New English Translation
Isaiah 19:4
4I will hand Egypt over to a harsh master; a powerful king will rule over them,” says the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies.
Isaiah 19:4 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)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 International Version (NIV)I 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.
- English Standard Version (ESV)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 King James Version (NKJV)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.
Context of Isaiah 19:4
2“I will provoke civil strife in Egypt, brothers will fight with each other, as will neighbors, cities, and kingdoms. 3The Egyptians will panic, and I will confuse their strategy. They will seek guidance from the idols and from the spirits of the dead, from the pits used to conjure up underworld spirits, and from the magicians. 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. 5The water of the sea will be dried up, and the river will dry up and be empty. 6The canals will stink; the streams of Egypt will trickle and then dry up; the bulrushes and reeds will decay,
Read all of Isaiah 19Isaiah 19:4 word by word
וְסִכַּרְתִּי֙ אֶת־מִצְרַ֔יִם בְּיַ֖ד אֲדֹנִ֣ים קָשֶׁ֑ה וּמֶ֤לֶךְ עַז֙ יִמְשָׁל־בָּ֔ם נְאֻ֥ם הָאָד֖וֹן יְהוָ֥ה צְבָאֽוֹת׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Andאֵת'êth · [Obj.]H853
- the Egyptiansמִצְרַ֫יִםmitsrayim · EgyptH4714
- will I give overסָכַרsâkar · to stopH5534
- into the handיָדyâd · handH3027
- of a cruelקָשֶׁהqâsheh · severeH7186
- lordאָדוֹן'âdôn 'âdôn · lordH113
- and a fierceעַז‛az · strongH5794
- kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
- shall ruleמָשַׁלmâshal · to ruleH4910
- over them, saithנְאֻםne'ûm · utteranceH5002
- the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- of hostsצָבָאtsâbâ' tsebâ'âh · HostsH6635
Cross-references for Isaiah 19:4
- 1 Samuel 23:7When Saul was told that David had come to Keilah, Saul said, “God has delivered him into my hand, for he has boxed himself into a corner by entering a city with two barred gates.”
- Psalms 31:8You do not deliver me over to the power of the enemy; you enable me to stand in a wide open place.
- Isaiah 19:2“I will provoke civil strife in Egypt, brothers will fight with each other, as will neighbors, cities, and kingdoms.
- Isaiah 20:4so the king of Assyria will lead away the captives of Egypt and the exiles of Cush, both young and old. They will be in undergarments and barefoot, with the buttocks exposed; the Egyptians will be publicly humiliated.
- Jeremiah 46:26I will hand them over to Nebuchadnezzar and his troops, who want to kill them. But later on, people will live in Egypt again as they did in former times. I, the Lord, affirm it!”
- Ezekiel 29:19Therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says: Look, I am about to give the land of Egypt to King Nebuchadrezzar of Babylon. He will carry off her wealth, capture her loot, and seize her plunder; it will be his army’s wages.
Commentaries on Isaiah 19:4
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4A 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.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4And 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, ́ Paradōsō - I will surrender.‘ Into the hands of a cruel lord - Hebrew…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4harsh master: In 671 BC, the Assyrian king Esarhaddon invaded Egypt and destroyed Memphis, the royal city. In 663 BC, Ashurbanipal attacked and destroyed Thebes (see Nahum 3:8–10).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. cruel lord--"Sargon," in Hebrew it is lords; but plural is often used to express greatness, where, one alone is meant (Ge 39:2). The parallel word "king" (singular) proves it. Newton makes the general reference to be to Nebuchadnezzar, and a particular reference to Cambyses, son of Cyrus (who killed the Egyptian god, Apis), and Ochus, Persian conquerors of Egypt, noted for their "fierce cruelty." Gesenius refers it to Psammetichus, who had brought into…Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 19:4
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 19
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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