Глава 14

“His time is near, it will come” (Is. 14:1), that is, it will come after the completion of two hundred years. For so many years passed from Ahaz until the return of the Jews from Babylon. “And his days shall not last,” will not continue beyond the appointed time; the definition of Babylon is certain. “Take this parable against the king of Babylon. The Lord broke the mighty man’s rod and the ruler’s reed.” ( Is. 14:4-5 ) “Take a parable” - this will turn into a proverb, it will reach posterity, and later grandchildren will repeat: “The Lord crushed the dominion of Babylon, and turned the fortress of its young men into nothing.” “Strike the tongue with the plague of rage, mercilessly.” He struck down nations out of sheer anger, without any motive. “All the earth rest their hope” (Is. 14:6), how soon the king of Babylon will fall and perish. “The whole earth will cry out with joy on the day of his overthrow. And the tree of Lebanon rejoiced in you, and the cedar of Lebanon" (Is. 14:7-8). This prophecy was fulfilled on the princes and kings of the earth, who trembled before the power of the Babylonians, and rejoiced when the king of Babylon was killed. But it was even more fulfilled among the righteous, who rejoiced at the overthrow of Satan accomplished on the Cross by Christ the Son of God. “All the kings of the pagans will come and say to you: you are captive, just as we are, and you are also brought into powerlessness” (Is. 14:10). “And your glory went down to hell, just as ours did: rottenness will be laid under you instead of carpets, and worms instead of silken garments” (Is. 14:11). “How he fell from heaven who said, I will set my throne above the stars of heaven” (Is. 14:12-13). The king of Babylon wept in the morning, on the day that dawned after the completion of seventy years, and on which the Jews received deliverance, and the kingdom of Babylon collapsed. “Now you will not ascend to heaven, but you will descend to hell into the depths of the abyss” (Is. 14:15). You, who dreamed of ascending above the stars, will be cast into the depths of the abyss. “Everyone who saw you will be surprised... and they will say: this man is an irritant of the earth, who carried away its inhabitants into captivity.” (Isa.14:16) “With his sword he shook the kings, laying the whole world empty and its cities in ruins. With the weapons of his troops he turned the entire land into a desert. And do not let the captives go” (Is. 14:17). In his anger he did not give freedom to his prisoners. For the king of Judah, Jehoiachin, who was captured by Nebuchadnezzar, was released from prison by Merodach after the death of Nebuchadnezzar. “You will be thrown out of the grave like a worthless bitch.” It is predicted that the king of Babylon will be killed, and his corpse will not be worthy of burial. “Above you is a covering of dead men cut with the sword” (Is. 14:19). Such dead people are covered with a pile of stones; so a pile of stones will be thrown over the king’s corpse. “You will not rejoice with them in the tomb,” that is, you will not be laid in the tomb like other kings. “You have destroyed the earth because of me,” because Babylon was punished for your wickedness. “You will not endure forever, O evil seed” (Is. 14:20). The evil seed of the king of Babylon will not inherit the kingdom. “Prepare your children to be killed” (Is. 14:21), because for the wickedness of the father and his seed the kingdom was taken away. “Vision on the Philistines. Do not rejoice, all you foreigners, for you will be crushed by the smiting rod.” Do not rejoice that with the death of Ahaz the yoke of slavery laid upon us by Ahaz was broken. “From the seed of the serpent will come forth the fiends of the asps,” that is, from the seed of Ahaz, whom the prophet likens to the serpent, will come Hezekiah, likened by the prophet to the asp and the winged serpent. “And their offspring shall come forth, flying serpents” (Is. 14:29). The Jews will enjoy peace, and the Philistines during the entire reign of Hezekiah will not harm the Jews, who were harmed by many nations under Ahaz. “And the firstborn of the poor shall be fed,” that is, the Jews, who in the time of Ahaz, Hezekiah’s predecessor, were greatly oppressed by various nations. “And he will consume your seed with famine” (Is. 14:30), he will consume with famine that will befall you during the invasion of your enemies. “There is smoke coming from the north.” Sennacherib is represented here under the image of smoke. “And those who are not shall remain” (Is. 14:31). No one will escape captivity, no one will escape capture. “And what answer does the messenger of the nations give?” What will Hezekiah answer to the messenger of the nations sent to him? “For the Lord is the foundation of Zion, and by this his humble people will be saved” (Is. 14:32). You might be interested in: