The Book Of Isaiah. Day 43, Judgment Against Assyria, Part Two

In Part One of our segment from Chapter 10, the Lord announced His intention to punish Assyria after He is finished using that nation to conquer the northern kingdom of Israel and after He is finished using that nation to discipline the southern kingdom of Judah. He continues with the same theme as we look at Part Two today.

Isaiah prophesies: "When the Lord has finished all His work against Mount Zion and Jerusalem, He will say, 'I will punish the king of Assyria for the willful pride of his heart and the haughty look in his eyes. For he says: 'By the strength of my hand I have done this, and by my wisdom, because I have understanding. I removed the boundaries of nations, I plundered their treasures; like a mighty one I subdued their kings. As one reaches into a nest, so my hand reached for the wealth of the nations; as people gather abandoned eggs, so I gathered all the countries; not one flapped a wing, or opened its mouth to chirp.'" (Isaiah 10:12-14)

Several kings reigned over the Assyrian Empire during its zenith of power but the prevailing attitude of the kings was: "By my own power I have conquered nations. They were easy pickings for me. They behaved like scared chickens who didn't make a peep when I reached into their nests and took all they had. There is no limit to what I can achieve! I have conquered Damascus, the capital of Aram. I have conquered Samaria, the capital of Israel. I will conquer many others, such as Jerusalem the capital of Judah. I will rule over the world!"

The idolatrous leaders of Assyria lacked the spiritual discernment to understand that their nation was merely an instrument of discipline in the Lord's hand. The only reason they could conquer any pagan nations was because the Lord was punishing those nations for idolatry. The only reason they were able to conquer Israel was because of Israel's unfaithfulness to the Lord. They could only do what it was within the Lord's will for them to do. He will allow them to make repeated incursions upon Judah and to come right up to the gates of Jerusalem but He will not let Jerusalem fall to them. During Isaiah's lifetime there was a temporary revival in Jerusalem and in Judah; the Lord is granting those people a reprieve. They will drift from the Lord again and the Lord will allow them to be conquered, but not by the Assyrian Empire.

The Assyrian king keeps boasting of himself, not realizing that he couldn't even take the next breath if the Lord didn't let him. No one should boast in himself or herself, for the Bible says, "Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord." (2 Corinthians 10:17, Jeremiah 9:24) The king was given an opportunity to acknowledge and serve the Lord, which would have perhaps led to most of the people of Assyria turning to the Lord, but instead he gave himself all the glory. The Lord reminds him that he is but an implement in His hand: "Does the ax raise itself above the person who swings it, or the saw boast against the one who uses it? As if a rod were to wield the person who lifts it up, or a club brandish the one who is not wood!" (Isaiah 10:15)

The Lord concludes this passage with a prophecy that comes true later in our study of the Old Testament. "Therefore the Lord, the Lord Almighty, will send a wasting disease upon his sturdy warriors; under his pomp a fire will be kindled like a blazing flame. The light of Israel will become a fire, their Holy One a flame; in a single day it will burn and consume his thorns and his briers. The splendor of his forests and fertile fields it will completely destroy, as when a sick person wastes away. And the remaining trees of his forest will be so few that a child could write them down." (Isaiah 10:16-19)