Isaiah 47 Study Notes: The Fall of Proud Babylon
Babylon, pictured as a pampered royal daughter, is ordered down from her throne into disgrace. God had handed His people to her, but she treated them without mercy and boasted that she had no equal, so loss and ruin will strike her suddenly, all at once, and her sorcerers and stargazers cannot save her.
General
In 47:13-15, what happens to the astrologers and advisers Babylon relied on?
Answer: They will be burned up like dry straw and save no one
In a mocking challenge the LORD tells Babylon to keep on with her spells and sorceries; perhaps they will work. She has worn herself out with her many advisers, so let them stand up and save her: the astrologers who study the stars and forecast what each month will bring (47:12-13). But they are dry straw that fire consumes; they cannot even rescue themselves from the flames. This is no cozy fire for warming oneself. Even her trading partners will wander off, and no one will save her (47:14-15). God's law forbade such practices (Deuteronomy 18:10-12), the LORD exposes diviners as foolish (44:25), and Daniel told Nebuchadnezzar that Babylon's wise men could not explain the king's mystery (Daniel 2:27).
- Isaiah 47:13-15 (BSB)“You are wearied by your many counselors; let them come forward now and save you—your astrologers who observe the stars, who monthly predict your fate. Surely they are like stubble; the fire will burn them up. They cannot deliver themselves from the power of the flame. There will be no coals to warm them or fire to sit beside. This is what they are to you—those with whom you have labored and traded from youth—each one strays in his own direction; not one of them can save you.”Babylon's star-gazers and trading partners are shown to be powerless to save themselves or her.
- Deuteronomy 18:10-12 (BSB)“Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, practices divination or conjury, interprets omens, practices sorcery, casts spells, consults a medium or spiritist, or inquires of the dead. For whoever does these things is detestable to the LORD. And because of these detestable things, the LORD your God is driving out the nations before you.”God forbade His people to practice divination, sorcery or spells.
- Isaiah 44:25 (BSB)“who foils the signs of false prophets and makes fools of diviners, who confounds the wise and turns their knowledge into nonsense,”The LORD frustrates the signs of false prophets and makes fools of diviners.
- Daniel 2:27 (BSB)“Daniel answered the king, “No wise man, enchanter, medium, or magician can explain to the king the mystery of which he inquires.”Daniel told Nebuchadnezzar that none of Babylon's wise men or magicians could reveal the king's mystery.
Theological
What does 47:13-15 announce about Babylon's astrologers and counselors?
Answer: They will be burned up like dry straw and save no one
The LORD's taunt invites Babylon to persist in her sorceries and summon her counselors, the astrologers and monthly prognosticators (47:12-13). They prove to be stubble for the fire, unable to deliver even themselves; the blaze is a judgment, not a hearth. Her commercial partners scatter, and none saves her (47:14-15). The occult arts God prohibited (Deuteronomy 18:10-12) and repeatedly exposes (44:25) collapse under His judgment, as Daniel had told Nebuchadnezzar that Babylon's diviners could not disclose the king's mystery (Daniel 2:27).
- Isaiah 47:13-15 (BSB)“You are wearied by your many counselors; let them come forward now and save you—your astrologers who observe the stars, who monthly predict your fate. Surely they are like stubble; the fire will burn them up. They cannot deliver themselves from the power of the flame. There will be no coals to warm them or fire to sit beside. This is what they are to you—those with whom you have labored and traded from youth—each one strays in his own direction; not one of them can save you.”Babylon's star-gazers and trading partners are shown to be powerless to save themselves or her.
- Deuteronomy 18:10-12 (BSB)“Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, practices divination or conjury, interprets omens, practices sorcery, casts spells, consults a medium or spiritist, or inquires of the dead. For whoever does these things is detestable to the LORD. And because of these detestable things, the LORD your God is driving out the nations before you.”God forbade His people to practice divination, sorcery or spells.
- Isaiah 44:25 (BSB)“who foils the signs of false prophets and makes fools of diviners, who confounds the wise and turns their knowledge into nonsense,”The LORD frustrates the signs of false prophets and makes fools of diviners.
- Daniel 2:27 (BSB)“Daniel answered the king, “No wise man, enchanter, medium, or magician can explain to the king the mystery of which he inquires.”Daniel told Nebuchadnezzar that none of Babylon's wise men or magicians could reveal the king's mystery.
General
What picture does 47:1 use for Babylon's coming fall?
Answer: A royal woman ordered off her throne into the dirt
The LORD addresses Babylon by the title Virgin Daughter of Babylon, also calling her Daughter of the Chaldeans, and pictures her as a pampered woman of high rank. She is ordered off her throne to sit low in the dirt on bare ground, and her old names of softness and refinement are taken from her (47:1). The following verses describe her being reduced to the hard labor and public shame of a captive. Isaiah had already announced that Babylon, the pride of kingdoms, would be overthrown (13:19). God brings down the proud: Mary praised Him for toppling the mighty from their seats of power (Luke 1:51-52), and Nebuchadnezzar learned this when his boast over Babylon was answered by God's judgment (Daniel 4:30-31).
- Isaiah 47:1 (BSB)““Go down and sit in the dust, O Virgin Daughter of Babylon. Sit on the ground without a throne, O Daughter of the Chaldeans! For you will no longer be called tender or delicate.”Babylon, pictured as a pampered royal daughter, is ordered down from her throne to sit on the ground.
- Isaiah 13:19 (BSB)“And Babylon, the jewel of the kingdoms, the glory of the pride of the Chaldeans, will be overthrown by God like Sodom and Gomorrah.”Isaiah had already announced that Babylon, the jewel of kingdoms, would be overthrown by God.
- Luke 1:51-52 (BSB)“He has performed mighty deeds with His arm; He has scattered those who are proud in the thoughts of their hearts. He has brought down rulers from their thrones, but has exalted the humble.”Mary praises God for bringing rulers down from their thrones and scattering the proud.
- Daniel 4:30-31 (BSB)“the king exclaimed, “Is this not Babylon the Great, which I myself have built as a royal residence by the might of my power and for the glory of my majesty?” While the words were still in the king’s mouth, a voice came from heaven: “It is decreed to you, King Nebuchadnezzar, that the kingdom has departed from you.”When Nebuchadnezzar boasted over the Babylon he had built, God announced that his kingdom was taken from him.
Theological
Through what image does 47:1 announce Babylon's humiliation?
Answer: A royal woman ordered off her throne into the dirt
Babylon is addressed as the Virgin Daughter of Babylon and the Daughter of the Chaldeans, personified as a delicate woman of rank ordered from her throne to sit in the dirt, stripped of her former titles of tenderness and refinement (47:1). The verses that follow describe her degradation to a captive's toil and shame. This carries forward the judgment announced in 13:19 against Babylon's proud splendor, and is an instance of the principle that God topples the proud from their thrones (Luke 1:51-52), as Nebuchadnezzar's own humbling had already shown (Daniel 4:30-31).
- Isaiah 47:1 (BSB)““Go down and sit in the dust, O Virgin Daughter of Babylon. Sit on the ground without a throne, O Daughter of the Chaldeans! For you will no longer be called tender or delicate.”Babylon, pictured as a pampered royal daughter, is ordered down from her throne to sit on the ground.
- Isaiah 13:19 (BSB)“And Babylon, the jewel of the kingdoms, the glory of the pride of the Chaldeans, will be overthrown by God like Sodom and Gomorrah.”Isaiah had already announced that Babylon, the jewel of kingdoms, would be overthrown by God.
- Luke 1:51-52 (BSB)“He has performed mighty deeds with His arm; He has scattered those who are proud in the thoughts of their hearts. He has brought down rulers from their thrones, but has exalted the humble.”Mary praises God for bringing rulers down from their thrones and scattering the proud.
- Daniel 4:30-31 (BSB)“the king exclaimed, “Is this not Babylon the Great, which I myself have built as a royal residence by the might of my power and for the glory of my majesty?” While the words were still in the king’s mouth, a voice came from heaven: “It is decreed to you, King Nebuchadnezzar, that the kingdom has departed from you.”When Nebuchadnezzar boasted over the Babylon he had built, God announced that his kingdom was taken from him.
General
According to 47:6, what was Babylon's guilt in how she treated God's people?
Answer: She showed no mercy and crushed even the aged
The LORD admits that He Himself was angry with His people; He Himself treated His own inheritance as no longer holy and handed them over to Babylon (47:6). Babylon was God's tool of discipline. But she abused that role: she showed them no pity and put a crushing yoke even on the old. God used Babylon, yet still held her accountable for her cruelty. Zechariah gives the same pattern: God's anger with His people was limited, but the nations made the suffering worse (Zechariah 1:15). Chronicles records that the invaders spared neither young nor old (2 Chronicles 36:17), and Jeremiah says Babylon will be paid back for what she did (Jeremiah 50:29).
- Isaiah 47:6 (BSB)“I was angry with My people; I profaned My heritage, and I placed them under your control. You showed them no mercy; even on the elderly you laid a most heavy yoke.”The LORD explains why He handed His people to Babylon and what Babylon did with that power.
- Zechariah 1:15 (BSB)“but I am fiercely angry with the nations that are at ease. For I was a little angry, but they have added to the calamity.’”The LORD says He was only a little angry with His people, but the nations at ease added to the calamity.
- 2 Chronicles 36:17 (BSB)“So He brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who put their young men to the sword in the sanctuary, sparing neither young men nor young women, neither elderly nor infirm. God gave them all into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar,”The Chaldean invaders spared neither young nor old.
- Jeremiah 50:29 (BSB)“Summon the archers against Babylon, all who string the bow. Encamp all around her; let no one escape. Repay her according to her deeds; do to her as she has done. For she has defied the LORD, the Holy One of Israel.”The LORD orders that Babylon be repaid according to what she has done.
Theological
What charge does 47:6 bring against Babylon concerning her treatment of the LORD's people?
Answer: She showed no mercy and crushed even the aged
47:6 holds both truths together. The LORD in His anger delivered His heritage into Babylon's hand, so Babylon's power over Judah was ordained by God. Yet Babylon is guilty for the merciless way she wielded it, laying an exceedingly heavy yoke even on the aged. This is the same pattern seen with Assyria in chapter 10: God's sovereign use of an instrument does not excuse the instrument's sin. Zechariah 1:15 likewise distinguishes God's measured anger from the nations' excess; 2 Chronicles 36:17 records that the Chaldeans spared neither young nor old; Jeremiah 50:29 calls for Babylon to be repaid in kind.
- Isaiah 47:6 (BSB)“I was angry with My people; I profaned My heritage, and I placed them under your control. You showed them no mercy; even on the elderly you laid a most heavy yoke.”The LORD explains why He handed His people to Babylon and what Babylon did with that power.
- Zechariah 1:15 (BSB)“but I am fiercely angry with the nations that are at ease. For I was a little angry, but they have added to the calamity.’”The LORD says He was only a little angry with His people, but the nations at ease added to the calamity.
- 2 Chronicles 36:17 (BSB)“So He brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who put their young men to the sword in the sanctuary, sparing neither young men nor young women, neither elderly nor infirm. God gave them all into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar,”The Chaldean invaders spared neither young nor old.
- Jeremiah 50:29 (BSB)“Summon the archers against Babylon, all who string the bow. Encamp all around her; let no one escape. Repay her according to her deeds; do to her as she has done. For she has defied the LORD, the Holy One of Israel.”The LORD orders that Babylon be repaid according to what she has done.
General
In 47:8 and 47:10, Babylon tells herself that she exists and no one else compares. What do her words echo?
Answer: Words the LORD earlier used to describe His own unique deity
Babylon, living in luxury and feeling secure, says to herself that she alone exists with no rival beside her (47:8), and she repeats it in 47:10. These are almost the same words the LORD used of Himself in the chapters just before, when He declared that He alone is God and no one is like Him (46:9; 45:21). Babylon is claiming for herself a place that belongs only to God. She also assumed she would reign as queen without end and never take to heart how things would end (47:7). Pride like this leads straight to destruction (Proverbs 16:18).
- Isaiah 47:8 (BSB)“So now hear this, O lover of luxury who sits securely, who says to herself, ‘I am, and there is none besides me. I will never be a widow or know the loss of children.’”Babylon, secure in her luxury, speaks of herself as beyond all rivals and beyond loss.
- Isaiah 47:10 (BSB)“You were secure in your wickedness; you said, ‘No one sees me.’ Your wisdom and knowledge led you astray; you told yourself, ‘I am, and there is none besides me.’”Babylon repeats her claim and imagines no one can see her wickedness.
- Isaiah 46:9 (BSB)“Remember what happened long ago, for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me.”Just before, the LORD said that He alone is God and none is like Him.
- Isaiah 45:21 (BSB)“Speak up and present your case—yes, let them take counsel together. Who foretold this long ago? Who announced it from ancient times? Was it not I, the LORD? There is no other God but Me, a righteous God and Savior; there is none but Me.”The LORD declared that there is no God but Him, a righteous God and Savior.
- Proverbs 16:18 (BSB)“Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.”Pride goes before destruction.
Theological
Whose earlier words does Babylon's self-description in 47:8 and 47:10 echo?
Answer: Words the LORD earlier used to describe His own unique deity
Babylon's boast that she exists and none besides her (47:8, 10) appropriates the very formula of divine uniqueness the LORD has just used of Himself (45:21; 46:9). Her pride is self-deification: she arrogates to herself the incomparability that belongs to God alone, assuming she will reign forever and never considering the end (47:7). Such arrogance precedes destruction (Proverbs 16:18), and the following verses announce exactly that.
- Isaiah 47:8 (BSB)“So now hear this, O lover of luxury who sits securely, who says to herself, ‘I am, and there is none besides me. I will never be a widow or know the loss of children.’”Babylon, secure in her luxury, speaks of herself as beyond all rivals and beyond loss.
- Isaiah 47:10 (BSB)“You were secure in your wickedness; you said, ‘No one sees me.’ Your wisdom and knowledge led you astray; you told yourself, ‘I am, and there is none besides me.’”Babylon repeats her claim and imagines no one can see her wickedness.
- Isaiah 46:9 (BSB)“Remember what happened long ago, for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me.”Just before, the LORD said that He alone is God and none is like Him.
- Isaiah 45:21 (BSB)“Speak up and present your case—yes, let them take counsel together. Who foretold this long ago? Who announced it from ancient times? Was it not I, the LORD? There is no other God but Me, a righteous God and Savior; there is none but Me.”The LORD declared that there is no God but Him, a righteous God and Savior.
- Proverbs 16:18 (BSB)“Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.”Pride goes before destruction.
General
What false confidence does Babylon express in 47:10?
Answer: That her wickedness went unseen and she was safe in it
Babylon felt secure in her wickedness and told herself that no one could see her. Her own cleverness and learning misled her (47:10). But the LORD says disaster is coming that she cannot charm away or hold back, and ruin will strike suddenly, without warning (47:11). Nothing is hidden from God. Isaiah had warned Judah about the same false confidence in those who hide their plans in the dark (29:15). Proverbs says the LORD's eyes are everywhere, watching both the wicked and the good (Proverbs 15:3), and Hebrews says all things lie bare before God, who will call everyone to account (Hebrews 4:13).
- Isaiah 47:10-11 (BSB)“You were secure in your wickedness; you said, ‘No one sees me.’ Your wisdom and knowledge led you astray; you told yourself, ‘I am, and there is none besides me.’ But disaster will come upon you; you will not know how to charm it away. A calamity will befall you that you will be unable to ward off. Devastation will happen to you suddenly and unexpectedly.”Babylon trusted in her own wisdom and assumed no one saw her evil, but disaster she cannot avert is coming.
- Isaiah 29:15 (BSB)“Woe to those who dig deep to hide their plans from the LORD. In darkness they do their works and say, “Who sees us, and who will know?””Isaiah warned Judah too about those who hide their plans in darkness and think no one sees.
- Hebrews 4:13 (BSB)“Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight; everything is uncovered and exposed before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.”Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight.
- Proverbs 15:3 (BSB)“The eyes of the LORD are in every place, observing the evil and the good.”The eyes of the LORD are in every place, watching the evil and the good.
Theological
What false security does Babylon voice in 47:10?
Answer: That her wickedness went unseen and she was safe in it
Babylon trusted in her wickedness and assumed it was unobserved; her vaunted wisdom and knowledge deceived her (47:10). Against that self-assurance the LORD announces an evil she cannot charm away, a calamity she cannot avert, and sudden devastation (47:11). The delusion that sin goes unseen recurs among God's own people (29:15), but the omniscient God sees all (Proverbs 15:3), and every creature lies exposed before Him to whom it must render account (Hebrews 4:13).
- Isaiah 47:10-11 (BSB)“You were secure in your wickedness; you said, ‘No one sees me.’ Your wisdom and knowledge led you astray; you told yourself, ‘I am, and there is none besides me.’ But disaster will come upon you; you will not know how to charm it away. A calamity will befall you that you will be unable to ward off. Devastation will happen to you suddenly and unexpectedly.”Babylon trusted in her own wisdom and assumed no one saw her evil, but disaster she cannot avert is coming.
- Isaiah 29:15 (BSB)“Woe to those who dig deep to hide their plans from the LORD. In darkness they do their works and say, “Who sees us, and who will know?””Isaiah warned Judah too about those who hide their plans in darkness and think no one sees.
- Hebrews 4:13 (BSB)“Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight; everything is uncovered and exposed before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.”Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight.
- Proverbs 15:3 (BSB)“The eyes of the LORD are in every place, observing the evil and the good.”The eyes of the LORD are in every place, watching the evil and the good.
General
True or False: According to 47:9, Babylon's losses will come on her slowly, over many years, and her sorceries will soften them.
Answer: False
This is false. Babylon thought she could never lose her husband or her children (47:8). The LORD says both of these losses will hit her in a moment, on a single day, in full force, no matter how many sorceries and spells she uses (47:9). Her magic will not shield her at all. Daniel records how suddenly Babylon fell: in one night its king was killed and the kingdom passed to Darius the Mede (Daniel 5:30-31). Jeremiah also says Babylon will fall and be broken in an instant (Jeremiah 51:8).
- Isaiah 47:9 (BSB)“These two things will overtake you in a moment, in a single day: loss of children, and widowhood. They will come upon you in full measure, in spite of your many sorceries and the potency of your spells.”The two losses Babylon thought impossible will strike her suddenly, despite all her sorcery.
- Daniel 5:30-31 (BSB)“That very night Belshazzar king of the Chaldeans was slain, and Darius the Mede received the kingdom at the age of sixty-two.”Babylon fell in a single night, when its king was slain and the Mede received the kingdom.
- Jeremiah 51:8 (BSB)“Suddenly Babylon has fallen and been shattered. Wail for her; get her balm for her pain; perhaps she can be healed.”Jeremiah also says Babylon will fall and be shattered suddenly.
Theological
True or False: 47:9 announces that Babylon's bereavement will come gradually and that her sorceries will mitigate it.
Answer: False
This is false. The two calamities Babylon declared impossible, bereavement of husband and children (47:8), will come upon her instantly, within one day, in full measure, notwithstanding her many sorceries and potent spells (47:9). The suddenness is a mark of divine judgment, and the occult is powerless against it. Daniel 5:30-31 records the overthrow of Babylon in one night, and Jeremiah 51:8 announces the same abrupt collapse.
- Isaiah 47:9 (BSB)“These two things will overtake you in a moment, in a single day: loss of children, and widowhood. They will come upon you in full measure, in spite of your many sorceries and the potency of your spells.”The two losses Babylon thought impossible will strike her suddenly, despite all her sorcery.
- Daniel 5:30-31 (BSB)“That very night Belshazzar king of the Chaldeans was slain, and Darius the Mede received the kingdom at the age of sixty-two.”Babylon fell in a single night, when its king was slain and the Mede received the kingdom.
- Jeremiah 51:8 (BSB)“Suddenly Babylon has fallen and been shattered. Wail for her; get her balm for her pain; perhaps she can be healed.”Jeremiah also says Babylon will fall and be shattered suddenly.