Isaiah 19:4

THE MESSAGE

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
I will hand over Egypt to harsh masters,and a strong king will rule it.

Hebrew Names Version
I will give over the Mitzrim into the hand of a cruel lord; and a fierce king shall rule over them, says the Lord, the LORD of Hosts.

King James Version
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.

English Standard Version
and 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.

New American Standard Bible
"Furthermore, I will hand the Egyptians over to a cruel master, And a mighty king will rule over them," declares the Lord GOD of armies.

New Century Version
The Lord God All-Powerful says, "I will hand Egypt over to a hard master, and a powerful king will rule over them."

Amplified Bible
"And I will hand over the Egyptians to a hard and cruel master, And a mighty king will rule over them," declares the Lord GOD of hosts.

World English Bible
I will give over the Egyptians into the hand of a cruel lord; and a fierce king shall rule over them, says the Lord, Yahweh of Hosts.

Geneva Bible (1587)
And I will deliuer the Egyptians into the hand of the cruell Lordes, & a mightie King shall rule ouer them, sayth the Lord God of hostes.

Legacy Standard Bible
Moreover, I will deliver the Egyptians into the hand of a cruel master,And a strong king will rule over them," declares the Lord, Yahweh of hosts.

Berean Standard Bible
I will deliver the Egyptians into the hands of harsh masters, and a fierce king will rule over them," declares the Lord GOD of Hosts.

Contemporary English Version
I will put the Egyptians under the power of a cruel, heartless king. I, the Lord All-Powerful, have promised this."

Complete Jewish Bible
I will hand over the Egyptians to a cruel master. A harsh king will rule them," says the Lord, Adonai -Tzva'ot.

Darby Translation
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, Jehovah of hosts.

Easy-to-Read Version
The Lord God All-Powerful says, "I will give Egypt to a hard master. A powerful king will rule over the people."

George Lamsa Translation
And I will deliver the Egyptians into the hands of the cruel Medes; and a fierce king shall rule over them, says the LORD of hosts.

Good News Translation
I will hand the Egyptians over to a tyrant, to a cruel king who will rule them. I, the Lord Almighty, have spoken."

Lexham English Bible
And I will hand over the Egyptians into the hand of a hard master, and a powerful king will rule over them," declares the Lord Yahweh of hosts.

Literal Translation
And I will shut up the Egyptians into the hand of cruel lords; and a fierce king shall rule them, declares the Lord, Jehovah of Hosts.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
I wil delyuer Egipte also in to the hondes of greuous rulers, and a cruel kinge shal haue the rule of them.

American Standard Version
And I will give over the Egyptians into the hand of a cruel lord; and a fierce king shall rule over them, saith the Lord, Jehovah of hosts.

Bible in Basic English
And I will give the Egyptians into the hand of a cruel lord; and a hard king will be their ruler, says the Lord, the Lord of armies.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And I will give over the Egyptians into the hand of a cruel lord; and a fierce king shall rule over them, saith the Lord, the LORD of hosts.

King James Version (1611)
And the Egyptians will I giue ouer into the hand of a cruell Lord; and a fierce king shall rule ouer them, saith the Lorde, the Lord of hostes.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And the Egyptians wyll I geue ouer into the hande of a maruaylous cruell lorde, and a mightie kyng shall haue dominion ouer them, saith the Lorde God of hoastes.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And I will deliver Egypt into the hands of men, of cruel lords; and cruel kings shall rule over them: thus saith the Lord of hosts.

English Revised Version
And I will give over the Egyptians into the hand of a cruel lord; and a fierce king shall rule over them, saith the Lord, the LORD of hosts.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And Y schal bitake Egipt in to the hond of cruel lordis, and a strong kyng schal be lord of hem, seith the Lord God of oostis.

Update Bible Version
And I will give over the Egyptians into the hand of a cruel lord; and a fierce king shall rule over them, says the Lord, Yahweh of hosts.

Webster's Bible Translation
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.

New English Translation
I will hand Egypt over to a harsh master; a powerful king will rule over them," says the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies.

New King James Version
And the Egyptians I will give Into the hand of a cruel master, And a fierce king will rule over them," Says the Lord, the LORD of hosts.

New Living Translation
I will hand Egypt over to a hard, cruel master. A fierce king will rule them," says the Lord, the Lord of Heaven's Armies.

New Life Bible
Then I will give the Egyptians into the hand of a bad ruler. An angry king will rule over them," says the Lord God of All.

New Revised Standard
I will deliver the Egyptians into the hand of a hard master; a fierce king will rule over them, says the Sovereign, the Lord of hosts.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And I will deliver the Egyptians into the hand of a cruel lord, - And a fierce king shall rule over them, Declareth the Lord, Yahweh of hosts.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And I will deliver Egypt into the hand of cruel masters, and a strong king shall rule over them, saith the Lord the God of hosts.

Revised Standard Version
and I will give over the Egyptians into the hand of a hard master; and a fierce king will rule over them, says the Lord, the LORD of hosts.

Young's Literal Translation
And I have delivered the Egyptians Into the hand of a hard lord, And a strong king doth rule over them, An affirmation of the Lord, Jehovah of Hosts.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"Moreover, I will deliver the Egyptians into the hand of a cruel master, And a mighty king will rule over them," declares the Lord GOD of hosts.

Contextual Overview

¹ A Message concerning Egypt: Watch this! God riding on a fast-moving cloud, moving in on Egypt! The god-idols of Egypt shudder and shake, Egyptians paralyzed by panic. ²God says, "I'll make Egyptian fight Egyptian, brother fight brother, neighbor fight neighbor, City fight city, kingdom fight kingdom— anarchy and chaos and killing! I'll knock the wind out of the Egyptians. They won't know coming from going. They'll go to their god-idols for answers; they'll conjure ghosts and hold séances, desperate for answers. But I'll turn the Egyptians over to a tyrant most cruel. I'll put them under the rule of a mean, merciless king." Decree of the Master, God -of-the-Angel-Armies. ⁵The River Nile will dry up, the riverbed baked dry in the sun. The canals will become stagnant and stink, every stream touching the Nile dry up. River vegetation will rot away the banks of the Nile-baked clay, The riverbed hard and smooth, river grasses dried up and gone with the wind. Fishermen will complain that the fishing's been ruined. Textile workers will be out of work, all weavers and workers in linen and cotton and wool Dispirited, depressed in their forced idleness— everyone who works for a living, jobless. ¹¹The princes of Zoan are fools, the advisors of Pharaoh stupid. How could any of you dare tell Pharaoh, "Trust me: I'm wise. I know what's going on. Why, I'm descended from the old wisdom of Egypt"? There's not a wise man or woman left in the country. If there were, one of them would tell you what God -of-the-Angel-Armies has in mind for Egypt. As it is, the princes of Zoan are all fools and the princes of Memphis, dunces. The honored pillars of your society have led Egypt into detours and dead ends. God has scrambled their brains, Egypt's become a falling-down-in-his-own-vomit drunk. Egypt's hopeless, past helping, a senile, doddering old fool. ¹⁶On that Day, Egyptians will be like hysterical schoolgirls, screaming at the first hint of action from God -of-the-Angel-Armies. Little Judah will strike terror in Egyptians! Say "Judah" to an Egyptian and see panic. The word triggers fear of the God -of-the-Angel-Armies' plan against Egypt.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

give over: or, shut up, 1 Samuel 23:7, Psalms 31:8

a cruel lord: Rather, "cruel lords," agreeable to the LXX, Syriac, Vulgate, and the original adonim kasheh. Nebuchadnezzar, who first conquered and ravaged Egypt, bc 573, and the following year; and then, not only his successors, but Cambyses (who invaded Egypt, bc 526) the son of Cyrus, and the whole succession of Persian kings till the time of Alexander, who were in general hard masters, and grievously oppressed the country. Isaiah 19:2, Isaiah 20:4, Jeremiah 46:26, Ezekiel 29:19

Reciprocal: Isaiah 19:20 - they shall Isaiah 30:6 - into the land Jeremiah 6:23 - cruel Jeremiah 52:3 - through Ezekiel 30:12 - I will make

Cross-References

Genesis 13:13
The people of Sodom were evil—flagrant sinners against God .

Genesis 18:20
God continued, "The cries of the victims in Sodom and Gomorrah are deafening; the sin of those cities is immense. I'm going down to see for myself, see if what they're doing is as bad as it sounds. Then I'll know."

Genesis 19:1
The two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening. Lot was sitting at the city gate. He saw them and got up to welcome them, bowing before them and said, "Please, my friends, come to my house and stay the night. Wash up. You can rise early and be on your way refreshed." They said, "No, we'll sleep in the street."

Genesis 19:6
Lot went out, barring the door behind him, and said, "Brothers, please, don't be vile! Look, I have two daughters, virgins; let me bring them out; you can take your pleasure with them, but don't touch these men—they're my guests."

Proverbs 4:16
Evil people are restless unless they're making trouble; They can't get a good night's sleep unless they've made life miserable for somebody. Perversity is their food and drink, violence their drug of choice.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And the Egyptians will I give over into the hands of a cruel lord,.... Not of Sennacherib king of Assyria, which way go many interpreters, both Christian and Jewish, as Aben Ezra, Jarchi, and Kimchi; nor of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, as in Jeremiah 46:25 but either of the twelve tyrants that rose up after the death of Sethon above mentioned; for the word is in the plural number, "lords", though the adjective rendered "cruel" is singular; or else Psammiticus, the father of Pharaohnecho, that slew Josiah; and who conquered the other eleven tyrants, and ruled alone, for the space of fifty four years, with great rigour; and the same is designed in the next clause:

and a fierce king shall rule over them; it is reported of Psammiticus, that he gave such offence to his subjects, that two hundred thousand of his soldiers left him, and went into Ethiopia a. Vitringa interprets this of the Persian emperors, into whose hands Egypt fell, as Cambyses and Ochus; and who, according to historians, were very cruel princes. That there might be no doubt of the sure and certain accomplishment of this prophecy, it is added,

saith the Lord, the Lord of hosts; of the armies above and below; and who does what he pleases among the kings and kingdoms of the earth.

a See Raleigh's History of the World, B. 2. c. 27. sect. 3. p. 357.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

And the Egyptians - The Egyptian nation; the entire people, though divided into factions and contending with each other.

Will I give over - Margin, ‘Shut up.’ The Hebrew word (סכר sākar) usually has the sense of shutting up, or closing. Here it means that these contentions would be “closed” or concluded by their being delivered to of a single master. The Septuagint renders it, Παραδώσω Paradōsō - ‘I will surrender.’

Into the hands of a cruel lord - Hebrew, ‘Lords of cruelty, or severity.’ The word rendered ‘lord,’ meaning master, is in the Hebrew in the plural number (אדנים 'ădônı̂y). It is, however, generally supposed that it is pluralis excellentiae - denoting majesty and dignity, and applicable to a “single” monarch. The connection requires this, for the state here described would be different from that where “many” rule, and it seems to suppose that “one” should succeed to the many who had been contending. In the parallel member, also, a name in the singular number is used - ‘a fierce king;’ and as this evidently denotes the same, it follows that the word here is used to denote a single monarch. The plural form is often thus used in the Hebrew (see Psalms 7:10; Ezekiel 29:3; Hosea 12:1). God here claims jurisdiction over the nation, and says that “he” will do it - a most striking illustration of the power which he asserts over contending people to deliver them to whomsoever he will.

Dr. Newton supposes that this was Nebuchadnezzar, or more properly Cambyses, by whom Egypt was made subject to the authority of Persia, and who was eminently a cruel man, a madman. But the more probable interpretation is that which refers it to Psammetichus. twelve kings were in contention, of whom he was one. He called in the aid of the Arabians, the pirates of Caria and Iona (Herodot. ii. 152; see the Analysis of the chapter; Diod. i. 66). This was in the twentieth year of the reign of Manasseh. Psammetichus reigned fifty-four years and was succeeded by Nechus his son, called in Scripture Pharaoh-Necho, and often mentioned under that name. Psammetichus, during a considerable part of his reign, was engaged in wars with Assyria and Palestine. He is here called a ‘cruel lord;’ that is, an oppressive monarch, probably because he secured the kingdom by bringing in to his aid foreign mercenaries - robbers and pirates, and because his wars made his government oppressive and burdensome.

A fierce king - Hebrew, ‘A king of strength’ - a description particularly applicable to one who, like Psammetichus, had subdued eleven rivals, and who had obtained the kingdom by conquest.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Isaiah 19:4. A cruel lord - "Cruel lords"] Nebuchadnezzar in the first place, and afterwards the whole succession of Persian kings, who in general were hard masters, and grievously oppressed the country. Note, that for קשה kasheh, lord, a MS. reads קשים kashim, lords, agreeable to which is the rendering of the Septuagint, Syriac, and Vulgate.