Ezekiel
Verse 1. Twelfth. He counts from the captivity of Jechonias, as Sedecias reigned only eleven years. Worthington.
EXPLANATIONS
Ezekiel 32
Historical chapter commentary
Ezekiel
Verse 2. Dragon, or crocodile; two of the most terrible creatures.—With the horn is not expressed in Hebrew and the crocodile has nothing like a horn. It has four feet, with which it makes the water muddy. Calmet.
Ezekiel
Verse 3. Net. Septuagint “hook.” Calmet. 29:4. Calmet.—Some take the crocodile with a net. verse 3. Elian. Hist. x. 21.
Ezekiel
Verse 5. Corruption. Septuagint “blood.” But romuth ( Bible.) means rather “worms.” Syr. Calmet.
Ezekiel
Verse 7–8. Out, like a candle, by death; extinctus. Bible.—The glory of Egypt was so great, that at its fall the light of heaven seemed diminished. Worthington.—Great desolation is thus intimated.—When, and so forth is not is some Latin copies, nor in Hebrew and so forth Calmet.
Ezekiel
Verse 9. Anger, as they will not know why I have treated thee so severely: or rather, they shall be afraid for themselves. verse 10. Calmet.
Ezekiel
Verse 12. Invincible, when they wield God’s sword. Cyrus easily conquered them. Bible.—Hebrew “strong,.” Septuagint “pestiferous.”
Ezekiel
Verse 14. Oil. It is very transparent. It seems the Nile was rendered muddy by cattle, and so forth
Ezekiel
Verse 15. Fulness, or all of it shall be desolate.
Ezekiel
Verse 17. Month: probably the twelfth. verse 1.
Ezekiel
Verse 18. Down: announce this catastrophe. Calmet.—Apries was slain by order of Amasis. Diodor. 1. Jeremiah 44:30.
Ezekiel
Verse 21. Most. Septuagint “giants shall say to thee: Remain in the depth of the pit. Whom dost thou excel? descend,” and so forth Bible.—They vary much in this chapter from the Hebrew Saint Jerome—Helpers; Lybians, and so forth Calmet. 30:5. These shall come to compliment the king. Calmet.—After a battle, those of the same nation were buried together. verse 22. Theod.—The Egyptians had tombs like houses, in which there were separate holes or apartments ( Calmet.) as in large vaults. Bible.
Ezekiel
Verse 24. Shame. They are buried without any distinction.
Ezekiel
Verse 27. Not. Some copies of Septuagint omit the negation. Others render the Hebrew “Have they not slept?” and so forth These nations were deprived of military honours, dying like cowards; and therefore their swords were not placed with them in the grave. Calmet.—It was customary to inter such things as the deceased had like the most. Serv. in Æn. x. Arma quibus lætatus habe tus, and so forth Simon (1 Maccabees 13:29) placed arms and representations of ships on the pillars at Modin, in honour of his kindred. If Elam, and so forth had not received such distinction, why should the Egyptian repine? Were they any better? Calmet.—The country and king of the Elamites, Assyrians, and other infidels, shall be destroyed. Worthington.
Ezekiel
Verse 28. Midst. This threat would make great impression on the Egyptians, who were particularly solicitous to be buried with their fathers.
Ezekiel
Verse 29. Edom. Septuagint add, “and all the Assyrian princes.” Some copies omit Edom. Bible.—This nation had laid aside circumcision, which Hircan forced them to resume. They had been present at the siege of Jerusalem. Calmet. 35. Calmet.
Ezekiel
Verse 30. Hunters of men, like Nimrod, the first king of Assyria. Bible.
Ezekiel
Verse 32. My. Hebrew Septuagint “his,” ( Calmet.) alluding to the ravages of Nechao; (Grot.) though the Hebrew may also signify my, as the Jews read Egypt, and Palestine, the land of the living, were filled with terror. After the latter had been chastised, Pharao might dread ( Calmet.) a worse fate; ( Bible.) and the multitudes slain before him, might afford him some ( Calmet.) wretched consolation. Bible.—It is evident that those nations believed the existence of separate spirits, and had not given in to the errors of the Sadducees, or of the Metempsychosis. Calmet.
Ezekiel
Sheol is the place of the dead.