Isaiah 31
31
Against the Egyptian Alliance
1Ah! Those who go down to Egypt for help,
who rely on horses;
Who put their trust in chariots because of their number,
and in horsemen because of their combined power,
But look not to the Holy One of Israel
nor seek the Lord!#Seek the Lord: a technical expression for seeking a prophetic or priestly oracle, similar to the expression “asking my counsel” in 30:2. The prophet complains that Judah has decided on its policy of alliance with Egypt without first consulting the Lord. #Is 5:12, 24; 18:2; 22:11; 29:15; 30:2; 36:6.
2Yet he too is wise and will bring disaster;
he will not turn from his threats.
He will rise up against the house of the wicked
and against those who help evildoers.#Is 28:21.
3The Egyptians are human beings, not God,
their horses flesh, not spirit;
When the Lord stretches forth his hand,
the helper shall stumble, the one helped shall fall,
and both of them shall perish together.#Ps 146:3–5.
4For thus says the Lord to me:
As a lion or its young
growling over the prey,
With a band of shepherds
assembled against it,
Is neither dismayed by their shouts
nor cowed by their noise,
So shall the Lord of hosts come down
to wage war upon Mount Zion, upon its height.#Hos 5:14; Am 1:2; 3:8, 12.
5Like hovering birds, so the Lord of hosts
shall shield Jerusalem,
To shield and deliver,
to spare and rescue.#Is 37:35; Dt 32:11; Ps 91:4.
6Return, O Israelites, to him whom you have utterly deserted.#Is 1:2–4; Jer 3:12. 7On that day each one of you shall reject his idols of silver and gold, which your hands have made.#Is 2:20; 30:22.
8Assyria shall fall by a sword, not wielded by human being,
no mortal sword shall devour him;
He shall flee before the sword,
and his young men shall be impressed as laborers.#Is 27:1; 34:5–6; 37:36.
9He shall rush past his crag#Crag: the king as the rallying point of the princes. Panic: terror is an element of Israel’s holy war tradition, in which defeat of the enemy is accomplished by the Lord rather than by human means (cf. v. 8). in panic,
and his princes desert the standard in terror,
Says the Lord who has a fire in Zion
and a furnace in Jerusalem.#Is 30:17, 33.
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Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc
Isaiah 31
31
God will Protect Jerusalem
1Those who go to Egypt for help are doomed! They are relying on Egypt's vast military strength — horses, chariots, and soldiers. But they do not rely on the LORD, the holy God of Israel, or ask him for help. 2He knows what he is doing! He sends disaster. He carries out his threats to punish evil men and those who protect them. 3The Egyptians are not gods — they are only human. Their horses are not supernatural. When the LORD acts, the strong nation will crumble, and the weak nation it helped will fall. Both of them will be destroyed.
4The LORD said to me, “No matter how shepherds yell and shout, they can't scare away a lion from an animal that it has killed; in the same way, there is nothing that can keep me, the LORD Almighty, from protecting Mount Zion. 5Just as a bird hovers over its nest to protect its young, so I, the LORD Almighty, will protect Jerusalem and defend it.”
6The LORD said, “People of Israel, you have sinned against me and opposed me. But now, come back to me! 7A time is coming when all of you will throw away the sinful idols you made out of silver and gold. 8Assyria will be destroyed in war, but not by human power. The Assyrians will run from battle, and their young men will be made slaves. 9Their emperor will run away in terror, and the officers will be so frightened that they will abandon their battle flags.” The LORD has spoken — the LORD who is worshipped in Jerusalem and whose fire burns there for sacrifices.
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Good News Bible. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.