ISAIAH
The Gospel To Israel
Book 2

LESSON  FIFTEEN
Isaiah 31:1 - 33:24

Isaiah 31:1-3

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (1)  Ha! Those who go down to Egypt for help and rely upon horses! They have put their trust in abundance of chariots, in vast numbers of riders, and they have not turned to the Holy One of Israel, they have not sought the Lord. Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help, who trust in horses and chariots, for they are many; and in horses, which are a great multitude; and have not trusted in the Holy One of Israel, and have not sought the Lord. Woe unto them that go down to Egypt for help putting their stay on horses, and trusting in chariots because they are many, and in horsemen because they are very strong; but have not put their stay on the Memra of the Holy One of Israel, nor sought instruction from before the Lord. (2)  But He too is wise! He has brought on misfortune, and has not canceled His word. So He shall rise against the house of evildoers, and the allies of the workers of iniquity. Therefore he has wisely brought evils upon them, and his word shall not be frustrated; and he shall rise up against the houses of wicked men, and against their vain hope, Yet he also in his wisdom hath brought evil upon him that doeth it, and hath not suffered his words to fail, but hath established them against the house of the evil-doers, and against them that assist lying deeds. (3)  For the Egyptians are man, not God, and their horses are flesh, not spirit; and when the Lord stretches out His arm, the helper shall trip and the helped one shall fall, and both shall perish together. even an Egyptian, a man, and not God; the flesh of horses, and there is no help in them; but the Lord shall bring his hand upon them, and the helpers shall fail, and all shall perish together. Now the Egyptians are men and not princes (lit. a prince); and their horses are flesh and not spirit; and when the Lord shall lift up the stroke of his might, both he that helpeth shall stumble, and he that is helped shall fall, and all of them shall perish together. From the NKJV (1)  Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, and rely on horses, who trust in chariots because they are many, and in horsemen because they are very strong, but who do not look to the Holy One of Israel, nor seek the LORD! (2)  Yet He also is wise and will bring disaster, and will not call back His words, but will arise against the house of evildoers, and against the help of those who work iniquity. (3)  Now the Egyptians are men, and not God; and their horses are flesh, and not spirit.  When the LORD stretches out His hand, both he who helps will fall, and he who is helped will fall down; they all will perish together.

The Fourth Woe:  The False Help;  The Despised One Pitied;  The New Era

This is the last of four chapters together that begin with woe; and they are all woes to the sinners that were found among the professing people of  God,

The situation of this fourth woe is just the same as that of the previous one. The alliance with Egypt is still in progress.  For -

The circumstantial clause,  "Yet he also is wise,"  will bear comparison with their wisdom and that of  Egypt,  is a touching mei'oosis.  It was not necessary to think very highly of  Jehovah,  in order to perceive the reprehensible and destructive character of  their apostasy from Him.

In hilly Palestine horses were not so easily had or available. The Jews were therefore the more eager to get Egyptian chariots as allies against the Assyrian cavalry. In Assyrian sculptures chariots are represented drawn by three horses, and with three men in them.
(from Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown Commentary, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1997 by Biblesoft)

They preferred the help of  the impotent and conditioned,  to the help of  the almighty and all-conditioning One.   Jehovah,   who is God and spirit,   only requires to stretch out His hand (an anthropomorphism, by the side of which we find the rule for interpreting it);  and the helpers,  and those who are helped (i.e., according to the terms of the treaty, though not in reality),  that is to say,  both the source of  the help and the object of  help,  are all cast into one heap together.
(From Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament: New Updated Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.)

Isaiah 31:1-9   APOSTATES

From The Dead Sea Scrolls

Isaiah 31:4

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (4)  For thus the Lord has said to me: As a lion – a great beast – growls over its prey and, when the shepherds gather in force against him, is not dismayed by their cries nor cowed by their noise – so the Lord of Hosts will descend to make war against the mount and the hill of Zion. For thus said the Lord to me, As a lion would roar, or a lion’s whelp over prey which he has taken, and cry over it, until the mountains are filled with his voice, and the animals are awe-struck and tremble at the fierceness of his wrath: so the Lord of Hosts shall descend to fight upon the mount Sion, even upon her mountains. For thus saith the Lord unto me, As the lion, even the young lion, roared over his prey when a company of shepherds is assembled against him, and is not dismayed at their voices, neither doth he hold back because of their tumult, so shall the kingdom of the Lord of Hosts be revealed to dwell upon Mount Zion, and upon the hill thereof. From the NKJV (4)  For thus the LORD has spoken to me: "As a lion roars, and a young lion over his prey  (when a multitude of shepherds is summoned against him, he will not be afraid of their voice nor be disturbed by their noise), so the LORD of hosts will come down to fight for Mount Zion and for its hill.

There is no other passage in the book of Isaiah that sounds so Homeric as this. Jehovah, who would no more allow His city to be taken from Him, than a lion would give up a lamb that it had taken as its prey.

Those unbelievers and their protectors would first of all perish;  for like a fierce indomitable lion would Jehovah advance against Jerusalem,  and take it as His prey,  without suffering Himself to be thwarted by the Judaeans and Egyptians,  who set themselves in opposition to His army (The Assyrians).
The mountain of Zion was the citadel and temple;  the hill of  Zion the city of  Jerusalem (Isa 10:32).   They would both be given up to the judgment of  Jehovah,  without any possibility of escape.

The Lord ... will fight for Mount Zion
A simile of a promising character follows immediately afterwards, without anything to connect the one with the other. This abrupt turn was intended as a surprise,  and was a true picture of the actual fulfillment of  the prophecy;  for in the moment of  the greatest distress,  when the actual existence of  Jerusalem was in question (cf., Isa 10:33-34), the fate of Ariel took suddenly and miraculously a totally different turn.  In this sense,  a pleasant picture is placed side by side with the terrible one (compare Mic 5:6-7).
(From Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament: New Updated Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.)

Micah 5:5-7
When the Assyrian comes into our land, and when he treads in our palaces, then we will raise against him  seven shepherds and eight princely men.   They shall waste with the sword the land of Assyria, and the land of Nimrod at its entrances; thus He shall deliver us from the Assyrian, when he comes into our land and when he treads within our borders.  Then the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many peoples, like dew from the LORD, like showers on the grass, that tarry for no man nor wait for the sons of men.     (NKJV)

Isaiah 31:5

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (5)  Like the birds that fly, even so will the Lord of Hosts shield Jerusalem, shielding and saving, protecting and rescuing. As birds flying, so shall the Lord of hosts defend; he shall defend Jerusalem, and he shall rescue, and save and deliver. As a bird, which flies swiftly, so shall the might of the Lord of hosts be revealed over Jerusalem; he will protect and deliver, he will rescue and set free. From the NKJV (5)  Like birds flying about, so will the LORD of hosts defend Jerusalem.  Defending, He will also deliver it; passing over, He will preserve it.

Jehovah suddenly arrests the work of punishment,  and the love,  which the wrath enfolds within itself,  begins to appear.

The prophet uses the plural,  "birds,"  with an object - namely,  not so much to represent Jehovah Himself,  as the tender care and,  as it were,  maternal love,  into which His leonine fierceness would be changed.  The word  pâsooach  (passing over) recalls to mind the deliverance from Egypt (as in Isa 30:29) in a very significant manner.  The sparing of  the Israelites by the destroyer passing over their doors,  from which the Passover derived its name,  would be repeated once more.

We may see from this,  that in and along with Assyria,  Jehovah Himself,  whose instrument of punishment Assyria was,  would take the field against Jerusalem;  but His attitude towards Jerusalem is suddenly changed into one resembling the action of birds,  as they soar round and above their threatened nests.
(From Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament: New Updated Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.)

All the help they could get from man would lead only to their own destruction as well as the destruction of their helpers.  Had they trusted in the Lord for deliverance in the first place, they would have found Him "a very present help in the time of trouble."  (Psalm 46:1)

Psalm 46:1-6
God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.  Therefore we will not fear, even though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; though its waters roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with its swelling.   Selah
There is a river whose streams shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacle of the Most High. God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved; God shall help her, just at the break of dawn.  The nations raged, the kingdoms were moved; He uttered His voice, the earth melted.    (NKJV)

It was never God's intention or wish to destroy Jerusalem, just to discipline them and bring them back to Himself.

Isaiah 31:6

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (6)  Return, O children of Israel, to Him to whom they have been so shamefully false; Turn, ye children of Israel, who devise a deep and sinful counsel. Return unto the law, for ye have greatly sinned, O children of Israel. From the NKJV (6)   Return to Him against whom the children of Israel have deeply revolted.

On the ground of this half terrible, half comforting picture of the future, the call to repentance is now addressed to the people of the prophet's own time.
And it changes from the 3rd person to the 2nd person:  "Turn unto him from whom ye have deeply revolted, ye children of Israel" (Darby)

The change of  person marks that when they return to the Lord He will address them in more direct terms of  communion, in the second person;  so long as they were revolters,  God speaks of them as more at a distance,  in the third person, rather than to them.
(from Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown Commentary, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1997 by Biblesoft)

Isaiah 31:7

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum For in that day everyone will reject his idols of silver and idols of gold, which your hands have made for your guilt. For in that day men shall renounce their silver idols and their golden idols, which their hands made. For at that time they shall put away every man his idols of silver and his idols of gold which your own hands have made unto you for a transgression. From the NKJV (7)  For in that day every man shall throw away his idols of silver and his idols of gold — sin, which your own hands have made for yourselves.

The first is,  that idolatry would one day be recognized in all its abomination,  and put away.

In the day of  trial the idols will be found to render no help,  and will therefore be cast away.
Compare as to the future restoration and conversion of  Israel simultaneously with the interposition of  Yahweh in its defense, Zech 12:10; 13:1-2.
(from Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown Commentary, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1997 by Biblesoft)

Zechariah 12:10
And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced.    (NKJV)

Zechariah 13:1-3
In that day a fountain shall be opened for the house of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for uncleanness.  "It shall be in that day," says the LORD of hosts, "that I will cut off the names of the idols from the land, and they shall no longer be remembered. I will also cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to depart from the land."    (NKJV)

Isaiah 31:8, 9

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (8)  Then Assyria shall fall, not by the sword of man; a sword not of humans shall devour him. He shall shrivel before the sword, and his young men pine away. And the Assyrian shall fall: not the sword of a great man, nor the sword of a mean man shall devour him; neither shall he flee from the face of the sword: but the young men shall be over thrown: And the Assyrian shall fall by the sword, not of man, and the sword, not of man shall destroy him: and he shall flee before them that slay with the sword, and his mighty men shall be for destruction. (9)  His rock shall melt with terror, and his officers shall collapse from weakness – declares the Lord, who has a fire in Zion, who has an oven in Jerusalem. for they shall be compassed with rocks as with a trench, and shall be worsted; and he that flees shall be taken. Thus saith the Lord, Blessed is he that has a seed in Sion, and household friends in Jerusalem. And his rulers shall pass away by reason of fear, and his nobles shall be dismayed by reason of the ensign, saith the Lord, whose splendor is in Zion for them that observe his law, and his burning furnace of fire in Jerusalem for them that have transgressed his Memra. From the NKJV (8)   "Then Assyria shall fall by a sword not of man, and a sword not of mankind shall devour him. But he shall flee from the sword, and his young men shall become forced labor.  (9)  He shall cross over to his stronghold for fear, and his princes shall be afraid of the banner," says the LORD, Whose fire is in Zion and whose furnace is in Jerusalem.

The second motive is,  that Israel will not be rescued by men,  but by Jehovah alone;  so that even He from whom they have now so deeply fallen will prove Himself the only true ground of  confidence.

A sword is drawn without any human intervention, and before this Asshur falls,  or at least so many of  the Assyrians as are unable to save themselves by flight.  The power of  Asshur is for ever broken;  even its young men will henceforth become tributary,  or perform feudal service.

Isaiah 32:1, 2

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (1)   Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and ministers shall govern with justice; For, behold, a righteous king shall reign, and princes shall govern with judgment. Behold a king shall reign in truth, and the righteous shall be appointed (or, consecrated) to execute just vengeance on the nations. (2)  every one of them shall be like a refuge from gales, a shelter from rainstorms; like brooks of water in a desert, like the shade of a massive rock in a languishing land. And a man shall hide his words, and be hidden, as from rushing water, and shall appear in Sion as a rushing river, glorious in a thirsty land. And the righteous who hide themselves from before the wicked, as men hide themselves from before the tempest, shall again be appointed (or, consecrated), and their teaching shall be received quickly, as streams of water that flow in a thirsty land, as the shadow of a cool rock in a weary land. From the NKJV (1)  Behold, a king will reign in righteousness, and princes will rule with justice. (2)  A man will be as a hiding place from the wind, and a cover from the tempest, as rivers of water in a dry place,

For Judah,  sifted,  delivered,  and purified,  there now begins a new era.
Righteous government,  as a blessing for the people,  is the first beneficent fruit.

The kingdom of Asshur is forever destroyed;  but the kingdom of  Judah rises out of  the state of  confusion into which it has fallen through its God-forgetting policy and disregard of  justice.  King and princes now rule according to the standards that have been divinely appointed and revealed.

2 Kings 18:4-6
He (Hezekiah) removed the high places and broke the sacred pillars, cut down the wooden image and broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made;  for until those days the children of Israel burned incense to it, and called it Nehushtan.  He trusted in the LORD God of Israel, so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor who were before him.  For he held fast to the LORD; he did not depart from following Him, but kept His commandments, which the LORD had commanded Moses.     (NKJV)

Isaiah 32:3, 4

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (3)  Then the eyes of those who have sight shall not be sealed, and the ears of those who have hearing shall listen; And they shall no more trust in men, but they shall incline their ears to hear. And the eyes of the righteous shall not be shut and the ears of them that receive instruction shall hearken. (4)  and the minds of the thoughtless shall attend and note, and the tongues of mumblers shall speak with fluent eloquence. And the heart of the weak ones shall attend to hear, and the stammering tongues shall soon learn to speak peace. And the heart of the rash shall understand knowledge; and their tongue which was dumb shall hasten to speak plainly. From the NKJV (3)  The eyes of those who see will not be dim, And the ears of those who hear will listen.   (4)   Also the heart of the rash will understand knowledge, and the tongue of the stammerers will be ready to speak plainly.

It is not physical miracles that are predicted here,  but a spiritual change.

In verse 1 the prophet merely affirms,  that Israel as a national commonwealth will then be governed in a manner well pleasing to God -
Here he predicts that Israel as a national congregation will be delivered from the judgment of not seeing with seeing eyes, and not hearing with hearing ears, and that it will be delivered from defects of weakness also.

Isaiah 32:3-4 from The Living Bible

Isaiah 32:5-8

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (5)  No more shall a villain be called noble, nor shall “gentleman” be said of a knave. And they shall no more at all tell a fool to rule, and thy servants shall no more at all say, Be silent. The wicked shall no more be called righteous, and they that have transgressed against his Memra shall not be called mighty. (6)  For the villain speaks villainy and plots treachery; to act impiously and to preach disloyalty against the Lord; to leave the hungry unsatisfied and deprive the thirsty of drink. For the fool shall speak foolish words, and his heart shall meditate vanities, and to perform lawless deeds and to speak error against the Lord, to scatter hungry souls, and he will cause the thirsty souls to be empty. For the wicked speak wickedness, and plan violence in their heart, to practice falsehood, and to speak apostasy before the Lord, to weary the soul of the righteous, who desire instruction even as one that hungers desires bread; and the words of the law, which they [the righteous] desire as one that thirsts desires water, they plan to render void. (7)  As for the knave, his tools are knavish. He forges plots to destroy the poor with falsehoods and the needy when they plead their cause. For the counsel of the wicked will devise iniquity, to destroy the poor with unjust words, and ruin the cause of the poor in judgment. And the wicked, whose deeds are evil, and who follow after sinful plans, take counsel to destroy the meek with lying words, and the cause of the needy in judgment. (8)  But the noble has noble intentions and is constant in noble acts. But the godly have devised wise measures, and this counsel shall stand. But the righteous devise truth, and they shall be established in their truth. From the NKJV (5)   The foolish person will no longer be called generous, nor the miser said to be bountiful;   (6)  for the foolish person will speak foolishness, and his heart will work iniquity: to practice ungodliness, to utter error against the LORD, to keep the hungry unsatisfied, and he will cause the drink of the thirsty to fail.   (7)  Also the schemes of the schemer are evil; he devises wicked plans to destroy the poor with lying words, even when the needy speaks justice.   (8)  But a generous man devises generous things, and by generosity he shall stand.

This is the 3rd fruit of blessing:

Nobility of  birth and wealth will give place to nobility of  character,  so that the former will not exist or not be recognized without the latter.

No longer will the evil be able to appear righteous, or claim ignorance (verse 5)

The Living Bible points out:

As is original creation, they will "bring forth after their kind."

From The Dead Sea Scrolls

Against the Women of Jerusalem
Ch. 32:9-20
Appendix to the Fourth Woe

This short address,  although rounded off well,  is something more than a fragment complete in itself.  It is the last part of  the fourth woe.  It is a sidepiece to the threatening prophecy of  the time of  Uzziah-Jotham (Isa 3:16 ff.),  and chastises the frivolous self-security of  the women of  Jerusalem,  just as the former chastises their vain and luxurious love of  finery.  The prophet has now uttered many a woe upon Jerusalem,  which is bringing itself  to the verge of  destruction.

Isaiah 32:9-14

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (9)  You carefree women, attend, hear my words! You confident ladies, give ear to my speech! Rise up, ye rich women, and hear my voice; (Greek daughters in hope) ye confident daughters, hearken to my words. Rise up, ye provinces that dwell at ease, and hear my voice; ye cities that dwell securely, give ear to my Memra. (10)  In little more than a year, you shall be troubled, O confident ones, when the vintage is over and no ingathering takes place. Remember for a full year in pain, yet with hope: the vintage has been cut off, it has ceased, it shall by no means come again. For days and years shall they that dwell securely tremble; for the corn has come to an end and there is no harvest to gather. (11)  Tremble, you carefree ones! Quake, O confident ones! Strip yourselves naked, put the cloth about your loins! Be amazed, be pained, ye confident ones: strip you, bare yourselves, gird your loins; They that sit at ease are dismayed; they that dwell securely tremble: they have cast off their clothing and made themselves bare, and have bound sackcloth on their loins. (12)  Lament upon the breasts, for the pleasant fields, for the spreading grapevines, and beat on your breasts, because of the pleasant field, and the fruit of the vine. They smite upon the breasts for the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vines; (13)  For my people’s soil – it shall be overgrown with briers the thistles – aye, and for all the houses of delight, for the city of mirth. As for the land of my people, the thorn and grass shall come upon it, and joy shall be removed from every house. for the land of my people which shall bring forth briars and thorns; yea, for all the houses of joy in the strong city. (14)  For the castle shall be abandoned, the noisy city forsaken; Citadel and tower shall become bare places forever, a stamping ground for wild asses, a pasture for flocks. As for the rich city, the houses are deserted; they shall abandon the wealth of the city, and the pleasant houses: and the villages shall be caves for ever, the joy of wild asses, shepherds’ pastures; For the sanctuary is laid waste; the multitude of the cities that worshipped therein are desolate; our stronghold and hiding-place has been ransacked, now is it laid waste and desolate for a time; the place which was a house of gladness, the delight of kings, has now become the spoil of armies. From the NKJV (9)  Rise up, you women who are at ease, hear my voice; you complacent daughters, give ear to my speech.   (10)   In a year and some days you will be troubled, you complacent women; for the vintage will fail, the gathering will not come.   (11)  Tremble, you women who are at ease; be troubled, you complacent ones; strip yourselves, make yourselves bare, and gird sackcloth on your waists. (12)  People shall mourn upon their breasts for the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vine.   (13)  On the land of my people will come up thorns and briers, yes, on all the happy homes in the joyous city;   (14)   because the palaces will be forsaken, the bustling city will be deserted. The forts and towers will become lairs forever, a joy of wild donkeys, a pasture of flocks.

The prophet issues a stern warning to the worldly-minded society women of  Jerusalem that the devastation of  warfare would cut off  their income and plunge them into poverty.  They would be reduced to desperate straits and doleful lamentation as their mansions were destroyed and their ruined estates reverted to wilderness in the wake of  Sennacherib's scourge.  (Virtually every Jewish city besides Jerusalem was looted and burned in the campaign of 701, and the country districts were laid waste by Assyrian foragers).
(from The Wycliffe Bible Commentary, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1962 by Moody Press)

They were careless and at ease because they had money enough and mirth enough;
but the prophet here tells them,

Isaiah 32:15-19

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (15)  Till a spirit from on high is poured out on us, and wilderness is transformed into farmland, while farmland rates as mere brush. Until the Spirit shall come upon you from on high, and Chermel shall be desert, and Chermel shall be counted for a forest. All this must we endure, until there come for us a spirit from before him whose Shekinah is in the highest heavens, and the wilderness become a fruitful field, and the fruitful field inhabited with many cities. (16)  Then justice shall abide in the wilderness and righteousness shall dwell on the farm land. Then judgment shall abode in the wilderness, and righteousness shall dwell in Carmel. Then they that do justice shall dwell in the wilderness, and they that do righteousness shall inhabit the fruitful field. (17)  For the work of righteousness shall be peace, and the effect of righteousness, calm and confidence forever. And the works of righteousness shall be peace; and righteousness shall ensure rest, and the righteous shall be confident forever. And they that do righteousness shall be at peace, and they that practice righteousness shall have quiet, and dwell securely for ever. (18)  Then my people shall dwell in peaceful homes, in secure dwellings, in untroubled places of rest. And his people shall inhabit a city of peace, and dwell in it in confidence, and they shall rest with wealth. And my people shall dwell in their dwelling places in peace, and in their land in security, and in their cities at ease. (19)   And the brush shall sink and vanish, even as the city is laid low. And if the hail should come down, it shall not come upon you; and they that dwell in the forests shall be in confidence, as those in the plain country. But hail shall come down and destroy the armies of the nations, and their habitations shall be made desolate, and come to an end. From the NKJV (15)  Until the Spirit is poured upon us from on high, and the wilderness becomes a fruitful field, and the fruitful field is counted as a forest. (16)  Then justice will dwell in the wilderness, and righteousness remain in the fruitful field.  (17)  The work of righteousness will be peace, and the effect of  righteousness, quietness and assurance forever.   (18)   My people will dwell in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places,  (19)  though hail comes down on the forest, and the city is brought low in humiliation.

The state would then continue long,  very long,  until at last the destruction of  the false rest would be followed by the realization of  the true.
There is a limit,  therefore,  to the  "for ever" of verse 14.  The punishment would last till the Spirit,  which Israel had not then dwelling in the midst of  it, and whose fullness was like a closed vessel to Israel,  should be emptied out over Israel from the height of  heaven, i.e., should be poured out in all its fullness.
(From Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament: New Updated Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.)

When that was done,  a great change would take place,  the spiritual nature of  which is figuratively represented in the same proverbial manner as in Isa 29:17.
At the same time,  a different turn is given to the second half in the passage before us.
The meaning is,  not that what was now valued as a fruit-bearing garden would be brought down from its false eminence,  and be only regarded as forest;

Justice (mishpât) and Righteousness (tsedâqâh) are throughout Isaiah the stamp of  the last and perfect time.
As these advance towards self-completion,  the produce and result of  these will be peace.

But two things must take place before this calm,  trustworthy,  happy peace, of  which the existing carnal security is only a caricature,  can possibly be realized.

Isaiah 32:20

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (20)  Happy shall you be who sow by all waters, who send out cattle and asses to pasture. Blessed are they that sow by every water, where the ox and ass tread. Blessed are ye, O ye righteous; ye have wrought good works; for ye are like them that sow on a well-watered field, that send forth oxen to tread out the corn and asses to gather it. From the NKJV (20)  Blessed are you who sow beside all waters, who send out freely the feet of the ox and the donkey.

In the face of  this double judgment,  the prophet congratulates those who will live to see the times after the judgment.  Those who lived to see these times would be far and wide the lords of  a quiet and fruitful land,  cleared of  its foes,  and of  all disturbers of  peace.  They would sow wherever they pleased,  by all the waters that fertilized the soil,  and therefore in a soil of  the most productive kind,  and one that required little if  any trouble to cultivate.  And inasmuch as everything would be in the most copious abundance,  they would no longer need to watch with anxiety lest their oxen and asses should stray into the corn-fields,  but would be able to let them wander wherever they pleased.
(From Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament: New Updated Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.)

This concludes the four woes,  from which the fifth,  that immediately follows,  is distinguished by the fact,  that in

The prophet commenced (Isa 28:1-4) with the destruction of  Samaria;  he then threatened Judah and Jerusalem also.  But it is uncommonly difficult to combine the different features of  the threat into a complete picture. Sifting even to a small remnant is a leading thought,  which runs through the threat.  And we also read throughout the whole,  that Asshur will meet with its own destruction in front of  that very Jerusalem which it is seeking to destroy.  But the prophet also knows that

This double threat may be explained in the following manner:

There never was any actual siege of  Jerusalem by the Assyrians.  The explanation of  this is,  that,  according to Jer 18:7-8, and 9, 10,  neither the threatenings of  punishment nor the promises of  blessing uttered by the prophets were so unconditional,  that they were certain to be fulfilled and that with absolute necessity,  at such and such a time,  or upon such and such a generation.

And we have also an express historical testimony,  which shows that this is the way in which the
non-fulfillment of  what Isaiah threatened as about to take place within a year is to be accounted for.  Not only Isaiah,  but also his contemporary Micah,  threatened,  that along with the judgment upon Samaria,  the same judgment would also burst upon Jerusalem.  Zion would be ploughed as a field,  Jerusalem would be laid in ruins,  and the temple mountain would be turned into a wooded height  (Mic 3:12).  This prophecy belongs to the first year of  Hezekiah's reign,  for it was then that the book of  Micah was composed.

The Fifth Woe:  Concerning Asshur;  Deliverance and Glory of  Jerusalem

Isaiah 33:1

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (1)  Ha, you ravager who are not ravaged, you betrayer who have not been betrayed! When you have done ravaging, you shall be ravaged; when you have finished betraying, you shall be betrayed. Woe to them that afflict you; but no one makes you miserable: and he that deals perfidiously with you does not deal perfidiously: they that deal perfidiously shall be taken and given up, and as a moth on a garment, so shall they be spoiled. Woe to thee that comest to spoil, and shall they not spoil thee? And that comest to oppress, and shall they not oppress thee? When thou comest to spoil they shall spoil thee; when thou weariest of oppression they shall oppress thee. From the NKJV (1)  Woe to you who plunder, though you have not been plundered;  and you who deal treacherously, though they have not dealt treacherously with you!  When you cease plundering, you will be plundered;  when you make an end of dealing treacherously, they will deal treacherously with you.

We are now in the fourteenth year of Hezekiah's reign.
The threatenings of  the first years,  which the repentance of  the people had delayed,  are now so far in force again,  and so far actually realized,  that the Assyrians are already in Judah,  and have not only devastated the land,  but are threatening Jerusalem.
The element of  promise now gains the upper hand,  the prophet places himself  between Asshur and his own nation with the weapons of  prophecy and prayer,  and the woe turns from the latter to the former.  Asshur is described as not devastated and not spoiled, because it had not yet been visited by any such misfortune as that which had fallen upon other lands and nations.

Isaiah 33:1-12      THE ASSYRIAN SPOILER

Isaiah 33:2

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (2)  O Lord, be gracious to us! It is to You we have looked;  be their arm every morning, also our deliverance in time of stress. Lord, have mercy upon us; for we have trusted in thee: the seed of the rebellious is gone to destruction, but our deliverance was in a time of affliction. O Lord, be gracious unto us, for thy Memra have we waited: be our strength every day, yea, our deliverer in the time of trouble. From the NKJV .(2)   O LORD, be gracious to us;  we have waited for You.  Be their arm every morning, our salvation also in the time of trouble.

The prophet's word of command is changed into a believing prayer.

"Their arm,"  i.e.,  the power which shelters and defends them,  viz.,  Your people and my own.

Isaiah,  impelled by prophetic inspiration,  here interposes his own feelings as a Jew,  and offers his own prayer that God would be the strength of the nation.
(from Barnes' Notes, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1997 by Biblesoft)

Isaiah 33:3, 4

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (3)  At [Your] roaring, peoples have fled, before Your majesty nations have scattered;   (4)  and spoil was gathered as locusts are gathered, it was amassed as grasshoppers are amassed. By reason of the terrible sound the nations were dismayed for fear of thee, and the heathen were scattered. and now shall the spoils of your small and great be gathered: as if one should gather locusts, so shall they mock you. At the noise of the tumult the peoples are dismayed; at the multitude of the mighty deeds the kingdoms are scattered.  And the house of Israel shall gather the riches of the nations that hate them, as men gather the locust, setting fire to the weapons of war as men set fire to dry sticks. From the NKJV (3)  At the noise of the tumult the people shall flee; when You lift Yourself up, the nations shall be scattered;  (4)  and Your plunder shall be gathered like the gathering of the caterpillar; as the running to and fro of locusts, he shall run upon them.

While the prophet is praying thus, he already sees the answer.

The indeterminate hâmoon (the tumult),  which produces for that very reason the impression of  something mysterious and terrible,  is at once explained.  The noise comes from Jehovah,  who is raising Himself judicially above Assyria,  and thunders as a judge.  Then the hostile army runs away and your booty  (the address returns to Assyria)  is swept away,  just as when a swarm of  locusts settles on a field,  it soon eats it utterly away.

Isaiah 33:5, 6

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (5)  The Lord is exalted, He dwells on high! [Of old] He filled Zion with justice and righteousness. The God who dwells on high is holy: Sion is filled with judgment and righteousness. Mighty is the Lord who hath caused his Shekinah to dwell in the highest heavens; who hath promised to fill Zion with them that do true judgment and righteousness. (6)  Faithfulness to Your charge was [her] wealth, wisdom and devotion [her] triumph, reverence for the Lord – that was her treasure. They shall be delivered up to the law: our salvation is our treasure: there are wisdom and knowledge and piety toward the Lord; these are the treasures of righteousness. And the good which thou didst promise to do unto them that fear thee shall come; thou hast brought it, and established it in its time, even might and salvation, wisdom and knowledge: for them that fear the Lord the treasure of his goodness is prepared. From the NKJV (5)  The LORD is exalted, for He dwells on high; He has filled Zion with justice and righteousness. (6)  Wisdom and knowledge will be the stability of your times, and the strength of salvation; the fear of the LORD is His treasure.

The prophet sees this as he prays,  and now feasts himself on the consequences of  this victory of  Jehovah.

Exalted:  for though highly exalted in Himself,  He has performed an act of  justice and righteousness,  with the sight and remembrance of  which Zion is filled as with an overflowing rich supply of  instruction and praise.  A new time has dawned for the people of  Judah.

From The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible

Note: What we have done is to change from The Dead Sea Scrolls Translated by Florentino Garcia Martinez, published by William B. Eerdmans of  Grand Rapids,  which has bits and pieces of  the Book of  Isaiah  -
To The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible by Martin Abegg, Jr., Peter Flint & Eugene Ulrich by Harper Collins Publishers,  because it has the complete work of  Isaiah from the different dead sea scrolls of  Isaiah that have been found.
From here on, the ancient Bible versions referred to in the footnotes of  the Dead Sea Scrolls:
MT = Masoretic Text
LXX = The Septuagint
PS = Samaritan Pentateuch
IQIsa = Scroll of Isaiah by Florentino Garcia Martinez

What you see before you is the four possible translations that existed in the time of  Jesus Christ, around the first century.

Isaiah 33:7-9

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (7)  Hark! The Arielites cry aloud; Shalom’s messengers weep bitterly. Behold now, these shall be terrified with fear of you: those whom ye feared shall cry out because of you: messengers shall be sent, bitterly weeping, entreating for peace. Behold, when it shall be revealed to them the ambassadors of the nations shall cry aloud bitterly; they that went to proclaim peace have returned weeping in bitterness of spirit. (8)  Highways are desolate, wayfarers have ceased. A covenant has been renounced, cities rejected. Mortal man despised. For the ways of these shall be made desolate: the terror of the nations has been made to cease, and the covenant with these is taken away, and ye shall by no means deem them men. The highways have been laid waste, the wayfaring men have ceased; because they have altered the covenant they have been removed from their cities; the sons of men thought not that evil was coming upon them. (9)  The land is wilted and withered; Lebanon disgraced and moldering, Sharon is become like a desert, and Bashan and Carmel are stripped bare. The land mourns; Libanus is ashamed: Saron is become marshes: Galilee shall be laid bare, and Chermel. The land mourneth, and lies waste; Lebanon is dried up and withered; Sharon has become like a desert, Mathnan (Bashan) and Carmel are laid waste. From the NKJV (7)  Surely their valiant ones shall cry outside, the ambassadors of peace shall weep bitterly. (8)  The highways lie waste, the traveling man ceases.  He has broken the covenant, he has despised the cities, he regards no man. (9)  The earth mourns and languishes, Lebanon is shamed and shriveled; Sharon is like a wilderness, and Bashan and Carmel shake off their fruits.

The prophet has thus run through the whole train of  thought with a few rapid strides,  in accordance with the custom that we have already frequently noticed;  and now he commences afresh,  mourning over the present miserable condition of  things,  in psalm-like elegiac tones,  and weeping with his weeping people.

'erŞ'elaam (OT:691) (the valiant one)  is probably chosen with some allusion to Ariel,  the name of  Jerusalem in ch. 29;  but it has a totally different meaning.

The heroes intended by the prophet were the messengers sent to Sennacherib to treat with him for peace. They carried to him the amount of  silver and gold that he had demanded as the condition of  peace (2 Kings 18:14).

But Sennacherib broke the treaty,  by demanding nothing less than the surrender of  Jerusalem itself.  Then the heroes of  Jerusalem cried aloud,  when they arrived at Jerusalem,  and had to convey this message of  disgrace and alarm to the king and nation;  and bitterly weeping over such a breach of  faith,  such deception and disgrace,  the embassy,  which had been sent off,  to the deep self-humiliation of  Judah and themselves,  returned to Jerusalem.

Moreover, Sennacherib continued to storm the fortified places, in violation of his agreement.  The land was more and more laid waste,  the fields were trodden down;  and the autumnal aspect of  Lebanon,  with its faded foliage,  and of  Bashan and Carmel,  with their falling leaves,  looked like shame and grief at the calamities of  the land.  It was in the autumn,  therefore,  that the prophet uttered these complaints;  and the definition of  the time given in his prophecy (Isa 32:10).

From The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible

Isaiah 33:10, 11

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (10)  “Now I will arise,” says the Lord, “Now I will exalt Myself, now raise Myself high. Now will I arise, saith the Lord, now will I be glorified; now will I be exalted. Now will I be revealed, saith the Lord, now will I be exalted, now will I be lifted up. (11)  You shall conceive hay, give birth to straw, My breath will devour you like fire. Now shall ye see, now shall ye perceive; the strength of your breath shall be vain; fire shall devour you. Ye have conceived wicked thoughts, O ye nations, ye have wrought for you evil deeds; because of your evil deeds, my Memra shall destroy you, as the whirlwind the chaff. From the NKJV (10)  "Now I will rise," says the LORD;  "Now I will be exalted, now I will lift Myself up. (11)  You shall conceive chaff, you shall bring forth stubble; your breath, as fire, shall devour you.

Isaiah having mourned in the tone of  the Psalms,  now comforts himself with the words of  a psalm.  Like David in Psalm 12:6,  he hears Jehovah speak. The measure of  Asshur's iniquity is full;  the hour of  Judah's redemption is come;  Jehovah has looked on long enough,  as though sitting still (Isa 18:4).

Three times does the prophet repeat the word 'attâh (now),  which is so significant a word with all the prophets,  but more especially with Hosea and Isaiah,  and which always fixes the boundary-line and turning-point between  love and wrath,  wrath and love.  Jehovah would rise up from His throne,  and show Himself  in all His greatness to the enemies of  Israel.
(From Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament: New Updated Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.)

After the prophet has heard this from Jehovah,  he knows how it will fare with them.  He therefore cries out to them in triumph, "Ye are pregnant with hay, ye bring forth stubble! Your snorting is the fire that will devour you."  Their vain purpose to destroy Jerusalem comes to nothing;  their burning wrath against Jerusalem becomes the fire of  wrath,  which consumes them (see Isa 5:24).

Isaiah 33:12

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (12)  Peoples shall be burning of lime,  thorns cut down that are set on fire. And the nations shall be burnt up; as a thorn in the field cast out and burnt up. And the nations shall be as the burning of fire, as thorns cut down shall they be burnt in the fire. From the NKJV (12)  And the people shall be like the burnings of lime; like thorns cut up they shall be burned in the fire.

The prophet announces this to them,  and now tells openly what has been exhibited to him in his mental mirror as the purpose of  God.

Isaiah 33:13-24      JEHOVAH     THE KING IN HIS BEAUTY

From The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible

Isaiah 33:13, 14

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (13)  Hear, you who are far, what I have done; you who are near, note My might.” They that are afar off shall hear what I have done; they that draw nigh shall know my strength. Hear, O ye righteous, that have kept my law from the beginning, what I have done; and know, ye that repent, that have recently returned to the law, my might. (14)  Sinners in Zion are frightened, the godless are seized with trembling: “Who of us can dwell with the devouring fire: Who of us can dwell with the never-dying blaze?” The sinners in Sion have departed: trembling shall seize the ungodly. Who will tell you that a fire is kindled? Who will tell you of the eternal place? The sinners are dismayed in Zion; fear hath seized the wicked whose ways were underhand saying, Who shall abide for us in Zion, wherein the brightness of the Shekinah is like devouring fire? Who shall sojourn for us in Jerusalem, wherein the wicked are about to be judged, and to be delivered over to Gehenna as an everlasting burning? From the NKJV (13)  Hear, you who are afar off, what I have done; and you who are near, acknowledge My might." (14)  The sinners in Zion are afraid; fearfulness has seized the hypocrites: "Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? Who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?"

You who are afar off  -  This is an address of Yahweh,  indicating that the destruction of  the Assyrian army would be so signal that it would be known to distant nations,  and would constitute an admonition to them.
You who are near - You Jews;  or the nations immediately adjacent to Judea.
The phrase 'far and near,' is equivalent to all.
(from Barnes' Notes, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1997 by Biblesoft)

The prophet, while addressing Asshur, does not overlook those sinners of  his own nation who are deserving of  punishment.  The judgment upon Asshur is an alarming lesson,  not only for the heathen,  but for Israel also;  for there is no respect of  persons with Jehovah.  Even for the sinners in Jerusalem also there is no abiding in the presence of  the Almighty and Just One,  who has judged Asshur (the act of  judgment is regarded by the prophet as having just occurred);  they must either repent,  or they cannot remain in His presence.

Jehovah,  so far as His wrath is concerned,  is  "a consuming fire"  (Deut 4:24; 9:3);  and the fiery force of  His anger is  "everlasting burnings"  (mookedee 'oolâm),  inasmuch as it consists of  flames that are never extinguished,  never burn themselves out.
And this God had His fire and His furnace in Jerusalem (Isa 31:9),  and had just shown what His fire could do,  when once it burst forth.
Therefore do the sinners inquire in their alarm,  whilst confessing to one another (lânuu; cf., Amos 9:1) that none of them can endure it, "Who can dwell with devouring fire?"

From The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible

Isaiah 33:15, 16

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (15)  He who walks in righteousness, speaks uprightly, spurns profit from fraudulent dealings, waves away a bribe instead of grasping it, stops his ears against listening to infamy, shuts his eyes against looking at evil . He that walks in righteousness, speaking rightly, hating transgression and iniquity, and shaking his hands from gifts, stopping his ears that he should not hear the judgment of blood, shutting his eyes that he should not see injustice; The prophet saith, The righteous shall dwell therein; everyone that walketh in righteousness, and speaketh uprightly, that is far removed from unrighteous gain, that keepeth his soul aloof from the oppressors, that withhold his hands from receiving a bribe, that stopped up his ears from hearkening unto them that shed innocent blood, and restrains his eyes from looking on them that do evil. (16)  Such a one shall dwell in lofty security, with inaccessible cliffs for his stronghold, with his food supplied and his drink assured. he shall dwell in a high cave of a strong rock: bread shall be given him, and his water shall be sure. As for him, his dwelling-place shall be in a place high and exalted, even the sanctuary: his soul shall be satisfied with sufficient food; his waters shall be sure as a spring of water whose waters fail not. From the NKJV (15)  He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly, he who despises the gain of oppressions, who gestures with his hands, refusing bribes, who stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed, and shuts his eyes from seeing evil:    (16)    he will dwell on high; his place of defense will be the fortress of rocks; bread will be given him, his water will be sure.

This is Isaiah's variation of Psalm 15 and 24:3-6

Tsedâqooth (righteously) is the accusative of  the object,  so also is meeshâriim (uprightly):

Question:

Six characteristics of a righteous man:

From The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible

Isaiah 33:17

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (17)  When your eyes behold a king in his beauty, when they contemplate the land round about, Ye shall see a king with glory: your eyes shall behold a land from afar. The glory of the Shekinah of the everlasting king in his beauty shall thine eyes see; thou shalt observe and look on them that go down to the land of Gehenna. From the NKJV (17)  Your eyes will see the King in His beauty;  they will see the land that is very far off.

Over this picture the prophet forgets the sinners in Zion,  and greets with words of  promise the thriving church of  the future.

The king of  Judah,  hitherto so deeply humbled,  and,  as Micah instances by way of  example,  "smitten upon the cheeks,"  is then glorified by the victory of  his God; and the nation, constituted as described here,

From The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible

Isaiah 33:18, 19

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (18)  Your throat shall murmur in awe, “Where is one who could count? Where is one who could weigh? Where is one who could count [all these] towers?” Your soul shall meditate terror. Where are the scribes? Where are the counselors, where is he that numbers them that are growing up, Thy heart shall muse on mighty things: where are the scribes? Where are the reckoners? Let them come, if thy can, to reckon the number of the slain of the chiefs of the armies of the mighty men. (19)  No more shall you see the barbarian folk, the people of speech too obscure to comprehend, so stammering of tongue that they are not understood. even the small and great people? With whom he took not counsel, neither did he understand a people of deep speech, so that a despised people should not hear, and there is no understanding to him that hears. Thou shalt no more see the dominion of the fierce people, the people whose speech is too difficult to understand, who mock with their tongue because they have no understanding. From the NKJV (18)  Your heart will meditate on terror: "Where is the scribe?  Where is he who weighs?  Where is he who counts the towers?" (19)  You will not see a fierce people, a people of obscure speech, beyond perception, of a stammering tongue that you cannot understand.

The tribulation has passed away like a dream.
The dreadful past is so thoroughly forced out of  mind by the glorious present,  that they are obliged to turn back their thoughts  (hâgâh, meditari, as Jerome renders it)  to remember it at all.

The soopheer (scribe) who had the management of  the raising of  the tribute,
the shooqeel  (he who weighs)  who tested the weight of  the gold and silver,
the soopher 'eth hammigdâliim  (he who counts the towers) who drew up the plan of  the city to be besieged or stormed, are all vanished.

The rough people (now`aaz (OT:3267) `am (OT:5971), the niphal of `aazaz (OT:5810),  from yaa`az (OT:3267)),  that had shown itself so insolent,  so shameless,  and so insatiable in its demands,  has become invisible.

The expressions:
'imkee (obscure) and nil'ag (fierce) refer to the obscure and barbarous sound of  their language;
misshemooa (beyond perception) to the unintelligibility of  their speech; and
biynaah (understand) (OT:998) 'eeyn (cannot) (OT:369) to the obscurity of their meaning.
Even if the Assyrians spoke a Semitic language,  they were of  so totally different a nationality,  and their manners were so entirely different,  that their language must have sounded even more foreign to an Israelite than Dutch to a German.
(From Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament: New Updated Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.)

From The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible

Isaiah 33:20

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (20)  When you gaze upon Zion, our city of assembly, your eyes shall behold Jerusalem as a secure homestead, a tent not to be transported, whose pegs shall never be pulled up, and none of whose ropes shall break. Behold the city of Sion, our refuge: thine eyes shall behold Jerusalem, a rich city, tabernacles which shall not be shaken, neither shall the pins of her tabernacle be moved for ever, neither shall her cords be at all broken: Thou shalt see their downfall, O Zion, city of our festivals; thine eyes shall see the consolation of Jerusalem in her prosperity and security, as a tent that is not loosed, and whose stakes are not pulled up for ever, nor shall any of its cords be cut in two. From the NKJV (20)  Look upon Zion, the city of our appointed feasts; your eyes will see Jerusalem, a quiet home, a tabernacle that will not be taken down; not one of its stakes will ever be removed, nor will any of its cords be broken.

And how will Jerusalem look when Asshur has been dashed to pieces on the strong fortress?
The prophet passes over here into the tone of  Ps 48.

Jerusalem stands there unconquered and inviolable,  the fortress where the congregation of  the whole land celebrates its feasts,  a place full of  good cheer (Isa 32:18),  in which everything is now arranged for a continuance.

Jerusalem has come out of  tribulation stronger than ever - not a nomadic wandering tent (tsâ'am, a nomad word, to wander, lit. to pack up),  but one set up for a permanent dwelling.
(From Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament: New Updated Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.)

From The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible

Isaiah 33:21, 22

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (21)  For there the Lord in His greatness shall be for us like a region of rivers, of broad streams where no floating vessels can sail and no mighty craft can travel their ropes are slack, they cannot steady the sockets of their masts, they cannot spread a sail. For the name of the Lord is great to you: ye shall have a place, even rivers and wide and spacious channels: thou shalt not go this way, neither a vessel with oars go thereby: But from thence shall be revealed the might of the Lord to do good unto us, from the place whence issue far-flooding rivers, wherein no fishing vessel shall go, nor great galley sail through it. (22)  For the Lord shall be our ruler, the Lord shall be our prince, the Lord shall be our king: He shall deliver us. For my God is great: the Lord our judge shall not pass me by: the Lord is our prince, the Lord is our king; the Lord, he shall save us. For the Lord is our judge, who brought us out of Egypt by his might; the Lord is our teacher, who gave us the instruction of his law from Sinai; the Lord is our king, he shall deliver us, and execute a righteous vengeance for us on the armies of God. From the NKJV (21)  But there the majestic LORD will be for us a place of broad rivers and streams, in which no galley with oars will sail, nor majestic ships pass by   (22)  (For the LORD is our Judge, the LORD is our Lawgiver, the LORD is our King; He will save us);

It is also a great Lord who dwells therein,  a faithful and almighty defender.
Following upon the negative clauses in verse 20,  the next verse commences with kii 'im (but).

Glorious ('addiir - majestic) is Jehovah (Yahweh),  who has overthrown Lebanon,  i.e.,  Assyria
(Isa 10:34).
He dwells in Jerusalem for the good of  His people - a place of  streams,  i.e.,  one resembling a place of  streams,  from the fact that He dwells therein.

Yahweh will be unto us:

Yahweh will be to us nothing but a source of  happiness,  truth,  and prosperity.
His presence will be to us only a blessing,  and a means of  success and joy.
The repetition of  the name Yahweh three times is common in the Scriptures.

From The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible

Isaiah 33:23, 24

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (23)  Then shall indeed much spoil be divided; even the lame shall seize booty. Thy cords are broken, for they had no strength: thy mast has given way, it shall not spread the sails, it shall not bear a signal, until it be given up for plunder; therefore shall many lame men take spoil. At that time the nations shall be bereft of their strength, and shall be like a ship whose ropes have been cut, and which has no strength in its mast which has been cut, neither is it possible to spread a sail thereon: then the house of Israel shall divide the riches of the nations, even much spoil and booty; and though there be among them blind and lame, yet they also shall divide much spoil and booty. (24)  And none who lives there shall say, “I am sick;” it shall be inhabited by folk whose sin has been forgiven   And the people dwelling among them shall by no means say, I am in pain: for their sin shall be forgiven them. And they shall not say henceforth to the people that dwelleth securely round about the Shekinah, from you has come upon us the evil stroke: the people even the house of Israel shall be gathered together and return to their place with their sins forgiven. From the NKJV (23)  Your tackle is loosed, they could not strengthen their mast, they could not spread the sail. Then the prey of great plunder is divided; the lame take the prey. (24)  And the inhabitant will not say, "I am sick"; the people who dwell in it will be forgiven their iniquity.

Now indeed it was apparently very different from this.
It was not Assyria, but Jerusalem,  that was like a ship about to be wrecked;  but when that which had just been predicted should be fulfilled,  Jerusalem,  at present so powerless and sinful,  would be entirely changed.

The address itself  points to Jerusalem;  and the reference to this gives the most appropriate sense,  whilst the contrast between the now and then closes the prophecy in the most glorious manner.

Both sickness and sin shall be taken away.

Hebrews 8:10-12
"For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days," says the LORD: "I will put My laws in their mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. None of them shall teach his neighbor, and none his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,' for all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them.  For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more."     (NKJV - quoted by Paul from Jeremiah 31:31-34)

From The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible

Isaiah 31:1 - 33:24 - from the Amplified Version

31:1    WOE TO those who go down to Egypt for help, who rely on horses and trust in chariots because they are many and in horsemen because they are very strong, but they look not to the Holy One of Israel, nor seek and consult the Lord!
(2)    And yet He is wise and brings calamity and does not retract His words; He will arise against the house (the whole race) of evildoers and against the helpers of those who work iniquity.
(3)    Now the Egyptians are men and not God, and their horses are flesh and not spirit; and when the Lord stretches out His hand, both [Egypt] who helps will stumble, and [Judah] who is helped will fall, and they will all perish and be consumed together.
(4)    For the Lord has said to me, As the lion or the young lion growls over his prey — and though a large band of shepherds is called out against him, he will not be terrified at their voice or daunted at their noise — so the Lord of hosts will come down to fight upon Mount Zion and upon its hills.
(5)    Like birds hovering, so will the Lord of hosts defend Jerusalem; He will protect and deliver it, He will pass over and spare and preserve it.
(6)    Return, O children of Israel, to Him against Whom you have so deeply plunged into revolt.
(7)    For in that day every man of you will cast away [in contempt and disgust] his idols of silver and his idols of gold, which your own hands have sinfully made for you.
(8)    Then the Assyrian shall fall by a sword not of man; and a sword, not of men [but of God], shall devour him. And he shall flee from the sword, and his young men shall be subjected to forced labor.
(9)    [In his flight] he shall pass beyond his rock [refuge and stronghold] because of terror; even his officers shall desert the standard in fear and panic, says the Lord, Whose fire is in Zion and Whose furnace is in Jerusalem.

32:1   BEHOLD, A King will reign in righteousness, and princes will rule with justice.
(2)    And each one of them shall be like a hiding place from the wind and a shelter from the storm, like streams of water in a dry place, like the shade of a great rock in a weary land [to those who turn to them].
(3)    Then the eyes of those who see will not be closed or dimmed, and the ears of those who hear will listen.
(4)    And the mind of the rash will understand knowledge and have good judgment, and the tongue of the stammerers will speak readily and plainly.
(5)    The fool (the unbeliever and the ungodly) will no more be called noble, nor the crafty and greedy [for gain] said to be bountiful and princely.
(6)    For the fool speaks folly and his mind plans iniquity: practicing profane ungodliness and speaking error concerning the Lord, leaving the craving of the hungry unsatisfied and causing the drink of the thirsty to fail.
(7)    The instruments and methods of the fraudulent and greedy [for gain] are evil; he devises wicked devices to ruin the poor and the lowly with lying words, even when the plea of the needy is just and right.
(8)    But the noble, openhearted, and liberal man devises noble things; and he stands for what is noble, openhearted, and generous.
(9)    Rise up, you women who are at ease! Hear my [Isaiah's] voice, you confident and careless daughters! Listen to what I am saying!
(10)  In little more than a year you will be shaken with anxiety, you careless and complacent women; for the vintage will fail, and the ingathering will not come.
(11)  Tremble, you women who are at ease! Shudder with fear, you complacent ones! Strip yourselves bare and gird sackcloth upon your loins [in grief]!
(12)  They shall beat upon their breasts for the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vine,
(13)  For the land of my people growing over with thorns and briers — yes, for all the houses of joy in the joyous city.
(14)  For the palace shall be forsaken, the populous city shall be deserted; the hill and the watchtower shall become dens [for wild animals] endlessly, a joy for wild donkeys, a pasture for flocks,
(15)  Until the Spirit is poured upon us from on high, and the wilderness becomes a fruitful field, and the fruitful field is valued as a forest. [Psalms 104:30; Ezekiel 36:26,27; 39:29; Zechariah 12:10.]
(16)  Then justice will dwell in the wilderness, and righteousness (moral and spiritual rectitude in every area and relation) will abide in the fruitful field.
(17)  And the effect of righteousness will be peace [internal and external], and the result of righteousness will be quietness and confident trust forever.
(18)  My people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, in safe dwellings, and in quiet resting-places.
(19)  But it [the wrath of the Lord] shall hail, coming down overpoweringly on the forest [the army of the Assyrians], and the capital city shall be utterly humbled and laid prostrate.
(20)  Happy and fortunate are you who cast your seed upon all waters [when the river overflows its banks; for the seed will sink into the mud and when the waters subside, the plant will spring up; you will find it after many days and reap an abundant harvest], you who safely send forth the ox and the donkey [to range freely].

33:1    WOE TO you, O destroyer, you who were not yourself destroyed, who deal treacherously though they [your victims] did not deal treacherously with you! When you have ceased to destroy, you will be destroyed; and when you have stopped dealing treacherously, they will deal treacherously with you.
(2)    O Lord, be gracious to us; we have waited [expectantly] for You. Be the arm [of Your servants — their strength and defense] every morning, our salvation in the time of trouble.
(3)    At the noise of the tumult [caused by Your voice at which the enemy is overthrown], the peoples flee; at the lifting up of Yourself, nations are scattered.
(4)    And the spoil [of the Assyrians] is gathered [by the inhabitants of Jerusalem] as the caterpillar gathers; as locusts leap and run to and fro, so [the Jews spoil the Assyrians' forsaken camp as they] leap upon it.
(5)    The Lord is exalted, for He dwells on high; He will fill Zion with justice and righteousness (moral and spiritual rectitude in every area and relation).
(6)    And there shall be stability in your times, an abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge; the reverent fear and worship of the Lord is your treasure and His.
(7)    Behold, their valiant ones cry without; the ambassadors of peace weep bitterly.
(8)    The highways lie waste, the wayfaring man ceases. The enemy has broken the covenant, he has despised the cities and the witnesses, he regards no man.
(9)    The land mourns and languishes, Lebanon is confounded and [its luxuriant verdure] withers away; Sharon [a fertile pasture region south of Mount Carmel] is like a desert, and Bashan [a broad, fertile plateau east of the Jordan River] and [Mount] Carmel shake off their leaves.
(10)  Now will I arise, says the Lord. Now will I lift up Myself; now will I be exalted.
(11)  You conceive chaff, you bring forth stubble; your breath is a fire that consumes you.
(12)  And the people will be burned as if to lime, like thorns cut down that are burned in the fire.
(13)  Hear, you who are far off [says the Lord], what I have done; and you who are near, acknowledge My might!
(14)  The sinners in Zion are afraid; trembling seizes the godless ones. [They cry] Who among us can dwell with that devouring fire? Who among us can dwell with those everlasting burnings?
(15)  He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly, who despises gain from fraud and from oppression, who shakes his hand free from the taking of bribes, who stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed and shuts his eyes to avoid looking upon evil.
(16)  [Such a man] will dwell on the heights; his place of defense will be the fortresses of rocks; his bread will be given him; water for him will be sure.
(17)  Your eyes will see the King in His beauty; [your eyes] will behold a land of wide distances that stretches afar.
(18)  Your mind will meditate on the terror: [asking] Where is he who counted? Where is he who weighed the tribute? Where is he who counted the towers?
(19)  You will see no more the fierce and insolent people, a people of a speech too deep and obscure to be comprehended, of a strange and stammering tongue that you cannot understand.
(20)  Look upon Zion, the city of our set feasts and solemnities! Your eyes shall see Jerusalem, a quiet habitation, a tent that shall not be taken down; not one of its stakes shall ever be pulled up, neither shall any of its cords be broken.
(21)  But there the Lord will be for us in majesty and splendor a place of broad rivers and streams, where no oar-propelled boat can go, and no mighty and stately ship can pass.
(22)  For the Lord is our Judge, the Lord is our Lawgiver, the Lord is our King; He will save us. [Isaiah 2:3-4; 11:4; 32:1; James 4:12.]
(23)  Your hoisting ropes hang loose; they cannot strengthen and hold firm the foot of their mast or keep the sail spread out. Then will prey and spoil in abundance be divided; even the lame will take the prey.
(24)  And no inhabitant [of Zion] will say, I am sick; the people who dwell there will be forgiven their iniquity and guilt.

(End of  Lesson 15)

Bibliography