Isaiah 18:6

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. THEY SHALL BE LEFT TOGETHER UNTO THE FOWLS ... AND ... BEASTS - transition from the image, "sprigs," "branches," to the thing meant. THE FOWLS SHALL SUMMER UPON THEM, AND ALL THE BEASTS ... WINTER UPON THEM - the Assyrian soldiers and leaders shall be the prey of birds and beasts the whole year through, "winter" and "summer," so numerous shall be their carcasses. Horsley translates the Hebrew, which is singular, 'upon it' not "upon them:" the 'it' refers to God's "dwelling place" () in the Holy Land, which Antichrist ('the bird of prey' with the "beasts," his rebel hosts) is to possess himself of, and where he is to perish. But...

6._They shall be left together. _(23) He means that they will be cast aside as a thing of no value, as John the Baptist also compares them to chaff, which is thrown on the dunghill. (Matthew 3:12; Luke 3:17.) Thus Isaiah shews that they will be exposed to the wild beasts and to the fowls, so that the fowls will nestle in them in summer, and the wild beasts will make their lairs in them in winter; as if he had said, that not only men, but the wild beasts themselves will disdain them. Such therefore is the end of wicked men, who, situated in a lofty place, and thinking that they are beyond all danger, despise every one but themselves. The fowls and the beasts of prey will make use of them for nests and for food. They will be thrown down, I say, not only beneath all men, but even beneath the be

THEY SHALL BE LEFT TOGETHER - The figure here is dropped, and the literal narration is resumed. The sense is, that the army shall be slain and left unburied. Perhaps the “branches and twigs” in the previous verse denoted military leaders, and the captains of the armies, which are now represented as becoming food for beasts of the field and for birds of prey. TO THE FOWLS OF THE MOUNTAINS - Their dead bodies shall be unburied, and shall be a prey to the birds that prey upon flesh. AND TO THE BEASTS OF THE EARTH - The wild animals: the beasts of the forest. AND THE FOWLS SHALL SUMMER UPON THEM - Shall pass the summer, that is, they shall continue to be unburied. “And the beasts of the earth shall winter upon them.” They shall be unburied through the winter; probably indicating that they would furnish food for the fowls

EXPOSITION ISAIAH 18:1 THE HOMAGE OF ETHIOPIA TO JEHOVAH. Amid the general excitement caused by the advance of Assyria, Ethiopia also is stirred, and stirred to its furthest limits. The king sends messengers in beats upon the canals and rivers to summon his troops to his standard (Isaiah 18:1, Isaiah 18:2). The earth stands agaze to see the result of the approaching collision (Isaiah 18:3); but God rests calmly in heaven while events are ripening ...

THEY SHALL BE LEFT, TOGETHER UNTO THE FOWLS OF THE MOUNTAINS, AND TO THE BEASTS OF THE EARTH,.... That is, both sprigs and branches; with the fruit of them, which being unripe, are disregarded by men, but fed upon by birds and beasts; the fruits by the former, and the tender sprigs and green branches by the latter; signifying the destruction of the Ethiopians or Egyptians, and that the princes and the people should fall together, and lie unburied, and become a prey to birds and beasts; or the destruction of the Assyrian army slain by the angel, as Aben Ezra and others; though some interpret it of the army of Gog and Magog, as before observed; see Ezekiel 39:17: AND THE FOWLS SHALL SUMMER UPON THEM, AND ALL THE BEASTS OF THE EARTH SHALL WINTER UPON THEM; not that the one should feed upon them in the summer time, and the other in the winter; the fowls in the summer time,

CHAPTER 18 When Israel Will be Brought Back 1. _The land beyond the rivers of Ethiopia (Isaiah 18:1)_ 2. _The ambassadors sent (Isaiah 18:2)_ 3. _The trumpet blown and Jehovah's Message (Isaiah 18:3)_ 4. _Israel restored to Mount Zion (Isaiah 18:7)_ An interesting prophecy concerning a nation of great power, which will be used in the bringing back of God's ancient people....

ISAIAH 18. ISAIAH DISCOURAGES THE SCHEMES OF ETHIOPIA. This chapter is probably connected with the policy of the Egyptian alliance so frequently denounced by Isaiah in 29- 31. Here the negotiations seem to be in the initial stage, and the courteous language of Isaiah agrees best with the view that at present he did not regard the alliance as within the range of practical politics. The land of Ethiopia is described, with special reference to the swarms of flies. Its rivers are the Blue and White Nile. Ambassadors have been sent to Jerusalem, apparently to induce the Jews to throw off the Assyrian yoke and assure them of support. They have come down the Nile, here called the sea (Isaiah 19:5 *), in light boats of papyrus (Exodus 2:3). These were very swift, and could be carried along the bank where the river was not na

LEFT. See note on "forsaken" (Isaiah 1:4). FOWLS. BEASTS. Note the Alternation....

The purpose of Jehovah, as disclosed to Isaiah by special revelation. The opening words point back to a definite time when this illumination came to him, whether in a moment of ecstasy or not it is impossible to say....

FOR SO THE LORD SAID, &C.— We have here the divine judgment to be inflicted upon the Assyrian in its due time. The passage is obscure and difficult. The _first_ part of it sets forth, figuratively, Jehovah as it were expecting and in his counsel considering the proper time for the execution of this judgment, while he had determined in himself to refresh the pious among his people with some proofs of his favour. The _second_ part describes the judgment itself. The former part is contained in these words, _For so the_ _Lord said unto me;_ that is to say, revealed this thing unto me from his secret purposes; _I will take my rest, and I will consider in my dwelling-place;_ that is to say, "While the Assyrian is forming his designs for the destruction of my people, I will seem to rest, and to have a regard for their preservation; and I will _behold and consider_ in the heavens, what time most...