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Isaiah 19
The Voice
Isaiah 19
The Voice
19 A message about Egypt:
The Eternal One will come winging in to Egypt
On a swiftly moving cloud, making her idols quake.
The Egyptians themselves will lose heart in the face of God.
2, 4 The Lord, the Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies, says,
Eternal One: I will subject the Egyptians to oppressive forces
and heartless leadership of a dictator-king.
I will make them turn against each other,
Egyptian against Egyptian, a civil war,
Right down to the houses within a neighborhood—
city against city, district against district.[a]
3 They’ll lose all courage and I’ll frustrate their plans.
They’ll seek the advice of long dead ancestors and empty idols,
mediums and fortune-tellers.
But it is I who determine their fate.
5-7 Egypt’s waterways and everything that lives in them will dry up and die—
saltwater and fresh, standing pools and running streams will all evaporate.
All the reeds and rushes along the river’s edge will wither and die and rot away.
All the crops sown by the Nile will turn brittle and dry,
to be blown away—completely away—by sultry winds.
The people who depend on these waters for their livelihood will see their lives and future evaporate before them.
8 Fishermen who set their lines and cast their nets into the Nile
will languish and mourn.
9 Weavers who comb flax into spinning fibers
and produce linen will be deep in despair.
10 The solid citizens of Egypt will be crushed,
and all who work hard for a day’s wage will be deeply distressed.
11 The leaders of Zoan are fools!
And those who count themselves among the Pharaoh’s smartest counselors
Base their advice on bizarre flights of fancy.
How can you tell Pharaoh,
“I am among the long line of Egypt’s wise and an heir of ancient kings”?
12 I certainly don’t see any such sages. If they’re here,
they should be able to tell you
what the Eternal One, Commander of heavenly armies, has in store for Egypt.
13 The elite, the nobles from the northern delta south to bustling Memphis,
have been overconfident, deluded fools.
These cornerstones of society have led Egypt in the wrong direction,
and Egypt pays the price.
14 The Eternal has mixed them up and confused them.
God has frustrated Egypt’s efforts in everything.
Weaving and sick like an everyday drunk.
15 There will be nothing left for Egypt to do.
Nobody—no head, no tail, no noble palm, no lowly reed—
will be able to help Egypt.
16 Then, in that day, when the Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies, raises His hand and displays His power, the Egyptians will cower like frightened women. 17 Egypt will even be terrified of our little Judah. Just the word “Judah” will set everyone trembling and shaking because of what the Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies, plans to do against them.
18 In that day, five cities in Egypt, one of which is called the city of destruction,[b] will adopt the language we speak in Canaan and swear to remain faithful to the Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies.
19 When that day arrives, there will be an altar for rituals, marking the Eternal’s sacred space right there in the middle of Egypt, and a pillar erected to Him at its border. 20 These will serve to notify everyone that the Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies, is present; God can and will be in Egypt. And if things get bad for them, the Eternal will respond to their cries for help by sending someone—a liberator and defender—to deliver them from their oppressors. 21 The Eternal will make sure the Egyptians know Him. They will know and worship Him with gifts and praise, solemn promises and offerings. 22 After all God’s disciplining action, the Eternal will take them back with gentle care. After His punishment, there will be healing; the Egyptians will turn to Him, and He will hear and heal them.
Though Egypt and Assyria are mortal enemies, God is about to do something new for them both. The God of peace always seeks to make peace among the nations.
23 When that day arrives, there will be a road connecting Egypt to Assyria and people of both nations will travel it to worship together, side-by-side. 24 Our land of Israel, through which that road travels, will then be allied with these other great nations, and Israel will be a whole-earth blessing, the hub of proper worship. 25 The Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies, declares such blessing:
Eternal One: Egypt, too, shall be blessed and called “My people” and Assyria “My doing,” because I made it. Israel, of course, is simply Mine—now as before and as ever will be—“My heritage.”
Isaiah 19
New International Version
Isaiah 19
New International Version
A Prophecy Against Egypt
19 A prophecy(A) against Egypt:(B)
See, the Lord rides on a swift cloud(C)
and is coming to Egypt.
The idols of Egypt tremble before him,
and the hearts of the Egyptians melt(D) with fear.
2 “I will stir up Egyptian against Egyptian—
brother will fight against brother,(E)
neighbor against neighbor,
city against city,
kingdom against kingdom.(F)
3 The Egyptians will lose heart,(G)
and I will bring their plans(H) to nothing;(I)
they will consult the idols and the spirits of the dead,
the mediums and the spiritists.(J)
4 I will hand the Egyptians over
to the power of a cruel master,
and a fierce king(K) will rule over them,”
declares the Lord, the Lord Almighty.
5 The waters of the river will dry up,(L)
and the riverbed will be parched and dry.(M)
6 The canals will stink;(N)
the streams of Egypt will dwindle and dry up.(O)
The reeds(P) and rushes will wither,(Q)
7 also the plants(R) along the Nile,
at the mouth of the river.
Every sown field(S) along the Nile
will become parched, will blow away and be no more.(T)
8 The fishermen(U) will groan and lament,
all who cast hooks(V) into the Nile;
those who throw nets on the water
will pine away.
9 Those who work with combed flax(W) will despair,
the weavers of fine linen(X) will lose hope.
10 The workers in cloth will be dejected,
and all the wage earners will be sick at heart.
11 The officials of Zoan(Y) are nothing but fools;
the wise counselors(Z) of Pharaoh give senseless advice.(AA)
How can you say to Pharaoh,
“I am one of the wise men,(AB)
a disciple of the ancient kings”?
12 Where are your wise men(AC) now?
Let them show you and make known
what the Lord Almighty
has planned(AD) against Egypt.
13 The officials of Zoan(AE) have become fools,
the leaders of Memphis(AF) are deceived;
the cornerstones(AG) of her peoples
have led Egypt astray.
14 The Lord has poured into them
a spirit of dizziness;(AH)
they make Egypt stagger in all that she does,
as a drunkard staggers(AI) around in his vomit.
15 There is nothing Egypt can do—
head or tail, palm branch or reed.(AJ)
16 In that day(AK) the Egyptians will become weaklings.(AL) They will shudder with fear(AM) at the uplifted hand(AN) that the Lord Almighty raises against them. 17 And the land of Judah will bring terror to the Egyptians; everyone to whom Judah is mentioned will be terrified,(AO) because of what the Lord Almighty is planning(AP) against them.
18 In that day(AQ) five cities(AR) in Egypt will speak the language of Canaan and swear allegiance(AS) to the Lord Almighty. One of them will be called the City of the Sun.[a](AT)
19 In that day(AU) there will be an altar(AV) to the Lord in the heart of Egypt,(AW) and a monument(AX) to the Lord at its border. 20 It will be a sign and witness(AY) to the Lord Almighty in the land of Egypt. When they cry out to the Lord because of their oppressors, he will send them a savior(AZ) and defender, and he will rescue(BA) them. 21 So the Lord will make himself known to the Egyptians, and in that day they will acknowledge(BB) the Lord. They will worship(BC) with sacrifices and grain offerings; they will make vows to the Lord and keep them.(BD) 22 The Lord will strike(BE) Egypt with a plague;(BF) he will strike them and heal them. They will turn(BG) to the Lord, and he will respond to their pleas and heal(BH) them.
23 In that day(BI) there will be a highway(BJ) from Egypt to Assyria.(BK) The Assyrians will go to Egypt and the Egyptians to Assyria. The Egyptians and Assyrians will worship(BL) together. 24 In that day(BM) Israel will be the third, along with Egypt and Assyria,(BN) a blessing[b](BO) on the earth. 25 The Lord Almighty will bless(BP) them, saying, “Blessed be Egypt my people,(BQ) Assyria my handiwork,(BR) and Israel my inheritance.(BS)”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 19:18 Some manuscripts of the Masoretic Text, Dead Sea Scrolls, Symmachus and Vulgate; most manuscripts of the Masoretic Text City of Destruction
- Isaiah 19:24 Or Assyria, whose names will be used in blessings (see Gen. 48:20); or Assyria, who will be seen by others as blessed
The Voice (VOICE)
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
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