This verse continues to speak about the conquest of nations around the new Israel, but this time to the south and north. Here Yahweh himself conquers them, not Israel. There is an echo of the Exodus event and the crossing of the Reed Sea (or, Red Sea) in the prophet’s words here.
And the LORD will utterly destroy the tongue of the sea of Egypt: The Hebrew verb rendered utterly destroy is quite common in the book of Joshua (see, for example, Josh 6.21; 8.26; 10.1). But most translations emend Masoretic Text to read “dry up,” which forms a neat parallel with the imagery in the second part of the verse. There is probably some influence from the Septuagint and other early translations for this reading, especially since the Hebrew verbs for utterly destroy and “dry up” look and sound very much alike. However, evidence from Dead Sea Scrolls favors the present Masoretic Text text, which Hebrew Old Testament Text Project and de~Waard endorse confidently. So we recommend the verb “utterly destroy” despite the fact that most translations prefer “dry up.” The identity of the sea of Egypt is uncertain. Many scholars agree that it refers to the area north of the Gulf of Suez, the area known elsewhere as the Sea of Reeds (see Exo 14.2). Others place it south of the Dead Sea, the “tongue-shaped” Red Sea. In this context the tongue is a metaphor for a bay or inlet of that sea. Many English translations preserve a literal rendering for the tongue of the sea of Egypt since its identity is uncertain. Good News Translation is very explicit with “the Gulf of Suez.” Bible en français courant has “the gulf of Egypt,” while Contemporary English Version speaks of “the arm of the Red Sea near Egypt.” “The Red Sea” by itself is not an appropriate translation, but if the tongue is difficult, translators may opt for “the water of [or, near] the sea of Egypt.”
And will wave his hand over the River with his scorching wind: Yahweh’s hand is a symbol for his powerful action. We may retain the imagery of the hand action or follow Good News Translation by saying “and he will bring a hot wind….” The River refers to the Euphrates River, which is in modern Iraq today. So from the south the prophet now turns his attention to the north, to Assyria (compare 7.18; 8.7).
Yahweh attacks the Euphrates River with his scorching wind. The text here unfortunately is not readily understandable since the Hebrew term for scorching is unknown elsewhere. There are various suggestions concerning its meaning, but most translations follow the interpretation found in the Syriac and Vulgate. This leads to the Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation renderings. New Jerusalem Bible has “with the heat of his breath,” since it understands the Hebrew word ruach to mean “breath” rather than “wind” here. New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh follows another tradition of interpretation with “with the might of His wind.” We suggest following Revised Standard Version or Good News Translation here, but translators may add a footnote to indicate that the Hebrew here is difficult. Note that Bible en français courant and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch attach this phrase to the next lines. For the last four lines of this verse Bible en français courant has “He will threaten the Euphrates with a gesture of his hand; by the power of his breath, he will reduce it to seven streams….”
And smite it into seven channels that men may cross dryshod: Men here is a general term for “people.” The divine wind or breath will smite or hit the river; smite is a figure for “blowing strongly.” As a result, the mighty Euphrates River will divide into seven smaller channels, allowing people to cross dryshod, which means they will be able to cross without getting their feet wet. For dryshod we may say “on dry ground” without changing the meaning. New American Bible renders men may cross dryshod as “it can be crossed in sandals” (similarly New International Version). Although this is what the Hebrew says literally, it seems a strange rendering since most people wore sandals anyway. If the word “sandals” is kept, in English it is clearer and more idiomatic to say “it may be crossed without taking off one’s sandals.” Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch is helpful with “one can pass through on foot.”
Translation examples for this verse are:
• Yahweh will utterly destroy the gulf of the Sea of Egypt; he will send his scorching wind over the Euphrates River, dividing it into seven channels so that people can cross as on dry land.
• Yahweh will completely remove the gulf of the Sea of Egypt; he will raise his hand against the Euphrates River and blow over it with his hot breath, dividing it into seven streams so that people can cross without getting wet.
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 .