Mass Destruction - 34

"Draw near, O nations to hear,
and give attention, O peoples!
Let the earth hear, and all that fills it;
the world and all that comes from it.
For the LORD is enraged against all the nations,
and furious against all their host;
he has devoted them to destruction,
has given them over for slaughter."
Isaiah 34:1-2

WOW!! We're way past Assyria and the trouble that nation caused. Now we're onto all nations, all people and everything that fills the earth.

I have to admit, this passage depressed me. So much so that I needed to take a break from Isaiah and talk of destruction, it was too much for me. I had to spend a little time in the New Testament (1 John 4 to be exact) and remind myself of God's love so I could balance out His wrath.

Coming back to Isaiah 34 didn't seem as bad them, But it's still bad.

Four times in the first 8 verses the phrase "The LORD has" is repeated, The first is in verse 2, "The LORD is enraged". The comments in my footnotes say the Hebrew idiom could be translated "The Lord has rage". That verse alone is enough to terrify me, but it goes on. Verse 6a, "The LORD has a sword", verse 6b, "The LORD has a sacrifice", and verse 8, "The LORD has a day of vengeance". So, to summarize, we have an enraged LORD, who's picked out a day of vengeance, has a sword, and knows what he's going to sacrifice. In that day (to borrow the phrase from Isaiah) all hell will break lose, literally.

If you oppose Zion or its cause you will be destroyed. There are no loop holes to jump through, no clauses or exceptions, just the fact that if you're not with God, then you're against Him which means you're going down.

The scene described is a living hell, the detail is so distinct:

"land shall become a burning pitch...

it shall not be quenched...

it shall lie waste...

thorns shall grow over its strongholds...

it shall be the haunt of jackals..." 

(selection of verses 9-13). 

And in case you have any question as to whether that can happen, when then read,

"Seek and read from the book of the LORD; 

not one of these shall be missing;

...for the mouth of the LORD has commanded, 

and his Spirit has gathered them." 

(verse 16)

In simpler terms: what God says, God does. There are several other horrible things described in verses 9-15 and He says everything mentioned will happen. 

I moments like this, you have to decide if the Bible is all truth or all lies. It can't be part way, it's all or nothing. What are you going to believe?