Глава 28

“Woe to the crown of pride of intoxicated Ephraim” (Is. 28:1). The prophet exposes the luxury and pride of the Ephraimites, because they did not luxuriate in anything alone, but, according to what is written, as if from a sloping valley, they strove for voluptuousness, and did not secretly indulge in unclean deeds, but openly and, as if wrapped in one crown, encouraged and encouraged each other to indecent feasts and drunkenness. And when, with such a shameful life, they were completely mired in sins, suddenly, when they were not expecting it, the Assyrians came and suppressed them. “A fallen flower, a dishonored crown, the power of its glory... on the head of the valley... fat” (Is. 28:4). Woe to the fallen flower, to the sons of Ephraim, who possessed the kingdom of Samaria and the city of Samaria, were rulers of the rich valleys, in vanity and luxury adorned themselves with crowns made of flowers and gold! The Lord will cause the magnificent crown to be dishonored, and the signs of their pride will turn into signs of reproach. “Behold, the power of the Lord is like mighty rain” (Is. 28:2). Their God is omnipotent, but they did not want to seek Him, receive salvation from Him and remain in covenant with Him. “The dishonored crown of Ephraim will be like the early fruit ... before the summer,” that is, the Ephraimites, the fallen flower, will be the same as the early fruit for the Assyrians. For when the Ephraimites do not If they have enough strength to resist the Assyrians, the enemies, as soon as they see this, will want to devour them (Is. 28:4). And even if they had enough strength, there would be no point in resisting, due to intoxication and satiety. “In that day the Lord of hosts will be a crown of strength for his people, that is, for the kingdom of Judah, and a gossip of glory, because He will be a fence for those who repel the battle from the gates,” that is, for Hezekiah and those who repel the battle from the gates, for Hezekiah and those close to him with their prayers repulsed the enemies from Jerusalem (Is. 28: 5-6). “These... were sacrificed with wine” (Is. 28:7). This means that in the kingdom of Hezekiah, not only the common people indulged in luxury and pride, but also the priests and prophets, no doubt false. “They are incontinent in their abundance of food, because all the meals are filled with those who vomit and regurgitate, and there is no more room there" (Is. 28:8). Just as the vomited vomit is disgusting to one who vomits, so the Jews who indulge in intemperance abhor the word of God. Therefore, the prophet adds: “Whom does he want to teach knowledge? milk, being cut off from the breast? (Isa.28:9), that is, there is no one in this people to teach him. Everyone is either infants who cannot understand, or adults who say they have no need to learn. “I will speak to this people in a confused word and in another tongue” (Is. 28:11). This means decisive punishment. And this remained a secret for the people, when the fear of God was for them the same as for one who spews out food; but in reality this was fulfilled when the Jews nailed God to the cross, and the apostles began to broadcast to the people in languages given to them from above. “We made a covenant... with death, - that is, with the king of Assyria, - with hell... addition, - that is, with Assyria, - even if the storm passes by, it will not come to us.” The Jews reasoned: “This scourge, that is, the invasion of the Assyrians, will strike the nations allied with us, but will not affect us.” “Before we put our hope in lies, we trust in the Assyrians” (Is. 28:15). “For this sake, I lay as the foundation of Zion a stone of great value, chosen, the cornerstone,” that is, a cornerstone kingdom, of great value, under the canopy of the altar, under the cherubim. Or the chosen stone is our Lord, Who is placed at the head of the corner in the Church of Zion, so that in Him both those above and those below may be united by peace. He is the top of the wall, because He is the King; and the foundation, because He holds up the whole world with His truth. “And he who believes in Him will not be afraid” (Is. 28:16). He who believes so, like Him, will not be ashamed. And this is a mystery, sealed in Hezekiah, but in reality fulfilled in our Lord, for He, born of the Virgin, is the chosen Stone. “And I will put judgment in measure” (Is. 28:17), that is, I will put righteous judgment into His hands to judge believers and unbelievers. This is similar to what was said: “and all judgment was given ... to the Son of God” (John 5:27). “And the refuge of lies will be destroyed with hail,” that is, the Assyrians, on whom the princes of Judah hoped, “and the refuge will be drowned ... by the waters,” that is, their hope will drown in the waters (Is. 28:17). “The covenant will be taken away from you with death” (Is. 28:18), that is, with the Assyrians, whom the prophet compares to death. “There will be confusion in the day and in the night” (Is. 28:19), that is, between day and night there will be both horror and salvation. “The blanket is short and cannot cover; the bed is narrow and it is impossible to lie on it” (Is. 28:20). By this the prophet makes it clear that the extermination of the Assyrians is close and will not be slow to take place. “As the Lord will rise on Mount Tarasin... as in the wilds of Gibeon” (Is. 28:21, 1 Samuel 14:11), that is, just as the kings were defeated in Gibeon, so the Assyrians will be defeated, but the defeat will not be the same. “He will do His works, and His works are extraordinary” (Is. 28:21), because The punishments He inflicts on the wicked are varied. “He sows black corn... or... wheat... and barley and millet" (Is. 28:25). Just as a farmer sows not before cultivating the land, so the judgment is carried out in order, and the decisions are carried out one after the other. “And he will teach him the judgment of God, and he will praise him” (Is. 28:26). And indeed, God taught the Assyrians with His judgment, and all nations will praise God for the fall of the Assyrians. “For the blackness is not cleansed with cruelty.” Just as cumin and chernuka are beaten with a stick because the plants are small, so you, Jews, are dealt light blows by the kings of the earth. “Below the chariot will go around the kimina; but the chernuka is shaken with a rod, and cumin (cumin) with a stick” (Is. 28:27). Just as a chariot wheel goes around the wheat, so the great army of the Assyrians will go around the Angel, like a chariot wheel. And the Assyrians will be crushed for our sake. “For we do not find it for victory.” God did not forever allow him to trample the cities of His people and the cities of other nations. “And with many chariot wheels and with hooves they will wipe it out” (Is. 28:28). When the Lord strikes the cities, represented in the form of kimin and chernukha, with the weapon of the Assyrians, like a rod, then He will crush the Assyrians themselves with a great defeat, by the hand of an Angel, represented in the image of a chariot stake. “And this came forth from the Lord of hosts: wonderful counsel, great wisdom” (Is. 28:29) in the fact that, according to God’s definition, after the victories the Assyrians suffered a grievous fall. You might be interested in: