Commentary - Isaiah 28:14-22

Bird's-eye view

In this passage, Isaiah confronts the cynical leadership of Jerusalem. These are not ignorant men, but rather educated and proud rulers who believe they have outsmarted God and destiny itself. Their "covenant with death" is a piece of high-handed political maneuvering, a treaty made with a great power like Egypt or Assyria, which they believe will secure their safety from the coming judgment. They are pragmatists, you see, realists. And their realism has led them to trust in lies, falsehood, and political leverage rather than in the living God. They are the ancient equivalent of the modern secularist who believes he has managed all the risks and has no need of a Savior.

God's response through Isaiah is to expose their folly by announcing His own foundation, His own cornerstone. While the rulers of Jerusalem are building on sand and lies, God is laying a foundation stone in Zion that is tested, precious, and absolutely secure. This, of course, is a direct prophecy of the Lord Jesus Christ. The security of God's people is not found in clever alliances but in Christ alone. The rest of the passage details the utter demolition of the rulers' flimsy refuge. The very scourge they thought to avoid will become their undoing. Their cleverness will be their trap, and God's "unusual work" of judgment will prove that the only safe place to stand is on the stone that He has laid.

Outline

Clause-by-Clause Commentary

v. 14 Therefore, hear the word of Yahweh, O scoffers, Who rule this people who are in Jerusalem,

The prophet begins with a direct and solemn summons. This is not a suggestion; it is a command to hear the word of the Lord. And who is it addressed to? Not to the common folk, but to the top of the pyramid, the rulers in Jerusalem. These are the men who set the tone, who make the policies, who fancy themselves the smart ones in the room. But God has a different name for them. He calls them "scoffers." A scoffer is not just an unbeliever; he is a proud and cynical unbeliever. He mocks the things of God because he believes he has found a better, more sophisticated way. This is a word for all who believe that political savvy or intellectual superiority can replace simple faith in the promises of God.

v. 15 Because you have said, “We have cut a covenant with death, And with Sheol we have made a pact. The overflowing scourge will not reach us when it passes by, For we have made falsehood our refuge and we have hidden ourselves with lying.”

Here is the heart of their rebellion, stated in their own words. They have made a deal with death itself. In the immediate context, this was likely a political treaty with a pagan nation, probably Egypt. They looked at the looming threat of Assyria, the "overflowing scourge," and instead of turning to Yahweh in repentance and faith, they made a pragmatic calculation. They chose a powerful but godless ally. They essentially said, "We will handle this threat ourselves. We will make a deal with the devil if we have to." And in doing so, they admit that their entire security apparatus is built on lies and falsehood. They have to lie to the people, lie to Assyria, and lie to themselves. This is the essence of all godless politics. It is a flight from reality, a desperate attempt to build a fortress out of deception. They think their pact will make them immune to the coming judgment, but they have only guaranteed their participation in it.

v. 16 Therefore thus says Lord Yahweh, “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a tested stone, A costly cornerstone for the foundation, firmly placed. He who believes in it will not be disturbed.

Here is God's majestic response. The scoffers are making their flimsy deals, and God says, "Behold." He is demanding their attention. While you are busy with your covenants of dust and lies, I am doing something of eternal substance. I am laying a stone. This is not just any stone. It is laid by God Himself, and it is laid in Zion, the place of His dwelling. It is a "tested stone," meaning it has been tried and proven to be utterly reliable. It is a "costly cornerstone," precious beyond measure, the very thing that gives the entire building its alignment and strength. And it is "firmly placed." It cannot be moved. This, of course, is the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the foundation. And notice the condition for safety. It is not political maneuvering or clever alliances. It is belief. "He who believes in it will not be disturbed." The New Testament writers pick this up and run with it (Rom. 9:33; 1 Pet. 2:6). To believe in Christ is to be placed on this immovable foundation. All other ground is sinking sand.

v. 17 I will make justice the measuring line And righteousness the level; Then hail will sweep away the refuge of falsehood, And the waters will overflow the secret place.

God is a builder, and He builds true. He uses a measuring line and a level, and His standards are justice and righteousness. When He applies these perfect standards to the shoddy construction of the scoffers, their "refuge of falsehood" is exposed for what it is. The judgment is described as hail and a flood, images of divine, overwhelming power. There is no hiding from this. The lies, the secret deals, the clever evasions, all of it will be washed away. God's righteousness is not something you can negotiate with. It is an absolute standard, and anything that does not align with it will be demolished.

v. 18 Your covenant with death will be canceled, And your pact with Sheol will not stand; When the overflowing scourge passes through, Then you will become its trampling place.

God here directly nullifies their proudest achievement. Their treaty, their "covenant with death," is declared void. It is canceled. The Hebrew word is related to atonement, which is a striking irony. Their attempt to atone for their own political sins is wiped out by the declaration of God. Their pact with the grave will not stand. And the very scourge they thought they had dodged will not just pass by, it will pass through. And when it does, they will not be safe in their refuge; they will be the pavement that the scourge tramples underfoot. They sought to be masters of their fate and will become victims of it.

v. 19 As often as it passes through, it will take you; For morning after morning it will pass through, anytime during the day or night, And it will be sheer terror to understand the report.”

The judgment will not be a one-time event that they can endure and then recover from. It will be relentless. Morning after morning, day and night, the scourge will come. The sense is one of constant, grinding pressure and destruction. And the final clause is chilling. The mere report of it, just understanding what is happening, will be "sheer terror." The reality of God's judgment, when it finally breaks through the cynical defenses of the scoffers, is a terrifying thing to behold. Their sophisticated cool will evaporate, replaced by raw fear.

v. 20 The bed is too short on which to stretch out, And the blanket is too narrow to wrap oneself in.

Isaiah now uses a simple, domestic proverb to illustrate their pathetic situation. Their man-made solutions, their political treaties, are like a bed that is too short and a blanket that is too narrow. You cannot find rest there. You try to get comfortable, but your feet are sticking out in the cold. You try to cover yourself, but you are still exposed. This is a perfect picture of every attempt to find peace and security outside of Christ. The world's comforts are always too small. They never quite cover our sin, our fear, our mortality. They promise rest but provide none.

v. 21 For Yahweh will rise up as at Mount Perazim; He will be stirred up as in the valley of Gibeon, To work His work, His unusual work, And to labor in His labor, His exceptional labor.

The prophet recalls two instances in Israel's history where God gave David decisive victories over the Philistines (2 Sam. 5:20; 1 Chron. 14:11, 16). In those instances, God rose up to fight for His people. But now, in a shocking reversal, God is going to rise up in the same way to fight against His own covenant-breaking people. This is why His work is called "unusual" and "exceptional." It is a strange thing for a father to have to discipline his own children so severely. It is a strange thing for God to treat Jerusalem like it was a Philistine stronghold. But their sin has made it necessary. God will be true to His own righteousness, even if it means taking this strange and terrible path of judgment.

v. 22 So now do not carry on as scoffers, Lest your fetters be made stronger; For I have heard from Lord Yahweh of hosts Of complete destruction, one that is decreed, on all the earth.

The passage concludes with a final warning and an appeal. Stop your scoffing. Continuing down this path of cynical unbelief will not lead to freedom; it will only make your chains heavier. The "fetters" of sin and judgment will be tightened. Isaiah's authority for this warning is absolute. He has heard it directly from the sovereign Lord, Yahweh of hosts. And the decree is for a "complete destruction." This is not a partial judgment. It is a final, decreed, and settled thing. And it is not just for Jerusalem; it is "on all the earth." The principle is universal. Those who reject God's cornerstone and build on the refuge of lies will face a decreed and total destruction. The only escape is to abandon the lies and believe in the Stone.

Application

The temptation faced by the rulers of Jerusalem is a perennial one. We are constantly tempted to make our own "covenants with death", to trust in our financial planning, our political party, our insurance policies, our intellectual respectability, or our own moral efforts for our ultimate security. We build little refuges of lies, telling ourselves that we are safe, that the "overflowing scourge" of death and judgment will not touch us.

But God's Word comes to us just as it came to them. All these man-made refuges are beds too short, blankets too narrow. They provide no real rest and no real covering. God has provided only one foundation that is sure and tested, and that is the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the cornerstone. To build your life on Him, to believe in Him, is to be made secure forever. To reject Him is to be left exposed to the hail and the flood of God's perfect justice.

Therefore, the application is straightforward. We must repent of our self-reliance and our cynical scoffing. We must abandon our trust in the flimsy covenants we make with the dying things of this world. We must hear the word of the Lord and place our whole faith, our whole trust, on the precious and costly cornerstone He has laid in Zion. For the one who believes in Him will never be disturbed, never be put to shame.