'Ye shall be as an oak whose leaf fadeth, and as a garden that hath no
water. 31. And the strong shall be as tow, and His work as a spark; and
they shall both burn together, and none shall quench them.'--ISAIAH i.
30-31.
The original reference of these words is to the threatened retribution
for national idolatry, of which 'oaks' and 'gardens' were both seats.
The nation was, as it were, dried up and made inflammable; the idol was
as the 'spark' or the occasion for destruction. But a wider
application, which comes home to us all, is to the fatal results of
sin. These need to be very plainly stated, because of the deceitfulness
of sin, which goes on slaying men by thousands in silence.
'That grim wolf with privy paw
Daily devours apace.'