Isaiah 19

1 The burden of Egypt. Behold, Jehovah rideth upon a swift cloud, and cometh to Egypt; and the idols of Egypt are moved at his presence, and the heart of Egypt melteth in the midst of it.

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.

2 And I will incite the Egyptians against the Egyptians; and they shall fight every one against his brother, and every one against his neighbour; city against city, kingdom against kingdom.

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

3 And the spirit of Egypt shall fail in the midst of it, and I will destroy the counsel thereof; and they shall seek unto the idols and unto the conjurers, and unto the necromancers, and unto the soothsayers.

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.

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, Jehovah of hosts.

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

5 And the waters shall fail from the sea, and the river shall be wasted and dried up;

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

6 and the rivers shall stink, and the streams of Egypt shall be diminished and drain away: the reeds and sedges shall wither.

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

7 The meadows by the Nile, on the banks of the Nile, and everything sown by the Nile, shall be dried up, be driven away, and be no [more].

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.

8 And the fishers shall mourn, and all they that cast fish-hook into the Nile shall lament, and they that spread net upon the waters shall languish.

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.

9 And they that work in fine flax, and they that weave white stuffs shall be ashamed.

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

10 And her pillars shall be broken in pieces, and all workers for hire shall be sad of soul.

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

11 They are but fools, the princes of Zoan, the wise counsellors of Pharaoh: [their] counsel is become senseless. How say ye unto Pharaoh, I am the son of the wise, the son of ancient kings?

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”?

12 Where are they then, thy wise [men]? Let them now tell thee, and let them make known what Jehovah of hosts hath purposed upon Egypt.

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

13 The princes of Zoan are become foolish, the princes of Noph are deceived; and the corner-stones of its tribes have caused Egypt to err.

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

14 Jehovah hath mingled a spirit of perverseness in the midst thereof; and they have caused Egypt to err in every work thereof, as a drunkard staggereth in his vomit.

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.

15 Neither shall there be any work for Egypt, which the head or tail, palm-branch or rush, may do.

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

16 In that day shall Egypt be like unto women; and it shall tremble and fear because of the shaking of the hand of Jehovah of hosts, which he shaketh over it.

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.

17 And the land of Judah shall be a dismay unto Egypt: every one that thinketh of it shall be afraid for himself, because of the counsel of Jehovah of hosts, which he hath purposed against it.

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.

18 In that day shall there be five cities in the land of Egypt speaking the language of Canaan, and swearing by Jehovah of hosts: one shall be called, The city of Heres.

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.

19 In that day shall there be an altar to Jehovah in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar at the border thereof to Jehovah:

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.

20 and it shall be for a sign and for a witness to Jehovah of hosts in the land of Egypt; for they shall cry unto Jehovah because of the oppressors, and he will send them a saviour and defender, who shall deliver them.

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.

21 And Jehovah shall be known to the Egyptians, and the Egyptians shall know Jehovah in that day, and shall serve with sacrifice and oblation; and they shall vow a vow unto Jehovah, and perform it.

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.

22 And Jehovah will smite Egypt; he will smite and heal: and they shall return to Jehovah, and he will be entreated of them, and will heal them.

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.

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 Egypt shall serve with Assyria.

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.

24 In that day shall Israel be the third with Egypt and with Assyria, a blessing in the midst of the earth;

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

25 whom Jehovah of hosts will bless, saying, Blessed be Egypt my people, and Assyria the work of my hands, and Israel mine inheritance!

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