Isaiah 14

1 for why the Lord shall have mercy of Jacob, and he shall choose yet of Israel, and shall make them for to rest on their land; a comeling shall be joined to them, and shall cleave to the house of Jacob. (for the Lord shall have mercy on Jacob, and he shall yet choose Israel, and shall give them rest on their land; a newcomer shall be joined to them, and shall cleave to the house of Jacob.)

2 And peoples shall hold them, and shall bring them into their place. And the house of Israel shall have them in possession into servants and handmaids on the land of the Lord; and they shall take those men that took them, and they shall make subject their wrongful askers. (And the peoples, or the nations, shall help them, and shall bring them back to their place. And then the house of Israel shall have them in possession for servants and servantesses in the land of the Lord; and they shall take captive those who took them captive, and they shall make subject their oppressors.)

3 And it shall be in that day, when God shall give to thee rest of thy travail, and of thy shaking, and of hard servage, in which thou servedest before, (And it shall be on that day, when God shall give thee rest from thy labour, and from thy fear and trembling, and from the hard servitude, or from the slavery, in which thou servedest before,)

4 thou shalt take this parable against the king of Babylon, and thou shalt say, How ceased the wrongful asker, rested [the] tribute? (thou shalt take up this parable against the king of Babylon, and thou shalt say, How the oppressor hath fallen! the tribute is now ceased!/How the mighty have fallen! the oppression, or the servitude, is now ended!)

5 The Lord hath all-broken the staff of wicked men, the rod of lords,

6 that beat peoples in indignation, with uncurable wound, that subjected folks in strong vengeance, that pursued cruelly. (they who beat the peoples in anger, with incurable wounds, they who subjected the nations to strong vengeance, and who cruelly pursued them.)

7 Each land rested, and was still; it was joyful, and made full out joy.

8 Also (the) fir trees and cedars of the Lebanon were glad on thee; (and said,) Since thou sleptest, none ascendeth that cutteth us down.

9 Hell under thee is troubled for the meeting of thy coming; he shall raise giants to thee; all the princes of [the] earth have risen from their seats, all the princes of nations. (Sheol under thee is troubled at the meeting of thy coming; it shall raise up the dead for thee; all the kings of the earth have risen up from their thrones, all the leaders of the nations.)

10 All they shall answer, and they shall say to thee, And thou art wounded as we, thou art made like us. (They all shall answer, and they shall say to thee, And thou art wounded like we be, thou art made like us.)

11 Thy pride is drawn down to hells, thy dead carrion fell down (Thy pride is drawn down to Sheol, or the land of the dead, thy corpses fell down); a moth shall be strewed under thee, and thy covering shall be worms.

12 A! Lucifer, that risedest early, how fellest thou down from heaven; thou that woundedest folks, felledest down (al)together into [the] earth. (O! Lucifer, who risedest up early, how thou hast fallen down from heaven; thou who hast wounded the nations, fell down to the ground.)

13 Which saidest in thine heart, I shall ascend into heaven, I shall enhance my seat above the stars of (the) heaven(s); I shall sit in the hill of (the) testament, in the sides of the north. (Who saidest in thy heart, I shall ascend into heaven, I shall exalt, or I shall set, my throne above the stars of the heavens; I shall sit on the mountain where the gods meet, on the sides of the north.)

14 I shall ascend on the highness of (the) clouds; I shall be like the Highest.

15 Nevertheless thou shalt be drawn down to hell, into the depth of the pit.

16 They that shall see thee, shall be bowed down to thee, and shall behold thee. (And they shall say,) Whether this is the man, that troubled [the] earth, that shook together realms? (And they shall say, Is this the man, who troubled the earth, who shook the kingdoms?)

17 that setted the world desert, and destroyed the cities thereof, and opened not the prison to the bound men of him? (who turned the world into a desert, and destroyed its cities, and never opened his prison to release his bound?/to release his prisoners?)

18 All the kings of heathen men, all slept in glory, a man in his house. (All the kings of the heathen, they all slept in glory, each man in his own house, or in his own tomb.)

19 But thou art cast out of thy sepulchre, as an unprofitable stock, as defouled with rot; and wrapped with them that be slain with sword, and went down to the foundament of the pit. As a rotten carrion (Like a rotten corpse),

20 thou shalt not have fellowship, neither with them in sepulchre, for thou hast lost thy land, thou hast slain the people; the seed of the worst men shall not be called without end. (thou shalt not have fellowship with them in the tomb, or in the grave, for thou hast destroyed thy land, and thou hast killed thy own people; the children, or the descendants, of these evil people shall never be seen again.)

21 Make ye ready his sons to slaying, for the wickedness of their fathers; they shall not rise, neither they shall inherit the land, neither they shall fill the face of the roundness (of the earth) of cities. (Prepare ye his sons for killing, for the wickedness of their forefathers; they shall not rise up and inherit the land, nor shall they fill the face of the roundness of the earth with their cities.)

22 And I shall rise [up] on them, saith the Lord of hosts, and I shall lose the name of Babylon, and the remnants, and generation, and seed, saith the Lord. (For I shall rise up against them, saith the Lord of hosts, and I shall destroy the name of Babylon, and its remnants, and its children, and its descendants, saith the Lord.)

23 And I shall set that Babylon into possession of an urchin, and into marishes of waters; and I shall sweep it with a besom, and I shall stamp (it), saith the Lord of hosts. (And I shall give that Babylon into the possession of hedgehogs, or of conies, and to the marshes of water; and I shall sweep it with a broom, and I shall stamp it, saith the Lord of hosts.)

24 The Lord of hosts swore, saying, Whether it shall not be so, as I guessed, and it shall befall so, as I treated in soul? (The Lord of hosts swore, saying, Shall it not be so, just as I thought, and shall it not befall, just as I said?)

25 That I all-break the king of Assyrians in my land, and that I defoul him in mine hills; and his yoke shall be taken away from them, and his burden shall be taken away from the shoulder of them. (That I all-break the king of Assyria in my land, and that I defile him in my hills; and his yoke shall be taken away from them, and his burden shall be taken off their shoulders.)

26 This is the counsel which I thought on all the land, and this is the hand stretched forth on all folks. (This is the plan which I thought up for all the world, and this is the hand stretched forth upon all the nations.)

27 For why the Lord of hosts hath deemed, and who may make unsteadfast? (For the Lord of hosts hath determined, and who can make it unsteadfast?) and his hand is stretched forth, and who shall turn it away?

28 The burden of (the) Philistines. In the year wherein king Ahaz died, this burden was made.

29 All thou Philistia, be not glad, for the rod of thy smiter is made less; for why a cockatrice shall go out of the root of an adder, and his seed shall swallow up a bird (and its fruit, or its children, shall be flying serpents).

30 And the first engendered of poor men shall be fed, and poor men shall rest faithfully; and I shall make thy root to perish in hunger, and I shall slay thy remnants. (And the first begotten of the poor shall be fed, and the poor shall rest peacefully; but I shall make thy roots to perish from hunger, and I shall kill thy remnants.)

31 Yell, thou gate; cry, thou city; all Philistia is cast down; for why smoke shall come from the north, and none is that shall escape his host. (Yell, O gate; cry, O city; all Philistia is cast down; and a tumult, or a column of smoke/or a cloud of dust, shall come from the north, and no one shall escape his army.)

32 And what shall be answered to the messengers of [the] folk? for the Lord hath founded Zion, and the poor men of his people shall hope in him. (And what shall be answered to the messengers of the nation? that the Lord hath founded Zion, and that the poor among his people shall have hope there.)

Isaiah 14 Commentary

Chapter 14

The destruction of Babylon, and the death of its proud monarch. (1-23) Assurance of the destruction of Assyria. (24-27) The destruction of the Philistines. (28-32)

Verses 1-23 The whole plan of Divine Providence is arranged with a view to the good of the people of God. A settlement in the land of promise is of God's mercy. Let the church receive those whom God receives. God's people, wherever their lot is cast, should endeavour to recommend religion by a right and winning conversation. Those that would not be reconciled to them, should be humbled by them. This may be applied to the success of the gospel, when those were brought to obey it who had opposed it. God himself undertakes to work a blessed change. They shall have rest from their sorrow and fear, the sense of their present burdens, and the dread of worse. Babylon abounded in riches. The king of Babylon having the absolute command of so much wealth, by the help of it ruled the nations. This refers especially to the people of the Jews; and it filled up the measure of the king of Babylon's sins. Tyrants sacrifice their true interest to their lusts and passions. It is gracious ambition to covet to be like the Most Holy, for he has said, Be ye holy, for I am holy; but it is sinful ambition to aim to be like the Most High, for he has said, He who exalts himself shall be abased. The devil thus drew our first parents to sin. Utter ruin should be brought upon him. Those that will not cease to sin, God will make to cease. He should be slain, and go down to the grave; this is the common fate of tyrants. True glory, that is, true grace, will go up with the soul to heaven, but vain pomp will go down with the body to the grave; there is an end of it. To be denied burial, if for righteousness' sake, may be rejoiced in, ( Matthew 5:12 ) . But if the just punishment of sin, it denotes that impenitent sinners shall rise to everlasting shame and contempt. Many triumphs should be in his fall. God will reckon with those that disturb the peace of mankind. The receiving the king of Babylon into the regions of the dead, shows there is a world of spirits, to which the souls of men remove at death. And that souls have converse with each other, though we have none with them; and that death and hell will be death and hell indeed, to all who fall unholy, from the height of this world's pomps, and the fulness of its pleasures. Learn from all this, that the seed of evil-doers shall never be renowned. The royal city is to be ruined and forsaken. Thus the utter destruction of the New Testament Babylon is illustrated, ( Revelation 18:2 ) . When a people will not be made clean with the besom of reformation, what can they expect but to be swept off the face of the earth with the besom of destruction?

Verses 24-27 Let those that make themselves a yoke and a burden to God's people, see what they are to expect. Let those that are the called according to God's purpose, comfort themselves, that whatever God has purposed, it shall stand. The Lord of hosts has purposed to break the Assyrian's yoke; his hand is stretched out to execute this purpose; who has power to turn it back? By such dispensations of providence, the Almighty shows in the most convincing manner, that sin is hateful in his sight.

Verses 28-32 Assurance is given of the destruction of the Philistines and their power, by famine and war. Hezekiah would be more terrible to them than Uzziah had been. Instead of rejoicing, there would be lamentation, for the whole land would be ruined. Such destruction will come upon the proud and rebellious, but the Lord founded Zion for a refuge to poor sinners, who flee from the wrath to come, and trust in his mercy through Christ Jesus. Let us tell all around of our comforts and security, and exhort them to seek the same refuge and salvation.

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO ISAIAH 14

This chapter contains prophecies of the restoration of the Jews, of the fall of the king of Babylon, and the destruction of the Assyrian empire, and of the ruin of Palestine. The moving cause of the restoration of the Jews, and their settlement in their own land, is the distinguishing mercy of God towards them; the accomplishment of it, proselytes joined unto them; the means, people of other nations, who should bring them into it, and whom they should possess and rule over; and the consequence of it, rest from sorrow, fear, and hard bondage, Isa 14:1-3 upon which they are introduced as taking up a proverb, or a triumphant song, concerning the king of Babylon, wondering at his fall, and ascribing it to the Lord, Isa 14:4,5 representing the inhabitants of the earth, and great men of it, as at peace, and rest, and rejoicing, who before were continually disturbed, and smitten by him, Isa 14:6-8 introducing the dead, and those in hell, meeting him, and welcoming him into their regions, with taunts and jeers; upbraiding him with his weakness, shame, and disgrace he was come into; putting him in mind of his former pomp and splendour, pride, arrogance, and haughtiness, Isa 14:9-15 spectators are brought in, as amazed at the low, mean, and despicable condition he was brought into, considering what he had done in the world, in kingdoms and cities, but was now denied a burial, when other kings lay in their pompous sepulchres, Isa 14:16-20 and then it is foretold that that whole royal family should be cut off, and Babylon, the metropolis of his kingdom, should be utterly destroyed, Isa 14:21-23 all which was settled and fixed by the purpose of God, which could not be made void, Isa 14:24-27 and next follows a prophecy of the destruction of Palestine; the date of the prophecy is given Isa 14:28 the inhabitants of Palestine are bid not to rejoice at the death of one of the kings of Judah, since another should arise, who would be fatal to them, Isa 14:29 and while the Jews would be in safety, they would be destroyed by famine and war, Isa 14:30,31 from all which it would appear, and it might be told the messengers of the nations, or any inquiring persons, that Zion is of the Lord's founding, and under his care and protection, and that his people have great reason and encouragement to trust in him, Isa 14:32.