I made a mistake last week. I stated that the river Arnon was a border between the nations of Moab and Edom. Wrong. It was the northern border between the Moabites and the Amorites (Num.21:13). When the Amorites were conquered by Israel, the Arnon became the border between Moab and the Israelite tribes that settled to the east of the Jordan.

There does not seem to be a date associated with this next prophecy. It would seem that it might have been one of Isaiah’s earlier prophecies since it seems to talk about things that would happen partly during the days of Ahaz (who was king in the early days of Isaiah’s ministry), and then later during the reign of Hezekiah. Assyria defeated Syria in 732 and Israel in 722.

The Assyrian king Tiglath-pileser conquered the Syrian capital of Damascus in the days of Ahaz. He took many of the people in the city captive and transplanted them in the land of Kir (2Ki. 16:9).

Though Damascus would be conquered by the Assyrians, then later by the Babylonians under Nebuchadnezzar, it would keep being rebuilt over and over. Note that this isn’t like the prophecy concerning Babylon (Is. 13:20) where it was to "never be inhabited". Damascus is still going today, still the capital of Syria, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities of the world.

The idea is that the populated areas will be so desolate, there will be such a lack of people, that sheep, which are very easily frightened, will make the ruins their home since there are no people around to frighten them.

Ephraim is another name used for the Northern Kingdom of Israel. It was the name of the most dominant tribe of the ten tribes that made up the Northern Kingdom.

As we’ve already seen, in Isaiah’s day, the Northern Kingdom of Israel had been allied with Syria (Is. 7-8). They had even attacked the Southern Kingdom of Judah together.

The idea is that the north will be conquered, there will be no strong cities to withstand the attack of the Assyrian army.

Damascus was the capital of Syria. It will lose its national identity as it’s conquered by the Assyrians.

The Syrians will suffer the same fate that the Northern Kingdom of Israel would suffer, being defeated and losing their national identity.

The great Northern Kingdom, the one that made up the majority of the children of Israel, would lose its glory as its people are carried off into captivity by the Assyrians, and scattered around the world.

It’s interesting to see that though this prophecy starts off being aimed at Damascus, from here the focus changes to the Northern Kingdom of Israel.

There’s a sense in which Israel is going to be judged for their own sins, but there’s also a sense here in which they’re getting caught up in judgment that’s being aimed at Damascus.

The idea is that the Northern Kingdom will be "harvested" like someone harvesting in this fruitful valley. As someone would gather armfuls of standing grain in one arm and swing the sickle with the other arm to harvest it, these people will be gathered and taken in judgment.

gleaning – the idea of gleaning in the Bible is that of not harvesting the entire crop. You leave a little behind. What was left was available for the poor to come and harvest.

Instead of trusting in their fortresses, they’ll go back to trusting in the Lord.

altars – the altars to other gods

groves – 'asherah – "groves (for idol worship)"; a Babylonian (Astarte)-Canaanite goddess (of fortune and happiness), the supposed consort of Baal, her images

images – chamman – incense altar, sun-pillar, idol, image. This is referring to the worship of Baal.

(Isa 17:8 NLT) They will no longer ask their idols for help or worship what their own hands have made. They will never again bow down to their Asherah poles or burn incense on the altars they built.

What’s left of a tree branch once someone has taken an axe to it. The idea is that the cities will all be cut to pieces.

(Isa 17:9 NLT) …They will become like the cities the Amorites abandoned when the Israelites came here so long ago.

(Isa 17:10 NLT) …You may plant the finest imported grapevines,

(Isa 17:11 NLT) and they may grow so well that they blossom on the very morning you plant them, but you will never pick any grapes from them. Your only harvest will be a load of grief and incurable pain.

Woe – probably better translated "Ho!" or "Alas!" It’s kind of an alarm being sent out that a huge army is invading the land.

After a crop was harvested, the grain needed to be separated from the husk, from the chaff, in order to be usable. After the grain was crushed, it would be thrown up into the air where the wind would blow the chaff off to the side, and the heavier grain would fall to the ground. A "threshing floor" was usually built on top of a hill, where the wind would be stronger. The idea here is that when these nations are rebuked by God, they’re just blown away, blowing in the wind.

Like a tumbleweed being driven by the wind.

(Isa 17:14 NLT) In the evening Israel waits in terror, but by dawn its enemies are dead.

This is exactly what would happen to the small kingdom of Judah when the big bad Assyrian army would come against it.