The prophet's inner sight does not miss the disasters awaiting Judah's neighbors, and we hear a prophecy about the coming military defeat of Moab, a pagan people related to the Israelites. Many times the Israelites fought with the Moabites, yet they remained relatives who spoke closely similar languages. And now a common enemy is advancing on both peoples.

In uttering the prophecy, Isaiah does not conceal that the disasters coming upon Moab flow directly from the sinful deeds of its people, for which they must now answer. One might have stopped with the statement of this fact, but we hear Isaiah's living sympathy for the Moabites and feel his compassion for them. The prophet wants to hope that the Moabites will be able to repent and change their ways, but sadly this does not happen. Their repentance is insincere and formal, and such "repentance" is needed neither by God nor, in truth, by those repenting themselves. All this causes still greater pain for the prophet, who sympathizes with those who suffer, yet also sees that they have not drawn the proper conclusions from what has happened to them.

The Moabites, like other pagan peoples, were always a temptation for the Israelites, enticing them into idolatry. But now the Lord intends to destroy this temptation. We must always assess soberly whether our relationship with a particular person can tempt us and lead us away from God, in which case we must flee, or whether we are firm enough in faith to continue the relationship and perhaps help that person in some way.