September 23, 2022 – Friday
Isaiah 17:14 NIV
14 In the evening, sudden terror! Before the morning, they are gone! This is the portion of those who loot us, the lot of those who plunder us.
Isaiah 7:14 CJB
14 As evening falls, you can see terror; before sunrise, they have ceased to be. This is the lot of those who plunder us, the fate of those who prey on us.
Isaiah 17:14 NASB
14 At evening time, behold, there is terror! Before morning they are gone. This will be the fate of those who plunder us And the lot of those who pillage us.
Comment
This chapter in Isaiah is about the destruction of Damascus and of the Northern kingdom of Israel also known as Ephraim as it was the largest of the tribes there. The first verse tells us, See, Damascus will no longer be a city but will become a heap of ruins. And in verse 3a we learn the fate of Ephraim, The fortified city will disappear from Ephraim and further in verse four, In that day the glory of Jacob will fade; the fat of his body will waste away.
Yet in verse six there is the promise of mercy, Yet some gleanings will remain, as when an olive tree is beaten, leaving two or three olives on the topmost branches, four or five on the fruitful boughs,” declares the Lord, the God of Israel. God’s judgment was on Ephraim because of its alliance with Syria against Judah, the Southern kingdom of Israel. And to turn His people away from idols their hands had made and return to their God, their Savor, their fortress.
God will use other nations to bring judgment against Syria and Israel. But then He will judge those nations Himself. Guzik states it this way, Even in the midst of judgment, God shows mercy. As bad as it was going to be for Israel, it could have been worse. Instead, God would allow it for a time, then He would rebuke those attacking Israel. Israel was not at the mercy of circumstances or their enemies; they were at the mercy of God. And that is the point of the prophecy of verse fourteen, In the evening, sudden terror! Before the morning, they are gone! This is the portion of those who loot us, the lot of those who plunder us NIV. I like the NASB because it clearly shows this is speaking of the future, At evening time, behold, there is terror! Before morning they are gone. This will be the fate of those who plunder us And the lot of those who pillage us (underline added).
This prophecy came to be in 2 Kings 19:35 when, That night the angel of Adonai went out and struck down 185,000 men in the camp of Ashur. Early the next morning, there they were, all of them, corpses — dead CJB. This was in response to King Hezekiah’s prayer because 2 Kings 18:5, Hezekiah trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel. There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, either before him or after him. Then in 2 Kings 19:1-2, the king went into the temple wearing sackcloth and sent his priest to the prophet Isaiah knowing he could not defeat the enemy outside the gates of Jerusalem. Isaiah replied in verse six, “Tell your master, ‘This is what the Lord says: Do not be afraid of what you have heard—those words with which the underlings of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me. And that was the night 185,000 of the enemy were struck down.
Bottom Line: More than anything, depend on the Lord our God. Not the government, not greater forces, not alliances, depend on the Lord. Trust the Lord.
Prayer: Almighty God, You have the power. Yours is the ability to change everything overnight if we will but call on You and You alone. – In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
RileyD, nwJ
Riley D. Driver – Pastor
Calvary Chapel of Dayton
in Beavercreek