Season 6, Podcast 75, Isaiah 22:1-25, “The Burden of the Valley of Vision.”

Season 6, Podcast 75, Isaiah 22:1-25, “The Burden of the Valley of Vision.”

As we have come to expect, the focus of Isaiah 22 is Christ. He holds the keys to the House of David. The central theme of Isaiah 22 is that because Judah rejected Christ, they shall be led into captivity. All those who are taken into captivity will die in captivity. At the time of the prophesy the Jews were under the threat of Assyria. They foolishly formed an alliance with Assyria against God’s wishes. However, they were miraculously delivered from the Assyrians.  

2 Kings 19:35

And it came to pass that night, that the angel of the Lord went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore and five thousand: and when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses.

The captivity referred to, however, is the Babylonian captivity which occurs 115 years later where they were led away into Babylon and held in captivity for 70 years until Cyrus the Great conquers the Babylonians and allows the Jews to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple. Seventy years, of course, is a lifetime. They may have escaped the Assyrians, but those who are taken into captivity by the Babylonians do not see Jerusalem again. Only Their children return.

In Isaiah 22 the House of Judah is called to come unto Christ, but ultimately they depend upon their own devices. Therefore, everything that Isaiah said comes to pass. We often consider prophecy but seldom consider the prophet. Isaiah having seen everything in vision carries a tremendous burden. I have divided Isaiah 22 into five parts. The first part I call “The burden of the valley of vision. It begins and ends with the phrase, “the valley of vision.”

Isaiah 22:1-5

The burden of the valley of vision. What aileth thee now, that thou art wholly gone up to the housetops? Thou that art full of stirs, a tumultuous city, a joyous city: thy slain men are not slain with the sword, nor dead in battle. All thy rulers are fled together, they are bound by the archers: all that are found in thee are bound together, which have fled from far. Therefore said I, Look away from me; I will weep bitterly, labour not to comfort me, because of the spoiling of the daughter of my people. For it is a day of trouble, and of treading down, and of perplexity by the Lord God of hosts in the valley of vision, breaking down the walls, and of crying to the mountains.

It is Isaiah who is in great turmoil over the vision of the loss of his beloved Judah. He carries the burden of the valley of vision which he saw from the housetop. He is full of stirs. The battle hasn’t even occurred yet, but Isaiah suffers from the knowledge because he has seen it in vision The slain men are not yet slain with the sword, or dead in battle.” But Isaiah knows it will occur if Jerusalem doesn’t repent. He describes what is going to happen. The rulers will flee, but they will be bound by the archers. Isaiah cannot be comforted. It is a day of trouble and of treading down, and of perplexity by the Lord God of hosts in the valley of vision. He has seen the walls of Jerusalem breaking down. 

The next part I call The Seige. There is a lot of saber rattling. Surrounding states are preparing for battle against Jerusalem. They will align with the Assyrians. 

Isaiah 22:6-10

And Elam bare the quiver with chariots of men and horsemen, and Kir uncovered the shield. And it shall come to pass, that thy choicest valleys shall be full of chariots, and the horsemen shall set themselves in array at the gate.  And he discovered the covering of Judah, and thou didst look in that day to the armour of the house of the forest. Ye have seen also the breaches of the city of David, that they are many: and ye gathered together the waters of the lower pool.