21. broken . . . arm of Pharaoh— (Psalms 37:17; Jeremiah 48:25). Referring to the defeat which Pharaoh-hophra sustained from the Chaldeans, when trying to raise the siege of Jerusalem (Jeremiah 37:5; Jeremiah 37:7); and previous to the deprivation of Pharaoh-necho of all his conquests from the river of Egypt to the Euphrates (2 Kings 24:7; Jeremiah 46:2); also to the Egyptian disaster in Cyrene. read more
22. arms—Not only the "one arm" broken already ( :-) was not to be healed, but the other two should be broken. Not a corporal wound, but a breaking of the power of Pharaoh is intended. cause . . . sword to fall out of . . . hand—deprive him of the resources of making war. read more
Ezekiel received this oracle against Egypt on April, 29, 587 B.C., less than four months after the Lord gave him the first oracle (Ezekiel 29:1-16). [Note: See Parker and Dubberstein, p. 28.] read more
4. Pharaoh’s broken arm 30:20-26 read more
Yahweh announced that He had broken Pharaoh’s arm. Ironically, "the strong-armed king had suffered a broken arm." [Note: K. S. Freedy and D. B. Redford, "The Dates of Ezekiel in Relation to Biblical, Babylonian and Egyptian Sources," Journal of the American Oriental Society 90 (1970):482-83.] It had not been set in a splint and supported, so he could not wield a sword effectively. This may refer to Egypt’s defeat at Carchemish in 605 B.C. when Egypt lost its share of control over the ancient... read more
The Lord was about to break Pharaoh’s other arm and to break his previously broken arm again, personifications of Egypt’s fate. Egypt would suffer another defeat at the hands of the Babylonians and would never again regain its former strength. Yahweh would scatter the Egyptians from their homeland, and they would go to live in other countries. read more
The Lord described the conflict between Babylon and Egypt as a conflict between two warriors. Nebuchadnezzar would break Hophra’s arms as they battled. Egypt would groan like a wounded soldier. The people would know that Yahweh was God when He put His sword of power into Nebuchadnezzar’s arms and strengthened him to defeat Hophra and when the Egyptians dispersed from their land (cf. Ezekiel 30:17-18; Ezekiel 30:23; Ezekiel 29:12)."The flexed arm was a common Egyptian symbol for the Pharaoh’s... read more
§ 3. Egypt (Ezekiel 29-32)The most of this series of prophecies against Egypt are connected with dates during the siege of Jerusalem, the time when Ezekiel was silent as a prophet of Israel. They were therefore probably written rather than spoken. Ezekiel 32:0 is dated in the year after the fall of Jerusalem, and Eze 29:17-21 belongs to a much later time. In chronological order the series includes (1) the destruction of the crocodile (Eze 29:1-16), (2) the invasion of Egypt by Nebuchadrezzar... read more
The Breaking of Pharaoh’s ArmsThis prophecy appears to have been occasioned by some reverse sustained by Pharaoh shortly before the fall of Jerusalem. Probably the reference is to the failure of his attempt to raise the siege (Jeremiah 37:5-11). The disaster is metaphorically described as the breaking of one of Pharaoh’s arms. Ezekiel predicts that God will break the other arm also, so that Pharaoh will drop his sword. The king of Babylon’s arms will be strengthened. God’s sword will be put... read more
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Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Ezekiel 30:20
20. Here begins the earlier vision, not long after that in the twenty-ninth chapter, about three months before the taking of Jerusalem, as to Pharaoh and his kingdom. read more