complete verse (Isaiah 19:24)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Isaiah 19:24:

  • Kupsabiny: “The land of Israel shall in those days become a friend to the land of Egypt together with Assyria. Those three countries shall unite and then a blessing shall come to this earth.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “On that day, however, Israel will be the third country as a blessing in the land together with Egypt and Assyria.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “At that time, Israel will-join/unite/[lit. will-become-one] to Egipto and Asiria, and these three nations will-become a blessing to the world.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “And Israel will be their ally. All three nations will be friendly to each other, and the people of Israel will be a blessing to the people of the entire world.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Isaiah 19:24

Verses 24-25 are the final subunit of this section, saying Israel, Egypt and Assyria will be a source of God’s blessing to everyone on earth.

Israel will be the third with Egypt and Assyria means that Israel will rank equally with the two superpowers, Egypt and Assyria (so Good News Translation). Alternative renderings for this clause are “Israel will be one of three nations, the others being Egypt and Assyria” and “At that time there will be three [important] countries: Egypt, Assyria, and Israel.”

A blessing in the midst of the earth: It is not clear here who will be a blessing to others. It could be the three nations mentioned above or Israel alone. Good News Translation and Contemporary English Version are explicit in pointing to the three nations as the source of the blessing. However, Revised English Bible and Bible en français courant favor Israel alone. For the whole verse Revised English Bible has “When that day comes Israel will rank as a third with Egypt and Assyria and be a blessing in the world,” and Bible en français courant says “One day, side-by-side with Egypt and Assyria, Israel will be there in third place, a living example of the blessing that God will bring to the world.” Some versions leave both interpretations possible (so RSV/NRSV, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh). If translators cannot leave this ambiguous, we prefer the three nations as the source of the blessing to the world. The blessing will come from Yahweh but will be channeled through these three nations. The phrase in the midst of the earth refers to the rest of the nations.

Translation examples for this verse are:

• At that time Israel will be one of three nations along with Egypt and Assyria. They will be a source of blessing in the world.

• When that time comes, Israel will be the third nation, with Egypt and Assyria, through whom Yahweh will bless the world.

Quoted with permission from Ogden, Graham S. and Sterk, Jan. A Handbook on Isaiah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2011. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .