NOTES for Eze 29:1-21
Announcing Egypt's approaching destruction, the Lord speaks through the prophet Ezekiel first of all about the unreliability of the pharaohs, in whose military and political alliances the politicians of Judah placed such hope. In reality, for many centuries Egypt sought to use both Israel and the other peoples of Palestine, now as a bridgehead, now as a buffer between itself and the aggressive Middle Eastern empires that successively replaced one another—the Hittites, Assyrians, and Babylonians.
The leaders of Israel, who relied more on Egypt's military power than on God's mercy, have already received their due. Ezekiel and his predecessors in prophetic ministry said everything necessary about their fate. Many of them showed vividly the spiritual and political destructiveness of such hopes. But the fact that Israel should not have relied on Egypt does not cancel the pharaohs' duty to behave honorably and avoid treachery. This is one of the most important aspects of the prophet's word addressed to the Egyptian ruler.
Moreover, the Lord points out that Pharaoh, like the king of Tyre discussed in the previous chapter, acknowledges no one above himself. He is, as the saying goes, “king and god and commander,” and recognizes neither political nor moral accountability to anyone. His actions therefore become a vivid example of how the moral character of a person degenerates without faith, without reverence for the One God, the Lord of heaven and earth.
For the Jews in Babylonian captivity who heard Ezekiel's prophecy, it was also extremely important to hear what God says about Egypt's future restoration. It turns out that it is not only the chosen people whom God will restore and save: His designs extend even to those whom the Jews were accustomed to regard as opponents of God. This universal dimension of Revelation is only beginning to emerge in the Old Testament, while God's plan for the salvation of all people will be fully revealed only in the coming of Christ. It is remarkable that just as the destruction and restoration of Jerusalem take place in order to cleanse the chosen people from sin, so Egypt's restoration will free it from its most essential sin—pride.
Finally, the prophecy that Egypt's wealth will be Nebuchadnezzar's reward is also very important for understanding the biblical view of history. Nebuchadnezzar receives a reward because, apart from his own will, his activity helps fulfill the Creator's designs. But this reward is entirely earthly, precisely because he serves those designs involuntarily and unconsciously.