Isaiah 47

CHAPTER 47THEME: The decline and fall of BabylonThis is the third time in this book (chs. 13-14; 21) that we have considered the prediction of the doom of Babylon. There was also a suggestion of the fall of Babylon in chapter 46, which opened with God’s judgment upon the idols. The time given to this subject is remarkable in view of the fact that Babylon at this time was a very small and insignificant kingdom. It was almost a century before it would become a world power. It had been in existence since the days of the Tower of Babel and had influenced the world religiously. Babylon was the fountainhead and the mother of all idolatry.

Again I recommend for your study Alexander Hislop’s book, The Two Babylons. All through the Old Testament books of prophecy a great deal is said about drunkenness and idolatry. These are the two things that will bring the downfall of any nation. There is a spiritual meaning for us of the present who have nothing to do with Babylon of the past or of the future. The Babylon of the past lies under the rubble and ruin of judgment. Its glory is diminished by the accumulated dust of the centuries. We can see this Babylonian tendency today in the political realm as represented in the United Nations. Babel is the place where all the political power of the world comes together, which will finally be under the willful king, the Antichrist. We see the commercial combine coming to pass in the breaking down of economic barriers among the nations of Europe. We see the religious combine in both Romanism and the World Council of Churches. We will see all of this prefigured in ancient Babylon.

Isaiah 47:1

DECLINE OF BABYLON"Come down" is the command of God to Babylon, the same as a dog is called to obedience. It is like saying, “Down Rover, down Fido.” That is the way God is going to talk to the great world power Babylon when the time comes for it to be brought low. God will say, “Down Fido, down Babylon.” That is the way the Lord Jesus dealt with the storm on the little sea of Galilee. When the Lord spoke to the waves and the wind, He literally said, “Be muzzled,” like you would muzzle a dog. The same thought is here in Isaiah. Babylon is called a virgin because she had not yet been captured by an enemy. Babylon was just now coming to power although it had a very ancient history, going back to Nimrod (see Gen. 10) and to Babel where the Tower of Babel (see Gen. 11) was located. All the ziggurats in that valley were patterned after the Tower of Babel. He predicts the tremendous humiliation of Babylon

Isaiah 47:2

This depicts the indescribable humiliation to which Babylon was finally subjected. She had mistreated the people of Israel, and the day came when she was brought low. Nudity is becoming rather popular today. Men play with the subject like a child playing with a new toy, but it degrades humanity. It was no accident that God clothed mankind. A person who wants to go without clothes has a hangupa real hangup. For Babylon nudity was part of her humiliation.

Isaiah 47:6

DELIVERANCE OF ISRAEL TO BABYLONHere we see that God delivered Israel into the hands of Babylon God is making it clear to them that the reason Babylon was able to take His people was because He permitted it and not because Babylon was so superior. They had a great sense of power, and they gave themselves credit for overthrowing Israel. They were wrong. God delivered His people into the hands of Babylon because they had sinned against Him. He was judging His own people. This is the message of the little prophecy of Habakkuk.

Isaiah 47:7

God’s judgment of His people deceived Babylon. They thought it was by their might and power that they had taken God’s people.

Isaiah 47:8

Babylon was arrogant, lifted up, and careless, not believing that a frightful fall was coming. Nebuchadnezzar, the Babylonian king, looked over the beautiful and glorious city of Babylon, and said, “This is great Babylon that I have built,” giving no credit to God. God sent him out to the field like an ox to eat grass, having a form of amnesiaprobably the psychiatrist would call it hysteria today. For a long time he did not know who he was, and he lived like an animal. It was God’s judgment upon him.

Isaiah 47:10

DETAILS FOR THE DESTRUCTION OF BABYLONThere is always a grave danger of a nation or a man being lifted up by pride and feeling that he is able to make it on his own. We are living in a country today where men can become rich, not by doing some great service or by making a contribution to mankind, but by being in an industry that brings men downdegrades them instead of building them up. Think of the millions of dollars that are being made through entertainment and the multitudes who are getting rich through the sale of liquor. We are in many questionable businesses as a nation, and our methods of business are not always honorable. We attempt to cover up these things, but God sees, and He will judge as He judged Babylon.

Isaiah 47:12

DILEMMA OF BABYLONGod satirically urges Babylon to turn to the witchcraft in which she has trusted and which has gotten her into trouble. In substance God asks, “You thought it was so great, why don’t you trust it to get you out of trouble?”

Isaiah 47:13

Confusion characterizes Babylon at this time. The city lives up to its nameBabylon means “confusion,” and confusion besets them. That great city depended upon its economic strength and its total gross product. But something happened to that nation, and it was dying within. We are living in a country today that depends upon its economic strength, but something is also wrong with us, and we won’t face up to it. Our problem is moral. As a nation we have departed from the living and true God. The ancient city of Babylon, which at first glance seems so unrelated to us, has a message for us. The stones of the debris of Babylon are crying out a warning to us.