Ezekiel 32:18-32

32:18 “Son of man, wail ¹  over the horde of Egypt. Bring it down; ²  bring ³  her ⁴  and the daughters of powerful nations down to the lower parts of the earth, along with those who descend to the pit. 32:19 Say to them, ⁵  ‘Whom do you surpass in beauty? ⁶  Go down and be laid to rest with the uncircumcised!’ 32:20 They will fall among those killed by the sword. The sword is drawn; they carry her and all her hordes away. 32:21 The bravest of the warriors will speak to him from the midst of Sheol along with his allies, saying: ‘The uncircumcised have come down; they lie still, killed by the sword.’

32:22 “Assyria is there with all her assembly around her grave, ⁷  all of them struck down by the sword. ⁸  32:23 Their ⁹  graves are located in the remote slopes of the pit. ¹⁰  Her assembly is around her grave, all of them struck down by the sword, those who spread terror in the land of the living.

32:24 “Elam is there with all her hordes around her grave; all of them struck down by the sword. They went down uncircumcised to the lower parts of the earth, those who spread terror in the land of the living. Now they will bear their shame with those who descend to the pit. 32:25 Among the dead they have made a bed for her, along with all her hordes around her grave. ¹¹  All of them are uncircumcised, killed by the sword, for their terror had spread in the land of the living. They bear their shame along with those who descend to the pit; they are placed among the dead.

32:26 “Meshech-Tubal is there, along with all her hordes around her grave. ¹²  All of them are uncircumcised, killed by the sword, for they spread their terror in the land of the living. 32:27 They do not lie with the fallen warriors of ancient times, ¹³  who went down to Sheol with their weapons of war, having their swords placed under their heads and their shields on their bones, ¹⁴  when the terror of these warriors was in the land of the living.

32:28 “But as for you, in the midst of the uncircumcised you will be broken, and you will lie with those killed by the sword.

32:29 “Edom is there with her kings and all her princes. Despite their might they are laid with those killed by the sword; they lie with the uncircumcised and those who descend to the pit.

32:30 “All the leaders of the north are there, along with all the Sidonians; despite their might they have gone down in shameful terror with the dead. They lie uncircumcised with those killed by the sword, and bear their shame with those who descend to the pit.

32:31 “Pharaoh will see them and be consoled over all his hordes who were killed by the sword, Pharaoh and all his army, declares the sovereign Lord. 32:32 Indeed, I terrified him in the land of the living, yet he will lie in the midst of the uncircumcised with those killed by the sword, Pharaoh and all his hordes, declares the sovereign Lord.”

Ezekiel 34:1-31

A Prophecy Against False Shepherds

34:1 The word of the Lord came to me: 34:2 “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds ¹⁵  of Israel; prophesy, and say to them – to the shepherds: ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: Woe to the shepherds of Israel who have been feeding themselves! Should not shepherds feed the flock? 34:3 You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the choice animals, but you do not feed the sheep! 34:4 You have not strengthened the weak, healed the sick, bandaged the injured, brought back the strays, or sought the lost, but with force and harshness ¹⁶  you have ruled over them. 34:5 They were scattered because they had no shepherd, and they became food for every wild beast. ¹⁷  34:6 My sheep wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill. My sheep were scattered over the entire face of the earth with no one looking or searching for them.

34:7 “‘Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: 34:8 As surely as I live, declares the sovereign Lord, my sheep have become prey and have become food for all the wild beasts. There was no shepherd, and my shepherds did not search for my flock, but fed themselves and did not feed my sheep, 34:9 Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: 34:10 This is what the sovereign Lord says: Look, I am against the shepherds, and I will demand my sheep from their hand. I will no longer let them be shepherds; ¹⁸  the shepherds will not feed themselves anymore. I will rescue my sheep from their mouth, so that they will no longer be food for them.

34:11 “‘For this is what the sovereign Lord says: Look, I myself will search for my sheep and seek them out. 34:12 As a shepherd seeks out his flock when he is among his scattered sheep, so I will seek out my flock. I will rescue them from all the places where they have been scattered on a cloudy, dark day. ¹⁹  34:13 I will bring them out from among the peoples and gather them from foreign countries; I will bring them to their own land. I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the streams and all the inhabited places of the land. 34:14 In a good pasture I will feed them; the mountain heights of Israel will be their pasture. There they will lie down in a lush ²⁰  pasture, and they will feed on rich grass on the mountains of Israel. 34:15 I myself will feed my sheep and I myself will make them lie down, declares the sovereign Lord. 34:16 I will seek the lost and bring back the strays; I will bandage the injured and strengthen the sick, but the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them – with judgment!

34:17 “‘As for you, my sheep, this is what the sovereign Lord says: Look, I am about to judge between one sheep and another, between rams and goats. 34:18 Is it not enough for you to feed on the good pasture, that you must trample the rest of your pastures with your feet? When you drink clean water, must you muddy the rest of the water by trampling it with your feet? 34:19 As for my sheep, they must eat what you trampled with your feet, and drink what you have muddied with your feet!

34:20 “‘Therefore, this is what the sovereign Lord says to them: Look, I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. 34:21 Because you push with your side and your shoulder, and thrust your horns at all the weak sheep until you scatter them abroad, ²¹  34:22 I will save my sheep; they will no longer be prey. I will judge between one sheep and another.

34:23 I will set one shepherd over them, and he will feed them – namely, my servant David. ²²  He will feed them and will be their shepherd. 34:24 I, the Lord, will be their God, and my servant David will be prince ²³  among them; I, the Lord, have spoken!

34:25 “‘I will make a covenant of peace with them and will rid the land of wild beasts, so that they can live securely ²⁴  in the wilderness and even sleep in the woods. ²⁵  34:26 I will turn them and the regions around my hill into a blessing. I will make showers come down in their season; they will be showers that bring blessing. ²⁶  34:27 The trees of the field will yield their fruit and the earth will yield its crops. They will live securely on their land; they will know that I am the Lord, when I break the bars of their yoke and rescue them from the hand of those who enslaved them. 34:28 They will no longer be prey for the nations and the wild beasts will not devour them. They will live securely and no one will make them afraid. 34:29 I will prepare for them a healthy ²⁷  planting. They will no longer be victims ²⁸  of famine in the land and will no longer bear the insults of the nations. 34:30 Then they will know that I, the Lord their God, am with them, ²⁹  and that they are my people, the house of Israel, declares the sovereign Lord. ³⁰  34:31 And you, my sheep, the sheep of my pasture, are my people, ³¹  and I am your God, declares the sovereign Lord.’”

Numbers 16:30

16:30 But if the Lord does something entirely new, ³²  and the earth opens its mouth and swallows them up ³³  along with all that they have, and they ³⁴  go down alive to the grave, ³⁵  then you will know that these men have despised the Lord!”

Numbers 16:33

16:33 They and all that they had went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed over them. So they perished from among the community.

Psalms 28:1

Psalm 28 ³⁶ 

By David.

28:1 To you, O Lord, I cry out!

My protector, ³⁷  do not ignore me! ³⁸ 

If you do not respond to me, ³⁹ 

I will join ⁴⁰  those who are descending into the grave. ⁴¹ 

Isaiah 14:11-19

14:11 Your splendor ⁴²  has been brought down to Sheol,

as well as the sound of your stringed instruments. ⁴³ 

You lie on a bed of maggots,

with a blanket of worms over you. ⁴⁴ 

14:12 Look how you have fallen from the sky,

O shining one, son of the dawn! ⁴⁵ 

You have been cut down to the ground,

O conqueror ⁴⁶  of the nations! ⁴⁷ 

14:13 You said to yourself, ⁴⁸ 

“I will climb up to the sky.

Above the stars of El ⁴⁹ 

I will set up my throne.

I will rule on the mountain of assembly

on the remote slopes of Zaphon. ⁵⁰ 

14:14 I will climb up to the tops ⁵¹  of the clouds;

I will make myself like the Most High!” ⁵² 

14:15 But you were brought down ⁵³  to Sheol,

to the remote slopes of the pit. ⁵⁴ 

14:16 Those who see you stare at you,

they look at you carefully, thinking: ⁵⁵ 

“Is this the man who shook the earth,

the one who made kingdoms tremble?

14:17 Is this the one who made the world like a desert,

who ruined its ⁵⁶  cities,

and refused to free his prisoners so they could return home?”’ ⁵⁷ 

14:18 ⁵⁸ As for all the kings of the nations,

all of them ⁵⁹  lie down in splendor, ⁶⁰ 

each in his own tomb. ⁶¹ 

14:19 But you have been thrown out of your grave

like a shoot that is thrown away. ⁶² 

You lie among ⁶³  the slain,

among those who have been slashed by the sword,

among those headed for ⁶⁴  the stones of the pit, ⁶⁵ 

as if you were a mangled corpse. ⁶⁶ 

Luke 10:15

10:15 And you, Capernaum, ⁶⁷  will you be exalted to heaven? ⁶⁸  No, you will be thrown down to Hades! ⁶⁹ 

[32:18]  ¹ tn The Hebrew verb is used as a response to death (Jer 9:17-19; Amos 5:16).

[32:18]  ² sn Through this prophetic lament given by God himself, the prophet activates the judgment described therein. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 2:217, and L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:136-37.

[32:18]  ³ tn Heb “Bring him down, her and the daughters of the powerful nations, to the earth below.” The verb “bring down” appears in the Hebrew text only once. Because the verb takes several objects here, the repetition of the verb in the translation improves the English style.

[32:18]  ⁴ tn This apparently refers to personified Egypt.

[32:19]  ⁵ tc The LXX places this verse after v. 21.

[32:19]  ⁶ tn Heb “pleasantness.”

[32:22]  ⁷ tn Heb “around him his graves.” The masculine pronominal suffixes are problematic; the expression is best emended to correspond to the phrase “around her grave” in v. 23. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 2:219.

[32:22]  ⁸ tn Heb “all of them slain, the ones felled by the sword.” See as well vv. 23-24.

[32:23]  ⁹ tn Heb “whose.”

[32:23]  ¹⁰ tn The only other occurrence of the phrase “remote slopes of the pit” is in Isa 14:15.

[32:25]  ¹¹ tn Heb “around him her graves,” but the expression is best emended to read “around her grave” (see vv. 23-24).

[32:26]  ¹² tn Heb “around him her graves,” but the expression is best emended to read “around her grave” (see vv. 23-24).

[32:27]  ¹³ tc Heb “of the uncircumcised.” The LXX reads, probably correctly, “from of old” rather than “of the uncircumcised.” The phrases are very similar in spelling. The warriors of Meshech-Tubal are described as uncircumcised, so it would be odd for them to not be buried with the uncircumcised. Verse 28 specifically says that they would lie with the uncircumcised.

[32:27]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “and their iniquities were over their bones.” The meaning of this statement is unclear; in light of the parallelism (see “swords”) it is preferable to emend “their iniquities” to “their swords.” See L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:135.

[34:2]  ¹⁵ tn The term shepherd is applied to kings in the ancient Near East. In the OT the Lord is often addressed as shepherd of Israel (Gen 49:24; Ps 8:1). The imagery of shepherds as Israel’s leaders is also employed (Jer 23:1-2).

[34:4]  ¹⁶ tn The term translated “harshness” is used to describe the oppression the Israelites suffered as slaves in Egypt (Exod 1:13).

[34:5]  ¹⁷ tn As a case of dittography, the MT repeats “and they were scattered” at the end of the verse.

[34:10]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “I will cause them to cease from feeding sheep.”

[34:12]  ¹⁹ sn The imagery may reflect the overthrow of the Israelites by the Babylonians in 587/6 b.c.

[34:14]  ²⁰ tn Heb “good.”

[34:21]  ²¹ tn Heb “outside.”

[34:23]  ²² sn The messianic king is here called “David” (see Jer 30:9 and Hos 3:5, as well as Isa 11:1 and Mic 5:2) because he will fulfill the Davidic royal ideal depicted in the prophets and royal psalms (see Ps 2, 89).

[34:24]  ²³ sn The messianic king (“David”) is called both “king” and “prince” in 37:24-25. The use of the term “prince” for this king facilitates the contrast between this ideal ruler and the Davidic “princes” denounced in earlier prophecies (see 7:27; 12:10, 12; 19:1; 21:25; 22:6, 25).

[34:25]  ²⁴ tn The phrase “live securely” occurs in Ezek 28:26; 38:8, 11, 14; 39:26 as an expression of freedom from fear. It is a promised blessing resulting from obedience (see Lev 26:5-6).

[34:25]  ²⁵ sn The woods were typically considered to be places of danger (Ps 104:20-21; Jer 5:6).

[34:26]  ²⁶ tn Heb “showers of blessing.” Abundant rain, which in turn produces fruit and crops (v. 27), is a covenantal blessing for obedience (Lev 26:4).

[34:29]  ²⁷ tc The MT reads לְשֵׁם (lÿshem, “for a name”), meaning perhaps a renowned planting (place). The translation takes this to be a metathesis of שָׁלֹם (shalom) as was read by the LXX.

[34:29]  ²⁸ tn Heb “those gathered” for famine.

[34:30]  ²⁹ sn A promise given to Abraham (Gen 15:7) and his descendants (Gen 15:8; Exod 6:7).

[34:30]  ³⁰ sn The blessings described in vv. 25-30 are those promised for obedience in Lev 26:4-13.

[34:31]  ³¹ tn Heb, “the sheep of my pasture, you are human.” See 36:37-38 for a similar expression. The possessive pronoun “my” is supplied in the translation to balance “I am your God” in the next clause.

[16:30]  ³² tn The verb בָּרָא (bara’) is normally translated “create” in the Bible. More specifically it means to fashion or make or do something new and fresh. Here the verb is joined with its cognate accusative to underscore that this will be so different everyone will know it is of God.

[16:30]  ³³ tn The figures are personifications. But they vividly describe the catastrophe to follow – which was very much like a mouth swallowing them.

[16:30]  ³⁴ tn The word is “life” or “lifetime”; it certainly means their lives – they themselves. But the presence of this word suggest more. It is an accusative specifying the state of the subject – they will go down alive to Sheol.

[16:30]  ³⁵ tn The word “Sheol” in the Bible can be used four different ways: the grave, the realm of the departed [wicked] spirits or Hell, death in general, or a place of extreme danger (one that will lead to the grave if God does not intervene). The usage here is certainly the first, and very likely the second as well. A translation of “pit” would not be inappropriate. Since they will go down there alive, it is likely that they will sense the deprivation and the separation from the land above. See H. W. Robinson, Inspiration and Revelation in the Old Testament; N. J. Tromp, Primitive Conceptions of Death and the Netherworld in the Old Testament (BibOr 21), 21-23; and A. Heidel, The Gilgamesh Epic, especially ch. 3.

[28:1]  ³⁶ sn Psalm 28. The author looks to the Lord for vindication, asks that the wicked be repaid in full for their evil deeds, and affirms his confidence that the Lord will protect his own.

[28:1]  ³⁷ tn Heb “my rocky summit.” The Lord is compared to a rocky summit where one can find protection from enemies. See Ps 18:2.

[28:1]  ³⁸ tn Heb “do not be deaf from me.”

[28:1]  ³⁹ tn Heb “lest [if] you are silent from me.”

[28:1]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “I will be equal with.”

[28:1]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “the pit.” The noun בּוֹר (bor, “pit, cistern”) is sometimes used of the grave and/or the realm of the dead.

[14:11]  ⁴² tn Or “pride” (NCV, CEV); KJV, NIV, NRSV “pomp.”

[14:11]  ⁴³ tn Or “harps” (NAB, NIV, NRSV).

[14:11]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “under you maggots are spread out, and worms are your cover.”

[14:12]  ⁴⁵ tn The Hebrew text has הֵילֵל בֶּן־שָׁחַר (helel ben-shakhar, “Helel son of Shachar”), which is probably a name for the morning star (Venus) or the crescent moon. See HALOT 245 s.v. הֵילֵל.

[14:12]  ⁴⁶ tn Some understand the verb to from חָלַשׁ (khalash, “to weaken”), but HALOT 324 s.v. II חלשׁ proposes a homonym here, meaning “to defeat.”

[14:12]  ⁴⁷ sn In this line the taunting kings hint at the literal identity of the king, after likening him to the god Helel and a tree. The verb גָדַע (gada’, “cut down”) is used of chopping down trees in 9:10 and 10:33.

[14:13]  ⁴⁸ tn Heb “you, you said in your heart.”

[14:13]  ⁴⁹ sn In Canaanite mythology the stars of El were astral deities under the authority of the high god El.

[14:13]  ⁵⁰ sn Zaphon, the Canaanite version of Olympus, was the “mountain of assembly” where the gods met.

[14:14]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “the high places.” This word often refers to the high places where pagan worship was conducted, but here it probably refers to the “backs” or tops of the clouds. See HALOT 136 s.v. בָּמָה.

[14:14]  ⁵² sn Normally in the OT the title “Most High” belongs to the God of Israel, but in this context, where the mythological overtones are so strong, it probably refers to the Canaanite high god El.

[14:15]  ⁵³ tn The prefixed verb form is taken as a preterite. Note the use of perfects in v. 12 to describe the king’s downfall.

[14:15]  ⁵⁴ tn The Hebrew term בּוּר (bor, “cistern”) is sometimes used metaphorically to refer to the place of the dead or the entrance to the underworld.

[14:16]  ⁵⁵ tn The word “thinking” is supplied in the translation in order to make it clear that the next line records their thoughts as they gaze at him.

[14:17]  ⁵⁶ tc The pronominal suffix is masculine, even though its antecedent appears to be the grammatically feminine noun “world.” Some have suggested that the form עָרָיו (’arayv, plural noun with third masculine singular suffix) should be emended to עָרֶיהָ (’areha, plural noun with third feminine singular suffix). This emendation may be unnecessary in light of other examples of lack of agreement a suffix and its antecedent noun.

[14:17]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “and his prisoners did not let loose to [their] homes.” This really means, “he did not let loose his prisoners and send them back to their homes.’ On the elliptical style, see GKC 366 §117.o.

[14:18]  ⁵⁸ sn It is unclear where the quotation of the kings, begun in v. 10b, ends. However, the reference to the “kings of the nations” in v. 18 (see also v. 9) seems to indicate that the quotation has ended at this point and that Israel’s direct taunt (cf. vv. 4b-10a) has resumed. In fact the references to the “kings of the nations” may form a stylistic inclusio or frame around the quotation.

[14:18]  ⁵⁹ tc The phrase “all of them” does not appear in the Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a.

[14:18]  ⁶⁰ sn This refers to the typically extravagant burial of kings.

[14:18]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “house” (so KJV, ASV), but in this context a tomb is in view. Note the verb “lie down” in the preceding line and the reference to a “grave” in the next line.

[14:19]  ⁶² tn Heb “like a shoot that is abhorred.” The simile seems a bit odd; apparently it refers to a small shoot that is trimmed from a plant and tossed away. Some prefer to emend נֵצֶר (netser, “shoot”); some propose נֵפֶל (nefel, “miscarriage”). In this case one might paraphrase: “like a horrible-looking fetus that is delivered when a woman miscarries.”

[14:19]  ⁶³ tn Heb “are clothed with.”

[14:19]  ⁶⁴ tn Heb “those going down to.”

[14:19]  ⁶⁵ tn בּוֹר (bor) literally means “cistern”; cisterns were constructed from stones. On the metaphorical use of “cistern” for the underworld, see the note at v. 15.

[14:19]  ⁶⁶ tn Heb “like a trampled corpse.” Some take this line with what follows.

[10:15]  ⁶⁷ sn Capernaum was a town on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee, 680 ft (204 m) below sea level. It was a major trade and economic center in the North Galilean region.

[10:15]  ⁶⁸ tn The interrogative particle introducing this question expects a negative reply.

[10:15]  ⁶⁹ sn In the OT, Hades was known as Sheol. It is the place where the unrighteous will reside (Matt 11:23; Luke 16:23; Rev 20:13-14).