Isa 31:1

Vv 1-3: // Isa 30:2-7.

HORSES: Sym human warfare: Job 39:18…; Jer 4:13; Joel 2:4. But such “weapons” do no good when God is not with the army: Psa 20:7; Psa 147:10.

WHO TRUST IN… CHARIOTS: Sennacherib knew of Judah’s plan to rely on Egyptian chariots (Isa 36:6-9). Surely it was not Hezekiah, but his counselors in his “absence”, who made such plans (Deu 17:16; Psa 20:7).

BUT DO NOT LOOK TO THE HOLY ONE OF ISRAEL: Who had His own “chariots” — the cherubim of Glory (Eze 1; Zec 6:1-8; Deu 20:1).

Isa 31:2

YET HE TOO IS WISE: A sarcastic tone. The royal advisers who are advocating an alliance with Egypt think they are wise, but the LORD possesses wisdom as well and will thwart their efforts.

Isa 31:4

AS A LION… SO THE LORD ALMIGHTY: The “Ariel” (Isa 29:1)! And typ of Christ, the Lion of Judah: Gen 49:9,10; Rev 5:5.

WILL COME DOWN: The language of theophany: Isa 64:1; Exo 19:20; Gen 11:5; 18:21.

Isa 31:5

PASS OVER: The only other occurrence of this verb is in Exo 12:13,23,27, where the LORD “passes over” (ie, ‘spares’) the Israelite households as he comes to judge their Egyptian oppressors. The noun for “Passover’ is derived from the verb. The use of the verb in Isa 31:5 is prob an intentional echo of the Exodus event. As in the days of Moses the LORD will spare his people as he comes to judge their enemies. Passover was the time of Sennacherib’s overthrow: Isa 30:29; 26:20,21; 29:1; 52:12; 37:36; Psa 102:13; Isa 36:10; Joel 2:23. Cp Christ’s words in Mat 23:37, and the mother eagle in Deu 32:11.

Isa 31:6

Vv 6,7: “Whilst the zeal of Hezekiah had brought about a substantial repentance among his people, the nation as a whole still held with strong inclination to the corruptions initiated in the time of Ahaz” (WIsa 318). Are these vv out of place, in what is otherwise an unrelieved judgment upon Assyria? No! “There is no mistaking the plain intention of the Almighty, as now set out here, to destroy the might of Assyria at Jerusalem AND to scare out of their wits those who might survive” (WIsa 318).

Isa 31:7

// Isa 2:20; 30:22; Deu 9:21.

Isa 31:8

The sword of the LORD: see Num 22:23; Jos 5:13; Jdg 7:20; Jer 5:16,27; Eze 38:21; Isa 34:6; 66:16.

THAT IS NOT OF MAN: Or, “no one born of man!” (WK).

Isa 32:1

“With the destruction of the Assyrian host on the hills of Jerusalem, Isaiah provides a prophecy of a restored kingdom, and a glorious reign of glory and power. Hezekiah’s reign is seen as a type of Messiah’s greater dominion. The prophet commences his treatise with the bold ‘Behold’, drawing attention to the grand regal picture of a king and his associates under the divine blessing. Righteousness and Judgment establish the power of the throne (vv 1-8). Isaiah then presents a warning to Ladies of Leisure (vv 9-12).

“He indicts their careless unconcern in the face of impending peril. They seek for the enjoyment of the previous way of life, and are certain that their state will not be disturbed. Such are the nations of the future that refuse the law from Zion, and ignore the invitation of the everlasting gospel of salvation. For such, desolations are decreed (vv 13,14). It is typical of the state of Jerusalem under the Babylonians and Romans, and also of the Gentile nations who refuse the good hand of Christ’s rulership in the future. The ch concludes with a glorious picture of restoration (vv 15-20). The wilderness is turned into fruit and provision. So the lovely picture concludes with the picture of the ox and ass: the ox for ploughing and the ass for transportation; One for sacrifice, the other for redemption. Co-operation and harmony settles over the scene of mankind’s dilemma” (GEM).

RULERS WILL RULE IN JUSTICE: Sitting on thrones, ruling over 12 tribes of Israel: Mat 19:28.

Isa 32:2

EACH: KJV has “a”. A particular man.

A SHELTER… A REFUGE: “And the people gained confidence from what Hezekiah the king of Judah said” (2Ch 32:7,8). The city of Jerusalem was spared from the “wind” and the “storm” (Isa 29:5,6; 30:30).

THE SHADOW OF A GREAT ROCK IN A THIRSTY LAND: Cp Isa 4:6; 25:4,5.

Isa 32:3

Vv 3-8: “When the student of prophecy encounters a passage like this one, full of abstract terms, it is important to remember that the prophets were not given to moralising in an abstract fashion (which is the way nearly all the commentators take this paragraph). Rather, it is necessary here to look for specific ref such as is appropriate to this Isaiah context. Already, several indications have been noted of corrupt administration in Hezekiah’s kingdom during the critical period when his sickness compelled him to withdraw from government (Isa 29:4; 22:15…; etc). With the king’s miraculous recovery there came, of course, a dramatic change in the quality of the men now handling the reins of authority. This has already been intimated in v 1… [This] is not to be read in general terms in praise of good wholesome men and decrying the value of those who show a mean or selfish spirit. It is to be understood as a prophecy of an imminent dramatic change for the better in the quality of the administration of Hezekiah’s kingdom” (WIsa 321).

In LD, princes will rule in judgment along with Christ (Mat 19:28; Rev 20:4).

Isa 32:7

A series of terms descriptive not only of the wicked administrators of Judah, but esp of the Assyrian invaders (eg Nah 1:11; Isa 54:16; 13:5).

Isa 32:9

Vv 9-11: A connection and possible comparison with an earlier section: In Isa 3:1-5 there is sustained censure of the princes and rulers of Judah, followed (in Isa 3:16-24) with an exposure of the godless vanities of women, prob those associated with the temple service.

Isa 32:12

Vv 12-14: Lamentation for the desolation inflicted by Assyria upon the fields and vineyards of the whole Land, with the exception of Jerusalem.

Isa 32:14

THE DELIGHT OF DONKEYS: Perhaps a ref to the wild Bedouin tribes (cp description of Ishmael: Gen 16:12); whenever these wanderers saw an opportunity for forage or plunder in a countryside from which they were normally excluded, then they were prompt to take advantage.

Isa 32:15

TILL THE SPIRIT IS POURED UPON US FROM ON HIGH: A dramatic change in tone. “Spirit” = the great rains, bringing in the promised Year of Jubilee (cp Isa 44:3; and Joel 2:23,28).

Isa 32:17

“Poverty and destitution springing from man’s selfishness and misrule, will vanish under Christ’s reign. The burdens of past wars and preparations for possible future wars, will no longer cast their shadows on the lives of men. There will be no need for armies and navies, for guns and armaments by which nations today maintain their possessions and preserve their ways of life. Christ will be supreme. Unerring justice and swift judgment by omnipotent power will teach men the folly of disobedience. Jesus and his co-rulers will direct men: ‘This is the way, walk ye in it’ (Isa 30:21), and will lead them in right paths. When this king reigns in righteousness and his princes rule in judgment ‘…the work of righteousness shall be peace: and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance for ever’ (Isa 32:1,17)” (GW 168,169).

RIGHTEOUSNESS… PEACE: The work of the righteous Melchizedek king-priest — the “king of righteousness” and then the “king of peace” (Heb 7:2; Gen 14).

Isa 32:18

“Peace and rest belong not to the unregenerate; they are the peculiar possession of the Lord’s people, and of them only. The God of Peace gives perfect peace to those whose hearts are stayed upon Him. When man was unfallen, his God gave him the flowery bowers of Eden as his quiet resting places; alas! how soon sin blighted the fair abode of innocence. In the day of universal wrath when the flood swept away a guilty race, the chosen family were quietly secured in the resting-place of the ark, which floated them from the old condemned world into the new earth of the rainbow and the covenant, herein typifying Jesus, the ark of our salvation. Israel rested safely beneath the blood-besprinkled habitations of Egypt when the destroying angel smote the first-born; and in the wilderness the shadow of the pillar of cloud, and the flowing rock, gave the weary pilgrims sweet repose. At this hour we rest in the promises of our faithful God, knowing that His words are full of truth and power; we rest in the doctrines of His word, which are consolation itself; we rest in the covenant of His grace, which is a haven of delight. More highly favoured are we than David in Adullam, or Jonah beneath his gourd, for none can invade or destroy our shelter. The person of Jesus is the quiet resting-place of his people, and when we draw near to him in the breaking of the bread, in the hearing of the word, the searching of the Scriptures, prayer, or praise, we find any form of approach to him to be the return of peace to our spirits” (CHS).

Isa 32:19

Looking back to vv 12-14…

Isa 32:20

“This vision swings back to its lovely picture of a peaceful, settled, well-ordered society. The Land is cleared of Assyrians. The people are back at their normal occupations. The special blessing of God in their Jubilee Year — ‘opening the windows of heaven’ (Lev 25:21) — encourages assiduous cultivation… National recovery from the invasion goes forward at a phenomenal rate” (WIsa 324).

CATTLE AND DONKEYS: “The lovely pictures in this ch of a land and people enjoying tranquility and assurance tell of an even better Jubilee in which, both literally and spiritually, the wilderness becomes a fruitful field (v 15; Isa 35:1,2). And in that fruitful field the ox and the ass labour at the good work together — Jew and Gentile will be one in the service of their Creator, and the ancient Law which was originally designed to keep them separate (Deu 22:10) will be abrogated forever in a new society where righteousness, quietness and assurance endure ‘for ever’ (v 17)” (WIsa 325).

Isa 33:1

This particular “Woe”, in ct to previous ones, is directed against the wretched and deceitful Assyrians. Duplicity was the hallmark of Sennacherib’s foreign policy (Isa 21:2; 24:16); even the payment of massive tribute (2Ki 18:16) made no difference to his aggressive empire-building.

Isa 33:2

WE LONG FOR YOU: “We have waited for you” (AV): ” ‘Waiting for the LORD’ is quite one of the most poignant ideas in all Isaiah’s prophecies. It embodies a picture of a faithful minority who look with eager and almost pathetic expectancy for a divine intervention which will save them and their Land from a desperate situation from which they have no power to extricate themselves” (WIsa 326). Cp Isa 25:9; 26:8; 64:4; 30:18. Cp also 2Pe 3:11-15.

EVERY MORNING: Manna given (Exo 16:21). Fire on the altar (Lev 6:12). Incense offered (Exo 30:7). Praise offered (1Ch 23:30). Service offered (1Ch 9:27). Sacrifice presented (2Ch 2:4; 13:11). God visits (Job 7:18). God is their strength (here). His compassions new (Lam 3:23). The Philistines present themselves (1Sa 17:16). God silences the wicked (Psa 101:8). Judgment (Zep 3:5). Administer justice (Jer 21:12).

Isa 33:3

THE THUNDER OF YOUR VOICE: The overpowering majesty of the theophany and storms (as in Isa 28:15; 29:5-7; 30:30). Elsewhere these words picture a lashing rain (1Ki 18:41) and the fearful threat of Sennacherib’s conglomerate army assembled against Jerusalem (Isa 13:4).

RISE UP: The description of the Ark of God setting forth (Num 10:35) — the Shekinah Glory going into action!

Isa 33:4

“Joel 2 has sustained and vivid anticipation of the northern invader (these brutal Assyrians) going irresistibly through the Land plundering and ravaging everywhere (Joel 2:1-11; cp Isa 10:14; 17:5). Now Isaiah picks up the same powerful figure of speech — but the tables are turned, for his locusts are the inhabitants of Jerusalem rushing out of the city to plunder the devastated camp of the enemy… a picture of eager delighted citizens making one trip after another to the enemy camp to see what they can salvage” (WIsa 327).

Isa 33:5

Vv 5,6: “A godly administration described in Messianic terms which deliberately echo the Messianic prophecy of Isa 11: ‘judgment, righteousness, wisdom, knowledge, stability (faithfulness), salvation, the fear of the LORD’ (vv 2-5)” (WIsa 327).

Isa 33:6

THIS TREASURE: The spiritual “treasure” of renewed faith in Yahweh, in ct to the merely material “treasure” of plunder from the fallen Assyrians (v 4) — or the Jewish “treasure” used to pay off the Assyrians earlier (2Ki 18:14-16)!

Isa 33:7

Vv 7-9: A retrospect: (1) the Judean ambassadors of peace returning from fruitless negotiations with Sennacherib and Rabshakeh (2Ki 18:16; Isa 36:3; 28:15; 21:2; 33:1) and/or (2) the Judean ambassadors returning from Egypt (Isa 30:4; 31:1).

Isa 33:9

The Assyrian siege engines required an enormous amount of lumber.

BASHAN AND CARMEL: Both of these areas were known for their trees and vegetation: Isa 2:13; 35:2

Isa 33:10

I WILL ARISE… WILL I BE EXALTED… WILL I BE LIFTED UP: Yahweh goes into action with a display of His Shekinah Glory and power: cp v 5; Isa 5:16; 30:18; Psa 118:16; Isa 59:19; 26:11; Mic 5:9.

Isa 33:12

THE PEOPLES WILL BE BURNED AS IF TO LIME: The disposal of the great piles of corpses sprawled in a gruesome circle round the city. Cp Amo 2:1.

Isa 33:13

YOU WHO ARE FAR AWAY: The captives which had been carried away to Babylon. Or poss the Gentiles — who now give glory to God, and Hezekiah (2Ch 32:23).

YOU WHO ARE NEAR: God’s people in the city of Jerusalem and the Land.

Isa 33:14

THE SINNERS IN ZION ARE TERRIFIED…: “The ‘devouring fire’ and ‘everlasting burnings’ with which the divine judgment was manifest (Isa 30:27-33; 31:9) provoked the same reaction in these Jewish sinners as a like theophany had done in the hearts of their forefathers at Sinai (Exo 20:18,19; Deu 4:24; Num 17:12,13; Heb 12:29)” (WIsa 329).

Isa 33:15

The ancient rabbi Samlai stated that Moses gave 613 commandments, and that David reduced these to 11 commandments (ie Psa 15). Further, he stated that Isaiah reduced the 11 to 6 (Isa 33:15). What he could not mention, of course, was that Jesus was to summarize all the law in only two commandments (Mat 22:40).

Isa 33:17

THE KING IN HIS BEAUTY: Hezekiah, fully recovered from his grievous illness (Isa 38:1; 53:2)!

A LAND THAT STRETCHED AFAR: A land of extensive territory. Judah now being renewed to its “glory days”, before the Assyrian ravages. Cp Isa 9:7 (the increase of his government), and the “Land full of knowledge of the Lord” (Isa 11:9).

Isa 33:18

Quoted in 1Co 1:20: “Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?”

THE CHIEF OFFICER: “The scribe” (AV).

THE ONE WHO TOOK THE REVENUE: Related to Heb “shekel”; the official who took charge of the massive tribute paid by Judah to Assyria.

THE OFFICER IN CHARGE OF THE TOWERS: That is, the siege towers (Isa 30:25; 33:9; 37:24; 2Ki 19:23).

Isa 33:19

// Exo 14:13: “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again.”

STRANGE, INCOMPREHENSIBLE TONGUE: Cp Psa 114:1, also re the Egyptians.

Isa 33:21

Zion will be protected and made to stand firm by the Almighty Power of God. The city of Jerusalem, which lacks the broad rivers and streams of Egypt and Nineveh, and the insulating defense of the sea, like Tyre and Zidon, is sheltered and supported by that which is infinitely greater… the Lord of Hosts! Jerusalem has Immanuel and the quiet waters of Shiloah (Isa 8:6-8), and God as a wall of fire round about it (Zec 2:5)!

GALLEY WITH OARS… MIGHTY SHIP: The sort of ships which Assyria might have obtained in Phoenicia (Isa 2:16; Psa 48:7).

Isa 33:23

EVEN THE LAME: Cp 2Sa 5:8; Isa 35:5,6. Judah’s victory over its enemies will be so thorough there will be more than enough plunder for everyone, even slow-moving lame men who would normally get left out in the rush to gather the loot.

Isa 33:24

NO ONE.. WILL SAY, ‘I AM ILL’: Hezekiah, smitten for the sins of the nation (Isa 52:13,14), is now healed of his sickness (Isa 53:4). All, of course, typical of Jesus Christ!

Isa 34:1

YOU NATIONS: Means particularly all the nations surrounding Israel: Isa 29:7,8; 17:12,13; 14:26; 2Ch 9:23; 32:23; 1Ch 19:17; 18:11; Psa 118:10; Jer 27:7; Joel 3:2; Oba 1:15.

Isa 34:3

// Psa 83:2-8; 2Ch 32:22.

Isa 34:4

STARS OF HEAVEN… SKY… STARRY HOST: All sym of Israel: Gen 37:9,10; Jer 31:35,36; Dan 8:10; Rev 6:14.

ROLLED UP LIKE A SCROLL: The sixth seal: Rev 6:14!

VINE… FIG TREE: Also sym of Israel: Isa 5:1-7; Psa 80:8; Jer 24:1…; Joel 1:7,12).

Isa 34:5

SWORD: That is, the angel of God wielding the sword (Gen 3:24). A striking ct with the blessing of Edom now cancelled out: “You will live by the sword” (Gen 27:40). He who pursued his brother Judah with the sword (Amo 1:11) would now be pursued with a mightier sword!

EDOM: In spite of divine injunctions to good relations with Edom (Deu 2:4-8; 23:;7,8), there was ill-will between Edom and Israel. Israel’s attempts at friendship were fruitless (Num 20:14-21).. David won victories over Edom (Psa 60; 2Sa 8:13,14). But in Hezek’s day Edom gave support to Assyria against Judah (Oba 1:10-16; Psa 137:7). Now, apparently, Hezekiah is able to organize a punitive expedition against Edom (1Ch 4:39-43). Other judgments against Edom: Oba 1:1-14; Isa 63:1-6.

Isa 34:6

SWORD… BATHED IN BLOOD… COVERED WITH FAT: A bloody sacrificial scene — as Edom is offered on the altar of God!

BOZRAH: A very ancient city, a capital of Edom, about 18 mi southeast of the Dead Sea (Gen 36:33; 1Ch 1:44; Isa 34:6; 63:1; Jer 49:13,22; Amos 1:12).

Isa 34:7

THE WILD OXEN: Allusion to the cherubim, horns of the altar: cp Psa 22:21; 92:10).

WILL FALL WITH THEM: Or “shall come down upon them” (AV): a theophany (Exo 19:20; Isa 64:1).

THEIR LAND WILL BE DRENCHED WITH BLOOD: A deliberate ct with Oba 1:16: “Just as you drank on my holy hill”.

Isa 34:9

Vv 9,10: Edom will be destroyed in like manner as was Sodom: Gen 19; cp Joel 2:30.

Isa 34:10

NO ONE WILL EVER PASS THROUGH IT AGAIN: A sardonic ct with Israel’s first historic encounter with Edom (Num 20:21…).

Isa 34:11

Vv 11-15: “Edom [will be] a desert waste, because of violence done to the people of Judah, in whose land they shed innocent blood” (Joel 3:19). As for LD: “The most obvious outcome of this remarkable divine intervention will be the utter devastation of Esau’s land for all time. The language of its wasteness is remarkably like that of Sodom and Gomorrah. How will this come about? It is tempting to assume that Israeli nuclear bombs will be used against an Arab oilfield so as to set going the mightiest conflagration the world has ever know. Sodom and Gomorrah over again, only worse. But how is one to reconcile this with the hint of cherubim of glory and divine action? There is a remarkable catena of prophecies which foretell that God will impose His final judgment on the nations by the simple device of allowing full rein to human devilry: Eze 38:21; Isa 24:19; 9:14 (= Jdg 7:22); Hag 2:22; Zec 14:13; Joel 3:11,12” (WIsa 338).

CHAOS… DESOLATION: Heb “tohu… bohu”; cp Gen 1:2.

Isa 34:12

“They shall name it No Kingdom There, and all its princes shall be nothing” (RSV). “The RSV’s translation of the difficult words is attractive… This provides a kind of parallel to the description of Egypt in Isa 30:7 as ‘Rahab the Do-Nothing’. In any case, the main thought is clear. Just as a measuring line suggests architectural order, so a kingdom suggests social order; but there will be none” (EBC).

Isa 34:14

NIGHT CREATURES: The term “night-monster” is a hypothetical translation of the Heb term “lilith”, used once only in OT. The word is translated “screech-owl” (KJV), and “night monster” (KJV mg; RV). “Lilith” is thought by some to be of Babylonian origin, “a ghost… a night-demon of terrible and baleful influence upon men, and only to be cast out with many incantations” (ISBE). “In Jewish superstition a female, elegantly dressed, that carried off children by night. The text does not assert the existence of such objects of superstition, but describes the place as one which superstition would people with such beings” (JFB). But most of the “creatures” in vv 14,15 are plainly literal, not mythological — so some kind of owl may be correct after all.

Isa 34:16

NO ONE WILL LACK HER MATE: The inspired prophecy and its fulfillment will match one another perfectly!

Isa 35:1

“This ch provides a glorious vista of the future, when the wilderness of Edom is caused to flourish under the good hand of the Redeemer. Both mankind and the earth will be restored, and rejoicing will be occasioned throughout the world. What a lovely chapter to contemplate and upon which to meditate. It points out that [1] the desert will flourish as Eden: vv 1,2. [2] The ransomed, both spiritual and national Israel, will rejoice: vv 3-10.

What a glorious song concludes the ch and this section of the prophecy! The ransomed are redeemed from spiritual Egypt, are anointed with the oil of gladness, and experience a joy that stems from a divine cause. It is the vision that can encourage us to maintain the faith in these last days” (GEM).

DESERT… PARCHED LAND… WILDERNESS: The people of Israel and Judah, a “desert” parched and dying of thirst, now received the “water” of life!

Isa 35:2

LEBANON… CARMEL… SHARON: These regions had esp felt the oppressive hand of the Assyrians (Isa 33:9; 37:24); now they esp rejoice in renewed fertility and blessing!

WILL BE GIVEN TO IT: Or, “given to HER” — ie Jerusalem, delivered from the Assyrian and renewed and glorified!

Isa 35:4

FEARFUL: Lit, “hasty”, ie to “run away” in fear.

BE STRONG, DO NOT FEAR: Cp Isa 7:4; 8:12; 10:24; 2Ch 32:7.

Isa 35:5

Ct Isa 6:10: “Make the heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.” “An earlier passage makes plain that something more than the healing of physical disability is intended… Isa 29:18,19; 50:5” (WIsa 342).

Isa 35:6

WATER WILL GUSH FORTH IN THE WILDERNESS AND STREAMS IN THE DESERT: “The picture of God-given blessing in the Land (v 1) is now continued. Waters, streams, pools, springs are everywhere in abundance (Isa 43:19,20; 48:21; 49:10). It must have been a remarkable year of frequent and copious rainfall, so that with little effort on men’s part there was abundant fruitfulness (Lev 25:11). For the freed captives (Lev 25:10), streaming back from Babylon, the hardships of the way were made easy by the ready availability of food and water. As Israel in the wilderness had the smitten rock to save them from the horrors of thirst, so now this later generation saw ‘waters break out… in the desert’ — the verb means ‘cleave [the rock or the ground]’ ” (WIsa 342).

Isa 35:7

BURNING SAND: Heb “sharab”, prob a “mirage” (RV)! Cp 2Co 4:17,18: oblique ref to Egypt, whose promise of help against the Assyrian was a “mirage”! In general, the “world” for the most part is a “mirage” — that which passes away, ultimately the unseen!

JACKALS: An apt figure for Assyrian (and Arabian) marauders.

Isa 35:8

A HIGHWAY… THE WAY OF HOLINESS… THE UNCLEAN WILL NOT JOURNEY ON IT: The great highway was previously anything but a way of “holiness” — it would have been the route taken by the Assyrian army and its supply trains! But now this highway (built by the Assyrians?) would be turned into a holy way — by which joyful captives were now returning to the Holy One of Israel! Cp Isa 19:23; 52:1.

THE WAY: See Joh 14:6; Heb 10:20; Gen 3:24.

FOOLS: In this context “fools” are those who are morally corrupt, not those with limited intellectual capacity.

“And there shall be there, a raised way — even a high road, And the Highroad of Holiness, shall it be called, There shall not pass over it one who is unclean; But He Himself, shall be one of them travelling the road, And the perverse, shall not stray thereinto” (v 8, Roth). Christ shall travel this road (Isa 40:3), and subsequently the divine presence shall be with the ascending pilgrims (Zec 14:16). The word “fools” is better rendered “perverse”. They will not stray therein, being totally excluded!

Isa 35:9

LION: Sym Assyria (figures of lions were outside temples and palaces in Nineveh).

THE REDEEMED: The captives released from Babylon: Isa 11: 15,16; 19:23; 27:12,13; 51:10.

Isa 35:10

RANSOMED: Christ a ransom for many: Mar 10:45; Rom 3:24.

SINGING: The Songs of degrees: Psa 120-134.

WILL CROWN THEIR HEADS: Poss (1) the figure of the anointing of a High Priest (Lev 8:7; Psa 133:2). The statement may also be an ironic twist on the idiom “earth/dust on the head” (cf 2Sa 1:2; 13:19; 15:32; Job 2:12), referring to a mourning practice. (2) Or, “because of their Head” — ref Hezekiah, upon whom God had laid the sin of the nation (Isa 53).

Isa 36:1

THE FOURTEENTH YEAR OF KING HEZEKIAH’S REIGN: 701 BC.

SENNACHERIB KING OF ASSYRIA ATTACKED ALL THE FORTIFIED CITIES OF JUDAH AND CAPTURED THEM: On an Assyrian record, Sennacherib claimed to have taken 46 cities of Judah during this campaign (cp 2Ch 32:1).

Isa 36:2

THEN THE KING OF ASSYRIA SENT HIS FIELD COMMANDER: “Rabshakeh” (as in AV: the word literally means: “chief cup-bearer”) is a title that seems about equivalent to field commander.

LACHISH: A strongly fortified city of Judah about 30 mi sw of Jerusalem (Jos 15:39; 2Ch 11:9).

THE COMMANDER STOPPED AT THE AQUEDUCT OF THE UPPER POOL, ON THE ROAD TO THE WASHERMAN’S FIELD: 2Ki 18:17 records that three military officials represented Sennacherib, but Isaiah referred to only the speaker among them.

The place where the Assyrian commander took his stand near Jerusalem was the same place where Isaiah had stood when he urged Ahaz to trust God a number of years earlier (cp Isa 7:3). It was because Ahaz failed to trust God earlier that the Assyrian official stood there now (cp Isa 8:5-8). The very nation that Ahaz had trusted proved to be the greatest threat to her safety only one generation later. Father and son both faced a threat of destruction, both recognized the inadequacy of their own strength, but one trusted man and suffered defeat — whereas the other trusted God and enjoyed deliverance.

Isa 36:3

ELIAKIM SON OF HILKIAH THE PALACE ADMINISTRATOR, SHEBNA THE SECRETARY, AND JOAH SON OF ASAPH THE RECORDER WENT OUT TO HIM: Eliakim, Shebna, and Joah were all important officials in Hezekiah’s government (cp Isa 22:20-23).

Isa 36:4

Vv 4-10: The point of the Rabshakeh’s first speech was that there is no salvation in faith; no deliverance would come from trusting Yahweh. Judah should surrender because Egypt would not help her (v 6), Yahweh would not help her (v 7), she did not have enough military manpower to win (vv 8,9), and Assyria had authority from Yahweh to attack Jerusalem (v 10). This speech challenged everything Isaiah had been preaching.

THE FIELD COMMANDER SAID TO THEM, “TELL HEZEKIAH, “‘THIS IS WHAT THE GREAT KING, THE KING OF ASSYRIA, SAYS…”: The Rabshakeh told the Judean officials to give Hezekiah — he did not call him a king — a message from “the great king”, a title the Assyrian monarchs arrogantly claimed for themselves (cp Isa 10:8; 30:33). Clearly Sennacherib wanted the listening Jews to know that he regarded Hezekiah as a minor chieftain incapable of resisting the massive power of the Assyrian Empire.

Isa 36:6

LOOK NOW, YOU ARE DEPENDING ON EGYPT, THAT SPLINTERED REED OF A STAFF, WHICH PIERCES A MAN’S HAND AND WOUNDS HIM IF HE LEANS ON IT! SUCH IS PHARAOH KING OF EGYPT TO ALL WHO DEPEND ON HIM: He knew that some of the Judean nobles had put their trust in Egypt and had sent ambassadors there to make a treaty (cp Isa 30:1-7). But he also knew, better than those officials, that Egypt was not only an unreliable ally but a dangerous one, an opinion Isaiah shared (cp Isa 20; 28:15; Eze 29:6). Sennacherib had already defeated the Egyptians, who for the first and last time had unsuccessfully come to the aid of the Philistines, at Eltekeh northwest of Lachish.

Isa 36:7

AND IF YOU SAY TO ME, “WE ARE DEPENDING ON THE LORD OUR GOD” — ISN’T HE THE ONE WHOSE HIGH PLACES AND ALTARS HEZEKIAH REMOVED, SAYING TO JUDAH AND JERUSALEM, “YOU MUST WORSHIP BEFORE THIS ALTAR”?: The Rabshakeh knew about Hezekiah’s religious reforms in which he had removed many of the altars from the land (cp 2Ki 18:1-7; 2Ch 29 — 31). Evidently the commander believed that removing altars would antagonize Yahweh, but Hezekiah was really purifying Yahweh worship. Or perhaps he knew better, but didn’t care — since many of the Judeans believed that the removal of those altars was a bad thing anyway, and it was to those people that the Rabshakeh was evidently appealing.

Isa 36:10

FURTHERMORE, HAVE I COME TO ATTACK AND DESTROY THIS LAND WITHOUT THE LORD? THE LORD HIMSELF TOLD ME TO MARCH AGAINST THIS COUNTRY AND DESTROY IT: Perhaps the commander was referring to Isa 10:5,6, Isaiah’s prophecy that God would send Assyria against His people. Alternatively, he may have just been claiming divine authorization for Sennacherib’s invasion when there was none. It was not unusual for ANE conquerors to claim that the god of the invaded people had joined the invader.

Isa 36:11

THEN ELIAKIM, SHEBNA AND JOAH SAID TO THE FIELD COMMANDER, “PLEASE SPEAK TO YOUR SERVANTS IN ARAMAIC, SINCE WE UNDERSTAND IT. DON’T SPEAK TO US IN HEBREW IN THE HEARING OF THE PEOPLE ON THE WALL”: Aramaic was the common language of diplomacy; politicians normally conducted diplomatic talks in that language. (It did not become the common language in Israel until many years later.) The Rabshakeh, however, spoke to the kings’ officials in the common Hebrew that all the people understood. He probably did this so all the people, not just the king’s officials, would understand his message. He may also have been intending it as an insult to the king’s officials: by using Hebrew the commander was also implying that they did not know Aramaic, ie, that they were unlearned.

Isa 36:12

WHO, LIKE YOU, WILL HAVE TO EAT THEIR OWN FILTH AND DRINK THEIR OWN URINE: He sought to picture in the most disgusting terms the horrors of the coming siege — a form of propaganda.

Isa 36:14

DO NOT LET HEZEKIAH DECEIVE YOU: Apparently Rabshakeh knew of Hezekiah’s speech of exhortation to Judah (2Ch 32:7,8).

Isa 36:16

‘Be my servants!’ Rabshakeh the Assyrian cried out to the watchmen on the walls of Jerusalem: ‘Make an agreement… seek my favor with presents, come out to me… and then you will really live! You will eat of the vine and the fig tree, and you will drink waters of your own cistern. And some day I’ll take you away to a land of grain fields gently rustling in the cool breezes! Do you honestly want to starve and die on these bare Judean hills?’ In like manner the siren-song of a materialistic world calls us down from the walls of faith, freely to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season. Pleasurable it may be, but only for a time. Freedom it will never be; man was not created to be free, but only to choose which of two masters he will serve. He who commits sin is the servant of sin (Joh 8:34), and whatever fleeting enjoyment he experiences will be with the fear of a deserter and the greed of a slave. The “Rabshakeh” still cries out, “Serve me!” and the faithful still respond, with faithful Hezekiah, “Our eyes wait upon the Lord!” (Psa 123:2).

Isa 36:19

HAMATH: A Hittite city on the Orontes River (Isa 10:9).

ARPAD: Taken by Tiglath-pileser 740 BC; suppressed by Sargon 720 BC; near Hamath.

SEPHARVAIM: A city east of Euphrates River, near Babylon.

SAMARIA: Northern Kingdom, Israel, captured by Assyrians in immediate past.

Isa 36:22

WITH THEIR CLOTHES TORN: Expressing grief and dismay, at the blasphemy of Rabshakeh: cp Mat 26:65; Acts 14:14.

Isa 26:1

Isa 26: Another song of rejoicing (as refd to in Isa 24:16. Note many //s to Psa 118 (a Hezekiah psa).

GOD MAKES SALVATION ITS WALLS AND RAMPARTS: Cp Isa 33:6,20; 60:18. In ct with efforts made to build up Jerusalem’s defenses (Isa 22:9,10; 2Ch 32:3-5).

WALLS: Sym the saints: the stones built up into God’s house (1Pe 2:4,5), and indwelt by the Glory of God, which is a wall of fire to protect the city (Zec 2:5; cp Rev 21:12).

Isa 26:2

THE RIGHTEOUS NATION MAY ENTER: Freed captives from Assyria/Babylon return to Jerusalem in solemn and joyous procession. LD: Rev 22:14.

Isa 26:3

YOU WILL KEEP IN PERFECT PEACE HIM WHOSE MIND IS STEADFAST: “Let us not even wish for peace until we have, with God’s help, created the conditions in our life and mind that justify peace. Short of this, ‘peace’ is not a blessing, but a dangerous deception and soporific. True peace can come only from oneness with God in heart and life and action. ‘Steadfast’ implies permanence and consistency: Total dependence and dedication. ‘There is no peace to the wicked.’ Hopefully, we are not ‘wicked,’ but to the degree that we are sinful (and though we must mightily strive, none of us can ever rise completely above that), to that degree will our peace be marred. The only peace is ‘peace with God’: and God is perfect in holiness. Any unpurged corruption or foolishness within us will prevent our being wholly comfortable or ‘at peace’ with Him, or He fully accepting us in oneness” (GVG).

PERFECT PEACE: Peace of mind; spiritual peace: Joh 14:27; Rom 5:1,2; Eph 2:14-16; Phi 4:7.

HIM WHOSE MIND IS STEADFAST: The personal and individual ref here is to righteous king Hezekiah — delivered from his deadly illness, while his city is delivered from the Assyrian army.

Isa 26:4

“Trust in the LORD for an eternity of eternities, for in Jah Jehovah is a Rock of Ages.” The figure of a Rock (Isa 17:10; 30:29; 44:8) finds its meaning with special ref to the altar stone where Abraham was ready to offer his son, and which became the foundation of the altar of burnt offering (Psa 118:22).

Isa 26:5

” ‘Them that dwell on high’ may be the Assyrians looking down on Jerusalem from Mount Scopus [where their army encamped during the siege]. And the ‘lofty city’ to be ‘laid low’ can hardly be other than Nineveh whose pride was crushed with the destruction of its army” (WIsa 271).

Isa 26:7

The way made plain and smooth for the captives from Assyria (v 2) to return to their Land.

Isa 26:8

YOUR NAME AND RENOWN ARE THE DESIRE OF OUR HEARTS: “Loving God enough is the key to everything: the only key. We need two things: desire and realization. First, the constant, intense desire to be better than we are, to be the very best we can be, to be one with God, perfectly and eternally. And we can never be satisfied with anything less — with the poor little toys and lusts that the infantile world chooses and plays with and sets its empty mind on. And then we need realization: The realization of our utter helplessness and weakness and need — that we can do nothing of ourselves. All is of God. Face it: the whole universe is of God, and is God. He is everywhere and everything. If we run from Him, or cross Him, He will destroy us. He must. He is perfect goodness, and must in the fulness of time abolish everything out of harmony with Himself. Only perfect goodness can be eternal. If we run to Him, He will accept and love us, and absorb us to Himself. He will bless us. He will glorify us. He will lift us up to His Own divine nature. Is there any question of the choice to make?” (GVG).

Isa 26:9

THE NIGHT: Passover night.

Isa 26:10

THOUGH GRACE IS SHOWN TO THE WICKED, THEY DO NOT LEARN RIGHTEOUSNESS: The lavish payment of tribute in the time when the Assyrian was poised to invade the Land (2Ki 18:14-16). (What seems out of character, ie Hezekiah paying ‘bribes’ to the Gentiles, may be explained by the onset of his terrible illness, so that for a time the reins of power passed into the hands of far less righteous men.)

Isa 26:12

YOU HAVE DONE FOR US: Therefore, “stand still and see the salvation of Yahweh” (Exo 14:13). Cp Rom 6:23: salvation is the gift of God.

Isa 26:13

OTHER LORDS BESIDES YOU HAVE RULED OVER US: (1) Foreign rulers, like Sennacherib, and (2) their abomination “gods”: Ahaz’s compromises with the Assyrians in 2Ki 16:12-14,18.

Isa 26:14

THEY ARE DEAD; THEY LIVE NO MORE: The “gods” were never alive, AND their royal worshipers will die — like Sennacherib — never to rise again (cp Isa 14:9-12; ct Isa 26:19).

THEY LIVE NO MORE: Having no resurrection: Jer 51:39,57; Psa 49:12-14,20; Pro 21:16. “The swashbuckling, power-drunk dictators of the world now meet their due fate” (WIsa 277).

DEPARTED SPIRITS: “Rephaim”: Psa 88:10n; Isa 26:14,19.

YOU HAVE WIPED OUT ALL MEMORY OF THEM: Ct with the “memorial” name of God (vv 8,13b).

Isa 26:15

YOU HAVE ENLARGED THE NATION: (1) The renewed adherence to the temple of the people out of the northern tribes (Isa 9:3,4; 2Ch 30:10-12), and (2) the return of the multitude of captives from Sennacherib’s Babylon (Isa 49:19,20; etc).

YOU HAVE EXTENDED ALL THE BORDERS OF THE LAND: In that your praise has been extended far afield (Psa 48:10), and much of the northern kingdom and the former captives have been joined to Jerusalem (Isa 43:6; Amo 9:9).

Isa 26:16

THEY COULD BARELY WHISPER A PRAYER: The righteous Hezekiah, brought to the point of death, barely able to breathe out a prayer of hope to Yahweh (Isa 38:3).

Isa 26:17

Figure of mother and children in Isaiah: Isa 8:3,4; 11:8; 26:17,18; 28:9; 45:10,11; 46:3,4; 49:15,20-23; 54:1; 60:16; 66:11-13.

“The nation in its trouble is likened to a pregnant woman suffering all the pain of delivery, yet unable to give birth to her child. Micah (Mic 4:9,10) has the same figure in the same sort of context. When the official deputation — Eliakim the High Priest, and Shebna — returned from the fruitless and discouraging encounter with Rabshakeh, the king promptly sent them to seek the aid of God through the mediation of Isaiah; and here again the same harrowing figure of speech was employed: ‘The children are come to the birth, and there is no strength to bring forth’ (Isa 37:3)… the nation had made its effort to achieve a new birth (a reformation Hezekiah himself had led), and yet has found itself suffering more than ever… ‘So have we been in thy sight, O Lord.’ The Heb text here suggests: ‘from before thy Beloved’, with ref to the messengers sent by the son of David. Isaiah, characteristically, prob meant both ideas” (WIsa 274).

Isa 26:18

BUT WE GAVE BIRTH TO WIND: Sb prob read: “Like him (Hezekiah) we have brought forth wind,” ie, no real achievement. ‘We have brought no deliverance to the Land… we have achieved no real reformation in the people…’

Isa 26:19

“Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise” (KJV): In Hezekiah’s day, the dead (plural) coming back to life = the Assyrian captives (given up for dead) returning to their own Land! And the dead (singular) refs, of course, to his body as good as dead in leprosy — raised up by God’s power.

“Together WITH MY DEAD BODY” (KJV) is alluded to by Paul in 1Th 4:14: “God will bring WITH JESUS those who have fallen asleep in him.”

“It is not certain whether the resurrection envisioned here is intended to be literal or figurative. A comparison with Isa 25:8 and Dan 12:2 suggests a literal interpretation, but Eze 37:1-14 uses resurrection as a metaphor for deliverance from exile and the restoration of the nation (see Isa 27:12-13)” (NET notes): both are correct!

DEAD (1st): “Muth”.

YOU WHO DWELL IN THE DUST: Cp Dan 12:2: “Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake.”

WAKE UP AND SHOUT FOR JOY: Resurrection: Hos 13:13,14; cited in 1Co 15:54.

THE DEW OF THE MORNING: Cp Psa 110:3: “the dew of your youth” = a renewal of youth, a resurrection! Sym effects of Holy Spirit, causing the resurrection of the faithful in the “morning” of Christ’s coming (cp Isa 26:19; 2Sa 23:4; Psa 133:3). Also, sym a multitude (2Sa 17:12; Mic 5:7), enjoying the favor of the king (Pro 19:2); and/or the unfailing compassions of God for His people (Gen 27:28; Lam 3:22,23); and/or the manna fresh every morning (Num 1:9). Some dew results from condensation of atmosphere (cp those alive at Christ’s coming), but most dew is formed from moisture risen to surface of ground or plant leaves (cp those resurrected at Christ’s return).

DEAD (2nd): “Rephaim”: Psa 88:10n; Isa 26:14,19.

Isa 26:20

ENTER YOUR ROOMS: This v alludes to both the ark of Noah (Gen 7:16) and the passover of Moses (Exo 12:22,23) — the doors shut, the protecting presence of the angel of Yahweh, while all outside was hopelessness and death. But the most direct historical context is the action of Hezekiah who, when he received the threatening message from Sennacherib, promptly went to the house of God, secluding himself there to pray (Isa 37:1,14,15). Thus was Jerusalem made a strong city, the walls thereof appointed to salvation (Isa 26:1); and the people who fled to the city were protected from the Assyrian host by the Divine Hand. But the “chambers” of protection can be anywhere that a believer turns to God for help. So Jesus can exhort his followers: “But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you” (Mat 6:6).

Jewish men wore a garment called a “talith”, “talis”, or “prayer shawl”, all the time, not just at prayer. “Talith” consists of two Hebrew words; “tal” (tent) and “ith” (little). Thus, each man had his own little tent. (The apostle Paul was a Jewish Pharisee, but also a tentmaker. Some believe that he made prayer shawls, not tents to live in.) Since all Jews could not worship in the Tent of Meeting at one time, God gave to each Jew his own private sanctuary where he could meet with God. In prayer, the man would pull it up over his head, forming a tent, where he could retreat to call upon Yahweh. It was intimate, private, and set apart from anyone else — enabling him to totally focus upon God. It was his prayer closet. Cp Mat 6:6.

FOR A LITTLE WHILE: Which would see both retribution on the brutal invader and salvation for the faithful (Isa 10:25).

Isa 26:21

THE LORD IS COMING OUT OF HIS DWELLING: That is, He is defending His own house, the Temple!

THE BLOOD: Cp blood of righteous Abel, a witness against sin of Cain.

Isa 27:1

LEVIATHAN: Ref an ancient mythological 7-headed sea monster, or dragon; used of Babylon and Egypt (Job 3:8; 41:1; Psa 74:14; 104:26; Isa 27:1): see Lesson, Leviathan.

LEVIATHAN THE GLIDING SERPENT: Nineveh of Assyria: the “serpent” (Heb “nachash”) in the swift-running Tigris (modern Syria). Some translate “slippery” or “slithering”.

LEVIATHAN THE COILING SERPENT: Babylon: the “serpent” (Heb “nachash”) in the slow meandering Euphrates (modern Iraq). [Yet the Euphrates is used to sym Assyria also: Isa 8:7. So, at this time, perhaps both rivers sym Assyria, as the ruler over Babylon.]

THE MONSTER OF THE SEA: Egypt, a “crocodile” (Heb “tannin”) in the vast expanse of the Nile (Eze 29:3; 32:2; Nah 3:8). Egypt: a false “friend” of Israel (Isa 30:2,3; 31:1). LD: Rev 13:1: the beast coming out of the sea.

Isa 27:2

A FRUITFUL VINEYARD: In the days of Ahaz, Israel had been a decidedly “unfruitful” vineyard (Isa 5); but now, in Hezekiah’s day, much the reverse!

Isa 27:4

Vv 4,5: “I am not angry. I wish I could confront some thorns and briers! Then I would march against them for battle; I would set them all on fire, unless they became my subjects, and made peace with me” (NET). In Isa 5:6 God MADE thorns and briers to grow in his unfruitful vineyard; here, He promises to DESTROY any thorns and briers that threaten His vineyard — a total contrast!

Isa 27:6

JACOB… ISRAEL: Prob repentant worshipers coming out of Northern Kingdom and from captivity in Babylon/Assyria. They will now prosper greatly, and bring forth fruit! The startling and utterly unexpected blessedness of an abundantly fruitful Year of Jubilee (2Ki 19:29,30), which God promised beforehand and then gave (Isa 61) — in ct to the blandishments of the Assyrian emissary, promising these very blessings, but not at all intending to fulfill (2Ki 18:31,32).

WORLD: Heb “tebel” = the whole world, not just the Land — prob here used to emphasize… not just Judah, but Judah and Israel besides!

Isa 27:9

HE MAKES ALL THE ALTAR STONES TO BE LIKE CHALK STONES CRUSHED TO PIECES: Ref the Assyrian altar erected by Ahaz (2Ki 16:12-16). These emblems of idolatry and false trust in Gentile alliances were destroyed at Hezekiah’s command (2Ki 18:4; 2Ch 31:1).

ASHERAH: See Lesson, Asherah.

Isa 27:10

Vv 10,11: Which city is this? Uncertain. Poss the “fortified cities” of Judah, which had been (previously) overrun and destroyed by Sennacherib’s host, on their way to Jerusalem?

Isa 27:11

A PEOPLE WITHOUT UNDERSTANDING: Quoting Deu 32:28, re Israel’s history. Cp Hos 4:6: Israel is destroyed for lack of knowledge.

Isa 27:12

THRESH… GATHERED UP ONE BY ONE: Not a judgment or punishment, but rather a gleaning. Every single one of the righteous remnant will be “gathered” by God; not one will be lost!

FROM… EUPHRATES TO THE WADI OF EGYPT: From the far north to the far south of the Land (Gen 15:18). Hezek’s effort to gather into the renewed worship of Yahweh all God’s people (2Ch 30:10), and those even further afield — esp those who were carried captive to Babylon/Assyria, and those who fled far away, to Egypt.

Isa 27:13

A GREAT TRUMPET WILL SOUND: By which, on the Day of Atonement, the great Year of Jubilee is to be inaugurated (Lev 25:9) — accompanied by the freeing of all bondslaves and the return of every man to his inheritance (Lev 25:10). (LD) Trumpet blasts: Mat 24:31; 1Th 4:16; Rev 11:15.

… WILL COME AND WORSHIP… IN JERUSALEM: The Feast of Tabernacles for all nations (cp Isa 24:23; 25:6,7,10; 2:2,3; 19:23-25; Zec 14:16).

Isa 28:1

Isa 28: One of 6 “woes”, directed against Jerusalem (Isa 28:1; 29:1,15; 30:1; 31:1; 33:1).

WREATH: Or crown — High Priest paraphernalia.

EPHRAIM’S DRUNKARDS: The corrupt and drunken priests of the temple at Jerusalem, linked with Ephraim because of their evil way of life — which was like the apostates of the north (Amo 6:1,6). “The leaders in Jerusalem were so delighted that their attempt to buy off Sennacherib had succeeded (when actually it had failed most abysmally) that they gave themselves over to an unexampled drunken spree. Note esp v 15 and… Isa 22:1,2,12,13” (WIsa 284). (That this ch is about Judah/Jerusalem and not Israel/Samaria becomes evident later in the ch.)

GLORIOUS BEAUTY: Ref the splendid accoutrements of the priests (Exo 28:2).

Isa 28:2

Isa 28:2.

FLOODING DOWNPOUR: The irresistible Assyrian invasion (cp Isa 8:7,8; 10:22; 17:12).

Isa 28:3

There is a crown of pride (Isa 28:3), which no one should wear. A crown of thorns (Mat 27:29), which no one can wear. And a crown of life (Jam 1:12), which everyone may wear. Also, an incorruptible crown (1Co 9:25), a crown of rejoicing (1Th 2:19), a crown of glory (1Pe 5:4), and a crown to be kept until Christ’s coming (Rev 3:11).

Isa 28:5

A worthy king (Hezekiah) and a worthy High Priest (Eliakim) will have replaced their corrupt predecessors.

THE REMNANT OF HIS PEOPLE: The relatively small section of the nation who remained faithful to their king and their God (Isa 4:2,4; 11:11,16; 37:4).

Isa 28:6

A SPIRIT OF JUSTICE…: The righteous king Hezekiah’s “spirit of justice” will be strengthened and reasserted as a result of his recovery from his deadly disease (cp Isa 11:2; 32:1).

A SOURCE OF STRENGTH TO THOSE WHO TURN BACK THE BATTLE AT THE GATE: The courage of the defenders of Jerusalem would be marvelously transformed by seeing the enemy destroyed at the very gates of the city (Isa 22:7).

Isa 28:7

Vv 7,8: “A bitter and intensely realistic picture of the ungodly sottishness of priests and prophets (but not of men like Isaiah, Joel, Micah, Habakkuk, Nahum). Micah has a similar picture painted with powerful sarcasm… Mic 2:11” (WIsa 285). Cp prohibition against priests on duty using wine or strong drink (Lev 10:1-9).

Isa 28:9

Vv 9-13: Isaiah had taught to the newcomers from the north (who had come to keep Hezekiah’s special passover) simple repetitive lessons about righteousness and service to God. The educated and supercilious priests of wickedness in Jerusalem now mocked these simple instructions, repeated in a strange dialect, as so much “stammering”, but the presence and words of these simple countryfolk from the north was a standing rebuke to the worldliness and drunkenness of the wicked priests. (Such an interpretation makes sense of Paul’s use of this passage as prophetic of the speaking in tongues in the first century: 1Co 14:21… and the Holy Spirit-guided preaching of the simple, unlearned apostles as well: Act 4:13.) [In the same way, the preaching of the cross can seem to be foolishness: 1Co 1:18.]

Figure of mother and children in Isaiah: Isa 8:3,4; 11:8; 26:17,18; 28:9; 45:10,11; 46:3,4; 49:15,20-23; 54:1; 60:16; 66:11-13.

TO CHILDREN WEANED FROM THEIR MILK…: This phrase supports the above view of vv 9-13, ie that it is about naive, simple believers rebuking the sophisticated wickedness of the priests at Jerusalem. Peter’s citation of this ch (Isa 28:16 / 1Pe 2:5,6), along with his ref to the instruction of babes (1Pe 2:2), also confirms this view.

Isa 28:15

A COVENANT WITH DEATH: Made by placating Sennacherib with a massive payment of tribute — which would prove useless when the invasion came.

Isa 28:16

A TESTED STONE, A PRECIOUS CORNERSTONE FOR A SURE FOUNDATION: “The unbudgeable rock in the Temple area where Abraham had prepared to sacrifice Isaac, and which later became the foundation stone of the great altar of burnt offering (cp Isa 8:13-15)… To find a place of prominence and glory for the Assyrian altar which he had brought in, Ahaz had removed Solomon’s altar, but had found himself baffled by the grand solidity of its rock foundation. Now, in the more wholesome days of Hezekiah, the former arrangement of the true altar founded on the Eternal Rock had been restored. So, in the impending crisis, let men put confidence in the God whose redemption of His people was symbolized there” (WIsa 288). These vv cited in 1Pe 2:5,6.

A TESTED STONE: Or, perhaps, “a TESTING stone” (BS 10:84): This “stone” (Christ) was the means by which Israel was tested (see context 1Pe 2:6-8; Psa 118:22; Isa 8:14).

WILL NEVER BE DISMAYED: KJV has “shall not make haste”, but the NIV reading is confirmed by NT citation: Rom 9:33; 10:11; 1Pe 2:6.

Isa 28:19

MORNING AFTER MORNING, BY DAY AND BY NIGHT: Continuing reports coming in of the ever-approaching Assyrian war-machine!

Isa 28:20

That is, the place of comfort you have designed for yourself will prove woefully inadequate!

Isa 28:21

HIS STRANGE WORK: “One of the strangest things God ever did, for in the first instance it will be against His own people…. (cp Isa 10;12,22,23)” (WIsa 290).

Isa 28:24

Vv 24,25: “The farmer does not go on ploughing every day. It is not a non-stop operation. He does not keep at it all the year round (Isa 57:16; Psa 103:9). Instead, the ploughing finished, he carefully levels and smooths the soil. Then comes sowing time. And according to each crop that he plans there is a different operation, some seed being sown broadcast, and some in drills and rows, some planted individually, and some as marginal catch-crop. And why does He go about things in these diverse ways?…. (answered in next vv)” (WIsa 291).

Isa 28:27

Vv 27,28: And the same diversity of operations applies to the harvest time, when each crop gets its own special treatment…

Isa 28:29

The lesson of all this is… “So also God does not always deal with the same individual (or nation) in the same way. Each man has his times when care, comfort, or encouragement are what are best for him. There are times also when hard discipline, rough tribulation and suffering are what he needs, but never wants… Even in this matter of discipline God knows better than to treat all men or nations alike. With consummate wisdom he handles each individual according to his need” (WIsa 292).

Isa 29:1

ARIEL, THE CITY WHERE DAVID SETTLED: (1) Jerusalem is called “Ariel”, the “Lion of God”. The tribe of Judah, in whose territory Jerusalem is located, has always been associated with the lion — especially the “couching” or reclining lion (Gen 49:9; cp Num 23:24; 24:9; 1Ki 10:19,20; Rev 5:5). The original city of David was built on the long narrow promontory of Zion — a ridge which is highest on the northeast, at Moriah, where the Temple was built. The whole ridge, with its distinctive color and shape, would resemble a lion; with Moriah (highest on the northeast), the lion’s head [BS 12:133-136]. (2) Or, “Ariel” = “hearth” (Isa 29:2), or altar — ref the altar of burnt offering (as Isa 28:16; Eze 43:15,16).

SETTLED: Or perhaps “encamped”, or “besieged” — ie, when he captured Jebus (2Sa 5).

ADD YEAR TO YEAR: Thus the beginning of the year, pointing to Passover (as in many other Isaiah passages: cp Isa 26:20,21; 30:29; 31:5).

Isa 29:2

I WILL BESIEGE ARIEL: So this prophecy was given perhaps a year before Sennacherib’s final siege of Jerusalem.

SHE WILL BE TO ME LIKE AN ALTAR HEARTH: Jerusalem will become the center of a mighty conflagration.

Isa 29:3

All this was done by Sennacherib’s army, but the attack was never pressed (Isa 37:33). Cp Sennacherib’s own inscriptions: ‘Hezekiah himself I shut up like a bird in a cage in Jerusalem his royal city. I raised forts about him…” But he does not say that he TOOK         the city!

(NT) The siege of Jerusalem by the Romans, predicted in Luk 19:43,44.

Isa 29:4

FROM THE GROUND… OUT OF THE DUST… GHOSTLIKE… WHISPER: Echoing the hocus-pocus of spiritualism, against which Isaiah warned (Isa 8:19). In their desperation did the princes of Judah seek guidance from mediums?

Isa 29:5

Vv 5,6: Destruction as an awe-inspiring phenomenon, including: (a) Thunder (Isa 30:30); (b) Earthquake; (c) Great noise (Isa 30:30); (d) Storm and flood (Isa 17:13; 30:27); (e) Tempest and wind (Isa 17:13; Isa 30:30); and (f) Devouring fire (Isa 10:16,17; 30:27,30-33; 33:14). Like the glory of God when His Angel came down on mt Sinai (Exo 19:18,19).

Isa 29:8

“A more vivid representation of utter disenchantment than this v gives can scarcely be conceived” (Skinner, WIsa 298). Instead of the “man” (ie, Sennacherib) enjoying a wonderful meal (ie Jerusalem), he wakes to find that he along with his army IS the meal!

Isa 29:9

Vv 9,10: Now back to the inhabitants of Jerusalem: they (along with their godless leaders) are “blind drunks” (an allusion to Isa 22:13; cp 2Th 2:11) — not recognizing how the hand of God will be acting on behalf of Jerusalem.

Isa 29:10

DEEP SLEEP… SEALED YOUR EYES… COVERED YOUR HEADS: “It is the figure once again of a man curled up in bed (Isa 28:20; 30:1) and heedless of all the serious action that goes on in the world around him (Mic 2:11; 3:6,7). The spiritual stupor Isaiah sees as a penalty now imposed by Almighty God for earlier unwillingness to receive the warnings of heaven. This is the inspiration you have from God… the spirit of deep sleep! What a ct with the clear incisiveness of Isaiah’s own inspiration, specially claimed by him (Isa 28:14,29; 29:13)” (WIsa 299).

Isa 29:11

WORDS SEALED IN A SCROLL: Isaiah’s message, bound up and sealed (Isa 8:16). Quite simply, it had been explained to those who wished to hear, but to the educated leaders of Israel it remained a “sealed” book (its being sealed up used as their excuse) because they did not want to hear its words!

IT IS SEALED: Perhaps meaning “sealed until the time of the end, when it will be unsealed again” (as in Dan 12:9,10).

Isa 29:12

Or (2nd excuse), spoken by those who were “uneducated”: ‘It’s no good to us; we are not educated!’ Thus both learned and unlearned find excuses not to pay attention.

Isa 29:13

Quoted in Mat 15:8, as a searing indictment of the Jews of his day — who professed righteousness but refused to hear the simple words of God. Quoted by Paul in Rom 11:8, in a sorrowing lament about the hardness of heart of his countrymen.

Isa 29:14

THE WISDOM OF THE WISE WILL PERISH…: Also quoted by Paul in 1Co 1:18,19 — describing the hair-splitting “righteousness” of the Jewish rabbis, which kept them from accepting Jesus as Messiah.

Isa 29:15

THOSE WHO GO TO GREAT DEPTHS TO HIDE THEIR PLANS: The court party who did not believe in God nor his prophet Isaiah, but rather put their trust in political alliances and intrigue (as with Egypt: Isa 30; 31).

AND THINK: The KJV has: “and they say”, but this is not something which hypocritical worshipers would ever SAY — they would only THINK it in their hearts! (Cp general idea: Psa 10:11; 14:1/53:1.)

Isa 29:16

AS IF THE POTTER WERE THOUGHT TO BE LIKE THE CLAY: “It is the universal philosophy, for there is no human being who does not like to think of himself as a potter rather than as what he actually is — a mere lump of clay, to be shaped and fashioned by God” (WIsa 302). Same idea in Isa 45:9, and quoted by Paul in Rom 9:20,21.

Isa 29:17

Vv 17-19: “Lebanon, wild rough country, a wilderness (Isa 32:15), He will turn into a fruitful field, and what has been esteemed a fruitful field, He will turn into a forest. (It is true that in one or two places Lebanon’s cedars are used as a sym of grandeur and dignity; eg Isa 35:2. But that is not the emphasis here.)… The part of the nation hitherto deemed uncultured and therefore unimportant [esp the poor and illiterate of the north] (cp Isa 28:11) would become the most acceptable segment of God’s people — whereas those who deemed themselves to be the elite of the holy nation [esp priests and princes of Judah] would find themselves written off as almost valueless” (WIsa 302). In NT and beyond, a role reversal: Jews are reprobated, but Gentiles are grafted in (cp Rom 11).

Isa 29:18

THE DEAF WILL HEAR… THE BLIND WILL SEE: The poor and uncultured and despised of the nation would be the first to hear the message of Isaiah.

Isa 29:20

THE RUTHLESS: Sennacherib.

MOCKERS: The proud of Judah.

ALL WHO HAVE AN EYE FOR EVIL: “It comes out the worst when a man is half conscious of having a weak case and is making desperate efforts to convince himself that he does well to be angry. If he believes in the Bible he needs then to remember that all who watch for iniquity and make a man an offender for a word shall be cut off (Isa 29 : 20). It is usually an easy matter to collect reports derogatory to any man or any body of men. There is quite a temptation to use these “make weights” in time of controversy, especially if the original cause of dispute is slight. One on the defensive can be kept busy chasing the false reports and unfair interpretations, but never succeeding in catching one before the next is on the wing.

“In a court of law a litigant is tied down to the actual charge. It is useless for him to try to fatten out his suit by all sorts of complaints remote from the original accusation. We are free from any such legal restrictions now, but it is well to remember that we have to go before a judgment seat far more searching than any ever set up by man, and for “every idle word” that we have spoken we shall have to give account. Do not let us watch for iniquity, then, either in those we accuse of specific errors or in those who accuse us. Such watching inevitably leads to countless idle and evil words” (PrPr).

Isa 29:21

Men who through their willful mishandling of the Word of God cause others to sin (vv 11,12,18). In Christ’s day, the Pharisees who plotted to entangle him in his words: Mat 22:15; Luk 11:53,54.

Isa 29:23

Vv 23,24: “Now, in Isaiah’s day, the great rounding up of captives by Sennacherib, to march them off the Babylon, and also the mass flight of others to Egypt to escape the invasion, were experiences which the providence of God would correct. From both far-off lands the wretched people would return with joy and thanksgiving. They would be in truth ‘the work of God’s hands’, given more than adequate reason to sanctify His name as the God of Abraham and the Holy One of Israel. And the outcome of this astonishing unlooked-for deliverance would be that a great many others who had been indifferent to their high religious privileges would ‘come to understand’ and would ‘learn doctrine’ ” (WIsa 303). LD: “There will come also an open deliverance from the third and last of three frightful overturnings. The last and worst deportation of Jewish captives will be reversed by divine mandate (Joel 3:1-7; Isa 27:12,13; 19:22-25, etc). It will be a return not only to the Land but also to the God of their fathers and the truth of His Messiah” (WIsa 304).