3. The day is near, the day when the Lord will act,A day of clouds and trouble for the nations.
4. There will be war in EgyptAnd great distress in Ethiopia.Many in Egypt will be killed;The country will be plunderedAnd left in ruins.
5. “That war will also kill the soldiers hired from Ethiopia, Lydia, Libya, Arabia, Kub, and even from among my own people.”
6. The Lord says, “From Migdol in the north to Aswan in the south, all Egypt's defenders will be killed in battle. Egypt's proud army will be destroyed. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken.
7. The land will be the most desolate in the world, and its cities will be left totally in ruins.
8. When I set fire to Egypt and all her defenders are killed, then they will know that I am the Lord.
9. “When that day comes and Egypt is destroyed, I will send messengers in ships to arouse the unsuspecting people of Ethiopia, and they will be terrified. That day is coming!”
10. The Sovereign Lord says, “I will use King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia to put an end to Egypt's wealth.
11. He and his ruthless army will come to devastate the land. They will attack Egypt with swords, and the land will be full of corpses.
12. I will dry up the Nile and put Egypt under the power of evil people. Foreigners will devastate the whole country. I, the Lord, have spoken.”
13. The Sovereign Lord says, “I will destroy the idols and the false gods in Memphis. There will be no one to rule over Egypt, and I will terrify all the people.
14. I will make southern Egypt desolate and set fire to the city of Zoan in the north. I will punish the capital city of Thebes.
15. I will let the city of Pelusium, Egypt's great fortress, feel my fury. I will destroy the wealth of Thebes.
16. I will set fire to Egypt, and Pelusium will be in agony. The walls of Thebes will be broken down, and the city will be flooded.
17. The young men of the cities of Heliopolis and Bubastis will die in the war, and the other people will be taken prisoner.