Verses 7 and 8 provide and interesting contrast. Verse 8 shows a list of items associated with wealth. There would be few who would suggest that these are bad things…except perhaps the Lord. The contrast between the wealth in verse 8 and the idols in verse 9 is not meant to set the two against each other, but are both meant as visions of the effect of the influence from the East.
The temptation of contact with the East is that riches of the world come from such contact. However, along with those riches have come other practices which are not beneficial to Israel. In the theme that Isaiah is developing, the riches become the cause of some of Israel’s sins. The first cause is the increase in idolatry. Along with the riches comes the lifestyle of the East, and the gods of the East have been welcomed along with the wealth.