the Week of Christ the King / Proper 29 / Ordinary 34
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English Standard Version
Isaiah 21:1
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This is a message about the "desert by the sea": It is coming like a storm blowing through the Negev. It is coming in from the desert, from a frightening nation.
This message came to me concerning Babylon—the desert by the sea: Disaster is roaring down on you from the desert, like a whirlwind sweeping in from the Negev.
The burden of the wilderness of the sea. As whirlwinds in the South sweep through, it comes from the wilderness, from a terrible land.
This is a message about the Desert by the Sea: Disaster is coming from the desert like wind blowing in the south. It is coming from a terrible country.
Here is a message about the Desert by the Sea: Like strong winds blowing in the south, one invades from the desert, from a land that is feared.
The burden of the desert of the sea. As whirlwinds in the south pass through; [so] it cometh from the desert, from a terrible land.
The burden of the wilderness of the sea. As whirlwinds in the South sweep through, it comes from the wilderness, from an awesome land.
The [mournful, inspired] oracle (a burden to be carried) concerning the Desert of the Sea (the seasonally flooded plains just south of Babylon): As windstorms in the Negev (the South) sweep through, So it (God's judgment) comes from the desert, from [the hostile armies of] a terrifying land.
The birthun of the forsakun see. As whirlewyndis comen fro the southwest, it cometh fro desert, fro the orible lond.
The burden of the wilderness of the sea. As whirlwinds in the South sweep through, it cometh from the wilderness, from a terrible land.
This is an oracle concerning the Desert by the Sea: Like whirlwinds sweeping through the Negev, an invader comes from the desert, from a land of terror.
This is a message about a desert beside the sea: Enemies from a hostile nation attack like a whirlwind from the Southern Desert.
The burden of the wilderness of the sea. As whirlwinds in the South sweep through, it cometh from the wilderness, from a terrible land.
The word about the waste land. As storm-winds in the South go rushing through, it comes from the waste land, from the land greatly to be feared.
A prophecy about the coastal desert: Like whirlwinds sweeping over the Negev, it comes from the desert, from a fearsome land.
The burden of the desert of the sea. As whirlwinds in the south pass through, so it cometh from the desert, from a terrible land.
The burden of the wilderness of the sea. As whirlwinds in the South sweeping on, it cometh from the wilderness, from a dreadful land.
The burden of the desert of the sea. As whirlewinds in the South passe thorough; so it commeth from the desert, from a terrible land.
The special word about the place by the sea where no people live: As wind-storms in the Negev go rushing through, it comes from the desert, from a bad land.
The oracle concerning the wilderness of the sea. As whirlwinds in the Negeb sweep on, it comes from the desert, from a terrible land.
The burden of the desert Sea. As the whirlewindes in the South vse to passe from the wildernesse, so shall it come from the horrible land.
THE prophecy concerning the desert of the sea. As a whirlwind from the south, sweeping through from the wilderness; so it comes from a far off land.
The oracle on the desert of the sea: As storm-winds in the South which with a rush from the desert, do come from a terrible land,
The burden of the desert of the sea. As whirlwinds come from the south, it cometh from the desert from a terrible land.
The oracle concerning the wilderness of the sea. As whirlwinds in the Negeb sweep on, it comes from the desert, from a terrible land.
The burthen of the waste sea. Euen as the stormie weather passeth through at the noone day from the wildernesse, so shall it come from the terrible lande.
THE VISION OF THE DESERT.
This is a message about Babylonia. Like a whirlwind sweeping across the desert, disaster will come from a terrifying land.
A pronouncement concerning the desert by the sea:
The burden of the wilderness of the sea. As whirlwinds in the South sweep through, it comes from the wilderness, from an awesome land.
The burden of the desert of the sea. As whirlwinds in the south pass through; so it cometh from the desert, from a terrible land.
The oracle of the wilderness of the sea: As storm winds passing over in the Negev, it comes from the desert, from a frightful land.
The burden of the desert of the sea: As tempests in the Negeb pass, it comes from the desert from a terrifying land.
The burden of the wilderness of the sea. `Like hurricanes in the south for passing through, From the wilderness it hath come, From a fearful land.
This is the heuy burthe of the waist see: A greuous visio was shewed vnto me, like as when a storme of wynde and rayne russheth in from the wyldernesse, that terrible londe.
A Message concerning the desert at the sea: As tempests drive through the Negev Desert, coming out of the desert, that terror-filled place, A hard vision is given me: The betrayer betrayed, the plunderer plundered. Attack, Elam! Lay siege, Media! Persians, attack! Attack, Babylon! I'll put an end to all the moaning and groaning. Because of this news I'm doubled up in pain, writhing in pain like a woman having a baby, Baffled by what I hear, undone by what I see. Absolutely stunned, horror-stricken, I had hoped for a relaxed evening, but it has turned into a nightmare.
The pronouncement concerning the wilderness of the sea: As windstorms in the Negev come in turns, It comes from the wilderness, from a terrifying land.
The burden against the Wilderness of the Sea. As whirlwinds in the South pass through, So it comes from the desert, from a terrible land.
The oracle concerning the wilderness of the sea. As windstorms in the Negev sweep on, It comes from the wilderness, from a terrifying land.
The oracle concerning the wilderness of the sea.As whirlwinds in the Negev sweep on,It comes from the wilderness, from a fearsome land.
Contextual Overview
Bible Verse Review
from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge
The burden: The first ten verses of this chapter contain a prediction of the taking of Babylon by the Medes and Persians; which is here denominated "the desert of the sea," because the country around it, and especially towards the sea, was a great morass, often overflowed by the Tigris and Euphrates, and only rendered habitable by being drained by a number of canals. Isaiah 13:1, Isaiah 17:1
the desert: Isaiah 13:20-22, Isaiah 14:23, Jeremiah 51:42
As whirlwinds: Job 37:9, Daniel 11:40, Zechariah 9:14
from: Isaiah 13:4, Isaiah 13:5, Isaiah 13:17, Isaiah 13:18, Ezekiel 30:11, Ezekiel 31:12
Reciprocal: Psalms 79:6 - upon Psalms 137:8 - who art Isaiah 14:6 - is persecuted Jeremiah 23:19 - General Jeremiah 25:12 - that I Jeremiah 50:1 - against Babylon Ezekiel 1:4 - a whirlwind Ezekiel 38:9 - shalt ascend Daniel 5:26 - God Nahum 1:1 - burden Zechariah 7:14 - scattered
Cross-References
I will bless her, and moreover, I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she shall become nations; kings of peoples shall come from her."
God said, "No, but Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his offspring after him.
But I will establish my covenant with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to you at this time next year."
The Lord said, "I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife shall have a son." And Sarah was listening at the tent door behind him.
Is anything too hard for the Lord ? At the appointed time I will return to you, about this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son."
And God heard the voice of the boy, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, "What troubles you, Hagar? Fear not, for God has heard the voice of the boy where he is.
And God was with the boy, and he grew up. He lived in the wilderness and became an expert with the bow.
And Joseph said to his brothers, "I am about to die, but God will visit you and bring you up out of this land to the land that he swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob."
Go and gather the elders of Israel together and say to them, ‘The Lord , the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying, "I have observed you and what has been done to you in Egypt,
And the people believed; and when they heard that the Lord had visited the people of Israel and that he had seen their affliction, they bowed their heads and worshiped.
Gill's Notes on the Bible
The burden of the desert of the sea,.... That this is a prophecy of the destruction of Babylon is clear from the express mention both of the Medes and Persians, by whom it should be, and of Babylon itself, and its fall, Isaiah 21:2 which, though prophesied of before, is here repeated, partly for the certainty of it, and partly for the comfort of the people of the Jews, who would be captives in it, and so break off and prevent their confidence in a nation that would be ruined; and perhaps this prophecy might be delivered out about the time or on account of Merodach king of Babylon sending letters and a present to Hezekiah, who showed to his messengers all his treasures. Babylon is here called "the desert of the sea", not because it was a desert land, for it was a very fruitful one; or because it would be laid desolate, and become as a wilderness; but either because there was one between that and the countries of Media and Persia, as Kimchi, from whence its destroyers would come; or rather, because it was, as the word may be rendered, a "plain", for so the land of Chaldea was, and the city of Babylon particularly was built in a plain, Genesis 11:2 and because this country abounded with pools and lakes, which with the Hebrews are called seas; and especially since the city of Babylon was situated by the river Euphrates, which ran about it, and through it and which therefore is said to dwell upon many waters, Jeremiah 51:13 hence it has this name of the desert of the sea; besides, Abydenus l, from Megasthenes, informs us, that all the places about Babylon were from the beginning water, and were called a sea; and it should be observed that mystical Babylon is represented by a woman in a desert, sitting on many waters, which are interpreted of a multitude of people and nations, Revelation 17:1 and some here by "sea" understand the multitude of its riches, power, and people. The Targum is,
"the burden of the armies, which come from the wilderness, as the waters of the sea;''
understanding it not of Babylon, but of its enemies and invaders, as follows:
as whirlwinds in the south pass through; and nothing can hinder them, such is their force and power; they bear all before them, come suddenly, blow strongly, and there is no resisting them; see Zechariah 9:14:
[so] it cometh from the desert; or "he", that is, Cyrus; or "it", the army under him, would come with like irresistible force and power as the southern whirlwinds do, which come from a desert country; at least that part of it in which their soldiers were trained up, and which in their march to Babylon must come through the desert, that lay, as before observed, between that and their country, and through which Cyrus did pass m:
from a terrible land; a land of serpents and scorpions, as Jarchi; or a land afar off, as Kimchi and Ben Melech; whose power and usage, or customs, were not known, and so dreaded, as the Medes and Persians were by Nitocris queen of Babylon, who took care to preserve her people, and prevent their falling into their hands. The Targum is,
"from a land in which terrible things are done.''
l Apud Euseb. Prepar. Evangel. l. 9. c. 41. m Xenophon. Cyropaedia, l. 5. c. 5, 6.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
The burden - (see the note at Isaiah 13:1).
Of the desert - There have been almost as many interpretations of this expression, as there have been interpreters. That it means Babylon, or the country about Babylon, there can be no doubt; but the question why this phrase was applied, has given rise to a great diversity of opinions. The term ‘desert’ (מדבר midbâr) is usually applied to a wilderness, or to a comparatively barren and uncultivated country - a place for flocks and herds (Psalms 65:13; Jeremiah 9:9 ff); to an actual waste, sandy desert Isaiah 32:15; Isaiah 35:1; and particularly to the deserts of Arabia Genesis 14:6; Genesis 16:7; Deuteronomy 11:24. It may here be applied to Babylon either historically, as having been “once” an unreclaimed desert: or by “anticipation,” as descriptive of what it “would be” after it should be destroyed by Cyrus, or possibly both these ideas may have been combined. That it was “once” a desert before it was reclaimed by Semiramis is the testimony of all history; that it is “now” a vast waste is the united testimony of all travelers. There is every reason to think that a large part of the country about Babylon was formerly overflowed with water “before” it was reclaimed by dykes; and as it was naturally a waste, when the artificial dykes and dams should be removed, it would again be a desert.
Of the sea - (ים yâm). There has been also much difference of opinion in regard to this word. But there can be no doubt that it refers to the Euphrates, and to the extensive region of marsh that was covered by its waters. The name ‘sea’ (ים yâm) is not unfrequently given to a large river, to the Nile, and to the Euphrates (see the note at Isaiah 11:15; compare Isaiah 19:5). Herodotus (i. 184), says, that ‘Semiramis confined the Euphrates within its channel by raisin great dams against it; for before, it overflowed the whole country like a sea.’ And Abydenus, in Eusebius, (“Prepara. Evang.,” ix. 457) says, respecting the building of Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar, that ‘it is reported that all this was covered with water, and was called a sea - λέγεται δὲ πάντα μεν ἐξ ἀρχῆς ὕδωρ εἶναι, θαλασσων καλουμένην legetai de panta men ech archēs hudōr einai, thalassōn kaloumenēn (Compare Strabo, “Geog.” xvi. 9, 10; and Arrianus, “De Expedit. Alexandri,” vii. 21). Cyrus removed these dykes, reopened the canals, and the waters were suffered to remain, and again converted the whole country into a vast marsh (see the notes at Isaiah 13:0; Isaiah 14:0)
As whirlwinds - That is, the army comes with the rapidity of a whirlwind. In Isaiah 8:8 (compare Habakkuk 1:11), an army is compared to an overflowing and rapid river.
In the south - Whirlwinds or tempests are often in the Scriptures represented as coming from the south, Zechariah 9:14; Job 37:9 :
Out of the south cometh the whirlwind,
And cold out of the north.
So Virgil:
- creberque procellis
Africus -
AEneid, i. 85.
The deserts of Arabia were situated to the south of Babylon, and the south winds are described as the winds of the desert. Those winds are represented as being so violent as to tear away the tents occupied by a caravan (Pietro della Valle, “Travels,” vol. iv. pp. 183, 191). In Job 1:19, the whirlwind is represented as coming ‘from the wilderness; that is, from the “desert” of Arabia (compare Jeremiah 13:24; Hosea 13:15).
So it cometh from the desert - (see Isaiah 13:4, and the note on that place). God is there represented as collecting the army for the destruction of Babylon ‘on the mountains,’ and by mountains are probably denoted the same as is here denoted by the desert. The country of the “Medes” is doubtless intended, which, in the view of civilized and refined Babylon, was an uncultivated region, or a vast waste or wilderness.
From a terrible land - A country rough and uncultivated, abounding in forests or wastes.
Clarke's Notes on the Bible
CHAPTER XXI
Prediction of the taking of Babylon by the Medes and Persians
at the time of a great festival, 1-9.
Short application of the prophecy to the Jews, partly in the
person of God, and partly in his own, 10.
Obscure prophecy respecting Dumah, 11, 12.
Prophecy concerning the Arabians to be fulfilled in a very
short time after its delivery, 13-17.
The first ten verses of this chapter contain a prediction of the taking of Babylon by the Medes and Persians. It is a passage singular in its kind for its brevity and force, for the variety and rapidity of the movements, and for the strength and energy of colouring with which the action and event are painted. It opens with the prophet's seeing at a distance the dreadful storm that is gathering and ready to burst upon Babylon. The event is intimated in general terms, and God's orders are issued to the Persians and Medes to set forth upon the expedition which he has given them in charge. Upon this the prophet enters into the midst of the action; and in the person of Babylon expresses, in the strongest terms, the astonishment and horror that seizes her on the sudden surprise of the city at the very season dedicated to pleasure and festivity, Isaiah 21:3-4. Then, in his own person, describes the situation of things there, the security of the Babylonians, and in the midst of their feasting the sudden alarm of war, Isaiah 21:5. The event is then declared in a very singular manner. God orders the prophet to set a watchman to look out, and to report what he sees; he sees two companies marching onward, representing by their appearance the two nations that were to execute God's orders, who declare that Babylon is fallen, Isaiah 21:6-9.
But what is this to the prophet, and to the Jews, the object of his ministry? The application, the end, and design of the prophecy are admirably given in a short, expressive address to the Jews, partly in the person of God, partly in that of the prophet: "O my threshing - " "O my people, whom for your punishment I shall make subject to the Babylonians, to try and to prove you, and to separate the chaff from the corn, the bad from the good, among you; hear this for your consolation: your punishment, your slavery, and oppression will have an end in the destruction of your oppressors." - L.
NOTES ON CHAP. XXI
Verse Isaiah 21:1. The desert of the sea — This plainly means Babylon, which is the subject of the prophecy. The country about Babylon, and especially below it towards the sea, was a great flat morass, overflowed by the Euphrates and Tigris. It became habitable by being drained by the many canals that were made in it.
Herodotus, lib. i. 184, says that "Semiramis confined the Euphrates within its channel by raising great dams against it; for before it overflowed the whole country like a sea." And Abydenus, (quoting Megasthenes, apud Euseb. Praep. Evang. IX. 41,) speaking of the building of Babylon by Nebuchadonosor, says, "it is reported that all this part was covered with water, and was called the sea; and that Belus drew off the waters, conveying them into proper receptacles, and surrounded Babylon with a wall." When the Euphrates was turned out of its channel by Cyrus, it was suffered still to drown the neighbouring country; and, the Persian government, which did not favour the place, taking no care to remedy this inconvenience, it became in time a great barren morassy desert, which event the title of the prophecy may perhaps intimate. Such it was originally; such it became after the taking of the city by Cyrus; and such it continues to this day.
As whirlwinds in the south - "Like the southern tempests"] The most vehement storms to which Judea was subject came from the desert country to the south of it. "Out of the south cometh the whirlwind," Job 37:9. "And there came a great wind from the wilderness, and smote the four corners of the house," Job 1:19. For the situation of Idumea, the country (as I suppose) of Job, see Lamentations 4:21 compared with Job 1:1, was the same in this respect with that of Judea: -
"And JEHOVAH shall appear over them,
And his arrow shall go forth as the lightning;
And the Lord JEHOVAH shall sound the trumpet;
And shall march in the whirlwinds of the south."
Zechariah 9:14.
