(33) Tophet is ordained of old.--Literally, the Tophet, or place of burning, with perhaps the secondary sense of "a place of loathing." Tophet was the name given to the Valley of Hinnom, outside Jerusalem, where, within the memory of living men, Ahaz had made his son to pass through the fire to Moloch (2 Kings 16:3), and where like sacrifices had taken place up to the time of Hezekiah's accession. "The king" is, of course, the king of Assyria; but the Hebrew, "for the melek," suggests a sarcastic reference to the god there worshipped, as if it were "for Moloch." There was to be a great sacrifice of the Melek to the Moloch, who was as a mighty king (the name of the Ammonite god being a dialectic form of the Hebrew Melek) exulting in his victims. (Comp. for the idea Isaiah 31:9.)
The pile thereof is fire and much wood.--The word seems partly literal, and partly figurative. The king of Assyria, though he did not die at Jerusalem, is represented as burnt with stately ceremonial in Tophet. Probably, as a matter of fact, it was the burial place of the corpses that were lying round the city after the pestilence had destroyed the Assyrian army, and they were literally burnt there. For such a Moloch funeral, making the valley of Hinnom then, as it afterwards became, a fit type of Gehenna, a trench deep and wide and a mighty pyre were needed. Comp. Jeremiah 19:12, where like words are spoken of Jerusalem.
Verse 33. - For Tophet is ordained of old; rather, for a Tophet has been long since prepared. A "Tophet" is a place of burning, probably derived from the Aryan root tap or taph, found in Greek τάφος τέφρα, Latin tep-idus, Sanskrit tap, Persian taphtan. The name was specially attached to a particular spot in the Valley of Hinnom, where sacrifices were offered to Moloch (2 Kings 23:10; Jeremiah 7:31; Jeremiah 19:6, 11, etc.); but Isaiah seems to use it generically, as if there were many Tophets. For the king it is prepared; literally, it also is prepared for the king - in the Hebrew "for the moloch," which is the same word as "Moloch," who was looked upon by his worshippers as "the king" ςκατςἐξοχήν. Isaiah means to say, "As the Tophet of the Vale of Hinnom is prepared for a king (Moloch), so this new Tophet is prepared for another king (the King of Assyria)." He hath made it deep and large - a vast burning-place for a vast multitude (2 Kings 19:35), with the fire and the wood ready, only awaiting the breath of Jehovah to kindle it. As the bodies of great malefactors were burnt (Joshua 7:25), and not buried, so the prophet consigns to a great burning the hundred and eighty-five thousand Assyrian corpses, of which it would soon be necessary to dispose in some way.
30:27-33 God curbs and restrains from doing mischief. With a word he guides his people into the right way, but with a bridle he turns his enemies upon their own ruin. Here, in threatening the ruin of Sennacherib's army, the prophet points at the final and everlasting destruction of all impenitent sinners. Tophet was a valley near Jerusalem, where fires were continually burning to destroy things that were hurtful and offensive, and there the idolatrous Jews caused their children to pass through the fire to Moloch. This denotes the certainty of the destruction, as an awful emblem of the place of torment in the other world. No oppressor shall escape the Divine wrath. Let sinners then flee to Christ, seeking to be reconciled to Him, that they may be safe and happy, when destruction from the Almighty shall sweep away all the workers of iniquity.
For Tophet is ordained of old,.... The place long ago appointed for the ruin of the Assyrian army, which pitched here: this was a valley near Jerusalem, the valley of the son of Hinnom; so called, from the drums and tabrets beat upon here, to prevent parents hearing the cries of their infants offered to Molech: into it was brought the filth and dung of the city; here malefactors were buried, it is said; and such as were condemned to burning were burned here; and such as had no burial were cast here; so that it was an image and picture of hell itself: and the word "Gehenna", used for hell, comes from "Gehinnom", or the valley of Hinnom, the name of this place; and some think that is here meant, which from all eternity was appointed as the place of torment for wicked men, So the Targum,
"for hell is ordained from the worlds (or before the worlds), because of their sins.''
It is in the original, "from yesterday": hence Jarchi interprets it of the second day of the creation, which had a yesterday; on which day the Jews suppose hell was made: and so it is interpreted in the Talmud (p), where it is said to be one of the seven things created before the world was, and is proved from this text; and said to be called Tophet, because whoever is deceived by his imagination (or evil concupiscence) falls into it; See Gill on Matthew 25:41 with this compare Jde 1:4,
yea, for the king it is prepared; for Sennacherib king of Assyria; that is, for his army, which perished here, though he did not; or for kings, the singular for the plural; for his princes, which, as he boastingly said, were "altogether kings", Isaiah 10:8 and particularly for Rabshakeh, the general of his army, who might be so called, and was eminently one of these kings. Understood of hell, it may not only be interpreted of Satan, the king and prince of devils, for whom and his angels the everlasting fire of hell is prepared, Matthew 25:41 but also of antichrist, the king of the bottomless pit, and of all antichristian kings; see Revelation 11:9. Some render it, "by the king it is prepared"; so the Vulgate Latin version; by whom may be meant either Hezekiah, who cleared it from idols and idolatrous worship, and so eventually prepared it to make room for the Assyrian army; or else the King of kings. So the Targum,
"the King of worlds (of all worlds) prepared it;''
and he seems manifestly designed in the next clause:
he hath made it deep and large; to hold the whole army alive, and to bury them when dead; and so hell is large and deep enough to hold Satan and all his angels, antichrist and all his followers; yea, all the wicked that have been from the beginning of the world, and will be to the end of it:
the pile thereof is fire and much wood; alluding to the burning of bodies in this place, and particularly of infants sacrificed to Molech; and refers to the burning of the Assyrian army, either by lightning from heaven, or by the Jews when they found them dead the next morning. In hell, the "fire" is the wrath of God; the "wood" or fuel ungodly men:
the breath of the Lord, like a stream of brimstone, doth kindle it; the pile of fire and wood. The Targum is,
"the word of the Lord, like an overflowing torrent of brimstone, shall kindle it;''
it shall be done by his order, at his word of command. In hell, the wrath of God will be like a continual stream of brimstone, keeping up the fire of it, so that it shall ever burn, and never be quenched; hence it is called a lake burning with fire and brimstone; into which Satan, the beast, and false prophet, and the worshippers of antichrist, will be cast, Revelation 14:10. The allusion is to the fire and brimstone rained by Jehovah, from Jehovah, upon Sodom and Gomorrah, Genesis 19:24.
The pile thereof is fire and much wood.--The word seems partly literal, and partly figurative. The king of Assyria, though he did not die at Jerusalem, is represented as burnt with stately ceremonial in Tophet. Probably, as a matter of fact, it was the burial place of the corpses that were lying round the city after the pestilence had destroyed the Assyrian army, and they were literally burnt there. For such a Moloch funeral, making the valley of Hinnom then, as it afterwards became, a fit type of Gehenna, a trench deep and wide and a mighty pyre were needed. Comp. Jeremiah 19:12, where like words are spoken of Jerusalem.
"for hell is ordained from the worlds (or before the worlds), because of their sins.''
It is in the original, "from yesterday": hence Jarchi interprets it of the second day of the creation, which had a yesterday; on which day the Jews suppose hell was made: and so it is interpreted in the Talmud (p), where it is said to be one of the seven things created before the world was, and is proved from this text; and said to be called Tophet, because whoever is deceived by his imagination (or evil concupiscence) falls into it; See Gill on Matthew 25:41 with this compare Jde 1:4,
yea, for the king it is prepared; for Sennacherib king of Assyria; that is, for his army, which perished here, though he did not; or for kings, the singular for the plural; for his princes, which, as he boastingly said, were "altogether kings", Isaiah 10:8 and particularly for Rabshakeh, the general of his army, who might be so called, and was eminently one of these kings. Understood of hell, it may not only be interpreted of Satan, the king and prince of devils, for whom and his angels the everlasting fire of hell is prepared, Matthew 25:41 but also of antichrist, the king of the bottomless pit, and of all antichristian kings; see Revelation 11:9. Some render it, "by the king it is prepared"; so the Vulgate Latin version; by whom may be meant either Hezekiah, who cleared it from idols and idolatrous worship, and so eventually prepared it to make room for the Assyrian army; or else the King of kings. So the Targum,
"the King of worlds (of all worlds) prepared it;''
and he seems manifestly designed in the next clause:
he hath made it deep and large; to hold the whole army alive, and to bury them when dead; and so hell is large and deep enough to hold Satan and all his angels, antichrist and all his followers; yea, all the wicked that have been from the beginning of the world, and will be to the end of it:
the pile thereof is fire and much wood; alluding to the burning of bodies in this place, and particularly of infants sacrificed to Molech; and refers to the burning of the Assyrian army, either by lightning from heaven, or by the Jews when they found them dead the next morning. In hell, the "fire" is the wrath of God; the "wood" or fuel ungodly men:
the breath of the Lord, like a stream of brimstone, doth kindle it; the pile of fire and wood. The Targum is,
"the word of the Lord, like an overflowing torrent of brimstone, shall kindle it;''
it shall be done by his order, at his word of command. In hell, the wrath of God will be like a continual stream of brimstone, keeping up the fire of it, so that it shall ever burn, and never be quenched; hence it is called a lake burning with fire and brimstone; into which Satan, the beast, and false prophet, and the worshippers of antichrist, will be cast, Revelation 14:10. The allusion is to the fire and brimstone rained by Jehovah, from Jehovah, upon Sodom and Gomorrah, Genesis 19:24.
(p) T. Bab. Pesachim, fol. 54. 1. Nedarim, fol. 39. 2. & Erubim, fol. 19. 1.