Isaiah 19:1 says, 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. Isaiah next issued the warning of God to Egypt. Egypt had long been a threat to Israel, keeping the people of Israel enslaved. Still, many of the people of Israel would have returned to Egypt instead of following God faithfully, and over the years many seemed to have done so. We have been set free from everything that has power over us spiritually as followers of Christ, but we often want to return to being under the power of sin. God is one day going to remove all sin from His kingdom, so we need to remove it from our lives today by following the leadership of the Holy Spirit, even if times get rough.
Verse two adds, 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. Isaiah said that God was going to cause the Egyptians to fight amongst themselves, with brother fighting brother. This sounds a lot like the Civil War in the United States, when we attempted to destroy one another. Egypt was not going to need any foreign enemy to weaken them, because they were going to weaken themselves. Still, many of the people of Israel looked to them for protection, even when they couldn’t protect themselves. We don’t have to have an enemy come to us as the church today to weaken us if we are at war with one another. Yet, we should never look to anyone other than God to save and empower us.
Verse three continues, 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. Isaiah said that when this happened, the spirit of Egypt would fail them. When they were disheartened this way, they would look to idols and false prophets for answers. People are still looking anywhere and everywhere but to God for answers during life’s struggles today. The answer will never be found anywhere but in putting our faith in God by accepting Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord.
Verse four states 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. Isaiah said that the Egyptians had placed themselves in the hands of cruel rulers. We need to look to God for guidance when we elect our leaders today, and we need to make those who are following His laws and commandments most closely the ones we support. They may say good things about what we want, but if it is not what God’s law teaches, then we should look to someone else to put in a position of power. At times, there may not be a good choice, but we must follow the leadership of the Holy Spirit when we choose.
Verse five adds, And the waters shall fail from the sea, and the river shall be wasted and dried up. Even the things of nature were going to go against the people of Egypt. The water in the sea would fail them and their rivers would be dried up. The Nile had been a source of pride for the Egyptians, but even it was going to fail them. I sometimes wonder when we are having great droughts in America if God might be sending us a warning that He is not pleased with us, especially if they become more and more common.
Verse six continues, 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. All the abundance of life around the Nile was going to wither and die. The river had also been a source of defense for Egypt, but that was no longer going to be the case. As Christians, our source of strength is the Holy Spirit, and if we turn away from God, we cannot assume that He will still defend us.
Verse seven concludes, 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. Isaiah said that everything around the rivers would be dried up and wither away. Everything we depend on as Christians other than what God blesses us with when we are obedient to Him will one day wither and die. We can never put our faith in the things of this world instead of in God and expect them to last.
Verse eight says, 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. Isaiah said that those who made their living by fishing, whether just for their own needs or to sell fish to others, would languish because there would be no fish to catch. People may live highly successful lives today without putting their faith in God, but when His judgment comes one day, they will find themselves without any comfort. Hell is a real place, and if anyone does not put his or her faith in Jesus Christ, that person will find themself there forever.
Verse nine adds, Moreover they that work in fine flax, and they that weave networks, shall be confounded. Likewise, those who made a living by working with fine flax, or cloth would find themselves without any materials to work with. Matthew Henry points out that Egypt was famous for its trade in linens, but this was going to end. We may take pride in things we produce today, but we are not living according to God's word and calling, one day they will amount to nothing.
Verse ten continues, And they shall be broken in the purposes thereof, all that make sluices and ponds for fish. This is a reference to those who had filled ponds with fish so they wouldn’t have to rely on the river for their fish. We may cut off our dependence on others to meet our needs, but if we are not defendant on God to supply them, one day all that we have built up in this world, no matter how smart it may make us look, will come to nothing.
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