We already know from our study of the kings that the Assyrian Empire caused the fall of the northern kingdom of Israel, carrying away most of its people captive rather than destroying all the people, so the Lord did preserve the majority of them although it was in foreign lands. And we know that the Assyrian soldiers made repeated attacks on the nation of Judah and attempted to lay siege to Jerusalem. But the Lord miraculously prevented this from happening. Time and time again Judah was plagued by the Assyrians but did not fall to them.
The Lord will judge Assyria for the cruelties she perpetrated against the citizens of Israel and Judah. In addition, the Lord will judge the Neo-Babylonian Empire (as we've been studying) for her cruelties against the people of Judah. The Lord is going to speak out against the Philistines as well, later on in our chapter, for the Philistines were ancient enemies of His people.
Let's begin today's text: "The Lord Almighty has sworn, 'Surely, as I have planned, so it will be, and as I have purposed, so it will happen. I will crush the Assyrian in My land; on My mountains I will trample him down. His yoke will be taken from My people, and his burden removed from their shoulders.'" (Isaiah 14:24-25)
I believe the verses above have two applications. The overall application is that the Lord intends to make an end of Assyria as an empire. The more immediate application is that He will take a stand against Assyria "in My land" and "on My mountains" which is a reference to the Assyrian army's attempt to cause the fall of Jerusalem. The Lord miraculously saved Jerusalem by striking down 185,000 Assyrian soldiers, who were encamped outside of Jerusalem, in the middle of the night, leaving them dead. This was an enormous setback for the king of Assyria who was obliged to retreat to his own land, where he planned to regroup and make a future attempt against Jerusalem. But just as the Lord already predicted in the book of Isaiah, the king would be struck down in his own land before he could make a further attempt; two of King Sennacherib's sons assassinated him while he prayed in the temple of his heathen gods.
We will conclude today's study with these final verses that regard Assyria in Chapter 14. "This is the plan determined for the whole world; this is the hand stretched out over all nations. For the Lord Almighty has purposed, and who can thwart Him? His hand is stretched out, and who can turn it back?" (Isaiah 14:26-27)
The Lord will judge every nation that has ever attacked, oppressed, or persecuted His people. In the Bible we find Him pronouncing judgment against the ancient enemies of His people but we also know that He has judged more modern nations and regimes that have attempted to wipe out the descendants of Jacob. He will continue to defend the Jewish people, keeping His promise to Abraham that: "I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you." (Genesis 12:3a)
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