Ezekiel 32:15
in Ezekiel 32‘When I make the land of Egypt a desolation and empty it of all that filled it, when I strike down all who live there, then they will know that I am the LORD.’
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
When I shall make the land of Egypt desolate and waste, a land destitute of that whereof it was full, when I shall smite all them that dwell therein, then shall they know that I am Jehovah.
KJV
When I shall make the land of Egypt desolate, and the country shall be destitute of that whereof it was full, when I shall smite all them that dwell therein, then shall they know that I am the Lord.
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This verse in Ezekiel 32
Commentary
5 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
the land of Egypt a desolation
on Ezekiel 32:15-16
The recognition formula closes the first oracle, then shall they know that I am the Lord. Verse 16 hands the lament to the daughters of the nations, which Henry reads as the earth called to witness a fall. The second half takes up the same king from inside the grave.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Chapter XXXII, verse 1 and following) And it was in the twelfth year, in the twelfth month (or tenth), on one day (the Vulgate is silent on the day) of the month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying: Son of man, take up a lamentation for Pharaoh king of Egypt, and say to him: You are like a lion among the nations, and like a dragon in the sea; you stirred up your horns in your rivers, and troubled the waters with your feet, and trampled their (or your) rivers.
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
), corn, and cattle, and all the pleasant fruits of the earth; when those are smitten that dwell therein the ground is untilled, and that which is gathered becomes an easy prey to the invader.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
When I shall make the land of Egypt desolate,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
Shall be destitute of that whereof it was full - Of corn, and all other necessaries of life.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
I shall sink their waters The foot of cattle will not make it murky, and the mud will sink, so that the water will be clear and clean like refined oil.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 6 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
17 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| בְּתִתִּי֩ | betiti | when make I | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| אֶ֨רֶץ | ʾeretz | [the] land of | H776 → | 2504 times |
| מִצְרַ֜יִם | mitzrayim | Egypt | H4714 → | 641 times |
| שְׁמָמָ֣ה | shemamah | a desolation | H8077 → | 57 times |
| וּנְשַׁמָּ֗ה | uneshamah | and [is] made desolate | H8074 → | 86 times |
| אֶ֚רֶץ | ʾeretz | [the] land | H776 → | 2504 times |
| מִמְּלֹאָ֔הּ | mimeloah | from fullness its | H4393 → | 38 times |
| בְּהַכּוֹתִ֖י | behakoti | when strike down I | H5221 → | 499 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| כָּל־ | kol- | all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| י֣וֹשְׁבֵי | yooshevei | [the] inhabitants | H3427 → | 1079 times |
| בָ֑הּ | vah | in it | ||
| וְיָדְע֖וּ | veyadeu | and they will know | H3045 → | 945 times |
| כִּֽי־ | ki- | that | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| אֲנִ֥י | ʾani | I | H589 → | 874 times |
| יְהוָֽה׃ | yahweh | [am] Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
בְּתִתִּי֩when make I
betitiH5414 →2011 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
אֶ֨רֶץ[the] land of
ʾeretzH776 →2504 times
מִצְרַ֜יִםEgypt
mitzrayimH4714 →641 times
שְׁמָמָ֣הa desolation
shemamahH8077 →57 times
וּנְשַׁמָּ֗הand [is] made desolate
uneshamahH8074 →86 times
אֶ֚רֶץ[the] land
ʾeretzH776 →2504 times
מִמְּלֹאָ֔הּfrom fullness its
mimeloahH4393 →38 times
בְּהַכּוֹתִ֖יwhen strike down I
behakotiH5221 →499 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
כָּל־all
kol-H3605 →5413 times
י֣וֹשְׁבֵי[the] inhabitants
yoosheveiH3427 →1079 times
בָ֑הּin it
vah
וְיָדְע֖וּand they will know
veyadeuH3045 →945 times
כִּֽי־that
ki-H3588 →4482 times
אֲנִ֥יI
ʾaniH589 →874 times
יְהוָֽה׃[am] Yahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 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
Exodus 7:5And the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD, when I stretch out My hand against Egypt and bring the Israelites out from among them.”
it leads to
- Exodus 14:4
And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart so that he will pursue them. But I will gain honor by means of Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the…
Reached by 3 separate paths from here.
- Exodus 7:17
This is what the LORD says: By this you will know that I am the LORD. Behold, with the staff in my hand I will strike the water of the Nile, and it will…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Exodus 14:18
The Egyptians will know that I am the LORD when I am honored through Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.”
- Exodus 8:22
But on that day I will give special treatment to the land of Goshen, where My people live; no swarms of flies will be found there. In this way you will know that I,…
- Exodus 3:20
So I will stretch out My hand and strike the Egyptians with all the wonders I will perform among them. And after that, he will release you.
- Exodus 14:4
Through
Exodus 14:4And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart so that he will pursue them. But I will gain honor by means of Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the…
it leads to
- Exodus 7:5
And the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD, when I stretch out My hand against Egypt and bring the Israelites out from among them.”
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Romans 9:22–23
What if God, intending to show His wrath and make His power known, bore with great patience the vessels of His wrath, prepared for destruction?
- Romans 9:17
For the Scripture says to Pharaoh: “I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display My power in you, and that My name might be proclaimed in all the earth.”
- Exodus 7:5
Where this verse is studied
On this page
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; Jerome, Commentary on Ezekiel; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.