(This DRAFT study has been done fairly quickly, without the further guide of commentaries. I hope to improve on it later.)
After addressing the refugees fleeing to Egypt, we now have a more general message about the future of Egypt.
Jeremiah 46:1-4, Harness the horses!
This is the word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning the nations:
Concerning Egypt: This is the message against the army of Pharaoh Neco king of Egypt, which was defeated at Carchemish on the Euphrates River by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon in the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah:
"Prepare your shields,
both large and small,
and march out for battle!
Harness the horses,
mount the steeds!
Take your positions with helmets on!
Polish your spears,
put on your armor!
The message to Egypt is a challenge, a dare: get your army ready!
Jeremiah 46:5-6, Terror on every side
What do I see?
They are terrified,
they are retreating,
their warriors are defeated.
They flee in haste without looking back,
and there is terror on every side,"
declares the LORD.
The swift cannot flee
nor the strong escape.
In the north by the River Euphrates
they stumble and fall.
The Egyptian army, challenged in the first four verses, now flees in terror.
Jeremiah 46:7-9, I will cover the earth?
"Who is this that rises like the Nile,
like rivers of surging waters?
Egypt rises like the Nile,
like rivers of surging waters.
She says, `I will rise and cover the earth;
I will destroy cities and their people.'
Charge, O horses!
Drive furiously, O charioteers!
March on, O warriors--
men of Cush and Put who carry shields,
men of Lydia who draw the bow.
Egypt has global ambitions. She expects to overwhelm the nations like the Nile flood overwhelms its nearby fields.
Jeremiah 46:10, That day
But that day belongs to the Lord,
the LORD Almighty--
a day of vengeance,
for vengeance on his foes.
The sword will devour till it is satisfied,
till it has quenched its thirst with blood.
For the Lord, the LORD Almighty,
will offer sacrifice in the land of the north
by the River Euphrates.
But that day will belong to God, not Egypt. The land of the north, along the Euphrates (that is, Babylon) will prevail.
Jeremiah 46:11-12, No healing
"Go up to Gilead and get balm,
O Virgin Daughter of Egypt.
But you multiply remedies in vain;
there is no healing for you.
The nations will hear of your shame;
your cries will fill the earth.
One warrior will stumble over another;
both will fall down together."
As Egypt continues to oppose God, it gets no remedy or healing. Gilead probably represents a region east of the Jordan, some distance from the Nile.
Jeremiah 46:13-17, Egypt will fall to Babylon
This is the message the LORD spoke to Jeremiah the prophet about the coming of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon to attack Egypt:
"Announce this in Egypt,
and proclaim it in Migdol;
proclaim it also in Memphis and Tahpanhes:
`Take your positions and get ready,
for the sword devours those around you.'
Why will your warriors be laid low?
They cannot stand, for the LORD will push them down.
They will stumble repeatedly;
they will fall over each other.
They will say, `Get up, let us go back to our own people
and our native lands,
away from the sword of the oppressor.'
There they will exclaim,
`Pharaoh king of Egypt is only a loud noise;
he has missed his opportunity.'
YHWH, speaking through Jeremiah, says that Egypt (who put Jehoiakim on the throne of Judah) is just "loud noise."
Jeremiah 46:18-19, Pack your belongings
"As surely as I live," declares the King,
whose name is the LORD Almighty,
"one will come who is like Tabor among the mountains,
like Carmel by the sea.
Pack your belongings for exile,
you who live in Egypt,
for Memphis will be laid waste
and lie in ruins without inhabitant.
The people of Egypt should prepare to leave. Their land will be laid waste.
Jeremiah 46:20-24,
"Egypt is a beautiful heifer,
but a gadfly is coming against her from the north.
The mercenaries in her ranks are like fattened calves.
They too will turn and flee together,
they will not stand their ground,
for the day of disaster is coming upon them,
the time for them to be punished.
Egypt will hiss like a fleeing serpent
as the enemy advances in force;
they will come against her with axes,
like men who cut down trees.
They will chop down her forest," declares the LORD,
"dense though it be.
They are more numerous than locusts,
they cannot be counted.
The Daughter of Egypt will be put to shame,
handed over to the people of the north."
An annoying gadfly from the north will overwhelm Egypt. Egypt, often identified with snakes, will hiss at the coming army but will be cut down.
Jeremiah 46:25-26, Punishment on Thebes
The LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: "I am about to bring punishment on Amon god of Thebes, on Pharaoh, on Egypt and her gods and her kings, and on those who rely on Pharaoh. I will hand them over to those who seek their lives, to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and his officers. Later, however, Egypt will be inhabited as in times past," declares the LORD.
The coming invasion will be a punishment on Pharaoh and his idols, such as Amon. Nebuchadnezzar will reign over Egypt.
Jeremiah 46:27-28, Saved out of a distant place
"Do not fear, O Jacob my servant;
do not be dismayed, O Israel.
I will surely save you out of a distant place,
your descendants from the land of their exile.
Jacob will again have peace and security,
and no one will make him afraid.
Do not fear, O Jacob my servant,
for I am with you," declares the LORD.
"Though I completely destroy all the nations among which I scatter you,
I will not completely destroy you.
I will discipline you but only with justice;
I will not let you go entirely unpunished."
At the end of this prophecy against Egypt, God renews His commitment to a remnant of Israel, bringing them back to the Promised Land.
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