Introduction: The Prophecy of Babylon's Fall
Chapter 51 is the continuation of the prophecy of destruction against Babylon. The prophet describes in detail the war that will come upon it, the military preparations, the collapse of its mighty warriors, and within all this, he proves to the entire world that this whole downfall is not an accident, but a deliberate thought and plan from the Holy One, blessed be He. Woven into the descriptions of war, the prophet embeds an entire passage on faith and Divine providence, demonstrating the utter futility of idols compared to the Creator of all.
Preparations for War: A Standard, a Watch, Guards, and Ambushers
אֶל־חוֹמֹת בָּבֶל שְׂאוּ־נֵס, הַחֲזִיקוּ הַמִּשְׁמָר, הָקִימוּ שֹׁמְרִים, הָכִינוּ הָאֹרְבִים, כִּי גַּם־זָמַם ה' גַּם־עָשָׂה אֵת אֲשֶׁר־דִּבֶּר אֶל־יֹשְׁבֵי בָבֶל׃ (יב) - "Lift up a standard toward the walls of Babylon, strengthen the watch, set up sentries, prepare the ambush; for the Lord has both devised and done that which He spoke against the inhabitants of Babylon." (12)
"Lift up a standard" - this refers to the battle standard. The standard was a long pole on which a banner was hoisted. Anyone who has seen depictions of ancient battles has seen a person marching before the camp with a high, towering flag, signaling the direction. After all, the army was spread across vast territories, and the soldiers needed to know the direction of battle. They would watch the flag, carried by the commander walking ahead, signaling which direction to attack next. "Toward the walls of Babylon lift up a standard" - meaning, direct the line of assault straight against the wall itself.
"Strengthen the watch" - so that those atop the wall cannot overpower them. Whoever occupies the high ground has the advantage, so he instructs them to maintain a strong guard opposite the wall, preventing the city's warriors from swooping down from the wall upon the camp or hurling catapult stones from there. "Set up sentries" - these guards will stand around the perimeter so that no one escapes the city. "Prepare the ambush" - for those who might still manage to slip past, ambushes should be stationed further out, lying in wait to capture the fugitives and those hiding. "For the Lord has both devised and done" - what He devised, He has already decreed as done, and He is bringing it to fruition.
Babylon's Fall Will Reveal That There Is Only One Ruler
The nations pray to idols, but the Malbim explains: when they witness the downfall of Babylon, it will become obvious to everyone that there is only one Ruler, and that Ruler is the Holy One, blessed be He. Consequently, even the rain, which people assumed was brought by idols, will be shown to come from Hashem alone.
לְקוֹל תִּתּוֹ הֲמוֹן מַיִם בַּשָּׁמַיִם, וַיַּעַל נְשִׂאִים מִקְצֵה־אָרֶץ, בְּרָקִים לַמָּטָר עָשָׂה, וַיּוֹצֵא רוּחַ מֵאֹצְרֹתָיו׃ (טז) - "At the sound of His giving a multitude of waters in the heavens, He raises clouds from the ends of the earth; He makes lightnings for the rain, and brings forth the wind out of His treasuries." (16)
Metzudat David explains: because He produces the roaring sound of waters in the atmosphere of the heavens, He lifts the clouds aloft from the ends of the earth and directs them to the precise place where He wishes to bring rain - for at times clouds form in one place and release rain elsewhere. Here, too, Divine providence is evident: if clouds rose here and rained right here, one might claim it is simply a natural cycle; but when clouds rise here and shed their rain over there, it is a sign that Someone chose to lift vapors from here and deposit water there. This is providence seen with one's own eyes.
The Gemara relates of great sages like Rav Ketina, who would go out to inspect his fields and observe: this plot needs rain, while that one does not. He would declare rain for this furrow and none for that one, and according to his request the rain would fall - raining where it was needed and withholding where it was not. The Gemara cites concerning this the verse, "One parcel will be rained upon, and one parcel will not be rained upon," so that it was virtually rain on demand.
Through rain, one can see beyond any shadow of a doubt that everything comes from Him, blessed be He. We have already seen explicit verses: "Can any of the futile idols of the nations bring rain?" Is there any vanity practiced by the nations, any action they might perform, that has the power to bring down rain? Not a single one. Only the Jewish people, through the power of prayer, can bring rain. Even the gentiles in the diaspora recognized this: the Ishmaelites, whenever there was a drought, would torment the Jews to compel them to pray and bring rain, sometimes threatening that if rain did not fall by a certain time, they would expel them; the Jews would pray, and the rain would come. From this we see that the phenomenon of rain remains, to this very day, a sign and wonder of Hashem's providence.
Even though people today have invented all kinds of cloud seeding methods, spraying aluminum particles and various alloys over the clouds to induce rain - all this accomplishes is increasing precipitation, producing more rain; but they have no way to perform an action that will actually bring clouds here. If there are no clouds, they have no ability to cause clouds that were not meant to drop rain at all to suddenly drop rain. That is a power belonging only to the Jewish people through the power of their prayers.
If so, through this it becomes clear to everyone that Divine providence comes from the Holy One, blessed be He, and it is He Who places a multitude of water in the heavens and raises clouds from the ends of the earth. And at the end of the verse: "He makes lightning for the rain" - at the time the rain arrives, the lightning flashes and the rain does not extinguish it, which is yet another wonder, and through this He brings forth the wind from His storehouses.
The Shame of Idol Worshipers
נִבְעַר כׇּל־אָדָם מִדַּעַת, הֹבִישׁ כׇּל־צֹרֵף מִפָּסֶל, כִּי שֶׁקֶר נִסְכּוֹ וְלֹא־רוּחַ בָּם׃ (יז) - Every person is brutish, devoid of knowledge; every smith is put to shame by the idol, for his molten image is a lie, and there is no breath in them. (17)
When people see how everything comes through Divine providence from Hashem, it will become evident that any person who crafts an idol for his god is "brutish, devoid of knowledge" - this person is foolish and senseless. "Every smith is put to shame by the idol" - the craftsman will be humiliated by the idol itself, for when the idolater stands and cries out to his idol and the idol does not answer him, he is shamed and disgraced by it. "For his molten image is a lie, and there is no breath in them" - nisko refers to a molten image (maseichah), which is the idol; this idol is a lie and there is no breath in them, they have no power to accomplish anything.
הֶבֶל הֵמָּה מַעֲשֵׂה תַּעְתֻּעִים, בְּעֵת פְּקֻדָּתָם יֹאבֵדוּ׃ (יח) - They are futility, a work of delusion; at the time of their visitation they shall perish. (18)
"A work of delusion (ta'atu'im)" - the handiwork of those who stray (to'im) from the path of reason, meaning that those who made them are the ones who have gone astray. It can also be explained as meaning that the idols themselves deceive their worshipers: for example, they pray for rain without having heard a forecast, unaware that rain was going to fall anyway, and then the day after their prayer the rain falls - and what do they conclude? That the idol did it.
The Gemara already asks this question: Why does the Holy One, blessed be He, create such a scenario? And it answers: Should Hashem destroy His world on account of fools? Just because this fool prayed, should Hashem withhold from us the rain we deserve so that the fool will not be misled? If so, perhaps tomorrow Hashem should not make the sun rise either, since another fool is convinced that the sun is his god and provides heat and abundance and everything else! The Holy One, blessed be He, does not alter nature for fools. Nevertheless, the result is "a work of delusion" - idolatry deceives its worshipers, and they remain convinced that the abundance descends from it. Regarding this the verse states, "at the time of their visitation they shall perish" - when Hashem visits retribution upon them, that will be their ruin.
לֹא־כְאֵלֶּה חֵלֶק יַעֲקוֹב, כִּי־יוֹצֵר הַכֹּל הוּא, וְשֵׁבֶט נַחֲלָתוֹ, ה' צְבָאוֹת שְׁמוֹ׃ (יט) - Not like these is the Portion of Yaakov, for He is the Former of all things, and the tribe of His inheritance; Hashem of Hosts is His Name. (19)
"Not like these" - the God of Yaakov, the God in Whom we believe and Who is our portion, is not like these idols. "For He is the Former of all things" - unlike the idols, which were themselves fashioned by human hands; not only have they never created anything, they do not even possess the power to create themselves, being mere creations of man's hands. But Hashem is not a creation; He is the Creator - the Former of all things. "And the tribe of His inheritance" - He also created and chose the Jewish people to be the tribe of His inheritance. "Hashem of Hosts is His Name" - He rules over the legions above and below. From here one understands that everything stated earlier - that the Holy One, blessed be He, will exact retribution from Babylon and bring forth salvation for the Jewish people - is well within His power to do, and the Holy One, blessed be He, promises all of this and will surely fulfill it.
"You are a battle-axe for Me" - The Hammer with Which the Holy One Smashes
מַפֵּץ־אַתָּה לִי כְּלֵי מִלְחָמָה, וְנִפַּצְתִּי בְךָ גּוֹיִם, וְהִשְׁחַתִּי בְךָ מַמְלָכוֹת׃ (כ) - You are a battle-axe for Me, weapons of war, and with you I will shatter nations, and with you I will destroy kingdoms. (20)
What is a mapetz? A kind of large hammer used to shatter stones, as the verse says, "and each man with his shattering weapon (keli mapatzo) in his hand." And why is it called this? Radak explains that breaking accompanied by scattering is called nefitzah. To this day we use this expression: when we want to describe something broken into small pieces that scatter all around, we say "shattered" (nipeitz) - he shattered the windowpane. One does not say "he shattered the wall"; if one struck a few blows and the wall fell down, he did not shatter it. But a windowpane he shattered, because it broke into pieces that scattered far and wide. Similarly, the expression "I gathered your scattered ones" (kibatztii nefutzoteichem) refers to those scattered far away. Thus, an act of breaking that scatters pieces far and wide is called nefitzah.
And about whom is it said, "You are a battle-axe (mapetz) to Me"? Radak explains that it is said of the king of Babylon: to Me, you are like the sledgehammer and mallet with which I shatter nations and kingdoms, and now I will repay you for what you did to the Jewish people far beyond what was decreed upon them - "I was angry a little, and they helped for evil," and therefore you will receive what is coming to you. Malbim, on the other hand, explains that "You are a battle-axe to Me" refers to Am Yisrael: through you, the Jewish people, I will break and shatter weapons of war. This does not mean that the Jewish people themselves will go out and destroy kingdoms, but rather because of you and in your merit - you are the cause. You are like the hammer through which and by whose virtue Hashem will shatter the nations and destroy kingdoms.
וְנִפַּצְתִּי בְךָ סוּס וְרֹכְבוֹ, וְנִפַּצְתִּי בְךָ רֶכֶב וְרֹכְבוֹ׃ (כא) - "And with you I will shatter horse and rider, and with you I will shatter chariot and rider." (21)
Now he details how extensive the downfall will be. "Horse and rider" - the men who go out to battle mounted on horses. "Chariot and rider" - the carriage and chariot behind the horse, and the driver seated in it. That is to say: with that same power, as it were with that same hammer, I will shatter the horse and its rider, as well as the chariot and its driver.
וְנִפַּצְתִּי בְךָ אִישׁ וְאִשָּׁה, וְנִפַּצְתִּי בְךָ זָקֵן וָנָעַר, וְנִפַּצְתִּי בְךָ בָּחוּר וּבְתוּלָה׃ (כב) וְנִפַּצְתִּי בְךָ רֹעֶה וְעֶדְרוֹ, וְנִפַּצְתִּי בְךָ אִכָּר וְצִמְדּוֹ, וְנִפַּצְתִּי בְךָ פַּחוֹת וּסְגָנִים׃ (כג) - "And with you I will shatter man and woman, and with you I will shatter old man and youth, and with you I will shatter young man and maiden; (22) And with you I will shatter shepherd and his flock, and with you I will shatter farmer and his team of oxen, and with you I will shatter governors and deputies." (23)
Such is the style of prophecy, like a poet repeating a certain expression time and again. "Man and woman, old man and youth" - there will be no mercy even for women, against whom one does not usually wage war, nor for youth or the elderly; here all will be shattered, young man and maiden alike. "Shepherd and his flock" - meaning property will also be harmed, for the flocks will be stricken as well. "Farmer and his team" - an ikar is a tiller of the soil who plows, and "his team" (tzimdo) refers to the practice of walking behind a yoke of oxen to plow.
And who walked behind a team of oxen? It is written regarding Eliyahu the Prophet, when he passed by Elisha and cast his mantle upon him, that Elisha was plowing behind twelve pairs of oxen - there were teams behind which he plowed, and then he took them, offered them as a burnt offering, followed Eliyahu, and became his disciple. In any event, we see that their practice was to plow with a pair, which is also why the Torah says, "You shall not plow with an ox and a donkey together," because the standard practice was always to plow in pairs. This is "a farmer and his team" - the farmer plowing with a pair of beasts. "Governors and deputies" (pachot useganim) - kinds of rulers: pachot is the origin of the title pasha or governor (pecha), and seganim refers to prominent dignitaries and ministers.
וְשִׁלַּמְתִּי לְבָבֶל וּלְכֹל יוֹשְׁבֵי כַשְׂדִּים אֵת כׇּל־רָעָתָם אֲשֶׁר־עָשׂוּ בְצִיּוֹן לְעֵינֵיכֶם נְאֻם ה'׃ (כד) - "And I will repay Babylon and all the inhabitants of Chaldea for all their evil that they committed in Zion before your eyes, says Hashem." (24)
After I complete the retribution against the idolaters through Babylon, I will subsequently repay Babylon and all the inhabitants of Chaldea for all their evil that they committed in Zion - that they destroyed the Beis HaMikdash and oppressed the Jewish people. After the nations are broken through them, the shattering of Babylon itself will follow. As it were, the Holy One, Blessed is He, will finish using Babylon to subjugate the nations, and then Babylon itself will be shattered.
"The Destroying Mountain" - And a Burnt Mountain
הִנְנִי אֵלֶיךָ הַר הַמַּשְׁחִית נְאֻם ה', הַמַּשְׁחִית אֶת־כׇּל־הָאָרֶץ, וְנָטִיתִי אֶת־יָדִי עָלֶיךָ, וְגִלְגַּלְתִּיךָ מִן־הַסְּלָעִים, וּנְתַתִּיךָ לְהַר שְׂרֵפָה׃ (כה) - "Behold, I am against you, destroying mountain, says Hashem, who destroys the entire earth, and I will stretch out My hand against you, and roll you down from the crags, and make you a burnt mountain." (25)
Here everyone asks: Babylon is a flat valley plain; how did it become a mountain? One explanation: "mountain" (har) refers to a fortified city, as in "the mountains of Gilad" - "he ripped open the mountains/pregnant women of Gilad," which refers to the fortified cities there. And some explain that the term is related to pregnancy (herayon), for a fortified city is like an embryo in pregnancy which is protected as if inside a fortress, serving as a metaphor for the tall towers that were in Babylon. Targum Yonatan similarly translates "and I will roll you down" (ve'amgrinach, from the root of overthrowing) as "and I will topple you from your stronghold," meaning even from the strongholds. This does not refer to literal mountains, for Babylon is not a land of mountains, but to strongholds. Usually people would elevate themselves in the mountains, and whoever wished to build a fortress would do so in the mountains; so here scripture refers to the fortress itself as a mountain. And it is called "the destroying mountain" because Babylon destroyed the entire earth.
"And I will stretch out My hand against you and roll you down from the rocks" - from the high places, which are the towers of Babylon; from there I will roll you down, and Babylon will become a burnt mountain. Just like Sodom, upon which sulfur and fire were rained down, so will Babylon become a burnt mountain. It is fascinating that this was also fulfilled in modern times, when Babylon became a burnt mountain: the sheer quantity of explosives dropped on it was staggering, and beyond that, all those massive oil deposits also turned into a burnt mountain - whether through bombings or by opposing forces who went and torched the oil stockpiles and oil wells. Thus we see that "sulfur and salt, a burnt-out waste of the entire land" was truly fulfilled in them.
וְלֹא־יִקְחוּ מִמְּךָ אֶבֶן לְפִנָּה וְאֶבֶן לְמוֹסָדוֹת, כִּי שִׁמְמוֹת עוֹלָם תִּהְיֶה נְאֻם ה'׃ (כו) - "And they will not take from you a stone for a corner nor a stone for foundations, for you shall be an eternal desolation, says Hashem."
The cornerstone is always the strongest stone. Anyone walking toward the Kotel can see on the right side, before entering the plaza and before the gate, the continuation of the Western Wall with its corner angle, and there lies a cornerstone - likely one of the largest stones in the world - an extremely long stone extending in both directions, situated at the base. This was their practice in order to ensure the tower was sturdy and well-founded: not like today where there is concrete, but rather at the cornerstone they would place the strongest and largest stone, since it had to secure two walls at the corner. Hence the expression "has become the chief cornerstone" - a stone that the builders rejected, saying it was not even worthy of being placed in a wall, suddenly becomes the chief cornerstone, prominent at the corner and serving as a mighty foundation for the entire building.
"Nor a stone for foundations" - mosadot means foundations, and not even a stone for foundations, which does not need to be as strong as a cornerstone, will be taken from you, "for you shall be an eternal desolation." The Malbim explains the metaphor: "a stone for a corner" means that no kingdoms will ever arise from you; "a stone for foundations" means there will not even be a minor government. And as we see to this day, there is neither a kingdom nor a stable government there, nor any functional rule; all that exists there is brother against brother, a man's sword against his fellow.
A Call to the Nations: "Raise a Banner in the Land"
שְׂאוּ־נֵס בָּאָרֶץ, תִּקְעוּ שׁוֹפָר בַּגּוֹיִם, קַדְּשׁוּ עָלֶיהָ גּוֹיִם, הַשְׁמִיעוּ עָלֶיהָ מַמְלְכוֹת אֲרָרַט מִנִּי וְאַשְׁכְּנָז, פִּקְדוּ עָלֶיהָ טִפְסָר, הַעֲלוּ־סוּס כְּיֶלֶק סָמָר׃ (כז) - "Raise a banner in the land, blow a shofar among the nations, prepare nations against her, summon against her the kingdoms of Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz; appoint an officer over her, bring up horses like bristling locusts."
It is not specified here to whom this command is directed. The Radak explains that this is a summons to anyone who is able and willing: raise a banner in the land and marshal forces against Babylon, meaning come to exact retribution from her. "Summon against her the kingdoms of Ararat" - the root for summoning (hashmi'u, lit. make heard) consistently implies gathering, meaning summon many nations against Babylon, as in the verse "And Shaul summoned (vayashma) the people," which means he gathered the people. Similarly, "prepare (kadshu) nations against her" is another expression denoting rallying and gathering. "Appoint an officer (tifsar) over her" - a tifsar is a military commander, like the officers appointed to lead in the army.
"Bring up horses like bristling locusts (yelek samar)" - yelek is a species of locust, and the meaning is that cavalry will arrive in swarms as dense as locusts. Whenever the prophets wish to express that an army comes with overwhelming force and countless soldiers, they describe them as covering the earth like locusts. And what is samar? It is like "My flesh bristled (samar) in dread of You" - when a person is terrified, their hair stands on end. In the wake of this locust swarm, meaning the cavalry coming like locusts, our flesh bristles and our hair stands on end from sheer terror.
קַדְּשׁוּ עָלֶיהָ גוֹיִם אֶת־מַלְכֵי מָדַי, אֶת־פַּחוֹתֶיהָ וְאֶת־כׇּל־סְגָנֶיהָ, וְאֵת כׇּל־אֶרֶץ מֶמְשַׁלְתּוֹ׃ (כח) - "Prepare nations against her, the kings of Media, its governors and all its prefects, and all the land of his dominion."
The Metzudos explains: previously, the prophet stated generally, "Raise a banner in the land, prepare nations against her," and now he elaborates and specifies whom he is talking about. "The kings of Media" - they are the ones who will march against Babylon: Daryavesh (Darius) and his son-in-law Koresh (Cyrus), who inherited the kingdom after his death. "Its governors (pachoteha)" - from the word pecha, meaning dignitaries and high-ranking officials. "And all its prefects, and all the land of his dominion" - all the realms over which he rules will assemble and consecrate war against Babylon.
"For the Thoughts of Hashem Against Babylon Have Stood"
וַתִּרְעַשׁ הָאָרֶץ וַתָּחֹל, כִּי קָמָה עַל־בָּבֶל מַחְשְׁבוֹת ה', לָשׂוּם אֶת־אֶרֶץ בָּבֶל לְשַׁמָּה מֵאֵין יוֹשֵׁב׃ (כט) - "The land trembled and writhed, for the thoughts of Hashem against Babylon stood, to make the land of Babylon a desolation, without inhabitant."
"And writhes" (vatachol) - like the birth pangs (chil) of a woman in labor, in the sense of "trembling seized her." Seemingly, the phrasing is difficult: kamah ("stands / is fulfilled") is singular, while machshevot ("thoughts / designs") is plural, so it should have said ki kamu al Bavel machshevot Hashem ("for the designs of Hashem have arisen against Babylon"). The Radak explains: each and every design that Hashem conceived against her will stand, and that is why it is phrased in the singular - every single design will stand against Babylon. The Malbim, by contrast, explains that the verse's pause belongs elsewhere: "The earth quakes and writhes, for it rises against Babylon" - the earth itself trembles and rises against Babylon to wage war with her and shake her, and kamah in the singular refers back to the earth.
And do not think that perhaps they will not be able to overcome her - concerning this, the prophet states: "[for] the designs of Hashem [stand] to make the land of Babylon a desolation, without inhabitant." These are the plans of the Holy One, Blessed be He, that the land of Babylon become desolate, without inhabitant. And the term kamah signifies, as the Malbim notes, that this time they will destroy her - this time they will prevail over her.
חָדְלוּ גִבּוֹרֵי בָבֶל לְהִלָּחֵם, יָשְׁבוּ בַּמְּצָדוֹת, נָשְׁתָה גְבוּרָתָם הָיוּ לְנָשִׁים, הִצִּיתוּ מִשְׁכְּנֹתֶיהָ נִשְׁבְּרוּ בְרִיחֶיהָ׃ (ל) - The mighty warriors of Babylon have ceased to fight; they dwell in the strongholds. Their might has failed, they have become like women; they have set fire to her dwellings, her bars are broken. (30)
When people are terrified, they take refuge inside fortresses, within citadels, and in places where they hope to find salvation. This was indeed the reality: Babylon's warriors ceased to fight and therefore stayed inside the strongholds, in the fortified towers, to save themselves there from the enemy. "Their might has failed" (nashtah gevuratam) - according to the Radak, this means their strength dried up or ceased, akin to "and the waters shall fail (venashtu) from the sea"; Rashi notes that nashtah means it sprang out of place, like gid hanasheh (the sciatic nerve) that slipped from its socket, meaning their strength departed.
"They have become like women" (hayu lenashim) - this is a wordplay on nashtah and nashim. And what does this convey? The most disparaging remark one could make about warriors is to say that they are like women; any warrior was willing even to die in battle, as long as it would not be said that he was like a woman or that "a woman killed him." Just as we saw with Avimelech: when a woman threw an upper millstone upon him and fractured his skull, he immediately told his attendant to run him through, so people would not say a woman killed him. "Woman" in this context is an expression of physical weakness in battle. Therefore, to describe just how far their strength had failed, the prophet said "they have become like women," as feeble as women who do not go out to the battlefield. "They have set fire to her dwellings" - the living quarters of the people of Babylon. "Her bars are broken" - the gate bars of the cities, intended to prevent the enemy's entry, were smashed.
Runner Runs to Meet Runner: Reports of Defeat
רָץ לִקְרַאת־רָץ יָרוּץ וּמַגִּיד לִקְרַאת מַגִּיד, לְהַגִּיד לְמֶלֶךְ בָּבֶל כִּי־נִלְכְּדָה עִירוֹ מִקָּצֶה׃ (לא) - One runner runs to meet another runner, and one messenger to meet another messenger, to report to the king of Babylon that his city has been captured from end to end. (31)
Now he depicts the catastrophe: runners would arrive from the war to announce what was unfolding on the battlefield. In those days, people had no modern communications or devices, so updates had to be brought by couriers. A runner would arrive from the battlefield with dust on his head - as found in several descriptions in Nevi'im regarding military defeats - to inform the king, or at other times, to announce victory.
The Radak asks: What does it mean that "one runner runs to meet (likrat) another runner"? It should have said "runner after runner runs," since the intent is to convey a high frequency of couriers running from the battlefield to announce the defeat to the king, and they do not run toward each other, but one behind the other. The Radak explains: The first runner has already reached the king, delivered his report, and is now heading back, when a second runner comes toward him, also heading to inform the king, and they cross paths midway - that is why it is called "runner runs to meet runner." And when this second courier delivers his news and heads back, he meets the third runner rushing toward him; thus, "runner runs to meet runner." And all of them report "that his city has been captured from end to end" - they captured his city from one end to the other; it has fallen entirely.
וְהַמַּעְבָּרוֹת נִתְפָּשׂוּ, וְאֶת־הָאֲגַמִּים שָׂרְפוּ בָאֵשׁ, וְאַנְשֵׁי הַמִּלְחָמָה נִבְהָלוּ׃ (לב) - And the fords are seized, and the reed marshes they have burned with fire, and the men of war are terrified. (32)
The Malbim explains that the couriers deliver their reports in sequence: The first runner rushes to deliver the first half of the previous verse - "The mighty warriors of Babylon have ceased to fight; they dwell in the strongholds"; another runner comes toward him to announce its second part - "their might has failed... they have set fire to her dwellings"; then a messenger arrives to tell the king "that his city has been captured from end to end"; and then another messenger comes toward him and reports, "And the fords are seized, and the reed marshes they have burned with fire, and the men of war are terrified."
"And the fords are seized" - the fords (ma'avarot) were the water crossings at the entrance to the city, where they maintained towers to prevent the enemy from entering. In many places, they would construct a river or moat around the city to ensure that an army could not penetrate inside, leaving only a single designated point through which passage was possible, which would be securely barred - this was called a ford, the place through which one crosses. The enemy succeeded in capturing these passages, and through this, Babylon was delivered into their hands.
"And the reed beds they burned with fire" - how does it make sense to burn a lake with fire? One must understand that in the language of Chazal, as well as in the language of Scripture, "agam" does not necessarily denote the body of water itself. The Gemara asks, "Where is your cow grazing? In the agam" - does it graze inside the water? Rather, very often the shore of the body of water and its two banks are also called "agam." Reeds grew there along the waterways, meaning on the banks, and the attackers wanted to ensure the reeds would not obstruct them from entering the city - for wherever water is abundant, they grow quite tall - so they burned everything, and through this burning they effectively cleared and leveled the terrain. Incidentally, we find a similar concept with "nachal": we are accustomed to defining a nachal as a stream of flowing water, whereas according to the Torah, a nachal is a wadi, the riverbed or valley through which the water flows, and not necessarily the water itself; today, however, when people say nachal, they mean the flowing water itself. So too with agam - it refers to the place where reeds grow, as in the verse, "To bow down his head like a bulrush (agmon)," which is said of the reed. Rabbeinu Yonah, on the other hand, explains that agamim are fortresses, and Radak notes that this derives from Arabic, where fortresses are called agam.
In summary:
In this part of the chapter, the prophet sets forth the depiction of the war against Babylon in all its details: the standard and the watch, the sentries and the ambushes, the kings of Media and their governors, the mighty warriors of Babylon holed up in their strongholds until their strength failed and they became like women, and the runners bringing reports to the king, one dispatch after another, until "his city is taken from end to end." Amid all of this stands the passage of faith: Divine providence visible in the rain and the clouds that rise here and shower rain there, the shame of the goldsmith and his idol that possesses neither breath nor power, and in contrast to them, "Not like these is the Portion of Jacob, for He is the Maker of all." From here follows the promise that the Holy One, blessed be He, will exact retribution from Babylon for all that it did in Zion, roll it down from the crags, and make it a burnt mountain and everlasting desolation, so that men will take from it neither a cornerstone nor a foundation stone - and all this is no mere coincidence, but "the designs of Hashem," a deliberate plan destined to be fulfilled in its entirety.