In the same prophetic speech it is said that "in that day the Lord will smite with His heavy sword, and great and mighty, Leviathan, the serpent that runs straight, and Leviathan, the serpent that bends, and will kill the monster of the sea" (Isaiah 27:1). In the Holy Scriptures, the leviathan is understood as the devil: "He took the dragon, the serpent of old, which is the devil and Satan" (Rev. 20:2).

26.10. The Prophecy of the Cornerstone

at the foundation of Zion

Further on we see in chapter 28 the prophecy of the cornerstone (Isaiah 28:16). The preaching of the prophet is rejected, but his hope is not in people. The inhabitants of Jerusalem, mad in their wickedness, do not want to listen to the prophet. "But these also stagger because of wine, and go astray because of strong drink; the priest and the prophet stumble over strong drinks; they are overcome by wine, they are mad with strong drink, they err in vision, they stumble in judgment. For all the tables are filled with disgusting vomit, there is no clean place. And they say: "Whom does he want to teach knowledge? and whom shall we admonish by preaching? weaned from breast milk, weaned from the mother's nipples? For everything is precept upon precept, precept upon precept, precept upon precept, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little." Therefore they will speak to this people with babbling lips and in a foreign tongue. They were told: "Here is rest, give rest to the weary, and here is rest." But they didn't want to listen. And it became with them the word of the Lord: precept upon precept, precept upon precept, precept upon precept, precept upon precept, here a little, there a little, so that they shall go and fall backwards, and be broken, and fall into a net, and be caught" (Isaiah 28:7-13). In explanation, it should be said that perhaps the Jews mimicked the denunciations of numerous deviations from the commandments, distorting the words "rule" and "commandment" often repeated by the prophet in the manner of monosyllabic infantile babbling. [see 69, vol. 5, p. 359]. But you can't joke with the Word of God. "Hear therefore the word of the Lord, you blasphemers, you rulers of this people who are in Jerusalem. For you say: 'We have made a covenant with death, and have made a covenant with hell: when the all-strithing scourge shall pass away, it shall not come to us, for we have made falsehood a refuge for ourselves, and by deceit we shall cover ourselves'" (Isaiah 28:14-15). Perhaps the point here is that by worshipping other gods or completely sliding into unbelief, the Jews believed that by doing so they were not subject to God's control and beyond the jurisdiction of God. "Therefore thus saith the Lord God: Behold, I have laid a stone for the foundation of Zion, a tried stone, a cornerstone, a precious stone, firmly established: he that believeth in it shall not be ashamed. And I will set judgment as a yardstick, and righteousness as a scale; and hail will destroy the refuge of falsehood, and the waters will drown the place of hiding. And your covenant with death is destroyed, and your covenant with hell will not stand. When the all-scourging scourge comes, you will be trampled underfoot" (Isaiah 28:16-18). The appearance of Christ will bring judgment to the world, since the light of truth will be revealed to all people, but they "loved darkness more than light, because their deeds were evil" (John 3:19).

26.11. God's Judgment and Deliverance

"As birds are their young, so the Lord of hosts will cover Jerusalem, protect and deliver, have mercy and save. Turn to Him from Whom you have fallen so much, O children of Israel." (Isaiah 31:5-6). God's call remained unheard. "Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who slayeth the prophets, and stoneth them that are sent unto thee! how many times would I have gathered thy children together, as a bird gathereth her young under her wings, and ye would not!" – said Christ seven centuries later, gazing upon the rebellious city (Matt. 23:37).

But there is no other hope for Israel. Any earthly support is no stronger than a reed. It will break and pierce the hand of the one who tries to lean on it.

"For the help of Egypt will be in vain and in vain; therefore I said to them, Their strength is to sit still. Now go and write it on their board, and write it in a book, so that it will remain for the future, forever, forever. For they are a rebellious people, deceitful children, children who will not hear the law of the Lord, who say to the seers, "Cease to see," and to the prophets, "Do not prophesy righteousness to us, tell us flattering things, foretell pleasant things; get out of the way, get out of the way; remove from our eyes the Holy One of Israel." Therefore thus saith the Holy One of Israel: Inasmuch as ye reject this word, and put your trust in deceit and unrighteousness, and lean on it, this iniquity shall be unto you as a fissure threatening to fall, which is found in a high wall, the destruction of which shall come suddenly, in an instant" (Isaiah 30:7-13). The image of a cracked wall, which outwardly looks reliable, but is ready to collapse at any moment, burying those around under its rubble, will later meet us in other prophets.

"The sinners in Zion were afraid; Trembling took possession of the wicked: "Who among us can live by a consuming fire? Who among us can live under eternal flames?'" (Isaiah 33:14).

Several planes constantly resonate here: the prophet's own time, the coming of Christ and the Second Coming of Christ, the end of times. "And all the host of heaven shall perish; and the heavens shall be rolled up like a scroll of a book; and all their army will fall as a leaf falls from a vine, and as a withered leaf falls from a fig tree. For my sword is drunk in heaven: behold, it descendeth upon Edom for judgment, and upon the people whom I have conjured" (Isaiah 34:4-5).

The return of Israel after captivity, after punishment, is also presented in such words that cannot but be perceived as a messianic prophecy: "The wilderness and the dry land will rejoice, and the uninhabited country will rejoice, and will blossom like a daffodil; it will bloom and rejoice magnificently, it will triumph and rejoice.<... >Then the eyes of the blind will be opened, and the ears of the deaf will be opened. Then the lame shall leap up like a deer, and the tongue of the dumb shall sing; for the waters will break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert. And the phantom of the waters will turn into a lake, and the thirsty earth into springs of water..." (Isaiah 35:1-2, 5-7).

One immediately recalls the numerous healings of souls and bodies that took place in the time of Christ, as well as Christ's words about the water that He will give and which will be the source of eternal life. In the prophetic books, water is also a stable symbol of the grace of the Holy Spirit, which will be poured out on the faithful after the coming of Christ. "And there shall be a high road, and the way therein shall be called the holy way: the unclean shall not walk in it; but he will be for them alone; those who follow this path, even the inexperienced, will not get lost<... >And those who have been delivered by the Lord will return, and will come to Zion with a shout of joy; and everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they will find joy and gladness, but sorrow and sighing will depart" (Isaiah 35:8, 10).

26.12. Historical Department. The invasion of Sennacherib.

Hezekiah's illness. The Prediction of the Babylonian Captivity