Isaiah 31
New American Standard Bible
Help Not in Egypt but in God
31 Woe to those who go down to (A)Egypt for help
And (B)rely on horses,
And trust in chariots because they are many
And in horsemen because they are very strong,
But they do not (C)look to the (D)Holy One of Israel, nor seek the Lord!
2 Yet He also is (E)wise and will (F)bring disaster,
And does (G)not retract His words,
But will arise against the house of (H)evildoers,
And against the help of the (I)workers of injustice.
3 Now the Egyptians are (J)human and not God,
And their (K)horses are flesh and not spirit;
So the Lord will (L)stretch out His hand,
And any (M)helper will stumble,
And one who is helped will fall.
And all of them will come to an end together.
4 For this is what the Lord says to me:
“As the (N)lion or the young lion growls over his prey,
Against which a band of shepherds is called out,
And he will not be terrified at their voice nor disturbed at their noise,
So will the Lord of armies come down to wage (O)war on Mount Zion and on its hill.”
5 Like [a]flying (P)birds so the Lord of armies will protect Jerusalem.
He will (Q)protect and save it;
He will pass over and rescue it.
6 (R)Return to Him against whom [b]you have been (S)profoundly obstinate, you sons of Israel. 7 For on that day every person will (T)reject his silver idols and his gold idols, which your hands have made for you as (U)a sin.
8 And the (V)Assyrian will fall by a sword not wielded by a man,
And a (W)sword not of man will devour him.
So he will [c](X)not escape the sword,
And his young men will become (Y)forced laborers.
9 “His (Z)rock will pass away because of panic,
And his officers will be terrified by the (AA)flag,”
Declares the Lord, whose (AB)fire is in Zion and whose furnace is in Jerusalem.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 31:5 Or hovering
- Isaiah 31:6 Lit they
- Isaiah 31:8 Lit flee
Isaiah 31
New Living Translation
The Futility of Relying on Egypt
31 What sorrow awaits those who look to Egypt for help,
trusting their horses, chariots, and charioteers
and depending on the strength of human armies
instead of looking to the Lord,
the Holy One of Israel.
2 In his wisdom, the Lord will send great disaster;
he will not change his mind.
He will rise against the wicked
and against their helpers.
3 For these Egyptians are mere humans, not God!
Their horses are puny flesh, not mighty spirits!
When the Lord raises his fist against them,
those who help will stumble,
and those being helped will fall.
They will all fall down and die together.
4 But this is what the Lord has told me:
“When a strong young lion
stands growling over a sheep it has killed,
it is not frightened by the shouts and noise
of a whole crowd of shepherds.
In the same way, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies
will come down and fight on Mount Zion.
5 The Lord of Heaven’s Armies will hover over Jerusalem
and protect it like a bird protecting its nest.
He will defend and save the city;
he will pass over it and rescue it.”
6 Though you are such wicked rebels, my people, come and return to the Lord. 7 I know the glorious day will come when each of you will throw away the gold idols and silver images your sinful hands have made.
8 “The Assyrians will be destroyed,
but not by the swords of men.
The sword of God will strike them,
and they will panic and flee.
The strong young Assyrians
will be taken away as captives.
9 Even the strongest will quake with terror,
and princes will flee when they see your battle flags,”
says the Lord, whose fire burns in Zion,
whose flame blazes from Jerusalem.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
