When Isaiah is given the "dire vision" of the invasion and fall of Babylon, he feels what will be felt by the citizens of that nation. He says, "At this my body is racked with pain, pangs seize me, like those of a woman in labor; I am staggered by what I hear, I am bewildered by what I see." (Isaiah 21:3)
When we closed yesterday's study we talked about how it should break our hearts when unrepentant people pass out of this world. It should break our hearts to think about the judgment they will face. The thought of anyone leaving this world lost and having to face a holy God without the Redeemer to defend them should make us feel as Isaiah feels.
The citizens of idolatrous Babylon will tremble in terror when their enemy breaches the walls of the capital city and begins the attack, but this would not have happened to them if they had placed their trust in the one true God. They could have lived in peace as a sovereign nation, I am sure, if they had made Him the Lord of their lives, just as the people of Israel and Judah could have lived in peace if they had not turned to idolatry. The Lord makes it plain in the Scriptures that nations fall because they did not acknowledge Him---because they despised Him and because they persecuted those who loved Him.
Isaiah continues, "My heart falters, fear makes me tremble; the twilight I longed for has become a horror to me." (Isaiah 21:4) Armies in ancient times did not typically attack at night. In those days they lacked the equipment to be able to see what they were doing in the night. That is why the saying became popular: "We attack at dawn!" But even though it was not common to be attacked at night, this is exactly what will happen in Babylon when the army of the Medes and Persians breaches the city walls while King Belshazzar holds a drinking party. That very night King Belshazzar and many others lost their lives trying to defend their city.
Nighttime doesn't bring any reprieve for those who are lost without the Lord either. The most horror-filled nights of my life were the nights when I struggled with the knowledge that I was lost without the Lord. I spent a number of nights wide awake and almost trembling in fear during the summer of 1992. I could not sleep for fear that I might die before dawn, yet at the same time I was resisting submitting myself to the Lord.
While Belshazzar and his officials blaspheme the name of the Lord and drink their wine from the golden receptacles that King Nebuchadnezzar's soldiers looted from the Lord's temple at Jerusalem many years earlier, the enemy is creeping into the city. Rather than being alert and on guard, they are trying to numb themselves to this imminent threat. They should have been on their feet, armed and ready, which is why Isaiah says, "They set the tables, they spread the rugs, they eat, they drink! Get up, you officers, oil the shields!" (Isaiah 21:5)
When we arrive at the book of Daniel we will discuss in more detail how the enemy army was able to get into the city before the citizens even knew it. But for now we will close with a reminder that, as believers, we are to be on our feet, armed and ready at all times. We have an enemy and we are commanded to be on our guard against him. "Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." (1 Peter 5:8) We are not to live in fear of this roaring lion, for greater is He who is in us than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4), but if we are not alert and of sober mind we may suddenly realize that sin has crept into our lives and gained a foothold without us having noticed it. We are to be on guard, daily communing with the Lord and allowing Him to search our hearts to point out any areas in which we are spiritually weak, asking Him to strengthen us in those areas so our enemy doesn't catch us off guard and tempt us into sin.
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