Welcome to the MHB Podcast. This is Michael Baun. And welcome to my eightieth episode. Tonight I want to talk about Isaiah chapter 21. This chapter begins the second series of oracles that will run through chapter 23. This chapter includes predictions against Babylon, Edom, and Arabia. We need to set the scene before we open up the text. In the years leading up this chapter, the Assyrians had tried to establish vassal states under king Sargon. A vassal state is a nation that makes payments to the empire in exchange for not being conquered. The problem was that these vassal states kept withholding their payments and attempting rebellion. So Assyria needed to march south and secure them. But there was one other military power who stood in their way. This military power was Babylon. For the nations who feared being crushed by Assyria, Babylon was like the dam that held back the flood.
Babylon was being ruled by Merodach-Baladan. He was a king who managed to hold power against Assyria for more than a decade. This success inspired Judah and the other Palestinian nations to draft anti-Assyrian foreign policy and quit making their tribute payments. Couple this influence with their hollow alliance to Egypt and you had a recipe for rebellion against Assyria. Indeed, this was the rebellion of Ashdod and Judah that we discussed in chapter 20. But that rebellion was crushed by Sargon. After he put down the rebellions and secured his vassals, Sargon actually subdued Babylon and made them into a vassal as well. Babylon’s king – Merodach-Baladan – escaped.
Under Sargon, Assyria managed to lock down its territories nice and tight. But then Sargon died. When he received news of Sargon’s death, Merodach-Baladan returned to Babylon and re-established his power as an independent nation. So this metaphorical dam which held back the Assyrian flood was rebuilt. This made Judah feel a lot better, and once again they fell into the trap of turning away from God and trusting in human power to keep them safe from Assyria. In the previous chapter it was Egypt, this time it is Babylon.
After Sargon’s death, Sennacherib rose to power as king of Assyria. This was the year 705 B.C. He wanted to bring Babylon and Palestine back under the empire’s grip as provincial territories. But instead of making vassal arrangements that the nations wouldn’t respect anyway, he decided to just conquer them. These invasions would take place between the years 705 and 701 B.C. – and these invasions are what Isaiah is describing in chapter 21, beginning with verses 1 and 2:
21 The oracle concerning the wilderness of the sea.
As whirlwinds in the Negeb sweep on,
it comes from the wilderness,
from a terrible land.
2 A stern vision is told to me;
the traitor betrays,
and the destroyer destroys.
Go up, O Elam;
lay siege, O Media;
all the sighing she has caused
I bring to an end.
These verses are identifying three different things. The first is a vision of something coming – something terrible. Isaiah says this oracle concerns the wilderness of the sea. Later in the chapter this nation is identified as Babylon, but Isaiah is using these cryptic words to illustrate Babylon as a place that is both deserted and flooded – a place that is doubly hopeless. I think this is a vision of Babylon suffering under the boot of the Assyrian army. Notice in verse two how it says the traitor betrays and the destroyer destroys. Isaiah is being shown the full consequences of human political backstabbing. When human beings feel threatened, it’s common for them to turn on each other. When an established power is brought down, the worst aspects of human beings are called forth as they are tempted with the possibility of newly formed power.
The second piece we notice is an exhortation for Elam and Media. Elam and Media were peoples from the Iranian highlands who were becoming active in Mesopotamian affairs near the end of the eighth century B.C. These people are being called to take up arms and attack. The target of their attack is not specified, but I think it’s possible that they are being called to finish off Babylon. Assyria’s invasion of Babylon has left them reeling, and the third thing we notice is that God wants to use Elam and Media to bring a quick end to Babylon’s suffering.
So you have to imagine what it’s like for the officials in Judah to watch this. They had so much faith in Babylon that they structured their foreign policy around it. Babylon was their safety net against a full frontal Assyrian invasion. Now Assyria is running right through them and it is a nightmarish vision. Listen to the response, verses 3-4:
3 Therefore my loins are filled with anguish;
pangs have seized me,
like the pangs of a woman in labor;
I am bowed down so that I cannot hear;
I am dismayed so that I cannot see.
4 My heart staggers; horror has appalled me;
the twilight I longed for
has been turned for me into trembling.
Babylon’s collapse has shaken the foundations of Jerusalem. When you make such a terrible miscalculation, your eyes are opened to the realization that you aren’t who you thought you were and that which threatens you is worse than you believed. Imagine you’re a student who is taking an exam to get into medical school. You feel pretty confident and everyone keeps praising you for how smart you are. Then you get the exam results back and see that you failed. That “F” means many things. It means you failed the test, obviously. But it also means that you aren’t as smart as you thought you were. It means that your preparation might be wrong after all. It means that the road you are trying to walk down is a lot more difficult than you ever imagined. Looking at the “F” rips you out of everything you thought you knew and thrusts you alone into cold reality.
That is what the leadership in Judah is experiencing with the vision of Babylon’s collapse. Babylon was the ace that Assyria wasn’t supposed to be able to beat. But now Judah has to look back and reevaluate all that they’ve done in preparation for Assyria. Does any of it matter now? They also have to look at the future and reevaluate that as well. This phrase twilight I longed for suggests a future where Judah could be independent and free of taxation from the empire. It looks to them like that future has been dashed. What do you do in a situation like this? They should have fell down before God. They should have turned back to Him. But instead they make ready for war. Verses 5-10:
5 They prepare the table,
they spread the rugs,[a]
they eat, they drink.
Arise, O princes;
oil the shield!
6 For thus the Lord said to me:
“Go, set a watchman;
let him announce what he sees.
7 When he sees riders, horsemen in pairs,
riders on donkeys, riders on camels,
let him listen diligently,
very diligently.”
8 Then he who saw cried out:[b]
“Upon a watchtower I stand, O Lord,
continually by day,
and at my post I am stationed
whole nights.
9 And behold, here come riders,
horsemen in pairs!”
And he answered,
“Fallen, fallen is Babylon;
and all the carved images of her gods
he has shattered to the ground.”
10 O my threshed and winnowed one,
what I have heard from the Lord of hosts,
the God of Israel, I announce to you.
Notice in the beginning of these verses how the people of Judah are still depending on themselves. They don’t call on God in the wake of this news about Babylon – they take action themselves and call on each other. This is par for the course with them. Isaiah told them a long time ago about Assyria coming for them, but they chose to ignore Isaiah and trust Babylon as an example that the Assyrian Empire could be resisted. Babylon made a similar mistake when they trusted their idols and the hand made images they worshiped as gods. Notice in verse nine how it says Babylon’s carved images of her gods have been shattered to the ground.
Next we see this idea of setting a watchman. These verses are meant to picture Isaiah as a diligent and faithful prophet. He’s terrified of what God is showing him, but he’s resolved to speak it truthfully to the people anyway. We can learn from this today. No one likes to hear bad news and criticism can be difficult for people to take. But as long as our motive is love, sometimes we have to be the one to deliver these things. It does far worse damage to a person to deceive them about something. If you don’t tell them the whole story or you just try to flatter them – you take away their ability to make the preparations or adjustments they need to make. Treating people this way sets them up for loads of unnecessary pain and suffering when reality breaks through – and reality always breaks through.
So remember I said that this chapter is made up of three oracles – one against Babylon, one against Edom, and one against Arabia. Let’s look at the second oracle, the one against Edom, in verses 11 and 12:
11 The oracle concerning Dumah.
One is calling to me from Seir,
“Watchman, what time of the night?
Watchman, what time of the night?”
12 The watchman says:
“Morning comes, and also the night.
If you will inquire, inquire;
come back again.”
Right away we see Isaiah call Edom by the name Dumah. In Hebrew, the word dumah means silence or stillness. We know this oracle is referring to Edom because it mentions the mountainous region of Seir – which is located on the Edomite border. The Edomites call out to Isaiah and ask him how much longer their nation must endure this darkness. Notice how the question is posed twice. This repetition is meant to show that they are distressed and desperate for an answer. But the most important thing to notice here is how Isaiah answers them. He doesn’t give them the clear answer they want – but he tells them to keep on asking. This is what God wants from us today. Some things aren’t yet clear to us and we haven’t been given all of the information that we want. But God wants us to keep asking Him. Listen to what Jesus says in Matthew 7:7-11:
7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 9 Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? 11 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!
So this is Jesus saying that even if it feels like our prayers aren’t being answered – just keep praying. Even if it seems like you can’t find God – just keep seeking. And even if life seems to be shutting the doors to all of your opportunities – just keep knocking. Let’s move on to the third and final oracle in this chapter – the oracle against Arabia. This is in verses 13-16:
13 The oracle concerning Arabia.
In the thickets in Arabia you will lodge,
O caravans of Dedanites.
14 To the thirsty bring water;
meet the fugitive with bread,
O inhabitants of the land of Tema.
15 For they have fled from the swords,
from the drawn sword,
from the bent bow,
and from the press of battle.
16 For thus the Lord said to me, “Within a year, according to the years of a hired worker, all the glory of Kedar will come to an end. 17 And the remainder of the archers of the mighty men of the sons of Kedar will be few, for the Lord, the God of Israel, has spoken.”
The sun is setting on Arabia as they live their final hours before facing the Assyrian army. The Dedanites were Arabian merchants who were forced to make camp in the wilderness far off the main roads. Perhaps this was to prevent them from being spotted by the enemy. You should know that parts of Arabia during this time were considered incredibly remote. Yet even in these remote areas fugitives of war begin to appear. The ones who were fortunate enough to escape the Assyrians were now struggling against dehydration and starvation. The Arabs in the land of Tema are called to show hospitality to these begging refugees.
Isaiah ends his message to Arabia with an ominous prophecy. He tells them that within a year all the glory of Kedar will come to an end. The Arabs were well-known for having high quality warriors. The Assyrian records show that the Arabian forces gave the empire trouble under both Asshurbanipal and Esarhaddon. But Sennacherib would be the one to finally defeat them. This is the prediction Isaiah makes. In the Assyrian records, Sennacherib writes of defeating Hazail, king of the Arabs and the Kedarites.
Knowing that the Assyrians are going to destroy the Arabs right after running through Babylon is just further evidence that things aren’t looking good for Judah. It won’t be long before Judah will lose all of its fortified cities and king Hezekiah will be confined to Jerusalem. In today’s world, when we see that things aren’t going well for us it can be tempting to abandon what we know about God and choose to follow our own path. It can be tempting to try to manipulate the world into being what we want it to be. It can be tempting to begin deceiving ourselves and others instead of having faith in the truth.
Ultimately, history will play out exactly the way God intends it to. Life can be tragic and the world can be a cruel place. Sometimes it feels like the only thing that’s keeping us close to God is our own faith. Our own choice to believe. But the secret that Hezekiah and the other leaders in Judah needed to know was that even when you feel far away from God – He remains close to you. And even when we don’t have much faith and it’s hard for us to believe – He remains close to us.
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