099. II. The Date And Authorship Of Isaiah 13:2-14:23; 21:1b–10; Jeremiah 10:1-51:58

II THE DATE AND AUTHORSHIP OFIsaiah 13:2toIsaiah 14:23;Isaiah 21:1-10;Jeremiah 50:1toJeremiah 51:58 The period following the overthrow of the rule of Astyages by Cyrus in 549 B. C. furnishes the most probable background of a series of brief prophecies, appended to the original writings of Jeremiah and Isaiah, which treat of the approaching downfall of Babylon. In Jeremiah 50:1 to Jeremiah 51:58 the prophet and his readers behold in the north the people who are to deliver them. They are clearly the Medo-Persians under Cyrus, although in accordance with the terminology which continued in use even after the death of the great conqueror, they are styled simply the Medes. Babylon’s destruction is looked for in the future, so that the prophecy must have been written before 539 B. C. In the middle or earlier part of the decade is found the most probable date of the original sections. The prophecy was, without much doubt, in time attributed to the great Jeremiah, or at least joined to the collection of his sermons, because of the tradition preserved in the closing verses of chapter 51, to the effect that “he wrote in a book all the evil that should come upon Babylon”; that he made a prediction concerning that great world-power is undoubtedly historical. Several of his prophecies respecting the Babylonians have been preserved, but a study of them makes it probable that Jeremiah was not the author of the present one. Not only is the style different, but the point of view also is quite other than that of Jeremiah. A familiarity with Babylon and with the politics of the East, which would be impossible to a Jew who had never crossed the Euphrates, is also apparent. The prophet who wrote these chapters had obviously not, like Jeremiah, received special favors from the Babylonians, but instead recalled only wrongs and insults received from their hands. He was also familiar with certain of Ezekiel’s prophecies, written probably after the death of Jeremiah. He was, perhaps, a disciple of one of the great prophets. Although his prophecy lacks the originality, literary finish, and permanent value of his master’s, it affords a glimpse into the hearts of the faithful exiles and records the triumph of inspired faith at a critical moment in the history of the Jewish race. The same date, although probably not the same author, has given us the prophecy found in Isaiah 13:2 to Isaiah 14:23. The political problems which were insistent in the days of Isaiah the son of Amoz have long been forgotten. The Babylonians instead of being fellow-rebels with the Hebrews, as they were in the time of Hezekiah, are the masters and hated oppressors of the Jews. The exile, which Isaiah at the most only hinted at as a distant danger, has long been a reality; and the promise of restoration to Judah is presented by the prophet. The Medes are already crossing the northern frontier of Babylon. Many ideas peculiar to the exilic and post-exilic writers also find expression in this section. The style likewise is not that of Isaiah but of the later prophets.

Striking points of contrast between Jeremiah 50:1 to Jeremiah 51:58 and this prophecy suggest that the author of the one influenced the other. If so, the passage in Isaiah is the more original and, therefore, probably slightly earlier. To the same group belongs the short section, Isaiah 21:1-10. Its theme is the fall of Babylon. Media and Elam (from whence Cyrus came) are urged to advance against the oppressor. The end, however, is seen only by aid of the prophetic vision. The language of the passage has many points of affinity with that of Isaiah, but the extreme obscurity of its thought is in striking contrast with the clear, direct messages of the pre-exilic prophet. While the exile and the years immediately following the appearance of Cyrus furnish the only satisfactory historical setting, its indefiniteness suggests that it is the earliest of the three prophecies.