A Chiastic Reconfiguration Of Isaiah 15-16
Kuruvilla Thomas
Bangalore
Published on 30 August 2026 *
Introduction
This study treats Isaiah 15-16 as a cryptochiasmus in order to arrive at a coherent reconfiguration of the text ( see definition of cryptochiasmus in [1] ). If you wish to skip the technicalities of a chiastic parse, you may read starting from Section 4 of the Discussion section, which has the reconfigured text.
Isaiah 15-16 predicts the end of ancient Moab as a nation, and we show with this reconfiguration that the prophecy also predicts the destruction of the wicked in modern "Moab", China, at the start of Christ's Millennial Reign.
Discussion
1. Presuppositions
We base our parse of Isaiah 15-16 on the assumption that it refers to 3 periods:
- The Destruction of Moab by the Babylonians (c 581BC).
- Christian Judahites Seek Refuge in 70AD during the First Jewish–Roman War (66AD–73AD).
- Modern "Moab" is defeated at the Start of Christ's Reign over the World (from 2030AD).
2. Parsing the chiasmus
We will use the NIV Bible for this parse.
Parsing this chiasmus involves dividing portions of the text into the three categories above. We will call the time of the Destruction of Moab Period 1, the time of the First Jewish–Roman War Period 2 and the start of Christ's reign over the world Period 3.
The parse below is primarily based on two assumptions: the name "Moab" refers to different nations in the different Periods; most of the verses in this passage have corresponding verses in Jeremiah 48 (Period 1), but there is no match for Isa. 15:9-16:5, and so we treat these verses as belonging to Periods 2 or 3. The boundaries of the subunits are not clear in some cases; we have adjusted them so that there are proper regular chiasmi within the Periods.
Categorizing Isaiah 15-16
Ch 15 vs 1b-8 belong to Period 1. Moab is destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar.Ch 15 vs 9 - Ch 16 vs 2 belong to Period 3. The Beast army is slaughtered when it fights the Messiah at the borders of the New Israel.
Ch 16 vs 3-4a belong to Period 2. Christian Judahites seek refuge from the Romans after fleeing to the Transjordan in 70AD.
Ch 16 vs 4b-6 belong to Period 3. The Beast's reign over the world ends; the coming Messiah will rule with righteousness and justice.
Ch 16 vs 7-12 belongs to Period 1. Moab is devastated.
We believe that vs 16:13-14 is a later addition - see commentary below.
Original text
We color-code the chiastic units of the original text (NIV) below for easy visual identification using: red for Period 1, blue for Period 2 and green for Period 3. We have retranslated parts of the text.
Isaiah 15 1b Ar in Moab is ruined, destroyed in a night! Kir in Moab is ruined, destroyed in a night! 2 Dibon goes up to its temple, to its high places to weep; Moab wails over Nebo and Medeba. Every head is shaved and every beard cut off. 3 In the streets they wear sackcloth; on the roofs and in the public squares they all wail, prostrate with weeping. 4 Heshbon and Elealeh cry out, their voices are heard all the way to Jahaz. Therefore the armed men of Moab cry out, and their hearts are faint.
5 My heart cries out over Moab. Her [a] fugitives flee as far as Zoar, as far as Eglath Shelishiyah. They go up the hill to Luhith, weeping as they go; on the road to Horonaim they lament their destruction. 6 The waters of Nimrim are dried up and the grass is withered; the vegetation is gone and nothing green is left. 7 So the wealth they have acquired and stored up they carry away over the Wadi of the Arabians [b].
8 Their outcry echoes along the border of Moab; their wailing reaches as far as Eglaim, their lamentation as far as Beer Elim.
9 The waters of Dimon have been [c] full of blood, but I will bring still more upon Dimon— a lion upon the fugitives of Moab and upon those who remain in the land.
Retranslation notes for Isaiah 15:
[a] vs 5 "Moab. Her" instead of "Moab; her". For the chiasmus.
[b] vs 7 "Wadi of the Arabians" instead of "Ravine of the Poplars".
[c] vs 9 "have been" instead of "are". Based on the Berean Literal Bible.
Isaiah 16 1 Send lambs [a] to the ruler of the land, from Sela, in [b] the desert, to the mountain [c] of Daughter Zion. 2 Like fluttering birds pushed from the nest, so are the daughters of Moab [d] at the fords of the Arnon.
3 “Make up your mind [e]. Render a decision. Make your shadow like night— at high noon. Hide the fugitives, do not betray the refugees. 4a Let my fugitives stay with you, Moab [f]; be their shelter from the destroyer.”
4b The oppressor will come to an end, and destruction will cease; the aggressor will vanish from the earth [g].
5 In love a throne will be established; in faithfulness a man will sit on it— one from the house of David— one who in judging seeks justice and speeds the cause of righteousness.
6 We have heard of Moab’s pride— how great is her arrogance!— of her conceit, her pride and her insolence; but her boasts are empty.
7 Truly, [h] the Moabites wail, they wail together for Moab. Lament and grieve for the raisin cakes of Kir Hareseth. 8 The fields of Heshbon wither, the vines of Sibmah also. The leaders of the heathen [i] have trampled down the choicest vines, which once reached Jazer and spread toward the desert. Their shoots spread out and went as far as the sea. 9 So I weep, as Jazer weeps, for the vines of Sibmah. Heshbon and Elealeh, I drench you with tears! Upon thy summer fruits and upon thy harvest the battle shout is fallen.[j] 10 Joy and gladness are taken away from the orchards. No [k] one sings or shouts in the vineyards; no one treads out wine at the presses, for I have put an end to the shouting. 11 My heart laments for Moab like a harp, my inmost being for Kir Hareseth. 12 When Moab appears at her high place, she only wears herself out; when she goes to her shrine to pray, it is to no avail.
Retranslation notes for Isaiah 16:
[a] vs 1 "lambs" instead of "lambs as tribute".
[b] vs 1 "in" instead of "across".
[c] vs 1 "mountain" instead of "mounf".
[d] vs 2 "daughters of Moab" instead of "women of Moab".
[e] vs 3 removed "Moab says", as it is not in the original.
[f] vs 4 "Let my fugitives stay with you, Moab" instead of "Let the Moabite fugitives stay with you". Based on the KJV.
[g] vs 4 "earth" instead of "land".
[h] vs 7 "Truly," instead of "Therefore". For the chiasmus.
[i] vs 8 "leaders of the heathen" instead of "rulers of the nations".
[j] vs 9 "Upon thy summer fruits and upon thy harvest, the battle shout is fallen" instead of "The shouts of joy over your ripened fruit and over your harvests have been stilled" (see Jer. 48:33).
[k] vs 10 "orchards. No" instead of "orchards; no". For the chiasmus.
3. Building the reconfigured text
From this parse, it appears that Isaiah 15-16 forms a cryptochiasmus as below:A1 Ch 15 vs 1b-8 Period 1. Moab is destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar
B1 Ch 15 vs 9 - Ch 16 vs 2 Period 3. The Beast army is destroyed
X Ch 16 vs 3-4a Period 2. Christian Judahites seek refuge in 70AD
B2 Ch 16 vs 4b-6 Period 3. The coming Messiah rules with justice
A2 Ch 16 vs 7-12 Period 1. Moab is devastated
We now reconfigure the passages in the right order based on the chiastic structure above and based on the ordering rules of a cryptochiasmus [1].
We lead with central pivot point 'X'. The corresponding subunits (for example, subunit A1 corresponds to A2) are placed contiguously to form units (for example, A1,A2 is a unit) so that we get a list of such units.
The sequence selected for rearrangement is:
X [A1,A2] [B1,B2] (1)
Translating (1) into verse numbers, we get:
Ch 16 vs 3-4a [Ch 15 vs 1b-8, Ch 16 vs 7-12] [Ch 15 vs 9 - Ch 16 vs 2, Ch 16 vs 4b-6] (2)
We arrive at the reconfigured passage in the next section by rearranging the verses so they are in sequence (2).
4. Isaiah 15-16 Reconfigured
Christian Judahites Seek Refuge during the First Jewish–Roman War (66AD–73AD) (Ch 16 vs 3-4a)The Destruction of Moab by the Babylonians (581BC) (Ch 15 vs 1b-8, Ch 16 vs 7-12)
Chiasmus 1: Moab is devastated: Its people mourn and flee (15:1b-8)
Chiasmus 2: Moab's fertile lands and its economy are ruined (16:7-10a)
Chiasmus 3: Moab's punishment ultimately comes from God (16:10b-12)
Modern "Moab" is defeated at the Start of Christ's Reign over the World (from 2030AD) (Ch 15 vs 9 - Ch 16 vs 2, Ch 16 vs 4b-6)
Chiasmus 1: The Beast empire is destroyed when it comes against the New Israel (15:9 - 16:2)
Chiasmus 2: The Beast empire's reign ends and the Messiah's righteous reign over the world begins (16:4b-6)
5. A Commentary on the Reconfigured Text
5.0 The Title of the Prophecy (Ch 15 vs 1a)
Chapter 15 1a A prophecy against Moab:
We take the position that the word "Moab" refers to 3 different nations in the 3 Periods: In Period 1 it retains its original meaning, ancient Moab; in Period 2 it refers to the nation in the Transjordan that was a sanctuary for Judahite Christians when they escaped the Roman assault; and in Period 3 it refers to modern China. All 3 "Moab's" are neighbours of God's holy lands: Judea in Periods 1&2 and the New Israel in Period 3.
5.1 Christian Judahites Seek Refuge during the First Jewish–Roman War (66AD–73AD) (Ch 16 vs 3-4a)
In this Period, the name "Moab" refers to the unspecified nation in the Transjordan that gave the Judahites refuge. During the Jewish-Roman war, the Christian Judahites fled to the mountains as Jesus had exhorted them (see Matt. 24:16); the traditional view is that they sought refuge in Pella, a member of the Decapolis, located at the foot of the Transjordanian mountains. ( The ancient land of Moab had ceased to exist after Period 1.)
This Period is arranged in the form of a single-unit chiasmus:
A1 16:3a God asks "Moab" to provide refuge for His people
X 16:3b "Moab" is urged to faithfully hide God's people from the Romans
A2 16:4a God asks "Moab" to provide refuge for His people
We propose that this chiasmus is read in the sequence: [A1,A2], [X].
Subunit A1: God asks "Moab" to provide refuge for His people (16:3a)
Chapter 16 3a “Make up your mind. Render a decision.
God asks the angel who controls the "Moab" of this Period to allow the Judahites to live as refugees in their land for a few years (see Subunit A2 below). The angelic "prince" of "Moab" is urged to quickly take a decision on the matter ("make up your mind") (see also Rev 12:6,14). This is not an easy decision, because "Moab" risks angering the powerful Romans by sheltering the Judahites.
Pivot X: "Moab" is urged to faithfully hide God's people from the Romans (16:3b)
Chapter 16 3b Make your shadow like night— at high noon. Hide the fugitives, do not betray the refugees.
After "Moab" agrees to take in the Judahites, God urges it to carefully hide His people from the dreaded Romans ("with a shadow as dark as night even in the noonday sun"), and not betray the refugees. So God made all necessary arrangements for the shelter of the early church ("God had prepared a place for her" - Rev 12:6).
Subunit A2: God asks "Moab" to provide refuge for His people (16:4a)
Chapter 16 4a Let my fugitives stay with you, Moab; be their shelter from the destroyer.”
This subunit continues from Subunit A1 above. God asks "Moab" to offer His people refuge from the rampaging Romans, particularly for the 3 1/2 year period beginning at the Romans' arrival in Jerusalem, in 70AD. ( See additional details in our paper on the "70 Weeks of Daniel" [2].)
5.2 The Destruction of Moab by the Babylonians (581BC) (Ch 15 vs 1b-8, Ch 16 vs 7-12)
The invader of this Period is not named, but we propose that this Period is regarding Nebuchadnezzar's assault that led to the eternal destruction of Moab (c. 582-581BC); Moab was made up of the descendants of Abraham's nephew Lot by his daughter. Note that most of the passages regarding this Period have corresponding verses in Jeremiah 48.
The subunits of all 3 chiasmi of this Period mention the great sorrow and mourning of the Moabites at the destruction of their land; and the pivots of all three chiasmi mention that God mourns with the Moabites, even as He punishes them. Throughout the passages of this Period, Isaiah makes predictions regarding all of Moab by describing events in specific places, so creating a beautiful poetic effect.
This Period is structured as a series of 3 chiasmi.
Chiasmus 1: Moab is devastated: Its people mourn and flee (15:1b-8)
A1 15:1b-4 Moab is devastated: Its people mourn
X 15:5a Introductory Summary: The destruction of Moab is mourned, The Moabites flee
A2 15:5b-8 Moab is devastated: Its people flee
We propose that this chiasmus is read from the centre, in the sequence: [X], [A1,A2].
Subunit A1: Moab is devastated: Its people mourn (15:1b-4)
Chapter 15 1b Ar in Moab is ruined, destroyed in a night! Kir in Moab is ruined, destroyed in a night!
Ar and Kir, the capitals of Moab, are destroyed suddenly, in a night, and the fall of these two principal cities seems to indicate the fall of all of Moab. For in the rest of the passages of this Period, Isaiah details the plight of the Moabites in the aftermath of this defeat.
Chapter 15 2 Dibon goes up to its temple, to its high places to weep; Moab wails over Nebo and Medeba. Every head is shaved and every beard cut off. 3 In the streets they wear sackcloth; on the roofs and in the public squares they all wail, prostrate with weeping. 4a Heshbon and Elealeh cry out, their voices are heard all the way to Jahaz.
The cities mentioned in this passage generally follow a northward path from the principal cities of Ar and Kir, that lie south of the Arnon river, presumably to indicate the northward spread of the news of Moab's fall.
The residents of the city of Dibon, north of the Arnon river, weep at its places of worship, praying to their pagan gods. The Moabites mourn over the loss of Nebo and Medeba, cities located east of the northern boundary of the Dead Sea. A little further north, the lamentation in Heshbon and Elealeh (see also 16:9 below) is heard even at the some distance in the city of Jahaz at the north-western border of Moab. The mourning along this path represents the weeping of Moabites in cities across the land; they shave their hair and wear sackcloth as marks of mental anguish. ( See corresponding passages in Jer. 48:37,38,34.)
Chapter 15 4b Therefore the armed men of Moab cry out, and their hearts are faint.
The warriors of Moab are unable to stop this invasion by the mighty Babylonians - they can only impotently mourn with the rest. ( See corresponding passages in Jer. 48:41,14,15.)
Pivot X: Introductory Summary: The destruction of Moab is mourned, The Moabites flee (15:5a)
Chapter 15 5a1 My heart cries out over Moab.
A just God punishes the Moabites for their sins, and a loving God expresses His pain at the suffering of the descendants of Lot - Lot was Abraham's nephew (Genesis 11:27) and the only righteous man in Sodom (see 2 Peter 2:7). ( Note that the pivots of all 3 chiasmi of this Period mention God's mourning for the Moabites.)
Subunit A1 above details the Moabites' own sorrow at the destruction of their nation.
Chapter 15 5a2 Her fugitives flee as far as Zoar, as far as Eglath Shelishiyah.
The Moabites flee from the Babylonians to the south-western border towns of Zoar and Eglath Shelishiyah located in the region of the southern border of the Dead Sea (the location of Eglath is not known, but, based on the assumption that this passage is a parallelism, we propose that it is close to Zoar) (see corresponding passages in Jer. 48:34).
Subunit A2 below further details this flight of the Moabites.
Subunit A2: Moab is devastated: Its people flee (15:5b-8)
Chapter 15 They go up the hill to Luhith, weeping as they go; on the road to Horonaim they lament their destruction.
The Moabites in the capital cities flee from the Babylonians to the southern borders of their land, weeping as they go. They climb up to the elevated Luhith, and continue further south to Horonaim in southern Moab (see corresponding passages in Jer. 48:5).
Chapter 15 6 The waters of Nimrim are dried up and the grass is withered; the vegetation is gone and nothing green is left.
The Moabites must leave the land because it is no longer habitable. There apparently is a concurrent natural catastrophe, as water sources dry up (Nimrim was a wadi close to the southern border) and vegetation withers away. This occurs partly through the invaders' actions, such as: stopping wells, salting land (see Jer. 48:9) and cutting vines and trees (see also Zeph. 2:9). ( See corresponding passage in Jer. 48:32-34.)
Chapter 15 7 So the wealth they have acquired and stored up they carry away over the Wadi of the Arabians.
The Moabite refugees carry their possessions south across the border over the Wadi of the Arabians. ( See corresponding passage in Jer. 48:36.)
Chapter 15 8 Their outcry echoes along the border of Moab; their wailing reaches as far as Eglaim, their lamentation as far as Beer Elim.
The previous passages of this subunit (in 15:5b-7) detail the path of the Moabites who fled to the region of Zoar in the south-western corner of Moab. But the Moabites fled to other places along the southern and eastern borders as well, so their lamentation is heard all along these borders - from Zoar in the south-west to Eglaim at the south-eastern corner and to Beer Elim at the north-eastern border (cf. Num. 21:16) (the locations of Eglaim and Beer Elim are not known, but we propose these locations based on our interpretation of the passage).
Chiasmus 2: Moab's fertile lands and its economy are ruined (16:7-10a)
A1 16:7 The Moabites mourn over their ruined economy
X 16:8-9a God mourns with Moab over the destruction of its vines
A2 16:9b-10a The Moabites mourn over their ruined economy
Subunit A1: The Moabites mourn over their ruined economy (16:7)
Chapter 16 7 Truly, the Moabites wail, they wail together for Moab. Lament and grieve for the raisin cakes of Kir Hareseth.
Moab was a fertile nation, and the commerce from its produce made it prosperous and proud. All of this is shut down by this Babylonian attack, and the Moabites mourn the loss. For example, Kir Hareseth (or Kir, one of the capital cities, south of the Arnon river) no longer produces its famous raisin cakes (compressed raisins).
Pivot X: God mourns with Moab over the destruction of its vines (16:8-9a)
Chapter 16 8 The fields of Heshbon wither, the vines of Sibmah also. The leaders of the heathen have trampled down the choicest vines, which once reached Jazer and spread toward the desert. Their shoots spread out and went as far as the sea. 9a So I weep, as Jazer weeps, for the vines of Sibmah. Heshbon and Elealeh, I drench you with tears!
Moab was particularly famous for the quality and abundance of its vines and wines, the primary source of its wealth. The northern regions of Moab were especially fertile, so that vines covered the land, extending from Heshbon, Sibmah and Elealeh (east of the northern border of the Dead Sea) to Moab's borders in several directions: to Jazer on the northern border, the Dead Sea in the west and the desert to the east.
But all of Moab's fertile land, its vines and its water sources are destroyed. So Moab turns into an arid wasteland forever (see Zeph. 2:9) - the places mentioned here represent all the cultivated land of Moab. God mourns with the people of Moab over this loss. ( See also, corresponding passages in Jer. 48:32-33,36.)
Subunit A2: The Moabites mourn over their ruined economy (16:9b-10a)
Chapter 16 9b Upon thy summer fruits and upon thy harvest the battle shout is fallen. 10a Joy and gladness are taken away from the orchards.
The Moabites are in sorrow over the loss of their agriculture-based economy (represented by "orchards", "summer fruits", "harvest") through this invasion. ( See also, corresponding passages in Jer. 48:33.)
Chiasmus 3: Moab's punishment ultimately comes from God (16:10b-12)
A1 16:10b Moab's punishment is from God: The Moabites mourn
X 16:11 God mourns for Moab even as He punishes it
A2 16:12 Moab's punishment is from God: The Moabites' gods cannot fight God's will
Subunit A1: Moab's punishment is from God: The Moabites mourn (16:10b)
Chapter 16 10b No one sings or shouts in the vineyards; no one treads out wine at the presses, for I have put an end to the shouting.
It is God that has inflicted this devastating punishment on Moab through the Babylonians (see Jeremiah 48:42).
Pivot X: God mourns for Moab even as He punishes it (16:11)
Chapter 16 11 My heart laments for Moab like a harp, my inmost being for Kir Hareseth.
God reveals His anguish at the suffering in Moab, even as He punishes it - the residents of Kir Hareseth, one of the capitals, here represent all the people of Moab.
Subunit A2: Moab's punishment is from God: The Moabites' gods cannot fight God's will (16:12)
Chapter 16 12 When Moab appears at her high place, she only wears herself out; when she goes to her shrine to pray, it is to no avail.
The Moabites' pleas to their idol gods ("high places" are shrines devoted to their gods) are futile, because their punishment comes from the Almighty God (as indicated in the corresponding Subunit A1 above). ( See also, corresponding passage in Jer, 48:13.)
5.3 Modern "Moab" is defeated at the Start of Christ's Reign over the World (from 2030AD) (Ch 15 vs 9 - Ch 16 vs 2, Ch 16 vs 5)
In this Period, "Moab" represents modern China (the 7th "king" of Rev 17:10, the "Magog" of Ezekiel 39), the primary nation of the 7-nation Beast alliance of Rev 17:3. Like the other "Moabs" in this prophecy, China is a neighbour of Israel - the New Israel in this case.
This Period is structured as a series of 2 chiasmi.
Chiasmus 1: The Beast empire is destroyed when it comes against the New Israel (15:9 - 16:2)
A1 15:9 The Beast empire is destroyed: Its soldiers are killed
X 16:1 The Beast army is sent to fight the New Israel
A2 16:2 The Beast empire is destroyed: Its non-combatants are exiled
We propose that this chiasmus is read from the centre, in the sequence: [X], [A1,A2].
Subunit A1: The Beast empire is destroyed: Its soldiers are killed (15:9)
Chapter 15 9a The waters of Dimon have been full of blood, but I will bring still more upon Dimon—
When Satan's Beast army (which is dominated and led by China/"Moab"/"Magog") pushes into the New Israel from China over the Karakoram highway through the Khunjerab pass ("Dimon"), it is forced to retreat and then is destroyed (see Rev 14:18-20). All the soldiers of this army are killed suddenly ("I will bring still more [blood] upon Dimon") as they flee, so their bodies lie along a 300km stretch of the highway, beginning from the Khunjerab river ("waters of Dimon") in Kashmir (this is the "eastern river" of Joel 2:20, see also Rev 14:20). The name Khunjerab means "stream of blood", indicating that there had been much bloodshed at this treacherous location ("the waters of Dimon have been full of blood").
"Dimon" in this passage represents the region of the Khunjerab pass at the border between China and the New Israel. The location of ancient Dimon in Moab is unclear, but we propose that it was a region that, like Khunjerab, contained a significant water body ("waters of Dimon") and that lay along Moab's border (note that in each of the subunits and in the pivot of this chiasmus, a location along ancient Moab's borders is mentioned).
Chapter 16 9b a lion upon the fugitives of Moab and upon those who remain in the land.
The coming Messiah will be like a powerful lion that mauls the Beast army's soldiers ("lambs" - see Pivot below) as they flee ("fugitives of Moab") (the Messiah is also called a "lion" in other passages about this battle - see Jer 50:44, Jer 49:19, see also "Lion of Judah" in Rev. 5:5).
The Messiah will also punish other members of the Beast empire that are not a part of this army ("those who remain in the land") by publishing the truth about them to the world ("with the sword of his mouth" - see Rev. 19:21, Ezekiel 39:6) - the punishment is described in Subunit A2 below.
Pivot X: The Beast army is sent to fight the New Israel (16:1)
Chapter 16 1 Send lambs to the ruler of the land, from Sela, in the desert, to the mountain of Daughter Zion.
The Beast army is sent from the desert region of western China ("Sela") to fight in the mountains (the literal mountains) of the New Israel ("Daughter Zion") over the Karakoram highway. The Beast's soldiers come against the Messiah (the "lion" of Subunit A1), the ruler of the New Israel, but these soldiers are like lambs to the slaughter (see also Jeremiah 50:44), for they will all be killed with God's help (see Joel 3:12-14).
Sela appears to have been located in the hot desert region at ancient Moab's southern border, and it represents the cold desert region on the western border of China in this passage.
Subunit A2: The Beast empire is destroyed: Its non-combatants are exiled (16:2)
This subunit continues from Subunit A1 above.
Chapter 16 2 Like fluttering birds pushed from the nest, so are the daughters of Moab at the fords of the Arnon.
The Chinese members of Satan's empires - those that are not killed - are chased out of the land by the righteous of China (see also Obadiah 1:7). These "Moabite" refugee communities ("daughters of Moab") are like hatchlings pushed from the nest. They mill at their borders ("fords of the Arnon"), afraid and helpless.
The fords of Arnon at the northern border of ancient Moab represent the borders of China.
Chiasmus 2: The Beast empire's reign ends and the Messiah's righteous reign over the world begins (16:4b-6)
A1 16:4b The reign of the Beast empire ends
X 16:5 The coming Messiah begins his righteous reign over the world
A2 16:6 The reign of the Beast empire ends
Subunit A1: The reign of the Beast empire ends (16:4b)
Chapter 16 4b The oppressor will come to an end, and destruction will cease; the aggressor will vanish from the earth.
The Beast empire, led by China/"Moab", will be destroyed forever (Rev 19:17-21). It had tyrannically ruled over the world and persecuted its righteous (Rev 13).
Pivot X: The coming Messiah begins his righteous reign over the world (16:5)
Chapter 16 5 In love a throne will be established; in faithfulness a man will sit on it— one from the house of David— one who in judging seeks justice and speeds the cause of righteousness.
Christ begins his Millennial Reign from the New Jerusalem through his righteous, faithful and just Messiah, a descendant of David (see also Isaiah 11:1-5, 9:6-7...).
Subunit A2: The reign of the Beast empire ends (16:6)
Chapter 16 6 We have heard of Moab’s pride— how great is her arrogance!— of her conceit, her pride and her insolence; but her boasts are empty.
"Moab", the leader of the Beast empire, was proud and boastful during its reign over the world (see Rev 13:5). But now that it is thoroughly defeated, its boasts prove empty.
5.4 Addendum to Isaiah's prophecy (vs 16:13-14)
Chapter 16 13 This is the word the Lord has already spoken concerning Moab.
These last two verses (16:13-14) are apparently an addendum that predicts the date of fulfilment of the prophecy of Period 1. This additional prediction was made by another unnamed prophet at the fall of Jerusalem in 587BC (see below), long after Isaiah's ministry, 742BC–687BC.
Chapter 16 14 But now the Lord says: “Within three years, as a servant bound by contract would count them, Moab’s splendor and all her many people will be despised, and her survivors will be very few and feeble.”
This prophet predicts that the destruction of Moab of Period 1 will take place within 6 years (see explanation below). The start date of this interval was at the destruction of Jerusalem, c. 587BC, when the Moabites insulted and threatened the Judahites (based on Zeph. 2:8-10 and Isaiah 16:6-7). Nebuchadnezzar returned to attack and forever destroy Moab within 6 years - c. 582-581BC (Josephus Ant., 10:181–2).
What is the meaning of the phrase, "as a servant bound by contract counts them"? A hired hand (presumably a fellow Israelite) can be expected to take holidays for up to half the days of a year - for sabbaths, festivals, religious observance etc.. So 3 years worth of employment by a continuously-employed slave may take up to 6 years to complete by a hired hand - see Deuteronomy 15:18 (see similar prediction in Isa. 21:16). Note that this prediction is cryptically worded, presumably so that the wicked cannot take undue advantage of an accurate knowledge of the future.
Conclusion
With this chiastic reconfiguration of the text, we have shown that Isaiah 15-16 contains prophecies on three distinct Periods. The destruction of ancient Israel's occasionally hostile neighbour, Moab, in Period 1 appears to be a type of the punishment of the wicked of the New Israel's neighbour, China, at the start of Christ's reign over the world. The prophecy also predicts that there will be refugees in the neighbourhood of Israel in all 3 Periods - the ancient Moabites, the Judahite Christians, and the wicked of modern China.
References
[1] A Definition of Cryptochiasmus[2] A Chiastic Reconfiguration Of "The 70 Weeks Of Daniel"
[3] A Chiastic Reconfiguration Of Zechariah 12-14
[4] A Chiastic Reconfiguration Of Daniel 8
[5] A Chiastic Reconfiguration Of Revelation 4-22, Part 2
[6] A Chiastic Reconfiguration Of Isaiah 24-27
* First version published on 20 October 2021.