Lectionary Calendar
Friday, August 22nd, 2025
the Week of Proper 15 / Ordinary 20
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Read the Bible

Contemporary English Version

Ezekiel 17:17

Even the king of Egypt and his powerful army will be useless to Judah when the Babylonians attack and build dirt ramps to invade the cities of Judah and kill its people.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Alliances;   Armies;   Citizens;   Covenant;   Falsehood;   Fort;   Pharaoh;   Zedekiah;   Scofield Reference Index - Parables;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Babylon;   Swearing Falsely;  

Dictionaries:

- Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Ezekiel;   Zedekiah;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Allegory;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Riddle;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Ezekiel;   Hananiah;   Jehoiakim;   Jerusalem;   Judah, Kingdom of;   Oath;   Zedekiah;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Covenant;   Crimes and Punishments;   Exile;   Ezekiel;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Fortification and Siegecraft;   Jeremiah;   Make;   Vine, Vineyard;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Egypt;   Zedekiah ;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Pha'raoh,;   War;   Zedeki'ah;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Covenant, in the Old Testament;   Fortification;   Make;   Siege;   Zedekiah (2);  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Pharaoh with his mighty army and vast company will not help him in battle, when ramps are built and siege walls constructed to destroy many lives.
Hebrew Names Version
Neither shall Par`oh with his mighty army and great company help him in the war, when they cast up mounds and build forts, to cut off many persons.
King James Version
Neither shall Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company make for him in the war, by casting up mounts, and building forts, to cut off many persons:
English Standard Version
Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company will not help him in war, when mounds are cast up and siege walls built to cut off many lives.
New American Standard Bible
'Pharaoh with his mighty army and great contingent will not help him in the war, when they pile up assault ramps and build siege walls to eliminate many lives.
New Century Version
The king of Egypt with his mighty army and many people will not help the king of Judah in the war. The Babylonians will build devices to attack the cities and to kill many people.
Amplified Bible
'Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company will not help him in the war, when they (the Babylonians) put up ramps and build siege walls to destroy many lives.
World English Bible
Neither shall Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company help him in the war, when they cast up mounds and build forts, to cut off many persons.
Geneva Bible (1587)
Neither shall Pharaoh with his mightie hoste, and great multitude of people, mainteine him in the warre, when they haue cast vp mounts, and builded ramparts to destroy many persons.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
'Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company will not help him in the war, when they cast up ramps and build siege walls to cut off many lives.
Legacy Standard Bible
And Pharaoh with his mighty military force and great assembly will not help him in the war, when they cast up ramps and build siege walls to cut off many lives.
Berean Standard Bible
Pharaoh with his mighty army and vast horde will not help him in battle, when ramps are built and siege walls constructed to destroy many lives.
Complete Jewish Bible
Pharaoh with his mighty army and numerous troops will give him no help in the war, when they raise siege-works and build fortified towers to destroy many people;
Darby Translation
Neither shall Pharaoh with a mighty army and a great assemblage do anything for him in the war, when they cast up mounds and build forts to cut off many persons.
Easy-to-Read Version
The king of Egypt will not be able to save the king of Judah. He might send many soldiers, but Egypt's great power will not save Judah. Nebuchadnezzar's army will build dirt roads and dirt walls to capture the city. Many people will die.
George Lamsa Translation
Neither shall Pharaoh fight against him with a great army nor with many horses, but by casting up mounds and building forts shall he destroy many lives.
Good News Translation
Even the powerful army of the king of Egypt will not be able to help him fight when the Babylonians build earthworks and dig trenches in order to kill many people.
Lexham English Bible
And not with a great army and with a great crowd will Pharaoh work with him in the war, at the pouring out of a siege ramp and the building of siege works to destroy many lives.
Literal Translation
And Pharaoh shall not work for him with great army or great company in the war by pouring out mounds and building siege walls to cut off many souls.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Nether shall Pharao with his greate hoost and multitude of people, maynteyne him in the warre: when they cast vp diches, and set vp bulworkes to destroye moch people.
American Standard Version
Neither shall Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company help him in the war, when they cast up mounds and build forts, to cut off many persons.
Bible in Basic English
And Pharaoh with his strong army and great forces will be no help to him in the war, when they put up earthworks and make strong walls for the cutting off of lives:
JPS Old Testament (1917)
Neither shall Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company succour him in the war, when they cast up mounds and build forts, to cut off many souls;
King James Version (1611)
Neither shall Pharaoh with his mightie armie and great companie make for him in the warre by casting vp mounts, and building forts, to cut off many persons.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
Neither shall Pharao with his great hoast and multitude of people, maintayne hym in the warre, when they haue cast vp mountes, and buylt a fort to destroy many persons.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And Pharaoh shall make war upon him not with a large force or great multitude, in throwing up a mound, and in building of forts, to cut off souls.
English Revised Version
Neither shall Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company make for him in the war, when they cast up mounts and build forts, to cut off many persons.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And not in greet oost, nether in myche puple Farao schal make batel ayens hym, in the castyng of erthe, and in bildyng of palis, that he sle many persones.
Update Bible Version
Neither shall Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company help him in the war, when they cast up mounds and build forts, to cut off many persons.
Webster's Bible Translation
Neither shall Pharaoh with [his] mighty army and great company make for him in the war, by casting up mounts, and building forts, to cut off many persons:
New English Translation
Pharaoh with his great army and mighty horde will not help him in battle, when siege ramps are erected and siege-walls are built to kill many people.
New King James Version
Nor will Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company do anything in the war, when they heap up a siege mound and build a wall to cut off many persons.
New Living Translation
Pharaoh and all his mighty army will fail to help Israel when the king of Babylon lays siege to Jerusalem again and destroys many lives.
New Life Bible
Pharaoh with his powerful army of many men will not help him in the war, when battle-walls are put up so that many people are killed.
New Revised Standard
Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company will not help him in war, when ramps are cast up and siege walls built to cut off many lives.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Neither shall Pharaoh with a great force. or with a large gathered host, work with him in the war, by casting up an earthwork and by building a siege-wall, - to the cuting off of many lives.
Douay-Rheims Bible
And not with a great army, nor with much people shall Pharao fight against him: when he shall cast up mounts, and build forts, to cut off many souls.
Revised Standard Version
Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company will not help him in war, when mounds are cast up and siege walls built to cut off many lives.
Young's Literal Translation
And not with a great force, and with a numerous assembly, Doth Pharaoh maintain him in battle, By pouring out a mount, and in building a fortification, To cut off many souls.

Contextual Overview

1 The Lord said: 2 Ezekiel, son of man, tell the people of Israel the following story, 3 so they will understand what I am saying to them: A large eagle with strong wings and beautiful feathers once flew to Lebanon. It broke the top branch off a cedar tree, 4 then carried it to a nation of merchants and left it in one of their cities. 5 The eagle also took seed from Israel and planted it in a fertile field with plenty of water, like a willow tree beside a stream. 6 The seed sprouted and grew into a grapevine that spread over the ground. It had lots of leaves and strong, deep roots, and its branches grew upward toward the eagle. 7 There was another eagle with strong wings and thick feathers. The roots and branches of the grapevine soon turned toward this eagle, hoping it would bring water for the soil. 8 But the vine was already growing in fertile soil, where there was plenty of water to produce healthy leaves and large grapes. 9 Now tell me, Ezekiel, do you think this grapevine will live? Or will the first eagle pull it up by its roots and pluck off the grapes and let its new leaves die? The eagle could easily kill it without the help of a large and powerful army. 10 The grapevine is strong and healthy, but as soon as the scorching desert wind blows, it will quickly wither.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

shall: Ezekiel 29:6, Ezekiel 29:7, Isaiah 36:6, Jeremiah 37:7, Lamentations 4:17

by: Ezekiel 4:2, Jeremiah 33:5, Jeremiah 52:4

Reciprocal: Deuteronomy 20:20 - thou shalt build 2 Kings 18:24 - thy trust Daniel 11:15 - cast up Daniel 11:17 - upright ones

Cross-References

Genesis 17:3
Abram bowed with his face to the ground, and God said:
Genesis 17:19
But God answered: No! You and Sarah will have a son. His name will be Isaac, and I will make an everlasting promise to him and his descendants.
Genesis 17:20
I have heard what you asked me to do for Ishmael, and so I will also bless him with many descendants. He will be the father of twelve princes, and I will make his family a great nation.
Genesis 18:12
So she laughed and said to herself, "Now that I am worn out and my husband is old, will I really know such happiness?"
Genesis 21:6
and Sarah said, "God has made me laugh. Now everyone will laugh with me.
Leviticus 9:24
The Lord sent fiery flames that burned up everything on the altar, and when everyone saw this, they shouted and fell to their knees to worship the Lord .
Numbers 14:5
Moses and Aaron bowed down to pray in front of the crowd.
Numbers 16:22
But the two men bowed down and prayed, "Our God, you gave these people life. Why would you punish everyone here when only one man has sinned?"
Numbers 16:45
"Stand back! I am going to wipe out these Israelites once and for all." They immediately bowed down and prayed.
Deuteronomy 9:18
I bowed down at the place of worship and prayed to the Lord , without eating or drinking for forty days and nights. You had committed a terrible sin by making that idol, and the Lord hated what you had done. He was angry enough to destroy all of you and Aaron as well. So I prayed for you and Aaron as I had done before, and this time the Lord answered my prayers.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Neither shall Pharaoh, with [his] mighty army and great company, make for him in the war,.... The king of Egypt, to whom Zedekiah applied for horses and men to help him; though he should come with a great army, and a large multitude of people, yet should be of no use to Zedekiah, nor do any hurt to Nebuchadnezzar, or hinder him from taking Jerusalem:

by casting up mounts, and building forts, to cut off many persons; that is, when Nebuchadnezzar should besiege Jerusalem, and raise mounts, and build fortifications, in order to take the city, and destroy its inhabitants; as he did, Jeremiah 52:4; the Egyptian army should not be able to hinder him going on with the siege, and taking the city; for though the siege was broke up for a time, upon the approach of Pharaoh's army, yet Nebuchadnezzar, having conquered the Egyptians, returned again to the siege of Jerusalem, and took it; see Jeremiah 37:5.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

To cast up mounts and build forts - was the business not of the relieving but of the besieging army. Translate it: when men cast up mounts and build forts to destroy many persons.


 
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