Does Ezekiel prophesy about an invasion of Egypt by Nebuchadnezzar which never actually took place? Ezekiel 29:17–20
17 In the twenty-seventh year, in the first month, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me: 18 “Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon made his army labor hard against Tyre. Every head was made bald, and every shoulder was rubbed bare, yet neither he nor his army got anything from Tyre to pay for the labor that he had performed against her. 19 Therefore thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will give the land of Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; and he shall carry off its wealth and despoil it and plunder it; and it shall be the wages for his army. 20 I have given him the land of Egypt as his payment for which he labored, because they worked for me, declares the Lord God.
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Asked September 07 2025
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Anonymous
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Tim Maas
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A fragment of a cuneiform tablet, housed in the British Museum, substantiates that Nebuchadnezzar launched a campaign against Egypt. The fragment is dated to the 37th year of Nebuchadnezzar's reign (568/567 BCE) and states that he "marched against Egypt to deliver a battle". Also, a fragmentary stele of Pharaoh Amasis II, who ruled Egypt from 570 to 526 BCE, alludes to a combined land and sea attack by the Babylonians around the same time. In addition, other parts of the Bible, such as Jeremiah 43–44, also describe Nebuchadnezzar's actions concerning Egypt, aligning with Ezekiel's prophecy. Some evidence suggests the Babylonians initially gained a foothold but were ultimately repelled by Amasis' forces, as Nebuchadnezzar never fully conquered and annexed Egypt. However, the prophecy in Ezekiel 29 focused on the plundering and spoiling of Egypt as wages for the Babylonian army, not a full-scale occupation or conquest. The available historical evidence supports that Nebuchadnezzar did invade Egypt and came away with plunder, fulfilling Ezekiel's prophecy in that specific sense.
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