Isaiah 7

Verses 1&2

1. “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.
2. 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.”

The last chapter covered the final year of Uzziah. This chapter moves forward quite a bit to the reign of the wicked king Ahaz, about 742 BC. He ruled from age 20 until he was 36. His rule was cursed by his worship of Baal and his sacrifice of his sons in the fire of Hinnom. Thus, Isaiah’s words are not heard again until after Jotham died.

Syria (under king Rezin, ‘firm’, of Damascus), and Israel (under king Pekah, ‘opened’) both attacked Jerusalem. Pekah, of the tribe of Ephraim, was an army captain under king Pekahiah of Israel, but assassinated him and took the throne. But, they did not win or gain entry. We learn in 2 Chronicles that this double attack was brought about by Jehovah… note what Matthew Henry quotes: “The sin of a land brings foreign invasions upon it…”. See how, in our day, foreigners with a wicked religion now invade the UK with bad intent. The “house of David”, Judah, heard about this invasion by Israel and Syria and it shook the people to their core… but, they brought it upon themselves by their wickedness and Baalism. Yet, despite this obvious rebuff by Jehovah, Judah continued in its evils under king Ahaz. This was foretold to Isaiah in the previous chapter, and he warned the people. But, typically, wicked people do not heed warnings, but become even worse.

Verses 3-6

3. “Then said the LORD unto Isaiah, Go forth now to meet Ahaz, thou, and Shearjashub thy son, at the end of the conduit of the upper pool in the highway of the fuller’s field;
4. 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.
5. Because Syria, Ephraim, and the son of Remaliah, have taken evil counsel against thee, saying,
6. 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:”

Verse 3 is a good example of the historicity of this book, with its precise detail – “Go forth now to meet Ahaz, thou and Shearjashub thy son, at the end of the conduit of the upper pool in the highway of the fuller’s field.” It could not have been a more detailed instruction! It was not Isaiah’s intention but was a command of God to meet the king. The place to meet was something to do with Jerusalem’s water supply and redirection to the city. (‘conduit’ – a water pipe or trench carrying water. ‘Fuller’ – someone who washes clothes by treading on them). This small detail proves the authenticity and historicity of the text.

Isaiah must have been of some social standing, otherwise what God told him to do would not have been greeted kindly. Though a bad king, God warned Ahaz through Isaiah and told him not to be afraid of the “smoking firebrands”… Syria and Ephraim. God gave Isaiah details to share – that the two ‘firebrands’ conspired together to bring down Jerusalem, to instal a lesser king under their own control – “the son of Tabeal” (Tabeal, ‘God is good’, probably a soldier in either army, with no royal links, so more easily manipulated).

Verses 7-9

7. “Thus saith the Lord GOD, It shall not stand, neither shall it come to pass.
8. 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.
9. 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.”

God advised that though the attacks will come they will not be successful: Ephraim will lose its identity in 65 years time and would be no more. Thus, the attackers will be lost to their own evils and will fall. Is this the future of Islam in the West? Will its aims be thwarted because of God’s mercy? Or, will the nation suffer attacks and escape by God’s grace? Or – will the attacks be successful because of the sins of the people?

Verses 10-12

10. “Moreover the LORD spake again unto Ahaz, saying,
11. Ask thee a sign of the LORD thy God; ask it either in the depth, or in the height above.
12. But Ahaz said, I will not ask, neither will I tempt the  LORD.”

It is not as if God walked away from Judah – He spoke to Ahaz and told him to ask for a sign (of Jehovah’s power and readiness to win the battle). Ahaz, in his confusion and irreligion, refused to do so, to God’s very face. He said he would not tempt the Lord – even though it was the Lord Who told him to ask! Folly in the extreme, proving the evil heart of Ahaz, relying on his own schemes. Today, we fail time and again to repent and seek God’s face, though it must be our perpetual position before Him. And so we miss His blessings and attract enemies against us.

Verses 13-19

13. “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?
14. Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
15. Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil, and choose the good.
16. 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.
17. 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.
18. 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.
19. 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.”
20. 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.”

God demanded to know of Judah – will you continue to trouble me with human arguments? Then comes a remarkable prophecy – the coming of Jesus Christ, about 750 years before the event. It speaks of a virgin having a son – an amazing thing that is impossible! By definition a virgin cannot have a child. Yet, this is just one miracle of many from God, all of which are humanly impossible. The prophecy was given to show Ahaz, even in the midst of his sin, that God was in control and can do anything.

If Ahaz refused to ask for a sign of this, God would give one anyway – the impossible birth of a child named Immanuel (‘God with us’ or ‘with us is God’: literally – Jesus was God amongst the people, 'ēl… God, sent to relieve the suffering of Israel and Judah). Immanuel (Jesus Christ) would know how to discern good from evil and so would choose what is good. He would eat curdled milk/cheese and honeycomb… typical food for young children at that time (showing that though born divinely, his human-hood would be like that of everyone else).

The speech now turns to Isaiah’s child at his side, a mere toddler who received the same diet. Before he comes to know good from evil (too young to discern for himself), the nation would fail because of the kings of Judah and Israel. Their sins would find them out. As always, the sins of rulers can destroy the people they rule. Thus, in a few years time both people of Judah and Israel would fall to calamity. It would not be a calamity of nature or of kings, but deliberately brought about by God’s command. Few modern Christians understand or even think about this – that God will bring His own people to ruin if they live free from His commands. Very often this judgment will come in the form of invasion from enemies – just as we see today with the West filling up with false religion, its adherents, and violence.

God will “hiss” for flies and bees; šāraq – call for them from northern Egypt and Assyria. That is, ‘stinging’ enemies from north and south will attack Judah. They will be found everywhere… valleys, hills, caves, amongst the trees.  And this would happen within a few short years. The allusion to shaving and razors is about those who will attack from Assyria and Egypt.

Verses 21-25

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, 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.
23. 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.
24. With arrows and with bows shall men come thither; because all the land shall become briers and thorns.
25. 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.”

This part is difficult to interpret. The few people left alive will be able to eat well. But, the vines and growing food will reduce and become overgrown by weeds, so the good food will not last long. The arrows of the enemy will be so many they will be like thorns and briers – everywhere. And agricultural land will disappear under weeds, which will be trodden down and eaten by oxen and ‘lesser cattle’, śê, sheep and goats (in those days ‘cattle’ referred to all domesticated animals).

We are left in no doubt that when we are overcome by enemies of any kind, it is a judgment from God for not obeying Him and living holy lives. He does not blindly offer blanket love to those who reject holiness in favour of sin, but will and does command enemies to come against us. The only answer is repentance.

© 25 May2025

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