Introduction: Whom Are You Like in Your Greatness?
Chapter 31 of Yechezkel is another prophecy directed at Pharaoh king of Egypt, this time through a sharp parable: the parable of the cedar. The prophet is sent to ask Pharaoh a single question - to whom do you compare yourself in your greatness? And since he naturally wishes to compare himself to the greatest of kings, the prophet sets before him the king of Assyria (Ashur). First, the prophet describes at length the immense power of Assyria through the metaphor of a towering cedar in Lebanon, and then demonstrates to him its terrible downfall. The conclusion forms the central theme of the chapter: You wish to resemble him in greatness? Know that you will resemble him in downfall as well.
וַיְהִי בְּאַחַת עֶשְׂרֵה שָׁנָה בַּשְּׁלִישִׁי בְּאֶחָד לַחֹדֶשׁ הָיָה דְבַר־יְהֹוָה אֵלַי לֵאמֹר׃ - And it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the third month, on the first of the month, that the word of Hashem came to me, saying:
"In the eleventh year" - this was the year of the destruction of the Beis HaMikdash, the eleventh year of the exile of Yehoyachin and of the reign of Tzidkiyahu. "In the third" - in the third month (Sivan). On this date, a special message directed at Pharaoh was conveyed to Yechezkel.
בֶּן־אָדָם אֱמֹר אֶל־פַּרְעֹה מֶלֶךְ־מִצְרַיִם וְאֶל־הֲמוֹנוֹ אֶל־מִי דָּמִיתָ בְגׇדְלֶךָ׃ - Son of man, say to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his multitude: To whom are you like in your greatness?
The Holy One, Blessed is He, tells Yechezkel: Proclaim a prophecy to Pharaoh - to whom are you like in your greatness? In the greatness that you ascribe to yourself, to whom do you seek to compare yourself? Surely to the greatest of all. And who was the greatest of all? The king of Assyria. From here, the prophet will describe who the king of Assyria was and what became of his end, thereby shattering all of Pharaoh's delusions of grandeur and haughtiness.
The Cedar in Lebanon - A Parable for the Kingdom of Assyria
הִנֵּה אַשּׁוּר אֶרֶז בַּלְּבָנוֹן יְפֵה עָנָף וְחֹרֶשׁ מֵצַל וּגְבַהּ קוֹמָה וּבֵין עֲבֹתִים הָיְתָה צַמַּרְתּוֹ׃ - Behold, Assyria was a cedar in Lebanon with beautiful boughs and a shading forest, of high stature, and its top was among thick boughs.
The cedar is the grandest of all the trees of Lebanon, and remains the symbol of Lebanon to this day. When Shlomo came to build the Beis HaMikdash, he took cedars of Lebanon, as the cedar of Lebanon represents a mighty and majestic tree. Moreover, this cedar possessed superior qualities: its branches were exceedingly beautiful, and it was a "shading forest" (choresh meitzal) - dense with many branches like a forest that casts extensive shade, and towering in height. "Its top" (tzamarto) refers to the central branch at the crest of the tree, which stood "among thick boughs" (bein avotim) - interwoven branches encircling it, adorning and beautifying it.
The meaning of the parable is the splendor of the Assyrian monarchy: he possessed massive armies and immense wealth, and he provided shade and shelter over all the surrounding nations. "Of high stature" - his kingdom stood elevated above all other kingdoms. The crest represents the king himself who stands at the head, and the thick boughs are the prominent ministers surrounding and protecting him, the subordinate kings and dignitaries standing in his court.
The Malbim analyzes the word choresh: a choresh is a thicket or forest whose trees grow close together and intertwine. Why is it called this? Because anyone entering there can conceal himself within the thicket of trees, as it is written: "And David stayed in the forest (bachoreshah)" - David fled and hid there. Thus, it derives from the root of cheresh (silence or secrecy), denoting something done quietly and in concealment.
מַיִם גִּדְּלוּהוּ תְּהוֹם רֹמְמָתְהוּ אֶת־נַהֲרֹתֶיהָ הֹלֵךְ סְבִיבוֹת מַטָּעָהּ וְאֶת־תְּעָלֹתֶיהָ שִׁלְחָה אֶל כׇּל־עֲצֵי הַשָּׂדֶה׃ - Waters nourished it, the deep made it grow high; its rivers flowed around its planting place, and it sent out its channels to all the trees of the field.
Here the environmental conditions of the cedar are described. It had an abundance of water from above, as well as the blessing of the deep crouching beneath - "the deep set it up on high", water from below. Through the power of the water from both sides, it rises to great heights. The waters emerging from the deep become numerous rivers that flow around the cedar's plantation to water it, and only what remains - "its channels" - does it send out to the rest of the trees of the field.
The nimshal (allegory): The king of Assyria enjoyed immense abundance from the entire world, and all were subservient to him. The subterranean deep represents the intrinsic wealth of his own empire, while the rain from above represents everything poured out upon him by the surrounding nations. He received the primary bounty first, and all the nations - representing the trees of the field - received only the trickle, whatever dripped through and was left over. All of this comes to show his tremendous might.
From Where Did Assyria Merit Greatness? - The Midrash of Chazal
Rashi cites the exposition of Chazal: From where did Assyria merit greatness? Because he refrained from the counsel of the Generation of the Dispersion (Dor HaFlagah), as it is said, "From that land went forth Asshur." When all the nations of the world formed a single faction to conspire to rebel against Him, Blessed is He, Asshur withdrew from the rebels; his treetop, as it were, stood independently and was not entwined with them. Therefore, he merited such a treetop, such power and such greatness.
And he had another virtue, which is the meaning of "the deep set it up on high": that he listened to the voice of Yonah ben Amittai. Yonah had descended to the recesses of the deep in the belly of the fish, and when he came to rebuke the people of Nineveh, they accepted his rebuke - the king of Assyria donned sackcloth, and they turned back from the violence that was in their hands. That same prophet who had been in the deep is the one who elevated them and brought them to repentance, and this too is a merit because of which he achieved greatness.
עַל־כֵּן גָּבְהָא קֹמָתוֹ מִכֹּל עֲצֵי הַשָּׂדֶה וַתִּרְבֶּינָה סַרְעַפֹּתָיו וַתֶּאֱרַכְנָה פֹארֹתָו מִמַּיִם רַבִּים בְּשַׁלְּחוֹ׃ - Therefore its height grew taller than all the trees of the field, and its boughs multiplied, and its branches grew long because of the many waters as it spread out.
Since it received the primary abundance - rain from above and the deep from below - its height grew tall and it developed more than all the rest. "Its boughs" (sar'apotav) are the major limbs, the large branches emerging directly from the trunk that carry the smaller branches. In a cedar this is particularly evident: a single, straight, tall trunk, from which branches extend to all sides in impeccable order, forming a triangular shape, like the symbol of the cedar of Lebanon.
"Its branches" (porotav, with a silent aleph in pronunciation) refers to the branches at the crown of the tree, which give it beauty and grandeur - from the word pe'er (glory and beauty). In a fruit tree, these are the branches that bear the fruit and proliferate greatly. These branches grew long, arched over, and adorned the tree, and this is "and its boughs multiplied, and its branches grew long." And all this was "because of the many waters as it spread out" - the expansion came through the power of the abundant waters.
The Malbim adds: The porot are at the top of the tree, and normally birds and animals do not dwell beneath them, but rather beneath the lower boughs in the middle. Here, the verse teaches that the porot grew so long that they themselves, the highest branches, shaded the creatures below - they were what provided vitality to the beasts underneath.
בִּסְעַפֹּתָיו קִנְנוּ כׇּל־עוֹף הַשָּׁמַיִם וְתַחַת פֹּארֹתָיו יָלְדוּ כֹּל חַיַּת הַשָּׂדֶה וּבְצִלּוֹ יֵשְׁבוּ כֹּל גּוֹיִם רַבִּים׃ - In its boughs all the birds of the heavens nested, and under its branches all the beasts of the field gave birth, and in its shade dwelt all the great nations.
Birds do not nest in the crown branches at the top of the tree, but in a lower place, among the middle branches. The beasts give birth where the shade is closer to the trunk, beneath the arching branches. And the boughs would spread out far from the tree.
The nimshal: The beasts represent the mighty kings, who are far stronger than birds, and they came to seek shelter in its shade. Consider the immense power this cedar possessed, that the great and mighty beasts found refuge under its canopy - that is, within the wealth and glory of his kingdom - and depended on his influence. The birds represent the weaker nations, but those engaged in commerce: just as birds migrate and traverse from place to place across rivers and seas, so too the island dwellers sail in ships for trade. They brought their merchandise there until they found a nest, a stable place of rest to trade. Thus, both the mighty kings found shelter in its shade and the merchants depended on it.
Notice the precision here: regarding the birds, who are weaker, it says "in its boughs" (b’sa’apotav) - the lower branches; while regarding the beasts, who represent the powerful kings, it says "beneath its branches" (tachat porotav) - the higher, majestic branches near the canopy. And since by nature beasts cannot take shelter beneath high branches, the Malbim explained above that these boughs extended so far down that the beasts could take refuge beneath them too - to show that the kings drew close, as it were, to the king himself to shelter in the shadow of his monarchy. This is the meaning of "and in its shadow dwelled all the great nations."
וַיְּיִף בְּגׇדְלוֹ בְּאֹרֶךְ דָּלִיּוֹתָיו כִּי־הָיָה שׇׁרְשׁוֹ אֶל־מַיִם רַבִּים׃ - And it grew beautiful in its greatness, in the length of its boughs, for its root was by abundant waters.
"Boughs" (daliyot) are branches that draw out and extend (from the root dalah, to draw up). Typically, when branches overextend, they detract from the tree's beauty, and they also tend to wither and burden the tree as dead weight, which is why it is customary to prune them. This is common practice with a grapevine: one prunes the extending shoots so that the vine directs its strength into its fruit rather than its runners. Here, however, Scripture says the exact opposite - the longer and larger its boughs grew, the more beauty was added, and the tree flourished. The reason: "for its root was by abundant waters" - its roots drew from plentiful waters, so the boughs did not dry out, but rather continued to grow in splendor.
The Malbim explains the allegory: when a weak king's realm expands outward, that very expansion weakens him. Maintaining an expanding empire requires tremendous resources - deploying armies to distant conflict zones while trying to sustain oneself at home. Look at what is happening today with Iran: it sends its tentacles to every conflict zone across the globe in an attempt to assert control, and the result is that ordinary people inside Iran have nothing to eat. All the money goes toward weapons and foreign intervention, and the regime itself collapses from within. Furthermore, sending large military forces abroad leaves the kingdom vulnerable to domestic rebellion; when the army remains at home it guards the throne, but when it is deployed abroad, a coup can erupt with no force available to suppress it. Here, however, this was not the case. Such was his sheer strength and might that even as he expanded far and wide, his domestic power remained immense and formidable. His foreign campaigns did not diminish his ability to rule at home without fear of rebellion.
Incomparable Even in the Garden of God
אֲרָזִים לֹא־עֲמָמֻהוּ בְּגַן־אֱלֹהִים בְּרוֹשִׁים לֹא דָמוּ אֶל־סְעַפֹּתָיו וְעַרְמֹנִים לֹא־הָיוּ כְּפֹרֹאתָיו כׇּל־עֵץ בְּגַן־אֱלֹהִים לֹא־דָמָה אֵלָיו בְּיׇפְיוֹ׃ - Cedars could not obscure it in the garden of God; cypresses did not match its boughs, and plane trees were not like its branches; no tree in the garden of God compared to it in its beauty.
"Cedars in the garden of God" - the Malbim explains that these are the cedars planted by the Holy One, blessed is He, during the six days of Creation. Yet even they "could not obscure it" (lo amamuhu). The word amamuhu can be derived from two roots: from am (with / nation) and from amam (to obscure or eclipse), and both interpretations apply here. "Could not obscure it" - they could not dim its greatness or stand beside it, as they were not in the same league; his power was so immense that even the cedars of God's garden could not equal his might. And from the perspective of am, which denotes a gathering or collective: the cedars in the garden of God could not be grouped together with it as one; they were not of the same category, for he stood on a far higher level.
"Cypresses did not match its boughs" - the cypress is a strong tree, second only to the cedar, yet the tender shoots of this cedar were larger and sturdier than full cypresses. Not only were they not its equal, they did not even resemble it; they could not come close to the strength of its branches. "And plane trees were not like its branches" - plane trees grow with magnificent beauty, and here the verse does not say "did not resemble" but rather "were not like," meaning they resembled it somewhat, yet could not match the splendor of the cedar's canopy. Finally: "no tree in the garden of God compared to it in its beauty" - even the trees planted by Hashem in Gan Eden, every tree pleasing to the sight, could not match its beauty; its majesty was on a plane above them all.
The meaning of the allegory: there had never been a king as formidable and mighty as he since the six days of Creation. Therefore, when Scripture looks back, it reaches all the way back to Gan Eden, to the primeval Creation, to tell us that from the beginning of time there had never been such a mighty ruler. Both his minor boughs and his majestic branches - his ministers, warriors, and nobles - surpassed all the kings of the earth in greatness, wealth, prominence, and dominion. Nor was this true only in his own generation; even the legendary ancient monarchs, about whom heroic tales were spun with vivid imagination, could not match the actual, real-world power of the king of Assyria. Not one of them could even compare to him.
יָפֶה עֲשִׂיתִיו בְּרֹב דָּלִיּוֹתָיו וַיְקַנְאֻהוּ כׇּל־עֲצֵי־עֵדֶן אֲשֶׁר בְּגַן הָאֱלֹהִים׃ - I made it beautiful through the multitude of its boughs, so that all the trees of Eden in the garden of God envied it.
Through its boughs - the high, lofty branches (from the root dalah, to elevate and draw up) - it was exceptionally magnificent and visible from afar, to the point that the trees of Eden looked upon it with envy. Allegorically, all the rulers of prior generations saw him and envied his stature. They are called "those in the garden of God" because they are already there in the heavenly realm above, and the Malbim explains that they were, as it were, praying for his downfall. Why? Because they are in the garden of God while he is outside the garden - his roots and canopy are rooted in a place of defilement, far from holiness. Therefore, the holy Forefathers and the righteous pray against him, and the heavenly princes stand against him to bring about his fall, for such greatness is unfitting for a wicked king such as he. It is the power of those in the garden of God that will ultimately bring him down.
The Verdict: Because You Have Grown High in Stature
לָכֵן כֹּה אָמַר אֲדֹנָי יֱהֹוִה יַעַן אֲשֶׁר גָּבַהְתָּ בְּקוֹמָה וַיִּתֵּן צַמַּרְתּוֹ אֶל־בֵּין עֲבוֹתִים וְרָם לְבָבוֹ בְּגׇבְהוֹ׃ - Therefore, so said the Lord Hashem: Because you have grown tall in stature, and he set his treetop among the thick boughs, and his heart was lifted up in his height.
Here the Holy One, blessed be He, as it were, accepts the grievance and prayer of the trees of Eden - of the holy Patriarchs and the righteous who ask why the king of Assyria deserved such sovereignty and greatness. "Because you have grown tall in stature" - as it says, "I will punish the fruit of the arrogance of heart of the king of Assyria": he did not merely possess greatness, but greatness that he acknowledged and took pride in. First, "he grew tall in stature" - strength and might; furthermore, "he set his treetop among the thick boughs" - his reign surpassed all other kings; and from this, "his heart was lifted up in his height" - he thought his power was his own, forgetting that everything he had received came from Hashem.
וְאֶתְּנֵהוּ בְּיַד אֵיל גּוֹיִם עָשׂוֹ יַעֲשֶׂה לוֹ כְּרִשְׁעוֹ גֵּרַשְׁתִּהוּ׃ - I have therefore delivered him into the hand of the mighty one of the nations; he shall surely deal with him; I have driven him out according to his wickedness.
"I have delivered him into the hand of the mighty one of the nations" - He delivered him into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, who was the mightiest of the nations, whom the nations regarded as a god. "He shall surely deal with him" - in proportion to his pride and greatness, I will humble him. The Malbim cites the prophecy of Yeshayahu, who had already prophesied against him: "Behold, the Lord, Hashem of Hosts, shall lop the bough with terrifying force; and the high ones of stature shall be hewn down, and the lofty shall be humbled." Yeshayahu had already prophesied that Sancheriv, king of Assyria, would fall, comparing him to a mighty cedar of Lebanon that would be cut down. Back then, the Holy One, blessed be He, destroyed his army through an "Adir" (mighty one), who was the angel of Hashem, yet his kingdom still survived. But now Hashem says: I have already banished him Myself; the first blow was delivered by the angels of Hashem, and from now on I will deliver him into the hands of nations - into the hand of a mortal king of flesh and blood who will cut him down once and for all. "He shall surely deal with him according to his wickedness" - he will deal with him, not I; Nebuchadnezzar is also wicked like him, and through a wicked person retribution will be exacted from the wicked.
A Description of the Downfall
וַיִּכְרְתֻהוּ זָרִים עָרִיצֵי גוֹיִם וַיִּטְּשֻׁהוּ אֶל־הֶהָרִים וּבְכׇל־גֵּאָיוֹת נָפְלוּ דָלִיּוֹתָיו וַתִּשָּׁבַרְנָה פֹרֹאתָיו בְּכֹל אֲפִיקֵי הָאָרֶץ וַיֵּרְדוּ מִצִּלּוֹ כׇּל־עַמֵּי הָאָרֶץ וַיִּטְּשֻׁהוּ׃ - And strangers, the most ruthless of the nations, have cut him off and left him; upon the mountains and in all the valleys his branches have fallen, and his boughs are broken by all the watercourses of the land; and all the peoples of the earth have gone down from his shadow and have left him.
After all the greatness and power - come and see the downfall. "Strangers have cut him off" - these are the Chaldeans, who are the most ruthless of nations, and along with them foreign peoples will cut him down and abandon him. The long boughs will fall upon the mountains - these are the armies and legions that will fall in battle. The branches will be broken in the riverbeds - these are the wealthy and distinguished men among his people, who will be scattered and exiled. And the peoples of the earth who once sought shelter in his shadow will leave his shade and abandon him, for they will see that there is no longer anyone under whom to take refuge, as the cedar is destined to be cut down and fall.
עַל־מַפַּלְתּוֹ יִשְׁכְּנוּ כׇּל־עוֹף הַשָּׁמָיִם וְאֶל־פֹּרֹאתָיו הָיוּ כֹּל חַיַּת הַשָּׂדֶה׃ - Upon his fallen trunk all the birds of the heavens shall dwell, and all the beasts of the field shall be upon his boughs.
Notice the change in wording: the birds will not nest and the beasts will not give birth there. It is no longer an actual dwelling place, but rather "shall dwell upon his fallen trunk" - upon the ruins, upon what remains of him. In the past they dwelt under his branches, but now that he has fallen, they dwell upon his wreckage. The isles and merchants will pass through there to other places, and the lofty ones - the ministers, the nations, and their kings - will divide his land among themselves. All this demonstrates the magnitude of his downfall: everyone who previously sheltered in his shade now tramples over him and divides his land, and no one considers him a kingdom or a sovereign power any longer.
The Message: That They May Not Exalt Themselves in Stature
לְמַעַן אֲשֶׁר לֹא־יִגְבְּהוּ בְקוֹמָתָם כׇּל־עֲצֵי־מַיִם וְלֹא־יִתְּנוּ אֶת־צַמַּרְתָּם אֶל־בֵּין עֲבֹתִים וְלֹא־יַעַמְדוּ אֵלֵיהֶם בְּגׇבְהָם כׇּל־שֹׁתֵי מָיִם כִּי־כֻלָּם נִתְּנוּ לַמָּוֶת אֶל־אֶרֶץ תַּחְתִּית בְּתוֹךְ בְּנֵי אָדָם אֶל־יוֹרְדֵי בוֹר׃ - To the end that none of all the trees by the waters exalt themselves for their height, nor set their treetop among the thick boughs, nor that all who drink water stand up to them in their height; for they are all delivered unto death, to the netherworld, among the children of men, with those who descend into the pit.
Here lies the warning to the kings of Egypt and Assyria. Just as it was said, "Because you have grown tall in stature" - you, Pharaoh, have grown tall in stature, and to whom do you wish to liken yourself? To the king of Assyria. Come and behold his downfall. From this, let all "trees by the waters" take heed not to exalt themselves in their height or become arrogant, and let them know that the water and abundance come from Hashem, and it is Hashem Who humbles and Who uplifts.
And this was always the problem: anyone who received a little greatness and dominion immediately began to think that he was a god. So it was with Pharaoh, as we saw in the rebuke above - "the great serpent lying down in the midst of its rivers"; and so it was with Hiram, who built for himself that immense seven-story structure over the sea and sought to make himself a god. Therefore, the Holy One, blessed be He, says: "In order that none of the trees by the waters exalt themselves in their height" - let them see that even though they are trees dwelling by the water and possess abundant bounty, the source of that abundance is from Hashem.
And corresponding to "and set its treetop among the thick boughs," it says, "neither set their treetops among the thick boughs" - let them not do as he did; the king at the helm must not exalt himself above the ministers surrounding him, nor should kings lord it over other kings and debase them. For it was their way to rule over another nation, humiliate it, extract tribute from it, take its people as slaves, and do with them whatever they pleased - and from this, the king's sense of haughtiness and power only grew.
And corresponding to "and his heart was lifted up in his height," it says, "nor shall any that drink water stand up to them in their height" - their gods, the kings who turned themselves into deities, will not stand in their haughtiness; none of the water-drinkers, who merely receive the abundance, should consider themselves divine beings. After all, you are merely receiving the water and the bounty from Hashem, so why do you feel like a god and believe that the bounty emanates from you?
"For they are all delivered to death, to the nether parts of the earth" - like the argument posed to Hiram: If you are a god, tell the one coming to kill you, "Do not harm me, for I am a god!" Yet the prophet mocked him: Are you a god? Why are you afraid of death? After all, God is eternal. The Malbim explains that an essential condition of divinity is being eternal, yet here, they are all ultimately delivered to death. Furthermore, God dwells in the upper realm, exalted above all heights, whereas you - where will you be brought down? "To the nether parts of the earth" - lower than everyone. Not to an exalted, lofty place, not to the heavens, nor above the stars, but to the nether parts of the earth; "in the midst of the children of men" - not among the gods you fancied yourself resembling, but among mortal men; "to those who go down to the pit" - those ordinary mortals whose end is to descend into the grave.
Mourning in the World on the Day of His Descent
כֹּה־אָמַר אֲדֹנָי יֱהֹוִה בְּיוֹם רִדְתּוֹ שְׁאוֹלָה הֶאֱבַלְתִּי כִּסֵּתִי עָלָיו אֶת־תְּהוֹם וָאֶמְנַע נַהֲרוֹתֶיהָ וַיִּכָּלְאוּ מַיִם רַבִּים וָאַקְדִּר עָלָיו לְבָנוֹן וְכׇל־עֲצֵי הַשָּׂדֶה עָלָיו עֻלְפֶּה׃ - Thus said the Lord Hashem: On the day he descended to the grave, I caused mourning; I covered the deep for him, and I restrained its rivers, and the great waters were held back; and I brought gloom over Lebanon on his account, and all the trees of the field fainted because of him.
"On the day he descended to the grave" - Nebuchadnezzar conquered in the first year of his reign, and from then on began conquering many nations, succeeding in all his wars, until finally he conquered Egypt as well and destroyed it, which marked the end of his campaigns. At first he conquered Assyria, because in order to gain dominion he understood he had to strike at the apex, at the empire ruling over all, and ultimately Egypt. On the day he destroyed Assyria, it was decreed by Hashem that he would destroy all the kingdoms of the earth.
"I caused mourning; I covered the deep for him" - the subterranean deep became like a mourner. Just as a mourner does not go outside and covers his head, so too Hashem covered the surface of the deep so that it would not emerge to water the trees. Consequently, "and I restrained its rivers" - those rivers that ran around its plantations, from which abundance flowed to all the trees of the field, to all the nations that sheltered in its shadow and absorbed its sustenance, were stopped.
"And the great waters were held back" - the Malbim analyzes the precise difference between "to withhold/restrain" (limno'a), "to cease" (lachdol), and "to hold back/imprison" (lichlo): the root for confinement (keliah) indicates a forced, forceful restraint, related to the word for prison (kele), into which a person enters against his will. Rainwaters cascading down from the mountains rush with tremendous force into the streams, which become rushing rivers; to stop this requires immense power exerted against nature. Similarly, "and the rain from heaven was restrained [vayikalei]" - a forceful intervention is needed to stop it. So too here: Hashem performs a special intervention to hold back the waters so they do not supply him. In contrast to "and sent out its channels to all the trees of the field" mentioned earlier, now Hashem has halted the bounty: the deep is covered and does not provide for it, and consequently it has nothing to bestow upon the other trees of the field.
"And I brought gloom over Lebanon on his account" - all of Lebanon grew dark and scorched from the intense heat, since the waters had been held back. This is like the rabbinic expression that the Holy One, blessed be He, "darkened/heated the sun" (hikdir chamah), meaning the sun blazed intensely and scorched. The root "kadar" also carries the sense of boring a hole, as the intense sun scorches and penetrates. "And all the trees of the field fainted because of him" - from intense thirst, like a person fainting. The deeper meaning: the bounty that once flowed from it to the other nations ceased, and none of the nations that had sheltered in its shadow had anyone left to protect them from the one advancing against them - Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon - and they fell into a state of fainting, unable to sustain themselves.
מִקּוֹל מַפַּלְתּוֹ הִרְעַשְׁתִּי גוֹיִם בְּהוֹרִדִי אֹתוֹ שְׁאוֹלָה אֶת־יוֹרְדֵי בוֹר וַיִּנָּחֲמוּ בְּאֶרֶץ תַּחְתִּית כׇּל־עֲצֵי־עֵדֶן מִבְחַר וְטוֹב־לְבָנוֹן כׇּל־שֹׁתֵי מָיִם׃ - At the sound of his fall I made the nations shake, when I cast him down to the grave with those who descend into the pit; and all the trees of Eden, the choice and best of Lebanon, all that drink water, were comforted in the nether parts of the earth.
גַּם־הֵם אִתּוֹ יָרְדוּ שְׁאוֹלָה אֶל־חַלְלֵי־חָרֶב וּזְרֹעוֹ יָשְׁבוּ בְצִלּוֹ בְּתוֹךְ גּוֹיִם׃ - They too descended into the grave with him, to those slain by the sword, as did his arm - those who dwelt in his shadow among the nations.
"The choice and best of Lebanon, all that drink water" - these are the elite, those who drank from the water flowing from beneath the mighty cedar and irrigating all the nations around it, an allegory illustrating that all abundance stemmed from him. All of them, all who depended on him, descended together with him to Sheol. For anyone who relied upon him fell with him, in the sense of "both he who helps shall stumble, and he who is helped shall fall": their lands were also conquered by Nevuchadnezzar. "And his arm, who dwelt under his shadow among the nations" - the Malbim explains that "his arm" refers to his helpers, those who sat in his shade, benefited from him, and constantly supported him; they too fell with him.
Conclusion: This is Pharaoh and All His Multitude
אֶל־מִי דָמִיתָ כָּכָה בְּכָבוֹד וּבְגֹדֶל בַּעֲצֵי־עֵדֶן וְהוּרַדְתָּ אֶת־עֲצֵי־עֵדֶן אֶל־אֶרֶץ תַּחְתִּית בְּתוֹךְ עֲרֵלִים תִּשְׁכַּב אֶת־חַלְלֵי־חֶרֶב הוּא פַרְעֹה וְכׇל־הֲמוֹנֹה נְאֻם אֲדֹנָי יֱהֹוִה׃ - To whom are you thus likened in glory and in greatness among the trees of Eden? Yet you shall be brought down with the trees of Eden to the nether parts of the earth; you shall lie in the midst of the uncircumcised with those slain by the sword. This is Pharaoh and all his multitude, says the Lord Hashem.
Now the prophet returns and summarizes what he opened with. The prophecy opened with: "Son of man, say to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his multitude: To whom are you likened in your greatness?" And now: to whom are you likened in your greatness? To the king of Assyria. "To whom are you thus likened in glory and in greatness among the trees of Eden" - you feel as great as the kings who have passed away and are no longer in this world, as if they are in Eden. The Holy One, blessed be He, says to him: In this, too, you will be likened to him - "Yet you shall be brought down with the trees of Eden to the nether parts of the earth"; you will descend with Assyria to the underworld, and there "you shall lie in the midst of the uncircumcised with those slain by the sword."
"This is Pharaoh and all his multitude" - everyone will recognize him and say: This is Pharaoh. And this itself is part of the disgrace: when you descend to Gehennom, they will say, "Look, this is Pharaoh; he too thought himself great, he too assessed himself far beyond his true stature, and behold, he lies here among the uncircumcised." And "uncircumcised" is always an expression for something flawed, defiled, and lowly - for all the nations are uncircumcised, so what does this add? Rather, it is a term denoting degradation. "And all his multitude" - all your armies will fall there with you.
This is the summary of the prophecy: it opened with "To whom are you likened in your greatness?", and concludes - do not think that you will resemble the king of Assyria only in greatness. If you come to resemble him, know that it is from beginning to end, from the rise to the fall. Like the king of Assyria, you too will be among a great multitude in Sheol, numbered among them, and they will say: Behold, this is Pharaoh and all his multitude; they too are here in Sheol together with the king of Assyria and with all the kings who grew arrogant and considered themselves deities, whose end was defeat and humiliation.
In summary: The chapter is constructed as one grand parable - the cedar in Lebanon. First comes the description of Assyria's might: waters irrigating it from above and the deep from below, boughs and branches, birds nesting in it and beasts taking shelter under its shade, a greatness unseen since the six days of Creation. Immediately following is the reversal: "Because you have become tall in stature, and his heart was lifted up in his height" - leading to the felling by the most ruthless of nations, the deep covering itself in mourning, the abundance restrained, and the descent to the nether parts of the earth among those who go down to the pit. All of this was addressed to Pharaoh, who sought to liken himself to the greatest of kings and make himself a god. And the enduring message for all generations: all abundance comes from Hashem; Hashem brings low and also lifts up; and whoever's heart is lifted up in his height - his end is in the nether earth among mortal men. May Hashem do so for us in these days as well, Amen and Amen.