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The Burden of Babylon
By D. G. Alley
Back in the days when Babylon was merely one of the cities of the Assyrian Empire, before it grew strong and became the capital of its own empire, Isaiah received a prophecy regarding a future battle. This prophecy is recorded in Isaiah chapter 13.
The first eight verses describe an invasion of the land of Babylon. Isaiah interrupts his description in the middle to announce that this invasion will mean that the Day of the Lord is near. With verse 9, Isaiah repeats the warning that the Day of the Lord is coming, then the rest of the chapter describes the wrath that the Lord will visit upon the Earth, and the ultimate fate of the land of Babylon. The sequence is fairly clear. There will be an invasion that will mean that the end is near, then the Day of the Lord will arrive bringing the wrath of God.
Let’s look at those first few verses.
Isa 13:1-9
1 An oracle concerning Babylon that Isaiah son of Amoz saw:
2 Raise a banner on a bare hilltop, shout to them; beckon to them to enter the gates of the nobles.
3 I have commanded my holy ones; I have summoned my warriors to carry out my wrath-- those who rejoice in my triumph.
4 Listen, a noise on the mountains, like that of a great multitude! Listen, an uproar among the kingdoms, like nations massing together! The LORD Almighty is mustering an army for war.
5 They come from faraway lands, from the ends of the heavens-- the LORD and the weapons of his wrath-- to destroy the whole country.
6 Wail, for the day of the LORD is near; it will come like destruction from the Almighty.
7 Because of this, all hands will go limp, every man's heart will melt.
8 Terror will seize them, pain and anguish will grip them; they will writhe like a woman in labor. They will look aghast at each other, their faces aflame.
9 See, the day of the LORD is coming- a cruel day, with wrath and fierce anger-- to make the land desolate and destroy the sinners within it.
(NIV)
As you can see, Isaiah speaks of an army of nations amassed together, from faraway lands that invade and destroy the land of Babylon. Does that not sound familiar?
In 2003, the United States, the United Kingdom, Spain, Australia, Poland,Portugal, and Denmark invaded, destroyed, and captured Iraq, the land once known as Babylonia. The remains of the city of Babylon are only about fifty miles south of the city of Baghdad.
Verse 3 mentions his holy ones. Something is holy if it has been designated for use for God’s purposes. The same goes for people. In Isaiah’s day and age, the priests might have been considered holy, along with the equipment they used to offer sacrifices. The Temple itself was considered to be holy. Today, Christians are made holy by their faith in the completed work of Jesus Christ. Take another look at the list of nations that invaded Iraq. They are, by and large, Christian nations. And their warriors, their armies, reflect that. And in this case, since God himself summoned and commanded them, they became holy.
Verse 4 indicates that multiple nations will be involved in this invasion. The United Nations issued numerous resolutions against Iraq before the US and its allies went forth to do war upon the country. And although only seven nations participated in the initial invasion and conquest, over thirty nations were involved in the subsequent occupation.
None of the nations that invaded Iraq are located anywhere close to the country. Both the United States and Australia come close to being on the opposite side of the world. Thus, as verse 5 indicates, the invading forces definitely came from faraway lands, from the ends of the heavens. And the country of Iraq was essentially destroyed. I think we in America have spent much more to rebuild the infrastructure of Iraq than we spent to subdue the country in the first place.
Verse 6 says that this invasion will seem like destruction from the Almighty. Smart bombs and cruise missiles fell from the sky onto Iraq just like fire and brimstone rained down upon Sodom and Gomorrah.
Verse 6 also instructs us to take this invasion to mean that the Day of the Lord is at hand.
It is not possible for us to know exactly how a prophecy will play out before it actually happens. We can’t see the future like God can. The priests of Jesus’ day knew that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem, but they probably never suspected that his parents would be visitors from Nazareth, only in town for the weekend, so to speak. Also, in 1940, who would have guessed that the nation of Israel was about to spring back to life?
Similarly, before 2003, who could have predicted how Isaiah 13 would be fulfilled? But now, looking back on events, we can see.
The war of Isaiah 13:1-8 has happened. Eight years ago. Thus, we have been warned that the Day of the Lord is at hand.
Yes! Jesus is Coming!
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