Isaiah 7
7
VII
1And it came to pass in the days of Ahaz, the son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, king of Judah, that Rezin 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.
2And when it was told to the house of David, Syria is confederate with Ephraim: then his heart was moved, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the forest are moved before the wind.
3And Jehovah said unto Isaiah: Go out now to meet Ahaz, thou and Shear-jeshub thy son, at the end of the aqueduct of the upper pool, at the causeway of the fuller’s field. 4And thou shalt say unto him: Take heed, and be still: fear not, neither let thy heart be faint, on account of these two tails of smoking firebrands; for the fierce wrath of Rezin, and Syria, and the son of Remaliah. 5Because Syria, Ephraim, and the son of Remaliah, have plotted mischief against thee, saying:
6Let us go up against Judah, and besiege it;
And let us divide it among ourselves:
And let us set up a king in the midst of it;
Even the son of Tabeal.
7Thus saith the Lord Jehovah:
It shall not stand, neither shall it come to pass.
8Although the head of Syria be Damascus,
And the head of Damascus, Rezin;
Yet within three score and five years,
Ephraim shall be broken, that he be no more a people:
9Yea, although the head of Ephraim be Samaria;
And the head of Samaria, Remaliah’s son.
If ye believe not in me, surely ye shall not be established.
10And Jehovah spoke yet again to Ahaz, saying:
11Ask for thee a sign from Jehovah thy God:
Ask it in the deep, or seek it in the height above.
12And Ahaz said: I will not ask, neither will I tempt Jehovah. And he said:
13Hear ye now, O house of David:
Is it a small thing for you to weary the patience of men,
That you should weary ray God also?
14Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign:
Behold, the Virgin shall conceive, and bear a son;
And she shall call his name Immanuel.
15Butter and honey shall he eat,
Until he shall have knowledge to refuse the evil, and to choose the good:
16For before the child shall have knowledge
To refuse the evil, and to choose the good;
The land, which causeth uneasiness unto thee
By reason of its two kings, shall be deserted.
17 But Jehovah shall bring upon thee,
And upon thy people, and upon thy father's house,
Days, such as have not come,
From the day that Ephraim departed from Judah;
Namely, the king of Assyria.
18And it shall come to pass in that day,
That Jehovah 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.
19And they shall come, and they shall light all of
them,
On the valleys of the deserts, and on the clefts of the rocks,
And on all the thorn-bushes, and upon all the meadows.
20In that day shall the Lord shave with a razor that is hired
From beyond the river; namely, with the king of Assyria,
The head, and the hair of the feet;
And the beard also it shall take away.
21And it shall come to pass in that day,
That a man shall keep one cow and two sheep;
22And it shall be,
From the plenty of milk which they shall give, he shall eat butter:
Yea, butter and honey shall every one eat
That is left in the midst of the land.
23And it shall come to pass in that day,
That every place, wherein there were a thousand vines
At a thousand pieces of silver,
Shall become the portion of briers and thorns.
24With arrows and with the bow shall men come thither;
For the whole land shall become briers and thorns.
25And upon all the hills, which were dressed with the mattock,
Will no one go, for fear of briers and thorns;
But they shall be for the sending forth of oxen, and for the treading of sheep.
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Isaiah 7: TEG
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Translated by Rev John Jones (Ioan Tegid).Published at Oxford in 1830, second edition 1842.
Isaiah 7
7
Isaiah Offers Hope to King Ahaz
1 #
2 K 16.5,6; 2 Ch 28.5,6. Ahaz, the son of Jotham and the grandson of Uzziah, was king of Judah when King Rezin of Syria and King Pekah son of Remaliah of Israel went to attack Jerusalem. But they were not able to do what they had planned.#7.1 went … had planned: Or “attacked Jerusalem, but could not capture it.” 2When news reached the royal palace that Syria had joined forces with Israel, King Ahaz and everyone in Judah were so terrified that they shook like trees in a windstorm.
3Then the Lord said to me:
Take your son Shearjashub#7.3 Shearjashub: In Hebrew “Shearjashub” means “a few will return.” and go see King Ahaz. You will find him on the road near the cloth makers' shops at the end of the canal that brings water from the upper pool. 4Tell Ahaz to stop worrying. There's no need for him to be afraid of King Rezin and King Pekah. They are very angry, but they are nothing more than a dying fire. Ahaz doesn't need to fear 5their evil threats 6to invade and defeat Judah and Jerusalem and to let the son of Tabeel be king in his place.
7I, the Lord, promise that this will never happen. 8-9Damascus is just the capital of Syria, and King Rezin rules only in Damascus. Samaria is just the capital of Israel, and King Pekah rules only in Samaria. But in less than 65 years, Israel will be destroyed. And if Ahaz and his officials don't trust me, they will be defeated.
A Son Named Immanuel
10Once again the Lord God spoke to King Ahaz. This time he said, 11“Ask me for proof that my promise will come true. Ask for something to happen deep in the world of the dead or high in the heavens above.”
12“No, Lord,” Ahaz answered. “I won't test you!”
13Then I said:
Listen, every one of you in the royal family of David. You have already tried my patience. Now you are trying God's patience by refusing to ask for proof. 14#Mt 1.23. But the Lord will still give you proof. A virgin#7.14 virgin: Or “young woman.” In this context the difficult Hebrew word did not imply a virgin birth. However, in the Greek translation made about 200 b.c. and used by the early Christians, the word parthenos had a double meaning. While the translator took it to mean “young woman,” Matthew understood it to mean “virgin” and quoted the passage (Matthew 1.23) because it was the appropriate description of Mary, the mother of Jesus. is pregnant; she will have a son and will name him Immanuel.#7.14 Immanuel: In Hebrew “Immanuel” means “God is with us.” 15-16Even before the boy is old enough to know how to choose between right and wrong, he will eat yogurt and honey,#7.15,16 yogurt and honey: This may refer either to expensive foods eaten in a time of plenty or to a limited diet eaten in times of a food shortage. and the countries of the two kings you fear will be destroyed. 17But the Lord will make more trouble for your people and your kingdom than any of you have known since Israel broke away from Judah. He will even bring the king of Assyria to attack you.
The Threat of an Invasion
18When that time comes, the Lord will whistle, and armies will come from Egypt like flies and from Assyria like bees. 19They will settle everywhere—in the deep valleys and between the rocks, on every thornbush and all over the pastureland.
20The Lord will pay the king of Assyria to bring a razor from across the Euphrates River and shave your head and every hair on your body, including your beard.#7.20 shave … head … body … beard: This would have been a terrible insult.
21Anyone who is able to save only one young cow and two sheep, 22will have enough milk to make yogurt. In fact, everyone left in the land will eat yogurt and honey.#7.22 yogurt and honey: See the note at 7.15,16.
23Vineyards that had 1,000 vines and were worth 1,000 pieces of silver will turn into thorn patches. 24You will go there to hunt with your bow and arrows, because the whole country will be covered with thornbushes. 25The hills where you once planted crops will be overgrown with thorns and thistles. You will be afraid to go there, and your cattle, sheep, and goats will be turned loose on those hills.
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Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
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