Yesaya 30:2

30:2 They travel down to Egypt

without seeking my will, ¹ 

seeking Pharaoh’s protection,

and looking for safety in Egypt’s protective shade. ² 

Yeremia 43:7

43:7 They went on to Egypt ³  because they refused to obey the Lord, and came to Tahpanhes. ⁴ 

[30:2]  ¹ tn Heb “those who go to descend to Egypt, but [of] my mouth they do not inquire.”

[30:2]  ² tn Heb “to seek protection in the protection of Pharaoh, and to seek refuge in the shade of Egypt.”

[43:7]  ³ sn This had been their intention all along (41:17). Though they consulted the Lord and promised to do what he told them whether they agreed with it or not (42:5-6), it is clear that they had no intention of doing so. Jeremiah could see that (42:19-22). They refused to believe that the Lord had really said what Jeremiah told them (43:4) and feared reprisal from the Babylonians more than any potential destruction from the Lord (43:3).

[43:7]  ⁴ sn Tahpanhes was an important fortress city on the northern border of Egypt in the northeastern Nile delta. It is generally equated with the Greek city of Daphne. It has already been mentioned in 2:16 in conjunction with Memphis (the Hebrew name is “Noph”) as a source of soldiers who did violence to the Israelites in the past.