Ezekiel 29:20
in Ezekiel 29I have given him the land of Egypt as the reward for his labor, because it was done for Me, declares the Lord GOD.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
I have given him the land of Egypt as his recompense for which he served, because they wrought for me, saith the Lord Jehovah.
KJV
I have given him the land of Egypt for his labour wherewith he served against it, because they wrought for me, saith the Lord God.
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This verse in Ezekiel 29
Commentary
7 notes on this verseIn prosecuting this siege every head was made bald, and every shoulder peeled, with carrying burdens and labouring in the water when they had a strong tide and a strong town to contend with. Egypt, a large kingdom, being divided within itself, is easily conquered; Tyre, a single city, being unanimous, is with difficulty subdued.
This site's exposition
in the seven and twentieth year
on Ezekiel 29:17-20
The date jumps forward, the seven and twentieth year, the latest date in the entire book, some sixteen years after the oracle just given, and Ezekiel here explains history rather than merely predicting it. Nebuchadnezzar's long siege of Tyre, every head made bald, every shoulder peeled with siege labor, had yielded no wages, since the island city held out and the earlier Tyre oracle's total destruction had not landed as the leveling of the mainland city might have suggested. Egypt is now given to Babylon as the wages Tyre never paid, and Keil and Barnes together read this as Scripture's own honest accounting of a prophecy's outcome, the general judgment on Tyre standing while its precise shape is corrected by the prophet who gave it.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Verse 17 onwards) And it came to pass in the twenty-seventh year, in the first month, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying: Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon caused his army to serve a great service against Tyre; every head was made bald, and every shoulder was rubbed bare; yet he had no wages, nor his army, for Tyre, for the service that he had served against it.
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
Verily they have their reward. The conquest of Egypt is spoken of as Nebuchadnezzar's full reward, for that completed his dominion over the then known world in a manner; that was the last of the kingdoms he subdued; when he was master of that he became the head of gold. The mercy God had in store for the house of Israel soon after.
I have given him the land of Egypt for labour wherewith he served against it, That is, against Tyre; meaning not Nebuchadnezzar merely or only, but his army also, who did the main of the service and labour, and had the plunder of the country for it; though the kingdom itself was given to their king, and annexed to his monarchy: because they wrought for me, saith the Lord God; not intentionally, but eventually; they did not design to do any service for God; they only sought to serve themselves with the riches and wealth of those they subdued; and yet while they besieged Tyre, and when they took it, and while they were ravaging, plundering, and subduing Egypt, they were doing the Lord's will and work, and executing his righteous judgments on these enemies of his for their sins; wherefore he rewarded them sufficiently: none ever are employed by him but he gives them their wages; even though they are wicked and ungodly men, verily they have their reward.
It was a cheap and easy prey. He subdued it with very little difficulty; the blood and treasure expended upon the conquest of it were inconsiderable. But it was a rich prey, and he carried off a great deal from it that was of value.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
I have given him the land of Egypt for his labor - Because he fulfilled the designs of God against Tyre, God promises to reward him with the spoil of Egypt.
The words behind it
15 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| פְּעֻלָּתוֹ֙ | peulato | recompense his | H6468 → | |
| אֲשֶׁר־ | ʾasher- | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| עָ֣בַד | ʾavad | he served | H5647 → | 288 times |
| בָּ֔הּ | bah | for it | ||
| נָתַ֥תִּי | natati | I have given | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| ל֖וֹ | lo | to him | ||
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| אֶ֣רֶץ | ʾeretz | [the] land of | H776 → | 2504 times |
| מִצְרָ֑יִם | mitzrayim | Egypt | H4714 → | 641 times |
| אֲשֶׁר֙ | ʾasher | that | H834 → | 5497 times |
| עָ֣שׂוּ | ʾasu | they acted | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| לִ֔י | li | for me | ||
| נְאֻ֖ם | neum | [the] utterance of | H5002 → | 376 times |
| אֲדֹנָ֥י | ʾadonai | [the] Lord | H136 → | 440 times |
| יְהוִֽה׃ ס | yahweh | Yahweh | H3069 → | 306 times |
פְּעֻלָּתוֹ֙recompense his
peulatoH6468 →
אֲשֶׁר־which
ʾasher-H834 →5497 times
עָ֣בַדhe served
ʾavadH5647 →288 times
בָּ֔הּfor it
bah
נָתַ֥תִּיI have given
natatiH5414 →2011 times
ל֖וֹto him
lo
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
אֶ֣רֶץ[the] land of
ʾeretzH776 →2504 times
מִצְרָ֑יִםEgypt
mitzrayimH4714 →641 times
אֲשֶׁר֙that
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
עָ֣שׂוּthey acted
ʾasuH6213 →2628 times
לִ֔יfor me
li
נְאֻ֖ם[the] utterance of
neumH5002 →376 times
אֲדֹנָ֥י[the] Lord
ʾadonaiH136 →440 times
יְהוִֽה׃ סYahweh
yahwehH3069 →306 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Jeremiah 25:9behold, I will summon all the families of the north, declares the LORD, and I will send for My servant Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, whom I will bring against this land, against its residents,…
it leads to
- Ezekiel 29:18–20
“Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon caused his army to labor strenuously against Tyre. Every head was made bald and every shoulder made raw. But he and his army received no wages from…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Jeremiah 18:16
They have made their land a desolation, a perpetual object of scorn; all who pass by will be appalled and shake their heads.
- Isaiah 13:3
I have commanded My sanctified ones; I have even summoned My warriors to execute My wrath and exult in My triumph.
- Jeremiah 1:15
For I am about to summon all the clans and kingdoms of the north,” declares the LORD. “Their kings will come and set up their thrones at the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem.…
- Habakkuk 1:6–10
For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans—that ruthless and impetuous nation which marches through the breadth of the earth to seize dwellings not their own.
- Ezekiel 29:18–20
Through
2 Kings 10:30Nevertheless, the LORD said to Jehu, “Because you have done well in carrying out what is right in My sight and have done to the house of Ahab all that was in My heart,…
it leads to
- 2 Kings 10:35
And Jehu rested with his fathers and was buried in Samaria, and his son Jehoahaz reigned in his place.
- 2 Kings 13:1
In the twenty-third year of the reign of Joash son of Ahaziah over Judah, Jehoahaz son of Jehu became king of Israel, and he reigned in Samaria seventeen years.
- 2 Kings 14:23
In the fifteenth year of the reign of Amaziah son of Joash over Judah, Jeroboam son of Jehoash became king of Israel, and he reigned in Samaria forty-one years.
- 2 Kings 10:35
About Ezekiel
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Carl Friedrich Keil, Biblical Commentary on the Prophecies of Ezekiel; Jerome, Commentary on Ezekiel; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.