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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, came up to Jerusalem to make war against it, but they were not able to fight against it.

And it was told the house of David saying, Syria is allied with Ephraim. Then his heart and the heart of his people shook, as the trees of the forest are shaken with the wind.

And Jehovah said to Isaiah, Go out now to meet Ahaz, thou and thy son Shear-jashub, at the end of the aqueduct of the upper pool, on the highway of the fuller's field;

and thou shalt say unto him, Take heed and be quiet; fear not, and let not thy heart faint before these two ends of smoking firebrands, because of the fierce anger of Rezin and Syria, and of the son of Remaliah.

Inasmuch as Syria hath taken evil counsel against thee, Ephraim [also] and the son of Remaliah, saying,

Let us go up against Judah, and harass it, and make a breach therein for us, and set up a king therein—the son of Tabeal;

thus saith the Lord Jehovah: It shall not stand, nor come to pass;

for the head of Syria is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is Rezin; and within sixty-five years shall Ephraim be broken, so as to be no [more a] people;

and the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is Remaliah's son. If ye believe not, surely ye shall not be established.

10 And Jehovah spoke again to Ahaz, saying,

11 Ask for thee a sign from Jehovah thy God; ask for it in the deep, or in the height above.

12 And Ahaz said, I will not ask, and will not tempt Jehovah.

13 And he said, Hear then, house of David: Is it a small matter for you to weary men, that ye weary also my God?

14 Therefore will the Lord himself give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and shall bring forth a son, and call his name Immanuel.

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

16 For before the child knoweth to refuse the evil and to choose the good, the land whose two kings thou fearest shall be forsaken.

17 Jehovah will bring upon thee, and upon thy people, and upon thy father's house, days which have not come since the day when Ephraim turned away from Judah—[even] the king of Assyria.

18 And it shall come to pass in that day, that Jehovah will hiss for the fly which is at the extremity of the streams of Egypt, and for the bee which is in the land of Assyria;

19 and they shall come and settle all of them in the desolate valleys, and in the holes of the rocks, and on all thorn-bushes, and on all the pastures.

20 In that day will the Lord, with a razor which is hired beyond the river, with the king of Assyria, shave the head and the hair of the feet, yea, the beard also will it take away.

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

22 and it shall come to pass, from the abundance of milk they shall give, [that] he shall eat butter; for every one that remaineth in the midst of the land shall eat butter and honey.

23 And it shall come to pass in that day, [that] every place, where there were a thousand vines at a thousand silver pieces, shall become briars and thorns:

24 with arrows and with the bow shall they come thither, for the whole land shall become briars and thorns.

25 And all mountains that have been dug up with the hoe—thither will they not come, from fear of briars and thorns; and they shall be for the sending forth of oxen, and for the treading of small cattle.

And Jehovah said to me, Take thee a great tablet, and write thereon with a man's style, concerning Maher-shalal-hash-baz.

And I took unto me to witness, sure witnesses, Urijah the priest, and Zechariah the son of Jeberechiah.

And I came near to the prophetess, and she conceived and bore a son; and Jehovah said unto me, Call his name, Maher-shalal-hash-baz.

For before the lad knoweth to cry, My father! and, My mother! the riches of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria shall be taken away before the king of Assyria.

And Jehovah spoke again to me, saying,

Forasmuch as this people refuseth the waters of Shiloah which flow softly, and rejoiceth in Rezin and in the son of Remaliah,

therefore behold, the Lord will bring up upon them the waters of the river, strong and many, the king of Assyria and all his glory; and he shall mount up over all his channels, and go over all his banks:

and he shall pass through Judah; he shall overflow it and go further, he shall reach even to the neck; and the stretching out of his wings shall fill the breadth of thy land, O Immanuel!

Rage, ye peoples, and be broken in pieces! And give ear, all ye distant parts of the earth: Gird yourselves, and be broken in pieces; gird yourselves, and be broken in pieces!

10 Settle a plan, and it shall come to nought; speak a word, and it shall not stand: for God is with us.

11 For Jehovah spoke thus to me with a strong hand, and he instructed me not to walk in the way of this people, saying,

12 Ye shall not say, Conspiracy, of everything of which this people saith, Conspiracy; and fear ye not their fear, and be not in dread.

13 Jehovah of hosts, him shall ye sanctify; and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.

14 And he will be for a sanctuary; and for a stone of stumbling, and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

15 And many among them shall stumble, and fall, and be broken, and snared, and taken.

16 Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples.

17 And I will wait for Jehovah, who hideth his face from the house of Jacob; and I will look for him.

18 Behold, I and the children that Jehovah hath given me are for signs and for wonders in Israel, from Jehovah of hosts, who dwelleth in mount Zion.

19 And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto the necromancers and unto the soothsayers, who chirp and who mutter, [say,] Shall not a people seek unto their God? [Will they go] for the living unto the dead?

20 To the law and the testimony! If they speak not according to this word, for them there is no daybreak.

21 And they shall pass through it, hard pressed and hungry; and it shall come to pass when they are hungry, they will fret themselves, and curse their king and their God, and will gaze upward:

22 and they will look to the earth; and behold, trouble and darkness, gloom of anguish; and they shall be driven into thick darkness.

The Sign of Immanuel

When Ahaz(A) son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, was king of Judah, King Rezin(B) of Aram(C) and Pekah(D) son of Remaliah(E) king of Israel marched up to fight against Jerusalem, but they could not overpower it.

Now the house of David(F) was told, “Aram has allied itself with[a] Ephraim(G)”; so the hearts of Ahaz and his people were shaken,(H) as the trees of the forest are shaken by the wind.

Then the Lord said to Isaiah, “Go out, you and your son Shear-Jashub,[b](I) to meet Ahaz at the end of the aqueduct of the Upper Pool, on the road to the Launderer’s Field.(J) Say to him, ‘Be careful, keep calm(K) and don’t be afraid.(L) Do not lose heart(M) because of these two smoldering stubs(N) of firewood—because of the fierce anger(O) of Rezin and Aram and of the son of Remaliah.(P) Aram, Ephraim and Remaliah’s(Q) son have plotted(R) your ruin, saying, “Let us invade Judah; let us tear it apart and divide it among ourselves, and make the son of Tabeel king over it.” Yet this is what the Sovereign Lord says:(S)

“‘It will not take place,
    it will not happen,(T)
for the head of Aram is Damascus,(U)
    and the head of Damascus is only Rezin.(V)
Within sixty-five years
    Ephraim will be too shattered(W) to be a people.
The head of Ephraim is Samaria,(X)
    and the head of Samaria is only Remaliah’s son.
If you do not stand(Y) firm in your faith,(Z)
    you will not stand at all.’”(AA)

10 Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz, 11 “Ask the Lord your God for a sign,(AB) whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights.(AC)

12 But Ahaz said, “I will not ask; I will not put the Lord to the test.(AD)

13 Then Isaiah said, “Hear now, you house of David!(AE) Is it not enough(AF) to try the patience of humans? Will you try the patience(AG) of my God(AH) also? 14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you[c] a sign:(AI) The virgin[d](AJ) will conceive and give birth to a son,(AK) and[e] will call him Immanuel.[f](AL) 15 He will be eating curds(AM) and honey(AN) when he knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right, 16 for before the boy knows(AO) enough to reject the wrong and choose the right,(AP) the land of the two kings you dread will be laid waste.(AQ) 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(AR) from Judah—he will bring the king of Assyria.(AS)

Assyria, the Lord’s Instrument

18 In that day(AT) the Lord will whistle(AU) for flies from the Nile delta in Egypt and for bees from the land of Assyria.(AV) 19 They will all come and settle in the steep ravines and in the crevices(AW) in the rocks, on all the thornbushes(AX) and at all the water holes. 20 In that day(AY) the Lord will use(AZ) a razor hired from beyond the Euphrates River(BA)—the king of Assyria(BB)—to shave your head and private parts, and to cut off your beard(BC) also.(BD) 21 In that day,(BE) a person will keep alive a young cow and two goats.(BF) 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(BG) and honey.(BH) 23 In that day,(BI) in every place where there were a thousand vines worth a thousand silver shekels,[g](BJ) there will be only briers and thorns.(BK) 24 Hunters will go there with bow and arrow, for the land will be covered with briers(BL) and thorns. 25 As for all the hills(BM) once cultivated by the hoe, you will no longer go there for fear of the briers and thorns;(BN) they will become places where cattle are turned loose and where sheep run.(BO)

Isaiah and His Children as Signs

The Lord said to me, “Take a large scroll(BP) and write on it with an ordinary pen: Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz.”[h](BQ) So I called in Uriah(BR) the priest and Zechariah son of Jeberekiah as reliable witnesses(BS) for me. Then I made love to the prophetess,(BT) and she conceived and gave birth to a son.(BU) And the Lord said to me, “Name him Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz.(BV) For before the boy knows(BW) how to say ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the wealth of Damascus(BX) and the plunder of Samaria will be carried off by the king of Assyria.(BY)

The Lord spoke to me again:

“Because this people has rejected(BZ)
    the gently flowing waters of Shiloah(CA)
and rejoices over Rezin
    and the son of Remaliah,(CB)
therefore the Lord is about to bring against them
    the mighty floodwaters(CC) of the Euphrates—
    the king of Assyria(CD) with all his pomp.(CE)
It will overflow all its channels,
    run over all its banks(CF)
and sweep on into Judah, swirling over it,(CG)
    passing through it and reaching up to the neck.
Its outspread wings(CH) will cover the breadth of your land,
    Immanuel[i]!”(CI)

Raise the war cry,[j](CJ) you nations, and be shattered!(CK)
    Listen, all you distant lands.
Prepare(CL) for battle, and be shattered!
    Prepare for battle, and be shattered!
10 Devise your strategy, but it will be thwarted;(CM)
    propose your plan, but it will not stand,(CN)
    for God is with us.[k](CO)

11 This is what the Lord says to me with his strong hand upon me,(CP) warning me not to follow(CQ) the way of this people:

12 “Do not call conspiracy(CR)
    everything this people calls a conspiracy;
do not fear what they fear,(CS)
    and do not dread it.(CT)
13 The Lord Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy,(CU)
    he is the one you are to fear,(CV)
    he is the one you are to dread.(CW)
14 He will be a holy place;(CX)
    for both Israel and Judah he will be
a stone(CY) that causes people to stumble(CZ)
    and a rock that makes them fall.(DA)
And for the people of Jerusalem he will be
    a trap and a snare.(DB)
15 Many of them will stumble;(DC)
    they will fall and be broken,
    they will be snared and captured.”

16 Bind up this testimony of warning(DD)
    and seal(DE) up God’s instruction among my disciples.
17 I will wait(DF) for the Lord,
    who is hiding(DG) his face from the descendants of Jacob.
I will put my trust in him.(DH)

18 Here am I, and the children the Lord has given me.(DI) We are signs(DJ) and symbols(DK) in Israel from the Lord Almighty, who dwells on Mount Zion.(DL)

The Darkness Turns to Light

19 When someone tells you to consult(DM) mediums and spiritists,(DN) who whisper and mutter,(DO) should not a people inquire(DP) of their God? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living? 20 Consult God’s instruction(DQ) and the testimony of warning.(DR) If anyone does not speak according to this word, they have no light(DS) of dawn. 21 Distressed and hungry,(DT) they will roam through the land;(DU) when they are famished, they will become enraged and, looking upward, will curse(DV) their king and their God. 22 Then they will look toward the earth and see only distress and darkness and fearful gloom,(DW) and they will be thrust into utter darkness.(DX)

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 7:2 Or has set up camp in
  2. Isaiah 7:3 Shear-Jashub means a remnant will return.
  3. Isaiah 7:14 The Hebrew is plural.
  4. Isaiah 7:14 Or young woman
  5. Isaiah 7:14 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scrolls son, and he or son, and they
  6. Isaiah 7:14 Immanuel means God with us.
  7. Isaiah 7:23 That is, about 25 pounds or about 12 kilograms
  8. Isaiah 8:1 Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz means quick to the plunder, swift to the spoil; also in verse 3.
  9. Isaiah 8:8 Immanuel means God with us.
  10. Isaiah 8:9 Or Do your worst
  11. Isaiah 8:10 Hebrew Immanuel