Daily Bread

A Lament Over Pharaoh

32 In the twelfth year, in the twelfth month on the first day, the word of the Lord came to me:^{(A) 2} “Son of man, take up a lament^(B) concerning Pharaoh king of Egypt and say to him:

³ “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:

¹¹ “‘For this is what the Sovereign Lord says:

¹⁶ “This is the lament^(Y) they will chant for her. The daughters of the nations will chant it; for Egypt and all her hordes they will chant it, declares the Sovereign Lord.”

Egypt’s Descent Into the Realm of the Dead

¹⁷ In the twelfth year, on the fifteenth day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me:^{(Z) 18} “Son of man, wail for the hordes of Egypt and consign^(AA) to the earth below both her and the daughters of mighty nations, along with those who go down to the pit.^{(AB) 19} Say to them, ‘Are you more favored than others? Go down and be laid among the uncircumcised.’^{(AC) 20} They will fall among those killed by the sword. The sword is drawn; let her be dragged^(AD) off with all her hordes.^{(AE) 21} From within the realm of the dead^(AF) the mighty leaders will say of Egypt and her allies, ‘They have come down and they lie with the uncircumcised,^(AG) with those killed by the sword.’

²² “Assyria is there with her whole army; she is surrounded by the graves of all her slain, all who have fallen by the sword. ²³ Their graves are in the depths of the pit^(AH) and her army lies around her grave.^(AI) All who had spread terror in the land of the living are slain, fallen by the sword.

²⁴ “Elam^(AJ) is there, with all her hordes around her grave. All of them are slain, fallen by the sword.^(AK) All who had spread terror in the land of the living^(AL) went down uncircumcised to the earth below. They bear their shame with those who go down to the pit.^{(AM) 25} A bed is made for her among the slain, with all her hordes around her grave. All of them are uncircumcised,^(AN) killed by the sword. Because their terror had spread in the land of the living, they bear their shame with those who go down to the pit; they are laid among the slain.

²⁶ “Meshek and Tubal^(AO) are there, with all their hordes around their graves. All of them are uncircumcised, killed by the sword because they spread their terror in the land of the living. ²⁷ But they do not lie with the fallen warriors of old,^[b](AP) who went down to the realm of the dead with their weapons of war—their swords placed under their heads and their shields^[c] resting on their bones—though these warriors also had terrorized the land of the living.

²⁸ “You too, Pharaoh, will be broken and will lie among the uncircumcised, with those killed by the sword.

²⁹ “Edom^(AQ) is there, her kings and all her princes; despite their power, they are laid with those killed by the sword. They lie with the uncircumcised, with those who go down to the pit.^(AR)

³⁰ “All the princes of the north^(AS) and all the Sidonians^(AT) are there; they went down with the slain in disgrace despite the terror caused by their power. They lie uncircumcised^(AU) with those killed by the sword and bear their shame with those who go down to the pit.^(AV)

³¹ “Pharaoh—he and all his army—will see them and he will be consoled^(AW) for all his hordes that were killed by the sword, declares the Sovereign Lord. ³² Although I had him spread terror in the land of the living, Pharaoh^(AX) and all his hordes will be laid among the uncircumcised, with those killed by the sword, declares the Sovereign Lord.”^(AY)