Isaiah 47:14

Behold, they shall be as stubble; the fire shall burn them; they shall not deliver themselves from the power of the flame: there shall not be a coal to warm at, nor fire to sit before it. THEY SHALL BE AS STUBBLE; THE FIRE SHALL BURN THEM - (; .) (THERE SHALL) NOT (BE) A COAL TO WARM AT. Like stubble, they shall burn to a dead ash, without leaving a live coal or cinder (cf. ), so utterly shall they be destroyed....

14._Behold, they shall be as stubble. _With still greater eagerness he attacks those astrologers who strengthened the pride of Babylon by their empty boasting; for impostors of this sort are wont to take away all fear of God out of the hearts of men, by ascribing everything to the stars, so that nothing is left to the providence of God. Hence arises contempt of God and of all his threatenings; for punishments are not ascribed to the judgment of God, but to some fate and relation of things which they foolishly imagine. For this reason he kindles into such indignation against the Babylonians, and says that they shall be buming “stubble,” which is quickly consumed; for he does not compare them to wood, which is of some use for giving heat, but to “stubble,” in order to shew that nothing is so light or useless....

7-15 Let us beware of acting and speaking as Babylon did; of trusting in tyranny and oppression; of boasting as to our abilities, relying on ourselves, and ascribing success to our own prudence and wisdom; lest we partake of her plagues. Those in the height of prosperity, are apt to fancy themselves out of the reach of adversity. It is also common for sinners to think they shall be safe, because they think to be secret in wicked ways. But their security shall be their ruin. Let us draw from such passages as the foregoing, those lessons of humility and trust in God which they convey. If we believe the word of God, we may know how it will be with the righteous and the wicked to all eternity. We may learn how to escape the wrath to come, to glorify God, to have peace through life, hope in death, and everlasting happiness. Let us then stand aloof from all delusions....

BEHOLD, THEY SHALL BE AS STUBBLE - They shall be no more able to resist the judgments which are coming upon the city, than dry stubble can resist the action of the fire. A similar figure is used in Isaiah 1:31 (see the notes at that verse). Compare also Isaiah 29:6; Isaiah 30:30, where fire is a symbol of the devouring judgments of God. THEY SHALL NOT DELIVER THEMSELVES - Margin, as Hebrew, ‘Their souls.’ The meaning is, that they would be unable to protect themselves from the calamities which would come upon them and the city. THERE SHALL NOT BE A COAL TO WARM AT - The meaning is, that they would be entirely con

EXPOSITION ISAIAH 47:1 A SONG OF TRIUMPH OVER THE FALL OF BABYLON. The song divides itself into four strophes, or stanzas—the first one of four verses (Isaiah 47:1); the second of three (Isaiah 47:5); the third of four (Isaiah 47:8); and the fourth also of four (Isaiah 47:12). The speaker is either Jehovah (see...

BEHOLD, THEY SHALL BE AS STUBBLE, THE FIRE SHALL BURN THEM,.... That is, these astrologers and diviners shall be like stubble; weak as that, as the Targum; they shall be no more able to stand before the fire of divine wrath, or before the judgments of God, by the hands of the Medes and Persians, than stubble can stand before a consuming fire: THEY SHALL NOT DELIVER THEMSELVES FROM THE POWER OF THE FLAME; from those dreadful calamities that shall come upon them like flames of fire; and if they cannot deliver themselves by their art and skill, how should they deliver others? THERE SHALL NOT BE A COAL TO WARM, NOR FIRE TO SIT BEFORE IT; stubble, when burnt, leaves no coals to warm a man with; and though it gives a blaze for a short time, while burning, it is quickly out, and gives no light nor heat for a man to sit by, so that there is little or no profit by it; which signifies that there...

CHAPTER 47 A Description of the Fall of Babylon 1. _Babylon's degradation announced (Isaiah 47:1)_ 2. _Israel acknowledges the redeemer (Isaiah 47:4)_ 3. _Retribution for Babylon (Isaiah 47:5)_ 4. _The destruction swift and sure (Isaiah 47:8) _ In chapter 14 a similar description of Babylon and the fall of the king of Babylon is recorded. All has its meaning for the future....

A TAUNT-SONG OF TRIUMPH ON THE FALL OF BABYLON. Isaiah 47:1. Babylon, erroneously personified as a virgin, as if never before captured, is bidden descend from the effeminate ease of her throne to the menial task of grinding the hand-mill. The garments of a secluded princess she must lay aside, to wade through the fords. For Yahweh's vengeance is inexorable, and she who queened it over the kingdoms of the earth must go into the darkness of captivity. When Yahweh, angry with His people, suffered His land to be profaned by the invader, and His people to be taken captive to Babylon, she treated them with cruelty, thinking ever to maintain her proud position, unaware that this was Yahweh's doing and that He would control its issue. ISAIAH 47:8. But though she lives in voluptuous ease and, sere

THEMSELVES. their souls. Hebrew. _nephesh._...

BEHOLD, THEY SHALL BE AS STUBBLE— The judgment to be inflicted upon the professors and encouragers of the vain arts above mentioned is here elegantly and metaphorically described. The prophet says, that all those mentioned in the 13th verse, like stubble, should be set on fire by the divine wrath, and so wholly consumed, that nothing of them should remain which could be serviceable for any purpose whatever; for, as from wood and other fuel, when burned, there remain embers, before which a person may _warm himself,_ and glowing ashes before which one may _sit,_ to drive away the cold; these, on the contrary, should be consumed like stubble, so as to be wholly destroyed, and to leave nothing for any use or service. See Vitringa....