Isaiah 30:1-33

30:1-5 | The people of Judah were threatened and had two choices for confronting their fear: turn to God or turn to human advisors. They turned to Egypt, the nearest ally they could find to help them through the difficulty, which resulted in shame and humiliation.

30:7 | Rahab-Hem-Shebeth literally means “Rahab (or “Proud One”) Sits Idle.” In Ugaritic literature, Rahab was the name of a sea monster (Ps. 89:9-10) associated with Leviathan (Ps. 74:14)/ This could refer to the hippopotamus, an animal that often sits in the water of the Nile doing nothing. Rahab became a poetic synonym for Egypt (51:9; Ps. 87:4). The image emphasizes the fact that the Egyptians’ help was worthless.

30:22 | The unclean thing was a menstrual cloth. Get away is a play on words that meant either “away with you” or “excrement.” In other words, valuable gold idols would be trashed because God’s people would finally realize such things are useless and powerless.

30:25-26 | The day of the great slaughter refers to the final judgment of all the enemies of the Lord’s people. In poetic imagery, Isaiah assures his audience that the day of judgment for all those who oppose God would be a day of healing for God’s people. At that time the brightness of the sun and moon would be enhanced, so that the light of one day would be equal to seven. The hyperbole highlights the fact that God’s saving presence, symbolized by light, will be evident to all.

30:27 | The name of the LORD is closely associated with the Lord’s very person because His name reveals an important aspect of His character (Ex. 23:21; Ps. 54:1; 124:8). The name Yahweh was a reminder that God was indeed with His people as their Protector and Savior (Ex. 3:11-15).

30:33 | Tophet was a deep pit located just outside Jerusalem in the Valley of Hinnom, a well-known site for child sacrifices to pagan gods. Just as fire devoured those children, so God’s judgment would destroy the Assyrian king who threatened Jerusalem.