Tyndale Open Study NotesIsaiah 47

We can draw two conclusions from the earlier evidence that the Lord alone is God:

1. Babylon's great pride is foolish (Isaiah 47:1–15);

2. Israel should listen to the word of the Lord (Isaiah 48:1–22).

In this taunt against Babylon, the nation is described as a proud queen.

But she is brought low and humiliated. Instead of ruling, she is forced to work like a servant girl.

To sit in the dust was a way of expressing humiliation.

God will bring justice to the world by punishing those who oppose him and oppress his people (see Isaiah 34:8). This will remove wickedness.

Babylon was known for its confidence and arrogance (see Isaiah 14:13–17; Daniel 4:30). The nation's charms, magic, and wisdom could not stop the disaster planned for it.

The people of Israel had provoked God’s wrath, prompting him to use Babylon to punish them. Now wicked Babylon itself would be punished.

• I am, and there is none besides me: This was a claim to divinity (compare Isaiah 45:5; 47:10). Only the Lord can make such a claim. It is extremely arrogant for any created thing, including a nation, to say this.

• Being a widow or losing one's children was considered a disgrace.

People often used witchcraft and magic to protect themselves from evil and ensure a happy future.

Here, wisdom and knowledge likely refer sarcastically to the false knowledge from occult practices. This false knowledge led Babylon away from the truth and into disaster (Isaiah 47:11).

When disaster struck, Babylon turned to occult practices for help, but found none.

Babylon was advanced in astronomy, which the astrologers and stargazers used as a form of divination (see Daniel 2:2, 10; 5:7).