(Isa. 2:13; refer in this text to 2 Ne. 24:8)
One of the ways in which the proud will “be brought low” (vs. 12) is the destruction of, or the taking away of, those material possessions they hold so dear. Among these are the “cedars of Lebanon,” which provided beautiful, fragrant wood for buildings of status… . Bashan was the area east of Jordan and the Sea of Galilee and north of Gilead. Its wooded areas provided highly prized but scarce hardwood. It too will be taken from the proud.
(Hoyt W. Brewster, Jr., Isaiah Plain and Simple [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1995], 19.)
The cedars of Lebanon, Cedrus libani, were an especially appropriate species to liken to pride and worldliness. These were the noblest, tallest, and most massive trees the Israelites knew. Unlike the small and shrubby junipers called “cedars” in the Rocky Mountain West, these true cedars were monarchs of the forest, reaching heights of 120 feet and diameters of up to eight feet. They were once common in the mountains of Lebanon and parts of Cilicia and can still be found there in reduced numbers today. They were esteemed for the fragrance and durability of their wood, which was fit for palaces and temples, thrones and altars. Likewise the oaks of Bashan, most likely Quercus aegilops, were impressive trees. Bashan is a fertile region east of Galilee and today is called the Golan Heights. In Bashan the oaks reached heights of up to fifty feet. In biblical times they were prized as a source of food, dye, and tanning agents.
(Terry Ball, Thy People Shall Be My People and Thy God My God: The 22nd Annual Sidney B. Sperry Symposium [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1994], 24.)
Lebanon is the source of fire wood for Israel and a paradise in the Hebrew imagination. Yet it is home to idol worship and so is judged by God… .
Lebanon is a region made up of two mountain chains, the coast fringing Mount Lebanon range and the lesser easterly Anti-Lebanon range, separated by the Bekaa Valley. The biblical references are probably only to Mount Lebanon itself… .
The cedars of Lebanon represent the finest of earthly materials. Solomon studied the lightness and strength of cedars (1 Kgs. 4:33), bargained with Hiram, who ruled the area, and created a conscript labor force thirty thousand strong to log the Lebanon cedars for the temple in Jerusalem (1 Kgs. 5). Using cedar, these men, working one month out of three, built a magnificent palace out of the forests of Lebanon. The famous cedar also provided the main supports of the temple. In Song of Songs the bridegroom’s carriage is made of wood from Lebanon (Song 3:9), and in Ezekiel a fine ship is built whose mast is a cedar of Lebanon (Ezek. 27:5)… .
The prophets predict a day of humbling for the proud whom Isaiah calls “the cedars of Lebanon, tall and lofty” (Isa. 2:13)… . Because her beauty breeds pride, the last image of Lebanon is one of judgment: “Open your doors, O Lebanon, so that fire may devour your cedars!” (Zech. 11:1 NTV).
(Dictionary of Biblical Imagery, ed. Leland Ryken, James C. Wilhoit, and Tremper Longman III [Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1998], 499.)