Chapters thirteen through twenty-three contain a series of prophecies against specific nations. Isaiah preached these from Israel, not in those foreign countries, for at least two reasons. First, Israel needed to remember that Jehovah was not just their tribal god; he is the God over all nations. Second, Israel needed to hear that these nations, […]
Ezra and Nehemiah were originally one book in the Hebrew text, because they tell the three-part story of Israelās return from captivity in Persia. When the Hebrew text was translated into Greek (the Septuagint), this was retained as one book, called Esdras B (or 2 Esdras). It was not until Origen and, finally, Jerome in
Chapters fifty and fifty-one, appropriately, deal with Babylon, the great empire of that time. Although they were considered invincible in Jeremiahās day, God promised that they, too, would face invasion, captivity, and humiliation at the hands of another nation. The ānation from the northā (Jeremiah 50:3) was Medo-Persia, which executed a surprise attack in 539
