Isaiah 17-21

“So the Lord will make himself known to the Egyptians, and in that day they will acknowledge the Lord” (19:21). Although Isaiah prophesied calamity for Judah and the surrounding nations who were rebelling against the Lord and his ways, he also prophesied that one day, people from many nations “will look to their Maker and turn their eyes to the Holy One of Israel” (17:7-8). Isaiah saw that God loved Israel’s enemies and wanted to show them mercy.

We were all once God’s enemies, and through his mercy poured out in Christ, he welcomes us and makes us his people. “The Lord Almighty will bless them, saying, “Blessed be Egypt my people, Assyria my handiwork, and Israel my inheritance” (19:25).