Isaiah Chapter 7: Judah’s Troubles Continue

In vv. 1-2 of chapter 7, Isaiah tells us about a period of terrible strife, as the northern kingdom of Israel and its ally, Syria, sought to conquer the southern kingdom of Judah (vv. 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.”

To better understand chapter 7, we need to review some of the history of the northern and southern kingdoms at the time Isaiah wrote his prophecy and the people Isaiah names in the opening verses of this chapter.

Ten of the 12 Israelite tribes had formed the northern kingdom of Israel, and the southern kingdom of Judah comprised the remaining two tribes. Judah’s king was Ahaz, the son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, who were the two kings of Judah who had preceded Ahaz.

In the northern kingdom of Israel Pekah was the king. Pekah’s father was a soldier named Remaliah. Pekah became king by assassinating Pekahiah, his predecessor.

In v. 1, Isaiah wrote that Israel, the northern kingdom, allied with Rezin, king of Syria, and their combined armies invaded Judah. The invasion failed, however. Note in v. 2 that Isaiah calls the northern kingdom “Ephraim.” That was the largest of the 10 northern tribes and “Ephraim” is often used in scripture to refer to the northern kingdom.

Prior to the invasion itself, the Judeans heard about the alliance between Syria with Israel and were terrified. Isaiah describes the extent of their terror in v. 2. Looking at v. 2 in the original Hebrew, I find Isaiah’s characterization of the Judeans’ fears very clear. He wrote: “And his heart and the heart of his people shook like the shaking of trees of the forest on account of wind.” Judah’s King Ahaz and his people were so alarmed at the threat that Isaiah pictures their inner upheaval as comparable to the effect of a strong wind on causing the trees of a forest to sway back and forth.

In vv. 3-9, Isaiah goes to King Ahaz to prophesy that his enemies will suffer defeat in the future:

“³ Then the Lord said to Isaiah, ‘Go out, you and your son Shear-Jashub, to meet Ahaz at the end of the aqueduct of the Upper Pool, on the road to the Launderer’s Field. ⁴ Say to him, “Be careful, keep calm and don’t be afraid. Do not lose heart because of these two smoldering stubs of firewood—because of the fierce anger of Rezin and Aram and of the son of Remaliah. ⁵ Aram, Ephraim and Remaliah’s son have plotted your ruin, saying, ⁶ ‘Let us invade Judah; let us tear it apart and divide it among ourselves, and make the son of Tabeel king over it.’ ⁷ Yet this is what the Sovereign Lord says: ‘It will not take place, it will not happen, ⁸ for the head of Aram is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is only Rezin. Within sixty-five years Ephraim will be too shattered to be a people. ⁹ The head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is only Remaliah’s son. If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all.’”

It was most likely in a dream or vision that God directed Isaiah to meet Ahaz and to take his son, Shear-Jashub, with him to meet at a location outside the city of Jerusalem. The location, which was near Jerusalem, is described as at the “…end of the aqueduct of the Upper Pool…” and is unknown today, but may have been the place to which water from a pool flowed or where  water entered a pool through a channel in ancient times. Either is possible from interpretive renderings of the Hebrew text of v. 3.

In the verses that follow, Isaiah prophesies about what will occur and reassures King Ahaz, advising him to keep calm and not be afraid (v. 4) and assuring him with the words of the Lord: “It will not take place, it will not happen…” (v. 7). The Lord then informs Ahaz that “Within sixty-five years Ephraim will be too shattered to be a people” (v. 8) and warns him: “If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all” (v. 9).

In. v. 11, God tells Ahaz to ask for a sign as an assurance of God’s help. Ahaz responds with an attempt to appear religious, by saying that he will not put God to the test, but Isaiah announces a sign that will extend to circumstances far into the future and finally fulfill all the prophecies and promises the prophets have made to the house of David (vv. 10-17):

“¹⁰ Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz, ¹¹ ‘Ask the Lord your God for a sign, whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights.’ ¹² But Ahaz said, ‘I will not ask; I will not put the Lord to the test.’ ¹³ Then Isaiah said, ‘Hear now, you house of David! Is it not enough to try the patience of humans? Will you try the patience of my God also? ¹⁴ Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. ¹⁵ He will be eating curds and honey when he knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right, ¹⁶ for before the boy knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right, the land of the two kings you dread will be laid waste. 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 from Judah—he will bring the king of Assyria.’”

Ahaz’s response in v. 12 shows he did not trust God and was determined to deal with the threat from Syria and Israel himself. These arguments from Ahaz and those of the “…house of David…” were about to try God’s patience (v.13). Note that as the Lord’s prophet, Isaiah used the expression “…my God…” in v. 13, which indicates his personal relationship with Him, a relationship the faithless members of the “…house of David…” did not have.

The prophecy from the Lord in v. 14 went much farther in its scope than the mere defense of Judah against invading armies. The identity of the maiden and her child was not known to Isaiah and his contemporaries, but after the birth of Christ 700 years later, the meaning of the prophecy became clear. V. 14 looks forward to the birth of the promised Messiah, Jesus, the permanent heir in the royal line of David who is called “…Immanuel…,” which means “God with us,” and born of the virgin Mary. Added to the prophecy in v. 15 is that He will be given typical nourishment that babies received in the ancient middle east, curds (could also be translated “cream” or “butter”) and honey.

According to the Hebrew text of vv. 16-17, Syria and the northern kingdom of Israel would no longer be threats to Judah after a few years. Some Assyrian records that have been preserved record that Assyrian monarch Tiglath-pileser III captured the army of Syrian King Resin. In addition, the biblical account in 2 Kings 16:9 reports that Tiglath-pileser captured Damascus and killed Resin. The Assyrian records also show that Tiglath-pileser III invaded the northern kingdom of Israel, destroyed its cities, deposed King Pekah, and appointed Hoshea the new king if Israel and vassal of Assyria (see 2 Kings 15:29-30). The Assyrian aggression caused many people to perish and devastated the land and its cities and towns. History has not recorded a people whose cruelty was equal to the Assyrians.

In the years ahead, the rulers in Judah would seek help from neighboring nations for its national defense. But God warned Ahaz that the help would not come, but instead of sources of support, nations around Judah were a great danger for Ahaz’s people. In v. 18, Isaiah uses a popular literary device to warn of future invasions of Judah (vv. 18-25):

“¹⁸ In that day the Lord will whistle for flies from the Nile delta in Egypt and for bees from the land of Assyria. ¹⁹ They will all come and settle in the steep ravines and in the crevices in the rocks, on all the thornbushes and at all the water holes. ²⁰ In that day the Lord will use a razor hired from beyond the Euphrates River—the king of Assyria—to shave your head and private parts, and to cut off your beard also. ²¹ In that day, a person will keep alive a young cow and two goats. 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 and honey. ²³ In that day, in every place where there were a thousand vines worth a thousand silver shekels, there will be only briers and thorns. ²⁴ Hunters will go there with bow and arrow, for the land will be covered with briers and thorns. ²⁵ As for all the hills once cultivated by the hoe, you will no longer go there for fear of the briers and thorns; they will become places where cattle are turned loose and where sheep run.”

The terms “…flies from the Nile delta in Egypt...” and “…bees from the land of Assyria…” in v. 18 represent the military forces from Egypt and Assyria. Isaiah is predicting that Judah would be invaded by the armies of Egypt and Assyria. He says “…the Lord will whistle…” for them to signify that they will be God’s instruments to punish his disobedient people. Egypt was known for the abundance of flies, and Assyria for its bees, making the respective insects fitting representations of their large invading armies.

An extra-biblical source, the Targum of Isaiah, refers to the “armies of mighty men” from Egypt that are “as numerous as flies,” and to the “mighty armies” from Assyria that are “as strong as bees.” Targums are Jewish Aramaic translations of books of the Hebrew Bible that combine literal renderings of the biblical text with additional material, ranging in size from a word to several paragraphs. The Targums provide important insights into ancient Jewish biblical interpretation.

Isaiah predicts that the invaders will occupy every part of the territory of Judah (v. 19). In 2 Kings 16:7-9, we read that Judean King Ahaz paid Assyrian King Tiglath-pileser III to attack Syria and Israel. But the strategy did not work, and it made Judah subservient to Assyria, which once more became God’s instrument to punish the disobedient people of Judah (see 2 Chronicles 28:16-21).

It was during the reign of Hezekiah, the son of Ahaz, that Judah experienced the worst of the Assyrian assault. The fortified cities came under attack and were captured (see 2 Kings 18:13). God intervened, however, and prevented Jerusalem’s capture (see 2 Kings 19:32-36). According to Assyrian records that have survived, the Assyrians destroyed 46 of Judah’s fortified cities and surrounding towns and took more than 200,000 Judeans captive.

(Vv. 21-25): In the aftermath of the invasion, Judah’s land was devastated and its population greatly reduced. Domestic animals had been confiscated by the Assyrians. Some surviving Judeans may have managed to keep a few farm animals. But the Judean survivors would have depended on wild honey and thick, curdled milk from the few domestic animals left in the land for their basic food. The small amount of milk presumably would have fed the people remaining in the land. The vineyards and other cultivated land n longer be tended, and thorny plants and other weeds would take over, and formerly productive land would become nothing more than patches if weeds, briers, and thorns (v. 23). Wild animals would begin living among the briers and thorns, and people would need to be armed with bows and arrows before venturing out (v. 24).

The Hebrew text concludes the description of the desolation in v. 25. People would be afraid to go on land they formerly cultivated because of the briers and thorns. The land now would be suitable only for to graze.