Isaiah 15 & 16

The Burden Of Moab

Isaiah 15—The Burden against Moab

A. A night invasion against Moab [15:1a–4]

1. The burden against Moab (1a)

a. The founder of the people of Moab was the son born of the incestuous relationship between Lot and one of his daughters, when his daughters made Lot drunk, after the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19:30–38). The Moabites settled in the plains to the south-east of Israel, in what is modern-day Jordan.

b. At times, the Moabites were great enemies of Israel. It was the Balak, king of Moab, who hired Balaam the prophet, hoping that he could curse Israel (Numbers 22–25). It was Eglon, king of Moab, who oppressed Israel in the days of the Judges (Judges 3:12–30). During the time of Saul and David, Israel established a firm control over Moab, but later kings of Israel were not always able to keep them under Israeli dominance.

c. At the same time, there was a Moabite connection with Israel. First, they were related to Israel because Lot was Abraham’s nephew. Because of this, God told Israel in Deuteronomy 2:9 that they were not to destroy Moab and take their land. As well, David, Israel’s greatest king, was one-quarter Moabite. His paternal grandmother Ruth was from Moab, and David entrusted his father and mother to the protection of the king of Moab when he was a fugitive from Saul (1 Samuel 22:3–4). For these reasons, there is a great deal of sadness and empathy on Isaiah’s part as he describes the coming judgment on Moab.

2. The cities and soldiers of Moab fall under a night attack (1b–4)

a. Because in the night Ar of Moab is laid waste and destroyed … Kir of Moab … Heshbon and Elealeh: God announces coming judgment on Moab, against these cities.

i. “Most of these sites were originally part of Israel’s territory when Moses and Joshua defeated Sihon, King of the Amorites. All the cities north of the Arnon River … once belonged to the tribe of Reuben. Throughout the years, however, the Moabites had persistently pushed the Israelites out of these regions.” (Wolf)

b. He has gone up to the temple: The picture is of a Moabite man fleeing the destruction of his city, running to his temple and his pagan gods for protection and mourning (To the high places to weep).

c. They will clothe themselves with sackcloth … everyone will wail, weeping bitterly: At this invasion, and as a result of it, there will be great distress and mourning in Moab.

i. Jeremiah 48:1–13 also prophesies the judgment of Moab, and also gives the reason why. “Moab has been at ease from his youth; he has settled on his dregs, and has not been emptied from vessel to vessel, nor has he gone into captivity. Therefore his taste remained in him, and his scent has not changed. Therefore behold, the days are coming,” says the LORD, “That I shall send him wine-workers who will tip him over and empty his vessels and break the bottles.” When we are at ease, and are never “poured” from vessel to vessel, we “settle on the dregs” and are never refined. God uses the “pouring” process to refine us.

B. Refugees flee Moab [15:5–9]

1. The flight of the refugees from Moab (5–7)

a. His fugitives shall flee to Zoar: The connection is interesting, because Zoar was the city Lot and his daughters escaped from, hiding in the mountains, before Lot’s daughters committed incest with their father, and brought forth the child Moab, the father of the Moabites.

i. Bultema on Zoar: “This town is called an heifer of three years old, apparently to indicate that it had never been under the yoke of strangers.”

b. The green grass has withered away: The beautiful plains of Moab were wonderful grazing land. But now, under the hand of God’s judgment, the green grass has withered away.

c. Therefore the abundance they have gained … they will carry away to the Brook of the Willows: The picture is of fleeing refugees, carrying with them all their possessions.

2. The cry of the refugees from Moab (8–9)

a. The cry has gone all around the borders of Moab: Their pain in the midst of judgment is evident to all. Everyone around the borders of Moab sees God’s judgment against them.

b. Lions upon him who escapes from Moab: If the judgment of the night attack did not complete the work of judgment, God would send lions upon him who escapes. God will finish His work of judgment!

Isaiah 16—The Burden against Moab (continued)

A. Counsel to Moab [16:1–5]

1. Send the lamb … [1–2]

a. The idea behind send the lamb to the ruler of the land is that Moab should resume their bringing of tribute to Jerusalem, thereby submitting themselves to God again. This kind of tribute is described in 2 Kings 3:4–5, “And Mesha king of Moab was a sheepmaster, and rendered unto the king of Israel an hundred thousand lambs, and an hundred thousand rams, with the wool. But it came to pass, when Ahab was dead, that the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel.” where Mesha, King of Moab, who once paid tribute to Israel, stopped doing so when King Ahab of Israel died. Here, Isaiah counsels Moab to resume this payment of tribute.

b. Isaiah paints a powerful picture of the helpless, confused state of Moab under the hand of God’s judgment. They are like a wandering bird thrown out of the nest, confused, weak, and vulnerable. Their only recourse is to submit themselves to Jerusalem and its King again.

2. Isaiah’s word to Judah as she observes Moab under judgment (3)

a. Here, in the compassion of his prophecy, Isaiah pleads with the rulers of Judah to hide the outcasts of Moab. Again, his great sympathies are probably due to the connection between Moab and the royal house of David.

b. Do not betray him who escapes: Isaiah wanted Judah to be a place of refuge and protection for Moab under judgment. This is exactly what the church should be, when people are under the strong hand of the LORD in the world. We should be a place that will hide the outcasts and receive him who escapes, never to betray them.

3. A plea for refuge among Moab in the day of the righteous King (4–5)

a. Let My outcasts dwell with you, O Moab: This is a sudden and curious change of focus. In Isaiah 16:3, Judah was counseled to receive the outcasts of Moab. Now, Moab is asked to receive the outcasts of Judah. Bultema thinks that Isaiah 16:4–5 is an end-times prophecy of how Moab will be a place of refuge for Jews escaping the fury of the Antichrist after the abomination of desolation.

b. Israel, fleeing from the fury of the Antichrist, will find refuge in places like Moab (Revelation 12:6, 12:13–14). They will be protected from the face of the spoiler until devastation ceases and the oppressors are consumed out of the land.

c. In those end times, the throne of the Messiah will be established, and the Messiah Himself will sit on the throne: One will sit on it in truth, in the tabernacle of David. His reign will be wonderful, judging and seeking justice and hastening righteousness.

B. The pain of the prophet [16:6–14]

1. The pain in Moab at the judgment of God (6–8)

a. We have heard of the pride of Moab: Here is the only place where the sin of Moab is detailed. It is significant that Moab’s sin was pride, because they were a fairly small and insignificant nation. We can easily understand how the empires of Babylon or Assyria might fall through pride, but we may be slower to see pride in smaller things. But the small can be just as consumed with pride as the great!

i. “Like Assyria and Babylon, Moab was extremely proud. Isaiah piled term upon term to show that the nation’s relative insignificance did not make it immune to pride.” (Wolf)

b. This pride is also referred to in the prophecy of judgment found in Jeremiah 48:1–13. God would judge the proud nation, so that Moab shall wail for Moab. The Moabites took great pride in their vineyards, but God used the lords of the nations to break them down, and to destroy everything Moab took pride in.

i. “Even though Moab had been advised to seek help from Zion’s King, the seer foresaw at the same time the futility of this advice on account of Moab’s pride. Whenever pride is not broken by humility, it will have to be broken by justice.” (Bultema)

2. Isaiah’s sorrow of heart for Moab (9–12)

a. I will bewail the vine of Sibmah … I will drench you with my tears: As Isaiah prophesied of the judgment coming upon Moab, he wasn’t happy. He was not pleased that judgment was coming upon a rival nation. As far as he was concerned, Gladness is taken away, and joy from the plentiful field. In fact, Isaiah would not even let others be happy at a time like this: I have made their shouting cease. He hurts so badly for Moab that he says, “my heart shall resound like a harp for Moab.”

b. At the same time, Isaiah knows that Moab is looking in the wrong places for answers: When it is seen that Moab is weary on the high place, that he will come to his sanctuary and pray; but he will not prevail. Isaiah knew the pain of seeing calamity come, and watching people turn to the wrong places in the midst of the destruction.

c. This was the same attitude Jesus had when He wept for Jerusalem: O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! See! Your house is left to you desolate; for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!” (Matthew 23:37–39) When Jesus saw the desolation to come upon the city that rejected Him, He did not rejoice. Jesus also knew that in the midst of their calamity, they would turn to themselves instead of the LORD.

3. Three years until judgment comes on Moab (13–14)

a. Within three years: Isaiah, speaking for the LORD, announces that judgment will come upon Moab in this time period. The judgment will humble Moab: The glory of Moab will be despised.

b. Since we don’t know the exact date of Isaiah’s prophecy, it is impossible to independently verify the accuracy of the within three years prediction. But in the phrasing this is the word of which the LORD has spoken concerning Moab since that time, we gather that most of Isaiah 15–16 was given at an earlier time, and the within three years aspect was added at the right time, at a later date.

i. “Apparently King Sargon of Assyria conducted a major operation against the Arabians in 715 B.C., and he may have devastated Moab en route to encountering those tribes.” (Wolf)

c. Why did God announce the time frame for His judgment? It was a warning to Moab and an invitation for their humble repentance (it wasn’t unthinkable that this prophecy would get to the Moabites somehow). It was a lesson for God’s people on how the LORD judges the proud. Finally, it assured God’s people that the LORD would deal with other, worse, nations as He also dealt with Israel.