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Isaiah 7
New Living Translation

A Message for Ahaz

7 When Ahaz, son of Jotham and grandson of Uzziah, was king of Judah, King Rezin of Syria[a] and Pekah son of Remaliah, the king of Israel, set out to attack Jerusalem. However, they were unable to carry out their plan.

2 The news had come to the royal court of Judah: “Syria is allied with Israel[b] against us!” So the hearts of the king and his people trembled with fear, like trees shaking in a storm.

3 Then the Lord said to Isaiah, “Take your son Shear-jashub[c] and go out to meet King Ahaz. You will find him at the end of the aqueduct that feeds water into the upper pool, near the road leading to the field where cloth is washed.[d] 4 Tell him to stop worrying. Tell him he doesn’t need to fear the fierce anger of those two burned-out embers, King Rezin of Syria and Pekah son of Remaliah. 5 Yes, the kings of Syria and Israel are plotting against him, saying, 6 ‘We will attack Judah and capture it for ourselves. Then we will install the son of Tabeel as Judah’s king.’ 7 But this is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“This invasion will never happen;
    it will never take place;
8 for Syria is no stronger than its capital, Damascus,
    and Damascus is no stronger than its king, Rezin.
As for Israel, within sixty-five years
    it will be crushed and completely destroyed.
9 Israel is no stronger than its capital, Samaria,
    and Samaria is no stronger than its king, Pekah son of Remaliah.
Unless your faith is firm,
    I cannot make you stand firm.”

The Sign of Immanuel

10 Later, the Lord sent this message to King Ahaz: 11 “Ask the Lord your God for a sign of confirmation, Ahaz. Make it as difficult as you want—as high as heaven or as deep as the place of the dead.[e]”

12 But the king refused. “No,” he said, “I will not test the Lord like that.”

13 Then Isaiah said, “Listen well, you royal family of David! Isn’t it enough to exhaust human patience? Must you exhaust the patience of my God as well? 14 All right then, the Lord himself will give you the sign. Look! The virgin[f] will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’). 15 By the time this child is old enough to choose what is right and reject what is wrong, he will be eating yogurt[g] and honey. 16 For before the child is that old, the lands of the two kings you fear so much will both be deserted.

17 “Then the Lord will bring things on you, your nation, and your family unlike anything since Israel broke away from Judah. He will bring the king of Assyria upon you!”

18 In that day the Lord will whistle for the army of southern Egypt and for the army of Assyria. They will swarm around you like flies and bees. 19 They will come in vast hordes and settle in the fertile areas and also in the desolate valleys, caves, and thorny places. 20 In that day the Lord will hire a “razor” from beyond the Euphrates River[h]—the king of Assyria—and use it to shave off everything: your land, your crops, and your people.[i]

21 In that day a farmer will be fortunate to have a cow and two sheep or goats left. 22 Nevertheless, there will be enough milk for everyone because so few people will be left in the land. They will eat their fill of yogurt and honey. 23 In that day the lush vineyards, now worth 1,000 pieces of silver,[j] will become patches of briers and thorns. 24 The entire land will become a vast expanse of briers and thorns, a hunting ground overrun by wildlife. 25 No one will go to the fertile hillsides where the gardens once grew, for briers and thorns will cover them. Cattle, sheep, and goats will graze there.

Footnotes

  1. 7:1 Hebrew Aram; also in 7:2, 4, 5, 8.
  2. 7:2 Hebrew Ephraim, referring to the northern kingdom of Israel; also in 7:5, 8, 9, 17.
  3. 7:3a Shear-jashub means “A remnant will return.”
  4. 7:3b Or bleached.
  5. 7:11 Hebrew as deep as Sheol.
  6. 7:14 Or young woman.
  7. 7:15 Or curds; also in 7:22.
  8. 7:20a Hebrew the river.
  9. 7:20b Hebrew shave off the head, the hair of the legs, and the beard.
  10. 7:23 Hebrew 1,000 [shekels] of silver, about 25 pounds or 11.4 kilograms in weight.
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Isaiah 7
Legacy Standard Bible

Isaiah Sent to King Ahaz

7 Now it happened in the days of (A)Ahaz, the son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, king of Judah, that (B)Rezin the king of Aram and (C)Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, went up to Jerusalem to wage war against it, but (D)could not [a]conquer it. 2 When it was told to the (E)house of David, saying, “[b]The Arameans (F)have camped in (G)Ephraim,” his heart and the hearts of his people shook as the trees of the forest shake before the wind.

3 Then Yahweh said to Isaiah, “Go out now to meet Ahaz, you and your son [c]Shear-jashub, at the end of the (H)conduit of the upper pool, to the highway of the [d]fuller’s field, 4 and say to him, ‘Take care and stay (I)quiet, have no (J)fear and (K)do not be fainthearted because of these two stubs of smoldering (L)firebrands, on account of the burning anger of Rezin and Aram and the (M)son of Remaliah. 5 Because (N)Aram, with Ephraim and the son of Remaliah, has counseled evil against you, saying, 6 “Let us go up against Judah and [e]terrorize it, and make for ourselves a breach in [f]its walls and set up the son of Tabeel as king in the midst of it,” 7 thus says Lord Yahweh: “(O)It shall not stand, nor shall it happen. 8 For the head of Aram is (P)Damascus and the head of Damascus is Rezin (now within another sixty-five years Ephraim will be shattered, so that it is no longer a people), 9 and the head of Ephraim is Samaria and the head of Samaria is the son of Remaliah. (Q)If you do not [g]establish your faith in Yahweh, you surely shall not [h]be established.”’”

The Sign of Immanuel

10 Then Yahweh spoke again to Ahaz, saying, 11 “Ask a (R)sign for yourself from Yahweh your God; [i]make it deep as Sheol or high as [j]heaven.” 12 But Ahaz said, “I will not ask, and I will not test Yahweh!” 13 Then he said, “[k]Listen now, O (S)house of David! Is it too slight a thing for you to try the patience of men, that you will (T)try the patience of (U)my God as well? 14 Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, (V)the [l]virgin [m]will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name [n](W)Immanuel. 15 He will eat (X)curds and honey [o]in order that He will know to refuse evil and choose good. 16 (Y)For before the boy will know to refuse evil and choose good, (Z)the land whose two kings you dread will be forsaken. 17 Yahweh will bring on you, on your people, and on your father’s house days which have never come since the day that (AA)Ephraim separated from Judah—the (AB)king of Assyria!”

Trials to Come for Judah

18 And it will be in that day, that Yahweh will (AC)whistle for the fly that is in the [p](AD)remotest part of the rivers of Egypt and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria. 19 And they will all come and rest upon the steep [q]ravines, on the (AE)crevices of the cliffs, (AF)on all the thorn bushes, and on all the [r]watering places.

20 In that day, the Lord will (AG)shave with a (AH)razor—one (AI)hired from regions beyond (AJ)the [s]River (that is, the king of Assyria)—the head and the hair of the legs; and it will also remove the beard.

21 And it will be in that day, that a man may keep alive a (AK)heifer and a pair of sheep; 22 and because of the abundance of the milk produced, he will eat curds, for everyone that is left within the land will eat (AL)curds and honey.

23 And it will be in that day, (AM)that every place where there used to be one thousand vines, valued at [t]one thousand shekels of silver, will become (AN)briars and thorns. 24 People will come there with bows and arrows because all the land will be briars and thorns. 25 As for all the hills which used to be cultivated with the hoe, you will not go there for fear of briars and thorns; but they will become a place for [u](AO)pasturing oxen and for sheep to trample.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 7:1 Lit fight against
  2. Isaiah 7:2 Lit Aram has settled down on
  3. Isaiah 7:3 Lit a remnant shall return
  4. Isaiah 7:3 Or launderer’s
  5. Isaiah 7:6 Lit cause it a sickening dread
  6. Isaiah 7:6 Lit it
  7. Isaiah 7:9 Lit believe
  8. Isaiah 7:9 Lit be believed
  9. Isaiah 7:11 As in the versions; M.T. make the request deep or high
  10. Isaiah 7:11 Lit heights
  11. Isaiah 7:13 The verb listen and the second person pronouns are plural in vv 13-14
  12. Isaiah 7:14 Or maiden
  13. Isaiah 7:14 Or will conceive, cf. Gen 3:16; 21:2; 25:21; Ex 2:2; 1 Sam 1:20; Luke 1:31, 36
  14. Isaiah 7:14 Lit God is with us
  15. Isaiah 7:15 Or when
  16. Isaiah 7:18 The Nile Delta; or mouth of the rivers
  17. Isaiah 7:19 Or wadis
  18. Isaiah 7:19 Or pastures
  19. Isaiah 7:20 The Euphrates River
  20. Isaiah 7:23 Approx. 25 lb. or 11 kg, a shekel was approx. 0.4 oz. or 11 gm
  21. Isaiah 7:25 Lit sending
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Isaiah 7
New International Version

The Sign of Immanuel

7 When Ahaz(A) son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, was king of Judah, King Rezin(B) of Aram(C) and Pekah(D) son of Remaliah(E) king of Israel marched up to fight against Jerusalem, but they could not overpower it.

2 Now the house of David(F) was told, “Aram has allied itself with[a] Ephraim(G)”; so the hearts of Ahaz and his people were shaken,(H) as the trees of the forest are shaken by the wind.

3 Then the Lord said to Isaiah, “Go out, you and your son Shear-Jashub,[b](I) to meet Ahaz at the end of the aqueduct of the Upper Pool, on the road to the Launderer’s Field.(J) 4 Say to him, ‘Be careful, keep calm(K) and don’t be afraid.(L) Do not lose heart(M) because of these two smoldering stubs(N) of firewood—because of the fierce anger(O) of Rezin and Aram and of the son of Remaliah.(P) 5 Aram, Ephraim and Remaliah’s(Q) son have plotted(R) 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:(S)

“‘It will not take place,
    it will not happen,(T)
8 for the head of Aram is Damascus,(U)
    and the head of Damascus is only Rezin.(V)
Within sixty-five years
    Ephraim will be too shattered(W) to be a people.
9 The head of Ephraim is Samaria,(X)
    and the head of Samaria is only Remaliah’s son.
If you do not stand(Y) firm in your faith,(Z)
    you will not stand at all.’”(AA)

10 Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz, 11 “Ask the Lord your God for a sign,(AB) whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights.(AC)”

12 But Ahaz said, “I will not ask; I will not put the Lord to the test.(AD)”

13 Then Isaiah said, “Hear now, you house of David!(AE) Is it not enough(AF) to try the patience of humans? Will you try the patience(AG) of my God(AH) also? 14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you[c] a sign:(AI) The virgin[d](AJ) will conceive and give birth to a son,(AK) and[e] will call him Immanuel.[f](AL) 15 He will be eating curds(AM) and honey(AN) when he knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right, 16 for before the boy knows(AO) enough to reject the wrong and choose the right,(AP) the land of the two kings you dread will be laid waste.(AQ) 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(AR) from Judah—he will bring the king of Assyria.(AS)”

Assyria, the Lord’s Instrument

18 In that day(AT) the Lord will whistle(AU) for flies from the Nile delta in Egypt and for bees from the land of Assyria.(AV) 19 They will all come and settle in the steep ravines and in the crevices(AW) in the rocks, on all the thornbushes(AX) and at all the water holes. 20 In that day(AY) the Lord will use(AZ) a razor hired from beyond the Euphrates River(BA)—the king of Assyria(BB)—to shave your head and private parts, and to cut off your beard(BC) also.(BD) 21 In that day,(BE) a person will keep alive a young cow and two goats.(BF) 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(BG) and honey.(BH) 23 In that day,(BI) in every place where there were a thousand vines worth a thousand silver shekels,[g](BJ) there will be only briers and thorns.(BK) 24 Hunters will go there with bow and arrow, for the land will be covered with briers(BL) and thorns. 25 As for all the hills(BM) once cultivated by the hoe, you will no longer go there for fear of the briers and thorns;(BN) they will become places where cattle are turned loose and where sheep run.(BO)

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 7:2 Or has set up camp in
  2. Isaiah 7:3 Shear-Jashub means a remnant will return.
  3. Isaiah 7:14 The Hebrew is plural.
  4. Isaiah 7:14 Or young woman
  5. Isaiah 7:14 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scrolls son, and he or son, and they
  6. Isaiah 7:14 Immanuel means God with us.
  7. Isaiah 7:23 That is, about 25 pounds or about 12 kilograms
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Isaiah 6
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