This begins a four chapter judgment upon Egypt. This is the longest prophecy that the Lord gave Ezekiel about any nation. It begins in chapter twenty-nine and continues through chapter thirty-two. The Old Testament has over 700 references to the land of Egypt. Of these, there are about 250 prophecies specifically concerning Egypt. Many of these predictions deal with the present day situation. The parallel passages to be coupled with the Ezekiel chapters are the prophetic pronouncements in Isaiah 19:1-22, Daniel 11:4-8, 11-13, and Joel 3:19.
The prophecy was given on January 5, 585 B.C. which was one year and two days after Nebuchadnezzar had breached the walls in Jerusalem and seven months before it was destroyed. All the prophecies to Egypt brought together give us a large and long picture of God’s judgment on Egypt from the time of the Babylonian captivity through the present day and lastly in the Messianic Kingdom. The last pharaoh Farouk (1920-1965) as well as presidents, Nasser (1918-1970) and Sadat (1918-1981) went to war with Israel on four occasions causing heavy losses for Egypt which devastated their economy. This caused the Egyptians to develop a healthy fear of the Israelis due to their military prowess. The Lord prophecied this fear through Isaiah 19:16-17.