What does Isaiah 14:4 mean?

Speaking on behalf of the Lord, Isaiah now commands the people of Israel to celebrate the death of the king of Babylon. He is instructing them to mock the king using something known as a "taunt-song." The Lord will have completely obliterated the city of Babylon at this point and freed His people. He now calls upon Israel to openly mock the king who oppressed them for so many years.

Scripture is completely unclear as to which king of Babylon is in mind. Scholars and commentators throughout the years have suggested many of the known kings of Babylon. They have even suggested some of those kings who ruled over both Assyria and Babylon for a time. Others suggest that this song is meant to taunt Satan. This interpretation would be through using the kingship of Babylon as a metaphor for Satan's reign of evil in the world. In truth, there is no conclusive answer.

The song itself is highly structured and is said to be one of the best examples of Hebrew poetry in the Bible. It takes the form of a funeral dirge, but mocks Babylon's king by turning that dirge from a eulogy into ridicule.

It begins by stating that the oppressor has died. With his passing, this man's disobedient rage has also ended. No matter how powerful a person might become in this life, human lives always end. There will be an end to the anger that propelled a powerful person to do evil against so many people. Human tyrants, no matter how evil, are short-lived tools in the hand of an eternal and endlessly powerful God.