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Isaiah 7-9
International Standard Version

The Message to Ahaz

7 During the reign of Jotham’s son Ahaz, Uzziah’s grandson, king of Judah, King Rezin of Aram and Remaliah’s son Pekah, king of Israel, approached Jerusalem and waged war against it, but they[a] could not mount an attack against it. 2 When it was reported to the house of David, “Aram has joined forces with Ephraim!” the[b] heart of the people of Ahaz[c] trembled like forest[d] trees in a windstorm.

3 So the Lord told Isaiah, “Go out to meet Ahaz, you and your son Shear-jashub, at the end of the aqueduct of the Upper Pool that proceeds along the highway to Launderer’s Field. 4 Tell him, ‘Be careful, be calm, don’t be afraid, and don’t lose heart because of these two smoldering stumps of torches, that is, because of[e] the fierce anger of Rezin, from Aram, and Remaliah’s son. 5 Aram, Ephraim, and Remaliah’s son have plotted this evil against you: 6 “Let’s go attack Judah, let’s terrorize it, and let’s conquer it for ourselves. Then we’ll install Tabeel’s son as king!”’

7 ‘But this is what the Lord God has to say:

“‘It won’t take place.
    It won’t ever happen.
8 Because Aram’s head is Damascus,
    and Rezin is its king,[f]
within sixty-five years
    Ephraim will be shattered as a people.
9 Furthermore, Ephraim’s head is Samaria,
    and Remaliah’s son is its king.[g]
If all of you don’t keep on believing,
    you’ll never remain loyal.’”[h]

God with Us

10 Later on, the Lord spoke to Ahaz again: 11 “Ask a sign from the Lord your God. Make it as deep as Sheol[i] or as high as heaven above.”

12 But Ahaz replied, “I won’t ask! I won’t put the Lord to the test.”

13 In reply, the Lord[j] announced, “Please listen, you household of David. Is it such a minor thing for you to try the patience of[k] men? Must you also try the patience of[l] my God?

14 “Therefore the Lord[m] himself will give you a sign. Watch! The virgin[n] is conceiving a child, and will give birth to a son, and his name will be called[o] Immanuel.[p] 15 He’ll eat cheese[q] and honey, when he knows enough to reject what’s wrong and choose what’s right. 16 However, before the youth knows enough to reject what’s wrong and choose what’s right, the land whose two kings you dread will be devastated.”

Conquest by Assyria

17 “The Lord will bring to you, to your people, and to your ancestor’s house such a time[r] as has never been since Ephraim broke away from Judah—the king of Assyria will come.[s]

18 “At that time,[t] the Lord will call[u] for flies that will come from far away—from the headwaters of Egypt’s rivers—and for bees that are in the land of Assyria. 19 They will all come and settle in the steep ravines, in the rocky crevices, in all the thorn bushes, and in all the pastures.[v] 20 At that time,[w] the Lord will hire a barber[x] to come[y] from beyond the Euphrates[z] River—that is, the king of Assyria—and he will shave your heads, your leg[aa] hair, and your beards, too.

21 “At that time,[ab] a man will keep alive a heifer and two sheep, 22 and because of the abundance of milk that they give, he will have cheese[ac] to eat, since whoever remains in the land will be eating cheese[ad] and honey.

23 “At that time,[ae] every place where once there were a thousand vines worth a thousand shekels[af] of silver, only briars and thorns will grow.

24 “People will come there armed with bows[ag] and arrows, because the entire land will be nothing but briers and thorns. 25 As for all the hills that used to be cultivated with a hoe, you won’t go there, because you’ll fear iron[ah] briars and thorns. Nevertheless, those hills[ai] will be reserved as a pasture where cattle will feed and where sheep will graze.”[aj]

Isaiah’s Son is Born

8 The Lord also told me, “Take a large tablet and write on it with a stylus[ak] pen, ‘For Maher-shalal-hash-baz’.[al] 2 Then I will call[am] Uriah the priest and Jeberechiah’s son Zechariah as reliable witnesses to testify on my behalf.”

3 After this, I was intimate with the prophetess and she conceived. Later, she bore a son, and then the Lord told me,[an] “Call him[ao] ‘Maher-shalal-hash-baz,’ 4 for before the young lad knows how to call out to his father or mother,[ap] the wealth of Damascus and the plunder of Samaria will be carried off by the king of Assyria.”

Invasion by Assyria

5 The Lord spoke to me again: 6 “Because this people have rejected the gently-flowing waters of Shiloah, and because[aq] they keep rejoicing in Rezin and Remaliah’s son, 7 watch out! The Lord God[ar] is about to bring the flood waters of the Euphrates[as] River against them, mighty and strong.[at]

“It’s the king of Assyria and all of his arrogance! He will rise over all of the river’s channels and run over all of its banks. 8 He will sweep on into Judah, overflowing as he passes through, like flood waters[au] reaching up to a person’s neck. His outstretched wings will flow as wide as your land, O Immanuel!”

9 “Band together,[av] you peoples,
    but be shattered!
        Listen, all you distant countries!
Strap on your armor,
        but be shattered.[aw]
10 Take counsel together,
    but it will all be for nothing;
go ahead and talk,
    but[ax] it will all be for nothing,[ay]
        for God is with us.”[az]

Waiting on God

11 For[ba] this is what the Lord spoke to me, as his forceful hand was resting on me, and as he was warning me not to live the way this people were living:[bb]

12 “Don’t call conspiracy everything
    that this people calls conspiracy,
and don’t fear what they fear,
    or live in terror.
13 The Lord of the Heavenly Armies—
    he’s the one you are to regard as holy.
Let him be the one whom you fear,
    and let him be the one before whom you stand in terror!
14 Then he will be a sanctuary,
    but for both houses of Israel
he’ll also be a stone with which someone strikes himself,
    a rock one stumbles over,
        a trap and a snare to those who live in Jerusalem.
15 Many will stumble on them;
    They’ll fall and be broken;
        They’ll be snared and captured.

16 “Bind up the testimony,
    and seal up the teaching among my disciples.
17 I’ll wait for the Lord,
    who is hiding his face from the house of Jacob,
        and I’ll put my trust in him.
18 Watch out! I and the children
    whom the Lord has given me
are a sign and a wonder[bc] in Israel
    from the Lord of the Heavenly Armies,
        who resides on Mount Zion.”

Rejecting Occultic Wisdom

19 “So when they advise you,

‘Ask the mediums your questions,
    and quiz the spiritists who chirp and mutter,’
shouldn’t a people instead be consulting their God—[bd]
    and not the dead—
on behalf of those who are living
20 for instruction and for testimony?
    Surely they are speaking like this
        because the truth[be] hasn’t dawned on them.

21 “They’ll pass through the land,[bf]
    while[bg] greatly distressed and hungry.
When they are hungry,
    they’ll become enraged,
and they’ll curse their king and their god.[bh]
    They’ll turn their faces upwards,
22 or they’ll look toward the[bi] earth,
    but they’ll see only distress and darkness,
the gloom that comes from anguish,
    and then they’ll be thrown into total darkness.”

The Prince of Peace

9 [bj]But there will be no gloom for her who was[bk] in distress. Formerly, he brought contempt to the region of Zebulun and the region of Naphtali, but in the future[bl] he will have made glorious the way of the sea, the territory beyond the Jordan—Galilee of the nations.[bm]

2 [bn]The people who walked in darkness
    have seen a great light;
for those living in a land of deep darkness,
    a light has shined upon them.
3 You have increased the nation;
    you have increased its joy;
they rejoice in your presence
    as they rejoice at the harvest,
as they are glad
    when they’re dividing the spoils of war.[bo]
4 Now as to the yoke that has been[bp] his burden,
    and the bar laid[bq] on his shoulder—
the rod of his oppressor—
    you have broken it[br] as on the day of Midiam.[bs]
5 For every boot of the tramping soldier in battle tumult
    and every garment rolled in blood
        will be used for burning as fuel for a fire.
6 For to us a child is born,
    to us a son is given;
and the government will be upon his shoulder,
    and his name is[bt] called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 Of the growth of his government and peace
    there will be no end.
He will rule[bu] over his kingdom,
    sitting on the throne of David,
to establish it and to uphold it[bv]
    with justice and righteousness
        from this time onward and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of the Heavenly Armies will accomplish this.

A Rebuke to Jacob and Israel

8 “The Lord[bw] has sent a plague[bx] against Jacob,
    and it will fall on Israel;
9 and all of the people were evil[by]—
    Ephraim and the inhabitants of Samaria—
        saying proudly with arrogant hearts:
10 ‘The bricks have fallen,
    but we will build with dressed[bz] stones;
the sycamore[ca] trees have been cut down,
    but we will replace them with cedars.’[cb]
11 But the Lord has raised adversaries[cc] from Rezin[cd] against him,
    and he stirs up his enemies—
12 Arameans from the east
    and Philistines from the west—
and they devour Israel with open mouths!

“Yet[ce] for all this, his anger has not turned away,
    and his hand is still stretched out, ready to strike.”[cf]

Judgment for Not Repenting

13 “But the people have not returned to rely[cg] on[ch] him who struck them,
    nor have they sought the Lord of the Heavenly Armies.
14 So the Lord has cut off from Israel head and tail,
    palm branch and reed
        in[ci] a single day—
15 the elder and the dignitary is the head,
    and the prophet who teaches lies is the tail.
16 For those who guide this people have been leading them astray,
    and those who are guided by them are swallowed up.
17 Therefore the Lord does not have pity on[cj] their young men,
    and has no compassion on their orphans[ck] and widows,
because each of them was godless and an evildoer,
    and every mouth spoke folly.

“Yet[cl] for all this, his anger has not turned away,
    and his hand is still stretched out, ready to strike.[cm]

18 “For wickedness has burned like a blaze
    that consumes briers and thorns;
it sets thickets of the forest on fire,
    and skyward[cn] they swirl
        in a column of smoke.
19 From[co] the wrath of the Lord of the Heavenly Armies
    the land has been scorched,
and the people have become like fuel for the fire;
        no one will spare his neighbor.
20 They cut meat on the right,
    but they’re still hungry,
and they devour also[cp] on the left,
    but they’re not satisfied;
        each devours the flesh of his own children.[cq]
21 Manasseh devours Ephraim,
    and Ephraim devours Manasseh;
together they are against Judah.

“Yet[cr] for all this, his anger has not turned away,
    and his hand is still stretched out, ready to strike.”[cs]

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 7:1 So 1QIsaa LXX; MT reads he
  2. Isaiah 7:2 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read his
  3. Isaiah 7:2 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read his heart and the heart of his people
  4. Isaiah 7:2 So 1QIsaa; the Heb. lacks forest
  5. Isaiah 7:4 So 1QIsaa; the Heb. lacks because of
  6. Isaiah 7:8 Lit. is head of Damascus
  7. Isaiah 7:9 Lit. is head of Samaria
  8. Isaiah 7:9 Or never keep on enduring
  9. Isaiah 7:11 I.e. the realm of the dead
  10. Isaiah 7:13 Lit. reply, he
  11. Isaiah 7:13 Lit. to wear out
  12. Isaiah 7:13 Lit. also wear out
  13. Isaiah 7:14 So 1QIsaa; MT reads Lord
  14. Isaiah 7:14 So LXX; 1QIsaa MT read The young woman
  15. Isaiah 7:14 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read she will name him; MT alt. reading and you will name him
  16. Isaiah 7:14 The Heb. name Immanuel means God with us
  17. Isaiah 7:15 Or curds
  18. Isaiah 7:17 Lit. such days
  19. Isaiah 7:17 1QIsaa MT lack will come
  20. Isaiah 7:18 Lit. On that day
  21. Isaiah 7:18 Lit. whistle
  22. Isaiah 7:19 Or the watering places
  23. Isaiah 7:20 Lit. On that day
  24. Isaiah 7:20 Lit. razor
  25. Isaiah 7:20 1QIsaa MT lack to come
  26. Isaiah 7:20 1QIsaa MT lack Euphrates
  27. Isaiah 7:20 Or feet
  28. Isaiah 7:21 Lit. On that day
  29. Isaiah 7:22 Or curds
  30. Isaiah 7:22 Or curds
  31. Isaiah 7:23 Lit. On that day
  32. Isaiah 7:23 I.e. about 400 ounces; a shekel weighed about 0.4 ounces
  33. Isaiah 7:24 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read bow
  34. Isaiah 7:25 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX lack iron
  35. Isaiah 7:25 Lit. but they
  36. Isaiah 7:25 Lit. tread
  37. Isaiah 8:1 Or with an ordinary
  38. Isaiah 8:1 The Heb. name Maher-shalal-hash-baz means Hurry to the plunder, quick to the loot
  39. Isaiah 8:2 So 1QIsaa LXX; MT reads call in
  40. Isaiah 8:3 So 1QIsaa MT LXX; 4QIsae lacks me
  41. Isaiah 8:3 Lit. Call his name
  42. Isaiah 8:4 So 1QIsaa; MT reads out ‘My father!’ or ‘My mother!’; LXX reads ‘Father!’ or ‘Mother!’
  43. Isaiah 8:6 1QIsaa MT lack because
  44. Isaiah 8:7 So 1QIsaa; MT reads the Lord
  45. Isaiah 8:7 1QIsaa MT lack Euphrates
  46. Isaiah 8:7 So 4QIsaf MT LXX; 1QIsaa lacks mighty and strong
  47. Isaiah 8:8 DSS MT lack like flood waters
  48. Isaiah 8:9 So 1QIsaa MT; 4QIsae 4QIsaf LXX read Learn this; or Know this
  49. Isaiah 8:9 So 1QIsaa; MT adds a second strap on your armor but be shattered; cf. LXX
  50. Isaiah 8:10 So 1QIsaa MT; 4QIsae LXX lack but
  51. Isaiah 8:10 Lit. it won’t stand
  52. Isaiah 8:10 I.e. a word play on the name Immanuel; cf. 7:14, 8:8
  53. Isaiah 8:11 So 1QIsaa 4QIsae MT; 4QIsaf LXX Syr lack For
  54. Isaiah 8:11 Lit. not to walk in the way of this people
  55. Isaiah 8:18 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read are signs and wonders
  56. Isaiah 8:19 So 1QIsaa LXX; MT reads gods
  57. Isaiah 8:20 1QIsaa MT lack the truth
  58. Isaiah 8:21 Lit. through it
  59. Isaiah 8:21 So 1QIsaa; the Heb. lacks while
  60. Isaiah 8:21 So 1QIsaa; MT reads gods; LXX reads idols
  61. Isaiah 8:22 So 1QIsaa LXX; the Heb. lacks the
  62. Isaiah 9:1 This v. is 8:23 in the MT
  63. Isaiah 9:1 So DSS; MT reads those who were
  64. Isaiah 9:1 So DSS; MT reads the latter time
  65. Isaiah 9:1 Or gentiles
  66. Isaiah 9:2 This v. is 9:1 in the MT
  67. Isaiah 9:3 1QIsaa MT lack of war
  68. Isaiah 9:4 Lit. yoke of
  69. Isaiah 9:4 DSS The Heb. lacks laid
  70. Isaiah 9:4 1QIsaa MT lack it
  71. Isaiah 9:4 So 1QIsaa LXX; MT reads Midian; cf. Judg 7:8-25 2King 15:19; 16:8
  72. Isaiah 9:6 So 1QIsaa; MT 4QIsac read name will be
  73. Isaiah 9:7 DSS MT lack He will rule
  74. Isaiah 9:7 So 1QIsaa, referring to the throne; MT reads it, referring to the kingdom
  75. Isaiah 9:8 So 1QIsaa; MT reads Lord
  76. Isaiah 9:8 So LXX; MT reads word; 1QIsaa can mean plague or word.
  77. Isaiah 9:9 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read knew
  78. Isaiah 9:10 Or quarried
  79. Isaiah 9:10 The sycamore fruit tree native to Israel bears figs
  80. Isaiah 9:10 I.e. a genus of coniferous evergreen in the family Pinaceae
  81. Isaiah 9:11 So 1QIsaa MT LXX; other MT mss. read princes
  82. Isaiah 9:11 So 1QIsaa MT; LXX lacks from Rezin
  83. Isaiah 9:12 So 1QIsaa 4QIsac; the Heb. lacks Yet
  84. Isaiah 9:12 DSS MT lack ready to strike
  85. Isaiah 9:13 1QIsaa MT LXX lack to rely
  86. Isaiah 9:13 So 1QIsaa; MT reads toward; LXX reads until
  87. Isaiah 9:14 So 1QIsaa LXX; the The Heb. lacks in
  88. Isaiah 9:17 So 1QIsaa;MT LXX read rejoice over
  89. Isaiah 9:17 Or fatherless
  90. Isaiah 9:17 So 1QIsaa 4QIsac; the Heb. lacks Yet
  91. Isaiah 9:17 DSS MT lack ready to strike
  92. Isaiah 9:18 Lit. upward
  93. Isaiah 9:19 So 1QIsaa; MT reads By
  94. Isaiah 9:20 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX lacks also
  95. Isaiah 9:20 So 4QIsae; or arms; 1QIsaa MT read offspring or arm; LXX reads arm
  96. Isaiah 9:21 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX lack Yet
  97. Isaiah 9:21 DSS MT lack ready to strike
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