The Pulpit Commentary — Isaiah — Volume 1 — Section 236

EXPOSITiON. a.rid to designate "the Aseyro-Ba.bylonia.n CHAPTER XIII. Empire." He thinks that '' Babel " beads THE BURDEN, OF BABYLON, The series of the list on . account of Assyria's position. prophecieswbich commenc~ with this chapter under Tigle.th-Pileser and Shalmaneser, in a.nd continues to the close of eh. xxili., is the van of Israel's adversaries. But neither connected together by the word massa, Isaiah nor o.ny other ee.cred writer knows of burden. It he.a been argued tbe.t the term a.n Assyro-Babylonie.n kingdom or empire. " burden " is e.n incorrect translation of maasa, Assyria. a.nd Babylonia. are distinct king<loms a.s used by Iee.ie.h e.nd later prophets (N e.b. in Genesis (x. 8-12),in 2 Kings (xviii.-xx.), i. 1 ; He.b. i. 1 ; Zeoh. ix. 1 ; xii. l ; Me.I. i. 1); in 2 Chron. (xxxii.), inlsaiah(ixxvi.-x=ix.) and tha.t '' utterance,"· or "prophecy," would and in Ezekiel (xxiii. a.ndxn:., xxxi.). They be more suitable (comp. Prov. xu:. 1 ; xxxi. 1, had been e.t we.r almost continuously for where massa is thus rendered in the Autho- a.hove seven •centuries before the time of rized Version), But the facts remain the.t Isaiah (' Records of the Pe.st,' vol. v. pp. massa means_ a. "burden " in the ordinary 81-10.J:). Assyria he.d, on the whole, proved sense, e.nd that the prophecies to which it the stronger of the two, and be.d from time is prefixod a.re generally (in Isa.ie.h e.lwe.ys) to time for a. longer or a. shorter period held of e. denuncie.tory cbe.re.cter. The translation Babylonia. in subjection. But tho two me.y therefore be allowed to stand-at a.ny countries were never more one tha.n Russia. rate in the present chapter. e.nd Pola.nd, e.nd, until Tiglath-Pilcser as- It is remarlrn.ble that Babylon heads the sumed the crown of Babylon in 729 B.c., they list of the Church's enemies in the present had always been under separate monarcha. ce.ta.logue. Dr. Ke.y supposos the term Individually, I ca.n only e.ccount for the high '' Unbel" to be equivalent to "Asshur-Babel," position here given to Babylon by the prophet,  228 THE BOOK Ol<' THE PROPHET ISAIAH. [au, xm. 1-22.