1. Those who go to Egypt for help are doomed! They are relying on Egypt's vast military strength — horses, chariots, and soldiers. But they do not rely on the Lord, the holy God of Israel, or ask him for help.
2. He knows what he is doing! He sends disaster. He carries out his threats to punish evil men and those who protect them.
3. The Egyptians are not gods — they are only human. Their horses are not supernatural. When the Lord acts, the strong nation will crumble, and the weak nation it helped will fall. Both of them will be destroyed.
4. The Lord said to me, “No matter how shepherds yell and shout, they can't scare away a lion from an animal that it has killed; in the same way, there is nothing that can keep me, the Lord Almighty, from protecting Mount Zion.
5. Just as a bird hovers over its nest to protect its young, so I, the Lord Almighty, will protect Jerusalem and defend it.”
6. The Lord said, “People of Israel, you have sinned against me and opposed me. But now, come back to me!