Yehezkiel 32:23-27

32:23 Their ¹  graves are located in the remote slopes of the pit. ²  Her assembly is around her grave, all of them struck down by the sword, those who spread terror in the land of the living.

32:24 “Elam is there with all her hordes around her grave; all of them struck down by the sword. They went down uncircumcised to the lower parts of the earth, those who spread terror in the land of the living. Now they will bear their shame with those who descend to the pit. 32:25 Among the dead they have made a bed for her, along with all her hordes around her grave. ³  All of them are uncircumcised, killed by the sword, for their terror had spread in the land of the living. They bear their shame along with those who descend to the pit; they are placed among the dead.

32:26 “Meshech-Tubal is there, along with all her hordes around her grave. ⁴  All of them are uncircumcised, killed by the sword, for they spread their terror in the land of the living. 32:27 They do not lie with the fallen warriors of ancient times, ⁵  who went down to Sheol with their weapons of war, having their swords placed under their heads and their shields on their bones, ⁶  when the terror of these warriors was in the land of the living.

[32:23]  ¹ tn Heb “whose.”

[32:23]  ² tn The only other occurrence of the phrase “remote slopes of the pit” is in Isa 14:15.

[32:25]  ³ tn Heb “around him her graves,” but the expression is best emended to read “around her grave” (see vv. 23-24).

[32:26]  ⁴ tn Heb “around him her graves,” but the expression is best emended to read “around her grave” (see vv. 23-24).

[32:27]  ⁵ tc Heb “of the uncircumcised.” The LXX reads, probably correctly, “from of old” rather than “of the uncircumcised.” The phrases are very similar in spelling. The warriors of Meshech-Tubal are described as uncircumcised, so it would be odd for them to not be buried with the uncircumcised. Verse 28 specifically says that they would lie with the uncircumcised.

[32:27]  ⁶ tn Heb “and their iniquities were over their bones.” The meaning of this statement is unclear; in light of the parallelism (see “swords”) it is preferable to emend “their iniquities” to “their swords.” See L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:135.