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Isa 15: 1-9 "I Will Bring... Lions Upon Him That Escapes of Moab"

Isa 15:1  The burden of Moab. Because in the night Ar of Moab is laid waste, and brought to silence; because in the night Kir of Moab is laid waste, and brought to silence;
Isa 15:2  He is gone up to Bajith, and to Dibon, the high places, to weep: Moab shall howl over Nebo, and over Medeba: on all their heads shall be baldness, and every beard cut off.
Isa 15:3  In their streets they shall gird themselves with sackcloth: on the tops of their houses, and in their streets, every one shall howl, weeping abundantly.
Isa 15:4  And Heshbon shall cry, and Elealeh: their voice shall be heard even unto Jahaz: therefore the armed soldiers of Moab shall cry out; his life shall be grievous unto him.
Isa 15:5  My heart shall cry out for Moab; his fugitives shall flee unto Zoar, an heifer of three years old: for by the mounting up of Luhith with weeping shall they go it up; for in the way of Horonaim they shall raise up a cry of destruction.
Isa 15:6  For the waters of Nimrim shall be desolate: for the hay is withered away, the grass faileth, there is no green thing.
Isa 15:7  Therefore the abundance they have gotten, and that which they have laid up, shall they carry away to the brook of the willows.
Isa 15:8  For the cry is gone round about the borders of Moab; the howling thereof unto Eglaim, and the howling thereof unto Beerelim.
Isa 15:9  For the waters of Dimon shall be full of blood: for I will bring more upon Dimon, lions upon him that escapeth of Moab, and upon the remnant of the land.

As we saw last week, Israel could not return to the land of promise until "the iniquity of the Amorites [was] full":

Gen 15:16  But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full.

What Gen 15:16 tells us is that God had determined four generations in advance exactly at what point the Amorites were to be destroyed as a nation, and their land was to be occupied by Israel. Of course the Truth is that God had made that determination "before the world began", or as it really is in the Greek, 'before chronos aionios... before time eonian':

2Ti 1:9  Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,

Tit 1:2  In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;

We are always forced to come back to the Truth that it is really God who is ruling in the kingdoms of men and working all things, yes, even the wicked... "after the counsel of His own will":

Pro 16:4  The LORD hath made all things for himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil.

Dan 4:17  This matter is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of the holy ones: to the intent that the living may know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will, and setteth up over it the basest of men.

Eph 1:11  In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

I was recently asked if God's sovereignty extends to the least details of our lives. For all who can receive it, Ephesians 1:11 is the answer to that question.

Eph 1:11  In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

To make the extent of God's sovereignty clear, we are also given this truth in the book of Psalms:

Psa 139:16  Thine eyes did see mine unformed substance; And in thy book they were all written, Even the days that were ordained for me, When as yet there was none of them.

God knew "before the world began" that each of us would be here on our computers listening to this study today. The same is true for every man who lives, has lived, or will ever live. God's sovereignty extends over the smallest details such as:

Mat 10:28  And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
Mat 10:29  Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father.
Mat 10:30  But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.
Mat 10:31  Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.

"Not one [sparrow] falls to the ground without your Father... you are of more value than many sparrows", reveals that the Lord not only knows "the... numbers... of... the very hairs of [our] heads", He also knows "the preparation of [our] heart",  and all the very activities of "the days that [are] ordained for [each of us]".

Pro 16:1  The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, is from the LORD.

We have this past week endured what is being called "the worst mass murder in the history of our nation". A man supposedly killed 59 people and then shot himself. As always there are many questions surrounding this event, but no one is denying that 59 people died and that 5 hundred people were wounded in an attack on a country music festival in Las Vegas, Nevada. This was not done to those poor people by a foreigner. It was apparently accomplished by an American citizen against other American citizens. This is an affliction which is prophesied to afflict the entire globe along with "wars and rumors of wars", between nations.

Isa 14:24  The LORD of hosts hath sworn, saying, Surely as I have thought, so shall it come to pass; and as I have purposed, so shall it stand:
Isa 14:25  That I will break the Assyrian in my land, and upon my mountains tread him under foot: then shall his yoke depart from off them, and his burden depart from off their shoulders.
Isa 14:26  This is the purpose that is purposed upon the whole earth: and this is the hand that is stretched out upon all the nations.
Isa 14:27  For the LORD of hosts hath purposed, and who shall disannul it? and his hand is stretched out, and who shall turn it back?

The prophecies of Isaiah and Jeremiah both outline the template by which God is using all the nations, unbeknownst to them, to judge and to punish each one his neighbor for rebelling against their own Maker.

While there are many instructive details to be appreciated by those who are given eyes that see and ears that hear "the things of the spirit" (1Co 2:13-15), there is also the past outward application of these judgments, and there are also the future physical judgments of "all the nations of the earth", as is revealed at the very beginning of this prophecy:

Isa 2:13  And upon all the cedars of Lebanon, that are high and lifted up, and upon all the oaks of Bashan,
Isa 2:14  And upon all the high mountains, and upon all the hills that are lifted up,
Isa 2:15  And upon every high tower, and upon every fenced wall,
Isa 2:16  And upon all the ships of Tarshish, and upon all pleasant pictures.
Isa 2:17  And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low: and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day.
Isa 2:18  And the idols he shall utterly abolish.
Isa 2:19  And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth.
Isa 2:20  In that day a man shall cast his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which they made each one for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats;
Isa 2:21  To go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tops of the ragged rocks, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth.
Isa 2:22  Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils: for wherein is he to be accounted of?

I did not write those words, but I have been given faith that those words are true and that the military and religious leaders of this world will be destroyed as is needed to "shake terribly [this] earth" to the point of bringing them all to fear the true God, and to taking all their power and authority from them and give all that power and authority to Christ and His Christ, as we are assured will happen in its appointed time:

Rev 11:15  And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever. [the eons of the eons CLV]
Rev 11:16  And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God,
Rev 11:17  Saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned.
Rev 11:18  And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.

As we all know, "the time is come that judgment must begin at the [heavens and the earth of] the house of God" (1Pe 4:17), and so also this prophecy of Isaiah begins with judgment beginning at "the [physical] house of God":

Isa 1:1  The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.
Isa 1:2 Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth: for the LORD hath spoken, I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me.
Isa 1:3  The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib: but Israel doth not know, my people doth not consider.
Isa 1:4  Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters: they have forsaken the LORD, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, they are gone away backward.

Do  those words describe the kingdom of our father the devil within us? Yes, of course they do, but it is also a perfect description of our nation and of every nation of men on this earth today.

In the New Testament our Lord tells us that "the kingdom of God is within [us]". It is no longer an outward physical kingdom, rather it is now a spiritual kingdom which is within each of those in whom Christ and His Father dwell:

Luk 17:20  And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation:
Luk 17:21  Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.

1Co 3:16  Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
1Co 3:17  If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

God is 'working all things after the counsel of His own will', and that includes "even the days that were ordained for [us]" in which the 'nations', fighting against the kingdom of God within us, are to be subdued and destroyed within us. As we saw in our last study, God had not only predetermined at what time the iniquities of the Amorites would be full, but He had also predetermined and brought into the land all the other nations which He had preordained were to be a thorn in the side of His people.

Amo 9:7  Are ye not as children of the Ethiopians unto me, O children of Israel? saith the LORD. Have not I brought up Israel out of the land of Egypt? and the Philistines from Caphtor, and the Syrians from Kir?

"The days ordained for [those nations] within [us]" are one and all the work of His hand, in the same way Satan was used as the Lord's hand to take away all of Job's earthy possessions and all of his ten children (Job 1 and 2). In the same manner even the sins of Israel were predestined and were lived out by that ancient nation "for [our] admonition":

1Co 10:7  Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.
1Co 10:8  Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand.
1Co 10:9  Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents.
1Co 10:10  Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer.
1Co 10:11 Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples [Greek: tupos, types]: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.

God is in the process of bringing us up out of our sins through His judgments, but His judgments required that He must also be working all of the evil trials we will face and fight, which He has preordained to bring each of us to "our wits' end" (Psa 107:27) as He works out that process of judgment in our lives. You and I are living out those trials at this time. We are spiritually fighting against those nations within ourselves at this very moment.

What we will learn today is that the nations in the land of promise are deliberately placed there by God for the very purpose of being food and nourishment in preparation for a much greater battle, which is to be waged only after we have subdued the nations He placed in the land of promise. Then we will also learn that there are even more and stronger and closer enemies to be fought who are our neighbors, and who are our own flesh, "[our] own household], located all around the land of promise. People like the Ishmailites, the Edomites, the Ammonites and the Moabites.

The Philistines no doubt had wars with each other and with the Canaanites. But when it came to war with the Lord's people they were all united as these verses demonstrate:

Jer 47:4  Because of the day that cometh to spoil all the Philistines, and to cut off from Tyrus and Zidon every helper that remaineth: for the LORD will spoil the Philistines, the remnant of the country of Caphtor.

Jos 9:1  And it came to pass, when all the kings which were on this side Jordan, in the hills, and in the valleys, and in all the coasts of the great sea over against Lebanon, the Hittite, and the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, heard thereof;
Jos 9:2  That they gathered themselves together, to fight with Joshua and with Israel, with one accord.

The adversary will muster all his children to fight against Christ and His Christ within us, and they will do so without us, just before the nations of this world become the nations of our Lord and His Christ at the beginning of the millennium, and they will all do so "with one accord".

The Lord, in His time, gave Israel dominion over all the nations within the promised land, but he did not give Israel to totally destroy them because all He did to Israel was really just a type of what He is doing with us, and what He is doing with us is a life-long "dying daily" process. It is a life-long struggle against all the enemies of the kingdom of God within us, and it is a battle which will continue as long as we remain in these earthen vessels, because those enemies are ever present seeking to destroy "the seed of the woman", which is Christ within us.

This is the type and shadow of what we are up against:

Psa 83:1  A Song or Psalm of Asaph. Keep not thou silence, O God: hold not thy peace, and be not still, O God.
Psa 83:2  For, lo, thine enemies make a tumult: and they that hate thee have lifted up the head.
Psa 83:3  They have taken crafty counsel against thy people, and consulted against thy hidden ones.
Psa 83:4  They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.
Psa 83:5  For they have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee:
Psa 83:6  The tabernacles of Edom, and the Ishmaelites; of Moab, and the Hagarenes;
Psa 83:7  Gebal, and Ammon, and Amalek; the Philistines with the inhabitants of Tyre;
Psa 83:8  Assur also is joined with them: they have holpen the children of Lot. Selah.

This is Psa 83:1-8 in the New Testament:

Act 4:26  The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ.
Act 4:27  For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together,
Act 4:28  For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done.

Here now is what we are told is the Old Testament type of what the Lord is doing with each of us to teach us how to fight the war we must wage in our heavens and in our earth (1Co 10:11):

Jdg 3:1  Now these are the nations which the LORD left, to prove Israel by them, even as many of Israel as had not known all the wars of Canaan;
Jdg 3:2  Only that the generations of the children of Israel might know, to teach them war, at the least such as before knew nothing thereof;
Jdg 3:3  Namely, five lords of the Philistines, and all the Canaanites, and the Sidonians, and the Hivites that dwelt in mount Lebanon, from mount Baalhermon unto the entering in of Hamath.

"Five lords of the Philistines, and all the Canaanites" include "all Palistina", as we saw in our last study. But this study as well as next week's study has to do with the judgment of Moab, the son of Lot by his eldest daughter when they were spared in the destruction of Sodom and all the cities of the plains in which Lot had lived.

Gen 13:12  Abram dwelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent toward Sodom.

Gen 19:29  And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when he overthrew the cities in the which Lot dwelt.

This is Moab's origin:

Gen 19:36  Thus were both the daughters of Lot with child by their father.
Gen 19:37  And the firstborn bare a son, and called his name Moab: the same is the father of the Moabites unto this day.
Gen 19:38  And the younger, she also bare a son, and called his name Benammi: the same is the father of the children of Ammon unto this day.

Why did not the Lord permit Israel to destroy all these nations bordering the promised land when they first came up out of Egypt?

Here is that story where Israel was prohibited by the Lord from taking "no, not so much as a foot breadth" from Edom, Moab, or Ammon, as they journeyed toward the promised land. We need to understand why we must wait to war against our own flesh, our own household:

Deu 2:1  Then we turned, and took our journey into the wilderness by the way of the Red sea, as the LORD spake unto me: and we compassed mount Seir [Edom] many days.
Deu 2:2  And the LORD spake unto me, saying,
Deu 2:3  Ye have compassed this mountain long enough: turn you northward.
Deu 2:4  And command thou the people, saying, Ye are to pass through the coast of your brethren the children of Esau, which dwell in Seir; and they shall be afraid of you: take ye good heed unto yourselves therefore:
Deu 2:5  Meddle not with them; for I will not give you of their land, no, not so much as a foot breadth; because I have given mount Seir unto Esau for a possession.
Deu 2:6  Ye shall buy meat of them for money, that ye may eat; and ye shall also buy water of them for money, that ye may drink.
Deu 2:7  For the LORD thy God hath blessed thee in all the works of thy hand: he knoweth thy walking through this great wilderness: these forty years the LORD thy God hath been with thee; thou hast lacked nothing.
Deu 2:8  And when we passed by from our brethren the children of Esau, which dwelt in Seir, through the way of the plain from Elath, and from Eziongaber, we turned and passed by the way of the wilderness of Moab.
Deu 2:9  And the LORD said unto me, Distress not the Moabites, neither contend with them in battle: for I will not give thee of their land for a possession; because I have given Ar unto the children of Lot for a possession.
Deu 2:10  The Emims dwelt therein in times past, a people great, and many, and tall, as the Anakims;
Deu 2:11  Which also were accounted giants, as the Anakims; but the Moabites call them Emims.
Deu 2:12  The Horims also dwelt in Seir beforetime; but the children of Esau succeeded them, when they had destroyed them from before them, and dwelt in their stead; as Israel did unto the land of his possession, which the LORD gave unto them.
Deu 2:13  Now rise up, said I, and get you over the brook Zered. And we went over the brook Zered.
Deu 2:14  And the space in which we came from Kadeshbarnea, until we were come over the brook Zered, was thirty and eight years; until all the generation of the men of war were wasted out from among the host, as the LORD sware unto them.
Deu 2:15  For indeed the hand of the LORD was against them, to destroy them from among the host, until they were consumed.
Deu 2:16  So it came to pass, when all the men of war were consumed and dead from among the people,
Deu 2:17  That the LORD spake unto me, saying,
Deu 2:18  Thou art to pass over through Ar, the coast of Moab, this day:
Deu 2:19  And when thou comest nigh over against the children of Ammon, distress them not, nor meddle with them: for I will not give thee of the land of the children of Ammon any possession; because I have given it unto the children of Lot for a possession.
Deu 2:20  (That also was accounted a land of giants: giants dwelt therein in old time; and the Ammonites call them Zamzummims;
Deu 2:21  A people great, and many, and tall, as the Anakims; but the LORD destroyed them before them; and they succeeded them, and dwelt in their stead:
Deu 2:22  As he did to the children of Esau, which dwelt in Seir, when he destroyed the Horims from before them; and they succeeded them, and dwelt in their stead even unto this day:
Deu 2:23  And the Avims which dwelt in Hazerim, even unto Azzah, the Caphtorims, which came forth out of Caphtor, destroyed them, and dwelt in their stead.)
Deu 2:24  Rise ye up, take your journey, and pass over the river Arnon: behold, I have given into thine hand Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land: begin to possess it, and contend with him in battle.
Deu 2:25 This day will I begin to put the dread of thee and the fear of thee upon the nations that are under the whole heaven, who shall hear report of thee, and shall tremble, and be in anguish because of thee.

The Lord began to put the dread and fear of Israel upon the nations within the promised land, but He did not permit Israel to do any battle with Edom, Moab or Ammon. Syria was also outside the promised land, and Israel did no battle with Syria until after the promised land was subdued and occupied. Only then did the Lord begin doing battle against Isreal's own household, against those who had been Israel's own brothers and cousins and kinsmen.

All these nations on the eastern border, and even Syria on the northern border of the promised land, were actually all very close kin to Israel. Even Syria is said to be the nation of Abraham:

Deu 26:5  And thou shalt speak and say before the LORD thy God, A Syrian ready to perish was my father [Jacob, and his sons who became Israel], and he went down into Egypt, and sojourned there with a few, and became there a nation, great, mighty, and populous:

After subduing the ever-present Philistines, the Lord permitted Israel to contend with and subdue Edom, Moab and Ammon under King David:

2Sa 8:1  And after this it came to pass, that David smote the Philistines, and subdued them: and David took Methegammah out of the hand of the Philistines.
2Sa 8:2  And he smote Moab, and measured them with a line, casting them down to the ground; even with two lines measured he to put to death, and with one full line to keep alive. And so the Moabites became David's servants, and brought gifts.
2Sa 8:3  David smote also Hadadezer, [King of Syria] the son of Rehob, king of Zobah, as he went to recover his border at the river Euphrates.

Solomon's reign was without wars simply because of all the campaigns of his Father David, who as a type of Christ, brings His rest to us (Heb 4:1-4):

1Ki 4:20  Judah and Israel were many, as the sand which is by the sea in multitude, eating and drinking, and making merry.
1Ki 4:21  And Solomon reigned over all kingdoms from the river unto the land of the Philistines, and unto the border of Egypt: they brought presents, and served Solomon all the days of his life.
1Ki 4:22  And Solomon's provision for one day was thirty measures of fine flour, and threescore measures of meal,
1Ki 4:23  Ten fat oxen, and twenty oxen out of the pastures, and an hundred sheep, beside harts, and roebucks, and fallowdeer, and fatted fowl.
1Ki 4:24  For he had dominion over all the region on this side the river, from Tiphsah even to Azzah, over all the kings on this side the river: and he had peace on all sides round about him.
1Ki 4:25  And Judah and Israel dwelt safely, every man under his vine and under his fig tree, from Dan even to Beersheba, all the days of Solomon.

This is what Israel does even in the face of the Lord's impending judgments.

1Ki 4:20  Judah and Israel were many, as the sand which is by the sea in multitude, eating and drinking, and making merry.

In time the Lord called for repentance, but He did not grant Israel or the nations about her to repent:

Isa 22:12  And in that day did the Lord GOD of hosts call to weeping, and to mourning, and to baldness, and to girding with sackcloth:
Isa 22:13  And behold joy and gladness, slaying oxen, and killing sheep, eating flesh, and drinking wine: let us eat and drink; for to morrow we shall die.
Isa 22:14  And it was revealed in mine ears by the LORD of hosts, Surely this iniquity shall not be purged from you till ye die, saith the Lord GOD of hosts.

Verse 14 is just Old Testament phraseology for this New Testament doctine of our Lord:

Joh 12:24  Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.
Joh 12:25  He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.

As we have already been told, and as we will hear again in this prophecy, the Lord's chosen instrument for His judgment upon His people is Assyria.

Isa 10:5  O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger, and the staff in their hand is mine indignation.
Isa 10:6  I will send him against an hypocritical nation, and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge, to take the spoil, and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets.

Babylon is within the land of Assyria. God is now using the king of Assyria to punish both Israel and all of her enemies both within and without the promised land, beginning with Moab, Israel's near kinsman, Israel's own household:

Isa 15:1  The burden of Moab. Because in the night Ar of Moab is laid waste, and brought to silence; because in the night Kir of Moab is laid waste, and brought to silence;
Isa 15:2  He is gone up to Bajith, and to Dibon, the high places, to weep: Moab shall howl over Nebo, and over Medeba: on all their heads shall be baldness, and every beard cut off.

Twice we are told this judgment comes upon Moab within us "in the night" and the Lord's judgment lays Moab waste and destroys Moab. But we are also twice told that God's judgments will "[bring Moab] to silence". It is obvious that Moab had been given a great voice until:

Isa 2:17  And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low: and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day.
Isa 2:18  And the idols he shall utterly abolish.

Rev 13:5  And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.
Rev 13:6  And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.

Rev 14:9  And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand,
Rev 14:10  The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:
Rev 14:11  And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.

Clearly Moab typifies our own flesh with its darkened very proud, very loud, carnal mind which "is enmity against Christ" (Rom 8:7). Moab typifies a spiritual 'brute beast' made to be taken and destroyed (2Pe 2:12).

Rom 8:6  For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
Rom 8:7  Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.
Rom 8:8  So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.

2Pe 2:12  But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption;

It is Babylon within us, the beast with two horns like a lamb, but speaking as a dragon, who makes us to worship the beast that was slain by the sword of the Word:

Rev 13:14  And [the second beast that comes up out of the earth] deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.
Rev 13:15  And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.

Moab is subdued by this second beast, and Moab, our flesh, must die with the beast. Moab will not be saved though he mourns his demise just as the merchants of the earth mourn the loss of Babylon:

Rev 18:9  And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning,
Rev 18:10  Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come.
Rev 18:11  And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more:

The merchants of the earth bewail the loss of Babylon because they are in her, partaking of her sins, and they will receive of [her] plagues" (Rev 18:1-4):

Isa 15:3  In their streets they shall gird themselves with sackcloth: on the tops of their houses, and in their streets, every one shall howl, weeping abundantly.
Isa 15:4  And Heshbon shall cry, and Elealeh: their voice shall be heard even unto Jahaz: therefore the armed soldiers of Moab shall cry out; his life shall be grievous unto him.

It cannot be denied that "the kings of the earth... were made rich by her [and shall] stand afar off... weeping and wailing... for  in one hour is she made desolate".

Rev 18:8  Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her.
Rev 18:9  And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning,
Rev 18:10  Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come.
Rev 18:11  And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more:
Rev 18:12  The merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious stones, and of pearls, and fine linen, and purple, and silk, and scarlet, and all thyine wood, and all manner vessels of ivory, and all manner vessels of most precious wood, and of brass, and iron, and marble,
Rev 18:13  And cinnamon, and odours, and ointments, and frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, and beasts, and sheep, and horses, and chariots, and slaves, and souls of men.
Rev 18:14  And the fruits that thy soul lusted after are departed from thee, and all things which were dainty and goodly are departed from thee, and thou shalt find them no more at all.
Rev 18:15  The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing,
Rev 18:16  And saying, Alas, alas, that great city, that was clothed in fine linen, and purple, and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls!
Rev 18:17  For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off,
Rev 18:18  And cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What city is like unto this great city!
Rev 18:19  And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas, that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.
Rev 18:20  Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets; for God hath avenged you on her.

Moab is within us and is an integral part of this scene. Moab typifies our self-righteous old man who refuses to repent. Moab is part of this great harlot system and will not "come out of her" (Rev 18:4), and as a brute beast must be taken and destroyed with the great harlot who rules over the kings of this world (Rev 17:18)

Isa 15:5  My heart shall cry out for Moab; his fugitives shall flee unto Zoar, an heifer of three years old: for by the mounting up of Luhith with weeping shall they go it up; for in the way of Horonaim they shall raise up a cry of destruction.

Physical offerings of tithing and good works will not suffice for denying Christ and His doctrines, and for having within us all the lies of the adversary with no place within us for His doctrines.

Mat 7:21  Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
Mat 7:22  Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
Mat 7:23  And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

Luk 6:46  And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?

This is what Christ told "those Jews which believed on Him" (Joh 8:30-32):

Joh 8:43  Why do ye not understand my speech? even because ye cannot hear my word.
Joh 8:44  Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
Joh 8:45  And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not.

'Half truths" and the twisting of the Word of God is not Truth at all. Half truths, made up of twisted truth, is simply lies. We did not teach and believe lies because we wanted to do so. We believed those lies because "Ye cannot hear my Word".

In other words, our old man, Moab, our own flesh, this world believes the lies of Babylon because we are made to do so:

Isa 63:17  O LORD, why hast thou made us to err from thy ways, and hardened our heart from thy fear? Return for thy servants' sake, the tribes of thine inheritance.

Everything mankind does he does because God either shows His mercy or He hardens our hearts from his fear:

Rom 9:15  For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
Rom 9:16  So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.
Rom 9:17  For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth.
Rom 9:18  Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth. [And what is  our natural reaction to this Truth?]
Rom 9:19  Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will?

We simply rebel against such a sovereign God. It isn't fair to our old man to be so despised by his own Creator. We all just naturally want Ishmael to live, instead of replacing Ishmael with Isaac, the son of promise:

Gen 17:17  Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear?
Gen 17:18  And Abraham said unto God, O that Ishmael might live before thee!
Gen 17:19  And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him.
Gen 17:20  And as for Ishmael, [typifying our old man] I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation.
Gen 17:21  But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year.

Ishmael, like Moab, typifies Abraham's own flesh, and this story typifies how we still think until this very day. We are plainly told that physical Israel, the physical descendants of Isaac, have been replaced by the spiritual "son of the free woman", and like Abraham we say 'O that physical Israel might live before thee, and continue to be your physical elect'. But God's ways are not our ways, and this is His answer to all who still cry out with Abraham concerning physical Israel, "O that Ishmael might live before thee!":

Gal 4:30  Nevertheless what saith the scripture? Cast out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman.

So we, with Abraham, mourn the loss of our own flesh, typified by Ishmael, by Moab and by all the nations surrounding Israel, all of whom are Israel's own flesh:

Isa 15:6  For the waters of Nimrim shall be desolate: for the hay is withered away, the grass faileth, there is no green thing.
Isa 15:7  Therefore the abundance they have gotten, and that which they have laid up, shall they carry away to the brook of the willows.
Isa 15:8  For the cry is gone round about the borders of Moab; the howling thereof unto Eglaim, and the howling thereof unto Beerelim.
Isa 15:9  For the waters of Dimon shall be full of blood: for I will bring more upon Dimon, lions upon him that escapeth of Moab, and upon the remnant of the land.

"The brook of the willows" should have been translated "the river of the willows", and with this verse in mind, it is obvious that the riches of Moab, just like the riches of Israel, were carried off to Babylon and "the river of the willows":

Psa 137:1  By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion.
Psa 137:2  We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof.

In Ezekiel 17, willows are again identified with Babylon:

Eze 17:5  He took also of the seed of the land, and planted it in a fruitful field; he placed it by great waters, and set it as a willow tree.

Eze 17:11  Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
Eze 17:12  Say now to the rebellious house, Know ye not what these things mean? tell them, Behold, the king of Babylon is come to Jerusalem, and hath taken the king thereof, and the princes thereof, and led them with him to Babylon;

This all takes place "in the night", and we are so 'in the dark' that we are not even aware that Babylon has taken from us all that is ours.

Isa 15:1  The burden of Moab. Because in the night Ar of Moab is laid waste, and brought to silence; because in the night Kir of Moab is laid waste, and brought to silence;

"The hay... the grass... and every green thing" are all symbols of the things of our flesh, which must die and be destroyed by the brightness of the coming of Christ, The Truth:

Isa 40:5  And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.
Isa 40:6  The voice said, Cry. And he said, What shall I cry? All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field:
Isa 40:7  The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: because the spirit of the LORD bloweth upon it: surely the people is grass.
Isa 40:8  The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.

Peter quotes Isaiah making the same point concerning the replacing of physical Israel and all flesh with a new spiritual Israel and an inward spiritual Jew:

1Pe 1:24  For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away:
1Pe 1:25  But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you. ["strangers", physically non-Jews]

It is Peter himself, earlier in this very same chapter, who tells us to whom he is addressing these words:

1Pe 1:1  Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia,
1Pe 1:2  Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.

"The strangers which are among you" is the physical Jewish way of saying non-Jews, who cannot come near the temple of God to worship Him.

Exo 12:43  And the LORD said unto Moses and Aaron, This is the ordinance of the passover: There shall no stranger eat thereof:

So much for those who insist that Peter's epistles are addressed to fellow physical Jews. Peter knew the truth the Lord had revealed to Paul in Ephesians 2 and in Colossians 2, because the truth is that God had revealed that truth to Peter before He revealed it to any of the other apostles by sending Peter to the house of the Gentile Roman centurion, and provoking Peter to admit that there was "no difference between [Jews and Gentiles]", as far as God is concerned, when this question became an issue in the early church:

Act 15:6  And the apostles and elders came together for to consider of this matter.
Act 15:7  And when there had been much disputing, Peter rose up, and said unto them, Men and brethren, ye know how that a good while ago God made choice among us, that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel, and believe.
Act 15:8  And God, which knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving them the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto us;
Act 15:9  And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith.
Act 15:10  Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear?

This is the early church, and the truth of Peter's words were still more than they were able to bear because Christ said so:

Joh 16:12  I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.
Joh 16:13  Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

So after being told that God has "put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith.", and after Peter posing the question:

Act 15:10  Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear?

The apostles, with the consent of the holy spirit, knowing these Jewish apostles were not yet able to bear the Truth that there is "no difference between us and them", composed a letter to the Gentile converts, giving the Gentiles the freedom from the law for the lawless (1Ti 1:9-12), but self-righteously still keeping themselves under that dying law to the point of even continuing the ritual of blood offerings in the physical temple in Jerusalem, as if the death of Christ were not sufficient to cleanse us of our sins:

Act 21:17  And when we [Paul, Luke, and those traveling with them] were come to Jerusalem, the brethren received us gladly.
Act 21:18  And the day following Paul went in with us unto James; and all the elders were present.
Act 21:19  And when he had saluted them, he declared particularly what things God had wrought among the Gentiles by his ministry.
Act 21:20  And when they heard it, they glorified the Lord, and said unto him, Thou seest, brother, how many thousands of Jews there are which believe; and they are all zealous of the law [of Moses]:
Act 21:21  And they are informed of thee, that thou teachest all the Jews which are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, saying that they ought not to circumcise their children, neither to walk after the customs.
Act 21:22  What is it therefore? the multitude must needs come together: for they will hear that thou art come.
Act 21:23  Do therefore this that we say to thee: We have four men which have a vow on them;
Act 21:24  Them take, and purify thyself with them, and be at charges with them, that they may shave their heads: and all may know that those things, whereof they were informed concerning thee, are nothing; but that thou thyself also walkest orderly, and keepest the law.
Act 21:25. As touching the Gentiles which believe, we have written and concluded that they observe no such thing, save only that they keep themselves from things offered to idols, and from blood, and from strangled, and from fornication.
Act 21:26  Then Paul [having agreed to the letter James references] took the men, and the next day purifying himself with them entered into the temple, to signify the accomplishment of the days of purification, until that an offering should be offered for every one of them.

The apostles of Jesus Christ, Paul included, were still offering ritual blood offerings decades after the ultimate offering had been made and the ultimate physical sacrifice for sins had been made. They did so simply because:

Joh 16:12  I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.

Why do I bring all of this into this prophecy concerning the destruction of Moab? I do so to demonstrate why we all mourn the loss of all the nations within and about Israel and within and about us. I do so to demonstrate why the prophecies of Isaiah and Jeremiah are so detailed in telling us about the destruction of all the nations within and all about Israel. I do so to make us all aware that all these nations are within us and are warring against the kingdom of God within us during this time of judgment upon the house of God. The reason why we study these prophecies is to  prepare us for the fact that this battle involves our closest associates, and it takes a long time, and we are in this battle for the long run and we must "endure to the end" before we will be saved:

Mat 10:21  And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death.
Mat 10:22  And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.

Rom 8:28  And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

"Many are called but few are chosen... to... love God, [and to be] the called according to His purpose".

Mat 22:14  For many are called, but few are chosen.

But if we are "the called according to His purpose" then we have the promise of the very next verses of Romans 8:

Rom 8:29  For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
Rom 8:30  Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.

Next week, Lord willing, we will see how Moab typifies our corruptible flesh, and yet it is an "earthen vessel" which the treasure of the Christ within us considers to be His temple until the battles and "the spoiler" of this life have ceased:

Isa 16:1  Send ye the lamb to the ruler of the land from Sela to the wilderness, unto the mount of the daughter of Zion.
Isa 16:2  For it shall be, that, as a wandering bird cast out of the nest, so the daughters of Moab shall be at the fords of Arnon.
Isa 16:3  Take counsel, execute judgment; make thy shadow as the night in the midst of the noonday; hide the outcasts; bewray not him that wandereth.
Isa 16:4  Let mine outcasts dwell with thee, Moab; be thou a covert to them from the face of the spoiler: for the extortioner is at an end, the spoiler ceaseth, the oppressors are consumed out of the land.
Isa 16:5  And in mercy shall the throne be established: and he shall sit upon it in truth in the tabernacle of David, judging, and seeking judgment, and hasting righteousness.
Isa 16:6  We have heard of the pride of Moab; he is very proud: even of his haughtiness, and his pride, and his wrath: but his lies shall not be so.
Isa 16:7  Therefore shall Moab howl for Moab, every one shall howl: for the foundations of Kirhareseth shall ye mourn; surely they are stricken.