The Sign of Immanuel

7 When Ahazy son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, was king of Judah, King Rezinz of Arama and Pekahb son of Remaliahc king of Israel marched up to fight against Jerusalem, but they could not overpower it.

2 Now the house of Davidd was told, “Aram has allied itself witha Ephraime”; so the hearts of Ahaz and his people were shaken,f 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 g to meet Ahaz at the end of the aqueduct of the Upper Pool, on the road to the Launderer’s Field.h 4 Say to him, ‘Be careful, keep calmi and don’t be afraid.j Do not lose heartk because of these two smoldering stubsl of firewood—because of the fierce angerm of Rezin and Aram and of the son of Remaliah.n 5 Aram, Ephraim and Remaliah’so son have plottedp 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:q

“ ‘It will not take place,

it will not happen,r

8 for the head of Aram is Damascus,s

and the head of Damascus is only Rezin.t

Within sixty-five years

Ephraim will be too shatteredu to be a people.

9 The head of Ephraim is Samaria,v

and the head of Samaria is only Remaliah’s son.

If you do not standw firm in your faith,x

you will not stand at all.’ ”y

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

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

13 Then Isaiah said, “Hear now, you house of David!c Is it not enoughd to try the patience of humans? Will you try the patiencee of my Godf also? 14 Therefore the Lord himself will give youc a sign:g The virgind h will conceive and give birth to a son,i ande will call him Immanuel.f j 15 He will be eating curdsk and honeyl when he knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right, 16 for before the boy knowsm enough to reject the wrong and choose the right,n the land of the two kings you dread will be laid waste.o 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 awayp from Judah—he will bring the king of Assyria.q”

Assyria, the Lord’s Instrument

18 In that dayr the Lord will whistles for flies from the Nile delta in Egypt and for bees from the land of Assyria.t 19 They will all come and settle in the steep ravines and in the crevicesu in the rocks, on all the thornbushesv and at all the water holes. 20 In that dayw the Lord will usex a razor hired from beyond the Euphrates Rivery—the king of Assyriaz—to shave your head and private parts, and to cut off your bearda also.b 21 In that day,c a person will keep alive a young cow and two goats.d 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 curdse and honey.f 23 In that day,g in every place where there were a thousand vines worth a thousand silver shekels,g h there will be only briers and thorns.i 24 Hunters will go there with bow and arrow, for the land will be covered with briersj and thorns. 25 As for all the hillsk once cultivated by the hoe, you will no longer go there for fear of the briers and thorns;l they will become places where cattle are turned loose and where sheep run.m

Isaiah and His Children as Signs

8 The Lord said to me, “Take a large scrolln and write on it with an ordinary pen: Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz.”a o 2 So I called in Uriahp the priest and Zechariah son of Jeberekiah as reliable witnessesq for me. 3 Then I made love to the prophetess,r and she conceived and gave birth to a son.s And the Lord said to me, “Name him Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz.t 4 For before the boy knowsu how to say ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the wealth of Damascusv and the plunder of Samaria will be carried off by the king of Assyria.w”

5 The Lord spoke to me again:

6 “Because this people has rejectedx

the gently flowing waters of Shiloahy

and rejoices over Rezin

and the son of Remaliah,z

7 therefore the Lord is about to bring against them

the mighty floodwatersa of the Euphrates—

the king of Assyriab with all his pomp.c

It will overflow all its channels,

run over all its banksd

8 and sweep on into Judah, swirling over it,e

passing through it and reaching up to the neck.

Its outspread wingsf will cover the breadth of your land,

Immanuelb!”g

9 Raise the war cry,c h you nations, and be shattered!i

Listen, all you distant lands.

Preparej for battle, and be shattered!

Prepare for battle, and be shattered!

10 Devise your strategy, but it will be thwarted;k

propose your plan, but it will not stand,l

for God is with us.d m

11 This is what the Lord says to me with his strong hand upon me,n warning me not to followo the way of this people:

12 “Do not call conspiracyp

everything this people calls a conspiracy;

do not fear what they fear,q

and do not dread it.r

13 The Lord Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy,s

he is the one you are to fear,t

he is the one you are to dread.u

14 He will be a holy place;v

for both Israel and Judah he will be

a stonew that causes people to stumblex

and a rock that makes them fall.y

And for the people of Jerusalem he will be

a trap and a snare.z

15 Many of them will stumble;a

they will fall and be broken,

they will be snared and captured.”

16 Bind up this testimony of warningb

and sealc up God’s instruction among my disciples.

17 I will waitd for the Lord,

who is hidinge his face from the descendants of Jacob.

I will put my trust in him.f

18 Here am I, and the children the Lord has given me.g We are signsh and symbolsi in Israel from the Lord Almighty, who dwells on Mount Zion.j

The Darkness Turns to Light

19 When someone tells you to consultk mediums and spiritists,l who whisper and mutter,m should not a people inquiren of their God? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living? 20 Consult God’s instructiono and the testimony of warning.p If anyone does not speak according to this word, they have no lightq of dawn. 21 Distressed and hungry,r they will roam through the land;s when they are famished, they will become enraged and, looking upward, will curset their king and their God. 22 Then they will look toward the earth and see only distress and darkness and fearful gloom,u and they will be thrust into utter darkness.v

9 a Nevertheless, there will be no more gloomw for those who were in distress. In the past he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali,x but in the future he will honor Galilee of the nations, by the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan—

2 The people walking in darknessy

have seen a great light;z

on those living in the land of deep darknessa

a light has dawned.b

3 You have enlarged the nationc

and increased their joy;d

they rejoice before you

as people rejoice at the harvest,

as warriors rejoice

when dividing the plunder.e

4 For as in the day of Midian’s defeat,f

you have shatteredg

the yokeh that burdens them,

the bar across their shoulders,i

the rod of their oppressor.j

5 Every warrior’s boot used in battle

and every garment rolled in blood

will be destined for burning,k

will be fuel for the fire.

6 For to us a child is born,l

to us a son is given,m

and the governmentn will be on his shoulders.o

And he will be called

Wonderful Counselor,p Mighty God,q

Everlastingr Father,s Prince of Peace.t

7 Of the greatness of his governmentu and peacev

there will be no end.w

He will reignx on David’s throne

and over his kingdom,

establishing and upholding it

with justicey and righteousnessz

from that time on and forever.a

The zealb of the Lord Almighty

will accomplish this.

The Lord’s Anger Against Israel

8 The Lord has sent a messagec against Jacob;

it will fall on Israel.

9 All the people will know it—

Ephraimd and the inhabitants of Samariae—

who say with pride

and arrogancef of heart,

10 “The bricks have fallen down,

but we will rebuild with dressed stone;g

the figh trees have been felled,

but we will replace them with cedars.i”

11 But the Lord has strengthened Rezin’sj foes against them

and has spurred their enemies on.

12 Arameansk from the east and Philistinesl from the west

have devouredm Israel with open mouth.

Yet for all this, his angern is not turned away,

his hand is still upraised.o

13 But the people have not returnedp to him who struckq them,

nor have they soughtr the Lord Almighty.

14 So the Lord will cut off from Israel both head and tail,

both palm branch and reeds in a single day;t

15 the eldersu and dignitariesv are the head,

the prophetsw who teach liesx are the tail.

16 Those who guidey this people mislead them,

and those who are guided are led astray.z

17 Therefore the Lord will take no pleasure in the young men,a

nor will he pityb the fatherless and widows,

for everyone is ungodlyc and wicked,d

every mouth speaks folly.e

Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away,

his hand is still upraised.f

18 Surely wickedness burns like a fire;g

it consumes briers and thorns,h

it sets the forest thickets ablaze,i

so that it rolls upward in a column of smoke.

19 By the wrathj of the Lord Almighty

the land will be scorchedk

and the people will be fuel for the fire;l

they will not spare one another.m

20 On the right they will devour,

but still be hungry;n

on the left they will eat,o

but not be satisfied.

Each will feed on the flesh of their own offspringb:

21 Manasseh will feed on Ephraim, and Ephraim on Manasseh;p

together they will turn against Judah.q

Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away,

his hand is still upraised.r

10 Woes to those who make unjust laws,

to those who issue oppressive decrees,t

2 to depriveu the poor of their rights

and withhold justice from the oppressed of my people,v

making widows their prey

and robbing the fatherless.w

3 What will you do on the day of reckoning,x

when disastery comes from afar?

To whom will you run for help?z

Where will you leave your riches?

4 Nothing will remain but to cringe among the captivesa

or