The burden of Moab (Isaiah 15-16)
Moab was a long-term
problem to Israel, spared possibly by Ruth’s gracious life and the great son
she gave to Israel: David.
Yet the incestuous
birth of Lot’s two sons was always destined to be a problem.
From them came Balak
who wanted Balaam to curse Israel and Eglon
who bothered the judges.
However, because of their ancestral
relationship to Abraham, God ordered the Exodus Jews to bypass the two nations
and not meddle with them.
But the constant
incursion of Moab into lands held by Israel, had to come to a head and it was destined
to come overnight. Thus, vs 1 speaks of the night of Ar.
Jeremiah 48:12
suggests that it was likely to have been the work of Nebuchadnezzar, who took
Moab and its cities by night.
It’s a terrible image
of weeping and sorrow. That is the theme right throughout chapter 15. Moab
ceased to exist after that, as did many minorities in the conquests of Babylon.
Even the Dimmon river
was turned to blood.
Advice was given to
Moab, by God, in Is 16:1, for them to renew their tribute to Babylon. Their
reneging on their taxes led to their destruction. But they were duly warned.
The word Sela used in
verse 1 implies Petra, where many refugees had fled from the wrath of Assyria.
They appealed for help to the mount of the daughter of Zion, or to Jerusalem.
We see a pathetic
picture described as a wandering bird without a nest, with little chance of
survival. Moab was confused and rudderless (vs 2).
Isaiah pleaded compassionately
with them to make their peace with Judah and to accept Jewish refugees. It was
a reenactment of Naomi’s flight to Moab years earlier.
In turn, Moab pleaded
for refuge and shade or shelter from the perils they faced, yet they rejected
all of Isaiah’s counsel (vs 7).
It left the prophet deeply
grieved in his heart over the troubles coming to Moab and the dreadful wailing
that would follow. There was no hope for them. Their pride was their undoing.
In verse 14 the time
was set: they had 3 years to go, before all was lost.
Damascus is fallen (Isaiah 17)
The league between
Israel and Syria was never destined to last. There were enough prophesies about
that. The Assyrian hoard showed no mercy to either.
The capital of Syria,
Damascus, was reduced to a ruinous heap. It ultimately survived as one of the oldest
inhabited settlements in all the earth, but no thanks to Assyria.
The surrounding cities
and their flocks fell likewise. The scorched earth policy of the Assyrians
spared nothing, not vineyards, crops, livestock or villagers.
Verse 3 foresaw the
consequence for Israel of its ill-fated alliance with Syria against Assyria.
They held back tribute and chose to rebel, but it cost them everything.
The souls in the
valley of Rephaim, David’s valley of giants, faced the grim reaper and a
harvest of blood.
Only a small remnant
of Israel would survive, as depicted by the two or three berries left at the top
of the Olive tree (vs 7). Those were the souls who looked to God for refuge.
Their repentance would
see the forsaking of idols, at last. Sadly, though, it was too little, too late
and the boughs of Israel were stripped bare.
Then, at its worst,
God hinted at what would become of Assyria. In one night she lost her fighting
force and fled, but by then the northern tribes had been scattered.
Woe to Ethiopia
or Cush (Isaiah 18)
The metaphor of a
nation with wings could speak of the Tsetse fly, the birds that flock there in
summer or the sails of the ships in Ethiopia’s armada. It may also have alluded
to an early banner showing wings. Whatever, the prophesy came against Ethiopia.
They came to the aid
of Egypt against Assyria, but it was a futile campaign. The Assyrians were
utterly ruthless and raped the land. They had no mercy.
A message was sent by
reed-boat, with urgency, to a nation smoothed and peeled: referring evidently
to the stark and handsome features of Ethiopian men.
Then in verse 5 we
read that when the bud was perfect, when their plans had matured, suddenly all failed
and the Assyrian hoard prevailed anyway.
The images that follow
are dreadful: their shoots are cut off with pruning hooks and their carcasses are
left to the fowls of the air.
I find every
description of Assyria deplorable. They could never have lasted. Like the Nazis,
their strategy left them so unpopular, so despised that they were destined to
fail.
Yet, sadly, the same
monsters litter the pages of history, for we never learn from our pasts. That said, God stopped the atrocities and cut Assyria down to size and did the same to every barbaric and despotic movement in history. He will do the same again.
The only glimmer of hope I see in all of this is that the righteous shine brighter and brighter. They are not destroyed. No matter how bad it got, the righteous stood. I see great hope for all true believers in the dark days coming to the earth, which will judge the world not the saints.
But woe to leaders who have ruled unwisely and who have turned believers away from the truth. They will be found out and will not be spared.
(c) Peter Missing @ bethelstone.com
