John Calvin Commentary Isaiah 13:21

"But wild beasts of the desert shall lie there; and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures; and ostriches shall dwell there, and wild goats shall dance there." — Isaiah 13:21 (ASV)

But the Ziim shall lie there. He continues the description of a desert place and alludes to what he had previously said, that Babylon will be without inhabitants. How ציים (tziim) should be translated I cannot easily say, because of the diversity in the opinions of translators, who differ in this, as in various names of animals and herbs.

The use of these things did not continue among them; and the Jews, who are themselves ignorant and unskilled, do not retain the knowledge of these things, though there are some of them who know nothing about either herbs or animals, and yet have the impudence to boast of being physicians.

Of those who think that ציים (tziim) is the name of a wild animal, some consider it to be a quadruped, and others, a bird; but that is a matter of little importance. Personally, I have no doubt that the Prophet means either wild beasts that cannot be tamed, or birds that build their nests in distant forests.

It would not be out of place to explain what follows about Satyrs or Pans, who are called by the French, according to the various dialects of the provinces, sometimes Luittons, sometimes Follets, and sometimes Loups-garouz. As Satan deludes men by various tricks, so he gives them various names. It is certain that ציים (tziim) is often used in Scripture for devils; and it is derived from ציה, (tziyah,) which means dryness, or, a desert, just as איים (iyim) is derived from אים, (ayam,) which means to terrify. The Devil performs strange tricks by means of Fauns and Satyrs, and for that reason their names are given to him.

The Prophet's design is to show that the solitude will be so great, that not only will the place be deserted by men, but even the devils will deceive there with their tricks; for devils make use of the tendency of solitary places to produce terror. Just as enemies and robbers, by emerging from concealed lurking-places, frighten men more, so devils take advantage of the night and the darkness, and of places distant from human view, so that they may be able to excite greater terror in those who are naturally fearful.