All the birds of the heavens made their nests in its boughs; under its branches all the beasts of the field gave birth to their young, and under its shadow lived all great nations.
This verse reads like praise — a tree so large that birds, beasts and whole nations shelter under it. The tree is Assyria, a vast power that God Himself made great, and the chapter tells how it came down.
The Tree as an Empire
Scripture explains its own pictures. Here the sheltering tree stands for a great political power, with the nations gathered under it.
The Bible TreasuryWe find, in Ezekiel 31:3-9, the Assyrian power compared to a great tree, a mighty cedar in Lebanon. It is clear here that Assyria is a vast power, for great nations lived under his shadow. It is under the likeness of a tree. The birds that nested in his branches, and the beasts that sought protection and shelter under them, are, according to the word of God, the surrounding nations.
What the Birds and Beasts Mean
Commentators read the birds in more than one way. Here they stand not for nations but for people of every rank.
J. N. DarbyWe may notice the force of this symbol of a great tree. It is a mighty one of the earth, able to take others under its protection. In this case it was one in the highest position possible for man. The birds of the heaven had their home in it; that is to say, that all classes of persons sought shelter and protection in it.
Greatness God Gave
The cedar did not make itself. God gave its height, its beauty, and its power over the countries around it.
William KellyAmong the nations the Assyrian was what the cedar of Lebanon is among the trees: tallest, largest, widest in shade, and most beautiful. God withheld nothing that could beautify or enlarge Nineveh, or the people whose capital it was. He even gave it enormous, far-reaching power and influence over the countries around it, so that all envied it.
The Gift Turned Into Pride
Assyria's beauty was unmatched, and it came from God's care. What Assyria did with that gift was nothing new.
Numerical Bible NotesNo tree in this Garden of God was like him in his beauty. But, made great in this way by the fostering care of God, it was only to repeat the old story; for what gift of God is there that man will not abuse?
The same writer names what grew instead, and the law behind the fall:
Numerical Bible NotesAssyria was dependent to the core, as anyone could see. Yet what grew out of that was self-exaltation, not a sense of dependence. So in the end it had to be brought low, for God's law is: everyone who exalts himself will be humbled.
Shelter That Does Not Last
Later in the chapter the picture is turned around. The creatures that nested in the living tree end up in its ruins, and those who sheltered walk away.
Numerical Bible NotesAs a result, instead of seeking his protection, the birds and the beasts would live among his ruins. All the peoples of the earth had gone down from his shadow and had left him. This was no puzzling disaster. It was a warning which the sure government of God preaches everywhere against pride.
The Same Picture Later
Writers connect this cedar to the mustard seed that becomes a tree with birds in its branches, and read the growth as a warning rather than a success story.
Ernst-August BremickerOther examples in the Bible confirm that a tree which becomes great is something negative. In Daniel 4, a tree pictures Nebuchadnezzar, the mighty king of Babylon — but in a negative way. Another example is in Ezekiel 31, where Assyria is compared to a great tree. A mighty tree stands for great authority and political power, which can easily be misused.
There is one sheltering tree in Ezekiel that is not a warning:
Truth & TestimonyThe tree also represents ruling power. In this connection the only emblem in blessing is the cedar tree in Ezekiel 17, which is a figure of the Lord Jesus.
Summary
- Shade — birds, beasts and great nations under the branches picture one thing. This is an empire on earth, sheltering people of every class.
- Source — the cedar did not grow itself. Its size, beauty and reach were gifts, and God withheld nothing that could enlarge it.
- Swelling — dependence should have grown from such a gift; self-exaltation grew instead. There is no gift of God that man will not abuse.
- Stripped — the nations desert the shade and the creatures nest in the ruins. God's government preaches everywhere against pride.
- Substitute — every great tree in these prophecies falls except one. The cedar of Ezekiel 17 pictures the Lord Jesus, and His shelter is the only lasting kind.