Profetier mod Egypten
1På den 12. dag i den tiende måned i det tiende år af vores eksil sagde Herren til mig: 2„Du menneske, vend dig mod Egypten og profetér imod Farao og hele folket. 3Sig til dem: Hør hvad Herren siger:
Jeg vil straffe dig, Farao, Egyptens konge,
det store uhyre29,3 Eller „krokodille”, „søuhyre”, „drage”. i Nilens vande.
Du hævder, at Nildeltaet tilhører dig,
og at du selv har skabt det.
4Men jeg sætter kroge i dine kæber
og får fiskene til at bide sig fast i dine skæl.
Derefter trækker jeg dig op på land,
så alle flodens fisk følger med.
5Jeg slynger dig ud i ørkenen
sammen med alle flodens fisk.
Du får lov at ligge, hvor du faldt,
ingen samler dig op for at begrave dig.
Dit kød bliver føde for himlens fugle
og for jordens vilde dyr.
6Da vil Egyptens indbyggere forstå, at jeg er Herren.
Du var det halmstrå, mit folk greb efter i nøden.
7Du var som en kæp, mit folk ville støtte sig til,
men du knækkede, og de vred skulderen af led.
Da de forsøgte at læne sig op ad dig,
brød du sammen, og de vred hoften af led.
8Derfor siger Gud Herren til Egypten:
Jeg sender en hær imod dig,
som vil dræbe både mennesker og dyr.
9Hele landet bliver lagt i ruiner.
Da vil du indse, at jeg er Herren.
Du hævder, at Nildeltaet tilhører dig,
og at du selv har skabt det.
10Derfor straffer jeg dig og din flod,
rydder landet for mennesker og dyr
fra Migdol i nord til Aswan i syd
ved grænsen til Kush.
11I 40 år skal det ligge øde,
hverken mennesker eller dyr skal færdes der.
12Jeg lægger dine byer i ruiner
og gør landet til en ødemark i 40 år,
som det er sket med de andre lande og byer.
Jeg spreder dit folk blandt fremmede folkeslag.
13Men efter 40 år vil jeg samle dem igen
og føre dem hjem fra de lande, jeg fordrev dem til.
14Jeg vender deres skæbne, fører dem hjem til Patros,
men det bliver et rige uden særlig betydning.
15Egypten bliver mindre end de andre riger,
de er for få til at herske over andre folkeslag.
16Israel vil erkende, at de begik en stor fejl
ved at søge til Egypten efter hjælp.
Det vil de aldrig gøre igen.
Da vil de indse, at jeg er Herren, deres Gud.”
17På den første dag i den første måned i det 27. år af vores eksil sagde Herren til mig:
18„Du menneske, kong Nebukadnezars hær har arbejdet hårdt for at besejre Tyrus. Deres hår og tøj er slidt af dem. Hverken kongen selv eller hæren fik løn for deres indsats imod Tyrus. 19Derfor siger jeg, Herren: Jeg giver Egyptens land til Babyloniens kong Nebukadnezar. Han skal plyndre landet for al dets rigdom og dele krigsbyttet mellem sine soldater, så de kan få deres løn. 20Egyptens rigdom skal være deres belønning, fordi de ihærdigt arbejdede for mig, siger Herren. 21Til den tid lader jeg en ny og stærk leder spire frem i Israel, og dig giver jeg inspiration til at tale til folket. Da skal de indse, at jeg er Herren.”
A Prophecy Against Egypt
Judgment on Pharaoh
1In the tenth year, in the tenth month on the twelfth day, the word of the Lord came to me: 2“Son of man, set your face against Pharaoh king of Egypt and prophesy against him and against all Egypt. 3Speak to him and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“ ‘I am against you, Pharaoh king of Egypt,
you great monster lying among your streams.
You say, “The Nile belongs to me;
I made it for myself.”
4But I will put hooks in your jaws
and make the fish of your streams stick to your scales.
I will pull you out from among your streams,
with all the fish sticking to your scales.
5I will leave you in the desert,
you and all the fish of your streams.
You will fall on the open field
and not be gathered or picked up.
I will give you as food
to the beasts of the earth and the birds of the sky.
6Then all who live in Egypt will know that I am the Lord.
“ ‘You have been a staff of reed for the people of Israel. 7When they grasped you with their hands, you splintered and you tore open their shoulders; when they leaned on you, you broke and their backs were wrenched.29:7 Syriac (see also Septuagint and Vulgate); Hebrew and you caused their backs to stand
8“ ‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will bring a sword against you and kill both man and beast. 9Egypt will become a desolate wasteland. Then they will know that I am the Lord.
“ ‘Because you said, “The Nile is mine; I made it,” 10therefore I am against you and against your streams, and I will make the land of Egypt a ruin and a desolate waste from Migdol to Aswan, as far as the border of Cush.29:10 That is, the upper Nile region 11The foot of neither man nor beast will pass through it; no one will live there for forty years. 12I will make the land of Egypt desolate among devastated lands, and her cities will lie desolate forty years among ruined cities. And I will disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them through the countries.
13“ ‘Yet this is what the Sovereign Lord says: At the end of forty years I will gather the Egyptians from the nations where they were scattered. 14I will bring them back from captivity and return them to Upper Egypt, the land of their ancestry. There they will be a lowly kingdom. 15It will be the lowliest of kingdoms and will never again exalt itself above the other nations. I will make it so weak that it will never again rule over the nations. 16Egypt will no longer be a source of confidence for the people of Israel but will be a reminder of their sin in turning to her for help. Then they will know that I am the Sovereign Lord.’ ”
Nebuchadnezzar’s Reward
17In the twenty-seventh year, in the first month on the first day, the word of the Lord came to me: 18“Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon drove his army in a hard campaign against Tyre; every head was rubbed bare and every shoulder made raw. Yet he and his army got no reward from the campaign he led against Tyre. 19Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am going to give Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he will carry off its wealth. He will loot and plunder the land as pay for his army. 20I have given him Egypt as a reward for his efforts because he and his army did it for me, declares the Sovereign Lord.
21“On that day I will make a horn29:21 Horn here symbolizes strength. grow for the Israelites, and I will open your mouth among them. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”
