Isaiah 5:18 - Meaning and Application

Here are the sins that bring judgment on a people. This is probably aimed first at the men of Judah who lived then, but it also warns people in every age. These sins destroy both private lives and whole communities, and they expose people to God’s wrath and righteous judgments.

First, there are those who chase sin eagerly and forcefully (Isaiah 5:18). They “draw iniquity with cords of vanity,” as if they are pulling sin to themselves with strong ropes. They work at sin as hard as cattle pulling a heavy load, and they push themselves beyond all bounds just to satisfy sinful desires. They may think they are sure to reach their wicked goal, but those ropes are empty and will break under pressure. The righteous Lord will cut apart the ropes of the wicked (Psalm 129:4; Job 4:8; Proverbs 22:8). Long habit has hardened them so much that they cannot easily escape their sin. People who sin in weakness are dragged along by sin, but people who sin on purpose pull sin toward themselves, despite God’s warnings and the voice of conscience. Some understand this to include the punishment of sin, as if they are dragging God’s judgments onto their own heads.

Second, there are those who defy God’s justice and challenge the Almighty to do his worst (Isaiah 5:19). They say, “Let him hurry up and do what he says.” This is the same proud speech used by scoffers in the last days, who ask, “Where is the promise of his coming?” (2 Peter 3:3-4). Because of that attitude, they also draw iniquity with cords of vanity and rush into sin with boldness. They mock the prophets and sneer when God is called the Holy One of Israel, a title the prophets used with deep reverence. They refuse to believe that God’s wrath is coming against their sin unless they see it happen first, as if his warnings were only empty threats meant to scare foolish people. Even if God does rise against them, they think they can stand against him, as if they are stronger than he is (1 Corinthians 10:22). They hear his word, but treat it as talk and think they will manage just fine on their own. Those who keep sinning on purpose do not think about how powerful God’s anger is.

Third, there are those who blur the difference between good and evil, who call evil good and good evil (Isaiah 5:20). They do not only fail to do good, they speak against it, judge it harshly, and try to make others ashamed of it. They do not only do what is evil, they defend it, praise it, and recommend it to others as safe and wise. Virtue and godliness are truly good, because they are light, sweet, right, and pleasant. Sin and wickedness are truly evil, because they are darkness, born from ignorance and error, and they end in bitterness. People do great harm when they twist the truth about God, religion, and conscience, and when they put false labels on sin. They may call drunkenness “good fellowship” or greed “good management,” and when they persecute God’s people, they may think they are serving God. On the other hand, they may call seriousness “bad manners” and sober holiness “odd behavior.” They spread lies about the ways of godliness and try to turn people against them, even when the truth is plain enough to tell light from darkness and sweet from bitter.

Fourth, even after such serious mistakes, they still think highly of their own judgment and wisdom (Isaiah 5:21). They are wise in their own eyes. They imagine they can answer God’s word, escape its searching power, and avoid his judgments. They think they can outthink infinite wisdom and outmaneuver God’s providence. More generally, God opposes the proud, especially those who trust in their own understanding. Such people must become fools before they can truly become wise, or else they will finally be shown to be fools before everyone.

Fifth, they boast that they can drink a great deal of strong wine without being overcome by it (Isaiah 5:22). They are mighty to drink wine, using their strength not for useful work or public good, but for serving their lusts. Drunkards should learn from this that they are wrongly using the bodily strength God gave them for good purposes, and they are slowly weakening it. It is no excuse for drunkenness that a man can drink heavily and still stay on his feet. Those who pride themselves on drinking others under the table are glorying in their shame. However lightly people may treat drunkenness, it is still a sin that brings them under God’s wrath and curse.

Sixth, as judges, they twist justice and go against every rule of fairness (Isaiah 5:23). This often follows drinking, because wine makes people forget the law (Proverbs 31:5) and go wrong through strong drink (Isaiah 28:7). They also take bribes so they can keep living in luxury. They excuse the guilty for payment, finding some reason to clear him and protect him from punishment. At the same time, they condemn the innocent and take away his right to defend himself, turning judgment against him. In civil cases, money and power would overpower justice, and even a plainly guilty person could win by bribery. In criminal cases, a guilty prisoner might be set free for a fee, while an innocent man could still be condemned if he did not pay well enough, or if the judge had been paid by a hateful accuser, or if the judge simply disliked him.

Second, these sins will bring judgments on them. People should not expect an easy life if they live this wickedly, for the righteous God will surely take vengeance (Isaiah 5:24-30). Here we may notice that...

This shows how complete the ruin will be, and how surely it will follow their sin. God had compared his people to a vine (Isaiah 5:7), well planted and meant to be fruitful. But they received his grace in vain, and then the root turned rotten, dried up below, and the blossom would naturally blow away like dust, a light and worthless thing (Job 18:16).

Sin weakens a people at the root, so they can be pulled up easily. It also ruins their beauty, their blossoms, and takes away any hope of fruit. The sin of being unfruitful is punished by being made even more unfruitful. Sinners make themselves like stubble and chaff, dry fuel ready for the fire of God’s wrath, which then burns them up, as fire consumes stubble. Chaff is burned with no help and no pity.

This ruin is also perfectly just. The people have cast aside the law of the Lord of hosts and would not have him rule over them. They rejected the law of Moses, and they also despised the word of the Holy One of Israel, spoken through his prophets to remind them of that law and call them back to obedience. God does not reject people for every failure to keep his law and word, but when his word is despised and his law is thrown away, what can they expect except that God will finally abandon them?

The source of this ruin is “destruction from the Almighty.” The justice of God appoints it, because this is the Lord’s anger rising against his people in defense of his holiness and authority. The power of God carries it out: he has stretched out his hand against them. The same hand that had often been stretched out for them against their enemies is now stretched out against them in full force. Who can know the power of his anger? Whether they realize it or not, it is God who has struck them, blighted their vine, and made it wither.

The results of this ruin are terrible, and they continue. When God comes out in wrath against a people, even the hills tremble, and fear grips the strong and high among them. The earth shakes under people, as if ready to sink. And what sight could be more dreadful than corpses torn by dogs, or thrown like dung in the middle of the streets? This means many will be killed, not just soldiers in battle, but also the people of the cities, put to the sword in cold blood. The survivors will have neither the strength nor the heart to bury them.

Yet even this does not turn away God’s anger, so great is the guilt of sin. That fire keeps burning while there is still stubble and chaff left for fuel. His hand, stretched out to strike his people because they do not take hold of it in prayer or yield to it in repentance, is still stretched out.

The ruin will come through a foreign enemy sent to lay everything waste. No single enemy is named, so this points to the many judgments God brought on the Jews, including Sennacherib’s invasion soon after, the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians, and later by the Romans. It also serves as a warning of the same kind of desolation that can fall on any land that shelters and supports the sins named in the earlier verses. It explains those warnings.

When God intends to bring down a people who provoke him, he can bring helpers from very far away. He can raise forces from the ends of the earth to serve his purpose (Isaiah 5:26). People who do not know him are still used to carry out his plan, even when they seem to have no personal reason for being there. If God sets up his banner, he can move men to enlist under it, even if they do not know why they have come. When the Lord of hosts calls a muster, he can gather a great army in an instant (Joel 2:2, Joel 2:11). He does not need a trumpet or drum, for he only has to hiss or whistle to them, and they come. God has every creature at his command.

He can also make them come with incredible speed: “They shall come with speed swiftly.” Those who do God’s work do not linger when his time has come. And those who mock his judgments will be ashamed of their pride when it is too late. They had said scornfully, “Let him hurry” (Isaiah 5:19), and they will discover, to their terror, that he really will. In one hour, the judgment can come.

He can carry them forward with amazing eagerness and fury. This is described in lofty and striking language (Isaiah 5:27-30). Though their march is long, none of them will be weary, because they are eager for action. Though the road is rough and full of war’s usual difficulties, none will stumble. Though they must keep watch without pause, none will slumber or sleep, so intent are they on their task and on the plunder they expect. They will not want rest. They will not take off their clothes or loosen their belts, but will stay ready for battle. Nothing will slow them down, and not even a shoe strap will break, so they will not need to stop and repair it (Joshua 9:13).

Their weapons and equipment will all be ready. Their arrows will be sharp, their bows bent, with none left unstrung, because they expect battle soon. Their horses and chariots will also be fit for service. Their horses will be so strong and hardy that their hoofs will be like flint, not worn down by the long march, and their chariot wheels will not be broken or damaged, but will move swiftly like a whirlwind. All the soldiers will be bold and fierce. Their battle cry will roar like a lion, whose roar both stirs himself and frightens everyone nearby.

Those who would not listen to God’s voice when he spoke through his prophets, and who shut their ears against his warnings, will be forced to hear the noise of their enemies. They will not be able to tune it out. Their enemies will roar like the sea in a storm, which surges and threatens to swallow everything. They will also roar like a lion, threatening to tear its prey apart.

There will be no sign of rescue, and no hope of help. The enemy will sweep in like a flood, and no one will rise up against him. He will seize what he wants, and no one will deliver it. No one will even dare to try to rescue it, but will give it up as lost.

To the distressed person, everything will look dark no matter where he turns. If God frowns on us, how can any creature smile? First, look around at the earth, the land that once was known as a land of light and joy for the whole world. Now there is only darkness and sorrow, everything grim and full of grief, with nothing hopeful in sight.

Second, look up to heaven, and even there the light is hidden, where one would expect to find it. If the light is darkened in the heavens, how deep is that darkness! If God hides his face, it is no surprise that the heavens also look gloomy (Job 34:29). Our wisdom is to keep a clear conscience, so that we remain right with heaven. Then we can still have light from above, even when clouds and darkness surround us.