Son of man, take up a lamentation for Pharaoh king of Egypt, and say unto him, Thou art like a young lion of the nations, and thou art as a whale in the seas: and thou camest forth with thy rivers, and troubledst the waters with thy feet, and fouledst their rivers.

EZEKIEL 32:2KJV
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Ezekiel 32:2 (KJV)

What does Ezekiel 32:2 mean?

Ezekiel 32:2 is God’s instruction to Ezekiel to deliver a lament—a kind of funeral song—about Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. The verse compares Pharaoh to both a young lion among nations and a sea creature (often understood as a crocodile or large sea monster), describing how Pharaoh has stirred up trouble and made the waters (symbolizing nations or peoples) muddy and disturbed.

In this verse, God is speaking to Ezekiel, who is a prophet in exile, telling him to address Pharaoh, the ruler of Egypt. The setting is during a period when Egypt was a major power, but God is warning of its downfall. The images of a lion and a sea creature highlight Pharaoh’s pride and disruptive influence among other nations, setting the stage for a message of coming judgment.

The Hebrew behind Ezekiel 32:2

  • "Lamentation" (קִינָה, qînāh): This word means a funeral song or dirge, emphasizing that the message is about mourning and loss, not just warning.
  • "Whale" (תַּנִּין, tannîn): This word can refer to a sea monster, crocodile, or large aquatic creature. In the context of Egypt, it likely points to the Nile crocodile, a symbol of Egypt’s power, but also its threat and chaos.
  • "Troubledst" (דָּרַךְ, dāraḵ): This word means to stir up or muddy, painting a picture of Pharaoh disturbing the waters, which often symbolize peoples or nations in prophetic language.
  • "Fouledst" (רָפַס, rāpas): This word means to trample or pollute, reinforcing the idea that Pharaoh’s actions have made things worse for others, not better.

Why Ezekiel 32:2 matters

  • This verse clarifies that God’s message to Egypt is not just about political defeat, but about the loss of pride and destructive influence that Pharaoh represented.
  • The comparison to both a lion and a sea creature shows that Egypt’s power was both feared and disruptive, but also ultimately subject to God’s judgment.
  • Understanding the lament form helps readers see that this is not just a warning, but a pronouncement of mourning over Egypt’s coming downfall, connecting to a series of oracles against foreign nations in Ezekiel.

Where else these words appear

“troubledst” Hebrew H1804 · used in 2 verses

  • Ezekiel 32:13 I will destroy also all the beasts thereof from beside the great waters; neither shall the foot of man trouble them any more, nor the hoofs of beasts trouble them.

“fouledst” Hebrew H7515 · used in 3 verses

  • Proverbs 25:26 A righteous man falling down before the wicked is as a troubled fountain, and a corrupt spring.
  • Ezekiel 34:18 Seemeth it a small thing unto you to have eaten up the good pasture, but ye must tread down with your feet the residue of your pastures? and to have drunk of the deep waters, but ye must foul the residue with your feet?

“forth” Hebrew H1518 · used in 6 verses

  • Judges 20:33 And all the men of Israel rose up out of their place, and put themselves in array at Baaltamar: and the liers in wait of Israel came forth out of their places, even out of the meadows of Gibeah.
  • Job 38:8 Or who shut up the sea with doors, when it brake forth, as if it had issued out of the womb?
  • Psalms 22:9 But thou art he that took me out of the womb: thou didst make me hope when I was upon my mother's breasts.

“lamentation” Hebrew H7015 · used in 16 verses

  • 2 Samuel 1:17 And David lamented with this lamentation over Saul and over Jonathan his son:
  • Ezekiel 2:10 And he spread it before me; and it was written within and without: and there was written therein lamentations, and mourning, and woe.
  • Ezekiel 27:32 And in their wailing they shall take up a lamentation for thee, and lament over thee, saying, What city is like Tyrus, like the destroyed in the midst of the sea?