A Prophecy of Esau and Jacob

This prophecy of Isaiah starts with some cryptic messages about the prophesied coming of the Messiah; in Galilee, people who live in the dark but were privileged to see a great light.

The Q remains; if these chapters are prophetic, who then are the Assyrians that were prophesied to punish Israel? Are they the Germans? If so, how would this play out? If not, who else?

One clue is this “And it shall come to pass in that day,” indicating that this is prophetic; in the latter day; so we have to wait and see!

Isaiah 9

¹ Nevertheless the dimness shall not be such as was in her vexation, when at the first He lightly afflicted the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, and afterward more grievously afflicted her by the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, in Galilee of the nations.

— as fulfilled in Matthew 4:12-17, the tribes identified: Zebulun ~ Holland; Naphtali ~ Sweden; beyond the Jordan: Reuben ~ France; Manasseh ~ UK; Gad ~ Switzerland;

— nevertheless, the (dimness) gloom of those people shall not be such as was in her vexation; these words may be rendered, “for there shall be no weariness to him that straitens” or “afflicts” them; so could refer to the king of Assyria; or Titus Vespasian, who would not be weary of, but tirelessly in carrying on the siege of Jerusalem and parts of Judea, including the land of Zebulun and Naphtali:

— this prophecy was literally fulfilled during the Galilean ministry of Yeshua when he made Capernaum the center of activities and from there set forth on his journeys, not only throughout Galilee, but also into the country east of Jordan, by the way of the sea;

— in Galilee of the nations; which was inhabited not only by Jews, but people of other nations; and all Galilee, were lightly esteemed of, being mean and illiterate, not famous for any arts or sciences and having no prophet among them, should, in the days of the Messiah be highly honoured and made glorious by his presence, ministry and miracles performed there; Matthew 14:13.

² The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light; they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.

— in the times of the Messiah, the people that walked in Galilee have seen a great light; the inhabitants of Galilee; see Matthew 4:16; John 1:48 and is a true character of the people of Galilee which are in a state of darkness;

— have seen a great light, the prophet, speaking as the mouthpiece of the eternal and omniscient God, views the Messiah there had seen a great light, for so certain is the fulfillment of God’s promise.

³ Thou hast multiplied the nation and not increased the joy; the will rejoice before Thee liken to the joy in harvest, and as men rejoice when they divide the spoil.

— thou hast multiplied the nation, that is, with light, knowledge, honour and glory, even Galilee of the nations; so the prophet addresses the Lord in a direct hymn of praise, since he, beginning with Galilee, extended the circle of believers in him until his believers were spread over the world;

— and not increased the joy, or “to whom Thou didst not magnify the joy,” the reference once more being to the time of great sorrow and distress under ungodly conditions; they rejoice before thee according to the joy in harvest, when the sacrificial feasts were eaten by grateful worshippers, Deuteronomy 12:7; Deuteronomy 14:26.

⁴ For Thou hast broken the yoke of his burden and the staff of his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor, as in the day of Midian.

— for thou hast broken the yoke of his burden, the spiritual slavery with which the people were burdened, and the staff of his shoulder, the reference being to the cudgel of the overseer in striking the back of the slave;

— the rod of his oppressor, with which the people were kept in subjection, as in the day of Midian, Judges 7:15-22. Even as the Lord, at the time of Gideon, had delivered Israel from the oppression of the Midianites in a miraculous manner, so he effected a deliverance from everlasting bondage, from spiritual slavery, so the Messiah overcame all the enemies of mankind and now divides the spoil among the believers everywhere.

⁵ For every battle of the warrior is with confused noise and garments rolled in blood, but this shall be with burning and fuel of fire.

— for every battle is with confused noise; with the sound of the trumpet and beating of drums, and the huzzas and shoutings of the soldiers, the stamping and neighing of horses, the rushing of chariots, and rumbling of wheels, and the clashing of swords, spears and shields;

— and garments rolled in blood; but this shall be with burning and fuel of fire; who girds on his armor with noise, and the soldier’s cloak rolled in blood, it shall become a burning, food for the fire.”

⁶ For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government shall be upon His shoulder. And His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

— for unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given, the eternal Word being made flesh for us, not only in our stead, but for our benefit, for the eternal salvation of all believers; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, the absolute and unlimited power, the divine authority in its fullest sense, rests upon him, he is, from his birth, in complete possession of the eternal power and Godhead;

— and his name shall be called Wonderful, not only his birth, but his entire essence being a miracle, Counselor, for he not only knows the right and proper counsel in every difficulty of body and soul, he also carries out his plans for the benefit of men, the Mighty God, for the Messiah, true man as he is, is at the same time above all, God blessed forever, altogether identical with Yehovah;

— from the record, King Hezekiah foolishly show Merodach-baladan, the Babylonian king’s envoys to Hezekiah, of all his treasures and his armory, and Isaiah rebuked him for such foolishness, II Kings 20, Isaiah 39; which they came later and carry all to Babylon; from such record, how could Hezekiah be consider a wise king or a Counselor?

— the Everlasting Father, this description isn’t in the Septuagint nor in the Targum; so what could we make of this? The Messiah, the Son of God has never been described as the Father anywhere else in the Scriptures. Is this not the lying pen (ESV) of the scribes as described in Jeremiah 8:8? Is this another one of the self-deceptions of rabbinical Judaism to keep themselves blinded (who claim that King Hezekiah fulfilled this prophecy)?

— the Prince of Peace, the true Shiloh, Genesis 49:10, who has restored the right relation between God and man, making peace by abolishing in his flesh the enmity which existed since the fall of man, Ephesians 2:14-15;

— even Rashi, a respected Rabbi, commits this mistake, says “and… called his name. The Holy One, blessed be He, Who gives wondrous counsel, is a mighty God and an everlasting Father, called Hezekiah’s name, “the prince of peace,” since peace and truth will be in his days.”

— the full Targum says,

“The prophet said to the house of David, For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given, and He has taken the law upon Himself to keep it. His name is called from eternity, Wonderful, The Mighty God, who liveth to eternity, The messiah, whose peace shall be great upon us in His days” — yes, the Targum identifies this verse confirming the Messiah had been prophesied but nothing about ‘the Everlasting Father’ and he was to be born, the Son and he was from eternity to eternity;

Remember, laying side by side along with the Masoretic Text, the Targum is another source of the Bible. Started by Ezra for those returning from Babylon and Persia, these returnees they could only understand in Aramaic; hence the Targum is as if Ezra is speaking to them then and to us today from the Hebrew Text quoted.

⁷ Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David and upon His Kingdom, to order it and to establish it with judgement and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

— of the increase of Christ’s government, in extending the boundaries of his spiritual kingdom, and peace there shall be no end, that is, he brings about a condition of eternal peace between God and man,

— upon the throne of David and upon his kingdom, for the kingdom of David continued and established in order to establish the foundation for the Kingdom of God with judgement and with justice from henceforth even forever;

— the zeal of the Lord of hosts, the eagerness of his love in seeking the salvation of mankind, will perform this. All this was fulfilled in the Son of God, of whom the angel says: “He shall be great and shall be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his Father David, and he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there shall be no end.

⁸ The Lord sent a word into Jacob, and it hath lighted upon Israel. — the Lord sent a word into Jacob,

— a warning against his people, and it hath lighted upon Israel, falling from heaven like a morsel intended for the whole nation. God revealed his intention to his servant, and by the preaching of the prophet it reached the place for which it was intended.

⁹ And all the people shall know—even Ephraim and the inhabitant of Samaria” that say in the pride and stoutness of heart:

— and all the people shall know, even Ephraim and the inhabitant of Samaria, the northern kingdom with its capital being emphatically mentioned first, as being leaders in disobedience and haughtiness, that say in the pride and stoutness of heart.

¹⁰ “The bricks are fallen down, but we will build with hewn stones; the sycamores are cut down, but we will change them into cedars.”

— the bricks of the World Trade Center had fallen, but we will build with hewn stones; Jonathan Cahn has lots to say about this verse: the sycamores are cut down, but we will change them into cedars;

— that is, they intended to replace their former lowly dwellings of dried clay and the cheap wood of the sycamore fig-tree by splendid palaces of stone and costly cedar-wood. It is the height of presumption and blasphemous pride if men scorn the punishment of the Lord;

— and notice this is speaking of Ephraim—even Ephraim and the inhabitant of Samaria—one who has lots of “pride and stoutness of heart,” verse 9 above; Oh ye that are Blind, Ephraim referring not to the United Kingdom but the United States!

Who are the posterity of biblical Jacob? And on the identities of Ephraim and Manasseh, see (1) The Birthrights (2) Ephraim and Manasseh (3) Ephraim as the Thirteenth Tribe (4) Who is this lying Ephraim? (5) The Ox with horns of a Unicorn

¹¹ Therefore the Lord shall set up the adversaries of Rezin against him and join his enemies together, — the subject “him”and “his” must be—Ephraim and the inhabitant of Samaria—;

— therefore the Lord shall set up the adversaries of Rezin against him, namely, the Ephraimites and the Assyrians, who, according to God’s plan, conquered Syria took Rezin the king of Syria, and then advanced and join their enemies together, or rather, Yehovah will stir up Ephraim’s enemies (the Syrians and the Philistines), against Ephraim;

Q, is this a prophecy for the endtime or an historical record? The part identified by Jonathan Cahn regarding “the bricks had fallen down, but we will build with hewn stones” as that of the World Trade Center, New York, in the land of Ephraim (that is, Ephraim being identified as the United States) was a prophecy; hence we can confidently say that all the rest could also be a prophecy.

¹² the Syrians before and the Philistines behind; and they shall devour Israel with open mouth. For all this His anger is not turned away, but His hand is stretched out still.

— the Syrians before, for as allies of the Assyrians they would attack Israel from the front, and the Philistines behind, for these ancient enemies made use of every opportunity to wreak vengeance upon Israel and Judah, Cf II Chronicles 28:16-19;

— and they shall devour Israel with open mouth, eating with a full mouth, pillaging the land almost to the point of destruction. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still. The misfortunes here described were but the beginning of the great destruction which would strike the entire nation for its disobedience by his chastening hand;

— “and they shall devour Israel with open mouth” Q: Could this refer to the captivity of Israel for 390/190 years and Judah for forty years as prophesied by Ezekiel in the latter days? For more, see Ezekiel 4 – 390/40 Years Timeline.

¹³ For the people turneth not unto Him that smiteth them, neither do they seek the Lord of hosts.

— for the people turneth not unto God the Almighty that smiteth them, neither do they seek the Lord of hosts. The object of his punishment, therefore, is or was not realized, they refuse to repent of their sins and thus give him a new cause for harsher punishment for them;

Not many repent even with Covid-19 now with about 7 million deaths (worldwide as of July 2023; over a million in the United States (1,127,000); the US has 4.3% of World’s population but 16% of World’s death)! Q: should we expect a more potent variant killer to emerge in the near future?

¹⁴ Therefore the Lord will cut off from Israel head and tail, branch and rush, in one day.

— in one day, that is, speedily, when the Lord will cut off Israel, in wreaking his final vengeance upon his rebellious people, head and tail; the head being interpreted as “the ancient and honourable” men in high places, civil magistrates, judges, governors and elders of the people, the king as supreme, and all subordinate officers;

— branch and rush, in one day, “great and small” like branches of trees; the latter the common, people, like reeds and rushes, weak and feeble; “the strong and the weak” in one great destruction;

— and so the Targum says, “the Lord will destroy from Israel the prince, the captain, the ruler and the governor in one day;”

For more, see America: A Failed State?

¹⁵ The ancient and honorable, he is the head; and the prophet that teacheth lies, he is the tail.

— the ancient and honorable, the princes and nobles of the people, he is the head; and the false prophet and false shepherds that teacheth lies, he is the tail;

— the prophets that tell lies, like Fred Coulter, Frank Nelte and John Ritenbaugh; considered themselves leaders among the people, but they are here told, with bitter irony, that they are morally the basest of the people, the vilest part of the nation.

¹⁶ For the leaders of this people cause them to err, and they that are led by them are destroyed.

— for the leaders of this people cause them to err, thereby showing themselves utterly unfit for leadership; and they that are led of them are destroyed, literally, “swallowed up,” namely, by the error and its peril, just as the humble rush must perish if submerged and covered with a flood of filthy water.

¹⁷ Therefore the Lord shall have no joy in their young men, neither shall have mercy on their fatherless and widows; for every one is a hypocrite and an evildoer, and every mouth speaketh folly. For all this His anger is not turned away, but His hand is stretched out still.

— therefore the Lord shall have no joy in their young men, the all-powerful, who formerly granted success to the arms of Israel’s young men, would withdraw his assistance;

— neither shall have mercy on their fatherless and widows, who formerly had been the special objects of his fostering care; for every one is an hypocrite and an evildoer; that is, corrupt, atrociously bad, inclined to every form of wickedness,

— and every mouth speaketh folly, and every mouth speaketh folly; or falsehood;

— a lie, as the Targum says the punishment of their sins shall burn like fire; it shall consume the sinners and the wicked, and shall rule over the rest of the people, and shall make an end of a great host.

¹⁸ For wickedness burneth as the fire; it shall devour the briers and thorns, and shall kindle in the thickets of the forest, and they shall mount up like the lifting up of smoke.

— for wickedness burneth as the fire, challenging God to continue in his course of punishment, bringing forth its own destruction; it shall devour the briers and thorns, the great mass of the lowly people, who have become weeds and thistles on the face of the earth;

— and shall kindle in the thickets of the forest, of the standing timber, of the upper classes of Israel, and they shall mount up, the fire lifting them up in a heavy column, like the lifting up of smoke. Thus the fire of God’s wrath, growing out of the nation’s wickedness, would bring destruction upon the entire people, the picture being that of a devastating forest-fire.

¹⁹ Through the wrath of the Lord of hosts is the land darkened, and the people shall be as the fuel of the fire; no man shall spare his brother.

— through the wrath of the Lord of hosts is the land darkened, but the Septuagint version renders it, “the whole land is set on fire” – burned out to ashes; the Targum “the earth shall be burnt up,” utterly destroyed and the people shall be as the fuel of the fire to be devoured without mercy;

²⁰ And he shall snatch on the right hand and be hungry; and he shall eat on the left hand, and they shall not be satisfied; they shall eat every man the flesh of his own arm.

— and he (impersonal subject; his hand, his teeth), that is, every man, shall snatch on the right hand and be hungry, like a beast snapping in every direction; and he shall eat on the left hand, and they shall not be satisfied; they shall eat every man the flesh of his own arm, the members of his own family and tribe:

— the Targum says, “he shall spoil on the south, and still be hungry; and he shall destroy on the north, and not be satisfied.”

— Q, just curious, could this Targum version refers to the killings from the South to the North as in Ezekiel 20:45 to 21:5? For more, see the enemy from the South, see A Flaming Sword and Fire from the South!

²¹ Manasseh, Ephraim; and Ephraim, Manasseh; and they together shall be against Judah. For all this His anger is not turned away, but His hand is stretched out still.

— Manasseh, Ephraim; and Ephraim, Manasseh, in a form of deep hatred or civil war in which every man’s hand would be turned against his neighbor;

— and they together shall be against Judah, for the hatred which obtained between Israel and Judah continued in the nation even as late as the siege of Jerusalem by the Romans, when their murderous selfishness reached its climax. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still; for if sinners will not heed His warning here in time, his destruction will be upon them throughout eternity;

— which is to be understood of their quarrels, contentions, and wars among themselves, whereby they bit, devoured, and consumed each other, though they were brethren; which explains and confirms what is before said, of no man sparing his brother, and everyone eating the flesh of his own arm;

— the Septuagint says “for Manasses shall eat the flesh of Ephraim, and Ephraim the flesh of Manasses” — the Targum paraphrases the words, thus, “those of the house of Manasseh with those of the house of Ephraim shall be joined together as one, to come against them of the house of Judah.”

^{Isaiah 10}

¹ “Woe unto them that decree unrighteous decrees, and that write grievousness which they have prescribed — woe to those that decree unrighteously; against lawgivers and judges; and political rulers, such as a letter is a deal against foreign governments on tariffs of goods coming to the United States;

— in tyrannical legislation, laws which were not agreeable to the law of God, nor right reason; and were injurious to the persons and their properties; and that write grievousness which they have prescribed, making and enforcing laws which bring unbearable oppressions to the poor;

² to turn aside the needy from judgement and to take away the right from the poor of My people, that widows may be their prey, and that they may rob the fatherless!

— to turn aside the needy, that is, to deprive them of their rights, of the justice due them, were harassed with such long, vexatious and expensive suits; and to take away the right from the poor, willfully and maliciously taking it from the poor or the oppressed;

— that widows may be their prey, and that they may rob the fatherless, the tyrants making themselves possessors of the property of the defenseless. They have reached the very heights of oppression and injustice.

³ And what will ye do in the day of visitation, and in the desolation which shall come from far? To whom will ye flee for help? And where will ye leave your glory?

— and what will ye do in the day of visitation, when God will bring justice upon them, and in the desolation, the sudden storm, crash and collapse; and so the Targum says, “what will ye do in the day that your sins shall be visited upon you?”

— which shall come from far? It is here hinted that God would send the enemy who should avenge the poor by destroying their oppressors from a far country. To whom will ye flee for help? this being a reference to Israel’s custom of seeking help from foreign nations. And where will ye leave your glory? that is, the treasures, valuables which they had piled up in practicing injustice and in treading down the poor.

⁴ Without Me they shall bow down under the prisoners, and they shall fall under the slain.” For all this His anger is not turned away, but His hand is stretched out still.

— without me, nothing remains; are not my people, and do not hearken to me, but shall bow down as captives; either be bound and carried as captive, or else slain with the sword;

— for all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still, for it is impossible to escape the punishment of the Lord when once he sets out to pronounce his judgement on the wrongs committed against the poor and defenseless.

⁵ “Woe to the Assyrian, the rod of Mine anger, and the staff in their hand is Mine indignation!

— O Assyrian, the rod of God’s anger, because they were made use by God as an instrument to chastise and correct Israel for their sins; and the staff in their hand is mine indignation,

— literally, “Woe to Asshur (which is) the rod of my wrath, and the staff, that in their hand, mine indignation.” The Lord here pronounces a woe upon Assyria; for whereas he wanted to use this nation merely as his instrument in punishing Israel.

⁶ I will send him against a hypocritical nation, and against the people of My wrath will I give him a charge, to take the spoil and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets.

— God will send the Assyrian against Israel, an hypocritical nation, a nation corrupt and wicked, and against the people of his wrath will God give the Assyrian a charge, bidding them to smite Israel for her sins;

— to take the spoil and to take the prey and to tread them down like the mire of the streets, destroy their power, render them utterly helpless, to punish the disobedient;

— Q. if this is prophetic, who then are the Assyrians to punish Israel? Are they the Germans? If so, how would this play out? If not, then who else are the Assyrians?

⁷ Yet he meaneth not so, neither doth his heart think so; but it is in his heart to destroy and cut off nations not a few.

— howbeit he, that is, Assyria, that is, Assyria was driven only by the thought of conquest and destruction and therefore was guilty before God, even while carrying out His plans.

— another way of saying, the Assyrian purposes, intentions and thoughts were not as the Lord’s; they did not imagine that they were only the rod of God’s anger and the staff of his indignation, an instrument of his wrath.

⁸ For he saith, ‘Are not my princes altogether kings?

— for he asked, Are not my princes and commanders altogether kings? Assyria was a world-power, and even its provinces had the extent and the might of kingdoms, so that their governors could well rank with kings.

⁹ Is not Calno as Carchemish? Is not Hamath as Arpad? Is not Samaria as Damascus?

— is not Calno, a large city on the Tigris, as Carchemish, an important commercial center on an island in the Euphrates? Rashi: “as the children of Carchemish are princes and rulers, so are the children of Calno;”

— is not Ramath, an important city and formerly a capital on the Orontes, as Arpad, a city in Syria proper? Is not Samaria as Damascus? Three pairs of cities are named in such a way that boasting Assyria emphasizes the great ease with which its conquests were made.

¹⁰ As my hand hath found the kingdoms of the idols and whose graven images excelled them of Jerusalem and of Samaria,

— as the hand of Assyria hath found Israel, the kingdoms of idols, conquering those upon whom the people of Israel and Judah looked down as idol-worshipers, and whose graven images did excel them of Jerusalem and of Samaria, being more plentiful than they and therefore supposedly better able to defend their cities;

— from the Message Bible:

“Doom to Assyria, weapon of my anger. My wrath is a club in his hands! I send him against a godless nation, against the people I’m angry with. I command him to strip them clean, rob them blind, and then push their faces in the mud and leave them.

“But Assyria has another agenda; he has something else in mind. He’s out to destroy utterly, to stamp out as many nations as he can. Assyria says, ‘Aren’t my commanders all kings? Can’t they do whatever they like? Didn’t I destroy Calno as well as Carchemish? Hamath as well as Arpad? Level Samaria as I did Damascus?

I’ve eliminated kingdoms full of gods far more impressive than anything in Jerusalem and Samaria. So what’s to keep me from destroying Jerusalem in the same way I destroyed Samaria and all her god-idols?’” Isaiah 10:10 MSG

¹¹ shall I not, as I have done unto Samaria and her idols, so do to Jerusalem and her idols?’”

— as God had done the sacking of Samaria and her idols, should he do so to Jerusalem and hers? The God of Jerusalem, would no more be able to protect this city titan the gods of the other cities had succeeded in doing. Cf. Isaiah 36:18-20; Isaiah 37:11-13.

¹² Therefore it shall come to pass when the Lord hath performed His whole work upon Mount Zion and on Jerusalem: “I will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria and the glory of his high looks.

— after the Lord hath performed his whole work upon Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, God will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria, the blasphemous pride which showed itself in his boasting, and the glory of his high looks, literally, “the haughtiness of the loftiness of his eyes,” the description showing the self-complacent nature of his assumed glory;

— the Targum says, “and it shall be, when the Lord hath finished to do all that he hath said in Mount Zion, and in Jerusalem.”

¹³ For he saith, “‘By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom, for I am prudent; and I have removed the bounds of the people and have robbed their treasures, and I have put down the inhabitants like a valiant man.

— for the king of Assyria saith, By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom, ascribing his success entirely to his own ability; for I am prudent, always making use of proper understanding;

— and the king of Assyria continued his boasting: I have removed the bounds of the people, changing their boundaries to suit himself, and have robbed their treasures, taking at will everything that they had accumulated, and I have put down the inhabitants like a valiant man, butting down those occupying thrones like a mighty hero or an angry steer.

¹⁴ And my hand hath found as a nest the riches of the people, and as one gathereth eggs that are left, have I gathered all the earth; and there was none that moved the wing, or opened the mouth, or peeped.’”

— the king of Assyria continued: my hand hath found as a nest the riches of the people, locating them with an experienced hand; and as one gathereth eggs that are left, forsaken by the mother bird,

— have I gathered all the earth, and there was none that moved the wing, in defense, or opened the mouth, or peeped, in terrified protest. All nations had bowed in dumb resignation under the hand of the mighty Assyrian, and for this he took all credit to himself. But the prophet counters with a reproof of bitter irony:

¹⁵ Shall the ax boast itself against him that heweth therewith? Or shall the saw magnify itself against him that shaketh it? As if the rod should shake itself against them that lift it up, or as if the staff should lift up itself, as if it were no wood!

— Isaiah asked: shall the ax boast itself against him that heweth therewith? Or Is the saw able to exalt itself over the one who wields it? It is just as foolish for a tool to boast over against the workman as for the king of Assyria to ascribe to himself all the might which he possesses only by divine permission;

— Isaiah continued: as if the rod should shake itself against them that lift it up, or as if the staff should lift up itself, as if it were no wood, literally, “as if a staff should lift up” (that which is) “not wood,” that is, the person handling it.

— So it was utterly absurd for the king of Assyria, who, although unknown to himself, carried out God’s punishment upon Israel, to ascribe to himself the wisdom and power, the design and success of this campaign. The very evil in the world is used by God to serve his objects. Cf Genesis 50:20. The punishment upon Assyria is then pronounced:

¹⁶ Therefore shall the Lord, the Lord of hosts, send among His fat ones leanness; and under His glory He shall kindle a burning like the burning of a fire.

— therefore shall the Lord, the Lord of hosts, send among his fat ones leanness, consuming the mighty ones of Assyria, and under his glory he shall kindle a burning like the burning of a fire, to consume it in a moment, with a mighty crackling and hissing.

¹⁷ And the Light of Israel shall be for a fire and his Holy One for a flame; and it shall burn and devour his thorns and his briers in one day,

— and the Light of Israel, the Holy One of Israel himself, shall be for a fire and his Holy One for a flame; and it shall burn and devour his thorns and his briers in one day, the Assyrian nation being devoured in one great destruction,

¹⁸ and shall consume the glory of his forest and of his fruitful field, both soul and body; and they shall be as when a standardbearer fainteth.

— and shall consume the glory of his forest and of his fruitful field; the Assyrian army is compared to a “forest” the majesty of his leaders and the wealth of his merchants, both soul and body, in a complete destruction;

— the Targum says, “the glory of the multitude of his army, and their souls with their bodies, it shall consume.”

¹⁹ And the rest of the trees of his forest shall be few, that a child may write them.

— and the rest of the trees in his forest, the few that have survived the devastation of the fire, shall be few, that a child may write them, put down the number which he easily counted. Thus the Lord, even in the midst of his enemies, has some few whom he has chosen, who are saved in the general destruction which will come upon the unbelievers.

²⁰ And it shall come to pass in that day that the remnant of Israel, and such as have escaped of the house of Jacob, shall no more again depend upon him that smote them, but shall stand upon the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.

— and it shall come to pass in that day; here begins a prophecy relating to the house of Israel, concerning things that should befall them in the latter days, that the remnant of Israel, and such as are escaped of the house of Jacob, whom he has chosen from among the nations;

— shall no more again stay among the Assyrian who smote them, placing their confidence in Assyria, the nation to whom the kings of both Israel and Judah turned time and again, but shall stay upon the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, making him alone the full basis of their trust;

— the Targum say “they shall no more lean on the people whom they served; but they shall lean upon the Word of the Lord, the Holy One of Israel.”

²¹ The remnant shall return, even the remnant of Jacob, unto the mighty God.

— in the latter days, the remnant shall return, even the remnant of the full house of Jacob shall return to the true worship before the Almighty God.

²² For though thy people Israel be as the sand of the sea, yet a remnant of them shall return; the consuming decreed shall overflow with righteousness.

— for though thy people, Israel be as numerous as the sand of the sea, a countless multitude, yet only a remnant of them shall return, unfortunately only a remnant, the great mass being killed by the Sword coming from the South Ezekiel 20:45 to 21:5. For more, see the enemy from the South, see A Flaming Sword and Fire from the South!

²³ For the Lord God of hosts shall cause a consuming, even determined, in the midst of all the land.

— for the Lord God of hosts shall make a consumption, that is, most are killed, even exterminated, “and that which is decreed,” in the midst of all the land;

— there is no escaping the wrath of the Lord when once he sets the machinery of destruction are in motion, when he begins to carry out judgement upon Israel and issuing his decree of punishment is merely a preliminary act and the beginning of his Kingdom.

²⁴ Therefore thus saith the Lord God of hosts: “O My people that dwellest in Zion, be not afraid of the Assyrian. He shall smite thee with a rod and shall lift up his staff against thee, after the manner of Egypt.

— therefore, thus saith the Lord God of hosts, in a call full of reassuring comfort, O My people that dwellest in Zion, those that had fled to Jerusalem, dwelling in His merciful presence, be not afraid of the Assyrian, the oppressor typifying all the enemies of the children of Israel;

— he Assyrian shall smite thee with a rod and shall lift up his staff against thee, like an overseer of slaves, after the manner of Egypt, when the children of Israel were in the house of bondage and suffered severely from their oppressors.

²⁵ For yet a very little while and the indignation shall cease, and Mine anger in their destruction.”

— yet for a very little while, and the indignation ceases, God’s people being delivered from the enmity of the godless, and mine anger in their destruction, rather, “My wrath has the object to destroy them,” the enemies of his Chosen, to wear them down to nothing;

— the Targum says, “for yet a very little while, and the curses shall cease from you of the house of Jacob; and mine anger shall be upon the people that work iniquity, to destroy them” that is, the Assyrians.

²⁶ And the Lord of hosts shall stir up a scourge for him according to the slaughter of Midian at the rock of Oreb; and as His rod was upon the sea, so shall He lift it up after the manner of Egypt.

— and the Lord of hosts shall stir up a scourge for the Assyrians, according to the slaughter of Midian at the rock of Oreb, when Gideon’s forces annihilated the army of the Midianites, Judges 7:25;

— and as his rod was upon the sea, namely, when Moses stretched out his hand over the Red Sea and parted it for the safe passage of the children of Israel, Exodus 14:26, so shall he lift it up after the manner of Egypt, lifting Assyria up and dashing it to pieces as he destroyed the forces of Pharaoh.

²⁷ And it shall come to pass in that day, that his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder and his yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing.

— and it shall come to pass in the latter day, that his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder and his yoke from off thy neck, the Lord himself taking away the oppression of Assyria, of all the enemies of the house of Jacob, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing, rather, on account of the fat;

— the picture is that of an ox who becomes so fat and strong in spite of the yoke laid upon him that he breaks the yoke on his neck to pieces. Thus God’s people is to overcome the world by strength from within. Thus the deliverance of his people is described as it begins in and with Immanuel, and as it is completed on the Last Day, the day of redemption.

²⁸ He is come to Aiath, he is passed to Migron; at Michmash he hath laid up his baggage.

— the Assyrian and his army is to come to Aiath, hardly ten miles northeast of Jerusalem, he is passed to Migron, a hamlet still nearer to the capital; at Michmash he hath laid up his carriages, leaving the baggage in order to move forward with greater speed.

²⁹ They are gone over the passage; they have taken up their lodging at Geba. Ramah is afraid; Gibeah of Saul is fled.

— they are gone over the passage, a deep, rough ravine, now known as the Wady-es-Suweinit; they have taken up their lodging at Geba, rather, “Let Geba be our lodging!” halting only for the night; Ramah, the home of Samuel, is afraid; Gibeah of Saul is fled, its inhabitants forsaking their city in terror.

³⁰ Lift up thy voice, O daughter of Gallim; cause it to be heard unto Laish, O poor Anathoth.

— lift up thy voice, crying in consternation over the impending calamity, O daughter of Gallim, the inhabitants of another village in the path of the Assyrian army; cause it to be heard unto Laish, the shrieks of terror echoing far and wide through the country. O poor Anathoth! only three-fourths of an hour distant from Jerusalem and therefore bound to suffer from the enemies.

³¹ Madmenah is removed; the inhabitants of Gebim gather themselves to flee. — Madmenah is removed, the people forsaking their homes; the inhabitants of Gebim gather themselves to flee.

³² As yet shall he remain at Nob that day; he shall shake his hand against the mount of the daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem.

— as yet shall the Assyrian army remain at Nob that day, a hill to the north of Jerusalem, overlooking the city, which the enemy would reach that very day;

— the Assyrian army shall shake his hand against the mount of the daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem, all ready for the attack which would surely bring ruin to the capital;

— thus Assyria, typifying the army of the ungodly, the enemies of the Kingdom of God, is here pictured as going forward to the attack with an irresistible force, and the doom of the city, the City of Jerusalem, seems to be impending. But here the Lord interferes.

³³ Behold, the Lord, the Lord of hosts, shall lop the bough with terror; and the high ones of stature shall be hewn down, and the haughty shall be humbled.

— behold, the Lord, the Lord of hosts, shall lop the bough with terror, cutting them down as branches are felled with an ax;

— and the high ones of stature shall be hewn down, and the haughty shall be humbled, all their plans being foiled at the very moment when they seemed to mature according to calculation.

³⁴ And He shall cut down the thickets of the forest with iron, and Lebanon shall fall by a mighty one.

— the Assyrian army is compared to the forest of Lebanon; and he, the Lord in his avenging wrath, shall cut down the thickets of the forest with iron, with a sharp instrument of destruction, and Lebanon, the name under which all the hostile forces are comprehended;

— the Assyrian army shall fall by a Mighty One, by him who possesses the majesty of the almighty and eternal God, who is both the Defender and the Deliverer of his Kingdom.

~ by Joel on July 20, 2025.

Posted in Isaiah