Ezekiel 32:23, commentary and pictures

The verse pictures Egypt's fallen army buried together in mass graves set around their grave in the pit, all killed by the sword after spreading terror among the living. It belongs to the prophecies against Egypt in chapters 29-32 and declares the certain abasement of Pharaoh and his host, once a great oppressor, to become the basest of kingdoms and never rise again. It locates sheol, rendered hell and identical with hades, in the sides of the pit in the nether parts of the earth beneath, embracing every grave, in contrast to the land of the living on the earth's surface where no living beings in hades are found. That hell is the grave, the common place and state of all the dead, righteous and wicked alike, where there is no work, knowledge, or wisdom but darkness, silence, and death. The mighty speaking from sheol, the slain seeing and acting, and Pharaoh being comforted at the multitudes lying round about him are figurative personification to warn the living and portray retribution, not proof that the dead are conscious, even as in the parable of the rich man and Lazarus.

Context and Wording

Ezekiel 32:23 stands within the section of correction, denunciation, and reproof, in a group of prophecies against foreign nations. It belongs to the prophecies against Egypt in chapters 29-32. It describes Egypt's downfall, with Egypt's slain lying buried in the pit and the graves of its fallen company surrounding its own grave, all killed by the sword after spreading terror in the land of the living. It is part of the prophecy of the certain fate of Pharaoh and his host, picturing the slain of Egypt lying in graves around their fallen ruler.

The word translated grave is kever, meaning a grave or cavern, from a root meaning to cover, to bury, to hide. Its plural means individual burial places where only some of the dead are buried, distinct from sheol, which holds all the dead in the state of death and unconsciousness. Pit means the grave where the dead are deposited, and the graves are set within that pit.

The verse portrays a mass burial of slaughtered soldiers gone down to sheol with their weapons of war and laying their swords under their heads, buried indiscriminately together. The graves set in the sides of the pit with her company round about her grave are that mass burial in the nether parts of the earth, which is sheol, in contrast to the land of the living. Sheol where this multitude lies is the grave, full of graves and the dead, and corresponds to hades.

In one reading, the slain are Assyrians lying in graves around their king in the pit, killed by the sword and remembered for the terror they caused among the living. They lie in the depths of the pit with their graves surrounding their leader's grave in the nether parts of the earth. Their apparent company and comfort are a figurative picture of the defeat and burial of Egypt's enemies. In another reading, the slain are Egyptians and Pharaoh and his army, slain in battle with the king of Babylon and lying in graves around their fallen ruler. They lie in graves in the depths and sides of the pit with their company gathered around the grave, killed by the sword after causing terror in the land of the living.

Prophecy Against Egypt

Ezekiel 32:23 belongs to a prophecy about Egypt and declares the certain fate of Pharaoh and his host. It describes the slain of Egypt lying in graves around their fallen ruler, struck down by the sword after bringing terror to the land of the living.

The prophecy declares that Egypt would be brought low and abased. Egypt was a former oppressor of God's people and a symbol of black infidelity. It would never rise again among the nations.

These prophecies against Egypt in chapters 29-32 were literally fulfilled. Egypt was once one of the greatest kingdoms and even the greatest empire. It became the basest of kingdoms.

Sheol and the Dead

Sheol, rendered hell and identical with hades, is set in the sides of the pit in the nether parts of the earth, in the depths beneath and in the interior of the earth. That interior region embraces every grave and includes the place of graves, with graves in its depths and the slain gathered round about them after being killed by the sword. It is always in the earth beneath, the common realm of the dead beneath the earth.

That realm of graves in the depths of the pit is contrasted with the land of the living on the earth's surface, which proves hades is the land of the dead and not the land of the living. Those lying there are all dead, slain and fallen by the sword, who while alive caused terror in the land of the living but are now dead. No living beings are found in that hades located in the lower parts of the earth, for it is full of graves and the dead.

The pit is the abode of the dead and will be consumed when the earth is destroyed by fire. The fire that dissolves the earth will reach even the lowest sheol.

This location identifies the lower parts of the earth into which Christ descended as hades, the place of the dead, with its pit and graves set in the sides of the pit and the company of the slain lying round about the grave, fallen by the sword. That place is down and distinct from Paradise in the third heaven above, so Christ first descended into hades and only afterward ascended into Paradise.

Hell here means sheol, the grave, the place and state of all the dead, righteous and wicked, where there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom. It is a place of darkness, silence, and death, where the dead are pictured as speaking and acting though they do not consciously speak, see, or act. The dead kings' speech about Pharaoh represents their circumstances as though they were alive, not conscious speech in hades.

The strong among the mighty speaking out of the midst of sheol, the slain going down with weapons of war with swords laid under their heads, and Pharaoh being comforted at seeing the multitude of his slain enemies lying round about him are figurative personification, not literal consciousness, conversation, comfort, shame, or action. The slain lie buried indiscriminately with friend and foe in pits in the nether parts of the earth, which is sheol, in contrast to the land of the living, with graves set in the sides of the pit and her company round about her grave. Their apparent company and comfort are figurative descriptions of defeat and burial, and unconscious and inanimate things are represented as living, acting, and speaking, as with the dead in Isaiah 14, the dead kings rising from thrones to mock the king of Babylon, rejoicing fir trees and cedars, and Rachel weeping for her children long after her death.

The passage personifies the slain in the grave to make a point to the living and to bring true thoughts of future retribution vividly before the mind by figure. Its use as a metaphorical illustration of the kind used in parables does not establish that the dead are consciously alive. So the conscious conversation in hades in the rich man and Lazarus can likewise be parable and does not prove the dead are alive.