Verse-by-Verse Bible Commentary
Isaiah 18:3

Clarke's Commentary

Verse Isaiah 18:3. When he lifteth up an ensign - "When the standard is lifted up"] I take God to be the Agent in this verse; and that by the standard and the trumpet are meant the meteors, the thunder, the lightning, the storm, earthquake, and tempest, by which Sennacherib's army shall be destroyed, or by which at least the destruction of it shall be accompanied; as it is described in Isaiah 10:16-17; Isaiah 29:6, and Isaiah 30:30-31. See also Psalms 76:1-12, and the title of it, according to the Septuagint, Vulgate and AEthiopic. They are called, by a bold metaphor, the standard lifted up, and the trumpet sounded. The latter is used by Homer, I think with great force, in his introduction to the battle of the gods; though I find it has disgusted some of the minor critics: -

Βραχε δ' ευρεια χθων,

Αμφι δε σαλπιγζεν μεγας ουρανος.

Il. xxi. 388.

"Heaven in loud thunders bids the trumpet sound,

And wide beneath them groans the rending ground."

POPE.

Bridgeway Bible Commentary

Alliance with Ethiopia refused (18:1-7)

Along the upper reaches of the Nile River was the country known as Ethiopia (RSV), Sudan (GNB) or Cush (NIV). It was a land of tall smooth-skinned people, but also a land plagued by swarms of buzzing insects. From this country a group of government representatives came to visit Judah, travelling down the Nile and across to Jerusalem. They apparently hoped to gain Hezekiah’s cooperation in an attack against Assyria. Isaiah sends them back as he had done the Philistine representatives earlier (18:1-2; cf. 14:28-32).
Judah’s need is to trust in God, not in foreign alliances. Even if the Assyrian army reaches the mountains of Judah and signals for the final attack on Jerusalem, the Judeans must keep trusting in God. God has been quietly watching the Assyrians’ advance and at the right time he will cut them down, as a farmer cuts down the ripened grain. Birds will feed on the corpses of the dead soldiers (3-6). A group of Ethiopian representatives will then come to Jerusalem again, this time to thank God for his defeat of the Assyrians (7).

Coffman's Commentaries on the Bible

"Ah, the land of the rustling wings, which is beyond the rivers of Ethiopia; that sendeth ambassadors by the sea, even in vessels of papyrus upon the waters, saying (this word is italicized in the ASV, indicating that it is not in the text) Go ye, swift messengers, to a nation tall and smooth, to a people terrible from their beginning onward, a nation that meteth out and treadeth down, whose land the rivers divide. All ye inhabitants of the world, and ye dwellers on the earth, when an ensign is lifted up on the mountains, see ye; and when the trumpet is blown, hear ye."

Here is an excellent analysis of what is described in these verses:

"About 725 B.C. Piankhi, the Ethiopian king of Egypt sent ambassadors to the king of Judah, Hezekiah; we can be certain that their purpose was to involve Judah in a coalition against the Assyrians. Isaiah warned Hezekiah against any such folly by providing God's answer to the ambassadors."The New Layman's Bible Commentary, p. 784.

It is also sure that such a coalition with Ethiopia would have been very attractive to one like Hezekiah. Note that the message beginning with the word "Go" is the message of Isaiah, not a message from the ambassadors. The erroneous injection of the interpolated "saying" into this passage is confusing and should be ignored. The terse message of these three verses to the ambassadors is, "Do not be anxious, just go home and watch and see what is going to happen." (Paraphrased).J. R. Dummelow's Commentary, p. 428.

"The restling of wings… the rivers of Ethiopia" "describe Ethiopia with special reference to the swarms of flies and the rivers, which are the Blue and White Nile."Peake's Commentary Series, p. 449. The mention of the ambassadors coming "by sea" primarily refers to the Nile, which is called "sea" in Nahum 3:8, and in Isaiah 19:5.

Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible

All ye inhabitants of the world - These are to be regarded as the words of the prophet summoning all nations to attend to that which was about to occur. Grotius, however, and some others, suppose that they are the words of the Ethiopians. The meaning is, that the events which are here predicted would be of so public a nature as to attract the attention of all the world.

When he - Vitringa supposes that this means the Assyrians lifting up a standard on the mountains of Judea. But the better interpretation is that which refers it to the people of Nubia, mustering their forces for war. ‘All nations behold when that people collects an army; sounds the trumpet for war; and arrays its military forces for battle. See then the judgments that God will inflict on them - their discomfiture Isaiah 18:4-7, and their turning to Yahweh, and sending an offering to him Isaiah 18:7.’ According to this interpretation, it will refer to the people making preparation for battle; and perhaps it may mean that they were preparing to join the enemies of Judea - “not improbably preparing to join the forces of Sennacherib, and to invade Judea.” For this purpose it may have been that the messengers were sent to negotiate the terms of alliance with Sennacherib; and the object of the prophecy is, to assure the Jews that this people, as well as Sennacherib, would be discomfited, and that they would yet bring an offering to God Isaiah 18:7.

Lifteth up an ensign - A military standard (see the note at Isaiah 5:26).

And when he bloweth a trumpet - Also a signal for an army to assemble (see the note at Isaiah 13:2).

Calvin's Commentary on the Bible

3.All ye inhabitants of the world. He shews that this work of God will be so manifestly excellent as to draw the attention not only of the Jews but of all nations.

When he shall lift up an ensign on the mountains, you will see it. ⁽¹⁷⁾ These words, which are in the future tense, are rendered by some, agreeably to the custom of Scripture, in the imperative mood; ⁽¹⁸⁾ but it is better to view them as denoting what is future. It is as if he had said that the most distant nations will be witnesses of this destruction, because not only will the ensign be beheld by all, but the sound of the trumpets will be heard throughout the whole world. This will plainly shew that the war did not originate with men, but with God himself, who will prove himself to be the author of it by remarkable tokens. When wars are carried on, every one sees clearly what is done; but the greater part of men ascribe the beginning and end of them to chance. On the other hand, Isaiah shews that all these things ought to be ascribed to God, because he will display his power in a new and extraordinary manner; for sometimes he works so as to conceal his hand and to prevent his work from being perceived by men, but sometimes he displays his hand in such a manner that all are constrained to acknowledge it; and that is what the Prophet meant.

(17) Bogus footnote

(18) Bogus footnote

Smith's Bible Commentary

Chapter 18

Now in chapter 18, there are those that see the United States in chapter 18, but it is rather far-fetched and I am sorry that my mind can't stretch that far. I cannot see the United States in chapter 18.

Woe to the land shadowing with wings ( Isaiah 18:1 ),

And they point out that on the top of the American flag there's an eagle with wings. So "shadowing with wings."

which is beyond the rivers of Ethiopia ( Isaiah 18:1 ):

And, of course, we are beyond the rivers of Ethiopia.

That sendeth ambassadors by the sea, in vessels ( Isaiah 18:2 )

And, of course, the only way our ambassadors could travel to the other lands prior to the aircraft and so forth were by boats. But it does say, "vessels of bulrushes," and I don't know of any ambassador that ever went out in a reed boat made of bulrushes.

Now as I say, people can see and I can't, but people do see the United States in it. What it is basically dealing with is Ethiopia itself, which was making... , which had sent ambassadors to Jerusalem to the king to make a confederacy with them against Assyria. In other words, Assyria was conquering and these Ethiopian ambassadors, big, tall dark skinned, handsome men, were there trying to get Judah to join with them in a confederacy to withstand this invasion from Assyria. And Isaiah was counseling against the confederacy. Not to make a covenant with them, for God was going to watch over them and take care of them and don't get involved in a treaty, mutual defense pact with these Ethiopians. So, "Woe to the land."

God is pronouncing the woe that is going to come upon Ethiopia that sends the ambassadors by the sea. They came in these boats down the Nile River from Ethiopia and the boats of bulrushes were light so that when they get to the rapids and all, they could carry them and then put them in. And they came from Ethiopia in these boats of bulrushes to Israel or to Judah, the Southern Kingdom and sought then to make this covenant.

saying, Go, ye swift messengers, to a nation that is scattered and peeled, to a people that is awesome from their beginning hitherto; a nation that is meted out and trodden down, whose land the rivers have cut through! All ye inhabitants of the world, and dwellers on the earth, see ye, when he lifteth up an ensign on the mountains; and when he bloweth a trumpet, hear ye. For so the LORD said unto me, I will take my rest, and I will consider in my dwelling place like a clear heat upon herbs, and like a cloud of dew in the heat of harvest. For before the harvest, when the bud is perfect, and the sour grape is ripening in the flower, he shall both cut off the sprigs with pruning hooks, and take away and cut down the branches ( Isaiah 18:2-5 ).

So Isaiah is saying we don't need to make the covenant with these people. God is going to take care of them. He's going to cut them down before they're able to really fully develop. And so here is the prediction of Assyria's destruction by God.

They shall be left together unto the fowls of the mountains, and to the beasts of the earth: and the fowls shall summer upon them, and all the beasts of the earth shall winter upon them ( Isaiah 18:6 ).

In other words, the vultures will eat the carcasses during the summertime but there are so many, by the time winter is come, even the animals the coyotes and all will be eating the bones of them even through the wintertime.

In that time shall the present be brought unto the LORD of hosts of a people scattered and peeled, and from a people awesome from their beginning hitherto; a nation meted out and trodden under foot, whose land the rivers have cut through, the place of the name of the LORD of hosts, mount Zion ( Isaiah 18:7 ).

So the prediction of Assyria's destruction by the hand of God and no need to join hands with the Ethiopians in a mutual defense pact because God is our defense and God will take care of us. "

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

The land that lies beyond the rivers of Cush was Cush (Nubia), notable for its ships, whose sails looked like the whirring wings of insects over water from a distance. Another view of the whirling wings is that they represent swarming hordes of people, including soldiers. [Note: Young, 1:474-75.] Cush was at the end of the earth in Isaiah’s day and therefore symbolized the ends of the earth; it was a great distance from Judah. Some scholars believe Cush lay within what is now Ethiopia, but others think Cush included modern southern Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea, and northern Ethiopia. [Note: See J. Daniel Hays, "The Cushites: A Black Nation in the Bible," Bibliotheca Sacra 153:612 (October-December 1996):396-409.] Envoys from Cush may have traveled to Moab, Philistia, and Judah seeking an alliance against Assyria. [Note: Oswalt, p. 360.]

Isaiah called on these messengers from Ethiopia to go to a nation tall and smooth (shaven). This was a common description of the Nubians (or Cushites). They were to go to a people feared far and wide, perhaps the Egyptians or the Assyrians. They were to go to a powerful and oppressive nation whose land was divided by rivers, again perhaps the Egyptians, the Assyrians, or even the Medes. Taken together these descriptions represent all great, aggressive nations.

All the recipients of this message, the "inhabitants of the world and dwellers on earth" (Isaiah 18:3), were to hear that a sovereign (the Lord) would issue a call to battle. No one could miss that call when it came.

Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible

All ye inhabitants of the world, and dwellers on the earth,.... All the men of the world are here called upon, either by the Lord, or rather by the prophet, to be eye and ear witnesses of the judgment that should be inflicted upon the above nation, and of the salvation of his own people; which should be so manifest, that all should see it as easily as an ensign set up on a mountain; and the news of it should ring through the earth, and be as plainly heard as when a trumpet is blown: unless it should be thought that these are the words of the messengers sent to the above nation, addressing them in such terms, assuring them, that, however stupid and secure they were now, they should quickly see the sign and hear the alarm of war; it being usual to call any large kingdom the world, and the earth:

see ye, when be lifteth up an ensign on the mountains; or ye shall see this as clearly as when a flag is set up on a mountain; or ye shall be sensible of this judgment coming on, when a standard shall be set up on the mountains, to gather the people to war. Vitringa interprets this of the mountains of Judea, where the Assyrians would set up their banners, and blow their trumpets, as follows:

and when he bloweth a trumpet, hear ye; or, "ye shall hear"; the trumpet sounding as an alarm of war, by which the people will be summoned, and come to execute the judgment threatened. The Targum is,

"ye shall hear the redemption;''

that is, of Israel, in the times of the Messiah, and in the war of Gog and Magog; of which times Jarchi and Kimchi interpret this whole prophecy.

Henry's Complete Commentary on the Bible

      1 Woe to the land shadowing with wings, which is beyond the rivers of Ethiopia:   2 That sendeth ambassadors by the sea, even in vessels of bulrushes upon the waters, saying, Go, ye swift messengers, to a nation scattered and peeled, to a people terrible from their beginning hitherto; a nation meted out and trodden down, whose land the rivers have spoiled!   3 All ye inhabitants of the world, and dwellers on the earth, see ye, when he lifteth up an ensign on the mountains; and when he bloweth a trumpet, hear ye.   4 For so the LORD said unto me, I will take my rest, and I will consider in my dwelling place like a clear heat upon herbs, and like a cloud of dew in the heat of harvest.   5 For afore the harvest, when the bud is perfect, and the sour grape is ripening in the flower, he shall both cut off the sprigs with pruning hooks, and take away and cut down the branches.   6 They shall be left together unto the fowls of the mountains, and to the beasts of the earth: and the fowls shall summer upon them, and all the beasts of the earth shall winter upon them.   7 In that time shall the present be brought unto the LORD of hosts of a people scattered and peeled, and from a people terrible from their beginning hitherto; a nation meted out and trodden under foot, whose land the rivers have spoiled, to the place of the name of the LORD of hosts, the mount Zion.

      Interpreters are very much at a loss where to find this land that lies beyond the rivers of Cush. Some take it to be Egypt, a maritime country, and full of rivers, and which courted Israel to depend upon them, but proved broken reeds; but against this it is strongly objected that the next chapter is distinguished from this by the title of the burden of Egypt. Others take it to be Ethiopia, and read it, which lies near, or about, the rivers of Ethiopia, not that in Africa, which lay south of Egypt, but that which we call Arabia, which lay east of Canaan, which Tirhakah was now king of. He thought to protect the Jews, as it were, under the shadow of his wings, by giving a powerful diversion to the king of Assyria, when he made a descent upon his country, at the time that he was attacking Jerusalem, 2 Kings 19:9. But though by his ambassadors he bade defiance to the king of Assyria, and encouraged the Jews to depend upon him, God by the prophet slights him, and will not go forth with him; he may take his own course, but God will take another course to protect Jerusalem, while he suffers the attempt of Tirhakah to miscarry and his Arabian army to be ruined; for the Assyrian army shall become a present or sacrifice to the Lord of hosts, and to the place of his name, by the hand of an angel, not by the hand of Tirhakah king of Ethiopia, Isaiah 18:7; Isaiah 18:7. This is a very probable exposition of this chapter. But from a hint of Dr. Lightfoot's, in his Harmony of the Old Testament, I incline to understand this chapter as a prophecy against Assyria, and so a continuation of the prophecy in the Isaiah 17:12-14 of the foregoing chapter, with which therefore this should be joined. That was against the army of the Assyrians which rushed in upon Judah; this is against the land of Assyria itself, which lay beyond the rivers of Arabia, that is, the rivers Euphrates and Tigris, which bordered on Arabia Deserta. And in calling it the land shadowing with wings he seems to refer to what he himself had said of it (Isaiah 8:8; Isaiah 8:8), that the stretching out of his wings shall fill the breadth of thy land, O Immanuel! The prophet might perhaps describe the Assyrians by such dark expressions, not naming them, for the same reason that St. Paul, in his prophecy, speaks of the Roman empire by a periphrasis: He who now letteth,2 Thessalonians 2:7. Here is,

      I. The attempt made by this land (whatever it is) upon a nation scattered and peeled,Isaiah 18:2; Isaiah 18:2. Swift messengers are sent by water to proclaim war against them, as a nation marked by Providence, and meted out, to be trodden under foot. Whether this refer to the Ethiopians waging war with the Assyrians, or the Assyrians with Judah, it teaches us, 1. That a people which have been terrible from their beginning, have made a figure and borne a mighty sway, may yet become scattered and peeled, and may be spoiled even by their own rivers, that should enrich both the husbandman and the merchant. Nations which have been formidable, and have kept all in awe about them, may by a concurrence of accidents become despicable and an easy prey to their insulting neighbours. 2. Princes and states that are ambitious of enlarging their territories will always have some pretence or other to quarrel with those whose countries they have a mind to. "It is a nation that has been terrible, and therefore we must be revenged on it; it is now a nation scattered and peeled, meted out and trodden down, and therefore it will be an easy prey for us." Perhaps it was not brought so low as they represented it. God's people are trampled on as a nation scattered and peeled; but whoever think to swallow them up may find them still as terrible as they have been from their beginning; they are cast down, but not deserted, not destroyed.

      II. The alarm sounded to the nations about, by which they are summoned to take notice of what God is about to do, Isaiah 18:3; Isaiah 18:3. The Ethiopians and Assyrians have their counsels and designs, which they have laid deep, and promise themselves much from, and, in prosecution of them, send their ambassadors and messengers from place to place; but let us now enquire what the great God says to all this. 1. He lifts up an ensign upon the mountains, and blows a trumpet, by which he proclaims war against the enemies of his church, and calls in all her friends and well-wishers into her service, Isaiah 18:3; Isaiah 18:3. He gives notice that he is about to do some great work, as Lord of hosts. 2. All the world is bidden to take notice of it; all the dwellers on earth must see the ensign and hear the trumpet, must observe the motions of the divine providence and attend the directions of the divine will. Let all enlist under God's banner, and be on his side, and hearken to the trumpet of his word, which gives not an uncertain sound.

      III. The assurance God gives to his prophet, by him to be given to his people, that, though he might seem for a time to sit by as an unconcerned spectator, yet he would certainly and seasonably appear for the comfort of his people and the confusion of his and their enemies (Isaiah 18:4; Isaiah 18:4): So the Lord said unto me. Men will have their saying, but God also will have his; and, as we may be sure his word shall stand, so he often whispers it in the ears of his servants the prophets. When he says, I will take my rest, it is not as if he were weary of governing the world, of as if he either needed or desired to retire from it and repose himself; but it intimates that the great God has a perfect, undisturbed, enjoyment of himself, in the midst of all the agitations and changes of this world (the Lord sits even upon the floods unshaken; the Eternal Mind is always easy), and, though he may sometimes seem to his people as if he took not wonted notice of what is done in this lower world (they are tempted to think he is as one asleep, or as one astonished,Psalms 44:23; Jeremiah 14:9), yet even then he knows very well what men are doing and what he himself will do.

      1. He will take care of his people, and be a shelter to them. He will regard his dwelling-place; his eye and his heart are, and shall be, upon it for good continually. Zion is his rest for ever, where he will dwell; and he will look after it (so some read it); he will lift up the light of his countenance upon it, will consider over it what is to be done, and will be sure to do all for the best. He will adapt the comforts and refreshments he provides for his people to the exigencies of their case; and they will therefore be acceptable, because seasonable. (1.) Like a clear heat after rain (so the margin), which is very reviving and pleasant, and makes the herbs to flourish. (2.) Like a dew and a cloud in the heat of harvest, which are very welcome, the dew to the ground and the cloud to the labourers. Note, There is that in God which is a shelter and refreshment to his people in all weathers and arms them against the inconveniences of every change. Is the weather cool? There is that in his favour which will warm them. Is it hot? There is that in his favour which will cool them. Great men have their winter-house and their summer-house (Amos 3:15); but those that are at home with God have both in him.

      2. He will reckon with his and their enemies, Isaiah 18:5; Isaiah 18:6. When the Assyrian army promises itself a plentiful harvest in the taking of Jerusalem and the plundering of that rich city, when the bud of that project is perfect, before the harvest is gathered in, while the sour grape of their enmity to Hezekiah and his people is ripening in the flower and the design is just ready to be put in execution, God shall destroy that army as easily as the husbandman cuts off the sprigs of the vine with pruning hooks, or because the grape is sour and good for nothing, and will not be cured, takes away and cuts down the branches. This seems to point at the overthrow of the Assyrian army by a destroying angel, when the dead bodies of the soldiers were scattered like the branches and sprigs of a wild vine, which the husbandman has cut to pieces. And they shall be left to the fowls of the mountains, and the beasts of the earth, to prey upon, both winter and summer; for as God's people are protected all seasons of the year, both in cold and heat (Isaiah 18:4; Isaiah 18:4), so their enemies are at all seasons exposed; birds and beasts of prey shall both summer and winter upon them, till they are quite ruined.

      IV. The tribute of praise which should be brought to God from all this (Isaiah 18:7; Isaiah 18:7): In that time, when this shall be accomplished, shall the present be brought unto the Lord of hosts. 1. Some understand this of the conversion of the Ethiopians to the faith of Christ in the latter days, of which we have the specimen and beginning in Philip's baptizing the Ethiopian eunuch, Acts 8:27, c. Those that were a people scattered and peeled, meted out, and trodden down (Isaiah 18:2; Isaiah 18:2), shall be a present to the Lord: and, though they seem useless and worthless, they shall be an acceptable present to him who judges of men by the sincerity of their faith and love, not by the pomp and prosperity of their outward condition. Therefore the gospel was ministered to the Gentiles that the offering up of the Gentiles might be acceptable,Romans 15:16. It is prophesied (Psalms 68:31) that Ethiopia shall soon stretch out her hands unto God. 2. Others understand it of the spoil of Sennacherib's army, out of which, as usual, presents were brought to the Lord of hosts,Numbers 31:50. It was the present of a people scattered and peeled. (1.) It was won from the Assyrians, who were now themselves reduced to such a condition as they scornfully described Judah to be in, Isaiah 18:1; Isaiah 18:1. Those that unjustly trample upon others shall themselves be justly trampled upon. (2.) It was offered by the people of God, who were, in disdain, called a people scattered and peeled. God will put honour upon his people, though men put contempt upon them. Lastly, Observe, The present that is brought to the Lord of hosts must be brought to the place of the name of the Lord of hosts; what is offered to God must be offered in the way that he has appointed; we must be sure to attend him, and expect him to meet us, where he records his name.