What is the meaning of Isaiah 15:2? Dibon goes up to its temple to weep at its high places Isaiah begins by picturing the citizens of Dibon climbing the very shrines where they once felt secure. Instead of joyful sacrifice, they now bring tears. • High places were built in defiance of God’s command that worship be centered on His chosen altar (1 Kings 12:31). By returning there under distress, Moab looks to powerless idols rather than to the LORD who alone controls nations. • Jeremiah echoes this coming judgment: “Come down from your glory, O Daughter who dwells in Dibon… Moab’s destroyer has come against you” (Jeremiah 48:18). • The people “go up” geographically, but spiritually they are bankrupt. Numbers 21:30 already hinted at Dibon’s vulnerability; Isaiah now announces its fulfillment. • Their weeping confirms God’s word that idols cannot save (Isaiah 44:9–20). The literal tears on those heights dramatize the emptiness of false worship. Moab wails over Nebo, as well as over Medeba The lament spreads from Dibon to two more Moabite centers, showing that no town is spared. • Nebo—named after a pagan deity—was once included in Israel’s inheritance (Numbers 32:3). Its loss shows Moab’s collapse and the reversal of old border victories. Jeremiah repeats the warning: “Woe to Nebo, for it is devastated” (Jeremiah 48:1). • Medeba lay on a strategic plain; Isaiah’s mention underlines that economic advantages cannot shield from divine judgment (compare Isaiah 15:1 where Ar and Kir are struck). • The single word “wails” conveys continual, loud grief. Like Egypt in Exodus 12:30, the whole land cries out under God’s hand. • By naming multiple sites, the verse affirms a literal, nationwide calamity—not mere symbolism—showing that every promise of God’s prophets comes to pass exactly. Every head is shaved, every beard is cut off Personal appearance becomes an outward sign of inward despair. • Shaving the head was a public act of mourning (Job 1:20). Micah commands similar action when judgment draws near (Micah 1:16). • Jeremiah describes the same scene among Moab: “For every head is shaved and every beard clipped” (Jeremiah 48:37). Isaiah and Jeremiah therefore corroborate one another, underscoring the certainty of the event. • For Israelite men, beards symbolized dignity; cutting them off represented humiliation (2 Samuel 10:4–5). Moab experiences that shame because of persistent pride (Isaiah 16:6). • Amos 8:10 foretells national grief expressed by baldness. Isaiah 15:2 shows the prophecy lived out in real time—mourning so intense that cultural norms are abandoned. • The detail highlights how sin ultimately strips away honor and identity, a timeless lesson that rebellion brings ruin. summary Isaiah 15:2 paints a vivid, literal snapshot of Moab’s downfall: idol worshippers climbing their own high places in tears, the cry spreading from city to city, and even personal appearance testifying to grief. The Holy Spirit records each place name and mourning custom to show that God’s warnings are precise and unfailing. Idols fail, pride falls, and an entire nation learns that only the LORD saves. |
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