Isaiah 8
8
1Then the Lord told me, “Get a large tablet and write on it in with an ordinary pen, ‘Maher-shalal-hash-baz.’#8:1. Meaning “quick the looting, swift the plunder.” 2I will need Uriah the priest and Zechariah, son of Jeberekiah, to be my trustworthy witnesses.”
3Then I slept with my wife#8:3. “My wife”: supplied for clarity. the prophetess, and she became pregnant and gave birth to a son. The Lord told me, “Call him Maher-shalal-hash-baz. 4For even before the boy knows how to say ‘Daddy’ or ‘Mommy,’ the king of Assyria will carry off Damascus' wealth and Samaria's possessions.”
5Then the Lord spoke to me again, saying, 6“Because this people has rejected the waters of Shiloah that gently flow and instead have rejoiced with Rezin and Remaliah's son,#8:6. It is unclear from the Hebrew exactly why the people are rejoicing with Rezin and Remaliah's son. 7the Lord is going to bring the powerful floodwaters of the Euphrates River against them—the king of Assyria with all his glorious army. It will flood all its channels and overflow all its banks. 8It will sweep on into Judah, overflowing and flooding through, reaching up to the neck. Like outspread wings it will engulf the whole of your land, Immanuel!
9Pay attention,#8:9. “Pay attention.” There is much debate over the meaning of the Hebrew word here. Possibilities include: raise the war cry, huddle together, be broken, make an uproar, rage, know etc. you nations, and be smashed! Listen, all you distant lands, get ready, but you will be smashed. Get ready, but you will be smashed. 10You can plan your strategy, but it will be foiled; you can say what you're intending, but it won't happen, for God is with us.”
11For this is what the Lord told me, holding me with a strong hand, instructing me not to follow the way of this people. He said, 12Don't call a conspiracy everything that these people call a conspiracy. Don't fear what they fear. Don't be overawed! 13The Lord Almighty is the one you should see as holy. He is the one you should fear, he is the one you should be in awe of. 14He will be a sanctuary for you. But to the royal families of both Israel and Judah he will be a stone they trip over and a rock that makes them stumble, a trap and a snare to the people who live in Jerusalem. 15Many people will stumble over them. They will fall and be broken. They will be trapped and caught. 16Safeguard this testimony, seal these instructions—they are for my disciples.
17I will wait for the Lord, the one who is hiding his face from Jacob's descendants. I will wait in hope for him.
18Look, I'm here, together with the children the Lord has given me. They are signs and wonders in Israel from the Lord Almighty, who lives on Mount Zion.
19When someone suggests to you, “Go and ask mediums and spiritists who whisper and mutter,” shouldn't people ask their God? Why should they ask the dead on behalf of the living? 20Go and examine God's law and his instructions! If what they say doesn't correspond with God's word, there will be no dawn for them.#8:20. The word “God” is not in the Hebrew text but is supplied here for clarity and emphasis. 21They will wander around the country, depressed and hungry. When they are starving they will become furious, and looking up they will curse their king and their God. 22Then they will look towards the earth and see only misery and gloom and agonizing depression, and they will be thrown out into the darkness.
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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com
Isaiah 8
8
Isaiah and His Children Are Signs
1The Lord said to me, “Get a large sheet of paper. Write ‘Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz’ on it with a pen.” 2So I sent for Zechariah and Uriah the priest. Zechariah is the son of Jeberekiah. Zechariah and Uriah were witnesses for me whom I could trust. 3Then I went and slept with my wife, who was a prophet. She became pregnant and had a baby boy. The Lord said to me, “Name him Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz. 4The king of Assyria will carry off the wealth of Damascus. He will also carry away the goods that were taken from Samaria. That will happen before the boy knows how to say ‘My father’ or ‘My mother.’ ”
5The Lord continued,
6“I am like the gently flowing stream of Siloam.
But the people of Judah have turned their backs on me.
They are filled with joy because of the fall of Rezin
and the son of Remaliah.
7So I am about to bring against these people
the king of Assyria and his whole army.
The Assyrians will be like the mighty Euphrates River
when it is flooding.
They will run over everything in their path.
8They will sweep on into Judah like a flood.
They will pass through Judah and reach all the way to Jerusalem.
Immanuel, they will attack your land like an eagle.
Their wings will spread out and cover it.”
9Sound the battle cry, you nations!
But you will be torn apart.
Listen, all you lands far away!
Prepare for battle! But you will be torn apart.
Prepare for battle! But you will be torn apart.
10Make your battle plans! But you won’t succeed.
Give your orders! But they won’t be carried out.
That’s because God is with us.
11The Lord speaks to me while his powerful hand is on me. He is warning me not to live the way these people live. He says,
12“People of Judah, do not agree with those who say
Isaiah is guilty of treason.
Do not fear what they fear.
Do not be afraid.
13The Lord rules over all.
So you must think about him as holy.
You must have respect for him.
You must fear him.
14Then the Lord will be a holy place of safety for you.
But that’s not true for many people in Israel and Judah.
He will be a stone that causes them to trip.
He will be a rock that makes them fall.
And for the people of Jerusalem
he will be a trap and a snare.
15Many of them will trip.
They will fall and be broken.
They will be trapped and captured.”
16Tie up and seal this warning that the Lord said to you through me.
Preserve among my followers what he taught you through me.
17I will wait for the Lord.
He is turning his face away from Jacob’s people.
I will put my trust in him.
18Here I am. Here are the children the Lord has given me. We are signs and reminders to Israel from the Lord who rules over all. He lives on Mount Zion.
The Darkness Turns to Light
19There are people who get messages from those who have died. But these people only whisper words that are barely heard. Suppose someone tells you to ask for advice from these people. Shouldn’t you ask for advice from your God instead? Why should you get advice from dead people to help those who are alive? 20Follow what the Lord taught you and said to you through me. People who don’t speak in keeping with these words will have no hope in the morning. 21They will suffer and be hungry. They’ll wander through the land. When they are very hungry, they will become angry. They’ll look up toward heaven. They’ll ask for bad things to happen to their king and their God. 22Then they will look at the earth. They’ll see nothing but suffering and darkness. They’ll see terrible sadness. They’ll be driven into total darkness.
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