Text: Isaiah 16:13-14
OT Text Referred to: Isaiah 15:1-16
Subject: Moab oracle reissued with time limit
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Reference Type: Allusion
Connection Method(s): None
Significance: Isaiah 16:13-14 functions as a prophetic editorial note that explicitly references the Moab oracle beginning at Isaiah 15:1: "This is the word (דָּבָר, davar) that the LORD spoke earlier concerning Moab." The verse then adds a chronological update — "within three years, as a hired worker counts them" — fixing a precise timetable onto the earlier, undated massa (מַשָּׂא, "burden") against Moab. This self-referential device shows how prophets could reissue earlier oracles with fresh temporal specificity, distinguishing the original proclamation of judgment (Isa 15:1-16:12) from its updated application. The hired-worker comparison emphasizes exactness: just as a hired laborer counts every day of his contract, so Moab's glory will be diminished within precisely the stated period.