“O Assyria!
The rod of my anger!
The club in their hands
Is my fury!
Against a godless nation,
I send him.
Against the people of my wrath,
I command him
To take spoil.
I command him
To seize plunder.
I command him
To tread them down
Like the mire of the streets.
This is not what he intends.
He did not have this in mind.
But in his heart,
He wanted to destroy.
He wanted to cut off
Not a few nations.”
It seems like Yahweh is sending the king of Assyria as his rod and club to work out God’s plans. Thus, King Tiglath-Pileser III (745-727 BCE) of Assyria wanted to deport people, so that they would not lead a revolt against him. This Assyrian king was to be the stick of Yahweh’s anger to make the northern Israelites like sludge in the streets. He would take the plunder and the spoils of the people of Yahweh, the northern Israelites. The Assyrian king controlled a great part of the Middle East from the Tigris River, including Babylon, during this time of Isaiah. However, the Assyrian King Tiglath-Pileser III did not intend to do the will of Yahweh. He really wanted to destroy and cut up many nations with his deportation and plunder policies.
Eugene Finnegan Bible Project 