The Book of the Prophet Isaiah

⭑ Catholic Public Domain :: World English Bible Catholic ⭑

- Chapter 19 -

The burden of Egypt. Behold, the Lord will ascend upon a lofty cloud, and he will enter into Egypt, and the false images of Egypt will be moved before his face, and the heart of Egypt will waste away in its midst.

And I will cause Egyptian to rush against Egyptian. And they will fight: a man against his brother, and a man against his friend, city against city, kingdom against kingdom.

And the spirit of Egypt will be ruptured to its very core. And I will cast down their plan violently. And they will seek answers from their false images, and their diviners, and those led by demons, and their seers.(a)

And I will deliver Egypt into the hand of cruel masters, and a strong king will dominate them, says the Lord, the God of hosts.

And the waters of the sea will dry up, and the river will be desolate and dry.

And the rivers will fail. The streams of its banks will diminish and dry up. The reed and the bulrush will wither away.

The channel of the river will be stripped down to its source, and everything irrigated by it will dry up and wither and be no more.

And the fishermen will grieve. And all who cast a hook into the river will mourn. And those who cast a net upon the surface of its waters will languish.

Those who work with linen, combing and weaving fine textiles, will be confounded.

And its irrigated places will begin to fail, with all those who make pools to take fish.

The leaders of Tanis are foolish. The wise counselors of Pharaoh have given foolish counsel. How can you say to Pharaoh: “I am the son of wise men, the son of the kings of antiquity?”

Where are your wise men now? Let them announce it to you, and let them reveal what the Lord of hosts intends for Egypt.

The leaders of Tanis have become foolish. The leaders of Memphis have decayed. They have deceived Egypt, the corner of its people.

The Lord has mixed a spirit of giddiness into its midst. And they have caused Egypt to err in all its works, like a drunken man who staggers and vomits.

And there will be no work for Egypt that would produce a head or a tail, one who bows down or one who refrains from bowing down.

A Blessing upon the Earth

In that day, Egypt will be like women, and they will be stupefied and fearful before the presence of the shaking hand of the Lord of hosts, the hand which he will move over them.

And the land of Judah will be a dread to Egypt. Everyone who thinks about it will be terrified before the presence of the plan of the Lord of hosts, the plan which he has decided concerning them.

In that day, there will be five cities in the land of Egypt which speak the language of Canaan, and which swear by the Lord of hosts. One will be called the City of the Sun.

In that day, there will be an altar of the Lord in the midst of the land of Egypt and a monument of the Lord beside its borders.

This shall be a sign and a testimony to the Lord of hosts in the land of Egypt. For they will cry out to the Lord before the face of the tribulation, and he will send them a savior and a defender who will free them.(b)

And the Lord will be acknowledged by Egypt, and the Egyptians will recognize the Lord in that day, and they will worship him with sacrifices and gifts. And they will make vows to the Lord, and they will fulfill them.

And the Lord will strike Egypt with a scourge, and he will heal them. And they will return to the Lord. And he will be placated toward them, and he will heal them.

In that day, there will be a way from Egypt to the Assyrians, and the Assyrian will enter into Egypt, and the Egyptian will be with the Assyrians, and the Egyptians will serve Assur.

In that day, will Israel be the third to the Egyptian and the Assyrian, a blessing in the midst of the earth,

which the Lord of hosts has blessed, saying: Blessed be my people of Egypt, and the work of my hands for the Assyrian, but Israel is my inheritance.

Footnotes

(a)19:3 The term ‘pythones’ refers to someone who is a seer by means of demonic assistance, like the false visionaries and false seers of the present time.(Conte)

(b)19:20 This last part could refer to the great Catholic monarch, who reigns after the first part of the tribulation.(Conte)

The burden of Egypt. “Behold, the LORD rides on a swift cloud, and comes to Egypt. The idols of Egypt will tremble at his presence; and the heart of Egypt will melt within it.

I will stir up the Egyptians against the Egyptians, and they will fight everyone against his brother, and everyone against his neighbor; city against city, and kingdom against kingdom.

The spirit of the Egyptians will fail within them. I will destroy their counsel. They will seek the idols, the charmers, those who have familiar spirits, and the wizards.

I will give over the Egyptians into the hand of a cruel lord. A fierce king will rule over them,” says the Lord, the LORD of Armies.

The waters will fail from the sea, and the river will be wasted and become dry.

The rivers will become foul. The streams of Egypt will be diminished and dried up. The reeds and flags will wither away.

The meadows by the Nile, by the brink of the Nile, and all the sown fields of the Nile, will become dry, be driven away, and be no more.

The fishermen will lament, and all those who fish in the Nile will mourn, and those who spread nets on the waters will languish.

Moreover those who work in combed flax, and those who weave white cloth, will be confounded.

The pillars will be broken in pieces. All those who work for hire will be grieved in soul.

The princes of Zoan are utterly foolish. The counsel of the wisest counselors of Pharaoh has become stupid. How do you say to Pharaoh, “I am the son of the wise, the son of ancient kings”?

Where then are your wise men? Let them tell you now; and let them know what the LORD of Armies has purposed concerning Egypt.

The princes of Zoan have become fools. The princes of Memphis are deceived. They have caused Egypt to go astray, those who are the cornerstone of her tribes.

The LORD has mixed a spirit of perverseness in the middle of her; and they have caused Egypt to go astray in all of its works, like a drunken man staggers in his vomit.

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

A Blessing upon the Earth

In that day the Egyptians will be like women. They will tremble and fear because of the shaking of the LORD of Armies’s hand, which he shakes over them.

The land of Judah will become a terror to Egypt. Everyone to whom mention is made of it will be afraid, because of the plans of the LORD of Armies, which he determines against it.

In that day, there will be five cities in the land of Egypt that speak the language of Canaan, and swear to the LORD of Armies. One will be called “The city of destruction.”

In that day, there will be an altar to the LORD in the middle of the land of Egypt, and a pillar to the LORD at its border.

It will be for a sign and for a witness to the LORD of Armies in the land of Egypt; for they will cry to the LORD because of oppressors, and he will send them a savior and a defender, and he will deliver them.

The LORD will be known to Egypt, and the Egyptians will know the LORD in that day. Yes, they will worship with sacrifice and offering, and will vow a vow to the LORD, and will perform it.

The LORD will strike Egypt, striking and healing. They will return to the LORD, and he will be entreated by them, and will heal them.

In that day there will be a highway out of Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrian shall come into Egypt, and the Egyptian into Assyria; and the Egyptians will worship with the Assyrians.

In that day, Israel will be the third with Egypt and with Assyria, a blessing within the earth;

because the LORD of Armies has blessed them, saying, “Blessed be Egypt my people, Assyria the work of my hands, and Israel my inheritance.”