Bible Commentaries

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

Isaiah 19

Introduction

1  The confusion of Egypt.
11  The foolishness of their princes.
18  The calling of Egypt into the church.
23  The covenant of Egypt, Assyria, and Israel.
Verse 1

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.
Egypt
Jeremiah 25:19, 43:8-13, 44:29,30, 46:1-28, Ezekiel 29:1-32, Joel 3:19, Zechariah 10:11, 14:18
rideth
Deuteronomy 33:26, Psalms 18:10-12, 68:4,33,34, 104:34, Matthew 26:64,65, Revelation 1:7
the idols
21:9, 46:1,2, Exodus 12:12, 1 Samuel 5:2-4, Jeremiah 43:12, 46:25, 50:2, 51:44, Ezekiel 30:13
the heart
16, Exodus 15:14-16, Joshua 2:9,11,24, Jeremiah 46:5,15,16
Verse 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.
I will
13,14, 9:21, Judges 7:22, 9:23, 1 Samuel 14:16,20, 2 Chronicles 20:22,23, Ezekiel 38:21, Matthew 12:25, Revelation 17:12-17
set
Heb. mingle.
Verse 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.
the spirit
This is a prophecy of what took place in Egypt about twenty-two years after the destruction of Sennacherib's army; when, upon the death of Tirhakah, (B.C. 688,) not being able to settle about the succession, they continued for two years in a state of anarchy, confusion, and civil wars; which was followed by the tyranny of twelve princes, who, dividing the country among them, governed it for fifteen years; and at last, by the sole dominion of Psammiticus, which he held for fifty-four years.
1,11-13, 57:16, 1 Samuel 25:37, Psalms 76:12, Jeremiah 46:15, Ezekiel 21:7, 22:14
fail
Heb. be emptied. and I.
14:27, 2 Samuel 15:31, 17:14,23, 2 Chronicles 25:16-20, Job 5:12,13, Proverbs 21:30, 1 Corinthians 3:19,20
destroy
Heb. swallow up.
Psalms 107:27; *marg:
and they
8:19, 15:2, 44:25, 47:12, 1 Chronicles 10:13, Daniel 2:2, 4:6,7, 5:7
Verse 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.
give over
or, shut up.
1 Samuel 23:7, Psalms 31:8
a cruel lord
Rather, "cruel lords," agreeable to the LXX., Syriac, Vulgate, and the original adonim kasheh. Nebuchadnezzar, who first conquered and ravaged Egypt, B.C. 573, and the following year; and then, not only his successors, but Cambyses, (who invaded Egypt, B.C. 526,) the son of Cyrus, and the whole succession of Persian kings till the time of Alexander, who were in general hard masters, and grievously oppressed the country.
2, 20:4, Jeremiah 46:26, Ezekiel 29:19
Verse 5

And the waters shall fail from the sea, and the river shall be wasted and dried up.
Jeremiah 51:36, Ezekiel 30:12, Zechariah 10:11, 14:18
Verse 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.
and the
37:25, 2 Kings 19:24
the reeds
18:2, Exodus 2:3, Job 8:11
Verse 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.
every
32:20, Jeremiah 14:4, Ezekiel 19:13, Joel 1:17,18
be no more
Heb. shall not be.
Verse 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.
Exodus 7:21, Numbers 11:5, Ezekiel 47:10, Habakkuk 1:15
Verse 9

Moreover they that work in fine flax, and they that weave networks, shall be confounded.
work
1 Kings 10:28, Proverbs 7:16, Ezekiel 27:7
net works
or, white works.
Verse 10

And they shall be broken in the purposes thereof, all that make sluices and ponds for fish.
purposes
Heb. foundations. make.
Exodus 7:19, 8:5, Deuteronomy 11:10
for fish
or, of living things.
Verse 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?
the princes
3,13, 29:14, 44:25, Job 5:12,13, 12:17, Psalms 33:10, Jeremiah 49:7, Ezekiel 7:26, 1 Corinthians 1:19,20
Zoan
30:4, Numbers 13:22, Psalms 78:12,43, Ezekiel 30:14
brutish
Psalms 73:22, 92:6, Proverbs 30:2, Jeremiah 10:14,21
I am
Genesis 41:38,39, 1 Kings 4:30, Acts 7:22
Verse 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.
where are thy
5:21, 47:10-13, Judges 9:38, Jeremiah 2:28, 1 Corinthians 1:20
let them
40:13,14, 41:22,23, 44:7, Job 11:6,7, Romans 11:33,34
Verse 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.
princes of Zoan
11, Romans 1:22
Noph
Jeremiah 2:16, 46:14,19, Ezekiel 30:13
stay
or, governors. Heb. corners.
Numbers 24:17, 1 Samuel 14:38; *marg:; Zechariah 10:4, 1 Peter 2:7
Verse 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.
hath mingled
2, 29:10,14, 47:10,11, 1 Kings 22:20-23, Job 12:16, Ezekiel 14:7-9, 2 Thessalonians 2:11
perverse spirit
Heb. spirit of perverseness. as a.
28:7,8, 29:9, Job 12:25, Jeremiah 25:15,16,27, 48:26
Verse 15

Neither shall there be any work for Egypt, which the head or tail, branch or rush, may do.
9:14,15, Psalms 128:2, Proverbs 14:23, Habakkuk 3:17, Haggai 1:11, 1 Thessalonians 4:11,12
Verse 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.
like
30:17, Psalms 48:6, Jeremiah 30:5-7, 50:37, 51:30, Nahum 3:13
the shaking
10:32, 11:15, 30:30-32, Zechariah 2:9
Verse 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.
the land
36:1, Jeremiah 25:19,27-31, 43:8-13, 44:28-30, Ezekiel 29:6,7
because
14:24,26,27, 20:2-5, 46:10,11, Daniel 4:35
Verse 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.
that day
19,21, 2:11, Zechariah 2:11
shall five
11:11, 27:13, Psalms 68:31
speak
Zephaniah 3:9
language
Heb. lip.
Genesis 11:1
and swear
45:23,24, Deuteronomy 10:20, Nehemiah 10:29, Jeremiah 12:16
destruction
Heb. Heres, or, the sun. Instead of heres, "destruction," which is also the reading of Aquila, Theodotion, and the Syriac, fifteen MSS. and seven editions have cheres, "the sun;" agreeable to Symmachus, the Arabic, and Vulagte; while the Chaldee takes in both readings; and the LXX. reads [polis asedek] "the city of righteousness," a name apparently contrived by the party of Onias, to give credit to his temple. As, however, heres in Arabic signifies a lion, Conrad Ikenius is of opinion that the place here mentioned is not Heliopolis, as is commonly supposed, but Leontopolis in the Heliopolitan nome, as it is termed in the letter of Onias to Ptolemy. The whole passage, from this verse to the end, contains a general intimation of the propagation of the knowledge of the true God in Egypt and Syria, under the successors of Alexander, and the early reception of the gospel in the same countries.
Verse 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.
66:23, Genesis 12:7, 28:18, Exodus 24:4, Joshua 22:10,26, Zechariah 6:15, Hebrews 13:10
Verse 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.
for a
55:13, Joshua 4:20,21, 22:27,28,34, 24:26,27
they shall
4, 20:4, 52:5, Exodus 2:23, 3:7, 2 Kings 13:4,5, Psalms 50:15, James 5:4
he shall send
37:36, 45:21,22, Luke 2:11, Titus 2:13
Verse 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.
Lord shall
11:9, 37:20, 55:5, 1 Samuel 17:46, 1 Kings 8:43, Psalms 67:2, 98:2,3, Habakkuk 2:14, John 17:3, Galatians 4:8,9
and shall
Zephaniah 3:10, Malachi 1:11, John 4:21-24, Romans 15:27,28, 1 Peter 2:5,9
shall vow
44:5, Ecclesiastes 5:4, Jonah 1:16
Verse 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.
he shall smite
1-15, Deuteronomy 32:39, Job 5:18, Hosea 5:15, 6:2, Hebrews 12:11
they shall
6:10, 55:7, Hosea 14:1, Amos 4:6-12, Acts 26:17-20, 28:26,27
Verse 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.
11:16, 35:8-10, 40:3-5, Ephesians 2:18-22, 3:6-8
Verse 24

In that day shall Israel be the third with Egypt and with Assyria, even a blessing in the midst of the land:
shall
6:13, 49:6,22, 65:8,22, 66:12,19-21, Deuteronomy 32:43, Psalms 117:1,2, Zechariah 2:10,11, 8:20-23, Luke 2:32, Romans 10:11-13, 15:9-12,27
a blessing
65:8, Genesis 12:2, Ezekiel 34:26, Zechariah 8:13, Galatians 3:14
Verse 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.
the Lord
61:9, 65:23, Numbers 6:24,27, 24:1, Psalms 67:6,7, 115:15, Ephesians 1:3
Blessed
29:23, Psalms 100:3, 138:8, Hosea 2:23, Romans 3:29, 9:24,25, Galatians 6:15, Ephesians 2:10, Philippians 1:6, Colossians 3:10,11, 1 Peter 2:10
and Israel
Deuteronomy 32:9

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