Ezekiel 31:18, King James Version
Italic words were supplied in the English translation for clarity.
Ezekiel 31:18
Pharaoh Is Identified with the Fallen Cedar
Pharaoh is told he is that tree
To whom art thou thus like in glory and in greatness among the trees of Eden? Yet shalt thou be brought down with the trees of Eden unto the nether parts of the earth. Thou shalt lie in the midst of the uncircumcised with them that be slain by the sword. This is Pharaoh and all his multitude, saith the Lord GOD.
The comparison closes by assigning Pharaoh and his multitude the same descent already narrated for Assyria's cedar. Likeness is the teaching method. The verse does not settle the final destiny of every Egyptian, and it does not support ethnic contempt. Pharaoh's multitude is a royal host in this funeral image, not a race to despise.
How this should shape us
Take the warning personally if you resemble the cedar, not if you share a nationality with Egypt. Do not use this last line to rank peoples for the pit.
Teach it back
Explain Ezekiel 31:18 in your own words. Name its place in Ezekiel, one source-controlled observation, one uncertainty, one enduring truth, and one harmful use the passage does not authorize.
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Research trail and exact locationsThe source record behind this section
Supports: Exact displayed KJV wording, verse order, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete thought-unit coverage.
Ezekiel 31:18, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM-derived repository corpus
Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording and morphology checked at the exact unit without treating morphology as a critical apparatus or interpretation.
Open Scriptures MorphHB v2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Ezek.xml, OSIS 31:18
Supports: Verse-level controls for difficult Hebrew, syntax, older KJV language, dates, place names, textual issues, vision language, and material alternatives.
Official NET Ezekiel PDF, exact translator, study, and textual notes attached to Ezekiel 31:18
Supports: Reader-oriented historical, literary, theological, and pastoral synthesis with visible alternatives and ancient-to-modern limits.
Enter the Bible Ezekiel course, Outline and passage studies: nations, Tyre, Egypt, and laments; applied to Ezekiel 31:18
Supports: Current university-level literary-historical synthesis and interpretive questions, including ethical attention to gendered rhetoric and the final vision.
Yale Bible Study, Jeremiah and Ezekiel, Ezekiel Parts 2-3 study guides: nations, watchman, shepherd, and restoration; applied to Ezekiel 31:18
Sources for This Section
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Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact displayed KJV wording, verse order, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete thought-unit coverage.
Exact location: Ezekiel 31:18, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM-derived repository corpus
Open source ↗hebrew text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Ezekiel
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2
Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording and morphology checked at the exact unit without treating morphology as a critical apparatus or interpretation.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Ezek.xml, OSIS 31:18
Open the fixed Hebrew Ezekiel file ↗translation and translator notes
NET Bible Notes: Ezekiel
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, 2016; current official PDF
Supports: Verse-level controls for difficult Hebrew, syntax, older KJV language, dates, place names, textual issues, vision language, and material alternatives.
Exact location: Official NET Ezekiel PDF, exact translator, study, and textual notes attached to Ezekiel 31:18
Open the official NET Ezekiel PDF ↗modern scholarly book course
Ezekiel course: summary, outline, background, introductory issues, themes, and passage studies
Alan G. Padgett; revised by Tyler Mayfield
Enter the Bible, Luther Seminary, revised June 2023
Supports: Reader-oriented historical, literary, theological, and pastoral synthesis with visible alternatives and ancient-to-modern limits.
Exact location: Enter the Bible Ezekiel course, Outline and passage studies: nations, Tyre, Egypt, and laments; applied to Ezekiel 31:18
Open the Enter the Bible Ezekiel course ↗open university study guide series
Jeremiah and Ezekiel: Ezekiel Parts 1-3 Study Guides
Joel S. Baden and Jacqueline Vayntrub
Yale Bible Study, 2024
Supports: Current university-level literary-historical synthesis and interpretive questions, including ethical attention to gendered rhetoric and the final vision.
Exact location: Yale Bible Study, Jeremiah and Ezekiel, Ezekiel Parts 2-3 study guides: nations, watchman, shepherd, and restoration; applied to Ezekiel 31:18
Open the Yale Jeremiah and Ezekiel course ↗