Isaiah 13 – 23 Nation Oracles Introduction The scope of Isaiah’s prophecies expands between chapters 13 – 23 to include God’s sovereign rule over all the earth. We have already looked at Babylon in chapters 13 – 14 standing at the head of the list of oracles against the nations. This present section will now cover oracles against other nations and will proclaim God’s ultimate and inevitable judgment against the entire world. In previous chapters, the Lord brought a lawsuit against His people because of their continual and pervasive sin. They would experience His judgment for such rebellion. Yet, there would be a remnant of faith that He would protect and preserve. In the previous chapter Isaiah began to prophesy about the coming Messiah— how this King would have the government on His shoulders and how He would exercise God’s justice and righteousness. In these current chapters we see that the extent of the Messiah’s rule will be over all the nations, not simply over Israel. (See previous notes for chapter 13 and 14 for the prophecy against Babylon and her King. This set will pick it up at the end of chapter 14 with the oracle against Assyria.) I. (14:24‐32) Oracle against Assyria A. Reader’s Note What follows is a cursory (and incomplete) outline of Assyrian history, with particular attention to the Assyrian kings. It is hard to find this information in one place, and since the Assyrian Empire is the historical backdrop to the book of Isaiah, I have placed this information here. It would be very difficult to keep this information at your fingertips in the front of your mind, so I gathered it here for your reference. B. Isaiah’s Historical Context 1. Remember that when Isaiah prophesied the reigning power in the Ancient Near East was the Assyrian Empire. 2. However, Babylon is placed at the head of these nation oracles in chapter 13. a) Placing Babylon at the head highlights its eschatological significance as the headquarters of Satan’s rebellious kingdom. Page | 1 b) From Isaiah’s historical vantage point, placing Babylon at the head of the nations also highlights the significance of the coming Babylonian Captivity after the Assyrian Empire Falls. c) But at the time Isaiah prophesied, Babylon was not a world power. C. Early History of Assyria 1. Assyria existed as a nation from the late 25th century BC to its conquest around 605 BC. 2. Territory a) Its territory was centered in the region of the Upper Tigris River (modern‐day Iraq). b) At the height of its strength (700‐627BC), Assyria stretched from the head of the Persian Gulf across the Fertile Crescent into modern‐day Turkey, who modern‐day Israel, and then down the Nile into Egypt. c) It’s ancient capital was the city of Assur, though later the capital was moved to the city of Nineveh. 3. Early History (see footnote below from Wikipedia)1 1 “Assyria evolved originally as a minor Akkadian kingdom. From the late 24th Century BC Assyrian kings would certainly have been regional leaders only, and subject to Sargon of Akkad who united all the Akkadian speaking peoples of Mesopotamia under the Akkadian Empire which lasted from 2334 BC to 2154 BC. After the fall of the Akkadian Empire circa 2154 BC, and the succeeding Sumerian 3rd Dynasty of Ur, Mesopotamia eventually coalesced into just two separate nations; Assyria in the north, and some century and a half later, Babylonia in the south. In the Old Assyrian period of the Early Bronze Age, Assyria had been a kingdom of northern Mesopotamia (modern‐day northern Iraq), initially competing with their fellow Sumero‐Akkadian states in southern Mesopotamia for dominance of the region, and also with the Hattians and Hurrians to the north in Asia Minor, the Gutians to the east in the Zagros Mountains and the Eblaites and later Amorites in The Levant to the west. During the 20th century BC, it established colonies in Asia Minor, and under king Ilushuma, it asserted itself over southern Mesopotamia. From the late 19th century BC Assyria came into conflict with the newly created state of Babylonia which eventually eclipsed the older Sumero‐ Akkadian states in the south. Assyria experienced fluctuating fortunes in the Middle Assyrian period. Assyria had a period of empire under Shamshi‐Adad I and Ishme‐Dagan in the 19th and 18th centuries BC. Following this it found itself under short periods of Babylonian and Mitanni‐Hurrian domination in the 18th and 15th centuries BC respectively, and another period of great power and empire from 1365 BC to 1076 BC, that included the reigns of great kings such as Ashur‐uballit I, Arik‐ den‐ili, Tukulti‐Ninurta I and Tiglath‐Pileser I. Beginning with the campaigns of Adad‐nirari II from 911 BC, it again became a great power over the next 3 centuries, overthrowing the Twenty‐fifth dynasty of Egypt and conquering Egypt, Babylonia, Elam, Urartu/Armenia, Media, Persia, Mannea, Gutium, Phoenicia/Canaan, Aramea (Syria), Arabia, Israel, Judah, Edom, Moab, Samarra, Cilicia, Cyprus, Chaldea, Nabatea, Commagene, Dilmun and the Hurrians, Sutu and Neo‐Hittites, driving the Ethiopians and Nubians from Egypt, defeating the Cimmerians and Scythians and exacting tribute from Phrygia, Magan and Punt among others. After its fall, (between 612 BC and 605 BC), Assyria remained a province and Geo‐political entity under the Babylonian, Median, Page | 2 D. History of Neo‐Assyria in Bible times 1. This period began in 911 BC with the ascension of King Adad‐nirari II, who consolidated the kingdom and began its expansion. 2. Succession of Neo‐Assyrian kings through Shalmaneser V (726‐723 BC). (n.b. Many of these facts were gleaned directly from Wikipedia, but edited by me.) a) Adad‐nirari II (911 – 982 BC) (1) He consolidated the Empire. (2) He marks the beginning of the neo‐Assyrian Empire. b) Tukulti‐Ninurta II (891‐884 BC) (1) He continues to consolidate the Empire. (2) He expands into the Zagros Mountains, dominating the Persians and Medes. c) Ashurnasirpal II (883–859 BC) (1) He had a reputation as a cruel king who turned Assyria into a vast fighting machine. (2) He advances the Empire through Aram, Canaan, and Asia Minor to the Mediterranean. (3) He exacts tribute from the vassal peoples. (4) He moved his capital to the city of Kalhu (Calah/Nimrud) d) Shalmaneser III (858–823 BC)2 Achaemenid, Seleucid, Parthian, Roman and Sassanid empires until the Arab Islamic invasion and conquest of Mesopotamia in the mid‐7th century AD, when it was finally dissolved.” 2 Naʼaman, Nadav. "The construction of the Assyrian empire: a historical study of the inscriptions of Shalmaneser III, 859‐824 BC, relating to his campaigns to the west." Bulletin Of The American Schools Of Oriental Research no. 327 (August 1, 2002): 96‐99. “The reign of Shalmaneser III was the most remarkable period of Assyrian military advance to the west in the preimperial period. During his 35-year reign Shalmaneser (858–824 B.C.E.) conducted 21 campaigns against the lands west of the Euphrates. He established the Assyrian border on the Euphrates and in the course of his campaigns conquered vast territories up to the kingdom of Israel in the southwest and the kingdom of Tabal in the Anatolian plateau west of the Taurus mountainous range. He carried an enormous amount of booty and tributes to Assyria and imposed an annual tribute on the subjugated rulers. The pattern he established of holding sway over the Syro- Palestinian and southeastern Anatolian vassals by means of periodic campaigns was adopted—though with many ups and downs—by his successors for almost a century. Signi˜cant change took place only in the time of Tiglathpileser III (745–727), the founder of the Assyrian empire, who annexed many west Euphrates kingdoms and extended the Assyrian territory over most of the Syro- Palestinian areas.” Page | 3 (1) He was the first Assyrian king to come in contact with Israel, fighting against King Ahab, and exacting tribute from King Jehu. (2) He reduced Babylonia to vassalage. (3) He defeated Aramea, Israel, Urartu, Phoenicia, the neo Hittite states and the Arabs. (4) He fought the Battle of Qarqar against an alliance of 12 nations (including Egypt and Israel). (5) He consolidated Assyrian control over the regions conquered by his predecessors. (6) He engaged in many building projects and his royal inscriptions are more detailed than any other Assyrian king. (7) By the end of his 27 year reign Assyria was master of Mesopotamia, The Levant, western Iran, Israel, Jordan and much of Asia Minor. e) Shamshi‐Adad V (822‐811 BC) (1) Empire was experiencing civil war—most of his attention was spent with the Babylonian conflict. (2) He won the Civil War in 820 BC and further solidified the Empire’s hold over Babylonia in the South. f) Adad‐nirari III (810‐ 782 BC) [Ashurnasirpal I?] (1) The Empire was ruled on behalf of this boy‐King by his infamous mother, Semiramis until 806 BC. (2) He invaded the Levant and subjugated the Arameans, Phoenicians, Philistines, Israelites, neo Hittites, Moabites and Edomites. He also entered Damascus and forced tribute upon its Aramean king Ben‐Hadad III. g) Shalmaneser IV (782 ‐ 773 BC) (1) He proved to be an ineffectual ruler. (2) Power seems to have been concentrated in the hands of his general, Shamshi‐ilu. h) Ashur‐dan III (772 ‐ 754 BC)—was another ineffectual ruler i) Ashur‐nirari V (754 ‐ 745 BC) Page | 4 (1) He too was an ineffectual ruler. (2) He was deposed by Tiglath‐Pileser III in 745 BC.