And I will dry up the Nile and will sell the land into the hand of evildoers; I will bring desolation upon the land and everything in it, by the hand of foreigners; I am the LORD; I have spoken.
English Standard Version (ESV)
What's striking here is that God doesn't just allow Egypt's downfall, He actively orchestrates it by targeting the very source of its life – the Nile and its canals. This isn't just a military defeat; it's a divine act that dries up the land's prosperity and hands it over to brutal foreign oppressors, emphasizing the totality of His judgment.
And I will dry up the Nile and will sell the land into the hand of evildoers; I will bring desolation upon the land and everything in it, by the hand of foreigners; I am the LORD; I have spoken.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This passage is part of God's judgment against Egypt, a proud nation that has long resisted His people. Ezekiel's prophecy details the complete devastation that will come upon them, symbolized by drying up the life-giving Nile and its canals, making the land vulnerable. This destruction is not random but a deliberate act of God, delivering Egypt into the hands of cruel foreign oppressors as a consequence of their sin.
Egypt's lifeblood was its mighty river, the Nile. Its annual flood was a divine-given gift that brought fertility and prosperity.
The text speaks of God 'drying up the Nile' and its canals. This wasn't just about a lack of rain; it represented the crippling of Egypt's entire system of life and sustenance.
God declares He will 'sell the land into the hand of evildoers.' This isn't just conquest; it's a transfer of ownership by divine decree.
The idea of God 'selling' the land is a powerful metaphor for judgment.
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The verse ends with an emphatic declaration: 'I am the LORD; I have spoken.' What weight does this carry?
This concluding statement is crucial, underscoring the absolute certainty and divine origin of the judgment.
Understand the original words
ye’or · Hebrew Noun
In biblical imagery, this often represents the life-giving power of God's creation or the strength of a nation. Drying it up signifies the total removal of divine blessing, economic collapse, and the complete vulnerability of the land to judgment.
shemamah · Hebrew Noun
A comprehensive state of ruin, emptiness, and abandonment. It is often the consequence of divine judgment, signifying that a place or nation has been stripped of its inhabitants, productivity, and glory because of rebellion against God.
Yahweh · Hebrew Proper Noun
The self-revealing name of God, YHWH, the covenant-keeping God of Israel. When used in a context of judgment, it emphasizes the absolute authority, faithfulness, and inescapable nature of God's word and actions.
Ezekiel's prophecy against Egypt is set against the backdrop of rising Babylonian power and its military campaigns, including incursions into Egypt, highlighting how international political shifts directly impacted God's people and surrounding nations.
c. 664 BC
Assyrian Withdrawal from Egypt
After a period of Assyrian rule, Egyptian rulers regained control of Lower Egypt, establishing the Saite dynasty.
c. 609 BC
Battle of Carchemish
The Neo-Babylonian Empire under Nebuchadnezzar decisively defeated the Egyptian forces, ending Egypt's influence in the Levant.
c. 605 BC
First Babylonian Deportation to Judah
Nebuchadnezzar II conquered Judah and deported some of its elite, including the prophet Daniel, to Babylon.
c. 587/586 BC
Fall of Jerusalem and Second Deportation
Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Jerusalem and its Temple, deporting a large number of Judeans to Babylon.
c. 585-570 BC— this verse
Nebuchadnezzar's Campaign Against Egypt
Ezekiel prophesied against Egypt during this period, foretelling its devastation by Nebuchadnezzar's armies, which likely occurred around 568-567 BC.
553-539 BC
Rise of Cyrus the Great
Cyrus the Great united the Medes and Persians, eventually conquering the Neo-Babylonian Empire.
539 BC
Fall of Babylon
Cyrus the Great conquered Babylon, marking the end of the Neo-Babylonian Empire and ushering in the Persian era.
This passage also speaks of the drying up of Egypt's rivers and canals, directly mirroring Ezekiel's prophecy and highlighting the devastating impact on the land's fertility and defenses.
Jeremiah 15:21This verse shares the theme of God delivering His people into the hands of wicked men, emphasizing the severe judgment that comes when people turn away from Him.
Ezekiel 29:18This preceding verse details Nebuchadnezzar's reward for his service against Tyre, showing how God uses foreign powers as instruments of His judgment, a concept directly applied to Egypt here.
Deuteronomy 28:48This passage describes the curses for disobedience, including serving enemies in hunger and thirst and with a yoke of iron, which resonates with the desolation and foreign subjugation described in Ezekiel's prophecy.
pulpitEzekiel 30:12: "And I will make the rivers dry, and sell the land into the hand of the wicked: and I will make the land waste, and all that is therein, by the hand of strangers: I the LORD have spoken it."
Verse 12. - I will make the rivers dry. The rivers are the Nile-blanches of the Delta, and their being dried up points, perhaps, literally to a failure in the inundation of the Nile on which its fertility depended; figuratively to a like failure of all its sources of prosperity.
pooleEzekiel 30:12: "And I will make the rivers dry, and sell the land into the hand of the wicked: and I will make the land waste, and all that is therein, by the hand of strangers: I the LORD have spoken it."
I will make the rivers dry; either by some extraordinary drought, or rather by means of that mighty lake, which drew so much water from Nilus, that all their canals were ever after shallow, and the lake, as the oracle foretold, helped their enemy, and hurt their friends; or the Chaldeans migh…
What's striking here is that God doesn't just allow Egypt's downfall, He actively orchestrates it by targeting the very source of its life – the Nile and its canals. This isn't just a military defeat; it's a divine act that dries up the land's prosperity and hands it over to brutal foreign oppressors, emphasizing the totality of His judgment.
This passage is part of God's judgment against Egypt, a proud nation that has long resisted His people. Ezekiel's prophecy details the complete devastation that will come upon them, symbolized by drying up the life-giving Nile and its canals, making the land vulnerable. This destruction is not random but a deliberate act of God, delivering Egypt into the hands of cruel foreign oppressors as a consequence of their sin.
This passage is part of God's judgment against Egypt, a proud nation that has long resisted His people. Ezekiel's prophecy details the complete devastation that will come upon them, symbolized by drying up the life-giving Nile and its canals, making the land vulnerable. This destruction is not random but a deliberate act of God, delivering Egypt into the hands of cruel foreign oppressors as a consequence of their sin.
"And I will dry up the Nile and will sell the land into the hand of evildoers; I will bring desolation upon the land and everything in it, by the hand of foreigners; I am the LORD; I have spoken." — What's striking here is that God doesn't just allow Egypt's downfall, He actively orchestrates it by targeting the very source of its life – the Nile and its canals. This isn't just a military defe…
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Last reviewed October 2026