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The fishermen will groan and lament, all who cast hooks into the Nile; those who throw nets on the water will pine away. Those who work with combed flax will despair, the weavers of fine linen will lose hope. The workers in cloth will be dejected, and all the wage earners will be sick at heart (Isaiah 19:8-10).

I imagine that few of you have heard any sermons on Isaiah 19, let alone devotions. My digital filing cabinet has nothing on this chapter. To my surprise, I have preached a sermon on it, but it is based on the end of the chapter, not the verses of our text.

This chapter is \u201ca prophecy against Egypt\u201d. It can be summarized simply as, \u201cThe God of Israel is coming, Egypt is in trouble.\u201d Does this prophecy have value for us today? I think so. Let me explain.

First, its important to pay attention to the opening words. The God of Israel is coming and the idols of Egypt tremble (1). In ancient culture, the gods were everything. The Pharaohs of Egypt considered themselves children of the gods. All power flowed through them and from them. Politics and religion were one and the same.

Also, everything in Egypt depended on the Nile and its yearly flood. And of course, the gods controlled the Nile. So, if the Nile dries up, commerce fails, thus our text. People believed that this meant their gods were unhappy with them or had lost battle against other gods.

In this chapter, the answer to Egypt\u2019s coming problems is that their gods and politicians are out of sink with the purposes of God almighty, the God of Israel. Therefore, God is coming to judge them.

A chapter such as this is a reminder that when people neglect God, there will be trouble. Nations have always done this and will continue to so until Jesus returns. No nation or political leader can fully embody the kingdom of Jesus. Certain policies may, but not all.

This should give us pause in our politics. As citizens of democratic nations, we are called upon to vote in elections. However, we should give limited and somewhat muted support to any political leader, regardless of party affiliation. This passage reminds us to put our hope in God, not in the politics or politicians of this world. In the end, God will judge all nations, and all will be found wanting.

I think there is also a warning here against the increasingly religious language in politics these days. Despite the western effort to separate politics and religion, our political discourse is sounding awfully religious these days. Its easy for us as Christians to get caught up in this rhetoric. There is also the temptation to believe that some political party or candidate will set things right. The Bible repeatedly warns us against this.

There is also this, God\u2019s judgement is never an end in itself. Our God doesn\u2019t judge just because. Rather, he comes in judgement in the hope that people will return to him. Towards the end of the chapter, we read this, \u201cin that day there will be an altar to the Lord in the heart of Egypt and a monument to the Lord at is border\u201d (19). Egypt will become a major contributor to the things of God.

Here is part of the biblical picture that the new earth and heavens will be populated by people from all nations. I don\u2019t think there is much value in trying to figure out when and how this will all happen. Rather, these prophecies give content to our prayers and spur us on to love those different from ourselves.