ישעיהו, פרק ט״ו, פסוק ט׳

The judgment upon Moab unfolds as a relentless, escalating wave of destruction. In this grim reality, even life-giving water sources are transformed into scenes of mass slaughter, and those who manage to survive one catastrophe inevitably meet their end in another.

At the center of this devastation is a river in the Moabite region known as Dimon, whose waters run red with the blood of the fallen. [שד״ל] suggests that the actual location is the city of Dibon, but its name is intentionally altered to sound like the word for blood, creating a haunting reflection of the tragedy. God then declares that He will bring even more upon Dimon. The primary approach among commentators is that this refers to an increase of blood itself. Additional streams and channels of blood from the slain will flow into the river, fully realizing the ominous meaning of its altered name. However, other perspectives suggest that God is bringing additional troubles and disasters [אבן עזרא], or that new enemy camps will gather to hunt down the fleeing survivors [מלבי״ם ורש״י].

The divine decree extends to all who remain, though their fates differ based on their actions. [מלבי״ם] draws a clear distinction between two groups of survivors: those who flee their homes to hide in the forests, and the remnant who choose to stay behind on their land.

For the refugees seeking safety in the wild, a lion awaits. Many scholars understand this threat literally, explaining that actual lions and wild beasts native to the region will attack and consume those hiding in the forests [מצודת דוד, רד״ק, שד״ל, שטיינזלץ ומלבי״ם]. Conversely, others view the lion as a powerful metaphor for a conquering empire. [רש״י, רד״ק ואברבנאל] identify this lion as Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, who will rise in the future to destroy anyone who managed to escape the initial onslaught of the Assyrian king, Sennacherib. Taking a slightly different historical view, [אבן עזרא] believes the lion represents the king of Assyria himself.

As for the remnant who stay behind, the primary approach among commentators is that total ruin will reach them on Moabite soil as well. [מלבי״ם] adds that the devastated land itself will become an instrument of death, killing the remaining population through starvation and disease. In a completely unique departure from this narrative, [רש״י] suggests that the final mention of the remnant on the land shifts focus away from Moab entirely, referring instead to the surviving Israelites and their own land.