ISAIAH 31-32

Chapter 31

v. 2 Egypt had the reputation of being full of arcane wisdom.

v. 3 Egyptian rulers claimed to be divine.

v. 4-5 describe lions and birds protecting their nests from intruders. Or they may be examples of animals free from man's interference. Verse 5 uses the word for Passover.

v. 9 Burning place may be a reference to Topheth in 30:33.

Chapter 32

v. 2 A classic hymn takes its lyrics from this verse.

vv. 5-6 The term “fool” has moral implications. Sins of the nabal are precisely those of Nabal in I Samuel 25.

vv. 5-8 are similar to wisdom literature.

vv. 9-12 Ritual mourning was usually reserved for women only. They are secure in their possessions.

v. 10 may be a prediction that Sennacherib will overrun the countryside and destroy crops (common practice of the Assyrians). This will be a portent of Jerusalem's eventual destruction.

v. 15 is the same as 29:17. Events at the Day of Pentacost may have been its ultimate fulfillment.

v. 17 Parallelism gives a good definition of peace. It is pictured as the fruit of righteousness, not something God imposes upon a disobedient society.

v. 18 The same two words for “complacent” and “ease” as in vv. 9, 11 appear here in a positive sense.

v. 20b There are so many crops that the livestock can graze freely.