Isaiah 30:2-3

30:2 They travel down to Egypt

without seeking my will, ¹ 

seeking Pharaoh’s protection,

and looking for safety in Egypt’s protective shade. ² 

30:3 But Pharaoh’s protection will bring you nothing but shame,

and the safety of Egypt’s protective shade nothing but humiliation.

Isaiah 19:11

19:11 The officials of Zoan are nothing but fools; ³ 

Pharaoh’s wise advisers give stupid advice.

How dare you say to Pharaoh,

“I am one of the sages,

one well-versed in the writings of the ancient kings?” ⁴ 

Isaiah 36:6

36:6 Look, you must be trusting in Egypt, that splintered reed staff. If someone leans on it for support, it punctures his hand and wounds him. That is what Pharaoh king of Egypt does to all who trust in him!

[30:2]  ¹ tn Heb “those who go to descend to Egypt, but [of] my mouth they do not inquire.”

[30:2]  ² tn Heb “to seek protection in the protection of Pharaoh, and to seek refuge in the shade of Egypt.”

[19:11]  ³ tn Or “certainly the officials of Zoan are fools.” אַךְ (’akh) can carry the sense, “only, nothing but,” or “certainly, surely.”

[19:11]  ⁴ tn Heb “A son of wise men am I, a son of ancient kings.” The term בֶּן (ben, “son of”) could refer to literal descent, but many understand the word, at least in the first line, in its idiomatic sense of “member [of a guild].” See HALOT 138 s.v. בֶּן and J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:371. If this is the case, then one can take the word in a figurative sense in the second line as well, the “son of ancient kings” being one devoted to their memory as preserved in their literature.