Isaiah 33

The LORD Will Judge Assyria

1 How terrible it will be for you, you who destroy others! Assyria, you haven't been destroyed yet. How terrible for you, you who turn against others! Others haven't turned against you yet. When you stop destroying, you will be destroyed. When you stop turning against others, others will turn against you.

2 Lord, show us your favor. We long for you to help us. Make us strong every morning. Save us when we're in trouble.

3 When the nations hear you thunder, they run away. When you rise up against them, they scatter.

4 Nations, what you have taken in battle is destroyed. It's as if young locusts had eaten it up. Like large numbers of locusts, people rush to get it.

5 The LORD is honored. He lives in heaven. He will fill Zion's people with what is fair and right.

6 He will be the firm foundation for their entire lives. He will give them all of the wisdom, knowledge and saving power they will ever need. Respect for the LORD is the key to that treasure.

7 Look! Judah's brave men cry out loud in the streets. The messengers who were sent to bring peace sob bitter tears.

8 The wide roads are deserted. No one travels on them. Our peace treaty with Assyria is broken. Those who witnessed it are looked down on. No one is respected.

9 The land is filled with sadness and wastes away. Lebanon is full of shame and dries up. The rich land of Sharon is like the Arabah Desert. The trees of Bashan and Carmel drop their leaves.

10 "Now I will take action," says the Lord. "Now I will be honored. Now I will be respected.

11 Assyria, your plans and actions are like straw. Your anger is a fire that will destroy you.

12 The nations will be burned to ashes. They will be like bushes that are cut down and set on fire.

13 "You nations far away, listen to what I have done! My people who are near, recognize how powerful I am!

14 The sinners in Zion are terrified. They tremble with fear. They say, 'Who of us can live through the LORD's destroying fire? Who of us can live through the fire that burns forever?'

15 A person must do what is right. He must be honest and tell the truth. He must not get rich by cheating others. His hands must not receive money from those who want special favors. He must not let his ears listen to plans to commit murder. He must close his eyes to even thinking about doing what is evil.

16 A person like that will be kept safe. It will be as if he were living on high mountains. It will be as if he were living in a mountain fort. He will have all of the food he needs. And he will never run out of water."

17 People of Judah, you will see the king in all of his glory and majesty. You will view his kingdom spreading far and wide.

18 You will think about what used to terrify you. You will say to yourself, "Where is that chief officer of Assyria? Where is the one who forced us to send gifts to his king? Where is the officer in charge of the towers that were used when we were attacked?"

19 You won't see those proud people anymore. They spoke a strange language. None of us could understand it.

20 Just look at Zion! It's the city where we celebrate our regular feasts. Turn your eyes toward Jerusalem. It will be a peaceful place to live in. It will be like a tent that will never be moved. Its stakes will never be pulled up. None of its ropes will be broken.

21 There the LORD will be our Mighty One. It will be like a place of wide rivers and streams. No boat with oars will travel on them. No mighty ship will sail on them.

22 That's because the LORD is our judge. The LORD gives us our law. The LORD is our king. He will save us.

23 The ropes on your ship hang loose. The mast isn't very secure. The sail isn't spread out. But the LORD will strike the Assyrians down. Then a large amount of goods will be taken from them and divided up. Even people who are disabled will carry off what was taken.

24 No one living in Zion will ever say again, "I'm sick." And the sins of those who live there will be forgiven.

Isaiah 33 Commentary

Chapter 33

God's judgments against the enemies of his church. (1-14) The happiness of his people. (15-24)

Verses 1-14 Here we have the proud and false destroyer justly reckoned with for all his fraud and violence. The righteous God often pays sinners in their own coin. Those who by faith humbly wait for God, shall find him gracious to them; as the day, so let the strength be. If God leaves us to ourselves any morning, we are undone; we must every morning commit ourselves to him, and go forth in his strength to do the work of the day. When God arises, his enemies are scattered. True wisdom and knowledge lead to strength of salvation, which renders us stedfast in the ways of God; and true piety is the only treasure which can never be plundered or spent. The distress Jerusalem was brought into, is described. God's time to appear for his people, is, when all other helpers fail. Let all who hear what God has done, acknowledge that he can do every thing. Sinners in Zion will have much to answer for, above other sinners. And those that rebel against the commands of the word, cannot take its comforts in time of need. His wrath will burn those everlastingly who make themselves fuel for it. It is a fire that shall never be quenched, nor ever go out of itself; it is the wrath of an ever-living God preying on the conscience of a never-dying soul.

Verses 15-24 The true believer watches against all occasions of sin. The Divine power will keep him safe, and his faith in that power will keep him easy. He shall want nothing needful for him. Every blessing of salvation is freely bestowed on all that ask with humble, believing prayer; and the believer is safe in time and for ever. Those that walk uprightly shall not only have bread given, and their water sure, but they shall, by faith, see the King of kings in his beauty, the beauty of holiness. The remembrance of the terror they were in, shall add to the pleasure of their deliverance. It is desirable to be quiet in our own houses, but much more so to be quiet in God's house; and in every age Christ will have a seed to serve him. Jerusalem had no large river running by it, but the presence and power of God make up all wants. We have all in God, all we need, or can desire. By faith we take Christ for our Prince and Saviour; he reigns over his redeemed people. All that refuse to have Him to reign over them, make shipwreck of their souls. Sickness is taken away in mercy, when the fruit of it is the taking away of sin. If iniquity be taken away, we have little reason to complain of outward affliction. This last verse leads our thoughts, not only to the most glorious state of the gospel church on earth, but to heaven, where no sickness or trouble can enter. He that blotteth out our transgressions, will heal our souls.

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO ISAIAH 33

This chapter contains an account of God's judgments upon the enemies of his people, and of the peaceable, comfortable, and happy state of the church in the latter day. The judgment denounced, Isa 33:1 a prayer of the church for safety and protection, which it promises itself from what God had heretofore done, Isa 33:2,3 an answer to it, declaring the spoil of the enemy, and the happy times the people of God should enjoy through his appearance for them, Isa 33:4-6 though previous thereunto there would be very distressing ones, Isa 33:7-9 when the Lord resolves to arise and exert his power in the destruction of the people, who should be burnt up like stubble, thorns, and lime, Isa 33:10-12 persons far and near are called upon to take notice of this, Isa 33:13 which would issue in a different manner, in the surprise and terror of hypocrites, and in the safety and plenty of provisions for good men, who are described, Isa 33:14-16 and then follow promises to them, of seeing the King in his beauty, and beholding a distant country of reflecting on past terror with pleasure, being freed from it, and in no danger of a foreign enemy, Isa 33:17-19 and the chapter is concluded with a famous prophecy of the peace, prosperity, and safety of the church, and of the healthfulness of its inhabitants, under the protection of Christ, its King and Lawgiver, its enemies being also an easy prey to it, Isa 33:20-24.