Babylon’s Destruction
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Isaiah
15. An
expository study of Isaiah, chapter 13
I am
impressed by Isaiah’s knowledge, not only of his own country’s history and
social condition, but also that of the countries around about Israel. It
extends to Babylon, of which he also has heard much from the Lord. Of course,
the history of Babylon goes back to the book of Genesis 10, where Nimrod is
shown as the grandson of Noah. He founded Babel and in chapter 11, we read of
the infamous Tower of Babel and the language confusion that followed. Babylon
is particularly known as the mother of many pagan religious beliefs and
deities. In Revelation she is called the
mother of harlots.
International prophecies
Isaiah’s
knowledge of things to come reflects upon his personal relationship with God.
He speaks in this chapter of a destructive power, not giving its name until
verse 17, but is the Medio-Persian Empire that will arise against Babylon.
In this and
the following chapters, thirteen through twenty-three, Isaiah looks outside
Israel and prophesies of the future of other nations. He shows us the Lord’s
concern for all of creation, sending His Word to the people in those nations,
who have a fear of God. He has done this since the time that Israel was in
Egypt and Egyptians, who had learned to fear God through Moses, took warning
and made proper preparations for the disasters that were to come (Ex.9:19-20).
In Old
Testament times, while God favored His people Israel, he also showed his mercy
towards the heathen. The stories are too many to tell in this space, but just
for example, the book of Jonah gives the account of His kindness towards
Nineveh, which was actually Israel’s enemy! It is at the end of that story that
He opens his heart to Jonah and to us, as we read: “Should I not have compassion on Nineveh, the great city in which there
are more than 120,000 persons who do not know the difference between their
right and left hand, as well as many animals? (Jon.4:11). You may also
remember the story of the Syrian enemy’s commander, Naaman, who came to Israel
for healing and was cleansed of his leprosy.
The man after
God’s own heart, David, was probably the greatest evangelist to the nations of
all the Old Testament writers. In the Psalms he expressed the desire that the
God of Israel should be known in all the world. Solomon caught the burden in
his father’s heart and reached out to enlighten foreign kings and queens. In
the last chapter, we noticed Isaiah also had the spirit of an evangelist,
desiring that the Lord’s work would be known throughout the earth.
Isaiah begins
his international prophecies by addressing the Babylon situation. In Isaiah’s
time, Babylon had not yet come into its glory; in fact, it was a subject of
Assyria. Later on, King Hezekiah was ignorant of the Babylonian threat and
entertained its ambassadors, showing them Israel’s treasury. He earned a sharp
rebuke from Isaiah by doing so. Isaiah, by the Spirit, not only saw the rise of
this mighty empire, but in this chapter, he reveals its end. His word is being
projected into the future and the Israelites would one day take comfort in it.
What a mighty book this is! What other book speaks to the nations of the world,
not only in the present tense, but also tells the future, as if it had already
taken place? We have considered a future
Millennium, but Isaiah will reach farther still into new heavens and a new
earth!
An Oracle, meaning a Burden
This prophecy
is literally a burden, as the Hebrew word declares; it is a weighty message,
not easily borne (v.1). God does not take pleasure in the destruction of the
wicked, but that he should turn from his wickedness and live. Therefore this
prophecy is a burden to God and the reader should also see it as a burden.
I have
alluded to the fact before that God, in His Sovereign wisdom, has designed
prophecy in such a way that it will order itself, as time goes by. Daniel is
told that what he has been shown is being sealed until the time of the end
(Dn.12:9). As in making a puzzle, the prophet lays the pieces before us and
they will fall into place progressively. God raised up the prophets originally,
and along the way, he raises up interpreters. Isaiah disclosed two separate
advents of Christ to the earth, something against which no one today can
possibly argue. It is now very clearly seen, although Isaiah knew little or
nothing about this. .
In Isaiah’s
day, Babylon was a great nation, but not a world-dominating power. However, God
showed him that Babylon would reach that position, come down, besiege Judah,
tear the government from its hands and carry its leading people into captivity.
He saw that God would raise up the Medes against Babylon and destroy it. What
Isaiah did not know is that this prophecy would carry into the last days and
describe a mysterious Babylon that would usher in the anti-christ and
eventually be overthrown.
God musters the Medes and the Persians
God’s anger
shifts from the Assyrians, who conquered the northern kingdom of Israel, to the
Babylonians, who will come out from under the dependency of Assyria and defeat
the southern kingdom, Judah. First of all, see how the Lord of Hosts will
summon the Medio-Persians to war against Babylon. It is evident that, as He is
Lord of Hosts, He not only commands angels to battle, but He is sovereign over
the armies of earth.
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| The Cyrus Cylinder from London's British Museum |
He is clear in
His direction, raising a flag of loyalty and purpose, as a rallying point, and
does so on a bare hill, where it is easily seen. Then a loud cry rings out, so
that no one can turn a deaf ear to it. The Medio-Persians will see the flag, hear
the war cry and see a waving hand summoning them to battle (v.2). They won’t
miss it. These will enter Babylon, under Cyrus, without a fight, and deal with
her nobility. The Cyrus Cylinder, which describes the event, can be seen in the
British Museum in London. In the steele, as well, Cyrus tells of encouraging
the conquered people to return to their native lands.
God
emphasizes that the Medes and the Persians are set apart (consecrated) for His
purposes and this is His doing. He is motivated by anger, because of the
Babylonian cruelty against Israel, and He has called forth the mightiest army
of the day for their defeat (v.3). Belshazzar was actually grandson to
Nebuchadnezzar and his father, Nabonidus, was unpopular in the city and so he
left Belshazzar in charge, while he went to battle. So Nabonidus was the first
ruler of the empire, Belshazzar second, and Daniel was offered the position of third
ruler (Dn.5:16).
The Apocalyptic Babylon
Now, we begin
to see a similarity between the overthrow of literal Babylon and the great city
of the end times (v.4-5). Cyrus united the Medes and the Persians for that
purpose and in the time of the Apocalypse, there will be a united force of 10
kingdoms, along with the anti-christ, against an economical, political, and
religious entity called Babylon. John saw her as “the great city that has dominion over the kings of the earth”,
certainly Rome in his day (Rev.17:18).
The
Medio-Persian empire stretched out towards the north and east, far beyond the
reaches of the Babylonian borders. They begin to fulfill the prophecy, but it
will see an ultimate fulfillment, when “the
great day of their (the One who sits on the throne and the Lamb) wrath has come, and who is able to stand?”
(Rev.6:17). The Day of the Lord is a day of wrath, judgment and fear. This prophecy
is met by fear and it is described in verses 7 and 8: “All hands will fall limp, and every man’s heart will melt. They will
be terrified, pains and anguish will take hold of them; they will writhe like a
woman in labor, they will look at one another in astonishment, their faces
aflame.” On the Lord’s part, the day is “Cruel, with fury and burning anger” (v.9). No one with stable
character can take any pleasure, hearing such news, and therefore this word is
called the burden; it is accompanied
by wailing (v.6)
Now we go certainly
beyond the defeat and destruction of literal Babylon to the cosmic upheaval of
end times. Sinners are destroyed, and the sun, moon and star will not give
their light to earth. This is the Great Tribulation time (v.10), when the whole
world is punished. Notice the great abomination of the human race, with which
God is dealing: “Evil… iniquity… pomp…
arrogant… pompous pride… ruthless” (v.11). Always on top of the list of
foolish, little man is his arrogance and God absolutely cannot tolerate it. His
wrath falls, decimating the population on earth. You will have to search for
men, like you search for gold, as the heaven’s tremble and the earth is shaken
(v.12-13).
The utter destruction of historic Babylon
The prophecy
expanded like a mighty storm from the Old Testament Babylon to the destruction
upon the whole world and now it contracts again. We will look once more at what
God will do after Isaiah’s day and after Israel’s captivity. Like wild animals
and sheep without a shepherd, the Babylonians will scatter as before a hunter.
Those who are found and caught, will be executed on the spot (v.14-15). Verse
16 is almost too horrible to contemplate, as homes are destroyed, infants are
massacred and women are raped.
The invaders
are the Medio-Persians, who cannot be bought or caused to accept a ransom,
because of their bloodthirsty love of violence (v.17). They will kill the
young, abort the babies in the womb and have no mercy for little children
(v.18). Ah, but if you will go back to the Babylonian conquest, you will see
Nebuchadnezzar’s similar behavior against Judah. “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” (Is.63:4).
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| Germans began excavations early 20th Century |
This mighty
wonder of the world, described by Nebuchadnezzar as “he was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon… ‘Is not
this great Babylon, which I have built by my mighty power as a royal residence
and for the glory of my majesty?’” (Dn.4:29-30), became like Sodom and
Gomorrah. Who has even discovered the ruins of those two cities? The mighty Lord
of Host has spoken and Babylon lies uninhabited, not even giving shelter to
nomadic shepherds. The ruins of homes, where people ate and rested, is only fit
as dens for wild animals (v.19-21)
This
destruction is coming soon, Isaiah said, as the time spans of nations go, and
so it happened (v.22) 174 years later. Remember, however, that this prophecy is
meant to comfort the Jews in captivity and from that time, the fulfillment was
considerably shorter… in fact, right up to the day that it occurred. It
happened in the very night that Daniel interpreted the handwriting on the wall.
God laid bare His mighty arm and fulfilled His word. To this day, Babylon
remains, as described, and it was never rebuilt.
Interesting accounts
Albert Barnes
provides a number of interesting accounts written by travelers, who visited
Babylon, in his time or before:
‘There are many dens of wild beasts in
various parts.’ ‘There are quantities of porcupine quills.’ ‘In most of the
cavities are numberless bats and owls.’ ‘These caverns, over which the chambers
of majesty may have been spread, are now the refuge of jackals and other savage
animals. The mouths of their entrances are strewed with the bones of sheep and “goats;”
and the loathsome smell that issues from most of them is sufficient warning not
to proceed into the den.’ - (Sir R. K. Porter’s “Travels,” vol. ii. p. 342.)
‘The mound was full of large holes; we
entered some of them, and found them strewed with the carcasses and skeletons
of animals recently killed. The ordure of wild beasts was so strong, that
prudence got the better of curiosity, for we had no doubt as to the savage
nature of the inhabitants. Our guides, indeed, told us that all the ruins
abounded in lions and other wild beasts; so literally has the divine prediction
been fulfilled, that wild beasts of the deserts should lie there.’ - (Keppel’s
“Narrative,” vol. i. pp. 179, 180.)
From Rauwolff’s testimony it appears,
that in the sixteenth century ‘there was not a house to be seen;’ and now the
‘eye wanders over a barren desert, in which the ruins are nearly the only
indication that it had ever been inhabited. It is impossible to behold this
scene and not be reminded how exactly the predictions of Isaiah and Jeremiah
have been fulfilled, even in the appearance Babylon was doomed to present,
“that she should never be inhabited.”’ - (Keppel’s “Narrative,” p. 234.)
‘Babylon is spurned alike by the heel of
the Ottoman, the Israelites, and the sons of Ishmael.’ - (Mignan’s “Travels,”
p. 108.)
‘It is a tenantless and desolate
metropolis.’ - (Ibid. p. 235; see Keith “On Prophecy,” p. 221
‘Ruins composed, like those of Babylon,
of heaps of rubbish impregnated with nitre, cannot be cultivated.’ - (Rich’s
“Memoir,” p. 16.)
‘The decomposing materials of a
Babylonian structure doom the earth on which they perish, to lasting sterility.
On this part of the plain, both where traces of buildings are left, and where
none stood, all seemed equally naked of vegetation; the whole ground appearing
as if it had been washed over and over again by the coming and receding waters,
until every bit of genial soil was swept away; its half-clay, half-sandy
surface being left in ridgy streaks, like what is often seen on the flat shores
of the sea after the retreating of the tide.’ - (Sir R. K. Porter’s “Travels,”
vol. ii. p. 392.)
‘The ground is low and marshy, and presents
not the slightest vestige of former buildings, of any description whatever.’ -
(Buckingham’s “Travels,” vol. ii. p. 278.)
‘The ruins of Babylon are thus inundated
so as to render many parts of them inaccessible, by converting the valleys
among them into morasses.’ - (Rich’s “Memoir,” p. 13.)
They traverse these ruins by day without
fear; but at night the superstitious dread of evil spirits deters them from
remaining there. ‘Captain Mignan was accompanied by six Arabs completely armed,
but he “could not induce them to remain toward night, from the apprehension of
evil spirits. It is impossible to eradicate this idea from the minds of these
people, who are very deeply imbued with superstition ... And when the sun sunk
behind the Mujelibe, and the moon would have lighted his way among the ruins,
it was with infinite regret that he obeyed the summons of his guides.”’ -
(Mignan’s “Travels,” as quoted by Keith, pp. 221, 222.)
‘All the people of the country assert
that it is extremely dangerous to approach the mound’ (the mound in Babylon
called Kasr, or Palad) ‘after nightfall, on account of the multitude of evil
spirits by which it is haunted.’ - (Rich’s “Memoir on the Ruins of Babylon,” p.
27.)
Joseph Wolff, speaking of his visit to
Babylon, says, ‘I inquired of them (the Yezeedes), whether the Arabs ever
pitched their tents among the ruins of Babylon. No, said they, the Arabs
believe that the ghost of Nimrod walks amidst them in the darkness, and no Arab
would venture on so hazardous an experiment.’
The Septuagint renders it Δαιμόνια Daimonia
- ‘Demons, or devils.’ The Vulgate, Pilosi
- ‘Shaggy, or hairy animals.’ The Chaldee, ‘Demons.’ The essential idea is,
that such wild animals as are supposed to dwell in wastes and ruins, would hold
their revels in the forsaken and desolate palaces of Babylon. The following
remarks of Joseph Wolff may throw light on this passage: ‘I then went to the
mountain of Sanjaar, which was full of Yezeedes. One hundred and fifty years
ago, they believed in the glorious doctrine of the Trinity, and worshipped the
true God; but being severely persecuted by the neighboring Yezeedes, they have
now joined them, and are worshippers of the devil. These people frequent the
ruins of Babylon, and dance around them. On a certain night, which they call
the Night of Life, they hold their dances around the desolate ruins, in honor
of the devil. The passage which declares that “satyrs shall dance there,”
evidently has respect to this very practice. The original word translated
“satyr,” literally means, according to the testimony of the most eminent Jewish
rabbis, “devil worshippers.”’
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