Isaiah 34:9

9 Its streams shall be turned into pitch, And its dust into brimstone; Its land shall become burning pitch.

Isaiah 34:9 Meaning and Commentary

Isaiah 34:9

And the streams thereof shall be turned into pitch
The Septuagint render it, "the valleys"; the word signifying both rivers and valleys, most render it rivers or streams. The Targum is express,

``the rivers of Rome shall be turned into pitch;''

by which may be meant the maritime places belonging to the Romish jurisdiction, the same on which the third vial will be poured, by which the rivers and fountains of waters will become blood; and which refers to this very time, when blood shall be given to the whore of Rome to drink, ( Revelation 16:4-6 ) . The allusion, in this and some following clauses, is to the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah; see ( Jeremiah 49:17 Jeremiah 49:18 ) :

and the dust thereof into brimstone;
and so easily take fire:

and the land thereof shall become burning pitch:
plainly pointing to the destruction of Rome by fire, ( Revelation 17:16 ) ( 18:8 ) .

Isaiah 34:9 In-Context

7 The wild oxen shall come down with them, And the young bulls with the mighty bulls; Their land shall be soaked with blood, And their dust saturated with fatness."

8 For it is the day of the Lord's vengeance, The year of recompense for the cause of Zion.

9 Its streams shall be turned into pitch, And its dust into brimstone; Its land shall become burning pitch.

10 It shall not be quenched night or day; Its smoke shall ascend forever. From generation to generation it shall lie waste; No one shall pass through it forever and ever.

11 But the pelican and the porcupine shall possess it, Also the owl and the raven shall dwell in it. And He shall stretch out over it The line of confusion and the stones of emptiness.