Isaiah 17:13

The nations shall rush like the rushing of many waters: but God shall rebuke them, and they shall flee far off, and shall be chased as the chaff of the mountains before the wind, and like a rolling thing before the whirlwind. (GOD) SHALL REBUKE THEM, AND THEY SHALL FLEE FAR OFF - rather, 'God rebuketh () them, and they flee-are chased;' the event is set before the eyes as actually present, not future. CHASED AS THE CHAFF OF THE MOUNTAINS. Threshing-floors in the East are in the open air, on elevated places, so as to catch the wind which separates the chaff from the wheat (; ). LIKE A ROLLING THING - anything that rolls; stubble....

13._The nations shall rush. _Although he appears to follow out that threatening, which he formerly uttered, yet he begins to comfort believers by repeating the same statement, as if we should say, “They who were unmindful of God must be punished for their wicked revolt, and must be, as it were, overwhelmed by a deluge; but the Lord will restrain this savage disposition of the enemies, for, when they have exercised their cruelty, he shall find a method of casting them out and driving them away.” This is a remarkable consolation, by which he intended to support the remnant of the godly. Nor does he speak of the Jews only, as is commonly supposed, for hitherto he has addressed his discourse to the ten tribes, and it is certain that there were still left in Israel some who actually feared God, and who would have despaired if they had not been upheld by some promise. By these metaphors he des...

12-14 The rage and force of the Assyrians resembled the mighty waters of the sea; but when the God of Israel should rebuke them, they would flee like chaff, or like a rolling thing, before the whirlwind. In the evening Jerusalem would be in trouble, because of the powerful invader, but before morning his army would be nearly cut off. Happy are those who remember God as their salvation, and rely on his power and grace. The trouble of the believers, and the prosperity of their enemies, will be equally short; while the joy of the former, and the destruction of those that hate and spoil them, shall last for ever....

GOD SHALL REBUKE THEM - The word ‘God’ is not here in the original, but is evidently to be supplied. The word ‘rebuke’ means that he would disarrange their plans, prevent their success, and defeat their purposes. It shows the great power of God, that he can thus by a “rebuke” - a word - arrest mighty nations, and discomfit thom when they are tumultuously hastening onward in the confidence of victory. This discomfiture refers, doubtless, to the overthrow of Sennacherib and his army by the pestilence (2 Kings 19:35; see the notes at Isaiah 37:36). AND THEY SHALL FLEE FAR OFF - The whole army of Sennacherib was not destroyed, but a part with himself returned to Assyria...

EXPOSITION ISAIAH 17:1 THE BURDEN OF DAMASCUS. The eye of the prophet travels northwards from Moab, and, passing over Ammon as an enemy of small account, rests once more upon Damascus, already threatened in Isaiah 7:1, and probably already partially punished. Damascus is seen once more in alliance with Ephraim (Isaiah 7:3), and the two are joined with a new power, Aroer (Isaiah 7:2), which possesses several "cities." Woe is denounced on all the three powers: desolation on Damascus and Aroer; on Damascus and Ephraim, the complete loss of the last sh

THE NATIONS SHALL RUSH LIKE THE RUSHING OF MANY WATERS,.... With great force and noise, and run over the whole land, as the Assyrian army did, until it came to Jerusalem, and there it stopped; see Isaiah 8:7: BUT [GOD] SHALL REBUKE THEM; as he did the waters of the Red Sea, Psalms 106:9 and as Christ rebuked the winds and sea, and made a calm, Matthew 8:26. The word "God" is not in the text, but rightly supplied; for as none but he can rebuke the mighty waters of the sea, so none but he could have destroyed such an army in the manner it was, and wrought such a salvation for his people. The phrase, is expressive both of his wrath and power. AND THEY SHALL FLEE AFAR OFF; from Jer

CHAPTER 17 The Burden of Damascus and Judgment upon Ephraim 1. _Damascus to be a ruinous heap (Isaiah 17:1)_ 2. _Judgment upon Ephraim (Isaiah 17:4)_ 3. _Woe to the enemies of Israel (Isaiah 17:12) _ Damascus was the ancient city of Syria, mentioned for the first time in Genesis 15:1. Syria and Ephraim had made common cause against the house of David. Tiglath-pileser, King of Assyria, executed the judgment upon Damascus and made of it a ruinous heap. But the judgment is also future. And the enemies of Israel, which trouble His people, will be troubled “in that day.” It is a solemn word with which this chapter

THE OVERTHROW OF ASSYRIA. A brief independent prophecy or oracle not connected with Isaiah 17:1, and probably not with Isaiah 18. Some assign it to the post-exilic period on account of the reference to the many nations, _i.e._ the hostile world gathering against Judah and dispersed by the intervention of God. It is also not impossible that so fine and vigorous a piece of Hebrew should be composed in the post-exilic period. But while this may be freely admitted, it amounts to nothing more than this, that if the passage stood quite alone it would not be unnatural to place it in the post-exilic period. There is, however, no reason for denying it to Isaiah, since the many nations may be adequately explained in the usual way, as the many nations subject to Assyria which had to send contingents to fight in her armies. The date is uncertain; it is most probably about 701. The nations rus

GOD. One. CHAFF. dried grass. A ROLLING THING. a _galgal._ See note on Psalms 83:13....

Isaiah 17:12-14. The sudden annihilation of the Assyrians These verses are regarded by some critics as the continuation of ch. Isaiah 17:1-11, by others as the introduction to ch. 18. Since the reference here is undoubtedly to the Assyrians, the first view has nothing to commend it, the transition being too sudden and abrupt. The second view, in spite of identity of subject and a certain similarity in form with ch. 18, is also improbable because of the well-marked conclusion in Isaiah 17:14 and the completeness of ch. 18 in itself. It is better, therefore, to treat the passage as a short independent oracle springing from the same historical situation as the following chapter....