Isaiah 19
New American Standard Bible
Message to Egypt
19 The (A)pronouncement concerning (B)Egypt:
Behold, the Lord is (C)riding on a swift cloud and is about to come to Egypt;
The (D)idols of Egypt will tremble at His presence,
And the (E)heart of the Egyptians will melt within them.
2 “So I will incite Egyptians against Egyptians;
And they will fight, (F)each against his brother and each against his neighbor,
City against city and kingdom against kingdom.
3 Then the spirit of the Egyptians will be demoralized within them;
And I will confuse their strategy,
So that (G)they will resort to idols and ghosts of the dead,
And to [a]mediums and spiritists.
4 Furthermore, I will hand the Egyptians over to a (H)cruel master,
And a [b]mighty king will rule over them,” declares the Lord [c]God of armies.
5 (I)The waters from the sea will dry up,
And the river will be parched and dry.
6 The [d](J)canals will emit a stench,
The [e](K)streams of Egypt will thin out and dry up;
(L)The reeds and rushes will rot away.
7 The bulrushes by the (M)Nile, by the [f]edge of the Nile
And all the sown fields by the Nile
Will become dry, be driven away, and be no more.
8 And the (N)fishermen will grieve,
And all those who cast a [g]line into the Nile will mourn,
And those who spread nets on the waters will dwindle away.
9 Moreover, the manufacturers of linen made from combed flax
And the weavers of white (O)cloth will be [h]utterly dejected.
10 And [i]the (P)pillars of Egypt will be crushed;
All the hired laborers will be grieved in soul.
11 The officials of [j](Q)Zoan are mere fools;
The advice of Pharaoh’s wisest advisers has become [k]stupid.
How can you say to Pharaoh,
“I am a son of the (R)wise, a son of ancient kings”?
12 Well then, where are your wise men?
Please let them tell you,
And let them [l]understand what the Lord of armies
Has (S)planned against Egypt.
13 The officials of [m]Zoan have turned out to be fools,
The officials of (T)Memphis are deluded;
Those who are the (U)cornerstone of her tribes
Have [n]led Egypt astray.
14 The Lord has mixed within her a spirit of (V)distortion;
(W)They have led Egypt astray in all [o]that it does,
As a (X)drunken person [p]staggers in his vomit.
15 There will be no work for Egypt
(Y)Which its head or tail, its palm branch or bulrush, may do.
16 On that day the Egyptians will become like women, and they will tremble and be in great (Z)fear because of the (AA)waving of the hand of the Lord of armies, which He is going to wave over them. 17 The land of Judah will become a cause of shame to Egypt; everyone to whom it is mentioned will be in great fear because of the (AB)plan of the Lord of armies which He is making against them.
18 On that day five cities in the land of Egypt will be speaking the language of Canaan and (AC)swearing allegiance to the Lord of armies; one will be called the City of [q]Destruction.
19 On that day there will be an (AD)altar to the Lord in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a (AE)memorial stone to the Lord beside its border. 20 And it will become a sign and a witness to the Lord of armies in the land of Egypt; for they will cry out to the Lord because of oppressors, and He will send them a (AF)Savior and a (AG)Champion, and He will save them. 21 So the Lord will make Himself known to Egypt, and the Egyptians will know the Lord on that day. They will even worship with (AH)sacrifice and offering, and will make a vow to the Lord and perform it. 22 And the Lord will strike Egypt, striking but (AI)healing; so they will (AJ)return to the Lord, and He will respond to their pleas and heal them.
23 On that day there will be a (AK)road from Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrians will come into Egypt and the Egyptians into Assyria; and the Egyptians will (AL)worship with the Assyrians.
24 On that day Israel will be the third party to Egypt and Assyria, a blessing in the midst of the earth, 25 whom the Lord of armies has blessed, saying, “Blessed is (AM)Egypt My people, and Assyria (AN)the work of My hands, and Israel My inheritance.”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 19:3 Or ghosts and spirits
- Isaiah 19:4 Or fierce
- Isaiah 19:4 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
- Isaiah 19:6 Lit rivers
- Isaiah 19:6 Or Nile branches; i.e., the delta
- Isaiah 19:7 Or mouth
- Isaiah 19:8 Lit hook
- Isaiah 19:9 Lit ashamed
- Isaiah 19:10 Lit her pillars; or her weavers
- Isaiah 19:11 Or Tanis
- Isaiah 19:11 Or brutish
- Isaiah 19:12 Or know
- Isaiah 19:13 Or Tanis
- Isaiah 19:13 Or have caused Egypt to stagger
- Isaiah 19:14 Lit its work
- Isaiah 19:14 Or goes astray
- Isaiah 19:18 Some mss and ancient versions the Sun
Isaiah 19
Common English Bible
Concerning Egypt
19 An oracle about Egypt.
Look! The Lord is riding upon a swift cloud,
and is coming to Egypt.
Egypt’s idols will tremble before God;
the Egyptians’ hearts will melt within them.
2 I will stir up Egyptian against Egyptian,
and they will fight,
one against another,
neighbor against neighbor,
city against city,
kingdom against kingdom.
3 Egypt’s spirit will fail from within;
I will frustrate their plans.
They will consult the idols and spirits
and ghosts and fortune-tellers.
4 I will hand Egypt over to a harsh master;
a strong king will rule them, says the Lord God of heavenly forces.
5 The waters of the sea will dry up;
the river will be parched and bare.
6 The rivers will stink;
the streams will shrink and dry;
reeds and rushes will decay.
7 Grass around the Nile, the grass at the mouth of the Nile,
and all the sown land of the Nile
will dry up, blow away, and be no more.
8 Those who fish will lament;
all who cast fishhooks in the Nile will mourn,
and those who spread nets on the water will pine away.
9 Workers with flax will be dismayed;
carders and weavers will grow pale.[a]
10 Makers of cloth will be crushed;
all who earn money will become distressed.
11 The officials of Tanis are fools;
the wisest of Pharaoh’s counselors give stupid advice.
How can you say to Pharaoh,
“I’m a wise person,
one of the ancient kings”?
12 Where now are your wise ones?
Let them tell you,
let them inform you what the Lord of heavenly forces has planned concerning Egypt.
13 The officials of Tanis have become fools;
the princes of Memphis are deluded;
the tribal chiefs have led Egypt astray.
14 The Lord has poured into them a spirit of confusion.
They will make Egypt stumble in everything it does,
just as a drunk stumbles in his vomit.
15 Neither head nor tail, palm branch nor reed
will be able to do anything for Egypt.
Bless God’s people
16 On that day, the Egyptians will be like women and will tremble with terror before the hand that the Lord of heavenly forces will raise against them. 17 Judah’s land will become what the Egyptians dread; whenever anyone mentions it, they will be terrified because of the plans that the Lord of heavenly forces is making against them.
18 On that day, there will be five cities in the land of Egypt that speak the language of Canaan and swear loyalty to the Lord of heavenly forces. One of them will be called “the city of the sun.”[b]
19 On that day, there will be an altar to the Lord within the land of Egypt, and a standing stone for the Lord at its border. 20 It will be a sign and a witness to the Lord of heavenly forces in the land of Egypt. When they cry out to the Lord because of oppressors, God will send them a savior and defender to rescue them. 21 The Lord will make himself known to the Egyptians; the Egyptians will know the Lord on that day. They will worship with sacrifices and offerings, making solemn promises to the Lord and fulfilling them. 22 The Lord will strike Egypt; striking and then healing. They will return to the Lord, who will hear their pleas and heal them.
23 On that day, there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria. The Assyrians will come to Egypt, and the Egyptians to Assyria; and the Egyptians will worship with the Assyrians.
24 On that day, Israel will be the third along with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing at the center of the world. 25 The Lord of heavenly forces will pronounce this blessing: Bless Egypt my people, and Assyria my handiwork, and Israel my inheritance.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 19:9 DSS (1QIsaa)
- Isaiah 19:18 DSS (1QIsaa), Tg, Vulg; Heb uncertain
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