PHARAOH’S FALL BEFORE BABYLON In this chapter He spoke of the defeat of the Pharaoh of Egypt, who assumed that he is capable of helping Judah. His defeat was on a universal level: broken down psychologically, his wealth was scattered; and finally his arms were broken.. 1- The psychological break down of Pharaoh 1-9. 2- The destruction of Pharaoh’s wealth 10-19. 3- Breaking of Pharaoh’s arms 20-26. 1- THE PSYCHOLOGICAL BREAK DOWN OF PHARAOH When God commanded the prophet Ezekiel to prophesy against the Pharaoh of Egypt, He did not call Pharaoh to wail, nor did He call all the people of Egypt to wail; but He made it a general call to the pagan world as a whole; The Pharaoh of Egypt being its representative at that time; He said: “Woe, Woe to the day” (Ez 30:2). And the day of the fall of Pharaoh, or that of the land of Egypt, is called, “The day of the Lord;” as it is a day of chastisement by the Lord to all nations! That is why He said: “I made the nations shake at the sound of its fall, when I cast it down to hell together with those who descend into the Pit” (Ez 31:16). “They (the kings of many nations) shall tremble every moment, every man for his own life, in the day of your fall”(Ez 32:10). So will the sound of his fall resonate in the whole world; and the whole creation shall tremble. It is noteworthy that Pharaoh here refers to Satan, who provokes people to rebel against the prophetic words; who assumes that he has the authority to support many. We previously spoke of Pharaoh as a symbol of Satan, in our interpretation of the book of Exodus, concerning his opposition to the prophet Moses and to Aaron. And as Origen says: [I believe that certain names of peoples or kings we read about in the Holy Bible, actually apply to the wicked angels, or to the adversary princes, as for example the Pharaoh of Egypt, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and to the king of Assyria1.] If Pharaoh - as a symbol of Satan - thinks of himself as one of authority, to whom other nations come to seek refuge and protection, God proclaims his psychological defeat, and his destruction through fear. He made his day, “a day of clouds” (Ez 30:3). Clouds as we already know are a sign of the divine glory; covering the holy mountain, the holy tabernacle, or the holy temple; as a proclamation of man’s entry into unseen incomprehensible mysteries. Yet, as far as Satan or as Pharaoh are concerned, clouds represent a state of darkness, through which either one cannot, or do not know how to act. If he saw himself as a leader; in the darkness he stumbles together with all those who follow him or take refuge under his wings. That is why the Lord says: “On that day messengers shall go forth from Me in ships, to make the careless Ethiopians afraid. And great anguish shall come upon them. As on the day of Egypt; For indeed it is coming” (Ez 30:9). The nearest country to him is Cush, that probably meant ‘Nubia,’ or some regions of Asia. Anyhow, if terror filled the heart of Pharaoh as well as the nearest country to him, that was under his protection, what would be the destiny of the other countries that are far away from him?! It was God Himself who terrified them: “Messengers shall go forth from Me in ships, to make the careless Ethiopia (Cush) afraid;” because it forsook the Lord and took refuge in Pharaoh. 1 In Num. Homily 11:4. 5 By the terror and the fall of Pharaoh, “Ethiopia (Cush), Put, Lud, all the mingled people, Chub, and the men of the lands who are allied, shall fall with them by the sword”(Ez 30:5). We have previously dealt with Cush, Put, and Lud (Ez 27:10). As to ‘All the mingled people,” this is interpreted by some as the mingled people and by others as the people of Arabia. Chub is believed by some to be ‘Lob or Libya;’ people who dwelt in northeast of Africa. In the Septuagint version, it came as “the people of the land of the covenant;’ meaning the countries that entered with Pharaoh into a covenant to protect them, especially against the attacks of the king of Babylon. The pride of the devil had to be totally destroyed in all his kingdom, from Migdol at the far north to Syene at the far south (Ez 30:6); and with him all his followers and all who take refuge under his wings: “Then they will know that I am the Lord; when I have set a fire in Egypt, and all her helpers are destroyed” (Ez 30:8). 2- THE DESTRUCTION OF PHARAOH’S WEALTH Instead of pride and arrogance, fear and terror filled Pharaoh and all the surrounding nations and those under his protection. Instead of his riches and wealth that made him say: “My river is my own; I have made it for myself” (Ez 29:3, 9), God says: “I will make the rivers dry” (Ez 30:12). Instead of his kingdom and authority, God will deliver his land into the hands of aliens (Ez 30:12). And Instead of comfort and peace, God will set a fire, and his kingdom will lose its hope; as its young men fall by the sword; and its daughters go into captivity! He who thought of himself as a god, will have his idols and images destroyed (Ez 30:13). The kingdom of the devil had to come to an end; his false dignity had to be wiped out; all his capabilities had to collapse; and he had to be cast away in the eternal fire, together with all who followed him, and those who took refuge in him. All the centers of power that worked in his service and under his authority, shall be destroyed; those that were symbolized by the following fortified Egyptian cities, the most important of which are: a- Noph: “Thus says the Lord God: ‘I will destroy the idols, and cause the images to cease from Noph. There shall no longer be princes from the land of Egypt” (Ez 30:13). When He intended to talk about the destruction of all the authority of Pharaoh (the symbol of Satan); and the end of his kingdom, from which no longer princes will come, He chose ‘Noph,’ a Hebrew name of the Egyptian ‘Meniphi or Meniphri;’ or ‘Memphis’ in Greek; the most famous city in old Egypt; built by king ‘Mina’ when he unified the north and south provinces; and made it the capital of his kingdom; with no equal in size or importance, except for ‘Thebes;’ not until the Greeks built the city of ‘Alexandria’ as their capital. Memphis was 10 miles south of Cairo, close to ‘Mit-Rahina;’ and in it, or close to it, royal palaces were established; as well as the pyramids, 12 miles south of it; in which kings were buried. Once Alexandria was built, ‘Memphis retreated to the second place; had been densely inhabited until the Arabs came to Egypt and destroyed it completely. The growth of Fostat then Cairo went hand in hand with the destruction of Memphis; whose bricks were used to build them. The calf Apis was worshipped in Memphis, as a symbol of the principal god Pta or god of the fire. 6 b- Pathros (Ez 30:14): We already said that it was the land of the south, or Upper Egypt. As God destroyed the idols in Noph in Lower Egypt, He did the same to those of Upper Egypt. c- Zoan (Ez 30:14): On the eastern bank of the Delta; built seven years after Hebron (Num 13:22). (Psalm 78:12, 43) referred to Zoan as the location where the miracles connected to the exodus of the children of Israel from Egypt, took place; and also mentioned in (Isaiah 19:11, 13; 30:4); probably as being the capital of Egypt. It was known by the name of Avaris, as the capital of the Hyksos, neglected after they were driven out, then restored to importance in the days of Sati the First, and Raamses the Second (Exod 1:11); Its Greek name was Tanis; and nowadays it is called ‘Sa- El-Hagar.’ d- No: God says, “I will cut off the multitude of No” (Ez 30:15). ‘No, No-Amon, or Amon-No,’ is an Egyptian name, meaning “the city of Amon,” the greatest Egyptian god, especially from the seventeenth dynasty onwards. (The Egyptian word ‘Amon’ means the hidden or concealed, and in Hebrew it means “Amen or the Maker”). Amon-No or Thebes was located in Upper Egypt, 400 miles south of Memphis, on the banks of the Nile. The Pharaoh Ahmes gave it great importance by driving out the Hyksos, liberating Egypt, and reuniting it. He set the cornerstone of the Egyptian empire, established by the two dynasties 18 and 19. His successors took care of the city that grew in greatness and magnificence. It had 100 gates; and its priest - the priest of Amon - was considered as the second man in the nation. Even after Memphis became later on the capital of Egypt, Thebes kept its importance because of the worship of the god Amon, and all that it followed it of great temples, buildings, and obelisks. In the seventh century B.C., when Esar-haddon the Syrian conqueror, came to it in the year 671 B. C, then his son Assur-Bani-pal in the year 664 B. C, and occupied it (Nahum 3:8), they did not utterly destroy it. Yet when Egypt led the rebellion against the authority of the Roman empire, the Roman armies destroyed it, and turned it into heaps of ruins. The magnificent remains in regions of Luxor, Karnack, Korna, Hepo, the tombs of the kings, and Dir-El- Bahari etc., still testify before the whole world, to the greatest civilization in history. e- Sin: “I will pour My fury on Sin, the strength of Egypt” (Ez 30:15). “Sin shall have great pain” (Ez 30:16). It was the only city that was placed under the Assyrian authority; undoubtedly set at the location of Pelusium, to keep the gate of Egypt open before the Assyrian king. It was called the ‘Stronghold of Egypt;’ because at it, several battles took place. At its location is nowadays ‘Tell Farama,’ 20 miles north east of the city of ‘Kantara.’ f- Aven: “The young men of Aven and Pi-Beseth shall fall by the sword, and these cities shall go into captivity” (Ez 30:17) The city of O-Aven, Eno in Egyptian, and Heliopolis in Greek; was the seat of the god ‘Ra,’ the god of the Sun. Nowadays it is ‘Tel Hassan’ or ‘Ein-Shams,’ 7 miles north east of Cairo; where Joseph’s father-in-law dwelt (Gen 41:45, 50). Its temple has been of great importance. It was beloved by the kings; and its priests were the most educated; That is why there was a tradition that Plato and other Greek philosophers studied in Heliopolis. It is as though God intended to proclaim that the young men of such educated city would fall by the sword; as knowledge without faith does not edify the soul. g- Pi-Beseth: An Egyptian name, meaning “the house of the goddess Basht,” ‘Bubastos’ in Greek. Nowadays it is called ‘Tel-Basta,’ close to the city of ‘Zagazig’ east of the Delta. 7 h- Tehaphnehes: “At Tehaphnehes the day shall also be darkened, when I break the yokes of Egypt there. And her arrogant strength shall cease in her” (Ez 30:18). It was the city in which some Jews took refuge, as they fled to Egypt after ‘Gedaliah’ was killed (Jer 43:7). In Greek it is called Daphnai; and nowadays it is Tel-Dephenna, 10 miles west of ‘kantara.’ In the Septuagint version, it came as Tahpanhes, meaning (the stronghold or fortress of Penahse). ‘Penahse’ was most probably a prince of great authority from Thebes, who lived in the eleventh century B.C.; and led a revolution in the north; many cities were named after him. The historian ‘Herodotus’ mentioned that ‘Tahpanhes’ has been an Egyptian fortress on the Asian side; before the Greeks took it over. Among its remains were found, many Greek potteries, iron weapons, and iron and bronze arrow heads, that carried Greek nature; beside several items that indicate that it has been a very important commercial route. 3- BREAKING OF PHARAOH’S ARMS After showing how Pharaoh’s fortified cities were destroyed, he started talking about how his arms were broken beyond healing, that he was no more capable of holding a sword to defend himself or those who leaned upon his protection. At the same time God strengthened the arms of the king of Babylon; and put His sword in his hand, to chasten Pharaoh, whose arms fell down, and whose people were scattered among the nations, and dispersed throughout the countries! That is a portrait of the work of the devil that opposes the divine ordinances; it will end up with utter failure; even if it appears successful at the beginning! 8 AN INSPIRATION FROM THE BOOK OF E ZEKIEL 30 A FIRE IN THE CITY OF FIRE! In Memphis, the Egyptians worshipped the god ‘Pta’ in the city of fire! Pharaoh thought that he is the fiery man! A man of authority, in whom the nations take refuge! Here, God turns Pharaoh’s day into a cloudy day, a day of darkness and fear. He was psychologically broken down; and terror prevailed in all Egypt! God kindles the fire of His chastisement; to break down all the energies of Pharaoh! Instead of protecting others, he becomes himself terrified! He loses his wealth and his arms are broken! Teach me, O Lord, the spirit of humility! You are a refuge for me and for my brothers! We are all in need for Your protection and care; O, You, the prudent Shepherd of souls!
Welcome