Daily Bible Reading

An Oracle Concerning Egypt

1An oracle concerning Egypt.

Behold, the Lord is riding on a swift cloud

and comes to Egypt;

and the idols of Egypt will tremble at his presence,

and the heart of the Egyptians will melt within them.

2And I will stir up Egyptians against Egyptians,

and they will fight, each against another

and each against his neighbor,

city against city, kingdom against kingdom;

3and the spirit of the Egyptians within them will be emptied out,

and I will confound their counsel;

and they will inquire of the idols and the sorcerers,

and the mediums and the necromancers;

4and I will give over the Egyptians

into the hand of a hard master,

and a fierce king will rule over them,

declares the Lord God of hosts.

5And the waters of the sea will be dried up,

and the river will be dry and parched,

6and its canals will become foul,

and the branches of Egypt’s Nile will diminish and dry up,

reeds and rushes will rot away.

7There will be bare places by the Nile,

on the brink of the Nile,

and all that is sown by the Nile will be parched,

will be driven away, and will be no more.

8The fishermen will mourn and lament,

all who cast a hook in the Nile;

and they will languish

who spread nets on the water.

9The workers in combed flax will be in despair,

and the weavers of white cotton.

10Those who are the pillars of the land will be crushed,

and all who work for pay will be grieved.

11The princes of Zoan are utterly foolish;

the wisest counselors of Pharaoh give stupid counsel.

How can you say to Pharaoh,

“I am a son of the wise,

a son of ancient kings”?

12Where then are your wise men?

Let them tell you

that they might know what the Lord of hosts has purposed against Egypt.

13The princes of Zoan have become fools,

and the princes of Memphis are deluded;

those who are the cornerstones of her tribes

have made Egypt stagger.

14The Lord has mingled within her a spirit of confusion,

and they will make Egypt stagger in all its deeds,

as a drunken man staggers in his vomit.

15And there will be nothing for Egypt

that head or tail, palm branch or reed, may do.

Egypt, Assyria, Israel Blessed

16In that day the Egyptians will be like women, and tremble with fear before the hand that the Lord of hosts shakes over them. 17And the land of Judah will become a terror to the Egyptians. Everyone to whom it is mentioned will fear because of the purpose that the Lord of hosts has purposed against them.

18In that day there will be five cities in the land of Egypt that speak the language of Canaan and swear allegiance to the Lord of hosts. One of these will be called the City of Destruction.

19In that day there will be an altar to the Lord in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar to the Lord at its border. 20It will be a sign and a witness to the Lord of hosts in the land of Egypt. When they cry to the Lord because of oppressors, he will send them a savior and defender, and deliver them. 21And the Lord will make himself known to the Egyptians, and the Egyptians will know the Lord in that day and worship with sacrifice and offering, and they will make vows to the Lord and perform them. 22And the Lord will strike Egypt, striking and healing, and they will return to the Lord, and he will listen to their pleas for mercy and heal them.

23In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and Assyria will come into Egypt, and Egypt into Assyria, and the Egyptians will worship with the Assyrians.

24In that day Israel will be the third with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing in the midst of the earth, 25whom the Lord of hosts has blessed, saying, “Blessed be Egypt my people, and Assyria the work of my hands, and Israel my inheritance.”

A Prophecy Against Egypt

1A prophecy against Egypt:

See, the Lord rides on a swift cloud

and is coming to Egypt.

The idols of Egypt tremble before him,

and the hearts of the Egyptians melt with fear.

2“I will stir up Egyptian against Egyptian—

brother will fight against brother,

neighbor against neighbor,

city against city,

kingdom against kingdom.

3The Egyptians will lose heart,

and I will bring their plans to nothing;

they will consult the idols and the spirits of the dead,

the mediums and the spiritists.

4I will hand the Egyptians over

to the power of a cruel master,

and a fierce king will rule over them,”

declares the Lord, the Lord Almighty.

5The waters of the river will dry up,

and the riverbed will be parched and dry.

6The canals will stink;

the streams of Egypt will dwindle and dry up.

The reeds and rushes will wither,

7also the plants along the Nile,

at the mouth of the river.

Every sown field along the Nile

will become parched, will blow away and be no more.

8The fishermen will groan and lament,

all who cast hooks into the Nile;

those who throw nets on the water

will pine away.

9Those who work with combed flax will despair,

the weavers of fine linen will lose hope.

10The workers in cloth will be dejected,

and all the wage earners will be sick at heart.

11The officials of Zoan are nothing but fools;

the wise counselors of Pharaoh give senseless advice.

How can you say to Pharaoh,

“I am one of the wise men,

a disciple of the ancient kings”?

12Where are your wise men now?

Let them show you and make known

what the Lord Almighty

has planned against Egypt.

13The officials of Zoan have become fools,

the leaders of Memphis are deceived;

the cornerstones of her peoples

have led Egypt astray.

14The Lord has poured into them

a spirit of dizziness;

they make Egypt stagger in all that she does,

as a drunkard staggers around in his vomit.

15There is nothing Egypt can do—

head or tail, palm branch or reed.

16In that day the Egyptians will become weaklings. They will shudder with fear at the uplifted hand that the Lord Almighty raises against them. 17And the land of Judah will bring terror to the Egyptians; everyone to whom Judah is mentioned will be terrified, because of what the Lord Almighty is planning against them.

18In that day five cities in Egypt will speak the language of Canaan and swear allegiance to the Lord Almighty. One of them will be called the City of the Sun.

19In that day there will be an altar to the Lord in the heart of Egypt, and a monument to the Lord at its border. 20It will be a sign and witness to the Lord Almighty in the land of Egypt. When they cry out to the Lord because of their oppressors, he will send them a savior and defender, and he will rescue them. 21So the Lord will make himself known to the Egyptians, and in that day they will acknowledge the Lord. They will worship with sacrifices and grain offerings; they will make vows to the Lord and keep them. 22The Lord will strike Egypt with a plague; he will strike them and heal them. They will turn to the Lord, and he will respond to their pleas and heal them.

23In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria. The Assyrians will go to Egypt and the Egyptians to Assyria. The Egyptians and Assyrians will worship together. 24In that day Israel will be the third, along with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing on the earth. 25The Lord Almighty will bless them, saying, “Blessed be Egypt my people, Assyria my handiwork, and Israel my inheritance.”