These two chapters provide us with a stark contrast between God's restoring grace and God's unmovable judgment. Chapter 12 describes God's future restoration of His people, a people who had sinned time and time again. As a nation they had cast off everything God had created them to be as a nation. In judgment God had cast them out of the Land of Promise to be dispersed throughout the Babylonian Empire. They lost everything He had given them. The consequences of their sins as a nation created by God brought them to a place of repentance. The Jews turned their hearts back to God and began to drink from the wells of salvation. Great joy and praise began to fill their hearts as they saw the wonderful things God still had in store for them. God's hope is always that His sovereign hand of chastening will result in honest repentance and renewal (v. 3).
In contrast, chapter 13 gives us a description of God's judgment that would fall upon Babylon. A judgment that would not be reversed (13:20-22). Within this prophecy of judgment upon Babylon we are also given a brief glimpse into what will be more fully described by John in the book of Revelation. The description of the wrath of God poured out upon arrogant and unrepentant hearts is shocking. It describes a punishment and judgment for humanity's sin that should be the final word on God's view about our accountability for sin if our arrogance turns our backs on the grace of Christ (13:6-16).
This unmovable judgment that holds us accountable for our unrepentant sin is a very different picture of God and His just response to sin than what the vast majority of people will allow themselves to even consider. Yet the truth concerning the just penalty for sin will not be altered in the slightest by humanity's disregard of it. There is only one thing that will alter the wrath of God against sin: Humbly accept that God's love will in itself meet the just demands against our sin through the cross of Christ or pay it yourself.
In explaining God's solution to avert judgment for our sin, Jesus said it best: "God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but be given eternal life"(John 3:16). More than any of us, God hates what sin has done to us and others. Justice will be served! Everyone who has ever blamed God for not doing anything about the sins we have committed against each other will one day see He has not just sat by and watched. Judgment will be fully given. God help us to have the humility to accept God's judgment laid upon Christ at the cross rather than upon our own heads.
"O Lord, I will praise You;
Though You were angry with me,
Your anger is turned away, and You comfort me.
2 Behold, God is my salvation,
I will trust and not be afraid;
'For Yah, the Lord, is my strength and song;
He also has become my salvation.'"
3 Therefore with joy you will draw water
From the wells of salvation.
Praise to the God of Salvation v. 1 in that day – This is in reference to the events of ch. 10-11; the establishment of the reign of the Messiah in Jerusalem. I will praise You – This introduces a prophetic song that expresses the joy of experiencing the fulfillment of God's promises of deliverance and His reign upon the earth. angry with me – Isaiah personalizes this future deliverance as a process that he himself has experienced in his own life. anger is turned – God deals with His anger toward sin through God's own redemptive process provided by His grace. The cross of Christ is the ultimate example of this. God completely absorbed in Christ on the cross the just wrath due from the whole world because of our sin. comfort me – The tragic consequences of sin in a person or nation are graciously healed. The sinner is embraced in the love of God. This results in God-given comfort. | v. 2 not be afraid – In the gracious redemptive comfort God provides through His great deliverance, the believer is able to set aside any fear of God's rejection as well as any fear of the trouble sin causes. v. 2 for YAH, the Lord – YAH is an abbreviation of the word "Yahweh," translated Lord. The repetition of God's name is to convey intensity in one's understanding of God's unchanging lordship and sovereign power to implement His purposes on the earth. The application here is that He has no problem in bringing about personal or national deliverance. strength and song – The inner strength and joy of singing is sourced in a confidence in God's willingness and ability to validate our salvation. v. 3 wells of salvation – In scripture, streams, wells, springs, etc. are used as symbols of the abundant fullness that God provides. Here the provisions of salvation, God's deliverance, are seen as an unending source of life that produces joy. |
4 And in that day you will say:
"Praise the Lord, call upon His name;
Declare His deeds among the peoples,
Make mention that His name is exalted.
5 Sing to the Lord,
For He has done excellent things;
This is known in all the earth.
6 Cry out and shout, O inhabitant of Zion,
For great is the Holy One of Israel in your midst!"
v. 4 you will say – This reveals the transition that is God's pattern in how He works in our lives. Verses 1-3 portray what God must do within us. Verses 4-6 depict the work that God then does through us as we call others to experience the salvation that has provided joy through the "well of salvation." This was the personal experience David recorded in Psalm 51:12-13. His name – The name of God references what God Himself represents. Here His name is exalted because it represents the wonderful provisions of His salvation. | v. 5 sing to the Lord – Worshipping God in song verbalizes the wonderful things He has done. This vocalizing of His praiseworthiness is a way to reveal God's wonderful deeds to the whole earth. cry out – This refers to a loud sound of joy and exaltation expressing heartfelt appreciation and love of God. v. 6 in Your midst – The presence of God in Zion (the Temple Mount) is seen as the ultimate source of praise. God Himself, not just what He does, is the source of joy in the hearts of His people. |
Proclamation Against Babylon
1 The burden against Babylon which Isaiah the son of Amoz saw.
2 "Lift up a banner on the high mountain,
Raise your voice to them;
Wave your hand, that they may enter the gates of the nobles.
3 I have commanded My sanctified ones;
I have also called My mighty ones for My anger—
Those who rejoice in My exaltation."
4 The noise of a multitude in the mountains,
Like that of many people!
A tumultuous noise of the kingdoms of nations gathered together!
The Lord of hosts musters
The army for battle.
Chapter 13 Babylon's Fall v. 1 burden – This indicates a weighty or solemn prophetic message. This prophecy was given approximately 174 years before its fulfillment. Babylon – The word is from "Babel" and refers to the place where Nimrod built the tower of Babel. It was later enlarged by Belus and then brought to a place of real beauty and renown by Queen Semiramis. It was Nebuchadnezzar who finally brought it to its zenith. By the time of Nebuchadnezzar a wall 87 feet thick and 350 feet high enclosed the city. It was approximately 15 square miles with 100 solid brass gates. The city was known for its planned streets, 151 feet wide and running from each gate and the large bridge over the Euphrates River, as well as palaces and hanging gardens that were 400-feet square. These gardens were elevated one above another until they reached the height of the 350-foot city wall. Though a great city, it was under the Assyrian Empire's influence until 680 years before Christ when Assaradon rose to power in Babylon and absorbed the Assyrian Empire under his rule. | son of Amoz – Isaiah's father was Amoz (Is. 1:1) v. 2 banner – A military flag set upon an elevated area for the troops to rally around. gates of the nobles – God refers to Babylon a city whose gates protected many powerful leaders. v. 3 sanctified – Those set apart for God. Here God refers to the Medo-Persian Empire that will be used by God to overthrow Babylon in the future. My anger – This refers to God's righteous response to the pride and idolatry of the Babylonian Empire. v. 4 Lord of Hosts – These verses describe the gathering together of the various nations under the Medo-Persian rule to overthrow Babylon. |
5 They come from a far country,
From the end of heaven—
The Lord and His weapons of indignation,
To destroy the whole land.
6 Wail, for the day of the Lord is at hand!
It will come as destruction from the Almighty.
7 Therefore all hands will be limp,
Every man's heart will melt,
8 And they will be afraid.
Pangs and sorrows will take hold of them;
They will be in pain as a woman in childbirth;
They will be amazed at one another;
Their faces will be like flames.
9 Behold, the day of the Lord comes,
Cruel, with both wrath and fierce anger,
To lay the land desolate;
And He will destroy its sinners from it.
10 For the stars of heaven and their constellations
Will not give their light;
The sun will be darkened in its going forth,
And the moon will not cause its light to shine.
v. 6 day of the Lord – This term is often used to describe the time when God's judgment is poured out upon part or all of the human race. v. 8 their faces – They will appear red with grief and pain. v. 9 wrath and fierce anger – The language Isaiah uses in verses 9-16 transcends the judgment that will fall upon Babylon to describe the judgment of God during the tribulation period leading up to the second coming of Christ as described in Revelation ch. 4-20. | v. 10 stars of Heaven – The destructive upheaval that will occur on the earth will be so great that one will be unable to see the stars, sun, or moon through the blackened atmosphere. |
11 "I will punish the world for its evil,
And the wicked for their iniquity;
I will halt the arrogance of the proud,
And will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible.
12 I will make a mortal more rare than fine gold,
A man more than the golden wedge of Ophir.
13 Therefore I will shake the heavens,
And the earth will move out of her place,
In the wrath of the Lord of hosts
And in the day of His fierce anger.
14 It shall be as the hunted gazelle,
And as a sheep that no man takes up;
Every man will turn to his own people,
And everyone will flee to his own land.
15 Everyone who is found will be thrust through,
And everyone who is captured will fall by the sword.
16 Their children also will be dashed to pieces before their eyes;
Their houses will be plundered
And their wives ravished.
17 "Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them,
Who will not regard silver;
And as for gold, they will not delight in it.
18 Also their bows will dash the young men to pieces,
And they will have no pity on the fruit of the womb;
Their eye will not spare children.
19 And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms,
The beauty of the Chaldeans' pride,
Will be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.
v. 11 punish – Those who will not accept the provision of justification provided Christ's payment for the sins of the world on the cross will experience for themselves the just punishment for sin. v. 12 golden wedge of Ophir – A very rare and valuable form of gold came from come from Ophir, believed to have been located in southern Arabia. v. 13 shake the heavens – The scriptures make clear that God's judgment upon sin will be experienced throughout the created order (Matt. 24:29; 2 Peter 3:10, Rev. 6:9-17, 20:11). v. 14 own people – The gazelle and sheep that flee for safety are likened to sinful man as he flees from God's wrath to the protection he hopes to find from his own family or tribe. v. 15 everyone – The violence experienced by everyone as they strike out at each other during God's judgment only reveals that they are indeed worthy of judgment. | v. 17 Medes – Tradition asserts that this people-group descended from Madai, the son of Japheth (Gen. 10:2). They were subject to the Assyrian Kingdom until about 700 BC when they, with the help of Babylon, overthrew the capital of the Assyrian Empire, Nineveh. Under the Medo-Persian ruler Cyrus, the Medes conquered Babylon in 539 B.C.. not regard gold – Secular history records that the invasion of Babylon was not prompted by the military to gain wealth, as was so often the motivating force in these matters. Furthermore, no amount of bribery could stop them from their attack. v. 18 their bows – The Persians were known for being excellent archers. v. 19 Chaldeans – The dominant race of people ruling and populating Babylon. |
20 It will never be inhabited,
Nor will it be settled from generation to generation;
Nor will the Arabian pitch tents there,
Nor will the shepherds make their sheepfolds there.
21 But wild beasts of the desert will lie there,
And their houses will be full of owls;
Ostriches will dwell there,
And wild goats will caper there.
22 The hyenas will howl in their citadels,
And jackals in their pleasant palaces.
Her time is near to come,
And her days will not be prolonged."
v. 20 never be inhabited – Cyrus, who invaded the city, did not destroy it, but sought to maintain its beauty. His successor Darius leveled its walls and took its 100 solid brass gates. Xerxes later destroyed its temples. The city then fell to Antigonus, Demetrius, Antichus, and then the Parthians. By the 3rd or 4th century it was completely abandoned; the remaining buildings in ruins, home to snakes and other desert animals. | nor will the shepherds – The region around Babylon had been one of the most fertile in the world. However, when the city was taken, the Euphrates was diverted and this made the surrounding area like a stagnant pool. near to come – This prophecy began to unfold 174 years after its presentation by Isaiah. |
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