The Divine Lamp

Read 2:12-19Vs. 12 The Lord will have his day. Among the Jews the Lord’s day was conceived of primarily as a day for their material benefit. It would be a day when she would be freed from the oppression of enemies and the land would once again become productive. The problem with this view was that it was presumptuous. It failed to take account of the fact that their troubles were the result of sin; and, therefore, had been brought upon them by God. (see my notes on 1:5-8) By their sins they had become God’s enemies. (see 1:24) As a result of this, the prophet Amos, an earlier contemporary of Isaiah, could say, “Woe for those who look forward to the day of the Lord! Why desire the day of the Lord? For you it will be a day of darkness and not of light. It will be as when a man flees a lion and is met by a bear; or, if when he enters his house, he puts his hand upon the wall and a snake bites him (note: these things would be unexpected, like what the day of the lord will really be like). The day of the Lord will be darkness and not light; gloom, with no brightness about it (Amos 5:18-20).

The day of the Lord will be against all that is proud…lofty…lifted up…high. As noted in my comments on 2:2 false worship of idols often took place “on the high places.” This was a sign of man’s arrogance and pride. A sign of his attempt to raise himself up without God and the right worship of God (see 2:6-11; and my comments).

Vss 13-16 (the day of the Lord will be) against all the cedars of Lebanon…all the oaks of Bashan…all high mountains…lofty hills…high tower…fortified wall…the ships of Tarshish. In the bible, in one way or another, these are all symbols of pride and arrogance.

cedars Lebanon was justly famous for its stately and beautiful cedars. In the bible they are praised and admired, but they also become symbols of ostentation and vainglory because their use in houses became a status symbol (see Jer 22:14-15; see also Isa 9:8-10).

Bashan refers to fertile land located east of the Jordan River. It was famous for its many oak trees. Oak, then as now was symbolic of strength and might (see Amos 2:9). I understand the reference to the cedars and the oaks to be a symbolic reference to idolatrous man who exalts himself against God as he worships under terebinth (oak) trees and in groves (Isa 1:29). In Isa 57:5 the people are condemned for worshipping “under every green tree” (see also Hosea 4:13).

Mountains…hills Often called “high places” where the cultic worship of false gods took place. Recall that in 2:2-5 the prophet said that “the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established as the highest mountain, and shall be raised above the hills…” It becomes clear that this will take place by the destruction of idolatry.

Towers…fortified walls Military edifices. The people of God were forbidden to undertake a strong military build-up because they were to trust in God, not chariots (See Deuteronomy 17:16; Psalms 27, 59, 76). Amos, in 8:11-14 associates the building of fortifications with idolatry. Does the prophet Isaiah see military build-up and alliances (7:3-13) as an attempt to avert God’s punishment for idolatry, which would take the form of military invasion by foreigners? (See Isa 1:7-8 and Deut 28:49-57)

ships of Tarshish. Tarshish refers to a colony of Phoenicians located on the coast of southern Spain or, possibly, the island of Sardinia. During the age of king Solomon trade was established between Tarshish and Israel, or, to be more exact, ships of Tarshish would leave Ezion-geber on commercial missions for Solomon. This proved very lucrative for Solomon (see 1 Kings 9:26-28). However, large-scale foreign economic deals were forbidden to the Jewish kings because such deals usually involved the invoking of the other party’s gods. Also, such deals were usually sealed by one king giving the other king a daughter in marriage. In this way, Solomon acquired great wealth, but also many foreign wives and concubines who, “turned his heart towards their gods,” for which he was punished (1 Kings 11). In Isaiah’s day, according to historians, trade with Tarshish was once again being sought; therefore, idolatry was again a concern.

Vs 17 Man shall be humbled…pride…brought low…the Lord exalted on that day. This verse is almost a verbatim repeat of verse 11.

Vs 18 Idols pass away. The prophet is well aware that idols are lifeless things (see his scathing description of idolatry in 44:6-20). His reference to idols passing away must be seen as sarcastic irony.

Vs 19 Men shall enter caves…holes…to escape the terror of the Lord…when he rises… Just as verse 17 paralleled verse 11, this verse parallels verse 10. On the day of the Lord men will no longer be found on the high places or trusting in their military fortification, rather, they will seek refuge in holes, thus showing their abasement as the Lord rises up.

Vs 20 On that day men will cast forth their idols…to the moles and the bats. Moles and bats were considered unclean by the Mosaic law, a fitting end for the idols and a commentary on their value.

Vs 21 Takes up the same theme as verses 10 and 19. It continues the thought of verse 20 also. The reason they will treat the idols this way is because of the terror of the Lord they will experience and because of the glory of his majesty. Lifeless idols fit only for bat and mole dung are no match for the true and living God.

Vs 22 Turn away from man in whose nostrils is breath. For what account is he? This verse is missing in the LXX. Scholars believe that it is probably meant as a warning against taking human counsel instead of the counsel of God given thru the prophets. I would add that it contains an allusion to Genesis 2:7. There, God breathes the breath of life into the man he made from the dust of the earth. the very dust man will seek to hide in on the day of the Lord (Isa 2:10). When it comes to the worship of God then, man is in no position to be listened to. God made man and gave him the breath of life and man cannot give his life-breath to idols as Wisdom 13:10-19 shows.