Text -- Isaiah 31:1-4 (NET)

Egypt Will Disappoint

31:1 Those who go down to Egypt for help are as good as dead, those who rely on war horses, and trust in Egypt’s many chariots and in their many, many horsemen. But they do not rely on the Holy One of Israel and do not seek help from the Lord. 31:2 Yet he too is wise and he will bring disaster; he does not retract his decree. He will attack the wicked nation, and the nation that helps those who commit sin. 31:3 The Egyptians are mere humans, not God; their horses are made of flesh, not spirit. The Lord will strike with his hand; the one who helps will stumble and the one being helped will fall. Together they will perish.

The Lord Will Defend Zion

31:4 Indeed, this is what the Lord says to me: “The Lord will be like a growling lion, like a young lion growling over its prey. Though a whole group of shepherds gathers against it, it is not afraid of their shouts or intimidated by their yelling. In this same way the Lord who commands armies will descend to do battle on Mount Zion and on its hill.

Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: Isa 31:1

¹ tn Heb “Woe [to] those who go down to Egypt for help.”

² tn Heb “and trust in chariots for they are many.”

³ tn Heb “and in horsemen for they are very strong [or “numerous”].”

⁴ sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.

NET Notes: Isa 31:2

¹ sn This statement appears to have a sarcastic tone. The royal advisers who are advocating an alliance with Egypt think they are wise, but the Lord possesses wisdom as well and will thwart their efforts.

² tn Heb “and he does not turn aside [i.e., “retract”] his words”; NIV “does not take back his words.”

³ tn Heb “and he will arise against the house of the wicked.”

⁴ sn That is, Egypt.

⁵ tn Heb “and against the help of the doers of sin.”

NET Notes: Isa 31:3

¹ tn Heb “will extend”; KJV, ASV, NASB, NCV “stretch out.”

² tn Heb “together all of them will come to an end.”

NET Notes: Isa 31:4

¹ tn Heb “As a lion growls, a young lion over its prey.” In the Hebrew text the opening comparison is completed later in the verse (“so the Lord will come down…”), after a parenthesis describing how fearless the lion is. The present translation divides the verse into three sentences for English stylistic reasons.

² tn Heb “Though there is summoned against it fullness of shepherds, by their voice it is not terrified, and to their noise it does not respond.”

³ tn Some prefer to translate the phrase לִצְבֹּא עַל (litsbo’ ’al) as “fight against,” but the following context pictures the Lord defending, not attacking, Zion.