K4 e¹ 1-. Trust in Egypt. Woe.
f¹ -1,2. Yahaveh. Rejection.
e² 3-. Trust in Egypt. Vain.
f² -3-6. Yahaveh. Protection.
e³ 7. Trust in Yahaveh. Exhortation.
f³ 8,9. Yahaveh. Deliverance.649-588 B.C.
Isaiah 31)
1 Woe (the 4th of 6 woes) to them that go down to Egypt for help (it is always "down" to Egypt, geographically and morally); and stay on horses, and confide in chariots, because they are many; and in horsemen, because they are very strong;
but they look not to the Holy One of Israel (see 1:4. Ps.71:22), neither seek the Lord! (cp. 30:2. See Deut. 17:16)
2 Yet He also is wise, and will bring tumult, and will not call back His words: but will arise against the house of the evildoers, and against the help of them that work iniquity.
3 Now the Egyptians are human, and not GOD (fig. put for great emphasis - positive and negative); and their horses flesh, and not spirit (same fig. as above).
When the Lord shall stretch out His hand, both he that helps shall fall, and he that is helped shall fall down, and they all shall fail together.
4 For thus has the Lord spoken to me, “Like as the lion and the young lion roaring on his live prey, when a crowd of shepherds is called forth against him, he will not be afraid of their voice, nor abase himself for the noise of them: so shall the Lord of hosts come down to fight for mount Zion, and for (or, over) the hill thereof.
5 As birds hovering [covering and protecting their nest with their wings] (see Deut. 32:11), so will the Lord of hosts shield Jerusalem; delivering also He will deliver it; and passing over He will preserve it.” (= shielding. Only used of God. Only here, 2 Kings 19:34; 20:6. Lit. "then there will be a shielding, and He will rescue; a passing over as in Egypt at the Passover, and He will cause to escape". See Ex. 12:13,23,27. This word, "passing over" is nowhere else used in this sense)
6 Return you all to Him from whom the sons of Israel have deeply revolted.
7 “For in that day every man shall cast away his idols of silver, and his idols (= nothings) of gold, which your own hands have made unto you for a sin.
8 Then shall the Assyrian fall with the sword, not of a mighty man; and the sword, not of a human, shall devour him: but he shall flee from the sword, and his young men shall become tributaries.
9 And he shall cross over (or, retreat) to his strong hold for fear, and his princes shall be afraid of the ensign,” says Yehovah, whose fire is in Zion, and His furnace in Jerusalem.