Isaiah 1:31

31 'The Big Man' will turn out to be dead bark and twigs, and his 'work,' the spark that starts the fire That exposes man and work both as nothing but cinders and smoke."

Isaiah 1:31 Meaning and Commentary

Isaiah 1:31

And the strong shall be as tow
(Nwoxh) , "that strong one", who is eminently so; the little horn, whose look is more stout than his fellows, ( Daniel 7:20 ) the beast who had great power and authority given by the dragon, ( Revelation 13:2 Revelation 13:4 Revelation 13:7 ) who shall be cast alive into the lake of fire; when he will be like tow in those devouring flames, easily, quickly, and irrecoverably consumed, ( Daniel 7:11 ) ( Revelation 19:20 ) and the maker of it as a spark,
or "his work"; so the Targum,

``and the work of their hands shall be as a spark of fire;''
or like the embers and ashes of a coal, which are blown away and lost at once: so antichrist, and all his evil works, as well as all his evil workers under him, will be entirely consumed: or, as it may be rendered, "he that wrought him": that is, Satan, for his coming is after the working of Satan; he has his seat, power, and authority, from the dragon, the old serpent, and the devil, and may be truly called a creature of his, ( 2 Thessalonians 2:9 ) and they shall both burn together;
both the pope and the devil in the lake of fire and brimstone, into which they will both be cast, ( Revelation 20:10 ) and none shall quench [them];
that fire will be unquenchable and everlasting; they will be tormented for ever and ever, and so will all the worshippers of the beast, ( Matthew 25:41 ) ( Mark 9:44 ) ( Revelation 14:11 ) ( 20:10 ) . The Chaldee paraphrase is,
``so the wicked shall be consumed, and their evil works, and there shall be no mercy upon them.''

Isaiah 1:31 In-Context

29 "Your dalliances in those oak grove shrines will leave you looking mighty foolish, All that fooling around in god and goddess gardens that you thought was the latest thing.
30 You'll end up like an oak tree with all its leaves falling off, Like an unwatered garden, withered and brown.
31 'The Big Man' will turn out to be dead bark and twigs, and his 'work,' the spark that starts the fire That exposes man and work both as nothing but cinders and smoke."
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.