Isaiah 19

1 This is the burden against Egypt: Behold, the LORD rides on a swift cloud; He is coming to Egypt. The idols of Egypt will tremble before Him, and the hearts of the Egyptians will melt within them.

The oracle on Egypt: Lo! Yahweh, riding upon a swift cloud, and he will enter Egypt, And the idols of Egypt shall shake at his presence, And, the heart of Egypt, shall melt within him;

2 “So I will incite Egyptian against Egyptian; brother will fight against brother, neighbor against neighbor, city against city, and kingdom against kingdom.

And I will stir up Egyptians against Egyptians, And they shall fight—Every one against his brother and Every one against his neighbour, —City against city, and Kingdom against kingdom.

3 Then the spirit of the Egyptians will be emptied out from among them, and I will frustrate their plans, so that they will resort to idols and spirits of the dead, to mediums and spiritists.

And the spirit of Egypt, shall vanish, within them, Yea the sagacity thereof, will I swallow up, —And they will seek Unto the idols and Unto them that mutter, and Unto them that have familiar spirits, and Unto the wizards;

4 I will deliver the Egyptians into the hands of harsh masters, and a fierce king will rule over them,”

And I will deliver the Egyptians into the hand of a cruel lord, —And a fierce king shall rule over them, Declareth the Lord, Yahweh of hosts.

5 The waters of the Nile will dry up, and the riverbed will be parched and empty.

And the waters shall be dried up from the great stream, —And the River, shall waste and be dry;

6 The canals will stink; the streams of Egypt will trickle and dry up; the reeds and rushes will wither.

And rivers, shall stink, The canals of Egypt be shallow and waste, Reed and rush, be withered;

7 The bulrushes by the Nile, by the mouth of the river, and all the fields sown along the Nile, will wither, blow away, and be no more.

The meadows by the Nile, by the mouth of the Nile. And all that is sown in the Nile, Shall be dry, driven away, and not be!

8 Then the fishermen will mourn, all who cast a hook into the Nile will lament, and those who spread nets on the waters will pine away.

Then shall the fishers, lament, And all shall mourn who cast in the Nile a hook, —And they who spread nets on the face of the waters shall languish;

9 The workers in flax will be dismayed, and the weavers of fine linen will turn pale.

Then shall turn pale The workers in combed flax, —and The weavers of white linen;

10 The workers in cloth will be dejected, and all the hired workers will be sick at heart.

Then shall her pillars be crushed, —All who make wages, be bowed down in soul.

11 The princes of Zoan are mere fools; Pharaoh’s wise counselors give senseless advice. How can you say to Pharaoh, “I am one of the wise, a son of eastern kings”?

Surely, foolish, are the princes of Zoan, the wisest counsellors of Pharaoh, in counsel are brutish, —How can ye say unto Pharaoh, Son of the wise, am I Son of the kings of olden time?

12 Where are your wise men now? Let them tell you and reveal what the LORD of Hosts has planned against Egypt.

Where then are thy wise men? Pray let them tell thee! And let them know what Yahweh of hosts hath purposed on Egypt!

13 The princes of Zoan have become fools; the princes of Memphis are deceived. The cornerstones of her tribes have led Egypt astray.

Doting are the princes of Zoan, Deceived are the princes of Noph: They who are the corner-stone of her tribes, have led Egypt astray.

14 The LORD has poured into her a spirit of confusion. Egypt has been led astray in all she does, as a drunkard staggers through his own vomit.

Yahweh, hath infused in her midst, a spirit of perverseness, —And they have led Egypt astray into all his own doings, As a drunken man staggereth into his own vomit;

15 There is nothing Egypt can do— head or tail, palm or reed.

And Egypt shall have nothing which can be done, Which head or tail, palm-top or rush, can do!

16 In that day the Egyptians will be like women. They will tremble with fear beneath the uplifted hand of the LORD of Hosts, when He brandishes it against them.

In that day, shall Egypt be like unto women, —And shall start and tremble because of the brandishing of the hand of Yahweh of hosts, which he is about to brandish over it.

17 The land of Judah will bring terror to Egypt; whenever Judah is mentioned, Egypt will tremble over what the LORD of Hosts has planned against it.

Then shall the soil of Judah become, to Egypt, a terror; Every one to whom it is mentioned, will tremble, —Because of the purpose of Yahweh of hosts, which he is purposing against it.

18 In that day five cities in the land of Egypt will speak the language of Canaan and swear allegiance to the LORD of Hosts. One of them will be called the City of the Sun.

In that day, shall there be five cities in the land of Egypt Speaking the language of Canaan, And swearing unto Yahweh of hosts, —The city of destruction, shall be the name of one!

19 In that day there will be an altar to the LORD in the center of the land of Egypt, and a pillar to the LORD near her border.

In that day, shall there be An altar unto Yahweh, in the midst of the land of Egypt, —And a pillar near the boundary thereof unto Yahweh;

20 It will be a sign and a witness to the LORD of Hosts in the land of Egypt. When they cry out to the LORD because of their oppressors, He will send them a savior and defender to rescue them.

And it shall become a sign and a witness unto Yahweh of hosts in the land of Egypt, —For they will make outcry unto Yahweh, because of oppressors, That he would send them a saviour—and a great one Then will he deliver them.

21 The LORD will make Himself known to Egypt, and on that day Egypt will acknowledge the LORD. They will worship with sacrifices and offerings; they will make vows to the LORD and fulfill them.

Then will, Yahweh, make himself known, to the Egyptians, So shall the Egyptians know, Yahweh, in that day, —And they will offer a sacrifice and a present And will vow a vow unto Yahweh and will perform.

22 And the LORD will strike Egypt with a plague; He will strike them but heal them. They will turn to the LORD, and He will hear their prayers and heal them.

And Yahweh, will plague Egypt, plague and heal, —And they will turn unto Yahweh And he will be entreated of them and will heal them.

23 In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria. The Assyrians will go to Egypt, and the Egyptians to Assyria. The Egyptians and Assyrians will worship together.

In that day, shall there be a highway. from Egypt to Assyria, And, the Assyrians, shall come into Egypt, And, the Egyptians, into Assyria; And, the Egyptians shall serve, with the Assyrians.

24 In that day Israel will join a three-party alliance with Egypt and Assyria—a blessing upon the earth.

In that day, shall, Israel, be, a third, with Egypt and with Assyria, —A blessing in the midst of the earth:

25 The LORD of Hosts will bless them, saying, “Blessed be Egypt My people, Assyria My handiwork, and Israel My inheritance.”

Whom Yahweh of hosts hath blessed saying, —Blessed, be My people—the Egyptians, And the work of my hands—the Assyrians, And mine own inheritance—Israel.