Isaiah 19
1599 Geneva Bible
19 1 The destruction of the Egyptians by the Assyrians. 18 Of their conversion to the Lord.
1 The [a]burden of Egypt. Behold, the Lord [b]rideth upon a swift cloud, and shall come into Egypt, and the idols of Egypt shall be moved at his presence, and the heart of Egypt shall melt in the midst of her.
2 And I will set the Egyptians against the Egyptians: so everyone shall [c]fight against his brother, and everyone against his neighbor, city against city, and kingdom against kingdom.
3 And the [d]spirit of Egypt shall fail in the midst of her, and I will destroy their counsel, and they shall seek at the idols, and at the sorcerers, and at them that have spirits of divination, and at the soothsayers.
4 And I will deliver the Egyptians into the hand of the cruel lords, and a mighty king shall rule over them, saith the Lord God of hosts.
5 Then the waters of the sea shall [e]fail, and the river shall be dried up, and wasted.
6 And the [f]rivers shall go far away: the rivers of defense shall be emptied and dried up: the reeds and flags shall be cut down.
7 The grass in the river, and at the [g]head of the rivers, and all that groweth by the river shall wither, and be driven away, and be no more.
8 The fishers also shall [h]mourn, and all they that cast angle into the river, shall lament, and they that spread their net upon the waters, shall be weakened.
9 Moreover, they that work in flax of divers sorts, shall be confounded, and they that weave nets.
10 For their nets shall be broken, and all they that make ponds shall be heavy in heart.
11 Surely the princes of [i]Zoan are fools: the counsel of the wise counselors of Pharaoh, is become foolish: how say ye unto Pharaoh, I [j]am the son of the wise? I am the son of the ancient kings?
12 Where are now the wise men, that they may tell thee, or may know what the Lord of hosts hath determined against Egypt?
13 The princes of Zoan are become fools: the princes of [k]Noph are deceived, they have deceived Egypt, even the [l]corners of the tribes thereof.
14 The Lord hath mingled among them the spirits [m]of errors: and they have caused Egypt to err in every work thereof, as a drunken man erreth in his vomit.
15 Neither shall there be any work in Egypt, which the head may [n]do, nor the tail, the branch nor the rush.
16 In that day shall Egypt be like unto women: for it shall be afraid and fear because of the moving of the hand of the Lord of hosts, which he shaketh over it.
17 And the land of Judah shall be a fear [o]unto Egypt: everyone that maketh mention of it, shall be afraid thereat, because of the counsel of the Lord of hosts, which he hath determined upon it.
18 In that day shall five cities in the land of Egypt [p]speak the language of Canaan, and shall [q]swear by the Lord of hosts: one shall be called the city of [r]destruction.
19 In that day shall the altar of the Lord be in the midst of the land of Egypt, and [s]a pillar by the border thereof unto the Lord.
20 And it shall be for a sign and for a witness unto the Lord of hosts in the land of Egypt: for they shall cry unto the Lord, because of the oppressors, and he shall send them [t]a Savior, and a great man, and shall deliver them.
21 And the Lord shall be known of the Egyptians, and the Egyptians shall know the Lord in that day, and do [u]sacrifice and oblation, and shall vow vows unto the Lord, and perform them.
22 So the Lord shall smite Egypt, he shall smite and heal it: for he shall return unto the Lord, and he shall be entreated of them and shall heal them.
23 In that day shall there be a path from [v]Egypt to Assyria, and Assyria shall come into Egypt, and Egypt into Assyria: so the Egyptians shall worship with Assyria.
24 In that day shall Israel be the third with Egypt and Assyria: even a blessing in the midst of the land.
25 For the Lord of hosts shall bless it, saying, Blessed be my people Egypt and Assyria, the work of mine hands, and Israel mine inheritance.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 19:1 Read Isa. 13:7.
- Isaiah 19:1 Because the Egyptians trusted in the defense of their country, in the multitude of their idols, and in the valiantness of their men, the Lord showeth that he will come over all their munitions in a swift cloud, and that their idols shall tremble at his coming and that men’s hearts shall faint.
- Isaiah 19:2 As he caused the Ammonites, Moabites and Idumeans to kill one another, when they came to destroy the Church of God, 2 Chron. 20:22; Isa. 49:26.
- Isaiah 19:3 Meaning, their policy and wisdom.
- Isaiah 19:5 He showeth that the sea and Nile their great river, whereby they thought themselves most sure, should not be able to defend them from his anger, but that he would send the Assyrians among them, that should keep them under as slaves.
- Isaiah 19:6 For the Nile ran into the sea by seven streams, as though they were so many rivers.
- Isaiah 19:7 The Hebrew word is mouth, whereby they mean the spring out of the which the water gusheth as out of a mouth.
- Isaiah 19:8 The Scriptures used to describe the destruction of a country by taking away of the commodities thereof, as by vines, flesh, fish, and such other things, whereby countries are enriched.
- Isaiah 19:11 Called also Tanis, a famous city upon the Nile.
- Isaiah 19:11 He noteth the flatterers of Pharaoh: who persuaded the king that he was wise and noble, and that his house was most ancient, and so he flattered himself, saying, I am wise.
- Isaiah 19:13 Or, Memphis, others Alexandria, and now called the great Cairo.
- Isaiah 19:13 The principal upholders thereof are the chiefest cause of their destruction.
- Isaiah 19:14 For the spirit of wisdom he hath made them drunken and giddy with the spirit of error.
- Isaiah 19:15 Neither the great nor the small, the strong nor the weak.
- Isaiah 19:17 Considering that through their occasion the Jews made not God their defense: but put their trust in them, and were therefore now punished, they shall fear lest the like light upon them.
- Isaiah 19:18 Shall make one confession of faith with the people of God: by the speech of Canaan, meaning the language wherein God was then served.
- Isaiah 19:18 Shall renounce their superstitions and protest to serve God aright.
- Isaiah 19:18 Meaning, of six cities, five should serve God, and the sixth remain in their wickedness: and so of the sixth part there should be but one lost.
- Isaiah 19:19 There shall be evident signs and tokens, that God’s religion is there: which manner of speech is taken of the Patriarchs and ancient times, when God hath not as yet appointed the place, and full manner how he would be worshipped.
- Isaiah 19:20 This declareth that this prophecy should be accomplished in the time of Christ.
- Isaiah 19:21 By these ceremonies he comprehendeth the spiritual service under Christ.
- Isaiah 19:23 By these two nations, which were then chief enemies of the Church, he showeth that the Gentiles and the Jews should be joined together in one faith and religion, and should be all one fold under Christ their shepherd.
Isaiah 19
English Standard Version
An Oracle Concerning Egypt
19 An (A)oracle concerning (B)Egypt.
Behold, the Lord (C)is riding on a swift cloud
and comes to Egypt;
and (D)the idols of Egypt will tremble at his presence,
and the heart of the Egyptians will (E)melt within them.
2 And I will stir up Egyptians against Egyptians,
(F)and they will fight, each against another
and each against his neighbor,
city against city, kingdom against kingdom;
3 and the spirit of the Egyptians within them will be emptied out,
and I will confound[a] their (G)counsel;
and they will inquire of the idols and the sorcerers,
and (H)the mediums and the necromancers;
4 and I will give over the Egyptians
into the hand of (I)a hard master,
and a fierce king will rule over them,
declares the Lord God of hosts.
5 And the waters of the sea will be dried up,
and the river will be dry and parched,
6 and its canals will become foul,
and the branches of Egypt's Nile will diminish and dry up,
reeds and rushes will rot away.
7 There will be bare places by the Nile,
on the brink of the Nile,
and all that is sown by the Nile will be parched,
will be driven away, and will be no more.
8 The (J)fishermen will mourn and lament,
all who cast a hook in the Nile;
and they will languish
who spread nets on the water.
9 The workers in (K)combed flax will be in despair,
and the weavers of white cotton.
10 Those who are the (L)pillars of the land will be crushed,
and all who (M)work for pay will be grieved.
11 The princes of (N)Zoan are utterly foolish;
the wisest counselors of Pharaoh give stupid counsel.
How can you say to Pharaoh,
“I am a son of the wise,
a son of ancient kings”?
12 Where then are your (O)wise men?
Let them tell you
that they might know what the Lord of hosts has purposed against Egypt.
13 The princes of (P)Zoan have become fools,
and the princes of (Q)Memphis are deluded;
those who are the (R)cornerstones of her tribes
have made Egypt stagger.
14 The Lord has mingled within her (S)a spirit of confusion,
and they will make Egypt stagger in all its deeds,
(T)as a drunken man staggers in his vomit.
15 And there will be nothing for Egypt
that (U)head or tail, palm branch or reed, may do.
Egypt, Assyria, Israel Blessed
16 In that day the Egyptians will be (V)like women, and (W)tremble with fear before the hand that the Lord of hosts shakes over them. 17 And the land of Judah will become a terror to the Egyptians. Everyone to whom it is mentioned will fear because of the purpose that the Lord of hosts has purposed against them.
18 (X)In that day there will be (Y)five cities in the land of Egypt that (Z)speak the language of Canaan and swear allegiance to the Lord of hosts. One of these will be called the City of Destruction.[b]
19 In that day there will be an (AA)altar to the Lord in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a (AB)pillar to the Lord at its border. 20 (AC)It will be a sign and a witness to the Lord of hosts in the land of Egypt. When they cry to the Lord because of oppressors, (AD)he will send them a savior and defender, and deliver them. 21 (AE)And the Lord will make himself known to the Egyptians, and the Egyptians will know the Lord in that day (AF)and worship with sacrifice and offering, and they will make vows to the Lord and perform them. 22 (AG)And the Lord will strike Egypt, striking and healing, and they will return to the Lord, and he will listen to their pleas for mercy and heal them.
23 (AH)In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and Assyria will come into Egypt, and Egypt into Assyria, (AI)and the Egyptians will worship with the Assyrians.
24 In that day Israel will be the third with Egypt and Assyria, (AJ)a blessing in the midst of the earth, 25 whom the Lord of hosts has blessed, saying, “Blessed be Egypt (AK)my people, and Assyria (AL)the work of my hands, and (AM)Israel my inheritance.”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 19:3 Or I will swallow up
- Isaiah 19:18 Dead Sea Scroll and some other manuscripts City of the Sun
Isaiah 19
King James Version
19 The burden of Egypt. Behold, the Lord rideth upon a swift cloud, and shall come into Egypt: and the idols of Egypt shall be moved at his presence, and the heart of Egypt shall melt in the midst of it.
2 And I will set the Egyptians against the Egyptians: and they shall fight every one against his brother, and every one against his neighbour; city against city, and kingdom against kingdom.
3 And the spirit of Egypt shall fail in the midst thereof; and I will destroy the counsel thereof: and they shall seek to the idols, and to the charmers, and to them that have familiar spirits, and to the wizards.
4 And the Egyptians will I give over into the hand of a cruel lord; and a fierce king shall rule over them, saith the Lord, the Lord of hosts.
5 And the waters shall fail from the sea, and the river shall be wasted and dried up.
6 And they shall turn the rivers far away; and the brooks of defence shall be emptied and dried up: the reeds and flags shall wither.
7 The paper reeds by the brooks, by the mouth of the brooks, and every thing sown by the brooks, shall wither, be driven away, and be no more.
8 The fishers also shall mourn, and all they that cast angle into the brooks shall lament, and they that spread nets upon the waters shall languish.
9 Moreover they that work in fine flax, and they that weave networks, shall be confounded.
10 And they shall be broken in the purposes thereof, all that make sluices and ponds for fish.
11 Surely the princes of Zoan are fools, the counsel of the wise counsellors of Pharaoh is become brutish: how say ye unto Pharaoh, I am the son of the wise, the son of ancient kings?
12 Where are they? where are thy wise men? and let them tell thee now, and let them know what the Lord of hosts hath purposed upon Egypt.
13 The princes of Zoan are become fools, the princes of Noph are deceived; they have also seduced Egypt, even they that are the stay of the tribes thereof.
14 The Lord hath mingled a perverse spirit in the midst thereof: and they have caused Egypt to err in every work thereof, as a drunken man staggereth in his vomit.
15 Neither shall there be any work for Egypt, which the head or tail, branch or rush, may do.
16 In that day shall Egypt be like unto women: and it shall be afraid and fear because of the shaking of the hand of the Lord of hosts, which he shaketh over it.
17 And the land of Judah shall be a terror unto Egypt, every one that maketh mention thereof shall be afraid in himself, because of the counsel of the Lord of hosts, which he hath determined against it.
18 In that day shall five cities in the land of Egypt speak the language of Canaan, and swear to the Lord of hosts; one shall be called, The city of destruction.
19 In that day shall there be an altar to the Lord in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar at the border thereof to the Lord.
20 And it shall be for a sign and for a witness unto the Lord of hosts in the land of Egypt: for they shall cry unto the Lord because of the oppressors, and he shall send them a saviour, and a great one, and he shall deliver them.
21 And the Lord shall be known to Egypt, and the Egyptians shall know the Lord in that day, and shall do sacrifice and oblation; yea, they shall vow a vow unto the Lord, and perform it.
22 And the Lord shall smite Egypt: he shall smite and heal it: and they shall return even to the Lord, and he shall be intreated of them, and shall heal them.
23 In that day shall there be a highway out of Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrian shall come into Egypt, and the Egyptian into Assyria, and the Egyptians shall serve with the Assyrians.
24 In that day shall Israel be the third with Egypt and with Assyria, even a blessing in the midst of the land:
25 Whom the Lord of hosts shall bless, saying, Blessed be Egypt my people, and Assyria the work of my hands, and Israel mine inheritance.
Geneva Bible, 1599 Edition. Published by Tolle Lege Press. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations in articles, reviews, and broadcasts.
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