Didn't Isaiah say Damascus would forever be desolate?

Didn't Isaiah say Damascus would forever be desolate?

Isaiah 17:1 declares that Damascus will be destroyed and no longer inhabited. Yet today Damascus is recognized as one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world and has never been permanently abandoned.

The verse says: “An oracle concerning Damascus: ‘See, Damascus will no longer be a city but will become a heap of ruins.’” (Isaiah 17:1, NIV).

Prophecies of judgment in the Bible often describe cities as “ruins” when they face devastation in war or invasion. To say a city is “no longer a city” can mean that, at that time, it lies in heaps of rubble. This does not necessarily mean the city would remain forever uninhabited.

Looking at the whole passage (Isaiah 17:1–14), we see that the prophecy is not only about Damascus but also about Israel. Isaiah frequently warned that Israel too would experience desolation, but also promised that restoration would follow. In the same way, nowhere in Isaiah 17 does it say that Damascus would never rise again.

Therefore, the prophecy speaks of temporary devastation, not permanent destruction. History shows that Damascus, like many ancient cities, has suffered invasions and ruin, yet has always been rebuilt. Isaiah’s words highlight God’s warning of judgment, but they do not claim Damascus would be gone forever.