Isaiah 19:15 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And there will be nothing for Egypt that head or tail, palm branch or reed, may do.

NIV: There is nothing Egypt can do-- head or tail, palm branch or reed.

NASB: There will be no work for Egypt Which its head or tail, its palm branch or bulrush, may do.

CSB: No head or tail, palm or reed, will be able to do anything for Egypt.

NLT: There is nothing Egypt can do. All are helpless — the head and the tail, the noble palm branch and the lowly reed.

KJV: Neither shall there be any work for Egypt, which the head or tail, branch or rush, may do.

NKJV: Neither will there be any work for Egypt, Which the head or tail, Palm branch or bulrush, may do.

This continues the prophet's wider message to the people of Judah. They should not turn to flawed nations for help. Why trust in this failing nation instead of trusting in their God, the Lord of hosts? In this oracle against Egypt (Isaiah 19:1), Isaiah has prophesied that the Lord's judgment will result in a divided nation full of hopeless people (Isaiah 19:2–3). The Nile will dry up, destroying the economy and leaving many destitute (Isaiah 19:5–9). The wise men of Egypt will become fools because the Lord will confuse their thinking (Isaiah 19:11–13). If Egypt were a man, Isaiah concluded, he would appear as a drunk staggering around in a pool of his own filth (Isaiah 19:14).

In a famous story by Charles Dickens, the character of Ebenezer Scrooge is shown a dire vision. That will be his fate if he does not change his ways. Isaiah is not Dickens, and Egypt is not like Scrooge. What Isaiah depicts is not a warning of what might be. This is an inescapable fate, which cannot now be changed. Egypt can do nothing to avoid this coming judgment.

The head and the palm branch represent the leaders and important people of the nation. The tail and reed represent the common folk. Nobody at any level of Egyptian society will be able to stop what is coming. The Lord has sealed their future judgment.

What comes next is a surprising change in tone (Isaiah 19:16). Though God planned judgment on Israel, as recorded by Isaiah, there will be a future time when the nation will come to faith in the Lord and be blessed.

Isaiah 19:1–15 is an oracle against the nation of Egypt. Isaiah describes the Lord, not Egypt's imaginary god Baal, as arriving on a swift cloud to judge the nation. The hearts of the people will melt, and their spirits will be emptied out. They will turn on each other. Neither their gods nor their wise men will be able to save them. Even the Nile River will dry up. Yet, in the kingdom of the Messiah, Egypt will turn to the Lord and be blessed by Him.

Isaiah's oracle describes the Lord's coming judgment on Egypt. The idols will fear when God arrives, and the people will turn on each other. A fierce king will conquer them. The Nile River will dry up, leaving many destitute. The advisors serving Egypt's leaders will be revealed as confused fools. Far in the future, Egypt will recognize Israel's God and repent, turning to worship the Lord. Assyria will join in that worship, blessing the earth along with Egypt and Israel.

Isaiah 19 introduces the next oracle against the nations of the earth. The Lord has been showing His people not to put their trust and hope in the foreign nations or their gods. They are to trust in Him alone to save them. The Lord's arrival in Egypt reveals the worthlessness of idols and spiritists. The terrified people will turn on each other. They will become destitute when the Nile dries up and the wise are shown to be foolish. In the far future, Egypt will worship the Lord and be blessed by Him.

Isaiah is among the most important prophetic books in the entire Bible. The first segment details God's impending judgment against ancient peoples for sin and idolatry (Isaiah 1—35). The second part of Isaiah briefly explains a failed assault on Jerusalem during the rule of Hezekiah (Isaiah 36—39). The final chapters predict Israel's rescue from Babylonian captivity (Isaiah 40—48), the promised Messiah (Isaiah 49—57), and the final glory of Jerusalem and God's people (Isaiah 58—66).