Isaiah 28:3Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

This will result in devastating destruction, which will bring a profound stillness to the earth. What kind of stillness? It refers to the inactivity of hands and feet. The implication here is that those who can float may navigate calm waters with ease by simply stretching their limbs and using moderate effort to evade drowning. However, when the waters surge with unstoppable force, those caught within will cease to swim entirely and, despite their struggle, will be overwhelmed and ultimately consumed by the water. The prophet, therefore, conveys a sense of irony, stating that the waters will render the earth motionless, with idle hands and feet. It conveys the idea that no one should exert themselves futilely to escape the impending disaster, which is unavoidable and arrives with such swiftness that the attempts to resist will be in vain. No one will be able to swim against the current, and all, against their will, will be swept away by the might and invincible strength of the Roman army. Consequently, the prideful crown will be trampled underfoot, specifically among the leaders of Ephraim, who have been identified in the earlier context.

To comprehend this properly, we must first view it through a historical lens, then an allegorical perspective, and finally through prophetic foresight. The divine proclamation addresses the ten tribes that ruled from Samaria, originating from Jeroboam of the tribe of Ephraim, from whom they derive their name. He refers to them as a crown of pride due to their numerical and military superiority over the two tribes collectively known as Judah. They are termed Ephraim's drunkards as they fail to recognize their Creator, instead of worshiping the Lord, they offer sacrifices to golden calves in Dan and Bethel. Once, they basked in the glory of the Lord under the reign of David and Solomon when all twelve tribes revered God at the temple in Jerusalem, positioned atop a fertile valley known in Hebrew as Gesemannim (גיא-שמנים), the site of the Lord's betrayal.

They are intoxicated by the wine of deception and folly orchestrated by Jeroboam. Consequently, the Lord warns them of impending judgment; just as a fierce storm of hail obliterates everything in its path, and surging waters sweep away all they encounter, so too shall they face destruction by the Assyrian army, with those who remain being scattered into the mountains or cities of Midian. The splendor of the ten tribes will resemble a beautifully colored wreath, so striking that just as a man, upon seeing a prematurely ripened fig, would hastily consume it, the Assyrian will lay waste to the ten tribes, leaving nothing of the former inhabitants of Samaria.

This succinctly reflects historical context. Now, let us progress to the allegorical interpretation. Drawing from the prophet Hosea, we classify Ephraim, Joseph, Samaria, and the ten tribes that severed ties with the twelve tribes and abandoned the temple of the Lord as heretics. They, denying the true Lord, are depicted as a crown of offense according to the Seventy, motivated by greed, having fallen from the glory of the Lord and not embracing the simplicity of manna or the humility of the Church; they reside upon a bounteous mountain, intoxicated without wine. Therefore, the fierce wrath of the Lord, who seeks to enact judgment upon them, is likened to a rapid hailstorm, not striking the roofs but the heads of humanity, as well as to mighty floods carrying away all in their wake. This garland of offense represents the hirelings of Ephraim who, as described by the Apostle, have strayed from the color, hope, and glory of the original faith (Titus 1:11), and remain in pride, serving as food for the devil, who devours them daily (1 Peter 5:8).

Prophetically, this can also signify the Pharisees' scribes, who blasphemed the Lord, regarded as a crown of offense. They align with the hirelings of Ephraim stemming from Judas, of Ephraim’s lineage and from Iscariot, who betrayed the Lord for gain. The Lord, embodying the pinnacle of apostolic glory, fell upon a fertile mountain, reminiscent of the verse that states, “Jacob ate and drank, and was satiated, and became dull, and resisted the beloved” (Deuteronomy 32:13), referring to the valley of tukov or Gessemanim (גיא-שמנים), which also indicates where Judah betrayed the Lord. This lush valley, or Tukov, is named for its richness and due to the actions of the scribes and Pharisees who took the Lord there, as noted in the psalm, “The young men of the fat have overpowered me” (Psalm 21:13).

This valley of shadows, Gessemanim, is mentioned twice in this context; it is intriguing how the LXX refers to it first as a mountain of clouds and subsequently as a mountain of high places. The betrayer was intoxicated, not by wine, but by greed, the rage of the aspid, and by the devil's nourishment, which entered him after a morsel of bread (John 18:27). He was utterly consumed, as his prayer had turned to sin (Psalm 108:7), and even his repentance bore no salvific outcome (Matthew 27:3-5). The Hebrew term sacchore (שכורי) is multifaceted, indicating both drunkenness and mercenary qualities. Thus, Issachar is depicted as bountiful, a sachar: μέθοσμα, interpreted as intoxication, while other translators deem it drunkenness, with the LXX uniquely translating it as mercenaries.