Isaiah 19 NOW IT’S EGYPT’S TURN Egypt, the nation where Jews had been slaves for four hundred years, was hated by the Israelis and the feeling was mutual. When Judah was considering making an alliance with Egypt, Isaiah warned against that because God would deal with Assyria according to His timetable. Egypt, like all nations was under the eye of God and His sovereign control of events, nations and people, must yield to Him ultimately. This “burden,” “oracle,” or prophecy concerning Egypt, opens with the Lord Himself coming in judgment on that nation. God is pictured coming from heaven on a chariot to deal with the guilty nation of Egypt that was going to reap what they had sown.
At the time of Isaiah’s prophecy, Egypt and Israel were outwardly allies, but when Ahaz and Hezekiah called for help against the Assyrians, Egypt did not come to their aid. Isaiah had warned them about that and it happened just as he had prophesied. God lost patience with Egypt and stepped in to deal with their deception, idolatry, evil spiritism, and superstition. To ignore the Lord God of Israel, was a serious sin. Every nation, every assembly of God’s people and every person should remember that God is the One to whom we are responsible. Unholy alliances between those who fear God and those who hate God will always lead to divine intervention and holy justice carried out.
God initiated civil war as a means of getting the attention of the Egyptians to look away from their false deities like the bull, the crocodile, the cat and other animals and even the sun. Open fighting between the Libyans and Ethiopians weakened the nation. The whole nation of Egypt was affected as not only ethnic groups turned on each other, but families, neighbors, communities and authorities turned against each other all over the country. It was a civil war that engulfed everyone. They looked to their false gods and evil spirits for help, but of course they are powerless. The Assyrians though, were not powerless and took rule over the nation for nineteen years.
To treat the teaching of a holy God who rules over the affairs of men as if He doesn’t even exist, will end in divine justice being carried out, even if there is a period of grace offered so that repentance can take place. “God is longsuffering to us-ward; not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” Self-will in leaders leads to the same in those they lead. Hardness of heart is often transmitted by attitude towards those who are under the leadership or authority of the austere father, elder or government leader.
There was also a drought in Egypt to the extent the Nile River didn’t overflow and water the land where crops are grown that sustained the people. Agriculture production stopped. The fish that was in the river were gone. Businesses that depended on the water of the river, like the production of linen from flax and whatever other industries there were, stopped also. Economic ruin followed and devastation of both business and confusion in government left the whole nation floundering and helpless. Internally they were without wisdom and guidance, and externally they were being threatened by the Assyrians.
Instead of wise counsel and understanding from people who were noted for their wisdom, the Egyptian leadership was foolish and deceived. True wisdom is from above. God is the source of all we need to lead, counsel and instruct the people of God. The entrance of God’s word into our hearts and minds gives understanding to us that is beyond human intelligence and understanding. When we are uncertain as to how to proceed with a matter, or are confused as to the methodology we need to use, we are able to ask God for the wisdom we need. “If any man lack wisdom, let Him ask of God who giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” Education and wisdom are two different things.
There was a bright future predicted for Egypt, but before that would come Nebuchadnezzar would invade Egypt to get the Jews who had taken refuge there. There was no way out of the national problems that could be found, but the Egyptians still refused to turn to the Lord God of Israel who they had despised and rejected. A godless system with no fear of God or respect for God, will not survive. Unbelief and no righteous moral standards of conduct, undermine integrity. Without integrity, justice cannot prevail. When chaos develops, civil war follows. Civil war brings devastation and annihilation.
The Lord used Alexander the great and the Greeks to deliver them from Persian aggression temporarily. At the last of this chapter we look into the future and can see that there will be a time when Egypt will recognize divine intervention. The attitude of the Egyptians to Israel will change and they will even worship the Lord in the city of the sun, Heliopolis. Whether the altar spoken of is an actual altar or a reference to the worship of the Lord, I don’t know, but the fact of the nation having such a change toward the Lord is nothing short of miraculous. The state of nations and their citizens will continue to get worse until the Lord returns. Even now since Israel became a recognized nation, and many Jews are returning to the land of their forefathers, Egypt and other Middle East nations are united in opposition against Israel, but are weak as individual nations.
There are some religious groups that consider the pyramids of Egypt as an altar erected toward God. The Jehovah’s Witnesses are one such group, but all of that is only vain conjecture. All those great piles of stone are fantastic feats of ancient engineering, but they are only impressive tombs of past leaders and nothing more. There is much I don’t understand about these prophecies of Isaiah, but we do know the day will come when Egypt with all its past anti- Semitic bias, will be blessed by our Lord Jesus Christ as the Savior. There was a real move of God in Egypt during the time of the early church, and that nation will be again be in harmony with Israel, and the Middle East conflicts will cease when Christ reigns. Egyptians and Assyrians will have friendly relations with Israel. Jews and Gentiles will both be blessed by the God in the kingdom yet in the future.