1 The ^aburden against Egypt.
Behold, the Lord ^brides on a swift cloud,
And will come into Egypt;
^cThe idols of Egypt will¹ totter at His presence,
And the heart of Egypt will melt in its midst. ‡

2 “I will ^aset Egyptians against Egyptians;
Everyone will fight against his brother,
And everyone against his neighbor,
City against city, kingdom against kingdom. ‡

3 The spirit of Egypt will fail in its midst;
I will destroy their counsel,
And they will ^aconsult the idols and the charmers,
The mediums and the sorcerers. ‡

4 And the Egyptians I will give
^aInto the hand of a cruel master,
And a fierce king will rule over them,”
Says the Lord, the Lord of hosts. ‡

5 ^aThe waters will fail from the sea,
And the river will be wasted and dried up. ‡

6 The rivers will turn foul;
The brooks ^aof defense will be emptied and dried up;
The reeds and rushes will wither. ‡

7 The papyrus reeds by¹ the River, by the mouth of the River,
And everything sown by the River,
Will wither, be driven away, and be no more. ‡

8 The fishermen also will mourn;
All those will lament who cast hooks into the River,
And they will languish who spread nets on the waters.