In the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, son of Uzziah, king of Judah, Rezin the king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah the king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to wage war against it, but could not yet mount an attack against it. 2 When the house of David was told, “Syria is in league with Ephraim,” the heart of Ahaz and the heart of his people shook as the trees of the forest shake before the wind.
3 And the Lord said to Isaiah, “Go out to meet Ahaz, you and Shear-jashub your son, at the end of the conduit of the upper pool on the highway to the Washer's Field. 4 And say to him, ‘Be careful, be quiet, do not fear, and do not let your heart be faint because of these two smoldering stumps of firebrands, at the fierce anger of Rezin and Syria and the son of Remaliah. 5 Because Syria, with Ephraim and the son of Remaliah, has devised evil against you, saying, 6 “Let us go up against Judah and terrify it, and let us conquer it for ourselves, and set up the son of Tabeel as king in the midst of it,” 7 thus says the Lord God:
“‘It shall not stand,
and it shall not come to pass.
8 For the head of Syria is Damascus,
and the head of Damascus is Rezin.
And within sixty-five years
Ephraim will be shattered from being a people.
9 And the head of Ephraim is Samaria,
and the head of Samaria is the son of Remaliah.
If you are not firm in faith,
you will not be firm at all.’”
The Sign of Immanuel
10 Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz: 11 “Ask a sign of the Lord your God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven.” 12 But Ahaz said, “I will not ask, and I will not put the Lord to the test.” 13 And he said, “Hear then, O house of David! Is it too little for you to weary men, that you weary my God also? 14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. 15 He shall eat curds and honey when he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good. 16 For before the boy knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land whose two kings you dread will be deserted. 17 The Lord will bring upon you and upon your people and upon your father's house such days as have not come since the day that Ephraim departed from Judah—the king of Assyria!”
18 In that day the Lord will whistle for the fly that is at the end of the streams of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria. 19 And they will all come and settle in the steep ravines, and in the clefts of the rocks, and on all the thornbushes, and on all the pastures.
20 In that day the Lord will shave with a razor that is hired beyond the River—with the king of Assyria—the head and the hair of the feet, and it will sweep away the beard also.
21 In that day a man will keep alive a young cow and two sheep, 22 and because of the abundance of milk that they give, he will eat curds, for everyone who is left in the land will eat curds and honey.
23 In that day every place where there used to be a thousand vines, worth a thousand shekels of silver, will become briers and thorns. 24 With bow and arrows a man will come there, for all the land will be briers and thorns. 25 And as for all the hills that used to be hoed with a hoe, you will not come there for fear of briers and thorns, but they will become a place where cattle are let loose and where sheep tread. Isaiah 7 ESV
Isaiah 7
In the days of Ahaz - Ahaz was a king that did not do what was right in the eyes of the Lord. When he was frightened by the on coming forces, he did not listen to Isaiah, but instead sold his country to the king of Assyria. He mimicked their worship, went to the high places, built an altar to the specifications of one he saw in Assyria. Urijah, the priest, of God's temple, built it for him and desecrated the temple. The king had the entries moved so that the palace entry did not face the Jewish temple, and this was to please the Assyrian king, that we are no longer a Jewish nation. Rather than go to the only true God they modeled themselves after the pagans who they paid to protect them from Syria and Ephraim even though God's messenger would say otherwise. You can read more about Ahaz here: He hated God because God did not let him reap against God's word. Repentance was out of the question; he would rather lay his own country waste.
You and Shear-jashub, your son - A visual representation, his son's name means a remnant shall return.
Two smoldering stumps of fire brands - God is letting Ahaz know that he should not be afraid of Syria and Ephraim, they are a mere flash in the pan, temporary distress, we should fear God rather than man.
It shall not stand - What they intend to do to Judah the Lord knows about, and this thing will not come to pass, but you need to stand firm in the faith. God is directing him, through the mouth of Isaiah, to trust God. These nations, including the northern tribes of Israel, are on a path to destruction. Ahaz is leading his people in the same way, even offering his children in sacrifice to pagan gods.
Ask a sign for yourself from the Lord - God is removing every obstacle for this superstitious man, but Ahaz replies, "I will not ask, and I will not put the Lord to the test." He probably thinks this a deep saying, wise in his own eyes, but God is extending grace, and he is revealing a hardened heart. This invitation is before Ahaz's alliance with Assyria, but Ahaz does not want this God. He is probably already embarrassed as a king, blowing about in the wind, angry at God for the losses already incurred by his enemies, but he has left God, left sound teaching. He wants a god that is satisfied with rituals, that will not punish evil, only take up his part regardless of his doctrine or perversity.
Is it too little for you to weary men, that you weary my God also - You already stink as a king, you are not a strong leader, cowering at smoking coals, blowing about every which way. Corrupt leadership is always a sign of God's judgment on a nation, but here he is confronted, given opportunity to prove God out, and he has refused.
“How heartily angry is the prophet, how blessedly blown up in this case to so great dishonor done to God! We should be so too.” (Trapp)
Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign - Not just to Ahaz, for he introduces it, "O house of David". What transpires next and in view of the rest of Isaiah, the promises of old to David, the Seed of the woman back in Genesis, it captures the essence of all of scripture, both near and far, God's redemptive plan for humanity and His sovereignty in history.
…16the prophecy of one who hears the words of God, who has knowledge from the Most High, who sees a vision from the Almighty, who bows down with eyes wide open: 17I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near. A star will come forth from Jacob, and a scepter will arise from Israel. He will crush the skulls of Moab and strike down all the sons of Sheth.18Edom will become a possession, as will Seir, his enemy; but Israel will perform with valor.… Numbers 24: 16-18
1A Psalm of David. The LORD said to my Lord: “Sit at My right hand until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.”2The LORD extends Your mighty scepter from Zion: “Rule in the midst of Your enemies.”… Psalm 110: 1-2
Behold the virgin shall conceive and bear a son - This looks way out, and draws near as well. This is a beautiful message by J Mac on the virgin birth.
And shall call his name Immanuel - "God with us".
“The name ‘Immanuel’ was a rebuke to Ahaz. If ‘God is with us,’ then why should he have feared the enemy?” (Wolf)
iii. “The ‘sign’ of the child, therefore, constitutes an indication that the all-sovereign and all-knowing God has the situation completely in hand, and it rebukes the king’s lack of faith in him.” (Grogan)
…22All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23“Behold, the virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call Him Immanuel” (which means, “God with us” 24When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him, and embraced Mary as his wife.… Matthew 1: 22-24
16. The land whose two kings you dread will be deserted - The near present reality for Ahaz is that in less than the time it takes a child to reach the age of understanding good and evil, just a few years, those kings he fears, and most unnecessarily so, they will have abandoned their own land.
17-25. In that day the Lord will whistle - These empires, armies, things that Ahaz fears, God whistles and like sheep dogs they come to do the Shepherd's bidding. What a rebuke. Those he pays with the silver and gold he has stolen from the Lord's house, those foreign idols he has bowed to will weigh heavy on his back.
“Thou mightest have remained at home and at ease, and mightest have received the assistance of God; but thou choosest rather to call in the Assyrians. Thou shalt find them to be worse than thine own enemies.” (Calvin)
The Assyrians were cruel, and they will make a joke of this alliance, like China has honored it's treaty with Hong Kong. Egypt will also torment them.
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