Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin
Daniel 5:30-31
In that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain. And Darius the Median took the kingdom, being about threescore and two years old.
The city and nation of Babylon first rose to power in about 1830 B.C., but was nothing like it was in 539 B.C.
This was fulfilled by in B.C. 539, by Cyrus the Great, a Persian king who, through Gobryas his general, lowered the river Euphrates by temporarily diverting it into irrigation channels and marched under the wall of the fortified city of Babylon on dry land, to suddenly storm the unsuspecting city and decisively destroy a people whose leaders the night before were drunk and who in the morning were no doubt still drunk and most certainly hung over.
Isaiah 21:1
The burden of the desert of the sea. As whirlwinds in the south pass through; so it cometh from the desert, from a terrible land.
- (v.9, Babylon) The fall of Babylon (desert of the sea) by the Medes and Persians is foretold before it even existed by roughly 200 years!
- A whirlwind is simply what they call out in the western part of the U.S., "Dust devils"
- It was/is located on a plain on the Euphrates
- Throughout Scripture, beginning to end, Babylon represents false religion, the occult, paganism
- Tower of Babel (Genesis), Mystery Babylon (Revelation 17-18)
Genesis 11:1-9
And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there.
And they said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them throughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for morter.
And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.
And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded. And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do.
Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech. So the LORD scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city. Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the LORD did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the LORD scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth.
Revelation 17:1
And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:
Isaiah 21:2
A grievous vision is declared unto me; the treacherous dealer dealeth treacherously, and the spoiler spoileth. Go up, O Elam: besiege, O Media; all the sighing thereof have I made to cease.
- Media/Persia (Elam) is going to destroy Babylon
- Persia did not even exist as a nation yet!
Isaiah 21:3-4
Therefore are my loins filled with pain: pangs have taken hold upon me, as the pangs of a woman that travaileth: I was bowed down at the hearing of it; I was dismayed at the seeing of it. My heart panted, fearfulness affrighted me: the night of my pleasure hath he turned into fear unto me.
- The Bible often speaks of the end times like birth pangs, starting, building, faster and faster
- The judgment of God is never a pretty sight to be enjoyed, in the flesh
- The best way to enjoy it is by thinking of the spiritual victory over
the enemy, not to rejoice over people who die
- Enjoying the death of people is not even healthy
- This is the reason God will wipe away the tears from our eyes after the
lost are judged and hell is cast into the lake of fire
Isaiah 28:21
For the LORD shall rise up as in mount Perazim, he shall be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon, that he may do his work, his strange work; and bring to pass his act, his strange act.
Isaiah 25:8
He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the LORD hath spoken it.
Revelation 7:17
For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.
Revelation 21:4
And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.
Isaiah 21:5
Prepare the table, watch in the watchtower, eat, drink: arise, ye princes, and anoint the shield.
- This is a vision of the preparation for the decisive rout of Babylon
- This is the fulfillment of in Daniel 5
- This is sarcasm, since there is nothing that anything they do will help. Today we say, "Knock yourself out!"
Isaiah 21:6
For thus hath the Lord said unto me, Go, set a watchman, let him declare what he seeth.
- It is time to monitor the battle
- There is no chance that of getting out of this; it is sure to happen
- The only thing to do now is watch and wait
Mark 13:35-37
Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning: Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping.
And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.
Isaiah 21:7
And he saw a chariot with a couple of horsemen, a chariot of asses, and a chariot of camels; and he hearkened diligently with much heed:
- The messengers, in the distance approaching
- There is a total anticipation and expectation of news here, bad news
Isaiah 21:8
And he cried, A lion: My lord, I stand continually upon the watchtower in the daytime, and I am set in my ward whole nights:
- This is a day and night, determined, vigilant vigil, until it is over
- Rogue lions are dangerous, determined
- The lion is Babylon
Daniel 7:4
The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man's heart was given to it.
Isaiah 21:9
And, behold, here cometh a chariot of men, with a couple of horsemen. And he answered and said, Babylon is fallen, is fallen; and all the graven images of her gods he hath broken unto the ground.
- Cyrus conquered, but did not destroy the images, but rather worshipped them
- In Jeremiah and Revelation, the idols are destroyed, but Cyrus did not do that here.
- The fall (here)is not the destruction (Revelation 18)
- No one knew for two-three days it was conquered, because it was not a war!
- Isaiah 13-14, Jeremiah 50-51, Revelation 17-18
- Cyrus made Babylon his capital, and when Alexander conquered him, he made it his capital-he even died there
- This is therefore a double fulfillment, the future one being complete
- Messengers, riding horses with news, bad tidings
- They were at that night praising the gods of gold, silver, iron, etc.
- There were a lot more false gods they made idols of as well.
- Smashing, destroying idols is a way of taking their power away.
Daniel 5:4
They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone.
Jeremiah 51:8
Babylon is suddenly fallen and destroyed: howl for her; take balm for her pain, if so be she may be healed.
Revelation 14:8
And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.
Isaiah 21:10
O my threshing, and the corn of my floor: that which I have heard of the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, have I declared unto you.
- Harvest is the time of judgment, judgment here is the time of harvest
- They were apparently "white to harvest"
John 4:35
Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest.
Revelation 14:15
And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe.
Isaiah 21:11
The burden of Dumah. He calleth to me out of Seir, Watchman, what of the night? Watchman, what of the night?
- Dumah is a symbolic word, (means silence, dumb) an Ishmaelite
- Mount Seir is in Edom (Esau) territory
- This is the silence before the storm, and the source of the storm
- He is asking when
Genesis 36:8
Thus dwelt Esau in mount Seir: Esau is Edom.
Genesis 25:13-14
And these are the names of the sons of Ishmael, by their names, according to their generations: the firstborn of Ishmael, Nebajoth; and Kedar, and Adbeel, and Mibsam, And Mishma, and Dumah, and Massa,
1 Chronicles 1:29-31
These are their generations: The firstborn of Ishmael, Nebaioth; then Kedar, and Adbeel, and Mibsam, Mishma, and Dumah, Massa, Hadad, and Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah. These are the sons of Ishmael.
Isaiah 21:12
The watchman said, The morning cometh, and also the night: if ye will enquire, enquire ye: return, come.
- Glory (morning light) for some will be darkness (night) for others
- It all depends on which side you are on in the judgment
Isaiah 21:13
The burden upon Arabia. In the forest in Arabia shall ye lodge, O ye travelling companies of Dedanim.
- Dedan is Arabia
- Dedanim is a change (insertion) in vowel points can mean evening
- Temar, Dedan, Kedar-all Arabian tribes
- Ishmaelites, Bedouins, this is their night, evening time, the end is near
- "Evening and morning were the first day" sins end is God's beginning
- Hebrew does not have vowels
Isaiah 21:14
The inhabitants of the land of Tema brought water to him that was thirsty, they prevented with their bread him that fled.
- Tema is from Ishmael as well
- They fed the fleeing peoples before they fled
Genesis 25:13-15
And these are the names of the sons of Ishmael, by their names, according to their generations: the firstborn of Ishmael, Nebajoth; and Kedar, and Adbeel, and Mibsam, And Mishma, and Dumah, and Massa, Hadar, and Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah:
Isaiah 21:15
For they fled from the swords, from the drawn sword, and from the bent bow, and from the grievousness of war.
- Pride is reversed into utter humility when under sever attack, as in a swift and decisive war.
- Judgment, swift and sever, is coming to Arabia.
Isaiah 21:16
For thus hath the Lord said unto me, Within a year, according to the years of an hireling, and all the glory of Kedar shall fail:
- This is an undeniable, soon witnessed fulfillment to any man's eyes who knows of it
- A specific time, not just a year (contractual time of a hireling-exactly less than a year!)
Isaiah 21:17
And the residue of the number of archers, the mighty men of the children of Kedar, shall be diminished: for the LORD God of Israel hath spoken it.
Sargon, same as the one who conquered Egypt and Ethiopia............fulfilled
Kedar, second son of Ishmael-north east corner of peninsula, Kuwait, where Saddam
Hussein and Mohammed are from