Isaiah 34 — Tyndale Study Notes

Isa.34.1-17

This prophecy of judgment was against the nations at the terrifying day of the Lord (see study note on 2:5-22; see also 63:1-6).

Isa.34.2

completely destroy: See Lev 27:28-29.

Isa.34.3

It was a disgrace for a corpse to remain unburied.

Isa.34.4

The heavens . . . stars: See also 13:10; Joel 2:30-31; Matt 24:29; Mark 13:24-25; 2 Pet 3:10-13; Rev 6:13-14.

Isa.34.5

Edom here represents what all the nations would experience, just as Moab was singled out in ch 25.

Isa.34.6

Bozrah was a city in Edom, southeast of the Dead Sea.

Isa.34.8

The Lord’s revenge refers to God’s wrathful but righteous vengeance against his enemies and the oppressors of his people on the day of the Lord.

Edom will be paid back: There will be retribution for Edom’s crimes against Judah (see also Ps 137:7; Lam 4:21; Obad; Mal 1:3-5). Edom, with its history of treachery, would come to an end.

Isa.34.9

Edom’s judgment was similar to the judgment of Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen 19:24; see also Jer 49:17-18).

Isa.34.10

Isa.34.11-14

Wild animals, night birds, and hostile plants with thorns and nettles created an eerie environment.

Isa.34.16

Search the book of the Lord: Isaiah’s prophecy was God’s witness to the truthfulness of his word.

The power of the Spirit enacts the Lord’s decrees, assuring that all prophecy comes together to be fulfilled as God promised.

Isa.34.11

The identification of some of these birds is uncertain, but they inhabited wild and deserted places and many were considered unclean (Deut 14:11-18).