Commentary - Isaiah 34:9-15

Bird's-eye view

This passage in Isaiah is a prophecy of the Lord's vengeance against Edom, a nation that stands as an archetype for all the proud and bloodthirsty kingdoms of man that set themselves against God and His people. The language here is stark, absolute, and terrifying. It is the language of de-creation. What God once formed into a habitable land, He here returns to chaos and desolation. The imagery of burning pitch, eternal smoke, and a landscape given over entirely to wild, unclean beasts is not a literal description of an eternally burning patch of land in the Middle East. Rather, it is potent, covenantal language describing total and irreversible judgment. This is what happens when a nation's cup of iniquity is full. God hands it over to its own ruin, removing His blessing and allowing the curse to run its full course. The prophecy is a picture of hell on earth, a historical preview of the final judgment, where the wicked are removed and their place knows them no more, becoming a haunt for every foul spirit. It is a solemn and necessary reminder that while God is patient, His justice does not sleep forever, and He is a consuming fire to His enemies.

The prophet uses the tools of divine poetry to paint a picture of utter dereliction. The land of Edom, once filled with nobles and princes, is measured out for "utter formlessness" and "utter void," a direct echo of the state of the earth before God's creative word brought forth life and order in Genesis. This is not just a military defeat; it is a complete societal collapse, a return to the wild. The passage serves as a permanent warning against the pride of man and the ephemeral nature of earthly power when it stands in defiance of the living God. For the believer, it is a fearsome portrait of the judgment from which Christ has delivered us, and a promise that every Edom, every Babylon, every persecuting power will one day face the same righteous verdict from the King of kings.

Outline

Context In Isaiah

Isaiah 34 and 35 form a contrasting pair of prophecies. Chapter 34 describes the fierce judgment of God upon the nations, with Edom serving as the prime example. It is a chapter filled with fire, smoke, and desolation. In stark contrast, chapter 35 describes the glorious restoration of God's people and His creation. It is a chapter of blooming deserts, healing, joy, and the "Way of Holiness." This pairing is intentional. The utter destruction of God's enemies is the necessary prelude to the unhindered flourishing of His kingdom. You cannot have the new creation without the dismantling of the old, rebellious order. Isaiah 34 is the "bad news" of God's righteous wrath that makes the "good news" of Isaiah 35 so glorious. This section comes after a series of oracles against various nations (chapters 13-23) and an apocalypse (chapters 24-27), and it serves to sharpen the focus: God will judge all His enemies, and He will save all His people. The judgment on Edom is a historical case study of a universal principle.

Key Issues

The Un-Creation of a Kingdom

When modern readers encounter passages like this, there is a temptation to either literalize it into a science fiction scenario or to allegorize it away into a vague spiritual lesson. But the biblical authors wielded this kind of language with purpose and precision. The imagery of a land turning into burning pitch and brimstone is a direct allusion to the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen 19:24-28). That event became the definitive Old Testament example of total, fiery, divine judgment. By applying this imagery to Edom, Isaiah is saying that Edom has become like Sodom, so corrupt that its only future is to be wiped from the face of the earth.

Furthermore, the language of the land being returned to tohu va bohu, "formlessness and void" (v. 11), is a deliberate reversal of the creation account in Genesis 1. God's creative work brought order, light, and life out of chaos. Here, God's judicial work brings chaos out of a rebellious and ordered society. He is un-creating Edom. Their sin has so polluted the land that God is erasing it, turning it back into a wasteland fit only for desert creatures and night-haunts. This is not just a military defeat; it is a theological statement. A kingdom built on pride and violence against God's people is fundamentally anti-creation, and so its end is to be de-created by the Creator Himself.

Verse by Verse Commentary

9 And its streams will be turned into pitch, And its dust into brimstone, And its land will become burning pitch.

The prophet begins with a picture of ecological reversal. The very elements of the land that sustain life, the streams and the soil, are transformed into instruments of death. Pitch and brimstone are flammable, toxic substances. This is Sodom and Gomorrah language, plain and simple. It signifies a judgment that is total, fiery, and directly from the hand of God. The land itself becomes a monument to its own sin and judgment. This is not to be understood as a literal, ongoing chemical reaction, but as a powerful metaphor for a land that has become utterly and permanently uninhabitable due to God's curse.

10 It will not be quenched night or day; Its smoke will go up forever. From generation to generation it will be laid waste; None will pass through it forever and ever.

This verse intensifies the previous one. The fire of judgment is unquenchable, and its effects are permanent. The phrase "its smoke will go up forever" is hyperbolic language indicating the finality and visibility of the judgment. Just as the smoke from a great fire can be seen for miles and serves as a lasting sign of destruction, so Edom's fall will be a permanent historical lesson. This is the same language John uses in Revelation to describe the fall of Babylon the Great (Rev 19:3). It signifies an irreversible doom. The land will be so desolate that it ceases to be a place of human transit or habitation. The trade routes are cut off; the civilization is over. The desolation will last "from generation to generation," emphasizing that this is not a temporary setback but a final end to Edom as a nation.

11 But pelican and hedgehog will possess it, And owl and raven will dwell in it; And He will stretch over it the line of utter formlessness And the plumb line of utter void.

Where men once built cities, wild and unclean animals will now make their home. The pelican, hedgehog, owl, and raven are creatures of desolate places. Their presence signifies the absence of humanity. Civilization has been so thoroughly erased that the wilderness has reclaimed everything. Then comes the surveyor's language. A builder uses a line and a plumb line to ensure a structure is orderly and true. Here, God, the master builder, uses His measuring tools not to build but to deconstruct. He is measuring Edom for destruction, laying it out according to the blueprint of chaos itself. The Hebrew words are tohu and bohu, the very words used in Genesis 1:2 to describe the earth before God imposed His creative order upon it. Edom is being sent back to the pre-creation state. It is a terrifying sentence of cosmic undoing.

12 Its nobles, there is no one there Whom they may proclaim king, And all its princes will be non-existent.

The social and political structure is completely dismantled. A nation is defined by its leadership and governance, but in Edom, this will be gone. There will be no nobles left to gather and enthrone a new king. The entire ruling class, the princes, will be annihilated. This is not just a change in dynasty; it is the end of the kingdom itself. The chaos is not only ecological but also political. There is no one to give orders, no one to maintain law, no one to lead. The nation has ceased to be.

13 And thorns will come up in its fortified towers, Weeds and thistles in its fortified cities; It will also be a haunt of jackals And an abode of ostriches.

The symbols of Edom's power and security, her fortified towers and cities, will become ruins. Nature's curse, thorns and thistles (Gen 3:18), will overrun the works of man. What were once bustling centers of commerce and military might will become lairs for wild animals. Jackals and ostriches are not creatures you find in a thriving city. Their presence indicates utter desolation and abandonment. The places of human pride and strength are now home to the howling of beasts.

14 And the desert creatures will meet with the wolves; The hairy goat also will cry to its kind; Surely, the night creature will obtain relief there And will find itself a resting place.

The catalog of desolate inhabitants continues, creating an eerie and chaotic scene. Wild, predatory, and strange animals congregate where people once lived. The "hairy goat" likely refers to a satyr-like demon from popular folklore, which Isaiah employs to emphasize the demonic and haunted nature of the ruins. The "night creature" (Hebrew: lilith) is a similar figure, a nocturnal demon. Isaiah is not affirming the literal existence of these beings; he is using the full vocabulary of dread and horror available to him to paint a picture of a land given over to the dark powers, a place utterly cursed and abandoned by God. It has become a place where the forces of chaos and darkness are completely at home.

15 The owl will make its nest and find its escape there, And it will hatch its eggs and gather them in its shade. Surely, the falcons will be gathered there, Every one with its kind.

The final verse of this section seals the picture of desolation by showing that it is not a temporary state of war but a new, settled reality. The wild creatures are not just passing through; they are nesting, breeding, and establishing a new ecosystem of ruin. The owl, a creature of the night, finds security and shade in the ruins of Edom's palaces. The falcons gather, each with its mate, indicating a new, perverse order has been established. The land is "fruitful" again, but only in producing creatures that signify desolation. The curse is complete and settled. God's word of judgment has come to pass with meticulous certainty, just as His word of creation did in the beginning.

Application

First, we must recognize that God takes sin seriously, particularly the sin of pride and persecution against His people. Edom's great sin was its ancient and bitter hatred for Israel (Ezek 35:5). When Jerusalem fell, Edom rejoiced and participated in the plunder (Obad 10-14). God does not forget such things. This passage is a stark reminder to the Church that we ought not to be surprised or dismayed when we see proud, godless civilizations crumble. God is still the judge of the nations, and He still brings kingdoms to ruin. Our trust should never be in the fortified towers of our own culture, but in the living God who can unmake them with a word.

Second, this passage shows us the horror of the curse from which Christ redeemed us. The de-creation of Edom is a picture of what our sin deserves: to be cast out from God's ordered and blessed creation into a place of chaos, darkness, and desolation. On the cross, Jesus entered that outer darkness for us. He bore the full measure of the covenantal curse. He became, as it were, a desolate ruin so that we could be brought into the blooming garden of God's grace (cf. Isa 35). Every time we read a passage of judgment like this, it should drive us to our knees in gratitude for the cross.

Finally, we should take heart. The God who so thoroughly and certainly judged Edom will just as thoroughly and certainly judge all His enemies. Every system, ideology, and power that sets itself against Christ and His Church is an Edom. Its towers may seem high and its princes powerful, but God has already stretched the line of confusion over them. Their end is written. Therefore, we are not to fear them, but to trust in the God whose word of judgment is as certain as His word of salvation. He is clearing the ground for the full arrival of His kingdom, a kingdom that will have no end.