Isaiah 13:1–14:27 Human Power, Divine Sovereignty, and the Folly of Trusting Nations
This next section of Isaiah launches into the first and most expansive of the “oracles against the nations.” It begins with Babylon. That’s interesting, because at this point in history, Babylon wasn’t even the dominant global power. Assyria was. But Isaiah sees further ahead. Babylon will rise. Babylon will fall. And through it all, YHWH will remain sovereign.
What emerges in this oracle is a theological earthquake. God is not only sovereign over Israel. He is also sovereign over Israel’s enemies. Babylon may be the hammer in God's hand for judgment, but she is still a tool and not an innocent one. Babylon’s rise, violence, and pride will not go unchecked. After God uses her to discipline His people, He will then judge her, too.
This raises a crucial and often unsettling biblical truth:
God can use wicked people and empires to accomplish His purposes.
That doesn’t mean He endorses their actions. Motyer puts it well: “We must not think of human beings as puppets with the Lord as their puppet-master. On the contrary, they are being themselves to the full… in a very real sense… what the Bible speaks of as 'the stretching out of his hand' would be more easily understood if we thought of it as the withdrawing of his hand.”
That idea is hard to stomach. We like the thought of God protecting us from our enemies, not giving us over to them. But Isaiah won’t let us hold onto that illusion. If Jerusalem refuses to trust YHWH, if she tries to control her own destiny by trusting in worldly powers, she will find herself betrayed and broken by the very powers she trusted.
This is what happened. Israel and Judah, in various ways, made alliances, turned to empires for help, and abandoned their trust in God. And they paid for it.
"Jerusalem is only inviolate if she finds the correct place in which to repose her trust: the living God. If she places it elsewhere she will be destroyed."
—John Oswalt
But even here, in the midst of warning, we find hope. Chapter 14 opens with the declaration that YHWH “will again choose Israel.” The remnant will survive. The faithful will find rest. God’s judgment is never the final word for His covenant people.
The oracle against Babylon becomes a sort of taunt-song, a poetic reversal where the seemingly unstoppable tyrant is cast down, mocked, and forgotten. The proud king who shook the nations lies still in the dust. Hell stirs to receive him. The power he wielded is nothing before the God who rules not only heaven and earth, but also the grave.
This is not just about one ancient empire. This is a critique of human empire in every age. It's about any society or system that exalts itself in pride and seeks supremacy apart from God. As Oswalt writes, “The cause of Israel’s troubles is the confrontation between the supremacy of God and that thirst for supremacy which is lodged in the human heart.”
That line hits hard. Our grasp for control is not neutral. It is rebellion. It is the root of Babylon, and it lives in all of us.
This passage calls me to ask:
-Where have I exchanged trust in YHWH for human solutions?
-What worldly powers or systems have I made my functional savior?
-How often do I try to control the outcomes, instead of living in obedience?
Babylon will fall. Assyria will fall. Judah will fall unless she trusts the Lord. And so will I.
What emerges in this oracle is a theological earthquake. God is not only sovereign over Israel. He is also sovereign over Israel’s enemies. Babylon may be the hammer in God's hand for judgment, but she is still a tool and not an innocent one. Babylon’s rise, violence, and pride will not go unchecked. After God uses her to discipline His people, He will then judge her, too.
This raises a crucial and often unsettling biblical truth:
God can use wicked people and empires to accomplish His purposes.
That doesn’t mean He endorses their actions. Motyer puts it well: “We must not think of human beings as puppets with the Lord as their puppet-master. On the contrary, they are being themselves to the full… in a very real sense… what the Bible speaks of as 'the stretching out of his hand' would be more easily understood if we thought of it as the withdrawing of his hand.”
That idea is hard to stomach. We like the thought of God protecting us from our enemies, not giving us over to them. But Isaiah won’t let us hold onto that illusion. If Jerusalem refuses to trust YHWH, if she tries to control her own destiny by trusting in worldly powers, she will find herself betrayed and broken by the very powers she trusted.
This is what happened. Israel and Judah, in various ways, made alliances, turned to empires for help, and abandoned their trust in God. And they paid for it.
"Jerusalem is only inviolate if she finds the correct place in which to repose her trust: the living God. If she places it elsewhere she will be destroyed."
—John Oswalt
But even here, in the midst of warning, we find hope. Chapter 14 opens with the declaration that YHWH “will again choose Israel.” The remnant will survive. The faithful will find rest. God’s judgment is never the final word for His covenant people.
The oracle against Babylon becomes a sort of taunt-song, a poetic reversal where the seemingly unstoppable tyrant is cast down, mocked, and forgotten. The proud king who shook the nations lies still in the dust. Hell stirs to receive him. The power he wielded is nothing before the God who rules not only heaven and earth, but also the grave.
This is not just about one ancient empire. This is a critique of human empire in every age. It's about any society or system that exalts itself in pride and seeks supremacy apart from God. As Oswalt writes, “The cause of Israel’s troubles is the confrontation between the supremacy of God and that thirst for supremacy which is lodged in the human heart.”
That line hits hard. Our grasp for control is not neutral. It is rebellion. It is the root of Babylon, and it lives in all of us.
This passage calls me to ask:
-Where have I exchanged trust in YHWH for human solutions?
-What worldly powers or systems have I made my functional savior?
-How often do I try to control the outcomes, instead of living in obedience?
Babylon will fall. Assyria will fall. Judah will fall unless she trusts the Lord. And so will I.
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