INSIGHTS FROM ISAIAH

  Isaiah 21 Babylon is fallen, is fallen Isa 21:1  The burden of the desert of the sea. As whirlwinds in the south pass through; so it cometh from the desert, from a terrible land.  A prophetic message concerning Babylon, here symbolically referred to as "the desert of the sea," likely due to the barrenness of the vast marshy regions once covered with water. In Scripture, whirlwinds are often described as coming from the south, and similarly, this judgment—likened to a whirlwind—refers to the army of the Medes, rapidly advancing from a desolate and wild region.   Isa 21:2  A grievous vision is declared unto me; the treacherous dealer dealeth treacherously, and the spoiler spoileth. Go up, O Elam: besiege, O Media; all the sighing thereof have I made to cease.  The prophet receives a troubling and difficult vision. ‘The plunderer is plundered, and the destroyer is destroyed’.   Initially uncertain whether it refers to the conqueror or the conqu...

Isaiah 20 A sign against Egypt and Cush Isa 20:1  In the year that Tartan came unto Ashdod, (when Sargon the king of Assyria sent him,) and fought against Ashdod, and took it;  Sargon, the king of Assyria (historically Sargon II, reigned 722–705 BCE), dispatched his commander, Tartan (not a personal name but a military title—turtānu, meaning commander-in-chief ) to subdue Ashdod, a chief city of the Philistines. This event occurred in 711 BCE, marking another Assyrian victory over the western lands. Isa 20:2  At the same time spake the LORD by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, Go and loose the sackcloth from off thy loins, and put off thy shoe from thy foot. And he did so, walking naked and barefoot.  The LORD instructed Isaiah to remove both his sackcloth—the garment often worn as a symbol of mourning and prophetic office (2 Ki 1:8; Zech 13:4; Matt 3:4; Rev 11:3) and his footwear. Sackcloth was typically made from coarse goat’s hair and worn around the loins...

  Isaiah 19 An oracle concerning Egypt Isa 19:1 The burden of Egypt. Behold, the LORD rideth upon a swift cloud, and shall come into Egypt: and the idols of Egypt shall be moved at his presence, and the heart of Egypt shall melt in the midst of it.  This is a solemn message concerning Egypt. The LORD is depicted as swiftly advancing on a cloud, a symbol of His heavenly hosts (Ps 104:3; Ps 18:10; Ps 68:17). At the very presence of the Almighty, the idols of Egypt — representing their many false gods — were shaken, alarmed, and removed from their places, while the hearts of the people trembled in terror before Him. Isa 19:2  And I will set the Egyptians against the Egyptians: and they shall fight every one against his brother, and every one against his neighbour; city against city, and kingdom against kingdom.  The LORD, Sovereign over all the earth, declares that He will stir up discord within Egypt. They would rise against one another — brother against brother...

                                                                                              Isaiah 18                                                                           An oracle concerning Cush Isa 18:1  Woe to the land shadowing with wings, which is beyond the rivers of Ethiopia:  This message calls the attention of a land lying alongside the rivers of Ethiopia (Cush), whose ships had sails resembling wings. The word Woe here functions not as a lament for impending doom,...

Isaiah 17 An oracle concerning Damascus Isa 17:1  The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap.  This is a prophetic declaration from God foretelling calamity upon Damascus, the capital of Syria. Both the city and the kingdom would be reduced to rubble. This prophecy was fulfilled by Tiglath-Pileser (2 Kings 16:9) during the reign of King Ahaz. Isa 17:2  The cities of Aroer are forsaken: they shall be for flocks, which shall lie down, and none shall make them afraid.  Aroer along with its surrounding towns, would be abandoned. The desolate land would be left for flocks to graze in peace, undisturbed by people. This Aroer must be a lesser-known place in Syria—or it may be a poetic allusion, underscoring the reach of judgment across borders as the well known Aroer was of Moab. Isa 17:3  The fortress also shall cease from Ephraim, and the kingdom from Damascus, and the remnant of Syria: they shall be as...

                                                                                              Isaiah 16 Judgement against Moab   Isa 16:1  Send ye the lamb to the ruler of the land from Sela to the wilderness, unto the mount of the daughter of Zion.  The prophet advises the Moabites to send tribute — in the form of well-fed rams — from their rocky, mountainous region of Sela (modern-day Petra) through the wilderness to the ruler of Judah at Jerusalem. In ancient times, Moab was subject to Judah and paid tribute, a practice that had long ceased. Now, under the threat of invading enemies, they are urged to seek protection by restoring this tribute. Isa 16:2  For it shall be, that, as a w...