The Book of the Prophet Isaiah

⭑ King James Version :: World English Bible Catholic ⭑

- Chapter 7 -

And it came to pass in the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, king of Judah, that Rezin the king of Syria, and Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, went up toward Jerusalem to war against it, but could not prevail against it.

And it was told the house of David, saying, Syria is confederate with Ephraim. And his heart was moved, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the wood are moved with the wind.(a)

Then said the Lord unto Isaiah, Go forth now to meet Ahaz, thou, and Shear–jashub thy son, at the end of the conduit of the upper pool in the highway of the fuller’s field;(b)

(c)

And say unto him, Take heed, and be quiet; fear not, neither be fainthearted for the two tails of these smoking firebrands, for the fierce anger of Rezin with Syria, and of the son of Remaliah.(d)

Because Syria, Ephraim, and the son of Remaliah, have taken evil counsel against thee, saying,

Let us go up against Judah, and vex it, and let us make a breach therein for us, and set a king in the midst of it, even the son of Tabeal:(e)

Thus saith the Lord God , It shall not stand, neither shall it come to pass.

For the head of Syria is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is Rezin; and within threescore and five years shall Ephraim be broken, that it be not a people.(f)

And the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is Remaliah’s son. If ye will not believe, surely ye shall not be established.(g)

The Sign of Immanuel

(Matthew 1:18–25)

Moreover the Lord spake again unto Ahaz, saying,(h)

Ask thee a sign of the Lord thy God; ask it either in the depth, or in the height above.(i)

But Ahaz said, I will not ask, neither will I tempt the Lord .

And he said, Hear ye now, O house of David; Is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will ye weary my God also?

Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.(j)

Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil, and choose the good.

For before the child shall know to refuse the evil, and choose the good, the land that thou abhorrest shall be forsaken of both her kings.

Judgment to Come

(Micah 1:1–7)

The Lord shall bring upon thee, and upon thy people, and upon thy father’s house, days that have not come, from the day that Ephraim departed from Judah; even the king of Assyria.

And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall hiss for the fly that is in the uttermost part of the rivers of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria.

And they shall come, and shall rest all of them in the desolate valleys, and in the holes of the rocks, and upon all thorns, and upon all bushes.(k)

In the same day shall the Lord shave with a razor that is hired, namely, by them beyond the river, by the king of Assyria, the head, and the hair of the feet: and it shall also consume the beard.

And it shall come to pass in that day, that a man shall nourish a young cow, and two sheep;

And it shall come to pass, for the abundance of milk that they shall give he shall eat butter: for butter and honey shall every one eat that is left in the land.(l)

And it shall come to pass in that day, that every place shall be, where there were a thousand vines at a thousand silverlings, it shall even be for briers and thorns.

With arrows and with bows shall men come thither; because all the land shall become briers and thorns.

And on all hills that shall be digged with the mattock, there shall not come thither the fear of briers and thorns: but it shall be for the sending forth of oxen, and for the treading of lesser cattle.

Footnotes

(a)7:2 is confederate…: Heb. resteth on

(b)7:3 Shear–jashub: that is, The remnant shall return

(d)7:4 neither…: Heb. let not thy heart be tender

(e)7:6 vex: or, waken

(f)7:8 that…: Heb. from a people

(g)7:9 If…: or, Do ye not believe? it is because ye are not stable

(h)7:10 Moreover…: Heb. And the Lord added to speak

(i)7:11 ask it…: or, make thy petition deep

(j)7:14 shall call: or, thou, O virgin, shalt call

(k)7:19 bushes: or, commendable trees

(l)7:22 the land: Heb. the midst of the land

In the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, king of Judah, Rezin the king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, went up to Jerusalem to war against it, but could not prevail against it.

David’s house was told, “Syria is allied with Ephraim.” His heart trembled, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the forest tremble with the wind.

Then the LORD said to Isaiah, “Go out now to meet Ahaz, you, and Shearjashub your son, at the end of the conduit of the upper pool, on the highway of the fuller’s field.

Tell him, ‘Be careful, and keep calm. Don’t be afraid, neither let your heart be faint because of these two tails of smoking torches, for the fierce anger of Rezin and Syria, and of the son of Remaliah.

Because Syria, Ephraim, and the son of Remaliah, have plotted evil against you, saying,

“Let’s go up against Judah, and tear it apart, and let’s divide it among ourselves, and set up a king within it, even the son of Tabeel.”

This is what the Lord GOD says: “It shall not stand, neither shall it happen.”

For the head of Syria is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is Rezin. Within sixty-five years Ephraim shall be broken in pieces, so that it shall not be a people.

The head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is Remaliah’s son. If you will not believe, surely you shall not be established.’”

The Sign of Immanuel

(Matthew 1:18–25)

The LORD spoke again to Ahaz, saying,

“Ask a sign of the LORD your God; ask it either in the depth, or in the height above.”

But Ahaz said, “I won’t ask. I won’t tempt the LORD.”

He said, “Listen now, house of David. Is it not enough for you to try the patience of men, that you will try the patience of my God also?

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin will conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.(a)

He shall eat butter and honey when he knows to refuse the evil and choose the good.

For before the child knows to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land whose two kings you abhor shall be forsaken.

Judgment to Come

(Micah 1:1–7)

The LORD will bring on you, on your people, and on your father’s house days that have not come, from the day that Ephraim departed from Judah, even the king of Assyria.

It will happen in that day that the LORD will whistle for the fly that is in the uttermost part of the rivers of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria.

They shall come, and shall all rest in the desolate valleys, in the clefts of the rocks, on all thorn hedges, and on all pastures.

In that day the Lord will shave with a razor that is hired in the parts beyond the River, even with the king of Assyria, the head and the hair of the feet; and it shall also consume the beard.

It shall happen in that day that a man shall keep alive a young cow, and two sheep.

It shall happen, that because of the abundance of milk which they shall give he shall eat butter, for everyone will eat butter and honey that is left within the land.

It will happen in that day that every place where there were a thousand vines worth a thousand silver shekels,(b) will be for briers and thorns.

People will go there with arrows and with bow, because all the land will be briers and thorns.

All the hills that were cultivated with the hoe, you shall not come there for fear of briers and thorns; but it shall be for the sending out of oxen, and for sheep to tread on.”

Footnotes

(a)7:14 “Immanuel” means “God with us”.

(b)7:23 A shekel is about 10 grams or about 0.35 ounces, so 1000 shekels is about 10 kilograms or 22 pounds.