ישעיהו, פרק ל״ד, פסוק ב׳

A profound and absolute Divine wrath is directed toward the nations of the world and their military powers, bringing about a final decree of destruction. The primary approach among commentators is that this prophecy points to a time in the distant future [אבן עזרא, מצודת דוד]. However, a dissenting view by Rabbi Moshe HaKohen suggests this describes a historical event that already took place when Edom was devastated during the era of the Assyrian empire [אבן עזרא].

The underlying cause for God's anger stems from two possible motives. It is either a response to the nations' corrupt devotion to idol worship, or it is a direct consequence of their actions against Israel—specifically, bringing ruin to the land, causing mass casualties, and taking captives [אברבנאל]. While the threat appears to encompass all the nations of the earth, it is actually aimed at one specific nation: Edom. The prophet initially uses poetic exaggeration, casting a wide net of impending doom across all nations before ultimately revealing the true target [שד״ל].

God's anger is presented with a subtle duality. While some interpret the expressions of wrath simply as general anger [ביאור שטיינזלץ], [מלבי״ם] draws a sharp distinction between two distinct types of fury. The first is an external, visible anger directed at the nations and their leaders who issued the decrees and sent their forces to destroy Jerusalem. The second is a much deeper, internal wrath fueled by a lingering grudge. This harsher, inner fury is reserved for the military forces themselves—the actual soldiers and battalions who physically carried out the destruction on the ground [מלבי״ם].

These military forces [אבן עזרא] are described as a singular entity, indicating that all the nations will eventually gather and merge into one massive, global army [שד״ל]. Alternatively, [רד״ק] explains that these various armies will actually turn on one another, engaging in a brutal war of nation against nation that results in mutual slaughter.

The ultimate result of this Divine wrath is complete doom. It is an absolute decree of death and eradication from which there is no possibility of ransom or rescue [מלבי״ם, מצודת ציון, ביאור שטיינזלץ, שד״ל]. Although the impending destruction is described as if it has already happened, this illustrates that the decree is entirely finalized. In God's eyes, the judgment is so certain that it is as though it has already been executed [מצודת דוד], with the nations already handed over to the slaughter [ביאור שטיינזלץ, שד״ל].