First Isaiah and the Disappearance of the Gods by Matthew J. Lynch

Author:Matthew J. Lynch
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Penn State University Press

Chapter 3

Enemy Boasts and Prophetic Response in Isaiah 10

THE PREVIOUS CHAPTER EXAMINED THE important place that Isa 2:6–22 occupies within First Isaiah. I suggested that the passage foregrounds YHWH’s lofty exaltation and the fraudulent nature of so-called deities. This sets the stage for the assertion of YHWH’s exalted status throughout First Isaiah and beyond. When considered within the broader context of Isa 1–39, the fourfold use of אלילים in Isa 2 suggests a deliberately derisive rhetorical strategy aimed at undermining trust in false gods in the face of YHWH’s uncompromising exaltation, which the book appears eager to underscore. This derisive rhetoric reappears on occasion throughout First Isaiah, though one can hardly call it pervasive. Instead, as suggested earlier, Isa 2:6–22 is an interpretive passage. It interprets Israel’s illicit political loyalties and rebellion through the lens of idolatry and then pits those loyalties against YHWH’s supremacy, thus emphasizing the importance of YHWH’s political supremacy. This will become especially important in Isa 10.

The twofold use of the term אלילים suggests that Isa 10:10–11 belongs to the same thematic strand as Isa 2:6–22.1 Isaiah 10 thus forms a logical passage for exegetical analysis to test the thesis that First Isaiah exhibits a tendency to assert YHWH’s categorical supremacy and simultaneously strip the “gods” of their alleged divine status. As I hope to demonstrate, Isa 10 asserts YHWH’s supremacy vis-à-vis Assyrian power using the theme of idolatry, but with a new twist. In Isa 10, the boasting Assyrian king claims that he would do to Jerusalem and its אלילים as he had done to Samaria and the nations (vv. 8–11). Assyria simultaneously asserts Yahwistic teaching and overreaches by assuming Jerusalem’s deity was one of the “images.” YHWH’s quid-pro-quo response reduces Assyria to a (mere) club (v. 5) or ax (v. 15) in his hands, a thing made of wood. To that extent, Isaiah shows the ways that Assyria is a false object of ultimate trust.

This chapter proceeds along the following lines. First, I suggest that vv. 10–12 provide an interpretive key for vv. 5–19, which reframes Assyria’s affront to YHWH in terms of blasphemy. Assyria equates YHWH with the non-deities of the nations. YHWH then turns the tables to suggest that Assyria is, like idols, an object of wood that its political superior wields. Second, I suggest that those same verses, in conjunction with vv. 8–9, reuse material from Isa 36–37 but intentionally remove references to the אלהים, thus highlighting Isaiah’s aversion to the word אלהים. Finally, I examine the continuation of the theme of YHWH’s political supremacy with an analysis of the unique divine name האדון in Isa 10:16 and 33.

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