Isaiah 16 Study Notes
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16:6 In keeping with a major theme throughout the book of Isaiah, the heart of Moab’s sin is described as pride.
16:7 Raisin cakes were a delicacy mentioned in Sg 2:5 along with apples as providing sustenance for lovemaking, though it may not have been an aphrodisiac. Hosea 3:1 suggests that raisin cakes were associated with pagan rituals.
16:8-9 Moab was known for its wine production. Jazer was in the north on the border with Ammon, and Sibmah is of uncertain location. Jazer will weep for itself as God wept for Sibmah.
16:10 Because of the devastation, joy . . . singing, and wine will vanish from the land of Moab.
16:12 Moabite worship is ineffective. His sanctuary refers to the temple of Chemosh, who was no god and therefore could not respond to prayer.
16:13-14 The concluding comment about the Moabite pronouncement declares that it actually had been delivered at an earlier time, but from this moment Moab had only three more years. Presumably a hired worker would count the time until his work was over with great attention and precision. Most scholars associate this Moabite devastation with the Assyrian king Sargon’s campaign against the people of northwest Arabia in approximately 718 BC.