Isaiah 13:14
14 And it shall be as the chased [nadach] roe [tsabiy], and as a
sheep [tso'n] that no man taketh up [qabats]: they shall every man ['iysh] turn [panah] to his own people [`am], and flee [nuwc] every one ['iysh] into his own land ['erets].
KJV-Interlinear
14 And it will be that like a
hunted gazelle, Or like sheep with none to gather them, They will each turn to
his own people, And each one flee to his own land. NASB
At the time of this
writing Babylon was not yet an empire. The existing empires were Egypt to the
south, Assyria to the north, and then there was Syria and the northern nation
of Samaria who were aligning themselves against Judah.
Isaiah has already
prophesied the destruction of Syria and Samaria, at the hand of Assyria, and
then eventually Babylon, which at this time existed only as a warring faction
within Assyria, would rise up and spread its borders throughout the Middle
East.
Just as a proud bird
spreads its wings and struts, Babylon would overrun nation after nation,
assimilating those territories within its own borders as it advances down to
and through Judah.
His armies would consist
of peoples from numerous nations.
In this current
prophecy, which is one directed at the final days of history, Babylon is used
as the example of not only what would happen to that territory of Babylon, but
to all territories and nations throughout the world.
Just as Babylon was a
mixture of peoples and nations, so to, during the tribulation, which is still
future, the anti-christ will be the ruler of all nations around the world.
Isaiah has been
describing many of the characteristics and events that surround those final
days in history. These descriptions are not in sequential or chronological
order, but are simply designed to show the things that are going to happen in
those last final days and hours of history.
We’ve already seen how,
when the enemy forces are advancing into and through Judah, toward Jerusalem,
they’re going to come with great confidence, with great purpose, definitely
with great arrogance, and virtually no fear.
They will come with
overwhelming forces, and resources, and weapons.
We have already seen
how they will advance up to the boundaries of Jerusalem, but will be frustrated
and stopped at that point. And remember that the book of Revelation tells us
that there will be a pile of dead and dying people that will stretch for
hundreds of miles. So the death and destruction will be all around as they
advance on Jerusalem.
When an enemy force,
especially an evil enemy force, advances with little or no opposition, it has
great courage.
But, when this enemy
force reaches the borders of Jerusalem, things will change.
We already know from
our studies that immediately prior to the Second Advent, a supernatural
darkness which eliminates all light, will occur, followed by the actual Second
Advent.
When Christ returns, he
will be followed by a huge army. That army will consist of all of us Church Age
believers. The light will be bright worldwide and the sound of our advance will
be overwhelming. We will stop or come to a halt in the clouds, while Christ
will descend and set foot on the ground.
The massive armies of
the anti-christ are going to do exactly what is described here. They are going
to turn and run like frightened deer.
The term, chased roe,
describes a frightened, trembling animal such as the gazelle. This is quite the
opposite of the attitude of the armies that had been advancing through the
Middle East. Instead of ferocious lions advancing on their prey, now they will
be running in total fear back toward their homes, or so they think.
The phrase, sheep that
no man taketh up, describes a total breakdown in the command and control of
these armies. They will be sheep with no shepherd, armies with no leadership,
people with no purpose.
The scene will be total
chaos as the armies of the world will be running in all directions, in total
confusion, clueless as to where they are going or even what they’re going to
do.
