Isaiah 21:9

9 And lo, this, the chariot of a man is coming, A couple of horsemen.' And he answereth and saith: `Fallen, fallen hath Babylon, And all the graven images of her gods He hath broken to the earth.

Isaiah 21:9 Meaning and Commentary

Isaiah 21:9

And, behold, here cometh a chariot of men
Or "of a man" ^F24; a chariot with a man in it, Cyrus or Darius: [with] a couple of horsemen;
the army of the Medes and Persians, with their two leaders or generals, as before; only now seen nearer the city, just entering into it; for so the word may be rendered, "goeth", or "is gone in a chariot": and he answered, and said;
either the watchman, upon seeing the chariot and horsemen go into the city; or one of the horsemen that went in; so the Syriac and Arabic versions; or rather the prophet, and the Lord by him: Babylon is fallen, is fallen:
which is repeated to show the certainty of it. The same words are used of the fall of mystical Babylon, ( Revelation 14:8 ) ( 18:2 ) . The Targum is,

``it is fallen, and also it shall be, that Babylon shall fall;''

that is, a second time, and hereafter: and so Jarchi and Kimchi interpret it of two falls, one by the Medes and Persians, and the other by the hand of heaven, or God himself: literal Babylon fell by the former; mystical Babylon will fall by the latter, even by the breath of Christ's mouth, and the brightness of his coming: and all the graven images of her gods he hath broken unto the
ground;
either Cyrus or Darius, who might do this, not from any detestation of them, but for the sake of the gold, and silver, and riches, that were about them; or rather the Lord by them, and so put an end to idolatry; as will be, when mystical Babylon is destroyed.

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FOOTNOTES:

F24 (vya bkr) "currus viri", Pagninus, Montanus.

Isaiah 21:9 In-Context

7 And he hath seen a chariot -- a couple of horsemen, The rider of an ass, the rider of a camel, And he hath given attention -- He hath increased attention!

8 And he crieth -- a lion, `On a watch-tower my lord, I am standing continually by day, And on my ward I am stationed whole nights.

9 And lo, this, the chariot of a man is coming, A couple of horsemen.' And he answereth and saith: `Fallen, fallen hath Babylon, And all the graven images of her gods He hath broken to the earth.

10 O my threshing, and the son of my floor, That which I heard from Jehovah of Hosts, God of Israel, I have declared to you!'

11 The burden of Dumah. Unto me is [one] calling from Seir `Watchman, what of the night? Watchman, what of the night?'