Isaiah 7: Immanuel & Judgment

• v.1-16 The sign of Immanuel
  • v.1,2 The Political Situation
  • v.3-9 The Lord encourages Ahaz
  • v.10-11 Ahaz encouraged to ask for a sign
  • v.12-13 Ahaz Refuses
  • v.14-16 The Lord’s Sign – Immanuel
• v.17-25 Assyria, the Lord’s instrument to bring judgement

[Preliminary Notes: To understand this chapter we need to observe the kings and their countries involved:

Ahaz – present king of Judah (the southern kingdom with Jerusalem its capital. We often speak of ‘Israel’ to cover all the people of God, the twelve tribes, who came out of the Exodus, but when the nation was split after Solomon’s reign, ‘Israel’ referred to the northern kingdom of ten tribes, with Samaria its capital,, and ‘Judah’ referred to the southern kingdom of two tribes, sometimes referred to as ‘the house of David’ because Jerusalem had become king David’s capital city)

Rezin – king of Aram (otherwise known as Syria a country to the north and east of Israel, often in conflict with Israel)

Pekah – king of Israel (the northern kingdom. Note ‘Ephraim’ was one of the northern ten tribes and so sometimes the northern kingdom was referred to as Ephraim)

Assyria – a more powerful empire of the north east based on Mesopotamia

We should also note in what follows Isaiah’s sons with prophetic names:

• “a remnant with return” – 7:3
• “quick to the plunder, swift to the spoil” – 8:1
• who may also be the first fulfilment of “God with us” – 7:14 (applied by Matthew to Jesus: Mt 1:23) Note that quite often prophetic words have more than one fulfilment

v.1-16 The sign of Immanuel

v.1,2 The Political Situation

v.1 When Ahaz son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, was king of Judah, King Rezin of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel marched up to fight against Jerusalem, but they could not overpower it.

v.2 Now the house of David was told, ‘Aram has allied itself with Ephraim’; so the hearts of Ahaz and his people were shaken, as the trees of the forest are shaken by the wind.

[Notes: Aram & Israel have conspired against Judah, but to no avail. Judah had been told of this alliance and had been afraid.]

v.3-9 The Lord encourages Ahaz

v.3 Then the Lord said to Isaiah, ‘Go out, you and your son Shear-Jashub to meet Ahaz at the end of the aqueduct of the Upper Pool, on the road to the Launderer’s Field.

[Shear-Jashub means ‘a remnant will return’]

v.4 Say to him, “Be careful, keep calm and don’t be afraid. Do not lose heart because of these two smoldering stubs of firewood – because of the fierce anger of Rezin and Aram and of the son of Remaliah.

[i.e. Pekah, king of Israel – see v.1 above]

v.5 Aram, Ephraim and Remaliah’s son have plotted your ruin, saying,

v.6 ‘Let us invade Judah; let us tear it apart and divide it among ourselves, and make the son of Tabeel king over it.’

v.7,8 Yet this is what the Sovereign Lord says:‘ “It will not take place, it will not happen, for the head of Aram is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is only Rezin. Within sixty-five years  Ephraim will be too shattered to be a people.

v.9 The head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is only Remaliah’s son. If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all.”’

[Notes:  Isaiah is told to go to Ahaz and to reassure him. These others may have plotted saying let’s wipe out Judah but God says it won’t happen; these mere men will not prevail against the Lord.]

v.10-11 Ahaz encouraged to ask for a sign

v.10 Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz,

v.11 ‘Ask the Lord your God for a sign, whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights.’

[Notes: So the Lord challenges Ahaz, come on, ask me for a sign.]

v.12-13 Ahaz Refuses

v.12 But Ahaz said, ‘I will not ask; I will not put the Lord to the test.’

v.13 Then Isaiah said, ‘Hear now, you house of David! Is it not enough to try the patience of humans? Will you try the patience of my God also?

[Notes:  Ahaz won’t  and so Isaiah rebukes him.]

v.14-16 The Lord’s Sign – Immanuel

v.14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you  a sign: the virgin  will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel]

v.15 He will be eating curds and honey when he knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right,

v.16 for before the boy knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right, the land of the two kings you dread will be laid waste.

[Notes:  Isaiah declares, God will give His own sign, a son of a virgin to be called Immanuel – which means ‘God with us’ and by the time he’s twelve [the age for decision making] these threatening nations will be gone.]

v.17-25 Assyria, the Lord’s instrument to bring judgement

v.17 The Lord will bring on you and on your people and on the house of your father a time unlike any since Ephraim broke away from Judah – he will bring the king of Assyria.’

v.18 In that day the Lord will whistle for flies from the Nile delta in Egypt and for bees from the land of Assyria.

v.19 They will all come and settle in the steep ravines and in the crevices in the rocks, on all the thorn-bushes and at all the water holes.

v.20 In that day the Lord will use a razor hired from beyond the River Euphrates – the king of Assyria – to shave your heads and private parts, and to cut off your beards also.

v.21 In that day, a person will keep alive a young cow and two goats.

v.22 And because of the abundance of the milk they give, there will be curds to eat. All who remain in the land will eat curds and honey.

v.23 In that day, in every place where there were a thousand vines worth a thousand silver shekels, there will be only briers and thorns.

v.24 Hunters will go there with bow and arrow, for the land will be covered with briers and thorns.

v.25 As for all the hills once cultivated by the hoe, you will no longer go there for fear of the briers and thorns; they will become places where cattle are turned loose and where sheep run.

[Notes:  Further, your own guilt [implied] will bring judgment from Assyria which will come from both the north and the south. They will invade the whole of the land and God will use Assyria to give Israel a close shave! After it you won’t have much left; it will be the milk & produce of the land that will keep you going, vineyards will be gone, briars left, hunters will go after wild animals there for it will become an inhospitable land.]

For those who may wish to make a study of this chapter, to perhaps think some more about what you have been reading, use the link below: