Should This Matter?

When I think of prophecies in the Bible, I often think of them as prophecies that have either been fulfilled (historical fulfillment) or those that are far future end-time prophecies (future fulfillment). When I study historically fulfilled prophecies, such as Christ’s birth/death or the Babylonian exile, I enjoy seeing how God’s prophecies are fulfilled EXACTLY as He promised even if the prophecy seemed impossible at the time it was issued. The future fulfillment prophecies, such as Christ’s second coming or end-time events, provide hope because I know, from studying the historical prophecies, that the oracle WILL come to pass exactly as God promised!

But what if we are able to witness the beginning of a prophecy uttered thousands of years ago being fulfilled TODAY? Isn’t that exciting?

Well, Ezekiel 29:8-16 may just be that prophecy! I say ‘may’ because as with any future fulfillment prophecy, we can’t be dogmatic about it, but the evidence is compelling. I am going to present that evidence to you here. You decide: are we witnessing prophecy fulfillment?

“Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will bring a sword upon thee, and cut off man and beast out of thee. And the land of Egypt shall be desolate and waste; and they shall know that I am the Lord: because he hath said, The river is mine, and I have made it. Behold, therefore I am against thee, and against thy rivers, and I will make the land of Egypt utterly waste and desolate, from the tower of Syene even unto the border of Ethiopia. No foot of man shall pass through it, nor foot of beast shall pass through it, neither shall it be inhabited forty years. And I will make the land of Egypt desolate in the midst of the countries that are desolate, and her cities among the cities that are laid waste shall be desolate forty years: and I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and will disperse them through the countries. Yet thus saith the Lord God; At the end of forty years will I gather the Egyptians from the people whither they were scattered: And I will bring again the captivity of Egypt, and will cause them to return into the land of Pathros, into the land of their habitation; and they shall be there a base kingdom. It shall be the basest of the kingdoms; neither shall it exalt itself any more above the nations: for I will diminish them, that they shall no more rule over the nations. And it shall be no more the confidence of the house of Israel, which bringeth their iniquity to remembrance, when they shall look after them: but they shall know that I am the Lord God.”

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Ezekiel 29:8-16

Let me provide a little background. In chapter 29, Ezekiel is uttering the beginning of a long prophecy against Egypt. In fact, this passage is 4 chapters long! Chapter 29 begins with a prophecy that is specific to Pharaoh Hophra (the current Pharoah in Ezekiel’s day) and the fulfillment of this prophecy in Pharaoh Hophra’s demise is astonishing. But, as we come into verse 8, the tone changes from an indictment against the Pharaoh to Egypt as a whole. God charges Egypt with a very specific crime: “because he hath said, The river is mine, and I have made it.” And, God gives Egypt a very specific punishment in the form of a prophecy which includes 3 main details:

1) Egypt will become a wasteland that both beast and man will avoid for 40 years.

2) The demise originates at the “Tower of Syene, even unto the border of Ethiopia” due to the “sword.”

3) The people of Egypt will be scattered but after 40 years, they will return to Egypt which will never increase back to its prior influence.

The river that Egypt is claiming ownership of here is clearly the Nile River as it is the life of Egypt. It’s certainly a hint as to what events may contribute to the fulfillment of this prophecy. But, it is the reference to the “Tower of Syene” that provides the biggest clue. I will explore each aspect of this passage below.

Nile River

The Nile River in Egypt is about 4,132 miles long beginning in Ethiopia and then winding north through Egypt before it drains into the Mediterranean Sea (https://www.britannica.com/place/Nile-River). It is very important to the wealth and success of Egypt as an empire of the past and as a nation today. Each year, the Nile River would flood due to melting snows in the Ethiopian mountains which would carry water containing minerals and nutrients down the Nile and then into the soil along the Nile River in Egypt. This process provided nutrient rich soil for crops and farming. Egyptians came to depend on the Nile River for food, transportation, and protection.

Ancient Syene

Along the Nile River, to the south, sat the ancient city of Swenett (Greek: Syene), the southernmost city of Egypt considered to be close to the origination of the Nile in the minds of the Egyptians. The city contained a quarry where syenite was collected and used in various building projects throughout Egypt and later became a Roman fort (https://www.britannica.com/place/Aswan-Egypt). Now, the city of Aswan sits on the ancient site of Syene.

Interestingly, there is absolutely no mention of a tower at Syene. Although Eratosthenes, a Greek scholar, used a well in Syene to calculate the circumference of the earth (https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/big-history-project/solar-system-and-earth/knowing-solar-system-earth/a/eratosthenes-of-cyrene), but this cannot be the “Tower of Syene” of this passage. If there isn’t a tower in Syene’s past, is there one in Syene’s present?

Aswan Dam and Lotus Flower Tower

While the flooding of the Nile River provided nutrient rich soil to Egyptian farmers along the Nile, it could also cause problems. The flooding was unpredictable. Some years, the flooding would be too large causing destruction of homes and crops, but other years, the flooding would be too small resulting in drought and famine. As time past, Egypt grew in population and technology. In an attempt to control the flow of the Nile, Egypt constructed a dam called the Aswan Dam in 1902. However, a larger dam was needed to better control the flow of the Nile. So, Egypt along with Russian help (which included an arms deal) built a larger and much more technologically advanced dam called the Aswan High Dam upstream of the old dam In 1970. This dam allowed Egyptians to control the flow of the Nile River ensuring a consistent and appropriate amount of water for irrigation as well as produce power. Above the dam a reservoir was created called the Nasser Reservoir (after the Egyptian leader at the time of the dam’s construction). This reservoir is a huge collection of water waiting to flow down the Nile River to the Mediterranean Sea (https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/aswan-high-dam-completed).

To commemorate the momentous collaboration between Egypt and Russian in building this huge feat of engineering, a moment is built called Arab-Soviet Friendship (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aswan_Dam). It is basically a tall tower. It was designed to look like the petals of a lotus flower. Could this be the “Tower of Syene?” Pictures clearly show a tower structure that is higher than anything around it. And what does this ‘tower’ represent? It represents man controlling the Nile River.

Political Unrest & War Possibilities

Egypt is located in the part of the world full of unrest. Islam is prevalent and the threat to Israel is always possible. Tensions in the area continuously feel as though the nations are on the brink of war. A weak spot in Egypt’s safety is clearly the Aswan dam. The vast majority of Egypt’s population live along the Nile below that dam. If it were to break, such as by a bomb, the water would crash down the Nile and if the bomb is nuclear, the water could be radioactive. Imagine the devastation! There would be loss of lives and land in habitable for years (40 perhaps?) not to mention the economic disaster that Egypt would incur.

This possibility may seem far fetched, but don’t think that countries haven’t noticed the precarious situation Egypt has put itself into. In 2001, Israel’s foreign minister, Avigdor Lieberman mentions bombing the Aswan Dam as a last resort if needed (https://www.reuters.com/article/us-israel-lieberman-quotes-sb/factbox-israels-lieberman-and-controversial-comments-idUSTRE52U3FU20090401).

Most recent tensions regarding the Nile and the Aswan Dam comes via Ethiopia, the source of the Nile. The Ethiopians, under their prime minister Abiy Ahmed, are building the Renaissance Dam upstream from the Aswan Dam in Ethiopia on one of the Nile’s tributaries, the Blue Nile. Ethiopia claims that this dam will bring drinking water and power to Ethiopia while Egypt fears that their water supply will be dwindled as Ethiopia fills a huge reservoir above the dam. Despite promises by Ahmed that the water supply to Egypt will not be affected, Egypt is fighting the building of this dam and the time used to fill the reservoir even uttering a thinly veiled threat to bomb the Ethiopian dam nonetheless. Ethiopia is fighting back against Egypts claims that the Nile belongs to them and has not stopped building the dam (https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/02/09/world/africa/nile-river-dam.html).

Literal Fulfillment

So, lets put all of this information together, shall we? Today, we have a dam present on the Nile upstream that happens to be located in the same spot as the ancient city of Syene. That dam is used to control the Nile River for economic gain. The dam is commemorated by a ‘tower’ monument. Additionally, there is another dam being built in Ethiopia that will also control the water of the Nile inciting a fight over control of the Nile between Egypt and Ethiopia each claiming that the Nile ‘belongs’ to them.

When we apply this information to the passage in Ezekiel 29, the parallels are obvious! If (and yes this is an if) the Aswan Dam or the Renaissance Dam (or both) are bombed (which would likely need to be nuclear to be strong enough to take them down), a disaster as described in Ezekiel 29:8-16 could easily come to pass. It could easily take 40 years before the land is habitable again.

But wait! Need more evidence? Here it comes!

Check out Ezekiel 30:1-9

“The word of the Lord came again unto me, saying, Son of man, prophesy and say, Thus saith the Lord God; Howl ye, Woe worth the day! For the day is near, even the day of the Lord is near, a cloudy day; it shall be the time of the heathen. And the sword shall come upon Egypt, and great pain shall be in Ethiopia, when the slain shall fall in Egypt, and they shall take away her multitude, and her foundations shall be broken down. Ethiopia, and Libya, and Lydia, and all the mingled people, and Chub, and the men of the land that is in league, shall fall with them by the sword. Thus saith the Lord; They also that uphold Egypt shall fall; and the pride of her power shall come down: from the tower of Syene shall they fall in it by the sword, saith the Lord God. And they shall be desolate in the midst of the countries that are desolate, and her cities shall be in the midst of the cities that are wasted. And they shall know that I am the Lord, when I have set a fire in Egypt, and when all her helpers shall be destroyed. In that day shall messengers go forth from me in ships to make the careless Ethiopians afraid, and great pain shall come upon them, as in the day of Egypt: for, lo, it cometh.”

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In the chapter after 29, we find another passage with additional details regarding the devastation of Egypt from some “sword” that falls upon the “tower of Syene.” Breaking them down the details are as follows:

1) It occurs “near” the “day of the Lord” (The phrase “day of the Lord” in the Bible always is refers to the end time period just before and including Christ’s return).

2) The sword will fall in Egypt and Ethiopia will be very afraid when they find out what happened.

3) Ethiopia, Libya, and Lydia, and Chub will also fall by this “sword.” (Modern day Ethiopia, Libya, Webster Turkey, and ? – not sure – likely Northern Africa and may refer to Cush which is Sudan).

4) The “sword” will fall at the “tower of Syene.”

This sections tells us that the incident will be a far future event from the time that Ezekiel recorded this oracle. In addition, we see the link here between Egypt and Ethiopia which makes a lot more sense now that we see that BOTH countries will have a dam on the Nile River. If indeed this event has to do with a destruction of the Aswan Dam, then when Ethiopia finds out what happened to Egypt, why will they be so afraid? Because they fear that their dam will be next! And it sounds like it is since Ethiopia and other countries will be destroyed too. Note however, that only Egypt is given the stipulation that it will be uninhabitable for 40 years.

Finally, the infamous battle of Gog and Magog provide a final clue! Ezekiel 38-39 describes a large war against Israel involving many countries. Interestingly, one country is missing from the list: Egypt. Could this be because Egypt has been destroyed and remains uninhabitable for 40 years? It would certainly make sense especially since other countries surrounding Egypt are included such as Ethiopia, Libya, Turkey, and Sudan. Chronological placement of the battle of Gog and Magog is difficult, however, many (as do I) believe it occurs shortly before the 7 year tribulation period begins.

Egypt desires to control the Nile and believes it belongs to them… “The river is mine, and I have made it.” They built a dam with a tower to control the flow… “from the tower of Syene even unto the border of Ethiopia.” Once this sword falls, those of us who have really ‘heard’ the Word of God will know that it was the Lord who completed it! How? Because we have this prophecy!

Hope

The violence of this prophecy tends to overshadow the final point. Those who are scattered away from Egypt due to the event will return after 40 years. They will be able to go home and fill the land. While the nation will not achieve its former greatness, Egypt will not be utterly destroyed. Israel will no longer be tempted to rely on the nation of Egypt.

Keep your eyes open! God’s prophecies are coming into play in our modern world like never before! Those of us who know God’s Word can see God’s hand at work and it is a beautiful thing! Come quickly Lord Jesus!