Isaiah 10

Isaiah 7–12 forms a section set against the background of the crisis during the reign of Ahaz. The opening of chapter 10 continues the judgment poem from Isaiah 9, and the refrain repeated throughout chapter 9, "For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still," appears for the last time in verse 4.

Outline

• Verses 1–4: Woe is pronounced on those who decree unrighteous laws and deprive the poor, widows, and the fatherless of their rights.
• Verses 5–11: Assyria was sent as the "rod of mine anger." Yet Assyria intends to destroy many nations and boasts that it will strike Jerusalem just as it did Samaria.
• Verses 12–19: Just as an axe cannot boast against the one who wields it, God punishes the pride of the king of Assyria and burns up his forest with fire.
• Verses 20–23: The remnant of Israel will no longer rely on the one who struck them but will return to God.
• Verses 24–27: God tells the people of Zion not to fear Assyria and promises that its yoke will be broken.
• Verses 28–32: The king of Assyria advances through Aiath, Michmash, Geba, Anathoth, and other places, reaches Nob, and shakes his hand against Zion.
• Verses 33–34: God lops off the lofty boughs and cuts down the forest of Lebanon.

Key Verses

• Isaiah 10:5, "O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger": This verse declares that even a pagan empire is in God's hand.
• Isaiah 10:15, "Shall the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith?": This verse uses a figure of speech to rebuke the pride of one who has served merely as an instrument.
• Isaiah 10:22, "a remnant of them shall return": This verse is representative of the book's concept of the remnant.

People and Places

• King of Assyria: The text does not name him.
• Calno, Carchemish, Hamath, and Arpad are cities in the region of Syria conquered by Assyria. Damascus also appears alongside them in verse 9.
• Rock of Oreb: The place where Oreb, a Midianite prince, was killed in the time of Gideon (Judges 7:25).
• Verse 26 refers to the events at the Red Sea, when God lifted His rod against Egypt.
• Anathoth: A village in the territory of Benjamin, known as the hometown of Jeremiah.

Points for Reflection

• The Assyrian threat is commonly read in connection with Sennacherib's siege of Jerusalem (Isaiah 36–37). However, because the line of march in verses 28–32 comes down from the north, interpreters are divided over whether it depicts an actual campaign or is a poetic portrayal.
• The teaching that God uses Assyria as His instrument while still judging its pride is frequently cited as a passage that addresses both divine providence and human responsibility.
• "A remnant shall return" echoes the meaning of the name of Isaiah's son Shear-jashub (7:3).
• Paul quotes verses 22–23 in Romans 9:27–28.
• The image of the forest being cut down in verse 34 is sometimes read in contrast with "a rod out of the stem of Jesse" in Isaiah 11:1.