Isaiah 14:24-25

24, 25. A change is here made from the prophetic scene in the distance, to a nearer view: to that of the Assyrian power with which Judah is more or less to be concerned for a hundred or more years before reaching the Babylonian era. This is done either to make the events predicted of Assyria accredit those predicted of Babylon, or to assure the prophet’s own generation of Jews that God is as interested to protect them from Assyria as he is to deliver the coming generations from Babylon.

I have sworn To this God’s oath is interposed.

I will break the Assyrian To Isaiah this event is quite in the near future, and Sennacherib is the prominent sufferer.

In my land So claimed Leviticus 25:23. Immanuel’s land, Isaiah 8:8.

My mountains Isaiah 49:11; Isaiah 65:9.

Yoke… burden Same as in Isaiah 9:4; Isaiah 10:27. In this land and upon these mountains Assyria virtually fell to pieces for a season, so far forth as Jerusalem was concerned, in the destruction of Sennacherib’s army. See the vision of this event in Isaiah 10:33-34. If further words be necessary as to the allusion again to Assyria, and just in this place, they may be to this effect: The fate of both Assyria and Babylon were, in the absolute sense, in far future to Isaiah. The prophecy against Assyria had, in partial form, already gone forth. The foregoing prophecy against Babylon is complete. As a pledge of its fulfilment the matter of these two verses is placed here, in accordance with assurances common to the prophets, as appears in Jeremiah 50:18, “Behold, I will punish the king of Babylon and his land, as I have punished the king of Assyria.” The purpose and certainty against Assyria are a pledge for the purpose and certainty against Babylon. There is another view less probable, but having plausibility, namely, that Isaiah quite survived what seemed the assured fate of Assyria, and then himself confidently appended these verses as God’s pledge against Babylon, thus reaffirming predictions against Assyria formerly made.