Isaiah 28:4
And the glorious beauty, which is on the head of the fat valley, shall be a fading flower, and as the hasty fruit before the summer; which when he that looketh upon it seeth, while it is yet in his hand he eateth it up. And the glorious beauty, which is on the head of the fat valley, shall be a fading flower, and as the hasty fruit before the summer; which when he that looketh upon it seeth, while it is yet in his hand he eateth it up.
The glorious beauty set on the head of the fat valley is the proud glory of Ephraim dwelling in its rich and fertile valley. That glory will not endure but will quickly fade like a fading flower. Its fading ends in destruction, swift and certain.
The hasty fruit before the summer is early fruit that ripens ahead of the season. As soon as one who looks upon it sees it, he seizes it while it is yet in his hand and eats it up. So the devouring of Ephraim's glory will be sudden and complete, with no delay between seeing and swallowing.
The sudden destruction of San Francisco fulfills this image. It stands as a warning that judgments will come rapidly in various places. What befell that city shows how quickly proud earthly glory can be eaten up.