A Lament for Pharaoh King of Egypt

1And it happened that, in the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, on the first of the month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying:

2“Son of man, take up a lamentation over Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and you shall say to him: You are like the lion of the Gentiles, and like the dragon that is in the sea. And you brandished a horn among your rivers, and you disturbed the waters with your feet, and you trampled upon their rivers.

3Because of this, thus says the Lord God: I will spread my net over you, with the multitude of many peoples, and I will draw you into my dragnet.

4And I will throw you upon the land. I will cast you upon the surface of the field. And I will cause all the birds of the air to live upon you. And I will satiate the beasts of the entire earth with you.

5And I will place your flesh upon the mountains. And I will fill up your hills with your decaying flesh.

6And I will irrigate the earth with your rotting blood upon the mountains. And the valleys will be filled with you.

7And I will cover heaven, when you will have been extinguished. And I will cause its stars to grow dark. I will shroud the sun with gloom, and the moon will not give her light.

8I will cause all the lights of heaven to grieve over you. And I will bring darkness upon your land, says the Lord God, when your wounded will have fallen in the midst of the land, says the Lord God.

9And I will provoke the heart of many peoples to anger, when I will have led in your destruction among the Gentiles, over the lands that you have not known. 10And I will cause many peoples to be stupefied over you. And their kings will be afraid, with great horror, over you, when my sword will begin to fly above their faces. And suddenly, they will be struck with astonishment, each one concerning his own life, on the day of their ruination.

11For thus says the Lord God: The sword of the king of Babylon will come to you.

12By the swords of the strong, I will cast down your multitude. All these nations are invincible, and they will lay waste to the arrogance of Egypt, and so its multitude will be destroyed.

13And I will perish all its cattle, which were above the many waters. And the foot of man will no longer disturb them, and the hoof of cattle will no longer trouble them.

14Then I will cause their waters to be very pure, and their rivers to be like oil, says the Lord God,

15when I will have set the land of Egypt in desolation. And the land will be deprived of her plenitude, when I will have struck all its inhabitants. And they shall know that I am the Lord.

16This is the lamentation. And they shall lament it. The daughters of the Gentiles shall lament it. They shall lament it over Egypt and over its multitude, says the Lord God.”

Egypt Cast into the Pit

17And it happened that, in the twelfth year, on the fifteenth of the month, the word of the Lord came to me saying: 18“Son of man, sing mournfully over the multitude of Egypt. And cast her down, both her and the daughters of the robust nations, to the lowest part of the earth, with those who descend into the pit.

19Whom do you exceed in beauty? Descend and sleep with the uncircumcised!

20They will fall by the sword in the midst of the slain. The sword has been given. They have dragged her down, with all her people. 21The most powerful among the strong will speak to him from the midst of hell, those who descended with his helpers and who went to sleep uncircumcised, slain by the sword.

22Assur is in that place, with all his multitude. Their graves are all around him: all of the slain and those who fell by the sword. 23Their graves have been placed in the lowest parts of the pit. And his multitude was stationed on all sides of his grave: all of the slain, and those who fell by the sword, who formerly spread terror in the land of the living.

24Elam is in that place, with all his multitude, on all sides of his grave, all those who were slain or who fell by the sword, who descended uncircumcised to the lowest part of the earth, who caused their terror in the land of the living. And they have borne their disgrace, with those who descend into the pit. 25They have appointed him a place to lie among all his people, in the midst of the slain. Their graves are all around him. All these are uncircumcised and were slain by the sword. For they spread their terror in the land of the living, and they have borne their disgrace, with those who descend into the pit. They have been stationed in the midst of the slain.

26Meshech and Tubal are in that place, with all their multitude. Their graves are all around him: all these are uncircumcised, and they were slain and fell by the sword. For they spread their terror in the land of the living. 27But they shall not sleep with the strong, and with those who also fell uncircumcised, who descended to hell with their weapons, and who placed their swords under their heads, while their iniquities were in their bones. For they were the terror of the strong in the land of the living. 28Therefore, you also will be broken in the midst of the uncircumcised, and you will sleep with those who were slain by the sword.

29Idumea is in that place, with her kings and all her commanders, who with their army have been given to those who were slain by the sword. And they have slept with the uncircumcised and with those who descend into the pit.

30All the leaders of the north are in that place, with all the hunters, who were brought down with the slain, fearful and confounded in their strength, who have gone to sleep uncircumcised, with those who were slain by the sword. And they have borne their disgrace, with those who descend into the pit.

31Pharaoh saw them, and he was consoled over all his multitude, which was slain by the sword, even Pharaoh and all his army, says the Lord God. 32For I have spread my terror in the land of the living, and he has gone to sleep in the midst of the uncircumcised, with those who were slain by the sword, even Pharaoh and all his multitude, says the Lord God.”