Discovery BoxIsaiah 13:4 
Context13:4 1 There is a loud noise on the mountains –
it sounds like a large army! 2
There is great commotion among the kingdoms 3 –
nations are being assembled!
The Lord who commands armies is mustering
forces for battle.
Isaiah 22:2
Context22:2 The noisy city is full of raucous sounds;
the town is filled with revelry. 4
Your slain were not cut down by the sword;
they did not die in battle. 5
Isaiah 30:28
Context30:28 His battle cry overwhelms like a flooding river 6
that reaches one’s neck.
He shakes the nations in a sieve that isolates the chaff; 7
he puts a bit into the mouth of the nations and leads them to destruction. 8
Isaiah 31:9
Context31:9 They will surrender their stronghold 9 because of fear; 10
their officers will be afraid of the Lord’s battle flag.” 11
This is what the Lord says –
the one whose fire is in Zion,
whose firepot is in Jerusalem. 12
Isaiah 51:20
Context51:20 Your children faint;
they lie at the head of every street
like an antelope in a snare.
They are left in a stupor by the Lord’s anger,
by the battle cry of your God. 13
1 sn In vv. 4-10 the prophet appears to be speaking, since the Lord is referred to in the third person. However, since the Lord refers to himself in the third person later in this chapter (see v. 13), it is possible that he speaks throughout the chapter.
2 tn Heb “a sound, a roar [is] on the mountains, like many people.”
3 tn Heb “a sound, tumult of kingdoms.”
4 tn Heb “the boisterous town.” The phrase is parallel to “the noisy city” in the preceding line.
5 sn Apparently they died from starvation during the siege that preceded the final conquest of the city. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:409.
6 tn Heb “his breath is like a flooding river.” This might picture the Lord breathing heavily as he runs down his enemy, but in light of the preceding verse, which mentions his lips and tongue, “breath” probably stands metonymically for the word or battle cry that he expels from his mouth as he shouts. In Isa 34:16 and Ps 33:6 the Lord’s “breath” is associated with his command.
7 tn Heb “shaking nations in a sieve of worthlessness.” It is not certain exactly how שָׁוְא (shavÿ’, “emptiness, worthlessness”) modifies “sieve.” A sieve is used to separate grain from chaff and isolate what is worthless so that it might be discarded. Perhaps the nations are likened to such chaff; God’s judgment will sift them out for destruction.
8 tn Heb “and a bit that leads astray [is] in the jaws of the peoples.” Here the nations are likened to horse that can be controlled by a bit placed in its mouth. In this case the Lord uses his sovereign control over the “horse” to lead it to its demise.
9 tn Heb “rocky cliff” (cf. ASV, NASB “rock”), viewed metaphorically as a place of defense and security.
10 tn Heb “His rocky cliff, because of fear, will pass away [i.e., “perish”].”
11 tn Heb “and they will be afraid of the flag, his officers.”
12 sn The “fire” and “firepot” here symbolize divine judgment, which is heating up like a fire in Jerusalem, waiting to be used against the Assyrians when they attack the city.
13 tn Heb “those who are full of the anger of the Lord, the shout [or “rebuke”] of your God.”
