The Pulpit Commentary — Isaiah — Volume 2 — Section 55

he.a given (me) e. son." The son of lle.ladan. we.a nothing in his home, nor in all hie "Balo.de.n" is scarcely e. possible Babylonian dominion, that Hezekiah 1howed them not. no.me. "Beladan" wonld, however, be qnite We must allow for Oriental hyperbole. The possible, being e. name formed on the model meening is, that, without Any reserve, Heze, of Ishte.r-iddin ('Eponym Canon,' p. 30), kiah ~hnwed all that he could show. Ninip-iddin (p. 85), Ilu-iddin (p. 57), etc. Ver. 3.-Then came Isaiah the prophet. And the corruption of Delo.de.n into Bale.do.n Isaiah comes, unsent for, to rebuke the king would be easy. Mcrode.ch-Balo.dan III. is (comp. 2 Se.m. xii. 1-12; xxiv. 11-H; called by So.rgon "the son of Ya.kin; " but l Kings xii. 22-24; xiii. 2-5: 2 Chron. this is perhaps e. tribal or loco.I rnther than xii. 5-8; xvi. 7-9; xix. 2, 3, etc.). This e. personal nnme. Compare Jehu's appe11o.- bold e.ttitu<le was one which prophets were tion of "son of Omri" (ibid., p. 114). Bent entitled to take by virtue of their office, letters and e. present to Hezekiah. Heze- which ea.lied upon them to bear testimony, kie.h's fourteenth year was B.C. 714. Mero- even before kings, o.nd to ha,e no respect of de.ch-Be.lnde.n had then been King of Babylon persons. A similar fearlessness is apparent for eight years, e.nd, knowing that he might in eh. vii. 1-17, where the king witl1 whom at e.ny time be attacked by Sargon, W8.!! Isaiah has to deal was the wicked Ahaz. ne.ture.lly looking out for alliances with What said these men 1 "These men" is other powers, which Assyria eque.lly threat- contemptuous. The deme.nd to know what ened. He had recently concluded a treaty they said is almost without parallel. with Khumbe.nige.s, Ring of Elam(' Records Diplomacy, if it is to be successful, must be of the Past,' vol. ix. p. 14), and had obtained secret; aud Isaiah can srarcely have been the support of severe.I of the Are.mree.n tribes surprised that his searching question re- on the Euphrates. He now apparently ceived no answer. But he was zealous of thought that Judme., which Sargon was also God's honour, and o.nxious that Hezekiah thr,,e.tening ( eh. xxxviii. 6), might be in- should rely on no "arm of flesh,'' whether it duced to join him. Hezekie.h's illness and wore Egypt or Babylon. Such dependence '' the wonder done in the land" (2 Chron. would straiten God's arm, and prevent him uxii. SI) furnished him with pretexts for from giving the aid tho.t he was otherwise an embassy, which probably had more serious prepared to give. The desire of the prophet objects than either congre.tufation or scientinc is to warn the king of the danger which he inquiry. runs by coquetting with human helpers. Ver. 2.-Hezekiah was glad of them. A From whence ea.me they l Isaiah does not more pregnant phmse the.u that which re- ask this question for the snke of information, places it in 2 Kings, "hearkened unto Doubtless all J eruse.lcm was agog to see them." Hezekiah, like Merodach-Bo.le.,lnn, the strnnge envoys "from o. far country," W8.!! looking out for allies, and "was glad," who had now for the first time penetrated thinking lho.t in Be.bylon he had found one to the city of Davi<l. All knew whence which might rendH him important service. they had come, and suspected why. Isaiah Sargon's promptness, however, frustrated his asks, to force the king to e. confession, on hopes. In n.o. 709 the.t prince, regarding which he may base n prophecy nnd e. warn- Merode.ch-Baladan's proceedings as consti- ing. And Hezekiah said, They are oome tuting o. real dnnger to his kingdom, made from a far country. Embassies from d~- n greo.t expedition into Babylonia, defeated to.nt lands to their courts a.re mu.de e. con- Merode.ch-Balade.n, e.nd took him prisoner, stant subject of hoe.sting by the Assyrian after which he be.d himself crowned King of monarchs (see • Records of the PMt,' vol. Babylon, and during the remainder of his i. pp. 28, 68, 95; vol. vii. pp. 49, 51, etc.). life (B.O. 709 to 705) ruled both countries. Hezekio.h, perhaps, is "lifted up" (2 Chron. Showed them the hous~ of his precious xxxii. 25) by the honour po.id him, and things; i.e. his treo.sury, or store-house. intends to impress Isail\h with a sense of The tree.suries of ancient monarchs were his greatness-" The men a.re come o.11 the actuo.l store-chambers, in which large quanti- way from Babylon to see me ! " ties of the precious meto.ls o.nd val uRble Ver. 4.-Whe.t have they seen 1 lsaiuh objects of ve.rious kinds were deposited ho.d, no doubt, heo.rd of what Hezekiah ha,l (see Herod., ii. 121; Arrie.n, 'Exp. Alex.,' done (ver. 2); but he wished to hnve the iii. 16, 18, eto.). The flourishing sto.te of the confession of it from his own mouth beforo treasury is an indication that the events delivering his sentence. Hezckio.h tells him here no.rre.ted are anterior to the great the truth, since he is not o.sbume<l of his surrender of treasure to Sennacherib (2 act, but rather glories in it. Ho has shown Kings xviii. 15; 'Eponym Ca.non,' p. 185). the ambnssl\llore everythiug, and has thereby All the house of his armour ( comp. eh. made them eager to Stcure his o.lliance. xxii. 8). If e. warlike o.lliance was cou- Ver. 5.-Hear the word of the Lord ot templo.ted, it was o.s importo.nt to show the hosts. Either the prophet had bceu po1111e11sion of arms as of treo.sures. There epeoie.lly chnrged with & Divine messago to 58 THE BOOR OF THE PlWPHE'l' ISAIAH. [au. xxxrx. 1--8.