

  • Cedar

    [ebd] (Heb. e'rez, Gr. kedros, Lat. cedrus), a tree very frequently mentioned in Scripture. It was stately (Ezek. 31:3-5), long-branched (Ps. 80:10; 92:12; Ezek. 31:6-9), odoriferous (Cant. 4:11; Hos. 14:6), durable, and therefore...
    [isbe] CEDAR - se'-dar, se'-der ('erez, from Hebrew root meaning "to be firm"; kedros): The 'erez was in almost all the Old Testament references the true cedar, Cedrus libani, but the name may have been applied in a loose way to al...
    [smith] The Hebrew word erez , invariably rendered "cedar" by the Authorized Version, stands for that tree in most of the passages where the word occurs. While the word is sometimes used in a wider sense, (Leviticus 14:6) for evergre...
    [nave] CEDAR Valuable for building purposes, Isa. 9:10. David's ample provision of, in Jerusalem, for the temple, 2 Chr. 1:15; 22:4. Furnished by Hiram, king of Tyre, for Solomon's temple, 1 Kin. 5:6-10; 9:11; 2 Chr. 2:16. Used ...

  • Assyria

    [nave] ASSYRIA An empire founded by Nimrod, Gen. 10:8-12; Mic. 5:6. It extended from east of the Tigris, Gen. 2:14; 10:11; possibly to Egypt, Gen. 25:18. Its armies invade the land of Israel under Pul, 2 Kin. 15:19; 1 Chr. 5:26; ...

  • Pride

    [nave] PRIDE. Ex. 18:10, 11; Lev. 26:19; Deut. 8:11-14, 17-20; Judg. 9:14, 15; 1 Sam. 2:3-5; 1 Kin. 20:11; 2 Kin. 14:9, 10 2 Chr. 25:18, 19. Job 11:12; Job 12:2, 3; Job 13:2, 5; Job 15:1-13; Job 18:3, 4; Job 21:31, 32; Job 32:9-13...

  • Self-exaltation

    [nave] SELF-EXALTATION. Job 12:3; Ezek. 31:10-14; Obad. 3, 4; Luke 14:7-11; 2 Cor. 10:5, 17, 18; Gal. 6:3; 2 Thess. 2:4 See: Pride; Selfishness; Self-righteousness. Instances of Pharaoh, Ex. 9:17. Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, Num...

  • BRANCH ;BOUGH

    [isbe] BRANCH ;BOUGH - bransh: Represented by very many words in the Hebrew. (1) zemorah used especially of a vine branch. The spies "cut down from thence a branch with one cluster of grapes" (Nu 13:23). See also Ezek 15:2; Nah 2:2...

  • RIVER

    [ebd] (1.) Heb. 'aphik, properly the channel or ravine that holds water (2 Sam. 22:16), translated "brook," "river," "stream," but not necessarily a perennial stream (Ezek. 6:3; 31:12; 32:6; 34:13). (2.) Heb. nahal, in winter a "t...
    [isbe] RIVER - riv'-er: (1) The usual word is nahar (Aramaic nehar (Ezr 4:10, etc.)), used of the rivers of Eden (Gen 2:10-14), often of the Euphrates (Gen 15:18, etc.), of Abana and Pharpar (2 Ki 5:12), the river of Gozan (2 Ki 17...

  • Chestnut Tree

    [ebd] (Heb. 'armon; i.e., "naked"), mentioned in connection with Jacob's artifice regarding the cattle (Gen. 30:37). It is one of the trees of which, because of its strength and beauty, the Assyrian empire is likened (Ezek. 31:8; ...
    [smith] (Heb. ?armon .) (Genesis 30:37; Ezekiel 31:8) Probably the "palm tree" (Platanus orientalis) is intended. This tree thrives best in low and rather moist situations in the north of Palestine, and resembles our sycamore or butt...
    [nave] CHESTNUT TREE Gen. 30:37; Ezek. 31:8.

  • GARDEN

    [isbe] GARDEN - gar'-d'-n (gan, gannah, ginnah; kepos): The Arabic jannah (diminutive, jannainah), like the Hebrew gannah, literally, "a covered or hidden place," denotes in the mind of the dweller in the East something more than t...

  • HEIGHT; HEIGHTS

    [isbe] HEIGHT; HEIGHTS - hit, The English terms represent a large number of Hebrew words (gobhah, marom, qomah, rum, etc.). A chief thing to notice is that in the Revised Version (British and American) "height" and "heights" are fr...

  • PARADISE

    [isbe] PARADISE - par'-a-dis (pardec; paradeisos): 1. Origin and Meaning: A word probably of Persian origin meaning a royal park. See GARDEN. The word occurs in the Hebrew Scriptures but 3 times: Song 4:13, where it is translated "...

  • Eden

    [isbe] EDEN - e'-d'-n (`edhen, "delight"; Edem): (1) The land in which "Yahweh God planted a garden," where upon his creation "he put the man whom he had formed" (Gen 2:8). In the Assyrian inscriptions idinu (Accadian, edin) means ...
    [nave] EDEN 1. The garden of Eden, Gen. 2:8-17; 3:23, 24; 4:16; Isa. 51:3; Ezek. 28:13; 31:9, 16, 18; 36:35; Joel 2:3. 2. An Aramaic city-state; traded with Tyre, 2 Kin. 19:12; Isa. 37:12; Ezek. 27:23; Amos 1:5. 3. A Gershonite, ...

  • PLANE TREE

    [ebd] Heb. 'armon (Gen. 30:37; Ezek. 31:8), rendered "chesnut" in the Authorized Version, but correctly "plane tree" in the Revised Version and the LXX. This tree is frequently found in Palestine, both on the coast and in the nort...
    [isbe] PLANE TREE - plan'-tre ('armon; platanos (Gen 30:37), elate ("pine" or "fir") (Ezek 31:8); the King James Version chestnut): `Armon is supposed to be derived from the root aram, meaning "to be bare" or "naked"; this is consi...

  • Hell

    [ebd] derived from the Saxon helan, to cover; hence the covered or the invisible place. In Scripture there are three words so rendered: (1.) Sheol, occurring in the Old Testament sixty-five times. This word sheol is derived from a...
    [nave] HELL The word used in the King James Version of the O.T. to translate the Hebrew word sheol, signifying the unseen state, in Deut. 32:22; 2 Sam. 22:6; Job 11:8; 26:6; Psa. 9:17; 16:10; 18:5; 55:15; 86:13; 116:3; 139:8; Prov....

  • SHROUD

    [isbe] SHROUD - shroud (choresh, "bough"): Winding-sheet for the dead. See BURIAL. Used in the King James Version, the English Revised Version Ezek 31:3 in the rare old sense of "shelter," "covering." the American Standard Revised ...

  • RUIN

    [isbe] RUIN - roo'-in (haricah, etc.; rhegma): "Ruin," the translation of haricah (Am 9:11; compare Acts 15:16, where the Revised Version (British and American) Greek text, ta katestrammena), and of a number of other Hebrew words: ...

  • Prophecy

    [nave] PROPHECY Concerning Jesus, See: Jesus. Concerning church, See: Church, Prophecies Concerning Prosperity of. Relating to various countries, nations, and cities, see under their respective titles. Respecting individuals, see...

  • Aqueduct

    [nave] AQUEDUCT 2 Kin. 18:17; 20:20; Job 38:25; Isa. 7:3; 36:2; Ezek. 31:4

  • ROOT

    [isbe] ROOT - root (shoresh; rhiza): Frequently mentioned in the Old Testament and New Testament, but almost always in a figurative sense, e.g. "root of the righteous" (Prov 12:3,12); "root that beareth gall" (Dt 29:18); "Their roo...
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Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

  • 10:28-32 Isaiah foresaw the Assyrian army descending on Jerusalem from the north passing through various towns and finally arriving at Nob just north of Jerusalem. From that location, probably Mt. Scopus, which was somewhat h...
  • The recurrence of the Hebrew word massa', translated "oracle"or "burden,"prescribes the boundaries of this section of text.140These chapters present the nations over which Immanuel is ruler, and they expand the idea of God's ...
  • This section of Isaiah on "The Lord's redemption of His servant [Israel]"(44:23-47:15) has included an announcement of redemption (44:23-28), the identification of the instrument of redemption, Cyrus (45:1-13), and a reminder...
  • In Jeremiah, prophecies concerning foreign nations come at the end of the book. In the other major prophets, Isaiah and Ezekiel, they come after oracles against Israel and or Judah and before oracles dealing with Israel's res...
  • Ezekiel ministered to the Jews in exile. He probably wrote this book for the benefit of the exiles and the other Jewish communities of his day and beyond his day. In some of his visions (e.g. chs. 8 and 11) the Lord carried t...
  • There are two major structural peculiarities that set Ezekiel off as distinctive.First, the book is a collection of prophecies arranged in almost consistent chronological order. No other prophetical book is as consistently ch...
  • Ezekiel began prophesying when he was 30 years old, and he had gone into captivity five years before that. Thus Ezekiel was familiar with Jeremiah's preaching and ministry. Ezekiel shows quite a bit of similarity to Jeremiah ...
  • I. Ezekiel's calling and commission chs. 1-3A. The vision of God's glory ch. 11. The setting of the vision 1:1-32. The vision proper 1:4-28B. The Lord's charge to Ezekiel chs. 2-31. The recipients of Ezekiel's ministry 2:1-52...
  • This pericope contains 10 commands, and it is the center of the chiasm in chapters 1-3."The Lord's charge to Ezekiel emphasized the absolute necessity of hearing, understanding, and assimilating God's message prior to going f...
  • 24:25-26 Evidently Ezekiel was not to deliver any more prophetic messages to his fellow exiles after he made the explanation in verses 20-24 until he received word of the destruction of the temple and the capture of the remai...
  • It is appropriate that this section appears at this point in Ezekiel, between the messages announcing judgment on Judah and Jerusalem for sin (chs. 4-24) and the messages announcing future blessings for Israel (chs. 33-48). I...
  • The length of this oracle reflects the great significance of Tyre at this time in Israel's history. Tyre (lit. "rock") was the principle city of Phoenicia and consisted of two towns: a fortified stronghold on a rock outcroppi...
  • 26:19-20 The Lord further promised that after He destroyed the city by deluging it with great waves of invaders (cf. v. 3), it would die like a person placed in a grave (cf. 31:16; 32:18, 23-25, 29-30). It would go down into ...
  • "This is one of the more difficult passages in the Book of Ezekiel--if not in the whole Bible! The reason for the difficulty lies mainly in the lack of sufficient data to reach precise conclusions. There are many terms and ph...
  • Ezekiel concluded his oracles against foreign nations with seven messages the Lord gave him concerning the fate of Egypt, one of Israel's most ancient and powerful enemies (cf. Isa. 31:1; Jer. 2:36; 46:1-26). God controls eve...
  • 31:1 The Lord gave Ezekiel a third oracle against Egypt in 587 B.C., less than two months after the previous one (30:20-26).31:2 The prophet was to speak this one to Pharaoh Hophra and to the Egyptians. Obviously Ezekiel was ...
  • 31:10-11 However, because Assyria was a proud nation, the Lord had determined to turn it over to a strong individual who would deal with it by cutting it down, namely, Nebuchadnezzar. God had driven it out of His Eden as He h...
  • 31:15 On the day that God humbled Assyria, He caused many people and nations to mourn her demise. He made it impossible for that nation to revive; He did the same thing as burying it in the sea, and He kept its life-giving wa...
  • The last of the seven oracles against Egypt fittingly pictures the nation in its final resting place, the grave or Sheol, surrounded by other dead nations that had preceded it in judgment."The language is highly poetical and ...
  • "This last major division of the book focuses on the restoration of Israel's blessing. Israel would be judged for her sin (chaps. 1-24) as would the surrounding nations (chaps. 25-32). But Israel will not remain under judgmen...
  • Since this message is undated, it may have come to Ezekiel about the same time as the previous two in chapter 32, namely, in the last month of 585 B.C. If so, Ezekiel received it about two months after God gave him the six me...
  • This part of Ezekiel's message of warning to the exiles is similar to 3:16-21. Yahweh recommissioned Ezekiel to his prophetic task (cf. chs. 2-3)."Now that Ezekiel's original ministry of judgment was completed, God appointed ...
  • What follows in this chapter is another oracle against a foreign nation (cf. chs. 25-32). What is it doing here? Evidently the writer included this oracle here because it promises to desolate an enemy of Israel that wanted to...
  • The Book of Ezekiel begins with a vision of God's glory (ch. 1), records the departure of God's glory (chs. 8-11), and ends with another vision of God's glory (chs. 40-48). This is the longest vision outside the Book of Revel...
  • Ackroyd, Peter R. Exile and Restoration. Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1968.Alexander, Ralph H. Ezekiel. Everyman's Bible Commentary series. Chicago: Moody Press, 1976._____. "Ezekiel."In Isaiah-Ezekiel. Vol. 6 of The Expo...
  • 4:10-12 The king described what he had seen in poetic language. His words therefore appear as a prophetic oracle. The ancients frequently used trees to describe rulers of nations (cf. Isa. 2:12-13; 10:34; Ezek. 31:3-17).141Th...
  • An oracle is a message of judgment. Amos proceeded to deliver eight of these, seven against Israel's neighbors including Judah (1:3-2:5) and one against Israel (2:6-6:14).12The order is significant. The nations mentioned firs...
  • 7:4 Sovereign Yahweh also showed Amos a vision of a great fire that was burning up everything. Like a great drought it consumed all the water and all the farmland (or people) in Israel (cf. 1:19-20). What he saw may have been...
  • Though God had not responded to the prophet's questions previously, He did eventually, and Habakkuk recorded His answer. The form of this revelation is an oracle.1:5 The Lord told Habakkuk and his people (plural "you"in Hebre...
  • Zephaniah's oracle against Ethiopia is very brief (cf. Isa. 18-20; Jer. 46; Ezek. 29-32).23Biblical Ethiopia occupied the territory now held by southern Egypt, Sudan, and northern Ethiopia. The Ethiopians were the southernmos...
  • 11:1 The prophet announced in vigorous poetic language that Lebanon's famous cedars would perish. The Israelites referred to the royal palace in Jerusalem as Lebanon because it contained so much cedar from Lebanon (Jer. 22:23...
  • The mustard seed was so small that the Jews used it proverbially to represent a very small thing.544When mature, the mustard plant stood 10 to 12 feet tall as "the largest of garden plants"(NIV).545Consequently it became a pe...
  • The third and last parable that Mark recorded Jesus giving to the multitudes stressed the contrast between the kingdom's insignificant beginnings and its final impressively large size. When Jesus came declaring that the kingd...
  • The kingdom of God is the messianic kingdom that the Old Testament predicted. It would be an earthly kingdom over which Messiah would rule for 1, 000 years (Rev. 20:4-6). It is similar to a mustard seed in that it had a small...
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