Commentary - Isaiah 10:20-27

Bird's-eye view

In this section of Isaiah, the prophet pivots from pronouncing judgment on the arrogant instrument of that judgment, Assyria, to proclaiming a glorious promise for the people of God. The theme is a classic biblical paradox: severe, decreed judgment and the gracious preservation of a remnant. God is utterly sovereign, both in wielding the pagan nations as His rod of correction and in determining the precise limits of their power. He is also sovereign in His mercy, ensuring that His covenant purposes will not be thwarted by the sin of His people or the hubris of their enemies.

The passage moves from the negative lesson learned through discipline, which is to stop relying on worldly powers, to the positive action of relying wholly on Yahweh. This reliance is the defining characteristic of the remnant. The destruction is certain and righteous, but it is not total. A remnant will return. The immediate application is an encouragement to Zion not to fear the coming Assyrian onslaught, because God has set a boundary for His indignation and will ultimately break the oppressor's yoke. The deliverance is likened to two of Israel's most storied salvation events: the defeat of Midian and the exodus from Egypt. The final verse promises a complete shattering of the yoke, not by human effort, but by the anointing power of God, symbolized by "fatness."

Outline

Clause-by-Clause Commentary

v. 20 Now it will be in that day, that the remnant of Israel and those of the house of Jacob who have escaped, will never again rely on the one who struck them, but will truly rely on Yahweh, the Holy One of Israel.

The phrase "in that day" is a standard prophetic marker, pointing to a future time of God's decisive action. It's not a specific 24-hour period but rather an era of divine intervention. After the coming judgment, a purified group, called here "the remnant," will emerge. These are the survivors, the ones who have "escaped" the crucible. The central lesson they will have learned is a profound one. They will cease from their old political folly, which was to lean on the very nations God was using to discipline them. Think of it: leaning on the club that is beating you. This is the essence of idolatry, looking for security in the creature rather than the Creator. Their deliverance will produce a fundamental shift in allegiance. They will stop trusting in horses and chariots and geopolitical alliances and will instead "truly rely on Yahweh." Not a feigned, superficial piety, but a genuine, heartfelt dependence. The object of this trust is significant: "the Holy One of Israel," a title for God that Isaiah is particularly fond of. It emphasizes both His transcendent otherness and His covenant commitment to His people.

v. 21 A remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God.

This is the great theme in miniature. The name of Isaiah's own son, Shear-jashub, means "a remnant will return," and here the prophet makes it a centerpiece of his promise. The return is twofold. It is a literal return from exile for some, but more importantly, it is a spiritual return, a turning back in repentance and faith. And who do they return to? To "the mighty God" (El Gibbor). This is the same title used for the Messiah in the previous chapter (Isaiah 9:6). The remnant doesn't return to a diminished, abstract deity, but to the all-powerful God who is mighty to save. Their chastisement has taught them where true strength lies.

v. 22 For though your people, O Israel, may be like the sand of the sea, Only a remnant within them will return; A destructive end is decreed, overflowing with righteousness.

Here is the hard edge of the promise. Isaiah invokes the promise made to Abraham, that his descendants would be as numerous as the sand of the sea (Gen. 22:17). But he turns it on its head. Do not presume upon your numbers, he says. Do not think that your ethnic identity as an Israelite is a free pass. God's promise of numerous descendants does not negate His demand for faithfulness. Out of that vast multitude, only a fraction, a remnant, will return. Why? Because a "destructive end is decreed." This is not an accident. It is a sovereign, divine decree. God has determined it. And this destruction is not arbitrary or capricious; it is "overflowing with righteousness." God's judgment is perfectly just. It is the necessary outworking of His holy character against sin. The flood of judgment is a flood of righteousness, washing the land clean.

v. 23 For a complete destruction, one that is decreed, Lord Yahweh of hosts will do in the midst of the whole land.

To remove any doubt, the prophet reiterates the point. The destruction will be "complete" and it is "decreed." This is the settled purpose of the Lord of Armies, "Lord Yahweh of hosts." He is the commander of all the powers of heaven and earth, and His will cannot be thwarted. This judgment will not be some border skirmish; it will be executed "in the midst of the whole land." There is no escaping the sovereign reach of God's righteous judgment.

v. 24 Therefore thus says Lord Yahweh of hosts, “O My people who inhabit Zion, do not fear the Assyrian who strikes you with the rod and lifts up his staff against you, the way Egypt did.”

The word "Therefore" signals a shift from the principle of judgment to its practical application. On the basis of this sovereign plan which includes both judgment and preservation, God speaks a word of comfort to the faithful remnant, identified here as those who "inhabit Zion." The command is simple and direct: "do not fear the Assyrian." This is not a call to stoic denial. It is a command based on the reality of who is in charge. Yes, the Assyrian will strike with a rod and lift up his staff. God does not deny the reality of the coming suffering. But He puts it in perspective by comparing it to a previous oppression: "the way Egypt did." This is a crucial historical anchor. Just as God dealt with Egypt, He will deal with Assyria.

v. 25 For in a very little while My indignation against you will end and My anger will be directed to their destruction.

God's anger against His own people has a time limit. It is for "a very little while." His disciplinary anger is temporary and restorative. But once its purpose is accomplished, that same divine anger will pivot and be redirected to the "destruction" of the arrogant instrument, Assyria. God's wrath against the impenitent is final. The Assyrian thinks he is acting on his own initiative, but he is merely a tool whose usefulness is about to expire.

v. 26 And Yahweh of hosts will waken a scourge against him like the slaughter of Midian at the rock of Oreb; and His staff will be over the sea and He will lift it up the way He did in Egypt.

The destruction of Assyria will be as decisive and miraculous as two of the great Old Testament salvation narratives. The first is Gideon's victory over the Midianites (Judges 7), a victory won not by superior numbers but by divine intervention. The second, again, is the Exodus, where God's staff was lifted over the Red Sea to bring both salvation for Israel and destruction for Egypt. The message is clear: God is about to act in history once again in a way that is consistent with His past mighty deeds of salvation. He is the same God.

v. 27 So it will be in that day, that his burden will be removed from your shoulders and his yoke from your neck, and the yoke will be broken because of fatness.

The result of God's action is total liberation. The "burden" of tribute and the "yoke" of oppression will be removed. But the final phrase is wonderfully suggestive. The yoke will be broken "because of fatness." Some translations say "because of the anointing," connecting it to the Davidic king. But the literal image is of an ox growing so strong and fat that it shatters the yoke it wears. This is a picture of a people so blessed and strengthened by God that the bonds of their oppressors simply cannot hold them. It is not that they wriggle out from under the yoke; they break it by virtue of the vitality and power God has given them. This is a promise of robust, irrepressible, God-given life that shatters every form of bondage.