FALL OF BABYLON TO PERSIA AND MEDE God, because of His love for His people allowed the captivity for the Egyptians by Assyria; in order to let the children of Judah, who were leaning upon Pharaoh, tremble. He, likewise, because of His love of them, allowed the chastisement for Babylon, that captivated His people, by Persia (riders of donkeys), and Medes (riders of camels), to let Babylon fall, with no intervention for the rescue by its idols. That is the way God works amid the nations, to sort out the wheat (the believers) from the straw, watching for His children against the evil ones. 1. A prophecy against Babylon 1-10. 2. A prophecy against Edom 11-12. 3. A prophecy against Arabia 13-16 1. A PROPHECY AGAINST BABYLON The prophet Isaiah refers to Babylon by a strange symbolic name: “An oracle concerning the wilderness by the sea.” (Is. 21: 1) He called Babylon, the golden city and the pride of nations, a wilderness, because of its evil, that turned it into a condition of desolation. It is probably called “the wilderness by the sea,” because of its location on the bank of the Euphrates River, or because it was greater than any other nation. As waters refer to many nations it turned into a dry wilderness amid the nations. Jews believe that demons dwell in three regions of the world: desolate wilderness, waters, and air. That is why the Lord Christ fought and conquered Satan, through His temptation on the mount, in the wilderness; He fought and conquered him in the waters of the Jordan, as though in his den; and also fought him in air, where He was lifted up on the cross and conquered. Babylon was called “the wilderness by the sea,” confirming that it became a place for the devil, dwelling in the wilderness and also in the sea. St. John saw it as a “harlot, sitting on many waters.” (Revelation 17: 1) The prophet Isaiah saw the army of Cyrus, advancing to realize God’s plan concerning Babylon, “as whirlwinds from the South pass through, so it comes from the desert, from a terrible land” (Is. 21: 1) Whirlwind coming from the south means that it is hot, in contradiction to that coming from the north, which is cold. It is as though the army of Cyrus was like fierce hot winds laden with sand that would bury the fields, destroy the crops, harm houses and roads, and cause diseases of the eyes. In other words it destroys the capabilities of man his dwelling place and insight. That is different from the mild warm south wind, that is necessary for ripening crops, of which the bride of the Song of Songs says, “Awake, O north wind, and come, O south! Blow upon my garden that its spices may flow out. Let my beloved come to his garden, and eat its pleasant fruits.” (Song. 4: 16) The prophet, with his amazing tenderness, even for enemies, could not bear seeing the destruction and plunder that will happen to Babylon (Is. 21: 2). So he says, “My lions are filled with pain; pangs have taken hold of me, like the pangs of a woman in labor. I was distressed when I heard it; I was dismayed when I saw it. My heart wavered, fearfulness frightened me, the night for which I longed, has turned into fear for me.” (Is. 21: 3, 4) He might have seen that vision at night (Is. 21: 4), as his enjoyment of prayer has turned into terror. Or he is probably talking on behalf of the Babylonians, whose night of banquet and joy turned into horror, because of the invasion by Cyrus. He saw the royal table ready, and the watchers preoccupied with eating and drinking, when it was fitting for them to treat their swords with fat, to make them ready for fighting the Cyrus. The prophet could not bear to see Babylon with its elite, playing around without care, leaving the gates unattended, wide open before the enemy. His heart melted with horror and pain. How then, wouldn’t we moan, when we see our ministers get preoccupied, away from their spiritual strife, with formalities and banquets, leaving the Church of God and His flock, with no one to watch. Here are some everlasting words by St. John Chrysostom concerning ministry: [I am a compassionate father. Hear what the apostle Paul requests: “My little children, for whom I labor in birth.” (Galatians 4: 19) Like a woman screaming of pain in the hour of labor, so do I1.] [I wish you could see the fire burning in my heart, to realize that I suffer much more than the grief of a young widow for her premature loss. I don’t think her grief or the grief of a father for losing his son is more than mine because of this present congregation2.] Then came the divine call to the prophet: “Go set a watchman; Let him declare what he sees.” (Is. 21: 6) A prophet used to be called a “watchman,” a “lookout,” or a “seer;” his task being to lookout from his high tower, and to watch the souls with the word of God; also to see through spiritual insight, to proclaim the will of God and His salvation plan. So the prophet Habakkuk did, as he said: “I will stand my watch, and set myself on the rampart; and watch to see what He will say to me, and what I will answer when I am reproved.” (Habakkuk 2: 1) The prophet Ezekiel was likewise often called “a watchman.” (Ezekiel 3: 17; 33: 2, 6, 7) Isaiah saw Persia (riders of donkeys) and Media (riders of camels) advancing to invade Babylon. “He listened diligently with great care.” (Is. 21: 7), for it was a serious matter concerned the life of his people. He did not just see and listen, but he roared like a lion (Is. 21: 8), to proclaim God’s plan concerning the fall of Babylon, and the salvation of His people. “Babylon is fallen, is fallen! And all the carved images of her gods He has broken to the ground! O my threshing and the grain of My floor! That which I have heard from the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, I have declared to you.” (Is. 21: 9, 10) The repetition of an expression twice, like “Babylon has fallen, has fallen,” is one of the features unique to this book (Is. 21: 9; 24: 4, 16; 28: 13; 29: 1; 40: 1, 9; 43: 11 etc.). That may be, because this book of salvation is directed to the Gentiles, as well as it is to the Jews. The call for salvation is a collective call to receive the Lord of all, and to overcome the evil. It is fitting here for anyone, of Jewish or Gentile origin, to make sure that Babylon, that captivated his heart with lusts and violence, is falling before God’s salvation, to be replaced by the heavenly Jerusalem; that all the idols of Babylon are falling, to let God proclaims His Kingdom in the hearts. According to St. Augustine, that repetition twice, besides being a sort of confirmation, carries a 1 In Hebr. Hom 23:9. 2 Ibid. symbol of love that makes two things into one. Through love, the inner Babylon, and the kingdom of the devil, who does not stand love, will fall. And by it we shall enjoy the biblical life, according to the commandment of the Lord: “By this, all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13: 35) The prophet sees the world as a threshing floor, where crops are treaded over, then processed to separate wheat from straw. It is the ‘wheat’ of the Lord Himself that should be separated from the ‘straw’ of the world. St. Augustine talks about the Babylonian captivity and the salvation from it saying, [The apostle says, “All these things... were written for our admonition, on whom the ends of the ages have come.” (1 Corinthians 10: 11) We should be aware of our captivity and, accordingly, our salvation. We should recognize Babylon, to which we were captivated, and Jerusalem that moans for our return to it. These two cities are actual cities. “Babylon” means “confusion,” while Jerusalem means “a vision of peace!” These two cities were built in a certain time, to become symbols of two cities that stay to the end of ages... When some will sit on the right, and other on the left, Jerusalem will be on the right, and Babylon will be on the left... Two kinds of love realize these two cities: Love for God realizes Jerusalem, while love of the world realizes Babylon. Every one of us should ask himself: What does he love? Then he would know which one of the two is his home. If he realizes that Babylon is his home, he should start to free himself of greed, and sow love. But if he finds it to be Jerusalem he should stand fast in bearing captivity, hoping for freedom.... Now let us hear my brethren of this city that we dwell in, let us hear of it, sing of it and long to it3.] So St. Augustine sees the children of God, who are bound to divine love, as citizens of the exalted Jerusalem, the city of eternal love; living here striving against Babylon, that keeps on trying to captivate the children of God, to deprive them of their heavenly home; having surrendered themselves by themselves to captivity, through receiving sin. The Savior has come to open the gate of hope, to grant them the freedom of the glory of the children of God. With a look full of hope, St. Augustine comments on the saying of the prophet: “When the Lord brought back the captives to Zion, we were like those who dream,” (Psalm 126: 1) saying, [Man, who has been a citizen of Jerusalem, was sold because of sin, to turn into a transient (belonging nowhere)... “Babylon” means “confusion”... Things of this contemporary human life are nothing but confusion, not belonging to God. Amid this confusion, in this Babylonian land, Zion was captivated. Yet the Lord brought us back from captivity, to become like men who dreamed, that is we become happy as we received comfort... We are grieving for what we are now, but comforted by hope. The presence that grieves us will go by, to get replaced by eternal joy. Then, there will be no need for comfort, as we will never be in any affliction4.] 2. A PROPHECY AGAINST EDOM “The burden against Dumah: He calls to me out of Seir, ‘Watchman, what of the night? Watchman, what of the night?’ The watchman said, ‘the morning comes, and also the night. If you will inquire, inquire; Return, Come back.’” (Is. 3 On Ps., 65. 4 On Ps., 126. 21: 11, 12) The prophet calls Adam by a mystical prophetical name, “Dumah,” an abbreviation of Idumea (Edom). If the name Edom means “bloody” or “earthly,” Edom referring then to the wicked, lovers of bloodshed, those who are bound to love the earthly and bodily things. The name “Dumah” means also silence or “stillness of death.” The prophet stood continually on the watchtower every night (Is. 21: 8), as a sort of inner darkness prevailed on the world, in anticipation of the coming of the Sun of Righteousness to dissipate the darkness of the night, for the light of the morning to prevail. Now, he hears a voice, probably from heaven, or from the remnants of prophets and men of God: “Watchman, what of the night?...” Here comes the fulfillment of time, and the light of the morning shone; Let the nations hush up, and bring to death its old man, in order to enjoy the Light of Life; Let them “ask” now, to find its Light through faith in the Lord Christ. Let them return and “come back again” to God the Savior, to find him stretching His hands in practical love to embrace them. He repeats “Watchman, what of the night?” twice, for this speech is addressed, not only to the Jews, but also to the Gentiles, for all to enjoy salvation, contemplating in hushness, on the work of God with them. 3. A PROPHECY AGAINST ARABIA It came originally as ‘Ereb’ and not as ‘Arabia,’ meaning “night,” speaking of all those dwelling in the darkness. Here he addresses the tribes of the Dedanites and of Kedar, dwelling southeast of Edom; who received those fleeing from the sword, in exchange for water to drink and bread to eat. As these tribes were living in the darkness of idolatry, they could not provide true help to those fleeing to them, as “a blind leading a blind, will both fall into a ditch.” (Luke 7: 39)
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