John Gill Commentary Isaiah 19:3

"And the spirit of Egypt shall fail in the midst of it; and I will destroy the counsel thereof: and they shall seek unto the idols, and to the charmers, and to them that have familiar spirits, and to the wizards." — Isaiah 19:3 (ASV)

And the spirit of Egypt shall fail in the midst thereof , &c.] Meaning not the spirit of valour and courage, that is expressed before, but of wisdom, prudence, and understanding; the wisdom of Egypt, in which Moses is said to be brought up, (Acts 7:22) was famous all the world over; hither men of learning, as the ancient philosophers, Pythagoras, Plato, and others, travelled, to improve in knowledge, and gain a larger acquaintance with things human and divine; it was the mother and mistress of the liberal arts and sciences; but now what was before like a river full of water, was about to be "emptied", and drained dry, as the word ^F25 used signifies:

and I will destroy the counsels thereof ; or "swallow [them] up" ^F26, so that they shall be no more seen, or take effect: this explains what is before meant by the spirit of Egypt, and which is further enlarged on, and illustrated in (Isaiah 19:11–13) ,

and they shall seek to the idols ; with which the land abounded, particularly to Osiris and Isis, to Apis, Latona, and others: and to the charmers ; that used incantations and spells; magicians and conjurers, that whispered and muttered; for the word used has the signification of speaking in a slow and drawling manner. The Targum renders it "witches"; but Jarchi takes it to be the name of an idol:

and to them that have familiar spirits, and to the wizards ; (See Gill on Isaiah 8:19).

---

FOOTNOTES:

• F25: (hqbn) "evacuabitur", Pagninus, Montanus, Piscator, Cocceius.
• F26: (elba) "deglutiam", Montanus; "absorpsero", Junius & Tremellius; "absorbebo", Piscator.