The Cry of Destruction
After the account of Israel’s proverb against the king of Babylon, the book of Isaiah begins to describe the burdens of judgment on other countries. Two chapters are devoted to the burden of Moab. Verses one through five of Isaiah chapter fifteen describe the cry of destruction that will be taken up throughout Moab. Let us take a look.
“1) The burden of Moab. Because in the night Ar of Moab is laid waste, and brought to silence; because in the night Kir of Moab is laid waste, and brought to silence; 2) He is gone up to Bajith, and to Dibon, the high places, to weep: Moab shall howl over Nebo, and over Medeba: on all their heads shall be baldness, and every beard cut off.” (Isaiah 15:1,2)
First, let us consider where these places are. Ar was a big city, the metropolis of Moab and it was on the south of the river Arnon. Kir was located not far from Ar to the south. Bajith and Dibon were the high places. When the judgment fell upon Moab, the people went up to those places to weep and cry to their gods. Nebo was just north of the Dead Sea near to the mountain. In this area, Moab bordered the lot of Reuben on the other side of Jordan. Nebo was the place where the god Chemosh was worshipped. Medeba was south of Heshbon, on a hill east of Jordan. We see from this that some of the places of Moab were quite near to the land of Israel. In Moab there were cities that were prosperous and in them was a thriving metropolis. Moab was small but fruitful, fertile, and prosperous. It was to the land of Moab that Naomi went when there was famine in Bethlehem.
The events of verses one and two are a warning to all of Israel’s enemies and to all nations that forget God. Several areas of this fruitful, thriving, prosperous place were left desolate in a night. In one night they were taken and cut off. This left the wealth of the whole land available for their enemies to easily go in and plunder. Because of this great trouble, the people went up to Bajith, the place of the temple of Chemosh to weep and cry to their idols. Matthew Henry observes, “It becomes a people in distress to seek to their God; and shall not we then thus walk in the name of the Lord our God, and call upon him in the time of trouble, before whom we shall not shed such useless profitless tears as they [the Moabites] did before their gods?”
Next we take a look at the extent of the cry of fear and sorrow. “3) In their streets they shall gird themselves with sackcloth: on the tops of their houses, and in their streets, every one shall howl, weeping abundantly. 4) And Heshbon shall cry, and Elealeh: their voice shall be heard even unto Jahaz: therefore the armed soldiers of Moab shall cry out; his life shall be grievous unto him.” (Isaiah 15:3,4)
The weeping and howling covered the whole land – from the common people to the armed soldiers. The voice of their cry could be heard even to Jahaz. There was no more courage left among the soldiers. Even to them life was grievous. Here again, I quote from Matthew Henry, “That the courage of their militia should fail them. Though they were bred soldiers, and were well armed, yet they shall cry out and shriek for fear, and every one of them shall have his life become grievous to him, though it is characteristic of a military life to delight in danger, (v. 4). See how easily God can dispirit the stoutest of men, and deprive a nation of benefit by those whom it most depended upon for strength and defence. The Moabites shall generally be so overwhelmed with grief that life itself shall be a burden to them. God can easily make weary of life those that are fondest of it.”
This is a warning to every nation. No matter how big the army or how great the defenses, or how enjoyable and stable life seems to be; there is no power stronger than God and no power than cannot be overcome by God. The pleasures of sin and the things of this world are but fleeting and can be gone in a moment.
Even the heart of God shall be touched by the grief of Moab. Consider verse five, “My heart shall cry out for Moab; his fugitives shall flee unto Zoar, an heifer of three years old: for by the mounting up of Luhith with weeping shall they go it up; for in the way of Horonaim they shall raise up a cry of destruction.” The Bible says that God "doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men. 34) To crush under his feet all the prisoners of the earth, 35) To turn aside the right of a man before the face of the most High.” (Lamentations 3:33-35) However, God also cannot overlook evil. Sin must be judged. As Habakkuk expressed it, “Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity.” (Habakkuk 1:13a)
God does not want to punish the wicked. He wants them to humble themselves before Him in repentance and turn to Him from their sins. He wants to save and bless them. But, if they continue on in their evil way and reject Him, God will punish them. Sin must be punished.