Yeshayah 34

1 4 Come near, ye Goyim, to hear; and pay heed, ye peoples; let ha’aretz hear, and all that is therein; the tevel (world), and all things that come forth of it.

2 For the ketzef Hashem (wrath of Hashem) is upon kol HaGoyim, and His chemah (fury, wrath) upon all their tz’va; He hath utterly destroyed them, He hath delivered them to the tevach (slaughter).

3 Their slain also shall be cast out, and their stench shall go up out of their pegarim (corpses), and the harim shall be drenched with their dahm.

4 And kol Tz’va HaShomayim (all the host of heaven) shall be dissolved, and the Shomayim shall be rolled up like a sefer; and all their tz’va shall fall, like the aleh (leaf) falleth from the gefen, like that falling from the te’enah (fig tree).

5 For My cherev shall be satiated in Shomayim; hinei, it shall come down upon Edom, and shall descend on the Am (people) of My Cherem (ban of destruction) in mishpat.

6 The Cherev Hashem (Sword of Hashem) is filled with dahm, it is gorged with chelev, and with the dahm of lambs and goats, with the chelev of the kidneys of rams; for Hashem hath a zevach in Botzrah, and a tevach gadol in Eretz Edom.

7 And the re’emim (wild oxen) shall fall with them, and the bull calves with the bulls; and their land shall be soaked with dahm, and their aphar (dust) enriched with chelev.

8 For it is the Yom Nakam L’Hashem (Day of Vengeance unto Hashem), and the Shnat Shillumim (Year of Retributions) for the cause of Tziyon.

9 And the streams thereof [i.e., of Edom] shall be turned into zefet (pitch, tar), and the aphar (dust) thereof into gofrit (burning sulfur), and the land thereof shall become burning zefet (pitch, tar).

10 It shall not be quenched lailah v’yomam; the ashan (smoke) thereof shall go up l’olam (forever); from dor to dor it shall lie desolate; none shall pass through it l’netzach netzachim.

11 But the desert owl and the screech owl shall possess it; even the yanshuf (great owl) and the orev (raven) shall dwell in it; and He shall stretch out upon it the measuring line of tohu, and the plumbline of vohu [See Genesis 1:2].

12 For the nobles thereof there shall be nothing to call a maluchah (kingdom) and all her sarim shall come to naught.

13 And sirim (thorns) shall come up in her citadels, nettles and brambles in the strongholds thereof; and it shall become the habitation of jackals, and the abode for banot ya’anah (ostriches).

14 The tziyyim (martens) shall also encounter iyyim (wild cats), and a sa’ir (wild goat) calls to its companion, and lilit (night creature) dwells there and finds for itself a mano’ach (place of rest).

15 There shall the kipoz (bittern) nest, and lay eggs, and hatch and care for young under her tzel; there shall the dayyot (kites, vultures) also be gathered, every one with its mate.

16 Search ye out in the Sefer Hashem, and read; no one of these creatures shall fail, none shall lack her mate; for My mouth hath commanded, and His Ruach hath gathered them.

17 And He hath cast the goral (lot) for them, and His Yad hath made the land assignment unto them by measuring line; they shall possess it ad olam, from dor to dor shall they dwell therein.

Yeshayah 34 Commentary

Chapter 34

God's vengeance against the enemies of his church. (1-8) Their desolation. (9-17)

Verses 1-8 Here is a prophecy of the wars of the Lord, all which are both righteous and successful. All nations are concerned. And as they have all had the benefit of his patience, so all must expect to feel his resentment. The description of bloodshed suggests tremendous ideas of the Divine judgments. Idumea here denotes the nations at enmity with the church; also the kingdom of antichrist. Our thoughts cannot reach the horrors of that awful season, to those found opposing the church of Christ. There is a time fixed in the Divine counsels for the deliverance of the church, and the destruction of her enemies. We must patiently wait till then, and judge nothing before the time. Through Christ, mercy is exercised to every believer, consistently with justice, and his name is glorified.

Verses 9-17 Those who aim to ruin the church, can never do that, but will ruin themselves. What dismal changes sin can make! It turns a fruitful land into barrenness, a crowded city into a wilderness. Let us compare all we discover in the book of the Lord, with the dealings of providence around us, that we may be more diligent in seeking the kingdom of God and his righteousness. What the mouth of the Lord has commanded, his Spirit will perform. And let us observe how the evidences of the truth continually increase, as one prophecy after another is fulfilled, until these awful scenes bring in more happy days. As Israel was a figure of the Christian church, so the Edomites, their bitter enemies, represent the enemies of the kingdom of Christ. God's Jerusalem may be laid in ruins for a time, but the enemies of the church shall be desolate for ever.

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO ISAIAH 34

This chapter is a prophecy of the destruction of all the antichristian nations of the world, and particularly of Rome, signified by Idumea; which is introduced with a call to a general attention to it, it being a very awful and solemn affair, Isa 34:1 utter and universal destruction is declared, as the effect of God's wrath, Isa 34:2 which is expressed by a dreadful scene of blood, to the melting of the mountains with it, and by the dissolution of the heavens, and the hosts of them, Isa 34:3,4 particularly the destruction of Idumea is denounced by the sword of the Lord being on it, and bathed with the blood, both of the common people, and of their princes, signified by various sorts of creatures, Isa 34:5-7 the cause of which is the Lord's vengeance for the controversy of his church and people, injured by Edom or Rome, Isa 34:8 whose desolate and calamitous state is represented as being like that of Sodom, Isa 34:9,10 and should be no more inhabited by men, nor governed by princes, but be the dwelling of wild beasts and unclean birds, Isa 34:11-15 all which is confirmed by the word and Spirit of God, Isa 34:16,17.