Ezekiel 29:6-7

29:6 Then all those living in Egypt will know that I am the Lord

because they were a reed staff ¹  for the house of Israel;

29:7 when they grasped you with their hand, ²  you broke and tore ³  their shoulders,

and when they leaned on you, you splintered and caused their legs to be unsteady. ⁴ 

Ezekiel 17:15-17

17:15 But this one from Israel’s royal family ⁵  rebelled against the king of Babylon ⁶  by sending his emissaries to Egypt to obtain horses and a large army. Will he prosper? Will the one doing these things escape? Can he break the covenant and escape?

17:16 “‘As surely as I live, declares the sovereign Lord, surely in the city ⁷  of the king who crowned him, whose oath he despised and whose covenant he broke – in the middle of Babylon he will die! 17:17 Pharaoh with his great army and mighty horde will not help ⁸  him in battle, when siege ramps are erected and siege-walls are built to kill many people.

Isaiah 20:5

20:5 Those who put their hope in Cush and took pride in Egypt will be afraid and embarrassed. ⁹ 

Isaiah 30:1-6

Egypt Will Prove Unreliable

30:1 “The rebellious ¹⁰  children are as good as dead,” ¹¹  says the Lord,

“those who make plans without consulting me, ¹² 

who form alliances without consulting my Spirit, ¹³ 

and thereby compound their sin. ¹⁴ 

30:2 They travel down to Egypt

without seeking my will, ¹⁵ 

seeking Pharaoh’s protection,

and looking for safety in Egypt’s protective shade. ¹⁶ 

30:3 But Pharaoh’s protection will bring you nothing but shame,

and the safety of Egypt’s protective shade nothing but humiliation.

30:4 Though his ¹⁷  officials are in Zoan

and his messengers arrive at Hanes, ¹⁸ 

30:5 all will be put to shame ¹⁹ 

because of a nation that cannot help them,

who cannot give them aid or help,

but only shame and disgrace.”

30:6 This is a message ²⁰  about the animals in the Negev:

Through a land of distress and danger,

inhabited by lionesses and roaring lions, ²¹ 

by snakes and darting adders, ²² 

they transport ²³  their wealth on the backs of donkeys,

their riches on the humps of camels,

to a nation that cannot help them. ²⁴ 

Isaiah 31:1-3

Egypt Will Disappoint

31:1 Those who go down to Egypt for help are as good as dead, ²⁵ 

those who rely on war horses,

and trust in Egypt’s many chariots ²⁶ 

and in their many, many horsemen. ²⁷ 

But they do not rely on the Holy One of Israel ²⁸ 

and do not seek help from the Lord.

31:2 Yet he too is wise ²⁹  and he will bring disaster;

he does not retract his decree. ³⁰ 

He will attack the wicked nation, ³¹ 

and the nation that helps ³²  those who commit sin. ³³ 

31:3 The Egyptians are mere humans, not God;

their horses are made of flesh, not spirit.

The Lord will strike with ³⁴  his hand;

the one who helps will stumble

and the one being helped will fall.

Together they will perish. ³⁵ 

Isaiah 36:4-6

36:4 The chief adviser said to them, “Tell Hezekiah: ‘This is what the great king, the king of Assyria, says: “What is your source of confidence? ³⁶  36:5 Your claim to have a strategy and military strength is just empty talk. ³⁷  In whom are you trusting, that you would dare to rebel against me? 36:6 Look, you must be trusting in Egypt, that splintered reed staff. If someone leans on it for support, it punctures his hand and wounds him. That is what Pharaoh king of Egypt does to all who trust in him!

Jeremiah 2:18-19

2:18 What good will it do you ³⁸  then ³⁹  to go down to Egypt

to seek help from the Egyptians? ⁴⁰ 

What good will it do you ⁴¹  to go over to Assyria

to seek help from the Assyrians? ⁴² 

2:19 Your own wickedness will bring about your punishment.

Your unfaithful acts will bring down discipline on you. ⁴³ 

Know, then, and realize how utterly harmful ⁴⁴ 

it was for you to reject me, the Lord your God, ⁴⁵ 

to show no respect for me,” ⁴⁶ 

says the Lord God who rules over all. ⁴⁷ 

Jeremiah 2:36-37

2:36 Why do you constantly go about

changing your political allegiances? ⁴⁸ 

You will get no help from Egypt

just as you got no help from Assyria. ⁴⁹ 

2:37 Moreover, you will come away from Egypt

with your hands covering your faces in sorrow and shame ⁵⁰ 

because the Lord will not allow your reliance on them to be successful

and you will not gain any help from them. ⁵¹ 

Jeremiah 37:5-7

37:5 At that time the Babylonian forces ⁵²  had temporarily given up their siege against Jerusalem. ⁵³  They had had it under siege, but withdrew when they heard that the army of Pharaoh had set out from Egypt. ⁵⁴ ) 37:6 The Lord gave the prophet Jeremiah a message for them. He told him to tell them, ⁵⁵  37:7 “The Lord God of Israel says, ‘Give a message to the king of Judah who sent you to ask me to help him. ⁵⁶  Tell him, “The army of Pharaoh that was on its way to help you will go back home to Egypt. ⁵⁷ 

Lamentations 4:17

The People of Jerusalem Lament:

ע (Ayin)

4:17 Our eyes continually failed us

as we looked in vain for help. ⁵⁸ 

From our watchtowers we watched

for a nation that could not rescue us.

Hosea 5:13

5:13 When Ephraim saw ⁵⁹  his sickness

and Judah saw his wound,

then Ephraim turned ⁶⁰  to Assyria,

and begged ⁶¹  its great king ⁶²  for help.

But he will not be able to heal you!

He cannot cure your wound! ⁶³ 

Hosea 7:11

Israel Turns to Assyria and Egypt for Help

7:11 Ephraim has been like a dove,

easily deceived and lacking discernment.

They called to Egypt for help;

they turned to Assyria for protection.

Hosea 12:1

12:1 Ephraim continually feeds on the wind;

he chases the east wind all day;

he multiplies lies and violence.

They make treaties ⁶⁴  with Assyria,

and send olive oil as tribute ⁶⁵  to Egypt.

Hosea 14:3

14:3 Assyria cannot save us;

we will not ride warhorses.

We will never again say, ‘Our gods’

to what our own hands have made.

For only you will show compassion to Orphan Israel!” ⁶⁶ 

[29:6]  ¹ sn Compare Isa 36:6.

[29:7]  ² tn The Hebrew consonantal text (Kethib) has “by your hand,” but the marginal reading (Qere) has simply “by the hand.” The LXX reads “with their hand.”

[29:7]  ³ tn Or perhaps “dislocated.”

[29:7]  ⁴ tn Heb “you caused to stand for them all their hips.” An emendation which switches two letters but is supported by the LXX yields the reading “you caused all their hips to shake.” See L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:103. In 2 Kgs 18:21 and Isa 36:6 trusting in the Pharaoh is compared to leaning on a staff. The oracle may reflect Hophra’s attempt to aid Jerusalem (Jer 37:5-8).

[17:15]  ⁵ tn Heb “he”; the referent (the member of the royal family, v. 13) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[17:15]  ⁶ tn Heb “him”; the referent (the king of Babylon) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[17:16]  ⁷ tn Heb “place.”

[17:17]  ⁸ tn Heb “deal with” or “work with.”

[20:5]  ⁹ tn Heb “and they will be afraid and embarrassed because of Cush their hope and Egypt their beauty.”

[30:1]  ¹⁰ tn Or “stubborn” (NCV); cf. NIV “obstinate.”

[30:1]  ¹¹ tn Heb “Woe [to] rebellious children.”

[30:1]  ¹² tn Heb “making a plan, but not from me.”

[30:1]  ¹³ tn Heb “and pouring out a libation, but not [from] my spirit.” This translation assumes that the verb נָסַךְ (nasakh) means “pour out,” and that the cognate noun מַסֵּכָה (massekhah) means “libation.” In this case “pouring out a libation” alludes to a ceremony that formally ratifies an alliance. Another option is to understand the verb נָסַךְ as a homonym meaning “weave,” and the cognate noun מַסֵּכָה as a homonym meaning “covering.” In this case forming an alliance is likened to weaving a garment.

[30:1]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “consequently adding sin to sin.”

[30:2]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “those who go to descend to Egypt, but [of] my mouth they do not inquire.”

[30:2]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “to seek protection in the protection of Pharaoh, and to seek refuge in the shade of Egypt.”

[30:4]  ¹⁷ sn This probably refers to Judah’s officials and messengers.

[30:4]  ¹⁸ sn Zoan was located in the Egyptian delta in the north; Hanes was located somewhere in southern region of lower Egypt, south of Memphis; the exact location is debated.

[30:5]  ¹⁹ tn The present translation follows the marginal (Qere) reading of the Hebrew text; the consonantal text (Kethib) has “made to stink, decay.”

[30:6]  ²⁰ tn Traditionally, “burden” (so KJV, ASV); NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV “oracle.”

[30:6]  ²¹ tc Heb “[a land of] a lioness and a lion, from them.” Some emend מֵהֶם (mehem, “from them”) to מֵהֵם (mehem), an otherwise unattested Hiphil participle from הָמַם (hamam, “move noisily”). Perhaps it would be better to take the initial mem (מ) as enclitic and emend the form to הֹמֶה (homeh), a Qal active participle from הָמָה (hamah, “to make a noise”); cf. J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:542, n. 9.

[30:6]  ²² tn Heb “flying fiery one.” See the note at 14:29.

[30:6]  ²³ tn Or “carry” (KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).

[30:6]  ²⁴ sn This verse describes messengers from Judah transporting wealth to Egypt in order to buy Pharaoh’s protection through a treaty.

[31:1]  ²⁵ tn Heb “Woe [to] those who go down to Egypt for help.”

[31:1]  ²⁶ tn Heb “and trust in chariots for they are many.”

[31:1]  ²⁷ tn Heb “and in horsemen for they are very strong [or “numerous”].”

[31:1]  ²⁸ sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.

[31:2]  ²⁹ sn This statement appears to have a sarcastic tone. The royal advisers who are advocating an alliance with Egypt think they are wise, but the Lord possesses wisdom as well and will thwart their efforts.

[31:2]  ³⁰ tn Heb “and he does not turn aside [i.e., “retract”] his words”; NIV “does not take back his words.”

[31:2]  ³¹ tn Heb “and he will arise against the house of the wicked.”

[31:2]  ³² sn That is, Egypt.

[31:2]  ³³ tn Heb “and against the help of the doers of sin.”

[31:3]  ³⁴ tn Heb “will extend”; KJV, ASV, NASB, NCV “stretch out.”

[31:3]  ³⁵ tn Heb “together all of them will come to an end.”

[36:4]  ³⁶ tn Heb “What is this object of trust in which you are trusting?”

[36:5]  ³⁷ tn Heb “you say only a word of lips, counsel and might for battle.” Sennacherib’s message appears to be in broken Hebrew at this point. The phrase “word of lips” refers to mere or empty talk in Prov 14:23.

[2:18]  ³⁸ tn Heb “What to you to the way.”

[2:18]  ³⁹ tn The introductory particle וְעַתָּה (vÿ’attah, “and now”) carries a logical, not temporal, connotation here (cf. BDB 274 s.v. עַתָּה 2.b).

[2:18]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “to drink water from the Shihor [a branch of the Nile].” The reference is to seeking help through political alliance with Egypt as opposed to trusting in God for help. This is an extension of the figure in 2:13.

[2:18]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “What to you to the way.”

[2:18]  ⁴² tn Heb “to drink water from the River [a common designation in biblical Hebrew for the Euphrates River].” This refers to seeking help through political alliance. See the preceding note.

[2:19]  ⁴³ tn Or “teach you a lesson”; Heb “rebuke/chide you.”

[2:19]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “how evil and bitter.” The reference is to the consequences of their acts. This is a figure of speech (hendiadys) where two nouns or adjectives joined by “and” introduce a main concept modified by the other noun or adjective.

[2:19]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “to leave the Lord your God.” The change in person is intended to ease the problem of the rapid transition, which is common in Hebrew style but not in English, from third to first person between this line and the next.

[2:19]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “and no fear of me was on you.”

[2:19]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “the Lord Yahweh, [the God of] hosts.” For the title Lord God see the study note on 1:6. For the title “who rules over all” see the following study note. The title “the Lord who rules over all” is a way of rendering the title “Yahweh of armies.” It is an abbreviation of a longer title “Yahweh the God of armies” which occurs five times in Jeremiah (see, e.g., 44:7). The abbreviated title occurs seventy-seven times in the book of Jeremiah. On thirty-two occasions it is further qualified by the title “the God of Israel,” showing his special relation to Israel. On six occasions it is preceded by the title “Lord” (see, e.g., 46:10) and twice it is preceded by the title “the King” (see, e.g., 51:17). Both titles emphasize his sovereignty. Twice it is said that he is the maker of all things (10:16; 51:19), and once it is said that he made the earth and the people and animals on it and gives them into the control of whomever he wishes (27:4-5). On two occasions it is emphasized that he also made the heavenly elements and controls the natural elements of wind, rain, thunder, and hail (31:35; 51:14-16). All this is consistent with usage elsewhere where the “armies” over which he has charge are identified as (1) the angels which surround his throne (Isa 6:3, 5; 1 Kgs 22:19) and which he sends to protect his servants (2 Kgs 6:17), (2) the natural forces of thunder, rain, and hail (Isa 29:6; Josh 10:11; Judg 5:4, 5) through which he sends the enemy into panic and “gums” up their chariot wheels, (3) the armies of Israel (1 Sam 17:45) which he leads into battle (Num 10:34-35; Josh 5:14, 15) and for whom he fights as a mighty warrior (Exod 15:3; Isa 42:13; Ps 24:8), and even (4) the armies of the nations which he musters against his disobedient people (Isa 13:14). This title is most commonly found in the messenger formula “Thus says…” introducing both oracles of judgment (on Israel [e.g., 9:7, 15] and on the nations [e.g. 46:19; 50:18]; and see in general 25:29-32). It emphasizes his sovereignty as the king and creator, the lord of creation and of history, and the just judge who sees and knows all (11:20; 20:12) and judges each person and nation according to their actions (Jer 32:18-19). In the first instance (in the most dominant usage) this will involve the punishment of his own people through the agency of the Babylonians (cf., e.g., 25:8-9). But it will also include the punishment of all nations, including Babylon itself (cf. Jer 25:17-26, 32-38), and will ultimately result in the restoration of his people and a new relation with them (30:8; 31:35-37).

[2:36]  ⁴⁸ tn Heb “changing your way.” The translation follows the identification of the Hebrew verb here as a defective writing of a form (תֵּזְלִי [tezÿli] instead of תֵּאזְלִי [te’zÿli]) from a verb meaning “go/go about” (אָזַל [’azal]; cf. BDB 23 s.v. אָזַל). Most modern English versions, commentaries, and lexicons read it from a root meaning “to treat cheaply [or lightly]” (תָּזֵלִּי [tazelli] from the root זָלַל (zalal); cf. HALOT 261 s.v. זָלַל); hence, “Why do you consider it such a small matter to…”

[2:36]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “You will be ashamed/disappointed by Egypt, just as you were ashamed/ disappointed by Assyria.”

[2:37]  ⁵⁰ tn Heb “with your hands on your head.” For the picture here see 2 Sam 13:19.

[2:37]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “The Lord has rejected those you trust in; you will not prosper by/from them.”

[37:5]  ⁵² tn Heb “the Chaldeans.” See the study note on 21:4 for the rendering “Babylonian.” The word “forces” is supplied in the translation here for the sake of clarity.

[37:5]  ⁵³ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[37:5]  ⁵⁴ tn Heb “And the army of Pharaoh had set out from Egypt and the Chaldeans who were besieging Jerusalem heard a report about them and they went up from besieging them.” The sentence has been restructured and reworded to give greater emphasis to the most pertinent fact, i.e., that the siege had been temporarily lifted. The word “temporarily” is not in the text but is implicit from the rest of the context. It is supplied in the translation here to better show that the information in vv. 4-5 is all parenthetical, providing a background for the oracle that will follow. For the meaning “given up their siege against” (Heb “had taken themselves away from against”) see BDB 749 s.v. עָלָה Niph.1.c(2); 759 s.v. עַל IV.2.b.

[37:6]  ⁵⁵ tn Heb “And the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying.”

[37:7]  ⁵⁶ tn Or “to ask me what will happen.” The dominant usage of the verb דָּרַשׁ (darash) is to “inquire” in the sense of gaining information about what will happen (cf., e.g., 1 Kgs 14:5; 2 Kgs 8:8; 22:7-8) but it is also used in the sense of “seeking help” from (cf., e.g., Isa 31:1; 2 Chr 16:12; 20:3). The latter nuance appears appropriate in Jer 20:2 where Zedekiah is hoping for some miraculous intervention. That nuance also appears appropriate here where Zedekiah has sent messengers to ask Jeremiah to intercede on their behalf. However, it is also possible that the intent of both verbs is to find out from God whether the Egyptian mission will succeed and more permanent relief from the siege will be had.

[37:7]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “will go back to its land, Egypt.”

[4:17]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “Our eyes failed in vain for help.”

[5:13]  ⁵⁹ tn Hosea employs three preterites (vayyiqtol forms) in verse 13a-b to describe a past-time situation.

[5:13]  ⁶⁰ tn Heb “went to” (so NAB, NRSV, TEV); CEV “asked help from.”

[5:13]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “sent to” (so KJV, NIV, NRSV).

[5:13]  ⁶² tc The MT reads מֶלֶךְ יָרֵב (melekh yarev, “a contentious king”). This is translated as a proper name (“king Jareb”) by KJV, ASV, NASB. However, the stative adjective יָרֵב (“contentious”) is somewhat awkward. The words should be redivided as an archaic genitive-construct מַלְכִּי רָב (malki rav, “great king”; cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT) which preserves the old genitive hireq yod ending. This is the equivalent of the Assyrian royal epithet sarru rabbu (“the great king”). See also the tc note on the same phrase in 10:6.

[5:13]  ⁶³ tn Heb “your wound will not depart from you.”

[12:1]  ⁶⁴ tn Heb “a treaty” (so NIV, NRSV); KJV, NASB “a covenant”; NAB “comes to terms.”

[12:1]  ⁶⁵ tn The phrase “as tribute” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity. Cf. NCV “send a gift of olive oil.”

[14:3]  ⁶⁶ tn Heb “For the orphan is shown compassion by you.” The present translation takes “orphan” as a figurative reference to Israel, which is specified in the translation for clarity.