ISAIAH 14 PRIDE AND MAGNIFICENCE LAID LOW

                                                                                ISAIAH 14

 Pride and magnificence laid low

 

The Restoration of Jacob

Isa 14:1  For the LORD will have mercy on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land: and the strangers shall be joined with them, and they shall cleave to the house of Jacob. 

The merciful God will remember the people of Israel, who had been taken captive to Babylon, and will bring them back to their own land, granting them peace and rest. The Lord will still regard Israel and the house of Jacob as His chosen people. When they return, many from among the nations will desire to accompany them from the land of their captivity, choosing to dwell with them and embrace both them and their God.

Isa 14:2  And the people shall take them, and bring them to their place: and the house of Israel shall possess them in the land of the LORD for servants and handmaids: and they shall take them captives, whose captives they were; and they shall rule over their oppressors. 

The people of Israel shall bring these strangers with them to their own land, for many would willingly follow and accept even a humble place as their servants, for the sake of sharing in the blessings of the true faith. This illustrates how the people of God, by their influence and gracious example, will win over their former oppressors. Even amidst the pride and arrogance of Babylon, the power of their conduct will draw others to join them in their homeward journey and embrace the worship of the Lord.

Israel's Remnant Taunts Babylon

Isa 14:3  And it shall come to pass in the day that the LORD shall give thee rest from thy sorrow, and from thy fear, and from the hard bondage wherein thou wast made to serve, 

When the people return to their homeland, the LORD will give them peace and security, removing the fear, distress, and harsh bondage they endured in servitude.

Isa 14:4  That thou shalt take up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and say, How hath the oppressor ceased! the golden city ceased! 

Then they shall take up a proverb, a song of triumph, against the king of Babylon, saying, “How the oppressor has come to an end! The golden city has ceased!” At last, they will rejoice in the downfall of the proud kingdom that had held them captive. (Dan. 2:38)

Isa 14:5  The LORD hath broken the staff of the wicked, and the sceptre of the rulers. 

The LORD has broken the staff of the wicked, the sceptre of rulers. The rod of oppression that once struck down the nations has been snapped, and the dominion of tyrants has ended.

Isa 14:6  He who smote the people in wrath with a continual stroke, he that ruled the nations in anger, is persecuted, and none hindereth. 

He who struck the people in fury with unrelenting blows, and ruled the nations in rage, is now himself persecuted, and none shall intervene. It is time for the oppressor to suffer judgment.

Isa 14:7  The whole earth is at rest, and is quiet: they break forth into singing. 

The whole earth is at comfort and ease; nations, relieved from tyranny, break forth into joyful singing. With the fall of Babylon — that vast empire which had subdued much of the known world — peace would return, and oppressed nations would lift up songs of gladness.

Isa 14:8  Yea, the fir trees rejoice at thee, and the cedars of Lebanon, saying, Since thou art laid down, no feller is come up against us. 

The evergreen fir trees and the mighty cedars of Lebanon rejoice at the oppressor’s fall, saying, “Since you have been laid low, no woodcutter has come up against us.” In this vivid image, the nations are pictured as forests that had long been under threat, but now, with the feller gone, they dwell in safety.

Isa 14:9  Hell from beneath is moved for thee to meet thee at thy coming: it stirreth up the dead for thee, even all the chief ones of the earth; it hath raised up from their thrones all the kings of the nations. 

The scene now shifts from the rejoicing nations to the mournful regions of the dead — the grave itself. While the earth is at rest, the underworld (Sheol) is troubled. It is moved to meet the king of Babylon at his descent to the grave, awakening the spirits of the dead, even the former rulers of the earth. The kings of the nations, described as enthroned in death, rise from their places to greet the fallen monarch.

Isa 14:10  All they shall speak and say unto thee, Art thou also become weak as we? art thou become like unto us? 

They will all speak and say to him, “Have you too become weak as we are? Have you been brought down to share our fate?” The departed rulers, astonished at his arrival, taunt him with the bitter irony of his fall from power to helplessness.

Isa 14:11  Thy pomp is brought down to the grave, and the noise of thy viols: the worm is spread under thee, and the worms cover thee. 

Your pomp has been brought down to the grave, and the sound of your stringed instruments is silenced. The splendour you once enjoyed could not save you from death. Now, instead of music and honour, the worms are spread beneath you and over you. Such is the humiliating end of the proud and arrogant.

The fall of Lucifer and the king of Babylon

Isa 14:12  How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! 

The theme of fallen magnificence continues, now symbolised by Lucifer, once a being of high honour in the heavenly courts. Because of pride, he lost his exalted place. Cast down to the earth, he became a destructive force among the nations. Here, the prophet draws a parallel with the king of Babylon, destined for judgment because of his arrogance and tyranny. 

Isa 14:13  For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: 

Lucifer harboured a defiant ambition to rise above God and all creation, seeking power and authority for himself. He desired to sit in the divine assembly in the very position of God and receive worship from both God’s creatures and the heavenly host. The king of Babylon similarly exalted himself — setting up an image to be worshipped and defiling the sacred vessels of God’s temple.

Isa 14:14  I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. 

Unwilling to be content with his appointed position as an archangel, Lucifer aspired to supreme control over all the heavenly beings (symbolised by the clouds) and sought to receive worship equal to that of the Most High. In like manner, the king of Babylon craved unrivalled dominion.

Isa 14:15  Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit. 

But the Lord decrees that Lucifer will be cast down to the lowest depths, to the realm of the dead, destined for utter ruin. Likewise, the proud king of Babylon, mere man, would face death and lie in disgrace.

Isa 14:16  They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms; 

When the king of Babylon falls, onlookers will gaze at him in astonishment, scarcely believing that this was the man who once shook the earth and made mighty kingdoms tremble with fear.

Isa 14:17  That made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof; that opened not the house of his prisoners? 

The nations will marvel at the memory of the king of Babylon — a ruler who laid cities and nations in ruins and cruelly took captives, consigning them to prisons and dungeons, refusing to set them free.

Isa 14:18  All the kings of the nations, even all of them, lie in glory, every one in his own house. 

Other kings of the earth, even in death, lie in honour in their splendid tombs. They receive the dignified rites of burial in the sepulchres prepared for them.

Isa 14:19  But thou art cast out of thy grave like an abominable branch, and as the raiment of those that are slain, thrust through with a sword, that go down to the stones of the pit; as a carcase trodden under feet. 

By contrast, the last king of Babylon would be denied the dignity of burial. He would be cast out as a detestable branch, discarded like a bloodstained garment from the slain of battle — both considered defiled and unfit for honour. His corpse would be left to lie among the stones of a pit or be trampled underfoot in disgrace.

Isa 14:20  Thou shalt not be joined with them in burial, because thou hast destroyed thy land, and slain thy people: the seed of evildoers shall never be renowned. 

Because of his cruelty and ruthless oppression — both against his own people and other nations — he would be denied the honour of burial alongside other kings and warriors slain in battle. His name, along with his posterity, would be erased from remembrance. Being the descendant of evildoers, neither he nor his lineage would ever be esteemed or honoured.

Isa 14:21  Prepare slaughter for his children for the iniquity of their fathers; that they do not rise, nor possess the land, nor fill the face of the world with cities. 

The Lord declares judgment upon the king’s offspring as well. His children would be put to death for the iniquities of their forefathers, ensuring they would never rise to power and rear up cities filled with oppression and wickedness.

Isa 14:22  For I will rise up against them, saith the LORD of hosts, and cut off from Babylon the name, and remnant, and son, and nephew, saith the LORD. 

The Lord of hosts solemnly vows to rise against this evil lineage, cutting off the very memory of the wicked king’s family — so that neither son nor descendant would remain to carry on his name. (This prophecy was fulfilled in the death of Belshazzar, king of Babylon.)

Isa 14:23  I will also make it a possession for the bittern, and pools of water: and I will sweep it with the besom of destruction, saith the LORD of hosts. 

The Lord promises to render the once-mighty city desolate. It would become a habitation for wild creatures — bitterns (likely a type of bird) or animals like porcupines or hedgehogs. The land would be flooded with pools of stagnant water (as when the Persians diverted the waters of the Euphrates into Babylon) and the entire city would be swept away with a besom (broom) of destruction, leaving nothing but ruin.

An Oracle Concerning Assyria

Isa 14:24  The LORD of hosts hath sworn, saying, Surely as I have thought, so shall it come to pass; and as I have purposed, so shall it stand: 

Yahweh is represented as making an oath to denote the strong confirmation and the absolute certainty of what he utters. The oath here was designed to comfort the Jews, when they should be in Babylon, with the assurance that what he had thus solemnly promised would assuredly come to pass. As the Lord had designed or intended, His purposes shall all be accomplished. God’s purposes, like His promises never fail.

Isa 14:25  That I will break the Assyrian in my land, and upon my mountains tread him under foot: then shall his yoke depart from off them, and his burden depart from off their shoulders. 

God claims the land of Judah and Israel as His own – Immanuel’s land and says how He would discomfit the Assyrian right when he shall tread upon the mount of Jerusalem and shall destroy him. This would break the yoke of oppression and remove the burden of cruelty from off them.

Isa 14:26  This is the purpose that is purposed upon the whole earth: and this is the hand that is stretched out upon all the nations. 

The Lord had stretched out his hands upon the nations in judgment. It was the Lord’s design to destroy the kings of the successive kingdoms of both Assyria and Babylonia that embraced the whole world and destroying them would in fact affect all the nations.

Isa 14:27  For the LORD of hosts hath purposed, and who shall disannul it? and his hand is stretched out, and who shall turn it back? 

Who has power to defeat the purposes of God? And when the Lord’s hand is stretched out to discipline who can stand against God to resist the execution of his will?

An Oracle Concerning Philistia

Isa 14:28  In the year that king Ahaz died was this burden. 

In the year king Ahaz died this heavy message came unto the prophet Isaiah.

Isa 14:29  Rejoice not thou, whole Palestina, because the rod of him that smote thee is broken: for out of the serpent's root shall come forth a cockatrice, and his fruit shall be a fiery flying serpent. 

Palestina was a region of Syria, also called Philistia. King Uzziah, the predecessor of king Ahaz had smitten and subdued the land of Palestina but they were not able to recover the land during the reign of both kings Jotham and Ahaz. The next king would be king Hezekiah who would ascend the throne at a very young age. Therefore, the Lord tells Palestina that the death of king Ahaz should give no occasion for them to rejoice. He likens king Uzziah to a serpent, which denotes a less venomous one compared to that of a cockatrice symbolising king Hezekiah who ‘smote the Philistines even unto Gaza and the borders thereof, from the tower of the watchmen to the fenced city’ (2K 18:8). Hezekiah was to be far more destructive to the Philistines than Uzziah ; He was to carry the desolations of war much further and effectually subdue them. These kings would therefore be odious and offensive to the Philistines, and as destructive as per their plans, as the venomous reptiles.

Isa 14:30  And the firstborn of the poor shall feed, and the needy shall lie down in safety: and I will kill thy root with famine, and he shall slay thy remnant. 

The firstborn of the poor stands for the poorest of the poor representing the people of those places of Judaea which bordered the land of Palestina of the Philistines who were brought to extremes of poverty as they suffered frequent invasions, raids and ransacks by the Philistines. With God’s intervention, these people in need of safety would be able to eat and sleep in peace and rest for the Lord promises to destroy the power of the Philistines utterly and effectually so that the entire nation would wane and perish just as a plant withers and dies when the root is destroyed.

Isa 14:31  Howl, O gate; cry, O city; thou, whole Palestina, art dissolved: for there shall come from the north a smoke, and none shall be alone in his appointed times. 

The prophet calls for a public lamentation of the people who throng the city gate or assemble at the main concourse of the city, in view of the approaching armies against the land of Palestine. The invading army would be that of king Hezekiah from the regions of Judah, which lay north and east of Philistia. The ‘smoke’ here probably refers to a cloud of dust that would be seen to rise in that direction made by an marching army. God had appointed a time for their destruction and none marching in the order of the military ranks would lag behind.

Isa 14:32  What shall one then answer the messengers of the nation? That the LORD hath founded Zion, and the poor of his people shall trust in it. 

The prophet asks what answer or information should be given to such messengers or ambassadors coming from the other nations regarding their state; when not only the Philistines, but even the Jews themselves, shall fall by the hands of the same enemy? Then their response would be that Yahweh had established Zion. Since, God was its protector, in times of calamity his people, the most weak and defenceless - the poorest of the people, would be safe.

 

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