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Ezekiel 32:21

in Ezekiel 32

Mighty chiefs will speak from the midst of Sheol about Egypt and her allies: ‘They have come down and lie with the uncircumcised, with those slain by the sword.’

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

The strong among the mighty shall speak to him out of the midst of Sheol with them that help him: they are gone down, they lie still, even the uncircumcised, slain by the sword.

KJV

The strong among the mighty shall speak to him out of the midst of hell with them that help him: they are gone down, they lie uncircumcised, slain by the sword.

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This verse in Ezekiel 32

Commentary

8 notes on this verse

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

Out of the midst of hell - שאול sheol, the catacombs, the place of burial. There is something here similar to Isa 14:9, where the descent of the king of Babylon to the state of the dead is described.

This site's exposition

pass in beauty

on Ezekiel 32:19-21

The question, whom dost thou pass in beauty, echoes chapter 31's whom art thou like. Verse 21 has the strong speak to him, a scene JFB compares to Isaiah 14's taunt. Gill notes uncircumcised is used as a term of shame, since Egypt is recorded elsewhere as a circumcising people.

This site's exposition

Mighty chiefs will speak from the midst

The mighty chiefs are the fallen warriors of the nations listed next, awake enough in the prophet's picture of Sheol to speak. Their words describe Egypt's arrival as a finished fact. Her allies, the helpers of 30:5-8, come down with her.

The record, by era

The Church Fathers1 voice

A commentator

Jerome

Commentary on Ezekiel · Written before 420.

proposed

(Verse 17 onwards) 'And it came to pass in the twelfth year, in the fifteenth month, that the word of the Lord came unto me, saying: Son of man, mourn for the multitude of Egypt, and bring her down, even her and the daughters of the mighty nations, unto the nether parts of the earth, with them that go down into the pit. Wherein art thou fairer than any woman? go down, and be thou laid with the uncircumcised. Among them that are slain with the sword, they shall fall: the sword is given: draw her and all her multitudes.'

The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

16 This is the lamentation wherewith they shall lament her: the daughters of the nations shall lament her: they shall lament for her, even for Egypt, and for all her multitude, saith the Lord G OD . The prophet is ordered to take up a lamentation for Pharaoh king of Egypt,

quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — verbatim-run:33w-of-49

The strong among the mighty shall speak to him,....

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

They shall say to him, and to those that pretended to help him, Where are you now? What have you brought your attempts to at last? Divers nations are here mentioned as gone down to the grave before Egypt that are ready to give her a scornful reception and upbraid her with coming to them at last.

The Nineteenth Century1 voice

The uncircumcised - throughout this dirge is equivalent to pagan viewed as impure (Eze 31:18 note).

The words behind it

13 Hebrew words

Every 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.

  • יְדַבְּרוּ־they will speak

    yedaberu-H1696 →1141 times

  • ל֞וֹto him

    lo

  • אֵלֵ֧י[the] leaders of

    ʾeleiH352 →187 times

  • גִבּוֹרִ֛ים[the] mighty [ones]

    giborimH1368 →158 times

  • מִתּ֥וֹךְfrom [the] midst of

    mitokhH8432 →418 times

  • שְׁא֖וֹלSheol

    sheolH7585 →66 times

  • אֶת־with

    ʾet-H854 →929 times

  • עֹֽזְרָ֑יוhelpers his

    ʾozeravH5826 →

  • יָֽרְד֛וּthey have come down

    yareduH3381 →381 times

  • שָׁכְב֥וּthey have lain down

    shakhevuH7901 →212 times

  • הָעֲרֵלִ֖יםthe uncircumcised [men]

    haarelimH6189 →35 times

  • חַלְלֵי־[those] slain of

    chalei-H2491 →94 times

  • חָֽרֶב׃a sword

    charevH2719 →413 times

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

Related verses

16 in all, six open

The number beside each verse is how many compiled reference works tie it to this one. The strongest six stand open.

Isaiah 14:9–10Sheol beneath is eager to meet you upon your arrival. It stirs the spirits of the dead to greet you—all the rulers of the earth. It makes all the kings of the nations rise from their thrones.5 worksEzekiel 32:27They do not lie down with the fallen warriors of old, who went down to Sheol with their weapons of war, whose swords were placed under their heads, whose shields rested on their bones, although the terror of the mighty was once in the land of the living.4 worksEzekiel 31:18Who then is like you in glory and greatness among the trees of Eden? You also will be brought down to the depths of the earth to be with the trees of Eden. You will lie among the uncircumcised, with those slain by the sword. This is Pharaoh and all his multitude, declares the Lord GOD.’”4 worksEzekiel 32:24–25Elam is there with all her multitudes around her grave. All of them are slain, fallen by the sword—those who went down uncircumcised to the earth below, who once spread their terror in the land of the living. They bear their disgrace with those who descend to the Pit.3 worksIsaiah 1:31The strong man will become tinder and his work will be a spark; both will burn together, with no one to quench the flames.3 worksPsalms 9:17The wicked will return to Sheol— all the nations who forget God.3 works
The other 10 cross-references, with their words ▾
Ezekiel 32:19Whom do you surpass in beauty? Go down and be placed with the uncircumcised!3 worksPsalms 55:15Let death seize them by surprise; let them go down to Sheol alive, for evil is with them in their homes.3 worksProverbs 14:32The wicked man is thrown down by his own sin, but the righteous man has a refuge even in death.3 worksNumbers 16:30–34But if the LORD brings about something unprecedented, and the earth opens its mouth and swallows them and all that belongs to them so that they go down alive into Sheol, then you will know that these men have treated the LORD with contempt.”3 worksLuke 16:23–24In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham from afar, with Lazarus by his side.3 worksEzekiel 28:10You will die the death of the uncircumcised at the hands of foreigners. For I have spoken, declares the Lord GOD.”3 worksIsaiah 14:10They will all respond to you, saying, “You too have become weak, as we are; you have become like us!”2 worksEzekiel 32:18“Son of man, wail for the multitudes of Egypt, and consign her and the daughters of the mighty nations to the depths of the earth with those who descend to the Pit:2 worksEzekiel 32:25Among the slain they prepare a resting place for Elam with all her hordes, with her graves all around her. All of them are uncircumcised, slain by the sword, although their terror was once spread in the land of the living. They bear their disgrace with those who descend to the Pit. They are placed among the slain.2 worksHabakkuk 2:6Will not all of these take up a taunt against him, speaking with mockery and derision: ‘Woe to him who amasses what is not his and makes himself rich with many loans! How long will this go on?’2 works

The walk

8 stops

Each 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

    Psalms 9:17

    The wicked will return to Sheol— all the nations who forget God.

    it leads to

    • Psalms 50:22

      Now consider this, you who forget God, lest I tear you to pieces, with no one to rescue you:

    • Revelation 21:8

      But to the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and sexually immoral and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their place will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur. This…

    • Job 8:13

      Such is the destiny of all who forget God; so the hope of the godless will perish.

    • Romans 2:8–9

      But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow wickedness, there will be wrath and anger.

    • 2 Thessalonians 1:7–9

      and to grant relief to you who are oppressed and to us as well. This will take place when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels

  • Through

    Isaiah 1:31

    The strong man will become tinder and his work will be a spark; both will burn together, with no one to quench the flames.

    it leads to

    • Isaiah 66:24

      “As they go forth, they will see the corpses of the men who have rebelled against Me; for their worm will never die, their fire will never be quenched, and they will be a…

  • Through

    Ezekiel 32:27

    They do not lie down with the fallen warriors of old, who went down to Sheol with their weapons of war, whose swords were placed under their heads, whose shields rested on their bones,…

    it leads to

    • Isaiah 14:18–19

      All the kings of the nations lie in state, each in his own tomb.

    • Job 3:13–15

      For now I would be lying down in peace; I would be asleep and at rest

Where this verse is studied

About Ezekiel

Ezekiel’s Vision of the Valley of Dry Bones, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
Ezekiel’s Vision of the Valley of Dry Bones, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
Ezekiel: the study guide →Read Ezekiel 32 →

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jerome, Commentary on Ezekiel; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; Patrick Fairbairn, Ezekiel and the Book of His Prophecy and Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset and David Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible.

Read on in Ezekiel 32 →