IN THIS MONTH'S STUDY we shall complete the burdens concerning the nations, which are found in Isaiah, chapters 13 to 23 inclusive. In the present installment we shall study chapters 21-23. We are unfortunate in that we do not have more space and time to devote to each of these oracles because they are freighted with great meaning.

This oracle begins with the statement, "The burden of the wilderness of the sea." But from verse 9 we see that it is one which pertains to Babylon. An examination of this oracle with the three following shows that these are symbolic titles. Doubtless this imagery was suggested by the fact that in Lower Mesopotamia often the Euphrates River overflowed its banks and formed vast stretches of water which had the appearance of a sea. The prophet therefore, in speaking of Babylon and of the vision which he had concerning it, called it the burden of "the wilderness of the sea." He of course was in Jerusalem which he compared to a watchtower and himself to a watchman--as we shall see later in this discussion. He was familiar with the storms of dust and the whirlwinds that would sweep the open country around Babylon. They came up from the east and from the south as a rule.

In vision he saw a caravan of the Medes and Elamites coming up from the southeast as they were wending their way through the desert advancing against Babylon. He therefore compared this caravan of troops to that of the whirlwind.

In verses 3 and 4 the prophet spoke about the distress which the vision caused him. He was very tenderhearted and his soul went out in sympathy to the heathen peoples who were in distress. In verse 5 Isaiah, by prophetic vision, gave us a glimpse of the banquet hall in the city of Babylon at the time of the impending siege. He saw the servants preparing the tables, sentinels being placed on guard, then the guests eating and drinking. In the midst of the feast the invaders were approaching. He therefore addressed the banqueters by saying, "rise up, ye princes, anoint the shield." But they, not suspecting any evil, were enjoying the festivities of the hour.

His exhortation to the princes to anoint the shield and prepare for the coming onslaught is based upon the revelation which God gave to him and is found in verses 6 and 7. In these verses we see that the prophet thought of Jerusalem as the watch tower and of his being instructed by the Lord to have a watchman located there in order to observe what was going on and to report if he saw a caravan of troops, horsemen, asses, and camels approaching. Suddenly this watchman, thus stationed in his imaginary tower, cried out like the roar of a lion, declaring that he had been there watching and that suddenly he saw a troop of men and horsemen in pairs. They of course were coming from the southeast and were approaching Babylon. They passed out of his view.

Then suddenly certain ones emerged from the captured city and made this announcement: "Fallen, fallen is Babylon; and all the graven images of her gods are broken unto the ground." In this graphic, pictorial manner the prophet portrayed the unexpected attack upon and the sudden downfall of the city of Babylon. This prophecy was fulfilled when the Medes and the Elamites came against it, as is indicated in verse 2 of this chapter.

According to verse 10 the prophet addressed his "threshing, and the grain" of his floor. This figure again presents Babylon as the threshing floor and the natives together with Israel in captivity as that which is threshed. The grain which is winnowed is the faithful remnant which He would restore to the land of the fathers after the Babylonian captivity. This prediction was fulfilled in the restoration under Zerubbabel and Joshua the high priest.

The prophet concludes this prediction by saying that he had declared unto his auditors the things which the God of Israel, Jehovah of hosts, had told him.

This prediction in 21:1-10 is supplemental to the one found in chapters 13 and 14, which we have already studied. What is revealed in chapter 21 is an enlargement upon verses 17 and 18 of chapter 13. As we saw in our previous study regarding Babylon, the rest of the original prophecy in chapters 13 and 14 deal exclusively with Babylon and its overthrow in the end of this age.

This vision is found in verses 11 and 12 of Isaiah, chapter 21. Here again we have a symbolic vision. The word Dumah means silence, quietude. There was no city, so far as we know, in Edom by that name. The prophet thought of that country as being in the stillness and quietness of night. He himself was the watchman upon the watch-tower of Zion. He could look out into the future and forecast coming events. Thus an anxious inquirer down in Edom shouted to him out of the midst of the appalling night which had settled down over the country and asked him saying, "Watchman, what of the night?" He repeated this question, being very eager for the information.

Isaiah, the watchman addressed, answered: "The morning cometh, and also the night: if ye will inquire, inquire ye: turn ye, come." Thus by the prophetic vision the prophet foretold that that pall of night which had settled down over the country of Edom would pass away and that the morning of liberty and freedom would come to the land. Such is the significance of the statement, "The morning cometh."

But he also warned them that another night would follow that day. He gave no hope, however, that that night would cease and be followed by another day. In keeping with the implication of this statement is the revelation concerning Edom found in Isaiah, chapter 34. The stroke of judgment will fall upon Edom during the Tribulation and that country will be under the curse, together with Babylon, during the great Millennial Era of our Lord's reign. Because of this fact, doubtless, Isaiah declared that the night would come. But he spoke to those who were seeking for the truth and declared, "If ye will inquire, inquire ye: turn ye, come." In substance he said to them that, if they wished to inquire, they should do so. The implication of this statement is that he was willing to give them the information which they might desire but that he gave them some additional advice by saying, "Turn ye, come." In this exhortation he urged them to come back again to him and inquire for information and assured them that they would have a hearty welcome should they desire more of the truth of God.

Thus ends this short yet mysterious oracle concerning Edom.

In Isaiah 21:13-17 we have the third symbolic vision. This is addressed to Arabia. The word in the original which is here rendered "Arabia" also may be interpreted differently and mean "evening." Some of the very best commentators are of the opinion that this rendering is possible, believing that the prophet in his mystical manner thought of Arabia as being in the evening or twilight of its historical past.

An examination of the complete thought of this short prophecy shows that a war was foretold which would sweep through the country and devastate its villages and cities. Because of the ravages of war the regular caravans that traversed the desert, taking the wares of the east doubtless to Tyre, which was on the Syrian coast and which was at that time the mart of the world, are seen going farther north in order to escape the ravages of war. We see the fugitives from the war-stricken areas fleeing and being entertained with the bare necessities of life--water and bread--as they escape for their lives. According to verse 16 the prophet declared that the war which he foretold would come within one year. Kedar, one of the principal cities, would be reduced to insignificance. He guaranteed that the prophecy would be fulfilled for, "Jehovah, the God of Israel, hath spoken it."

In 22:1-14 we have the fourth symbolic vision of this series. An examination of this oracle shows that the prophet was speaking of Jerusalem which he had already compared to his watchtower. In this last oracle he changed his point of view and spoke of the city where he lived and from which he delivered his prophecies as being in a valley. A visit to Jerusalem and a view of the city from the Mount of Olives on the east or from the south or west will show that ancient Jerusalem was really in a valley--although it was located upon the four hills which were enclosed within its walls. The Kidron Valley on the east separates the city proper from the Mount of Olives. The Valley of the Son of Hinnom begins on the west side of the city, extends to the southwest corner and then turns at a right angle toward the east, running along the south side of the city and finally meets the Tyropean Valley south of the Temple area and ultimately runs into the Kidron Valley. On the north side of the city the land gradually slopes upward, thus literally Jerusalem was located in a valley which was on the top of the hills of Judaea. The writer of Psalm 125 spoke of the mountains as surrounding Jerusalem.

It is supposed by some that possibly Isaiah's home was in the Tyropean Valley near the extreme south part of the city. This circumstance coupled to the additional fact that the city was surrounded by valleys is sufficient justification for the prophet's speaking of the oracle concerning the city as the "burden of the valley of vision"

It is quite likely that this oracle was uttered during the reign of Ahaz but it looked forward to the siege of Jerusalem later by Sennacherib, who came against the city in the reign of Hezekiah. We have already seen from chapter 7 that impious Ahaz entered into an alliance with Assyria in order to obtain help against the two confederated kings of Syria and Israel. Thus by this unholy alliance Judah was brought into the orbit of Assyrian influence which proved all but fatal to the little struggling kingdom as we shall presently see.

According to verse 2 of this chapter this city as a rule was given over to frivolity and worldly pleasure. The people were not concerned very much about God and worshiping Him. In the vision, however, the prophet saw this joyful city thrown into consternation. The people had gone upon the housetops and were watching the besieging armies in their various activities as the enemy laid siege to the city. During this time the death toll ran very high. The people were not slain with the sword but by famine and pestilence. The sight of the vision was so very grievous that the prophet looked away and wept bitterly for the destruction of his people.

From verse 5 we see that in the great distress of the time foreseen by the prophet the people were actually tearing down their houses and using the material in repairing breaches in the city's wall. Outside in the valleys were the chariots and the besieging forces.

According to verse 8 the Lord, by the stern realities of a siege, brought the city's inhabitants to the point where they realized the seriousness of the situation and thus their self-confidence was removed, which is here spoken of as "the covering of Judah." When they came to the realization that a real siege and a time of distress was upon them, instead of looking to God for deliverance they turned to the arsenal, "the armor in the house of the forest."

As a further precaution and preparation against a long siege, a wall was built from Mount Ophel in the southeast part of the city to Mount Zion in the southwest part. This wall of course passed through the Tyropean Valley and added much new territory to that within the walls. The waters from Gihon (the Virgin Fountain) in the Kidron Valley was brought by a tunnel which was made under Ophel into the reservoir in the southern portion of the Tyropean Valley. Thus a water supply was insured to the city. This fact is seen in verses 9-11.

From a reading of verses 5-11 we see that, when the seriousness of the situation was realized by the inhabitants of Jerusalem, they no longer relied upon God but upon their own efforts at preparing themselves for the sufferings of the long siege. The inhabitants, according to verse 11, forgot that God had foretold these things, that He had a plan and a purpose, and that the end of all things had been foreseen by the Lord from the beginning. While God lets man exercise his own choices, yet He overrules and makes everything contribute to the advance of His eternal plan and purpose. (In order to see more clearly the force of the oracle and the things which I have just been saying, the reader should examine carefully the maps in the back of his Bible, especially that of ancient Jerusalem. Such a study will make this oracle of the Prophet Isaiah clearer and will be most illuminating to the student.)

Every calamity which the Lord brings into the life of any of his servants is designed for his good. This is a general principle which obtains at all times. Thus God's permitting the Assyrians to come against Jerusalem was His chastisement of His ancient people and was a call to weeping, mourning, and to the girding on of sackcloth. This fact is stated in verse 12 of this prophecy.

Instead of Israel's realizing her sin and delinquencies and God's call to repentance, she on the other hand took a light view of the situation and went on in her regular way of frivolity and pleasure. The prophet therefore said in foretelling the event, "... behold, joy and gladness, slaying oxen and killing sheep, eating flesh and drinking wine: Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we shall die." In that calamity God was calling them to repentance. They refused to acknowledge Him but continued in their ungodliness. The Lord therefore made known to Isaiah, according to verse 14, that such an attitude was unpardonable: "Surely this iniquity shall not be forgiven you till ye die, saith the Lord, Jehovah of hosts." Such utter disregard of God and His over-ruling, providential acts could be atoned for only by the death of those who assumed such an ungodly attitude, declared the prophet. The principle here enunciated is the same as that set forth in Numbers 35:33, where legislation is set forth decreeing that, whenever blood is shed in the land expiation could be made for it only by the shedding of the blood of him who committed the murder. Thus when the punishment was administered to the murderer, satisfaction legally was made for the shedding of this blood. This carnal, indifferent, defiant attitude on the part of the inhabitants of Jerusalem could therefore be atoned for or expiated, declared the prophet, only by the death of those thus assuming it. As to whether or not the judgment here threatened involved eternal consequences, one cannot say.

In this connection let us remember that, when people humble themselves before God, He most graciously forgives as is set forth in the case of Isaiah, chapter 6. The prophet saw his undone condition. He confessed his sins and implored divine mercy. When men will not accept the grace of God and His free pardoning mercy, the Lord must deal with them on the basis of merit and works. Satisfaction must be demanded.

When the prophet had completed his oracle concerning this future siege and distress of his beloved home town, the Lord gave him a message concerning Shebna who was the treasurer of the city. At the time of the oracle this man was superintending the hewing out of a sepulchre for himself among the tombs of the nobility of the land. I have walked among the sepulchers of the kings of Judah which are located on the eastern slopes of Mount Zion a little below the Church of the Cockcrowing. The position of these sepulchers is, from the standpoint of the Tyropean Valley where Isaiah likely lived, high up on the mountainside as is indicated in verse 16. Shebna, this high government official, was an unworthy man. His moral and spiritual character disqualified him for such a position as the one which he was occupying. Unfortunately, now as then, many unworthy men are appointed to public offices and administer affairs in which the welfare of the masses is involved. Unhappy indeed are the people who are thus forced to live under the rule and administration of such unworthy officials.

Isaiah the prophet was therefore commissioned to go and make an announcement to this man that the Lord was going to depose him from his position and cast him away from the dignity and honor which had been heaped upon him. His place was to be filled by Eliakim the son of Hilkiah. According to the custom prevailing in Israel, the robe of the one in office was to be passed on to his successor. This is seen in the case of Elijah who was succeeded by Elisha the prophet (I Kings 19:19).

When Eliakim was thus invested with the authority of the office, Shebna's government and authority passed into the former's hands. This transfer of authority is set forth in the following words: "And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his (Eliakim's) shoulder; and he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open" (vs. 22). The key was the symbol of authority to open and to shut the gates. Whenever a city in the ancient Orient surrendered, those officiating in the negotiations for the captured community brought forth the keys of the gates of the city and turned them over to the conquerors. By this ceremony the surrender was indicated. The authority of the government was therefore symbolically transferred from Shebna to Eliakim (vs. 22). The Lord compares him to a nail driven in a tent post. According to oriental custom all the heirlooms of the family and the prized treasures were hung upon it. Thus the Lord declared that He would hang upon Eliakim all the glory and the honor of his father's house.

But very few people can stand to be greatly honored by men. The natural heart is prone to pride, deceit, and conceit. Pride, we are told, always goes before a fall. Eliakim, so declared the prophet, would, in his position of authority, power, and glory, fail; and like a nail upon which a very heavy load has been hung would give way. Thus all the glory bestowed upon him would fall into the dust of humiliation. Such was the prediction which the Lord made concerning this man whom He chose to be the successor of Shebna.

In chapter 23 is found the burden of Tyre which is the last of the series of oracles against the nations as set forth by Isaiah in this series.

At the time of the prophet Tyre was the mart of the world. It was the commercial center. It dominated not only Phoenicia but also the whole known world. It was the daughter city of Sidon but had outstripped her. Both Isaiah and Ezekiel uttered prophecies concerning the downfall of Tyre. Study carefully Ezekiel, chapters 26-28, in connection with Isaiah, chapter 23.

The prophet saw the ships of Tyre that were trading with Tarshish (England) as they returned to the mother country from one of their long voyages. When they were far away at sea, they heard from ships going westward that Tyre had been overthrown. When they reached Cypress (Kittim), they received confirmation of the reports which they had already heard.

Seeing the city overthrown, the prophet spoke to the merchants of Phoenicia and exhorted them to be still.

He then looked out over the great Mediterranean Sea and saw the ships of Tyre carrying the abundant harvest of Egypt to various marts of the world.

In verse 4 Sidon, the mother city of Tyre, was told to be ashamed, for her daughter, insular Tyre, the stronghold of the sea, had not borne any real sons and daughters--colonies. The Phoenicians as we know were a great maritime people and colonized many places around the Mediterranean. Carthage, for instance, was a daughter of Phoenicia. But according to this verse Tyre had done no colonizing but had engaged exclusively in commerce with those who had been colonized by other Phoenician cities. When the report of the overthrow of Tyre reached Egypt, the inhabitants wailed because they realized that there was no market for their produce.

The prophet asked: "Who hath purposed this against Tyre?"--the overthrow of the city. Then he answered his own question in the following verse, "Jehovah of hosts hath purposed it" (vs. 9) because of the pride of this great maritime power.

In verse 10 he looked over to Tarshish (England) and urged the people of that country to go through their land and pursue their own life for they were no longer dependent upon Tyre--since it would at that time have been overthrown.

In verse 11 the prophet spoke of God's stretching out His hand over the kingdoms with which Tyre had commercial relations and His having destroyed them. It is obvious that Isaiah was speaking here in terms of Moses' stretching out his hand over Egypt and his bringing God's judgments upon the oppressors of Israel. Tyre was to go down into ignominy and shame and never to rise again--never to occupy the position which she had formerly.

The message of verse 13 is most difficult. Various interpretations have been placed upon this passage. In view of the controversy about it and in view of the fact that our space is so very limited, I must pass by it without any comment and advise the reader to consult some good commentary.

The sailors of the Tyrean ships were urged to howl because their mother city was laid waste. Tyre was to lie in ruins for seventy years according to verse 15. When were those seventy years? The best scholars are of the opinion that they coincide with the seventy years of the Babylonian captivity of the Jews and that the destruction here foretold to be followed by this period of seventy years was that which was wrought by the Babylonians. Others think that the Assyrians were the instruments chosen of God to accomplish the work. In view of the scanty material which we have, it is impossible for us to say.

After the seventy years the people of Tyre were to sing the song of the harlot which is set forth in verse 16; "Take a harp, go about the city, thou harlot that hast been forgotten; make sweet melody, sing many songs, that thou mayest be remembered." At the end of this seventy-year period the Lord promised to restore Tyre so that she might resume her commercial relationship with the kingdoms of the world as she had done prior to that time. Finally, however, she will turn to God, according to verse 18, and all of her merchandise will become holy unto the Lord. This is in perfect keeping with Psalm 45:13.

Our prophet therefore, after foretelling the restoration of Tyre following her seventy years of desolation, leaped forward into the future and saw Tyre converted to King Messiah and her territory incorporated into His great and glorious kingdom, serving Him and giving glory to God.

There seems to be a future for the people of most nations except those of Edom and Babylon. Great and marvelous things lie out before those of all nations who accept the Lord Jesus Christ and His authority.

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