11 I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity. I will cause the arrogance of the proud to cease, and will humble the haughtiness of the terrible.
*Minor differences ignored. Grouped by changes, with first version listed as example.
And I will visit upon the world wickedness. Here the Prophet does not speak of the whole world; but as Babylon was the seat of the most powerful of all monarchies, he gives to it on that account the name of the world, and he does so emphatically, (emphatikos,) for Babylon was a kind of world, because it appeared to occupy nearly the whole earth. And yet he means that there is nothing in this world so lofty that God cannot easily seize it with one of his fingers. At the same time he gives warning that God will punish the cruelty which was exercised by the Chaldeans. Yet we ought also to learn that the wickedness and crimes of Babylon are brought forward, in order to inform us that the Lord will not be cruel in punishing her so severely, because he inflicts the punishment which that people deserved on account of their transgressions and crimes. Every ground of calumny is therefore taken away, that we may not think that God delights in the afflictions of men; for when he thus deals with men according as they deserve, the mouths of all must be stopped, (Romans 3:19,) since the severity of the afflictions does not proceed from God, but finds its cause in men themselves. And will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease. We must keep in mind what I have already noticed, that the Prophet yields no small consolation to the godly by assuring them that God, though he spares the inhabitants of Babylon for a time, will at length punish them for their injustice and cruelty. He expresses this still more clearly by taking notice of a particular vice, namely, pride, in consequence of which they loosed the reins, and gave unbounded freedom to their lawless desires to oppress the wretched. For this reason also he reproves their tyranny. But we ought also to draw from it a profitable doctrine, that it is impossible for us to escape punishment from the Lord, if we are puffed up with vain confidence and flatter ourselves. The Prophet here includes every kind of pride; whether men think that they are something, or admire their riches, and despise others in comparison of themselves. God cannot endure any arrogancy, or suffer it to pass unpunished. Seeing therefore, that among a great variety of other crimes with which Babylon abounded, this was the greatest and most remarkable, it was chiefly by their pride that the wrath of God was kindled. And will lay low the loftiness of tyrants. Arrogance was joined, as it usually is, to violence and cruelty; and therefore he adds the loftiness of tyrants; for when men despise others, this is followed by deeds of violence and injustice and oppression; and it is impossible for men to abstain from doing harm to others, if they do not lay aside all conceit and high estimation of themselves. Let us willingly, therefore, bring down our minds to true humility, if we do not wish to be cast down and laid low to our destruction.
And I will punish the world - By the 'world' here is evidently meant the Babylonian empire, in the same way as 'all the world' in Luke 2:1, means Judea; and in Acts 11:28, means the Roman empire. Babylonia, or Chaldea, was the most mighty empire then on earth, and might be said to comprehend the whole world.
And I will cause the arrogancy - This was the prevailing sin of Babylon, and it was on account of this pride mainly that it was overthrown (see the notes at Isaiah. 14; notes at Isaiah 47:1-7; compare Daniel 4:22, Daniel 4:30).
I will punish the world "I will visit the world" - That is, the Babylonish empire; as η οικουμενη, for the Roman empire, or for Judea, Luke 2:1; Acts 11:28. So the universus orbis Romanus, for the Roman empire; Salvian. lib. 5 Minos calls Crete his world: "Creten, quae meus est orbis," Ovid. Metamorph. 8:9.
And I will punish the (i) world for [their] evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogance of the (k) proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible.
(i) He compares Babylon to the whole world because they so esteemed themselves by reason of their great empire.
(k) He notes the principal vice, to which they are most given as are all that abound in wealth.
And I will punish the world for their evil,.... Not the whole world, but the kingdom of Babylon, so called because of its large extent, and the number of its inhabitants, just as the Roman empire is called the whole world, Luke 2:1 "evil" may be meant, either of the evil of sin, which was the cause of punishment, or else of the evil of punishment itself; and the sense be this, I will visit, or, in a way of visitation, I will bring evil, or evils, upon the world; so the Targum,
and the wicked for their iniquity, or "on the wicked their iniquity"; that is, I will visit on them, or inflict upon them, the punishment of their iniquity; meaning the notorious and abandoned sinners among them, see Isaiah 13:9,
and I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and I will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible: such as Nebuchadnezzar and Belshazzar, famous for their pride, arrogance, and haughtiness, tyranny and oppression, whereby they became terrible to others.
world--the impious of the world (compare Isaiah 11:4).
arrogancy--Babylon's besetting sin (Daniel 4:22, Daniel 4:30).
the terrible--rather, tyrants [HORSLEY].
The prophet now hears again the voice of Jehovah revealing to him what His purpose is - namely, a visitation punishing the wicked, humbling the proud, and depopulating the countries. "And I visit the evil upon the world, and upon sinners their guilt, and sink into silence the pomp of the proud; and the boasting of tyrants I throw to the ground. I make men more precious than fine gold, and people than a jewel of Ophir." The verb pâkad is construed, as in Jeremiah 23:2, with the accusative of the thing punished, and with על of the person punished. Instead of 'eretz we have here tēbel, which is always used like a proper name (never with the article), to denote the earth in its entire circumference. We have also ‛ârı̄tzı̄m instead of nedı̄bı̄m: the latter signifies merely princes, and it is only occasionally that it has the subordinate sense of despots; the former signifies men naturally cruel, or tyrants (it occurs very frequently in Isaiah). Everything here breathes the spirit of Isaiah both in thought and form. "The lofty is thrown down:" this is one of the leading themes of Isaiah's proclamation; and the fact that the judgment will only leave a remnant is a fundamental thought of his, which also runs through the oracles concerning the heathen (Isaiah 16:14; Isaiah 21:17; Isaiah 24:6), and is depicted by the prophet in various ways (Isaiah 10:16-19; Isaiah 17:4-6; Isaiah 24:13; Isaiah 30:17). There it is expressed under the figure that men become as scarce as the finest kinds of gold. Word-painting is Isaiah's delight and strength. 'Ophir, which resembles 'okir in sound, was the gold country of India, that lay nearest to the Phoenicians, the coast-land of Abhira on the northern shore of the Runn (Irina), i.e., the salt lake to the east of the mouths of the Indus (see at Genesis 10:29 and Job 22:24; and for the Egypticized Souphir of the lxx, Job 28:16).
The world - The Babylonish empire, which is called the world, as the Roman empire afterwards was, because it was extended to a great part of the world.
*More commentary available at chapter level.