17 The [a]oracle concerning Damascus.
“Behold, Damascus is about to be removed from being a city
And will become a fallen ruin.
2 “The cities [b]of Aroer are forsaken;
They will be for flocks [c]to lie down in,
And there will be no one to frighten them.
3 “The [d]fortified city will disappear from Ephraim,
And [e]sovereignty from Damascus
And the remnant of Aram;
They will be like the glory of the sons of Israel,”
Declares the Lord of hosts.4 Now in that day the glory of Jacob will [f]fade,
And the fatness of his flesh will become lean.
5 It will be even like the [g]reaper gathering the standing grain,
As his arm harvests the ears,
Or it will be like one gleaning ears of grain
In the valley of Rephaim.
6 Yet gleanings will be left in it like the [h]shaking of an olive tree,
Two or three olives on the topmost bough,
Four or five on the branches of a fruitful tree,
Declares the Lord, the God of Israel.
7 In that day man will have regard for his Maker
And his eyes will look to the Holy One of Israel.
8 He will not have regard for the altars, the work of his hands,
Nor will he look to that which his fingers have made,
Even the [i]Asherim and [j]incense stands.
9 In that day [k]their strong cities will be like [l]forsaken places in the forest,
Or like [m]branches which they abandoned before the sons of Israel;
And [n]the land will be a desolation.
10 For you have forgotten the God of your salvation
And have not remembered the rock of your refuge.
Therefore you plant delightful plants
And set them with vine slips of a strange god.
11 In the day that you plant it you carefully fence it in,
And in the morning you bring your seed to blossom;
But the harvest will be a heap
In a day of sickliness and incurable pain.12 Alas, the uproar of many peoples
Who roar like the roaring of the seas,
And the rumbling of nations
Who rush on like the rumbling of mighty waters!
13 The nations rumble on like the rumbling of many waters,
But He will rebuke them and they will flee far away,
And be chased like chaff in the mountains before the wind,
Or like whirling dust before a gale.
14 At evening time, behold, there is terror!
Before morning they are no more.
[o]Such will be the portion of those who plunder us
And the lot of those who pillage us.
This chapter begins with a prophecy regarding Damascus, the capitol of Aram. Yet before long, we see an important bit, “They will be like the glory of the sons of Israel.” What does that mean? The people may have wondered that also, so God clearly communicates it to them in the next verses (4-11).
Especially given the closing verses (12-14), God reminds his people that judgment is coming on them also, lest they get too puffed up and thumb their noses at Aram. He closes with, “Such will be the portion of those who plunder us…” But so also will Israel be, due to them forgetting God (v. 10). Not only did they forget, but they actively pursued other gods and honored the work of their own hands above Him.
Too often, we like to categorize sin, from “not so bad” to “worst thing ever”. Yet God makes it clear multiple times that all sin carries the same consequence. It reminds me of what Samuel told Saul, “For rebellion is as the sin of divination, And insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry.” I know there are some quirks with the translation there, but the message ought to be clear.
“Saul, you’ve rebelled. You might as well have practiced witchcraft, or worse”. All sin separates us from God, and is, at its heart, rebellion. We think we know better, or perhaps we don’t care in the moment, and we’d rather have our pleasure than follow God.
Now, I certainly wouldn’t think insubordination as bad as murder or idolatry, or witchcraft. Yet Israel, who knew God and had no excuse, was given practically the same punishment as Damascus… and Assyria, and Babylon, etc.
Sometimes we look at others and think we know better, and perhaps we ought to, or even do. Yet we dare not become puffed up, because our sin puts us in the same boat as them. Were it not for God’s grace, none of us would have a hope in this world of escaping judgment. So whether it is your walk with God, or even in your “field of expertise”, don’t be puffed up.
Don’t think you know it all, but be willing to learn, to be corrected, refined by the expert hand of God. You never know what He will use to teach you something new, so keep your heart and mind attentive for His guidance in all you do.