Isaiah 15: 7-9

⁷ Therefore the abundance which they have acquired and stored up
They carry off over the brook of Arabim.
⁸ For the cry of distress has gone around the territory of Moab,
Its wail goes as far as Eglaim and its wailing even to Beer-elim.
⁹ For the waters of Dimon are full of blood;
Surely I will bring added woes upon Dimon,
A lion upon the fugitives of Moab and upon the remnant of the land.

Even as the prophet weeps over Moab and documents the nation's coming lament over the days of desolation and famine, Isaiah says that there will be "added woes" beyond those already foretold (vs. 9).

Because of the loss of Moab's two major cities and the desecration of the land, the refugee population rises--people are on the move. "Therefore," begins verse 7, the people take all that they have with them, even over "the brook of Arabim," which can also be translated as the brook of willows or poplars. My study Bible suggests that the brook might have been the Zered River, which forms a border between Moab and Edom.

Matthew Henry brings up an interesting point in noting the attitude of the Moabites. Here are a people facing ruin, weeping, shaving their heads in grief--over their personal losses, not over the loss of God in their lives--yet carrying their entire "abundance" off to a foreign land.

"Those that are eager to get abundance of this world, and solicitous to lay up what they have gotten, little consider what may become of it and in how short a time it may be all taken from them. Great abundance, by tempting the robbers, exposes the owners; and those who depend upon it to protect them often find it does but betray them."

--Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Bible

The "cry of distress" (vs. 8) from Moab is heard in the territory surrounding the nation. Eglaim is the northernmost part of Edom, and Beer-elim is the southernmost part of Edom. Moabite wailing covers a lot of auditory ground.

In verse 9, we read about Dimon. Depending on the original sources from which your Bible is translated, Dimon could be a place all its own or it could be an alternate spelling of Moab's idol capital, Dibon. Matthew Henry says, "Dimon signifies bloody; the place shall answer to its name." He references II Kings 3: 22 and 23, in which the Moabites see water that looks like blood. "Then they said, 'This is blood; the kings have surely fought together, and they have slain one another. Now therefore, Moab, to the spoil!'" (vs. 23) (Israel would then rise up in surprise to defeat them.) Here's what I read about the etymology of 'Dimon':

"The form of the name, Dimon, in Isa 15:9, may have been given to make it resemble the Hebrew dam, 'blood,' to support the play upon words in the verse...."

--International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

[It would be like Isaiah to use a play-on-words. Such a creative writer!]

But, given Moab's reliance upon idols and Dibon's propensity for them, it would be an equally plausible possibility that Isaiah was referring to the city itself. It is no wonder God would bring about additional woe upon the people in relationship to their activities at Dibon. Remember, "gods before Him" has always been the problem requiring the #1 Commandment. But the extent of the woes goes beyond Dibon to the fugitives themselves. One really does start to feel sad for this people in the end due to their cluelessness. We did wrong, but we won't own up to it. Instead, we'll cry over our ruin, take all that we own and cherish, and run away to start a new life [in an equally spiritually corrupt nation]! God would not have it. He would send "a lion." (vs 9)

It's a picture perhaps not unlike what Babylon would experience with the "desert creatures" taking over their houses, towers and palaces. (Isa. 13: 21 and 22) The cross-reference verse takes us back to another prophet's words--Amos--who warned that even when escape from the first obstacle is possible, there are more woes awaiting:

"Alas, you who are longing for the day of the Lord,
For what purpose will the day of the Lord be to you?
It will be darkness and not light;

As when a man flees from a lion
And a bear meets him,
Or goes home, leans his hand against the wall
And a snake bites him."

--Amos 5: 18 and 19

Perhaps the most striking contrast--and one that Judah should have seen--is that of "the remnant." [And did Isaiah choose that word on purpose or what?!] Moab's would not survive. Judah's would be preserved through the history of the world.

 

Where the scattered fugitives landed, as we begin Chapter 16. ...'Til next Wednesday!

Photo: www.warsawbiblicalgardens.org

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Next week:  Isaiah 16: 1-4
 
Note: I read from the New American Standard Bible translation,
specifically, The MacArthur Study Bible (NASB).
I will quote other sources if used in a post.
I also use Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible
(with notes from the King James Version).

Isaiah 15: 4-6

⁴ Heshbon and Elealeh also cry out,
Their voice is heard all the way to Jahaz;
Therefore the armed men of Moab cry aloud;
His soul trembles within him.
⁵ My heart cries out for Moab;
His fugitives are as far as Zoar and Eglath-shelishiyah,
For they go up the ascent of Luhith weeping;
Surely on the road to Horonaim they raise a cry of distress over their ruin.
⁶ For the waters of Nimrim are desolate.
Surely the grass is withered, the tender grass died out,
There is no green thing.

We continue to look at the judgment on Moab this week in Isaiah, Chapter 15. We are loaded with place names today, as you can see. I always like to look at the vocabulary, so let's figure out the proper nouns before we put things in proper perspective. (Background and Scripture cross-references from The Encyclopedia of the Bible.)

Heshbon--The city, east of the Dead Sea, had a history of takeover by various countries. At one time, Israel, under Moses' direction, captured the city:

"Israel took all these cities and Israel lived in all the cities of the Amorites, in Heshbon, and in all her villages. For Heshbon was the city of Sihon, king of the Amorites, who had fought against the former king of Moab and had taken all his land out of his hand, as far as the Arnon."

--Numbers 21: 25 and 26

Elealeh--This city is very close to Heshbon and even closer to the Dead Sea. Nations wrestled over its ownership as well throughout history. At one point, the city was given to the tribe of Reuben [of Israel] who rebuilt the city.

"The sons of Reuben built Heshbon and Elealeh and Kiriathaim, and Nebo and Baal-meon—their names being changed—and Sibmah, and they gave other names to the cities which they built."

--Numbers 32: 37 and 38

But, not long after, Moab reclaimed Elealeh, though they carried on a dispute over the city with Ammon.

Jahaz--This city was located some 20 miles south of Heshbon, on the Arnon River, and northeast of Moab's idol capital, Dibon. In the same battle that saw the Amorites' King Sihon lose Heshbon to Israel, Jahaz was also turned over.

Zoar--This city may have been located on the southern end of the Dead Sea, though Biblical scholars are not in agreement on this. We read about Zoar in Genesis in the account of Lot and his fleeing Sodom and Gomorrah in the time of God's wrath unleashed upon the cities. 

"The sun had risen over the earth when Lot came to Zoar.... Thus it came about, when God destroyed the cities of the valley, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when He overthrew the cities in which Lot lived."

--Genesis 19: 23 and 29

Eglath-shelishiyah--Not on our map, it's a city whose location is not clearly known, though mentioned in both Isaiah's and Jeremiah's prophecies concerning Moab. The King James Version actually reads, "...his fugitives shall flee unto Zoar, an heifer of three years old." Needed some help to understand that.

"In the former case strong and unconquered cities, Zoar and Horonaim, are compared to the heifer not yet broken to the yoke. Such use of 'heifer' is not infrequent (compare Jeremiah 46:20, Hosea 10:11, etc.). The majority of scholars, however, take it as a place-name."

--International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

I will be siding with the majority when we read this passage through momentarily.

Luhith--Possibly another city on the southern end of the Dead Sea, though this location is not for sure. Given how the passage containing the city reads, it may have been on a hill ("go up the ascent of Luhith," vs. 5).

Horonaim--Like Luhith, a possibly southern city, though unconfirmed.

Nimrim--'Nimrim' means basins of clear water. Again, the Biblical scholars are a bit all over the map, literally, in deciding where Nimrim was located. Most suggest it was a stream-oasis near the eastern coast of the Dead Sea.

Now, to our text. Isaiah is addressing the full nation of Moab, doing so through geographical reference points. He begins at the northern segment of the territory, with Heshbon and Elealeh crying out southward to Jahaz. (vs. 4) The cry from the fall of these cities triggers despair by the armies of the men of Moab. Soul trembling by the nation's mightiest warriors. This should help us to understand the depth of devastation to come.

Verse 5: "My heart cries out for Moab." I admit to tripping and stumbling when I came to this statement. 'My' refers to Isaiah. Isaiah was crying out for Moab, not just to Moab--and, truly, he was speaking to Judah. He is the bearer of bad news, but he does not put himself in a position of saying, "God told you this would happen if you didn't behave." This is a window into Isaiah's character--a man of compassion. Thinking back on Jonah and his relationship with Nineveh, we can see a very different man of prophecy.

"...It becomes God’s ministers to be of a tender spirit, not to desire the woeful day, but to be like their master, who wept over Jerusalem even when he gave her up to ruin, like their God, who desires not the death of sinners."

--Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Bible

Continuing with verse 5, Moab's fugitives flee as far as to its southernmost cities. They weep climbing the hill of Luhith, and on the road to Horonaim, they continue to cry out over its ruin. It is nationwide destruction and grief! On top of that, "...the waters of Nimrim are desolate." (vs. 6) As is not uncommon in these situations, there is a drought and famine accompanying Moab's already dreadful situation. "There is no green thing."

Times in Joel's days of prophecy were just as desperate for Judah and they were for Moab. No doubt, what Isaiah was describing of Moab would be a particularly vivid memory for Judah:

"The field is ruined,
The land mourns;
For the grain is ruined,
The new wine dries up,
Fresh oil fails.
Be ashamed, O farmers,
Wail, O vinedressers,
For the wheat and the barley;
Because the harvest of the field is destroyed.
The vine dries up
And the fig tree fails;
The pomegranate, the palm also, and the apple tree,
All the trees of the field dry up.
Indeed, rejoicing dries up
From the sons of men."

--Joel 1: 10-12

"...For the cry of distress has gone around...." Finishing up Chapter 15. ...'Til next Wednesday!

Photo: www.calvaryfullerton.org

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Next week:  Isaiah 15: 7-9
 
Note: I read from the New American Standard Bible translation,
specifically, The MacArthur Study Bible (NASB).
I will quote other sources if used in a post.
I also use Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible
(with notes from the King James Version).

Isaiah 15: 1-3

Judgment on Moab

¹ The oracle concerning Moab.

Surely in a night Ar of Moab is devastated and ruined;
Surely in a night Kir of Moab is devastated and ruined.
² They have gone up to the temple and to Dibon, even to the high places to weep.
Moab wails over Nebo and Medeba;
Everyone’s head is bald and every beard is cut off.
³ In their streets they have girded themselves with sackcloth;

On their housetops and in their squares
Everyone is wailing, dissolved in tears.

A new chapter of Isaiah brings a new chapter of judgment upon an enemy. This time, it's Moab, Judah's longtime southeastern enemy. 

My first thought of Moab is Ruth, who, you might recall, hailed from the country but chose to follow her mother-in-law, Naomi, back to her home in Judah at the conclusion of a time of famine there and the death of her sons. No one in the Bible is quoted as saying, "Can any good thing come out of Moab?" but if someone were, he or she would be referring to Ruth. You may also remember the story of King Balak of Moab who, out of his fear, tried to bring a curse upon Israel through his prophet Balaam. (God, through His angel, through Balaam's donkey said, "No." [Find the rest of the story in Numbers 22 through 24.])

God found Moab offensive because it worshiped idols. The nation's reliance on them trickled into everything and tainted the lives of God's people on more than one occasion. 

"This they [Moab] will have in return for their pride, because they have taunted and become arrogant against the people of the Lord of hosts. The Lord will be terrifying to them, for He will starve all the gods of the earth...."

--Zephaniah 2: 10-11a

The judgment through Isaiah is not that of complete destruction; God left that oracle to Jeremiah. [Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Bible] "This prophecy here was to be fulfilled within three years (Isa. 16:14), and therefore was fulfilled in the devastations made of that country by the army of the Assyrians...."

Not to escape our passage completely, but Henry makes another statement that I found interesting in referring to the speediness of the fulfillment of Isaiah's prophecy. It is good every so often to remember the mission of a prophet, and that it is a calling fraught with challenge, at times:

"...That the accomplishment of this prophecy now shortly (within three years) might be a confirmation of the prophet’s mission and of the truth of all his other prophecies, and might encourage the faithful to depend upon them."

--Matthew Henry

This oracle, though referring to Moab, was shared with the people of Judah. In reading through just these few short verses, I found that it sounded like something God would have spoken to Israel or Judah in a time of judgment. King Hezekiah would have been so moved by the sin of his country as to have torn his robes and donned sackcloth in seeking repentance. Isaiah was telling of Moab, and Moab's response, here, would seem similar to Hezekiah's, except for one huge difference. Let's look more closely at our verses.

In verse 1, we read that over the course of a night, Ar and Kir are "devastated and ruined." Ar and Kir are both major cities in Moab--Kir being the capital city. Such destruction in such a short time led the people into mourning. They retreat to the temple to weep, and to Nebo and Medeba. (vs. 2) Mount Nebo, near the Dead Sea, is one of the tall peaks with Pisgah, which is where God led Moses to view the Promised Land. (Deuteronomy 34:1) Medeba is a city about five miles away from Nebo.

With the end of verse 2 and, then, verse 3, come common expressions of grieving for that time: heads are bald; beards are cut; sackcloth put on; and, wailing, not just tears. There is no question that something deeply saddening has occurred. When it comes to the wearing of sackcloth, it is generally a sign, also, of disgrace or humiliation that comes with the grief. There is not just a tremendous loss, but there is sorrow expressed over the behavior that has led to this loss. Consider this example from the cross-referenced verses in today's passage:

"But both man and beast must be covered with sackcloth; and let men call on God earnestly that each may turn from his wicked way and from the violence which is in his hands."

--Jonah 3:8

This quote, from the king of Nineveh, comes following the prophet Jonah's words to the nation. God worked through a reluctant, fearful messenger to deliver a word of life-altering change to the head of the nation. Nineveh chose to follow God as a result, turning away from their sinful ways--at least, at that time. Another humble example of one "dissolved in tears" is Hannah. One of two wives to Elkanah, Hannah was unable to conceive and was repeatedly taunted by Elkanah's other wife over the matter. She cries out her grief to an overhearing Eli, the priest:

"She, greatly distressed, prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly. She made a vow and said, 'O Lord of hosts, if You will indeed look on the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, and not forget Your maidservant, but will give Your maidservant a son, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and a razor shall never come on his head.' ...But Hannah replied, 'No, my lord, I am a woman oppressed in spirit; I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have poured out my soul before the Lord.'"

--I Samuel 1: 10 and 11; 15

Hannah believed that her life was "devastated and ruined" without a child, under the oppression of a difficult household situation. But Hannah--and the king of Nineveh--understood something that Moab did not. Perhaps you noticed that I left out a detail in looking at verse 2:

"They have gone up to the temple and to Dibon, even to the high places to weep."

--vs. 2

The temple is not the temple in Jerusalem. Dibon is the location of the temple of the Moabite god, Chemosh. Not just any Moabite god, but, as most of the reference sources I looked at said, the national god of Moab. As God would call Israel the people of God, the Moabites were called the people of Chemosh. Putting this together, then, all of the wailing and grief measures and humble dress were all offered to Chemosh, to appease and to seek refuge and restoration in him--not God! Such an enormously critical difference. Because it is not the actions of the people that will rectify their devastated state--not if they are reaching out to a false god.

 

"Note, It becomes a people in distress to seek to their God; and shall not we then thus walk in the name of the Lord our God, and call upon him in the time of trouble, before whom we shall not shed such useless profitless tears as they did before their gods?"

--Matthew Henry

 

Which leads to asking, is there something over which we are crying profitless tears? The God who knows and holds each tear we cry (Psalm 56: 8) is approachable--waiting and ready to receive us.

 

"O soul, are you weary and troubled?
No light in the darkness you see?
There’s light for a look at the Savior,
And life more abundant and free!
Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His glory and grace."

--lyrics from Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus (Helen H. Lemmel)

"Surely, the grass is withered...," in Moab and elsewhere.... 'Til next Wednesday!

Photo: www.thenagain.info

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Next week:  Isaiah 15: 4-6
 
Note: I read from the New American Standard Bible translation,
specifically, The MacArthur Study Bible (NASB).
I will quote other sources if used in a post.
I also use Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible
(with notes from the King James Version).