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18 Ah, land beyond the upper reaches of the Nile,[a] where winged sailboats glide along the river! Land that sends ambassadors in fast boats down the Nile! Let swift messengers return to you, O strong and supple nation feared far and wide, a conquering, destroying nation whose land the upper Nile divides.[b] And this is the message sent to you:

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Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 18:1 upper reaches of the Nile, literally, “land beyond the rivers of Ethiopia.” Ethiopia was the seat of the powerful 25th Egyptian Dynasty (730–660 B.C.).
  2. Isaiah 18:2 whose land the upper Nile divides, literally, “whose land the rivers divide.”

A Prophecy Against Cush

18 Woe(A) to the land of whirring wings[a]
    along the rivers of Cush,[b](B)
which sends envoys(C) by sea
    in papyrus(D) boats over the water.

Go, swift messengers,
to a people tall and smooth-skinned,(E)
    to a people feared far and wide,
an aggressive(F) nation of strange speech,
    whose land is divided by rivers.(G)

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Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 18:1 Or of locusts
  2. Isaiah 18:1 That is, the upper Nile region