Isaiah 10:28-34

SHAME OF ASSYRIA

TEXT: Isaiah 10:28-34

28

He is come to Aiath, he is passed through Migron; at Michmash he layeth up his baggage;

29

they are gone over the pass; they have taken up their lodging at Geba; Ramah trembleth; Gibeah of Saul is fled.

30

Cry aloud with thy voice, O daughter of Gallim! hearken, O Laishah! O thou poor Anathoth!

31

Madmenah is a fugitive; the inhabitants of Gebim flee for safety.

32

This very day shall be halt at Nob: he shaketh his hand at the mount of the daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem.

33

Behold, the Lord, Jehovah of hosts, will lop the boughs with terror: and the high of stature shall be hewn down, and the lofty shall be brought low.

34

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

QUERIES

a.

Where are all these cities mentioned?

b.

Why are they mentioned?

PARAPHRASE

Look, the mighty armies of Assyria are coming! Now they are at Aiath, now at Migron; they are storing some of their equipment at Michmash and crossing over the pass; they are staying overnight at Geba; fear strikes the city of Ramah; all the people of Gibeahthe city of Saulare running for their lives. Well may you scream in terror, O people of Gallim. Shout a warning to Laish, for the mighty army comes. O poor Anathoth, what a fate is yours! There go the people of Madmenah, all fleeing, and the citizens of Gebim are preparing to run. But the enemy stops at Nob for the remainder of that day. He shakes his fist at Jerusalem on Mount Zion. Then, look, look! The Lord, the Lord of the armies of heaven, is chopping down the mighty tree! He is destroying all of that vast army, great and small alike, both officers and men. He, the Mighty One, will cut down the enemy as a woodsman's axe cuts down the forest trees in Lebanon.

COMMENTS

Isaiah 10:28-34 ASSYRIA CUT DOWN: These verses are an imaginative description of the approach of the Assyrian army. It is what is called in prophecy, predictive present. The prophet predicts what is to come as if it were presently occurring. Entering the borders of Judah at Ai and leaving his heavy baggage train behind because it would be in the way when contact was made with their enemies, Assyria attacks the land of the Jews. As they advance the inhabitants flee from their towns and cities, trembling and crying for help. At last the Assyrian stands at Nob (the priestly city destroyed by Saul, 1 Samuel 22:19) which must have been in sight of Jerusalem. From this vantage point the Assyrian makes threatening gestures at Jerusalem (Cf. comments on Isaiah 10:12-19) recorded in Isaiah 37:22-23.

But God's judgment catches up with Assyria. Again using the figure of trees with their boughs, the prophet describes how Assyria will be cut down. The Assyrian King is a great tree in Lebanon and the boughs are lopped off. This is a favorite figure of Old Testament prophecy (Cf. Daniel 4). When the angel of death slew 185,000 soldiers of the Assyrian army there was much terror among the Assyrians. That powerful, cruel, proud, arrogant and boastful nation was soon reduced to a fleeing horde of refugees chased by the Babylonians and eventually Assyria was reduced to oblivion as a nation. God keeps His word!

QUIZ

1.

What particular form of prophetic address has the prophet used here?

2.

With what detail has the prophet described the Assyrian assault upon Judah?

3.

Why does the prophet describe the Assyrian king as a tree cut down?