Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Isaiah 10:19


Copyright Ó 2013 J. Neely
Isaiah 10:19ues

19 And the rest [sha'ar] of the trees [`ets] of his forest [ya`ar] shall be few, [micpar] that a child [na`ar] may write [kathab] them. KJV-Interlinear

19 And the rest of the trees of his forest will be so small in number That a child could write them down. NASB


A child, ‘naar,’ generally refers to a child anywhere from infancy to adolescence.  But it is generally used as child of pre-school or pre-education age.  Usually the context determines the use of the word, and here it should be obvious that a child is a young child who can barely count.  That is the intent here.

However, this verse has a secondary meaning, and that is simply that there will be so few trees, that the destruction of Assyria will be so complete and devastating, that it will be completely obvious that a judgment against them has occurred.

By comparison, if you saw the aftermath of the eruption of Mt. St. Helens in Washington, which occurred about 1980 or thereabouts, then you know about or perhaps have seen photos of the huge forests to the north of the mountain, that were totally blown down.  Driving through that area puts you in awe of the phenomenal power and destruction that is obvious, and there is no mistake as to the cause.

Now, as for Assyria, you cannot go to a single point and see the entire empire, but the picture being portrayed here is of a totally destroyed place.  Not just in the loss of human life, but in the loss of virtually everything else.

And too, remember that Assyria was overrun by Babylon and Persia but this degree of devastation did not occur then.  This devastation will occur at the end of the Tribulation, and also remember that there will be a pile of bodies stretching for several hundred miles with blood flowing as high as the horses bridle.  Review our Revelations study.

Counting trees will be the last thing that anyone, who may survive, will be doing.  The battle field will be so horribly horrifying, not to mention the masses of scavenger animals that will pour out of seemingly nowhere, to help in the cleanup.

God does not doddle when it comes time for lasting judgment.  He is thorough and misses nothing.

For those who are going to die, they will die. For those who are going to be delivered, they will be delivered. God makes no mistakes, overlooks no one, and He is never wrong.