Ezekiel 31:1

And it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the third month, in the first day of the month, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Not that Egypt was, like Assyria utterly to cease to be, but it was, like Assyria, to lose its prominence in the empire of the world. IN THE ELEVENTH YEAR, IN THE THIRD MONTH - two months later than the prophecy delivered in ....

1-9 The falls of others, both into sin and ruin, warn us not to be secure or high-minded. The prophet is to show an instance of one whom the king of Egypt resembled in greatness, the Assyrian, compared to a stately cedar. Those who excel others, make themselves the objects of envy; but the blessings of the heavenly paradise are not liable to such alloy. The utmost security that any creature can give, is but like the shadow of a tree, a scanty and slender protection. But let us flee to God for protection, there we shall be safe. His hand must be owned in the rising of the great men of the earth, and we must not envy them. Though worldly people may seem to have firm prosperity, yet it only seems so....

CHAPTER XXXI _This very beautiful chapter relates also to Egypt. The prophet_ _describes to Pharaoh the fall of the king of Nineveh, (see the_ _books of Nahum, Jonah, and Zephaniah,) under the image of a_ _fair cedar of Lebanon, once exceedingly tall, flourishing, and_ _majestic, but now cut down and withered, with its broken_ _branches strewed around_, 1-17. _He then concludes with bringing the matter home to the king of_ _Egypt, by telling him that this was a picture of his_ _approaching fate_, 18. The beautiful cedar of Le

IN THE THIRD MONTH - More than a month before Jerusalem was taken (compare Jeremiah 39:2)....

EXPOSITION EZEKIEL 31:1 IN THE ELEVENTH YEAR, etc. June, B.C. 586. Two months all but six days had passed since the utterance of Ezekiel 30:20, when Ezekiel was moved to expand his prediction of the downfall of Egypt into a parable which is partly a _replica _of these in Ezekiel 17:1. and Ezekiel 19:1, and which also finds a parallel in Daniel 4:10. EZEKIEL 31:2 The parabl

AND IT CAME TO PASS IN THE ELEVENTH YEAR,.... Of Zedekiah's reign, and Jeconiah's captivity: IN THE THIRD MONTH, IN THE FIRST DAY OF THE MONTH: the month Sivan, which began on the twentieth of our May, and answers to part of May, and part of June; this was about seven weeks after the former prophecy, and about five weeks before the destruction of Jerusalem; according to Bishop Usher n, this was on the nineteenth of June, on the first day of the week, in 3416 A.M. or before Christ 588: THAT THE WORD OF THE LORD CAME UNTO ME, SAYING; as follows: n Annales Vet. Test. A. M. 3416....

THIRD MONTH That is, June....

Ezekiel 31:1. Pharaoh's greatness is described in the first part of the chapter (Ezekiel 31:1). He is compared to the Assyrian, once so powerful and proud. The fall and desolation of the proud monarch under the picture of a tree follows in Ezekiel 31:10. The overthrow of Egypt and the resulting consternation among the nations is predicted in the last section of this chapter (Ezekiel 31:15). Ezekiel 32:1. The lamentation over Pharaoh is contained in Ezekiel 3

EZEKIEL 31. FALLEN IS THE MIGHTY CEDAR. In this striking poem, Pharaoh (= Egypt) is likened to a cedar of surprising height and beauty, fed by the waters of the deep (_i.e._ the Nile) and giving shelter to birds and beasts (_i.e._ protection to dependent peoples). For beauty, height, luxuriance no tree (= nation) could compare with it it was the envy of all (Ezekiel 31:1). (In Ezekiel 31:3 delete the Assyrian, and read simply, there was a cedar, etc. For thick boughs read clouds with LXX. In Ezekiel 31:4 for the trees of the field, read its soil.) But the mighty Nebuchadrezzar, with his terrible army, will send it crashing with a blow, boughs and branches will be scattered over mountain and valley, those who

THE ELEVENTH YEAR. See note on Ezekiel 30:20, and p. 1105. the third month. About two months before the fall of Jerusalem. THE LORD. Hebrew. _Jehovah_. App-4....