Eze 31 | NASB2020 | STEP | In the eleventh year , in the third month, on the first of the month , the word of the Lord came to me, saying ,

Ezekiel 31

Pharaoh Warned of Assyria’s Fate

1 In the ^aeleventh year, in the third month, on the first of the month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, say to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his ^bhordes,

‘Whom are you like in your greatness?
3 ‘Behold, Assyria was a ^ccedar in Lebanon
With beautiful branches and forest shade,
And ^{▼▼Lit high of stature
,} ^every high,
And its top was among the ^{▼▼As in LXX; MT thick boughs}clouds.
4 ‘The ^gwaters made it grow, the ^{▼▼I.e., subterranean waters}deep made it high.
With its rivers it continually ^{▼▼Lit was going}extended all around its planting place,
And sent out its channels to all the trees of the field.
5 ‘Therefore ^jits height was loftier than all the trees of the field
And its boughs became many and its branches long
Because of ^kmany waters ^{▼▼Lit in its sending forth}as it spread them out.
6 ‘All the ^mbirds of the sky nested in its twigs,
And under its branches all the animals of the field gave birth,
And all great nations lived under its shade.
7 ‘So it was beautiful in its greatness, in the length of its branches;
For its ^{▼▼Lit root was}roots extended to many waters.
8 ‘The ^ocedars in ^pGod’s garden ^{▼▼Lit did}could not match it;
The junipers ^{▼▼Lit did}could not compare with its branches,
And the plane trees ^{▼▼Lit were not like}could not match its branches.
No tree in ^tGod’s garden ^{▼▼Lit did}could compare with it in its beauty.
9 ‘I made it beautiful with the multitude of its branches,
And all the trees of ^vEden, which were in the ^wgarden of God, were jealous of it.
10 ‘Therefore this is what the Lord ^{▼▼Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord, and so throughout the ch}God says: “Because ^{▼▼As in Syriac; MT you are}it is tall in stature and has put its top among the ^{▼▼As in LXX; MT thick branches}clouds, and its ^aaheart is haughty in its loftiness, 11 I will hand it over to a ^{▼▼Or mighty one
,} ^acruler of the nations; he will thoroughly deal with it. In accordance with its wickedness I have ^addriven it out. 12 ^aeForeign ^aftyrants of the nations have cut it down and left it; on the ^agmountains and in all the valleys its branches have fallen, and its branches have been broken in all the ravines of the land. And all the peoples of the earth have ^ahgone down from its shade and left it. 13 All the ^aibirds of the sky will nest on its fallen trunk, and all the animals of the field will ^{▼▼Lit be on}rest on its fallen branches, 14 so that all the trees by the waters will not be exalted in their stature, nor put their tops among the ^{▼▼As in LXX; MT thick branches}clouds, nor will any of their ^{▼▼Lit drinkers of water}well-watered mighty ones stand straight in their height. For they have all been turned over to death, to the ^amearth beneath, among ^{▼▼Lit sons of mankind}mankind, ^{▼▼Lit to}with those who go down to the pit.”

15 ‘This is what the Lord God says: “On the day when it went down to Sheol I ^apcaused mourning; I closed the ^{▼▼I.e., subterranean waters}deep over it and held back its rivers. And its many waters were stopped up, and I made Lebanon mourn for it, and all the trees of the field wilted away on account of it. 16 I made the nations ^arquake from the sound of its fall when I made it ^asgo down to Sheol with those who go down to the pit; and all the ^{▼▼Lit drinkers of water}well-watered trees of Eden, the choicest and best of ^auLebanon, were ^avcomforted in the earth beneath. 17 They also ^awwent down with it to Sheol to those who were ^axslain by the sword; and those who were its ^{▼▼Lit arm}strength lived ^azin its shade among the nations.

18 “To which among the trees of Eden are you so alike in glory and greatness? Yet you will be brought down with the trees of Eden to the earth beneath; you will lie in the midst of the ^bauncircumcised with those who were killed by the sword. ^bbThis is Pharaoh and all his hordes!”’ declares the Lord God.”