Today's text from the ESV Study Bible: Isaiah 13-17, & Isaiah 18-22.
From the ESV Study Bible:
"The prophet helps Judah to see the nations of the day as entirely subject to the sovereign rule of God. Five oracles reveal God ruling over Babylon and Assyria (13:1–14:27), Philistia (14:28–32), Moab (15:1–16:14), Damascus/Israel (17:1–18:7), and Egypt (19:1–20:6). The OT prophets have numerous oracles about other nations (see chart). These display the basic biblical conviction that as universal Creator, the God of Israel is not limited to Israel but holds all nations accountable for their deeds (cf. 13:11; Rom. 3:29–30)."The world had changed greatly from the time of Kings David & Solomon. For centuries, with a few exceptions here and there, God's chosen Israel has liven an apostate life. Over, and over, and over we have seen a pattern of apostasy followed by repentance.
This time, however, things will be different. Israel, and her 10 tribes, now ceases to exist, and Judah is not far behind.
Israel's history is replete with miraculous examples of God protecting his people, but in the 8th century B.C the king's had taken to withering from powerful nation's and paying them very expensive tributes rather than being slaughtered.
In our verses today, God, through the prophet Isaiah, is making it absolutely crystal clear that he is God of all of his creation. If fact, he will demonstrate this fact through many oracles foretelling of his bringing down, and bringing up the nations at his prerogative.
When we live in the world's only true superpower, it is quite easy to place our faith in our government and our nuclear bombs to keep us safe from evil doers.
And certainly God is the architect of our current state, but we must learn the lesson of the Scriptures and understand that God alone is our shield.
If we persist in our own arrogance, and continue the path that wealth so often brings, then perhaps we too someday will lose God's blessing and find ourselves enslaved by another nation.
I suspect that most on the street would think this thought pure lunacy. But one only needs to read history to see this pattern played out over, and over.
Are we so vain that we think we too are above God's righteous hand?
Yahweh is Lord of all.
