Isaiah 19
BBCIsaiah 19:1
- Judgment on Egypt (Chaps. 19, 20)19:1-3 When the LORD descends in judgment on Egypt, the idols . . . will totter and the people will panic. Civil war will break out and the government’s best brains will resort in vain to idols and various forms of spiritism (the charmers). 19:4-10 A cruel despot will rule the land. Severe drought will dry up the water supplies, causing crop failure, wiping out the fishing industry, closing up the textile mills, and bringing ruin to all segments of the population, whether leaders or common people. 19:11-15 Pharaoh’s best counselors, who lived in Zoan and Noph, will have no wisdom to cope with the situation. In fact, their advice has brought disaster on Egypt, so that the situation is now hopeless. The first fifteen verses have already been fulfilled. Following the death of Tirhakah, who was ruling Egypt at the time of Isaiah’s prophecy, the country was torn by civil strife. Egypt was split up into twelve kingdoms, all subject to Assyria. Finally the country was united again under Psammetichus, the “cruel master” of verse 4. The rest of the chapter is still unfulfilled. 19:16, 17 When God shakes His fist, the populace will shake with fear. The mere mention of Judah will cause the hearts of the Egyptians to sink. 19:18-20 But the land of Egypt is promised restoration also. Five cities will become centers for the worship of Jehovah, including Heliopolis (city of the Sun), also called the City of Destruction. There will be an altar to the LORD in the midst of the land, and a pillar to the LORD at its border, both of which will be witnesses to the Lord. Josephus tells us that the prophecy of verse 19 was fulfilled in 1 B.C. when Onias, the high priest, fleeing from Jerusalem, obtained permission to build an altar in Egypt. But the full meaning of the prophecy is undoubtedly millennial. 19:21, 22 God’s judgments on Egypt will succeed in bringing the people to worship Him. 19:23 A highway will pass from Egypt (through Israel) to Assyria with unrestricted passage. The nations will unite in the worship of Jehovah. 19:24, 25 Then Israel will be one of three with Egypt and Assyria, that is, they will form a triple alliance, enjoying the blessings of Christ’s kingdom. Note the repetition of “in that day” (vv. 16, 18, 19, 21, 23, 24).