Isaiah: Riding on a Cloud

Isaiah 19-20

Whom do you trust? What do you trust? These two questions are key to evaluating the faith of God’s people. For Israel, there was the temptation to form a coalition with other nations to gain military strength against their enemies. For us, we are tempted to form alliances with things that offer security, such as jobs, financial wealth, or the government. None of these are inherently bad unless we allow them to replace our allegiance and trust in God. 

In Isaiah 19-20, the prophet reminded Israel that their potential ally, Egypt, was not as strong as they believed. Isaiah begins by explaining that Egypt faces many internal challenges.

Isaiah envisions God arriving on a swift cloud (Isa. 19:1). When God appears, “the idols of Egypt will tremble at his presence and the heart of the Egyptians will melt within them” (Isa. 19:1). Egypt’s forty-two colonies will be thrown into disarray and will begin fighting each other (Isa. 19:2). The counsel of their wise men will be confounded (Isa. 19:3), causing them to seek help from idols and spiritists until God turns them over to a “hard master” (Isa. 19:4). The “fierce king” mentioned in this verse may refer to the Assyrian king, Esarhaddon, who conquered Egypt in 671 BC. 

Drought will ruin Egypt’s economy (Isa. 19:5-10). Without the Nile River, Egypt cannot survive. The Lord will confuse the counsel of the wise, which will “make Egypt stagger in all its deeds, as a drunken man staggers in his vomit” (Isa. 19:14).

By revealing Egypt's vulnerability, God probes, “This is the group you want to align yourself with? Stick with me! One day, Egypt will want an alliance with you.” In Isaiah 19:16-25, the prophet describes a time when Israel will control Egypt. Isaiah repeats the phrase “in that day” (19:16, 18-19, 21, 23) to illustrate what the future will be like. This phrase often refers to judgment followed by blessing.

On that day, Egypt will be weak; Judah will be strong. Egypt will “tremble with fear before the hand that the Lord of hosts shakes over them. And the land of Judah will become a terror to the Egyptians” (Isa. 19:16-17). They will swear allegiance to the God of Israel and worship him instead of their worthless idols (Isa. 19:18). God will hear their pleas for mercy and bring them to himself (Isa. 19:22). He will send them “a savior and defender, and deliver them” (Isa. 19:20). God will “make himself known to the Egyptians, and the Egyptians will know the Lord in that day and worship with sacrifice and offering, and they will make vows to the Lord and perform them” (Isa. 19:21).

What God will do on earth “in that day” will not be limited to Egypt.

Isaiah 19:23
In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and Assyria will come into Egypt, and Egypt into Assyria, and the Egyptians will worship with the Assyrians. 

On that day, there will finally be peace in the Middle East and around the world. Remember the promise God made to Abraham:

Genesis 12:2-3
“And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” 

Isaiah 20 brings us back to real time: the year the Assyrians moved into Philistine territory. In 711 BC, King Sargon II sent his troops to capture Ashdod. God used this Assyrian victory as an object lesson for Judah, reminding them that they could not rely on foreign allies. For three years, Isaiah wore sackcloth, appearing as a prisoner of war. 

Isaiah 20:3-6
Then the Lord said, “As my servant Isaiah has walked naked and barefoot for three years as a sign and a portent against Egypt and Cush, ⁴ so shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptian captives and the Cushite exiles, both the young and the old, naked and barefoot, with buttocks uncovered, the nakedness of Egypt. ⁵ Then they shall be dismayed and ashamed because of Cush their hope and of Egypt their boast. ⁶ And the inhabitants of this coastland will say in that day, ‘Behold, this is what has happened to those in whom we hoped and to whom we fled for help to be delivered from the king of Assyria! And we, how shall we escape?’” 

So, back to the earlier questions: Whom do you trust? What do you trust? If the answer is anything but the Lord, it is not only the wrong answer; it’s a losing proposition. God is the only One who can fill the void in our hearts. He is the only way to experience true peace. He is the only One who saves us from our sins and for eternity. When Christ returns, it will be too late; today is the day of salvation.

Our Anchor Point reminds us that no one will miss it when God shows up.

Isaiah 19:1
Behold, the Lord is riding on a swift cloud and comes to Egypt; and the idols of Egypt will tremble at his presence, and the heart of the Egyptians will melt within them.

When Jesus comes, every knee will bow, and every tongue confess that he is Lord.

PERSONAL TIME WITH GOD
Time in the Word: Read and reflect on God’s warning to Egypt in Isaiah 19-20. Focus on our Anchor Point: Isaiah 19:1.

Talking to God:  Talk to God about who and what you trust. 

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Every day is a day of spiritual renewal as we follow hard after Jesus.