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1 The burden of Babylon, which Isaiah the sonne of Amoz did see.
2 Lift yee vp a banner vpon the high mountaine, exalt the voice vnto them, shake the hand, that they may goe into the gates of the nobles.
3 I haue commanded my sanctified ones: I haue also called my mightie ones for mine anger, euen them that reioyce in my highnesse.
4 The noise of a multitude in the mountaines, like as of a great people: a tumultuous noise of the kingdomes of nations gathered together: the Lord of hostes mustereth the hoste of the battell.
5 They come from a farre countrey from the end of heauen, euen the Lord and the weapons of his indignation, to destroy the whole land.
6 ¶ Howle yee; for the day of the Lord is at hand; it shall come as a destruction from the Almighty.
7 Therefore shall all hands bee faint, and euery mans heart shall melt.
8 And they shalbe afraid: pangs and sorrowes shall take hold of them, they shalbe in paine as a woman that trauelleth: they shalbe amazed one at another, their faces shalbe as flames.
9 Behold, the day of the Lord commeth, cruell both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate; and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it.
10 For the starres of heauen, and the constellations thereof shall not giue their light: the sunne shalbe darkened in his going forth, and the moone shall not cause her light to shine.
11 And I will punish the world for their euill, and the wicked for their iniquitie; and I will cause the arrogancie of the proud to cease, and will lay low the hautinesse of the terrible.
12 I will make a man more pretious then fine gold; euen a man then the golden wedge of Ophir.
13 Therefore I will shake the heauens, and the earth shall remoue out of her place in the wrath of the Lord of hostes, and in the day of his fierce anger.
14 And it shalbe as the chased Roe, and as a sheepe that no man taketh vp: they shall euery man turne to his owne people, and flee euery one into his owne land.
15 Euery one that is found shall be thrust through: and euery one that is ioyned vnto them, shall fall by the sword.
16 Their children also shalbe dashed to pieces before their eyes, their houses shalbe spoiled, & their wiues rauished.
17 Beholde, I will stirre vp the Medes against them, which shall not regard siluer, and as for gold, they shall not delight in it.
18 Their bowes also shall dash the yong men to pieces, and they shall haue no pitie on the fruit of the wombe; their eye shall not spare children.
19 ¶ And Babylon the glory of kingdomes, the beautie of the Chaldees excellencie, shall be as when God ouerthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.
20 It shall neuer be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there, neither shal the shepheards make their fold there.
21 But wilde beastes of the desert shall lye there, and their houses shalbe full of dolefull creatures, and owles shall dwell there, and Satyres shall daunce there.
22 And the wilde beastes of the Ilands shal cry in their desolate houses, and dragons in their pleasant palaces: and her time is neere to come, and her dayes shall not be prolonged.
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Commentary for Isaiah 13
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Isaiah's Vision of the Destruction of Babylon
The armies of God's wrath. (1-5) The conquest of Babylon. (6-18) Its final desolation. (19-22)1-5 The threatenings of God's word press heavily upon the wicked, and are a sore burden, too heavy for them to bear. The persons brought together to lay Babylon waste, are called God's sanctified or appointed ones; designed for this service, and made able to do it. They are called God's mighty ones, because they had their might from God, and were now to use it for him. They come from afar. God can make those a scourge and ruin to his enemies, who are farthest off, and therefore least dreaded.
6-18 We have here the terrible desolation of Babylon by the Medes and Persians. Those who in the day of their peace were proud, and haughty, and terrible, are quite dispirited when trouble comes. Their faces shall be scorched with the flame. All comfort and hope shall fail. The stars of heaven shall not give their light, the sun shall be darkened. Such expressions are often employed by the prophets, to describe the convulsions of governments. God will visit them for their iniquity, particularly the sin of pride, which brings men low. There shall be a general scene of horror. Those who join themselves to Babylon, must expect to share her plagues, #Re 18:4|. All that men have, they would give for their lives, but no man's riches shall be the ransom of his life. Pause here and wonder that men should be thus cruel and inhuman, and see how corrupt the nature of man is become. And that little infants thus suffer, which shows that there is an original guilt, by which life is forfeited as soon as it is begun. The day of the Lord will, indeed, be terrible with wrath and fierce anger, far beyond all here stated. Nor will there be any place for the sinner to flee to, or attempt an escape. But few act as though they believed these things.
19-22 Babylon was a noble city; yet it should be wholly destroyed. None shall dwell there. It shall be a haunt for wild beasts. All this is fulfilled. The fate of this proud city is a proof of the truth of the Bible, and an emblem of the approaching ruin of the New Testament Babylon; a warning to sinners to flee from the wrath to come, and it encourages believers to expect victory over every enemy of their souls, and of the church of God. The whole world changes and is liable to decay. Wherefore let us give diligence to obtain a kingdom which cannot be moved; and in this hope let us hold fast that grace whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.
Commentary by Matthew Henry, 1710.