Miles de Libros Cristianos Gratis. Accede a nuestra Biblioteca Virtual

Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Isaiah 13:17

Para un estudio avanzado de: “Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Isaiah 13:17” utilice nuestra app.

Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them, which shall not regard silver; and [as for] gold, they shall not delight in it.

17. the Medes ] This Iranian people first became a leading power in Asia when it divided with the Chaldans the spoils of the Assyrian Empire (b.c. 606), but it was not till the rise of the great conqueror Cyrus that it became a formidable enemy to Babylon. Cyrus, according to the classical historians, was originally a vassal king of the Median Empire, reigning over the narrow territory to which the name Persia or Persis was at first restricted. He is called, however, in Babylonian inscriptions “King of Anzan,” which is explained by Assyriologists to be a small kingdom in the north of Elam. (See Sayce, in Rec. of the Past, l.c.) About the year 549 he overthrew the ruling Median dynasty and placed himself at the head of the whole empire. It has been argued by some scholars that previous to that event there could be no expectation of a conquest of Babylon by the Medes, and that therefore the prophecy must be dated between 549 and 538. Others again hold that if it had been written after 549 the enemy would have been called the Persians. Both inferences, however, are inconclusive. The first overlooks the fact that before the accession of Cyrus the Medes were a powerful nation, and indeed the only probable human agents of a chastisement of Babylon. And against the second it has to be borne in mind that the name Persia, for the united empire, made its way slowly in antiquity. In the Bible it first becomes common in the time of Ezra, although long after that we still read of Medes and Persians (Dan 5:28; Dan 6:8; Dan 6:12) or Persians and Medes (Est 1:3; Est 1:14; Est 1:18). Greek writers also speak of the wars of independence against Xerxes as . The verse, therefore, furnishes no particular indication of the date of the prophecy.

which shall not regard ( regard not) silver ] They cannot be bought off by a ransom. Xenophon puts into the mouth of Cyrus in addressing the Medes the words: ( Cyrop. Isa 13:1; Isa 13:20).

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

17, 18. The description of the character of the invaders, perhaps even the mention of their name, is of the nature of a climax to the terrors of the picture.

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

Behold, I will stir up – I will cause them to engage in this enterprise. This is an instance of the control which God claims over the nations, and of his power to excite and direct them as he pleases.

The Medes – This is one of the places in which the prophet specified, by name, the instrument of the wrath of God. Cyrus himself is subsequently mentioned Isa 44:28; Isa 45:1 as the agent by which God would accomplish his purposes. It is remarkable, also, that the Medes are mentioned here many years before they became a separate and independent nation. It was elsewhere predicted that the Medes would be employed in this siege of Babylon; thus, in Isa 21:2 : Go up, O Elam (that is, Persia), besiege, O Media; Jer 51:11 : Jehovah hath raised up the spirit of the kings of the Medes, for his device is against Babylon to destroy it. Media was a country east of Assyria, which is supposed to have been populated by the descendants of Madai, son of Japheth Gen 10:2. Ancient Media extended on the west and south of the Caspian Sea, from Armenia, on the north, to Faristan or Persia proper, on the south.

It was one of the most fertile regions of Asia. It was an ancient kingdom. Ninus, the founder of the Assyrian monarchy, is said to have encountered one of its kings, whom he subdued, and whose province he made a part of the Assyrian empire. For 520 years, the Medes were subject to the Assyrians; but, in the time of Tiglath-pileser and Shalmaneser, they revolted, and, by the destruction of the army of Sennacherib before Jerusalem – an event which was itself subsequent to the delivery of this prophecy respecting Babylon – they were enabled to achieve their independence. At the time when this prophecy was uttered, therefore, Media was a dependent province of the kingdom of Assyria. Six years they passed in a sort of anarchy, until, about 700 years b.c., they found in Dejoces an upright statesman, who was proclaimed king by universal consent. His son and successor, Phraortes, subdued the Persians, and all upper Asia, and united them to his kingdom.

He also attacked Assyria, and laid siege to Nineveh, the capital, but was defeated. Nineveh was finally taken by his successor, Cyaxares, with the aid of his ally, the king of Babylon; and Assyria became a province of Media. This widely-extended empire was delivered by him to his son Astyages, the father of Cyrus. Astyages reigned about 35 years, and then delivered the vast kingdom to Cyrus, about 556 years b.c., under whom the prediction of Isaiah respecting Babylon was fulfilled. In this way arose the Medo-Persian kingdom, and henceforward the laws of the Medes and Persians are always mentioned together Est 1:9; Est 10:2; Dan 6:8, Dan 6:12. From this time, all their customs, rites, and laws, became amalgamated. – (Herod. i. 95-130). In looking at this prophecy, therefore, we are to bear in mind:

(1) the fact that, when it was uttered, Media was a dependent province of the kingdom of Assyria;

(2) that a long time was yet to elapse before it would become an independent kingdom;

(3) that it was yet to secure its independence by the aid of that very Babylon which it would finally destroy;

(4) that no human foresight could predict these revolutions, and that every circumstance conspired to render this event improbable.

The great strength and resources of Babylon; the fact that Media was a dependent province, and that such great revolutions must occur before this prophecy could be fulfilled, render this one of the most striking and remarkable predictions in the sacred volume.

Which shall not regard silver … – It is remarkable, says Lowth, that Xenophon makes Cyrus open a speech to his army, and, in particular, to the Medes, who made the principal part of it, with praising them for their disregard of riches. Ye Medes and others who now hear me, I well know, that you have not accompanied me in this expedition with a view of acquiring wealth. – (Cyrop. v.) That this was the character of the Medes, is further evident from several circumstances. He reckoned, says Xenophon, that his riches belonged not anymore to himself than to his friends. So little did he regard silver, or delight in gold, that Croesus told him that, by his liberality, he would make himself poor, instead of storing up vast treasures for himself. The Medes possessed, in this respect, the spirit of their chief, of which an instance, recorded by Xenophon, is too striking and appropriate to be passed over.

When Gobryas, an Assyrian governor, whose son the king of Babylon had slain, hospitably entertained him and his army, Cyrus appealed to the chiefs of the Medes and Hyrcanians, and to the noblest and most honorable of the Persians, whether, giving first what was due to the gods, and leaving to the rest of the army their portion, they would not overmatch his generosity by ceding to him their whole share of the first and plentiful booty which they had won from the land of Babylon. Loudly applauding the proposal, they immediately and unanimously consented; and one of them said, Gobryas may have thought us poor, because we came not loaded with coins, and drink not out of golden cups; but by this he will know, that men can be generous even without gold. (See Keith On the Prophecies, p. 198, Ed. New York, 1833.) This is a remarkable prediction, because this is a very unusual circumstance in the character of conquerors. Their purpose has been chiefly to obtain plunder, and, especially, gold and silver have been objects to them of great value. Few, indeed, have been the invading armies which were not influenced by the hope of spoil; and the want of that characteristic among the Medes is a circumstance which no human sagacity could have foreseen.

Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible

Isa 13:17

Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them

The Medes

The Medes care not for gold, but for blood, though it be the blood of boys and infants.

(Sir E. Strachey, Bart.)

The Medes and gold

Ye Medes and others who now hear me, I well know that you have not accompanied me in this expedition with a view of acquiring wealth.–Speech of Cyrus to his army. (Xenophon, Cyrop. V.)

The Medea

The worst terror that can assail us is the terror of forces, whose character we cannot fathom, who will not stop to parley, who do not understand our language nor our bribes. It was such a power with which the resourceful and luxurious Babylon was threatened. With money the Babylonians did all they wished to do, and believed everything else to be possible. They had subsidised kings, bought over enemies, seduced the peoples of the earth, The foe whom God now sent them was impervious to this influence. From their pure highlands came down upon corrupt civilisation a simple people, whose banner was a leathern apron, whose goal was not booty nor ease but power and mastery, who came not to rob but to displace. (Prof. G. A. Smith, D. D.)

Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell

Verse 17. Which shall not regard silver – “Who shall hold silver of no account”] That is, who shall not be induced, by large offers of gold and silver for ransom, to spare the lives of those whom they have subdued in battle; their rage and cruelty will get the better of all such motives. We have many examples in the Iliad and in the AEneid of addresses of the vanquished to the pity and avarice of the vanquishers, to induce them to spare their lives.

Est domus alta: jacent penitus defossa talenta

Caelati argenti: sunt auri ponders facti

Infectique mihi: non hic victoria Teucrum

Vertitur; aut anima una dalbit discrimina tanta.

Dixerat: AEneas contra cui talia reddit:

Argenti atque auri memoras quae multa talenta

Gnatis parce tuis.

AEn. x. 526.

“High in my dome are silver talents rolled,

With piles of laboured and unlaboured gold.

These, to procure my ransom, I resign;

The war depends not on a life like mine:

One, one poor life can no such difference yield,

Nor turn the mighty balance of the field.

Thy talents, (cried the prince,) thy treasured store

Keep for thy sons.”

Pitt.

It is remarkable that Xenophon makes Cyrus open a speech to his army, and in particular to the Medes, who made the principal part of it, with praising them for their disregard of riches. , , , “Ye Medes, and others who now hear me, I well know that you have not accompanied me in this expedition with a view of acquiring wealth.” – Cyrop. lib. v.

Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible

The Medes; under whom he comprehends the Persians, who were their neighbours and confederates in this expedition.

They shall not delight in it; which is to be understood comparatively. They shall more eagerly pursue the destruction of the people than the getting of spoil; whereby it shall appear that they are only the executioners of my vengeance against them; they will accept no ransom to save their lives.

Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole

17. Medes (Isa 21:2;Jer 51:11; Jer 51:28).At that time they were subject to Assyria; subsequently Arbaces,satrap of Media, revolted against the effeminate Sardanapalus, kingof Assyria, destroyed Nineveh, and became king of Media, in the ninthcentury B.C.

not regard silverInvain will one try to buy his life from them for a ransom. The heathenXENOPHON (Cyropdia,5,1,10) represents Cyrus as attributing this characteristic to theMedes, disregard of riches. A curious confirmation of thisprophecy.

Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them,…. The Babylonians; this explains who are meant by the sanctified and mighty ones, Isa 13:3 the Medes were a people that descended from Medai, one of the sons of Japheth, Ge 10:2 as Josephus observes i; under these the Persians are included, though they are only mentioned, because Cyrus was sent by Cyaxares king of Media on this expedition against Babylon, and was made by him general of the Medes, and acted as such under him; and when Babylon was taken, and Belshazzar slain, Darius the Median took the kingdom, Da 5:31 now these are mentioned by name some hundreds of years before the thing came to pass, as Cyrus their general in Isa 45:1 which is a strong proof of the truth of prophecy, and of divine revelation; and, whatever might be the moving causes of this expedition, the affair was of God; it was he that put it into the hearts of the Medes, and stirred up their spirits to make war against Babylon; and though God is not the author of sin, yet he not only suffered the things to be done before and after mentioned, but in his providence ordered them as just punishments on a sinful people:

which shall not regard silver; and [as for] gold, they shall not delight in it; not but that they had a regard for, gold and silver, as appears by their spoiling of the houses of the Babylonians,

Isa 13:16 but that they had not so great a regard for these things as to spare the lives of any for the sake of them; they were so intent upon taking away their lives, that they disregarded their substance; their first work was to slay, and then to spoil; they first destroyed, and then plundered; no man with his gold and silver could obtain a ransom of his life from them. Cyrus k in his speech to his army said,

“O ye Medes, and all present, I truly know that not for want of money are ye come out with me,” &c.

i Antiqu. Jud. l. 1. c. 6. sect. 1. k Cyropaedia, l. 5. sect. 3.

Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible

With Isa 13:17 the prophecy takes a fresh turn, in which the veil that has hitherto obscured it is completely broken through. We now learn the name of the conquerors. “Behold, I rouse up the Medes over them, who do not regard silver, and take no pleasure in gold.” It was the Medes (Darius Medus = Cyaxares II) who put an end to the Babylonian kingdom in combination with the Persians (Cyrus). The Persians are mentioned for the first time in the Old Testament by Ezekiel and Daniel. Consequently Madi (by the side of which Elam is mentioned in Isa 21:2) appears to have been a general term applied to the Arian populations of Eran from the most important ruling tribe. Until nearly the end of Hezekiah’s reign, the Medes lived scattered about over different districts, and in hamlets (or villages) united together by a constitutional organization. After they had broken away from the Assyrians (714 b.c.) they placed themselves in 709-8 b.c. under one common king, namely Deyoces, probably for the purpose of upholding their national independence; or, to speak more correctly, under a common monarch, for even the chiefs of the villages were called kings.

(Note: See Spiegel’s Eran das Land zwischen dem Indus und Tigris (1863), p. 308ff.)

It is in this sense that Jeremiah speaks of “king of Madai;” at any rate, this is a much more probable supposition than that he refers to monarchs in a generic sense. But the kings of Media, i.e., the rulers of the several villages, are mentioned in Jer 25:25 among those who will have to drink the intoxicating cup which Jehovah is about to give to the nations through Nebuchadnezzar. So that their expedition against Babylon is an act of revenge for the disgrace of bondage that has been inflicted upon them. Their disregarding silver and gold is not intended to describe them as a rude, uncultivated people: the prophet simply means that they are impelled by a spirit of revenge, and do not come for the purpose of gathering booty. Revenge drives them on to forgetfulness of all morality, and humanity also.

Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament

Verse 17-22: THE MEDES – GOD’S INSTRUMENT

1. God specifically declares His purpose to stir up the Medes against Babylon – a people, who are indifferent toward silver and gold, (Verse 17; Isa 21:2; Jer 51:11; Jer 51:28; Dan 5:28; Dan 5:31).

2. Their chief delight appears to be in bloodshed – without regard to age, sex, or station in life, (comp. 2Ch 36:17; Eze 9:5-6; Eze 9:10).

3. The destruction of Babylon is likened unto that of Sodom and Gomorrah; it is to be perpetual, (Verse 19b; Gen 19:24-25; Deu 29:23).

a. It will be uninhabited “from generation to generation”, (Isa 14:23; Jer 51:37-43).

b. The Arabian, and the shepherd with his sheep, will refuse to spend a single night there.

c. It will, rather, become a dwelling-place for wild beasts, (Verse 20-22a; comp. Isa 34:11-15).

4. Isaiah declares that the time of Babylon’s destruction is near -nor will her judgment be delayed, (Verse 22).

Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary

17. Behold I raise up against them the Medes. The Prophet, having predicted the destruction of the Babylonians, describes also the authors, or says that God will be the author; and at the same time he explains in what manner, and by means of whom, it will be accomplished; for he says that he will raise up the Medes. He certainly could not have conjectured this by human reason, for there were no jealousies and no quarrels between the Babylonians and the Medes; and if there had been any such, what power did the Medes at that time possess that they could do the Babylonians any harm? Seeing, therefore, that no preparations had been made for the Medes carrying on war against them, it is very certain that this was spoken by divine inspiration, and more especially since he foretold these events more than a hundred years before they took place.

Who shall not think of silver, nor desire gold. (206) When he says that they shall not be covetous of silver and gold, he does not mean that the Medes were not guilty of plundering and covetousness, as if they were so generous that they despised gold and silver; but, on the contrary, he means that the battle will be cruel and bloody, that they will aim at nothing but a general slaughter. For example, the Spaniards of the present day, making it their chief object in war to plunder, more readily spare the life of men, and are not so bloodthirsty as the Germans or the English, who think of nothing but slaying the enemy.

We ought not to think it strange that the Lord, though he is not cruel, yet makes use of agents who are so cruel, for he acts righteously even by the agency of wicked men, and is not stained with their wickedness. It would therefore be improper to form our judgment of the work of God from the executioners of it, for they are prompted either by ambition, or by covetousness, or by cruelty; but we ought to consider God’s righteous punishment which the Babylonians deserved on account of their transgressions.

(206) Bogus footnote

Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary

THE LOVE OF MONEY

Isa. 13:17. The Medes shall not regard silver; and as for gold, they shall not delight in it.

I. One of the most universal and powerful of all passions is the love of money. Consider

1. How wide-spread is this passion. The instant men rise above utter barbarism, it manifests itself. Paradoxical as it may sound, it is one of the first signs that civilisation has begun. In every civilised land, and among all classes, it constantly manifests itself [1021] It is one of the inspiring and moulding forces that are always at work.

2. How powerful it is in its operation! It drives men to exhausting toil. It leads them to face appalling dangers. It persuades them to endure distressing privations. It betrays them into the basest crimes. Up to a certain point, it may be said to be a useful servant; it works to promote our welfare, by overbalancing other tendencies that would degrade and ruin us; but when once that limit is overpassed, it transforms itself into a tyrannical master. Like many an Eastern tyrant, it destroys all other lawful passions that might dispute with it the throne (H. E. I., 400, 402).

[1021] In many of those who seem utterly free from the love of money, it is only dormant; like the thirst for blood in that tiger which, captured when a cub, was brought up as a household pet, but showed itself to be a tiger indeed when, licking a slight wound in its masters hand, it first tasted blood. So, many who appear to be utterly free from the love of money are so simply because they have never possessed more than sufficed for their bare necessities. Let them possess more, and avarice will show itself. This is the explanation of the familiar fact, that many who become prosperous become niggardly; they may continue to give, but it is always in a steadily diminishing proportion to their income (H. E. I., 4013; P. D., 3068, 3488).

II. But this passion, powerful as it is, may be controlled and conquered. The Medes shall not regard silver; and as for gold, they shall not delight in it. This means, not that they should be exempt from the influence of this worldwide passion, but that in them it would be temporarily overborne by another more powerful passionthe passion for revenge. For years the dominion of Babylon over them had been maintained by the most relentless rigour and frightful cruelties; and when the hour for successful revolt came, the one thought of the Medes would beRevenge! That one intense longing would consume all others; the men on whom it had laid hold would forget their thirst for riches.

This really is only an instance and illustration of what Dr. Chalmers used to call the expulsive power of a new affection. Many other affections come up to the human heart, and expel avarice; e.g., love of wife or children, ambition, vanity, &c. We see, therefore, that the love of money can be conquered, and as reasonable men always in danger of being overcome by it, we should ask by what passion or principle it can be conquered most nobly. That principle and that passion is the love of Christ. Of those who are truly possessed by it, it may be truly said that they do not regard silver; and as for gold, they do not delight in it. They may have much money, and by their splendid genius for business may be constantly gaining much more; but they possess it, it does not possess them; they are its masters. By the use of it they are ennobled. Let us pray that our hearts may be garrisoned by this more powerful and noble passion; then all the assaults of avarice upon them shall be made in vain. We shall meet them as Christ Himself met the offer of all the wealth and glory of the world; and the result will be, that we shall possess the true riches which will be valuable in the eternal world (Mat. 4:8-10; Mat. 6:19-21).

Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell

c. PROLONGATION OF JUDGMENT

TEXT: Isa. 13:17-22

Behold I will stir up the Medes against them, who shall not regard silver, and as for gold, they shall not delight in it,

And their bows shall dash the young men in pieces; and they shall have no pity on the fruit of the womb; their eye shall not spare children.

And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldeans pride, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.

It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation; neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall shepherds make their flocks to lie down there.

But wild beasts of the desert shall lie there; and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures; and ostriches shall dwell there, and wild goats shall dance there.

And wolves shall cry in their castles, and jackals in the pleasant palaces; and her time is near to come, and her days shall not be prolonged.

QUERIES

Who are the Medes?

Why would the Arabian not pitch his tent there?

PARAPHRASE

For I will stir up the Medes against Babylon, and no amount of silver or gold will buy them off. The attacking armies will have no mercy on the young people of Babylon or the babies or the children. And so Babylon, the most glorious of kingdoms the flower of Chaldean culture, will be as utterly destroyed as Sodom and Gomorrah were when God sent fire from heaven; Babylon will never rise again. Generation after generation will come and go, but the land will never again be lived in. The nomads will not even camp there. The shepherds wont let their sheep stay overnight. The wild animals of the desert will make it their home. The houses will be haunted by howling creatures. Ostriches will live there, and the demons will come there to dance. Hyenas and jackals will den within the palaces. Babylons days are numbered; her time of doom will soon be here.

COMMENTS

Isa. 13:17-22 ABOMINATION UPON BABYLON: The Medes are first mentioned as Iaphthites in Gen. 10:2. They are Aryans and first called themselves Arioi in Greek language. At first they were a people divided into small village communities each governed by its own chiefs. About 720 B.C. they were united into a king-dom under Deiokes (or Dayaukku). Their capital was Ecbatana. They first formed a coalition with Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians against Assyria (Nineveh). But now they are forming an alliance with the Persians led by Cyrus the Great against Babylon! The Medes populated the area generally known today as Iran and Iraq. The Median empire gradually merged into that of Persia (see our comments in Daniel, chs. 5, 7 and 8, College Press).

Babylon was conquered in 538 B.C., having been one of the greatest, if not the greatest, cities of all times. At one time there were more than fifty temples in Babylon. Many of these had walls overlaid with gold with altars overlaid with gold, and golden statuettes. It was also home of the famous hanging gardens, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. Nebuchadnezzar married a woman whose homeland was mountainous. She occasionally got homesick for her homeland so the king of Babylon built her some mountains (the hanging gardens) right in the city. The city occupied 200 square miles of land, protected by a double brick wall with moat in between the walls. Its walls were 90 feet thick and 300 feet high, with towers rising much higher all along the walls. The Euphrates River flowed through the center of the city guaranteeing its water supply. There was enough land within its walls to supply the city with food. It had no fear of siege.
The area of ancient Babylon has never been inhabited since its fall. Actually, it was destroyed in increments. Cyrus the Great left the walls and the city of Babylon itself still standing. Later, in 518 B.C. the walls were destroyed. Then Xerxes ruined the temple of Belus. As Seleucia rose, so Babylon declined, and in Strabos time (63 B.C.24 A.D.) Babylon was a desert of which he says, a great desert is the great city. Though the Arabs will pitch their tents at nearly any spot, they are superstitious about Babylon, and though you hire one as a guide, he will not stay there at night. Modern-day travelers and tourists to this area attest to the fulfillment of Isaiahs prophecy! The ruined city is uninhabited by humans; jackals and many kinds of wild beasts live in the ruins. There are no sheepfolds about the ruins of ancient Babylon!

QUIZ

Where did the Medes live?

Who was the leader of the Medes and Persians against Babylon?

Describe ancient Babylon?

Has the prediction of Babylons demise come to pass?

Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series

(17) Behold, I will stir up the Medes.The Hebrew form Madai meets us in Gen. 10:2, among the descendants of Japheth. Modern researches show them to have been a mixed people, Aryan conquerors having mingled with an earlier Turanian race, and differing in this respect from the Persians, who were pure Iranians, both in race and creed. The early Assyrian inscriptions, from Rimmon Nirari III. onward (Cheyne), name them, as also does Sargon (Records of the Past, xi. 18), among the enemies whom the kings subdued. Their name had been recently brought before the prophets notice by Salmanesers deportation of the Ten Tribes to the cities of the Medes (2Ki. 17:6). In naming the Medes, and not the Persians, as the conquerors of Babylon, Isaiah was probably influenced by the greater prominence of the former, just as the Greeks spoke of them, and used such terms as Medism when they came in contact with the Medo-Persian monarchy under Darius and Xerxes. So schylus (Pers. 760) makes the Median the first ruler of the Persians. It is noticeable that they were destined to be the destroyers both of Nineveh and Babylon: of the first under Cyaxares, in alliance with Nabopolassar, and of the second under Cyrus the Persian, and, we may add, the Mede Darius of Dan. 5:31. If we accept the history of a yet earlier attack on Nineveh by Arbaces the Mede and Belesis of Babylon, we can sufficiently account for the prominence which Isaiah, looking at Babylon as the representative of Assyrian rather than Chaldan power, gives to them as its destroyers. (See Lenormant, Anc. Hist., 1, p. 337.)

Which shall not regard silver.The Medes are represented as a people too fierce to care for the gold and silver in which Babylon exulted. They would take no ransom to stay their work of vengeance. So Xenophon, in his Cyropdia (5:3), represents Cyrus as acknowledging their unbought, unpaid service.

Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)

17. Will stir up the Medes against them That is, “I am he who causeth to arouse as out of sleep,” etc. The Hiphil participle is used of a verb having, according to Gesenius, three, according to Furst, six, several sets of meanings, of which one set chiefly uses the Hiphil with the above characterizing idea. Compare Zec 9:13; Son 2:7; Isa 10:26. The “Medes” are here for the first time mentioned by name, and are alone mentioned, as they were the chief nation to be used, with Persia, in overthrowing Babylon. They had been subject to Assyria till B.C. 708 or 703, or B.C. 650, according to Rawlinson, when they threw off the yoke and became a federation of small kingdoms in their country of mountains and valleys situated east of old Assyria, south of Armenia and the Caspian Sea, and north of Persia, from which they were separated by the desert running out southwest from near the ancient Aryan seats. They had no friendship for their old masters of Mesopotamia. Prosperity and power came to them after they became independent, and were finally organized under one monarchy, and so on till Cyaxares becomes, at length, the probable true founder of the Median dynasty, B.C. 633, and the one who appears to begin what is the truly authentic history of the Medes. See SMITH’S Dictionary of the Bible; SMITH’S History of the World; RAWLINSON’S Five Great Monarchies; RAWLINSON’S Herodotus; LENORMANT’S Manuscript Ancient History, etc. In the final taking of Babylon the Median was chief over the Persian element of the instrumentality, (namely, Cyrus,) because it was really the chief power before Persia was connected with it as an empire. Hence the “Medes” constituted the chief foreseen figure with the prophet in the predicted event of the overthrow of the Babylonian power.

Shall not regard silver Was this a national characteristic? Xenophon ( Cyropaedia) makes Cyrus say to the Medes that they did not join him from a desire of ( ) money.

Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

A Vivid Picture of Babylon’s Future And Its End ( Isa 13:17-22 ).

Having depicted the destruction of Babylon in apocalyptic terms Isaiah brings it down to earth. He partly does it in terms of the Medes. The Medes participated in a number of invasions of Babylon from Sargon II onwards and were very much feared. They founded their own empire and up to around the time of Cyrus II (whose father was Persian and whose mother was Medan) were the senior partners of the Medo-Persian alliance. While they sometimes had to pay tribute to a particularly powerful Assyrian king, (and at one stage to the Scythians), they were never really subjugated, and in the end assisted in the destruction of first Assyria, and then Babylonia. They were wild fighters of Indo-Iranian origin who came from the north and settled in the Near East and were expert bowmen, and they were feared by all. Sargon spoke of them as ‘madaia dannuti’ (‘the mighty Medes’). No one wanted to see the Medes approaching their city. It struck a cold chill to the heart.

Analysis of Isa 13:17-22.

a Behold I will stir up the Medes against them, who will not regard silver, and as for gold, they will not delight in it (Isa 13:17).

b And their bows will dash the young men in pieces, and they will have no pity on the fruit of the womb. Their eye will not spare children (Isa 13:18).

c And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldeans’ pride, will be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah (Isa 13:19).

c It will never be inhabited, nor will it be dwelt in from generation to generation, nor will the Arabian pitch tent there, nor will shepherds make their flocks to lie down there (Isa 13:20).

b But the wild beasts of the wilderness will lie there, and their houses will be full of howling creatures, and ostriches will dwell there, and he-goats (‘goat-satyrs’) will dance there (Isa 13:21).

a And wolves will howl in their castles, and jackals in the pleasant palaces, and her time is near to come, and her days will not be prolonged (Isa 13:22).

These parallels are significant in the understanding of the reputation of the Medes. In ‘a’ the Medes who cannot be bought off will be stirred up against Babylon and in the parallel wolves and jackals will dwell there, and her time is near to come, and her days will not be prolonged. In ‘b’ Medan bows will dash young men in pieces, and the Medes are totally merciless as regards children, and in the parallel the ruins of Babylon will be inhabited by wild beasts, howling creatures, and ‘goat-satyrs’, bringing out the reputation of the Medes. In ‘c’ glorious Babylon will become like Sodom and Gomorrah, a desolate and forgotten heap, and in the parallel it will never be inhabited and it will be avoided by men.

Isa 13:17-18

‘Behold I will stir up the Medes against them,

Who will not regard silver,

And as for gold,

They will not delight in it.

And their bows will dash the young men in pieces,

And they will have no pity on the fruit of the womb.

Their eye will not spare children.’

If we would interpret Scripture truly we have no right to rip this verse from its context. Here we are told quite clearly that what has been described, ‘the burden of Babylon’ (Isa 13:1), is to occur at the hands of the nations, and partly, but only partly, at the hands of the Medes, those fearsome peoples from beyond Babylon.

In view of what we know of history the temptation for us here is to assume that this refers to the taking of Babylon in 539 BC by the Medes and the Persians. But it is important to note that the total emphasis here is on the Medes alone, and the Medes were a constant threat to Babylon from the very moment of their arrival from the steppes, even though spasmodically ‘controlled’ by Assyria. There is no mention, or even hint, here of the Persians. The point here is that the Medes will be let loose on them, those dreadful Medes whose bows shoot a man to pieces. But while they were to be specially feared they would only be one invader among many (Isa 13:4). Humanly speaking the fierce Medes would be an obvious ally for any attack on Babylon. They loved warfare and were just waiting there on its eastern borders, looking for their opportunity. Isaiah’s prophecies were enlightened common sense inspired by God. And the Medes would certainly be closely involved in most of Babylon’s downfalls. Thus there is no reason for reading a Medo-Persian conflict here.

But when the Medes struck, said Isaiah, it would be because God had stirred them up. They would not be able to be bought off by bribery or offers of gold. They would be ‘under divine orders’. And the bows for which they were famous would destroy the enemy, and the usual consequences of war would then follow, for the Medes would particularly have no pity. It is unusual to see a bow as ‘dashing in pieces’ but the words are picked up from Isa 13:16. In mind, however, may be the picture of someone torn apart by arrows, the idea being of the multitude of arrows that the Medes would let loose.

Isa 13:19

‘And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldeans’ pride, will be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.’

‘The glory of kingdoms, the Beauty.’ These were probably descriptions that Babylon was applying to itself in its connections with Judah (Isa 39:1). As they boasted of their wealth and success, in order to impress Hezekiah, this would be the kind of language that they had used, and Isaiah takes it up and mocks it. He is angry because they are depicting themselves in terms that challenge Yahweh’s supremacy. That is what makes him realise that Babel/Babylon has not changed. And he is angry that Hezekiah has yielded to it. But such boasting would explain why Hezekiah felt it necessary to reveal his own comparatively puny treasures, comparatively puny but of which he was so proud (Isa 39:2). No doubt the Babylonian embassy had brought large gifts in their hands.

So Babylon even now saw itself as ‘the glory of kingdoms’. It was the ‘Beauty’ of which the Chaldeans were so proud. They gloried in themselves though the centuries, and no nation boasts like the resurrected nation. The ‘Chaldeans’ were a prominent group in southern Babylonia and the term was later used of all Babylonians, as here. Babylon was recognised throughout the known world for its splendour. Even Nineveh could not compare with it and its ancient civilisation. And their pride in the fact knew no bounds.

But the same words ‘glory’ and ‘beauty’ were used of the ‘sprouting of Yahweh’ in Isa 4:2 and of Yahweh Himself in Isa 28:5. Thus Isaiah saw Babylon as exalting itself to the same status as God and His ways. It was the Anti-God. And in its blasphemy it would suffer the same fate as Sodom and Gomorrah, which were bywords for sinfulness.

‘Will be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.’ This is Babylon’s final destiny. Isaiah sees it as clearly as if it were in his own day. The Medes will continue to be a thorn in their sides, and would be a part of the alliances that would continually and finally break them, until they would in the end be nothing but a ruin on a mound of earth.

It is the genius of the Hebrew prophets that they prophesied of trends and purposes which in the end became more true than they at first realised. These words of Isaiah are a good example of this. He did not know that the Medan impact on Babylon would be far greater than he realised, nor at this stage did he realise quite how great Babylon would become in the not too distant future. That was a realisation that possibly grew on him as he contemplated that future. For once he knew that Assyria’s end was ‘near’, he may possibly have begun to see Babylon as the obvious candidate for rising to prominence and then have come to recognise what the consequences for Israel/Judah would be. And then this prophecy would be even more true. But if so that would come later when he realised that the Assyrian venture against Babylon had not been the final end for Babylon, in respect of a future that he knew must come.

Isa 13:20-22

‘It will never be inhabited,

Nor will it be dwelt in from generation to generation,

Nor will the Arabian pitch tent there,

Nor will shepherds make their flocks to lie down there.

But the wild beasts of the wilderness will lie there,

And their houses will be full of howling creatures,

And ostriches will dwell there,

And he-goats (‘goat-satyrs’) will dance there.

And wolves will howl in their castles,

And jackals in the pleasant palaces,

And her time is near to come,

And her days will not be prolonged.’

For its end would inevitably come. The ‘world’ invasions would do their work. The contrast here is with its glory and its beauty. It will become a ghost town, a deserted city, an eerie place. The fact that the wandering Arab, the caravanners, or shepherd will not pitch tent or settle their sheep there may suggest the idea that it would be seen as cursed or haunted. And this is borne out by the following description.

These descriptions parallel the mention of the Medes. They bring out just how much the Medes were feared, and how they were looked on. The ruined castles and palaces will become homes for wild beasts and ghostly creatures, places where wolves and jackals will be king, and mysterious presences, howling creatures and goat-satyrs, the invention of fevered minds, will wander. Paradoxically we too do not need to believe in ghosts to be conscious of ghostly presences in such a situation.

This was to be the final end of ancient Babylon, as today we know it was. It did happen eventually, and the Medes would have a big hand in it, and that is all that Isaiah foresaw and was prophesying. The fact that it did not happen quite as simply as portrayed is proof that it is genuine prophecy.

‘And her time is near to come, and her days will not be prolonged.’ This desolation of Babylon, ‘the glory of the kingdoms’, described throughout the chapter, is neither dated nor specifically connected with Israel and Judah. And there is no mention of the exile. It is thus quite possible that it was the coming of the ambassadors from Babylon that set up this train of thought, and resulted in this burden, with its certainty of Babylon’s final total destruction. Thus Isaiah warns that Babylon’s time is coming, and that, in divine terms, in the not too distant future. In spite of all her boasting her future glory will only be temporary, for among her enemies will be the dreaded Medes.

Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett

Isa 13:17 Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them, which shall not regard silver; and as for gold, they shall not delight in it.

Isa 13:17 Comments – The prophet Daniel records the fall of Babylon to the Medes.

Dan 5:30-31, “In that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain. And Darius the Median took the kingdom, being about threescore and two years old.”

Darius the Mede, the son of Ahasuerus (Xerxes) of the seed of the Medes, reigned briefly from 538 to 536 B.C. (Dan 9:1). (This is not a reference to Darius the Persian who was the third successor to Cyrus the Great.) Scholars say that at the death of Belshazzar (Dan 5:30), Darius “received the kingdom” of Babylon by being made king, or viceroy, over the kingdom of the Chaldeans under Cyrus the king of Persia (Dan 5:31). Thus, Dan 6:28 suggests that Darius and Cyrus ruled at the same time. This is supported by the fact that the name “Darius” never occurs in any ancient documents outside of the book of Daniel. We can conclude that Darius was probably never the king over the entire Persian Empire.

Dan 6:28, “So this Daniel prospered in the reign of Darius, and in the reign of Cyrus the Persian.”

Dan 9:1, “In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the seed of the Medes, which was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans;”

When we go to extra-biblical sources, we find that the Greek historians credit the takeover to Cyrus the Persian. [38] Herodotus (484-425 B.C.), the Greek historian, tells us that Cyrus led an army of Medes and Persians to Babylon and captured the city after diverting a water channel of the Euphrates river, with the dried river allowing entrance into the city by night (see Herodotus 1.191). [39] Xenophon (430-354 B.C.), a later Greek historian, also records the fall of Babylon, but includes the story of two of Cyrus’ skilled generals Gadatas and Gobryas, who orchestrating the assault ( Cyropaedia 7.5.1-34). [40] Josephus tells us that Darius the king of Media was a relative of Cyrus the Great, king of Persia, and that together they took over the Babylonian kingdom from Belshazzar.

[38] Gleason L. Archer, Jr., Daniel, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, vol. 7, ed. Frank E. Gaebelien, J. D. Douglas, Dick Polcyn (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Pub. House), 1976-1992, in Zondervan Reference Software, v. 2.8 [CD-ROM] (Grand Rapids, MI: The Zondervan Corp., 1989-2001), “Introduction: 7 Special Problems: c. Alleged historical inaccuracies: 5) The ‘legendary’ Darius the Mede.”

[39] See Herodotus 1.191 in Herodotus I, Books I-II, trans. by A. D. Godley, in The Loeb Classical Library, eds. T. E. Page, E. Capps, and W. H. D. Rouse (Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1975), 238-241.

[40] See Xenophon Cyropaedia 7.5.1-34 in The Cyropaedia, or Institutions of Cyrus, and the Hellenics, or Grecian History, trans. J. S. Watson and Henry Dale (London: George Bell and Sons, 1880), 220-225.

“When Evil-Mcrodach was dead, after a reign of eighteen years, Niglissar his son took the government, and retained it forty years, and then ended his life; and after him the succession in the kingdom came to his son Labosordacus, who continued in it in all but nine months; and when he was dead, it came to Baltasar, who by the Babylonians was called Naboandelus; against him did Cyrus, the king of Persia, and Darius, the king of Media, make war; and when he was besieged in Babylon, there happened a wonderful and prodigious vision.” ( Antiquities 10.11.2)

“And this is the end of the posterity of king Nebuchadnezzar, as history informs us; but when Babylon was taken by Darius, and when he, with his kinsman Cyrus, had put an end to the dominion of the Babylonians, he was sixty-two years old. He was the son of Astyages, and had another name among the Greeks. Moreover, he took Daniel the prophet, and carried him with him into Media, and honored him very greatly, and kept him with him; for he was one of the three presidents whom he set over his three hundred and sixty provinces, for into so many did Darius part them.” ( Antiquities 10.11.5)

It would not have been uncommon for Cyrus the Persian to appoint a prominent Mede as viceroy over a part of his kingdom in order to reward loyalty and keep unity in the region. We know that many noble Medes were employed as officials, satraps and generals. This is very likely how Darius the Mede gained the description as taking the kingdom in Dan 5:31. Since there is record of a man named Gubaru who appears as the governor of Babylonia and of Ebir-nari (the western domains under Chaldean sovereignty) in tablets dated from the fourth to the eighth year of Cyrus (535-532 B.C.), some scholars suggest that Gubaru took the title as “ Dar eyawes ” or “Darius” during his rule as viceroy under King Cyrus. [41]

[41] Gleason L. Archer, Jr., Daniel, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, vol. 7, eds. Frank E. Gaebelien, J. D. Douglas, Dick Polcyn (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Pub. House), 1976-1992, in Zondervan Reference Software, v. 2.8 [CD-ROM] (Grand Rapids, MI: The Zondervan Corp., 1989-2001), “Introduction: 7 Special Problems: c. Alleged historical inaccuracies: 5) The ‘legendary’ Darius the Mede.”

Isa 13:21-22 Comments The Ecosystem of the Middle East – Isa 13:21-22 lists several animals, mammals and birds that make up the ecosystem of the Middle East.

Fuente: Everett’s Study Notes on the Holy Scriptures

Isa 13:17-18. Behold, I will stir up the Medes Here follows the second part of this prophesy; in which, what the prophet had foretold principally in figure, is here plainly related; and is easily divided, as it contains the antecedent and consequent, the cause and effect. The antecedent, or efficient causes of the evil to come, are the Medes and Persians, raised up by God himself against the Babylonians, and described from their ruling principle, extremely full of cruelty and avidity of revenge, Isa 13:17-18. The consequence is, the desolation of Babylon, and the calamity to be brought upon it, Isa 13:19-22. The expression in the 18th verse, Their bows also shall dash the young men to pieces, might be rendered, And they shall with their bows dash to pieces the children: according to the Vulgate, They shall kill their little ones with their arrows: cruel and relentless, and thirsting only for blood, no money will be able to bribe them; no gold or silver be able to satiate their thirst of destruction. Ancient historians assure us, that the Medes and Persians were thus notorious for their cruelty, and also that they carried remarkably large bows, and were eminent for their skilfulness in the use of them. Bishop Newton observes, that at the time when Isaiah wrote this prophesy, the Medes were a people of no account, forming only a province under the king of Assyria, and not erected into a separate kingdom till the time of Dioces, about the 17th year of king Hezekiah. They afterwards became a very considerable people, and made up the principal part of the army which was brought against Babylon by Cyrus, whose mother was a Mede. When Babylon was taken by Darius, he ordered 3000 of the principal men to be crucified, and thereby fulfilled the prophesies of the cruelty which the Medes and Persians should use towards the Babylonians, contained in this passage, and in Jer 50:42. See Prophec. vol. 1: p. 295.

Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke

Isa 13:17 Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them, which shall not regard silver; and [as for] gold, they shall not delight in it.

Ver. 17. Behold I will stir up the Medes. ] Together with the Persians under the conduct of Darius and Cyrus.

Which shall not regard silver, ] sc., For a ransom, but shall kill all they meet, though never so rich, and able to redeem their lives. Pro 13:8 Jer 41:8

Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Isa 13:17-22

17Behold, I am going to stir up the Medes against them,

Who will not value silver or take pleasure in gold.

18And their bows will mow down the young men,

They will not even have compassion on the fruit of the womb,

Nor will their eye pity children.

19And Babylon, the beauty of kingdoms, the glory of the Chaldeans’ pride,

Will be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.

20It will never be inhabited or lived in from generation to generation;

Nor will the Arab pitch his tent there,

Nor will shepherds make their flocks lie down there.

21But desert creatures will lie down there,

And their houses will be full of owls;

Ostriches also will live there, and shaggy goats will frolic there.

22Hyenas will howl in their fortified towers

And jackals in their luxurious palaces.

Her fateful time also will soon come

And her days will not be prolonged.

Isa 13:17 the Medes This is another major power of the Fertile Crescent north and east of Assyria. At first they were allied with old Babylon, but later they were incorporated with Persia under Cyrus II (cf. Isa 44:28; Isa 45:1; Jer 51:11).

Who will not value silver or take pleasure in gold This army will be so bent on revenge there will be no possibility of buying them off!

Isa 13:18 the fruit of the womb This refers to unborn children and their mothers or young childen.

eye It is used here to represent the attitudes/actions of a person (cf. Deu 7:16; Deu 13:8; Deu 19:13; Eze 7:4; Eze 16:5; Eze 20:17). Here to denote that the invaders will have no pity even on children. This line of poetry is parallel with the line above!

The Median warriors had no compassion or pity (cf. Jer 6:23; Jer 21:7; Jer 50:42).

Isa 13:19 Babylon’s cultural beauty and sophistication were renowned (i.e., Daniel 4 of Neo-Babylon), but it will all be lost and destroyed! However, if this refers to Babylon during the Assyrian period, it was totally destroyed in 689 B.C. by Sennacherib.

Chaldeans This was the name of the tribe of southern Babylon and is often used as a synonym for later nations of Neo-Babylon (i.e., Nebuchadnezzar). For other connotations of the term see Dan 1:4. See Special Topic: Chaldeans .

Sodom and Gomorrah These were cities of great wickedness, which God destroyed by fire and brimstone (cf. Gen 19:24-28; Deu 29:23).

Isa 13:20-22 This is hyperbolic language (cf. Sumerian laments over Ur and visions of Nefertiti over the old Egyptian Kingdom). The city fell in Merodach-baladan’s day to Assyria with total destruction. The city fell to the Medo-Persian army in 539 B.C. without widespread destruction.

The book that has really helped me, as a modern western person, to understand eastern prophetic and apocalyptic literature is D. Brent Sandy, Plowshares and Pruning Hooks: Rethinking the Language of Biblical Prophecy and Apocalyptic.

Isa 13:20 The destruction was so complete that

1. it was uninhabited for generations

2. Arabs do not camp there

3. no flocks grazed there

4. building remains used only by wild animals (possibly demons, cf. Isa 13:21-22; Isa 34:13-15; Rev 18:2)

5. no longer a national entity

This fits old Babylon better than new Babylon. The Medes abandoned their alliance with Merodach-baladan and joined the Assyrians in destroying the capital city of Babylon in 689 B.C.

Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley

Medes. Here only “Medes”. in Isa 21:2, “Persians and Medes. “In Isa 45:1 Cyrus named. The order is chronological.

Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics

Isa 13:17-22

Isa 13:17-19

“Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them, who shall not regard silver, and as for gold, they shall not delight in it. And their bows shall dash the young men in pieces; and they shall have no pity on the fruit of the womb; and their eyes shall not spare children. And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldeans’ pride, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.”

This is the first specific mention of Babylon since the head of the chapter; and the mention of the Medes as the destined destroyers of Babylon must have come as a shock to that generation in which Isaiah wrote, because they were, at that time, probably the last people on earth that any human student of the current era would have chosen for such a task. Assyria was the big power when Isaiah wrote this. Babylon, which would later overthrow Assyria and take Israel captive, was, when Isaiah’s prophecy was given by the Lord, no threat at all to Assyria. Here indeed is a sensational leap in predictive prophecy.

The statement in Isa 13:17 that the destroyers of Babylon would not regard silver or gold, “does not mean that they were a rude or barbaric people, but that they could not be bought off” from their purpose of destroying Babylon.

The mention of “bows” (Isa 13:18) designates the chief weapon of the Medo-Persian conquest. This weapon continued to dominate ancient warfare until the deployment of the Macedonian phalanx by Alexander the Great, the chief weapon of which was the spear.

Isa 13:20-22

“It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall shepherds make their flocks to lie down there. But wild beasts of the desert shall lie there; and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures; and ostriches shall dwell there, and wild goats shall dance there. And wolves shall cry in their castles, and jackals in their pleasant palaces: and her time is near to come, and her days shall not be prolonged.”

“It shall never be inhabited” (Isa 13:20). All right, let the arrogant destructive critics tell us how any post-exilic author of this section of Isaiah could possibly have written a line like this. Even as late as the conquest of Babylon, anyone with the slightest information about world affairs in that day would have been hailed as a lunatic for authoring a line like this. It was only Isaiah’s deserved reputation as a true prophet of God that protected him from the same fate.

This marvelous prophecy regarding Babylon was inspired by God. No human wisdom could have foreseen it; no brilliant evaluator of the fate of nations could have predicted it. Such a fate for Babylon was as totally beyond “thinkability” on the part of any person in that whole time period as a prediction today that New York City would eventually be uninhabited! From the times of Cyrus until those of Alexander of Macedon (334-320 B.C.) Babylon remained one of the chief cities of the Persian empire. Alexander intended to make it his capital; but his death thwarted his plans. Afterward Babylon began to decline; and Strabo (born in 60 B.C.) described Babylon as “a perfect desert.” Josephus, however, stated that the place had a large population during the first century of our era. But not for long, “It went rapidly to decay and soon disappeared from sight. The place became and has ever since remained `uninhabited.'” From these observations the shameful efforts of some critics to deny the Isaiah authorship of this prophecy are exposed as illogical and totally unacceptable.

Regarding Babylon today, Dummelow observed that, “Its glory lingered for a time, but it died away before the beginning of the Christian era; and Babylon is now, and has long been, only a heap of ruins.”

“And her time is near to come …” Peake complained that the prophecy predicted the downfall of Babylon would take place near in the future, but since it did not occur for about 180 years after Isaiah revealed this prophecy, it must mean that the prophecy was written during the exile! As Rawlinson explained, however, “A hundred eighty years is indeed but a short time in the history of a nation.”

This great prophecy, however, covered a time period far greater than that of the relatively short time between the prophecy and the physical fall of Babylon, but embraced at the same time many generations beyond that. Note the statement in Isa 13:20, “from generation to generation.” It would be impossible to state any more emphatically than this does it that the prophecy is not merely for weeks or years but for generations and generations and centuries of time. How perfectly was the prophecy fulfilled! All of the infidels on earth cannot possibly deny a single line of it.

Isa 13:17-22 ABOMINATION UPON BABYLON: The Medes are first mentioned as Iaphthites in Gen 10:2. They are Aryans and first called themselves Arioi in Greek language. At first they were a people divided into small village communities each governed by its own chiefs. About 720 B.C. they were united into a king-dom under Deiokes (or Dayaukku). Their capital was Ecbatana. They first formed a coalition with Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians against Assyria (Nineveh). But now they are forming an alliance with the Persians led by Cyrus the Great against Babylon! The Medes populated the area generally known today as Iran and Iraq. The Median empire gradually merged into that of Persia.

The area of ancient Babylon has never been inhabited since its fall. Actually, it was destroyed in increments. Cyrus the Great left the walls and the city of Babylon itself still standing. Later, in 518 B.C. the walls were destroyed. Then Xerxes ruined the temple of Belus. As Seleucia rose, so Babylon declined, and in Strabos time (63 B.C.-24 A.D.) Babylon was a desert of which he says, a great desert is the great city. Though the Arabs will pitch their tents at nearly any spot, they are superstitious about Babylon, and though you hire one as a guide, he will not stay there at night. Modern-day travelers and tourists to this area attest to the fulfillment of Isaiahs prophecy! The ruined city is uninhabited by humans; jackals and many kinds of wild beasts live in the ruins. There are no sheepfolds about the ruins of ancient Babylon!

Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary

I will: Isa 13:3-5, Isa 21:2, Isa 41:25, Jer 50:9, Jer 51:11, Jer 51:27, Jer 51:28, Dan 5:28-31

shall not regard: Pro 6:34, Pro 6:35

Reciprocal: 1Ki 11:14 – the Lord 1Ki 11:23 – God 2Ki 17:6 – the Medes 2Ch 36:22 – the Lord stirred Isa 13:5 – from a far Isa 21:1 – from Isa 21:5 – arise Isa 45:13 – price Isa 48:14 – he will do Jer 21:7 – he shall Jer 25:25 – Medes Jer 50:3 – out of the Jer 50:14 – in array Jer 50:25 – opened Jer 50:41 – General Jer 50:42 – they are cruel Jer 51:53 – from Dan 7:5 – Arise Dan 8:3 – one Rev 17:16 – these

Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

Isa 13:17-18. Behold, &c. Here follows the second part of this prophecy, in which the calamity which the prophet had foretold, principally in figure, is plainly related and set forth in its causes and consequences. Its causes are stated to be the Medes, raised up by God himself against the Babylonians, and described as being extremely full of cruelty and avidity of revenge, Isa 13:17-18. The consequences are, the desolation of Babylon, and the calamity to be brought upon it, Isa 13:19-22. I will stir up the Medes Under whom he comprehends the Persians, who were their neighbours and confederates in this expedition. Which shall not regard silver, &c. That is, comparatively speaking. They shall more eagerly pursue the destruction of the people than the getting of spoil. Their bows also Under which are comprehended other weapons of war; shall dash the young men to pieces Or, shall pierce the young men through, as the Chaldee renders it. But, as both Herodotus and Xenophon affirm that the Persians used , large bows, according to the latter, bows three cubits long, and undoubtedly proportionably strong; we may easily conceive, as Bishop Lowth observes, that, with such bows, especially if made of brass, as bows anciently often were, (see Psa 18:35; Job 20:24,) the soldiers might dash and slay the young men, the weaker and unresisting part of the inhabitants, (here joined with the fruit of the womb and the children,) in the general carnage in taking the city.

Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

This pericope foretells the destruction of Babylon. Prophecies of the day of the Lord may describe the eschatological judgment coming (Isa 13:2-16), or a more recent, limited judgment coming (Isa 13:17-22). Each soon-coming judgment on a particular segment of humanity foreshadows the great eschatological judgment that will fall on the whole human race in the Tribulation. This destruction of Babylon was a judgment of the Lord in a day that would be closer to Isaiah’s own time, a near and limited fulfillment of the day that the prophet just described. The fall of Assyria (Isa 14:24-27) was one fulfillment, and the later fall of Babylon (Isa 13:17-22) was another. The same principles that operate in the eschatological day of the Lord just described also operate in the earlier days of the Lord. [Note: See G. von Rad, "The Origin of the Concept of the Day of Yahweh," Journal of Semitic Studies 4:2 (1959):97-108; and A. Joseph Everson, "The Days of Yahweh," Journal of Biblical Literature 93:3 (September 1974):329-37.]

Part of the Lord’s warriors would be the Medes, who occupied what is now central Iran. In Isaiah’s day, the Medes were already a powerful people that the Assyrians dreaded. They would destroy Babylon. They united with the Babylonians to destroy the last vestiges of the Assyrian Empire in 609 B.C. Still later, it was the Medes and the Persians who overthrew Babylon in 539 B.C. (cf. Est 10:2; Dan 5:30-31; Dan 6:8; Dan 6:12; Dan 6:15). The Medes valued silver and gold less than military conquest; they could not be bought off, but mercilessly slew every enemy (Isa 13:17-18). Revenge motivated them more than booty. [Note: Delitzsch, 1:303.]

"The Medes are probably mentioned here rather than the Persians because of their greater ferocity and also because they were better known to the people of Isaiah’s day. According to the Greek historian Xenophon, Cyrus acknowledged that the Medes had served his cause without thought of monetary reward." [Note: Grogan, p. 103. Cf. Delitzsch, 1:302-3.]

In the late 700s B.C., Babylon was the showcase of the ancient world, specifically the showcase of the Assyrian Empire. She was culturally and economically superior to Assyria and was ascending politically. The Chaldeans were the ruling class that had been responsible for the supremacy of Babylon. However, Isaiah announced, Babylon would experience the same fate as Sodom and Gomorrah: destruction from the Lord’s hand (Isa 13:19). After her judgment, Babylon would be uninhabitable even by nomads. Wild animals would be the only residents of the once great city. This destruction would come soon, and it would not be delayed (Isa 13:20-22).

Babylonia was under the Assyrian yoke when Isaiah gave this prophecy, probably during Hezekiah’s reign (715-686 B.C.). She was one of the nations, along with Egypt, to which Judah was looking as a possible savior. This prophecy showed that Babylon was not a safe object for trust because God would destroy her.

Has this prophecy been fulfilled? Babylon suffered defeat in 689 B.C. when Assyria (including the Medes), under Sennacherib, devastated it (cf. Isa 23:13), but the city was rebuilt. Many interpreters believe that the fall of Babylon in 539 B.C. to Cyrus fulfilled this prophecy, [Note: E.g., Archer, p. 621; the NET Bible note on 13:22.] but Cyrus left the city intact. Others believe the destruction-that Darius Hystaspes began in 518 B.C., and that Xerxes later completed-was the fulfillment. [Note: E.g., Delitzsch, 1:304.] Some scholars believe that what Isaiah predicted here never took place literally, at least completely, so the fulfillment lies in the future. [Note: E.g., G. H. Lang, Histories and Prophecies of Daniel, pp. 33-34; Kenneth W. Allen, "The Rebuilding and Destruction of Babylon," Bibliotheca Sacra 133:529 (January 1976):19-27; and Charles H. Dyer, The Rise of Babylon: Sign of the End Times; J. Martin, p. 1060.] Many conservatives argue for a near and a far fulfillment. I think the destruction in 689 B.C. that resulted in Babylon’s temporary desolation fulfilled this prophecy (cf. Isa 13:22 b), and I believe there will also be an eschatological judgment of Babylon (Revelation 17-18), though not necessarily one that requires the rebuilding of the city. Destruction terminology, such as appears in this passage, is common in the annals of ancient Near Eastern nations. It speaks generally and hyperbolically of devastating defeat and destruction, but it did not always involve exact or detailed fulfillment. [Note: See Homer Heater Jr., "Do the Prophets Teach that Babylonia Will Be Rebuilt in the Eschaton?" Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 41:1 (March 1998):36, for further specifics.]

Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)

Disfruta de miles de canciones cristianas en exclusiva sólo en Bibles