14:29 rod. See note 10:5. This is an Assyrian king—either Tiglath-pileser III (d. 727 b.c.) or Sargon (d. 705 b.c.).

broken. This weakness in Assyria’s hegemony is temporary.

adder . . . flying fiery serpent. There is no need to identify the snakes with particular kings, like Sennacherib, Esarhaddon, or Ashurbanipal. The idea is that Assyrian strength will go on for more than one generation despite successions of kings.