Isaiah 10:18

The glory of his forest. One day this Assyrian force was a thing of strength and glory; the next, it had vanished from the earth — like a vast and beautiful forest swept by flames. In the Bible, evil men and nations are compared to stately trees that will be shorn of their pride and beauty (Eze. 31:3-18; Dan. 4:10-26; cf. Isa. 30:27-33).

A standardbearer. Heb. noses, a participial form of the verb nasas, “to falter,” and meaning here, literally, “a falterer.” Some suggest the meaning “sick man.” The LXX reads “he that flees,” as does also the Vulgate. The Assyrians are seen advancing on every side, and it appears that nothing can halt their progress. The prophet, however, foresees the time when Assyria will take sick, as it were, and fall. She will “falter” and faint. This translation of nasas is more appropriate to the context of vs. 16-19, and particularly with the first part of v. 18.