The powerful leaders of Israel’s society were oppressing the weak. But corrupt power will lead to its own weakness, for God is always at work in this world, enforcing His justice with His wrath. The Assyrian invasion is coming, and God’s prophet warns of “the ruin that will come from afar” (v 1-4). Isaiah 10 affirms the sovereignty of God over all things—even the oppressive tyrannies of this world. In fact, this chapter helps us see that God not only rules over evil rulers, but through them! He calls the Assyrian empire “the rod of My anger.” They certainly didn’t think of themselves as serving God’s purposes. Driven by greedy imperialism, they boasted in their own power to conquer one city after another. Now Jerusalem was in Assyria’s sights (v 5-11). But the Assyrian prominence in world history was given by God’s permission. It is foolish for anyone to claim personal autonomy or trust in his own strength. “Can the ax boast greater power than the person who uses it? Is the saw greater than the person who saws? Can a rod strike unless a hand moves it? Can a wooden cane walk by itself?” (v 15, NLT). The human tool in God’s hand is always prone to think too highly of itself! Yes, God will use Assyrian pride to humble his own people, Israel. But God will also punish Assyria’s arrogance, exposing the absurdity of all human swagger (v 12-19). Though judgment will fall, God’s people will not be wiped out. By His mighty grace, a “remnant” shall survive. No longer trusting in worldly powers that have only let them down, they will finally come to the LORD with true faith and repentance. So Israel should stand fearless when the enemy attacks. They will fall to Assyria, but in short order, God’s wrath will turn against the Assyrians themselves. When the holy city of Jerusalem is almost within their grasp, God will stop them in their tracks and cut them down to size (v 20-34). Throughout the Bible, we see that God can, and does, use those who do not love Him to carry out His purpose. Nothing can ultimately frustrate what He has determined to do. God uses mighty Assyria as if it were nothing but a tool in His hands, dispatching them to punish His own people. Yet Assyrian rulers acted according to their own will, and God will hold them accountable for their actions and attitudes. As D.A. Carson says, “This tension between God’s sovereignty and human responsibility is not to be despised or rejected, but seized with gratitude, for it will preserve us both from denying the reality of evil and from imagining that evil could ultimately triumph.” For further meditation: