7:1 During ¹  the reign of Ahaz son of Jotham, son of Uzziah, king of Judah, King Rezin of Syria and King Pekah son of Remaliah of Israel marched up to Jerusalem ²  to do battle, but they were unable to prevail against it. ³ 

7:2 It was reported to the family ⁴  of David, “Syria has allied with ⁵  Ephraim.” They and their people were emotionally shaken, just as the trees of the forest shake before the wind. ⁶  7:3 So the Lord told Isaiah, “Go out with your son Shear-jashub ⁷  and meet Ahaz at the end of the conduit of the upper pool which is located on the road to the field where they wash and dry cloth. ⁸  7:4 Tell him, ‘Make sure you stay calm! ⁹  Don’t be afraid! Don’t be intimidated ¹⁰  by these two stubs of smoking logs, ¹¹  or by the raging anger of Rezin, Syria, and the son of Remaliah. 7:5 Syria has plotted with Ephraim and the son of Remaliah to bring about your demise. ¹²  7:6 They say, “Let’s attack Judah, terrorize it, and conquer it. ¹³  Then we’ll set up the son of Tabeel as its king.” ¹⁴  7:7 For this reason the sovereign master, ¹⁵  the Lord, says:

“It will not take place;

it will not happen.

7:8 For Syria’s leader is Damascus,

and the leader of Damascus is Rezin.

Within sixty-five years Ephraim will no longer exist as a nation. ¹⁶ 

7:9 Ephraim’s leader is Samaria,

and Samaria’s leader is the son of Remaliah.

If your faith does not remain firm,

then you will not remain secure.” ¹⁷ 

7:10 The Lord again spoke to Ahaz: 7:11 “Ask for a confirming sign from the Lord your God. You can even ask for something miraculous.” ¹⁸  7:12 But Ahaz responded, “I don’t want to ask; I don’t want to put the Lord to a test.” ¹⁹  7:13 So Isaiah replied, ²⁰  “Pay attention, ²¹  family ²²  of David. ²³  Do you consider it too insignificant to try the patience of men? Is that why you are also trying the patience of my God? 7:14 For this reason the sovereign master himself will give you a confirming sign. ²⁴  Look, this ²⁵  young woman ²⁶  is about to conceive ²⁷  and will give birth to a son. You, young woman, will name him ²⁸  Immanuel. ²⁹  7:15 He will eat sour milk ³⁰  and honey, which will help him know how ³¹  to reject evil and choose what is right. 7:16 Here is why this will be so: ³²  Before the child knows how to reject evil and choose what is right, the land ³³  whose two kings you fear will be desolate. ³⁴  7:17 The Lord will bring on you, your people, and your father’s family a time ³⁵  unlike any since Ephraim departed from Judah – the king of Assyria!” ³⁶ 

7:18 At that time ³⁷  the Lord will whistle for flies from the distant streams of Egypt and for bees from the land of Assyria. ³⁸  7:19 All of them will come and make their home ³⁹  in the ravines between the cliffs, and in the crevices of the cliffs, in all the thorn bushes, and in all the watering holes. ⁴⁰  7:20 At that time ⁴¹  the sovereign master will use a razor hired from the banks of the Euphrates River, ⁴²  the king of Assyria, to shave the head and the pubic hair; ⁴³  it will also shave off the beard. 7:21 At that time ⁴⁴  a man will keep alive a young cow from the herd and a couple of goats. 7:22 From the abundance of milk they produce, ⁴⁵  he will have sour milk for his meals. Indeed, everyone left in the heart of the land will eat sour milk and honey. 7:23 At that time ⁴⁶  every place where there had been a thousand vines worth a thousand shekels will be overrun ⁴⁷  with thorns and briers. 7:24 With bow and arrow ⁴⁸  men will hunt ⁴⁹  there, for the whole land will be covered ⁵⁰  with thorns and briers. 7:25 They will stay away from all the hills that were cultivated, for fear of the thorns and briers. ⁵¹  Cattle will graze there and sheep will trample on them. ⁵² 

8:1 The Lord told me, “Take a large tablet ⁵³  and inscribe these words ⁵⁴  on it with an ordinary stylus: ⁵⁵  ‘Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz.’ ⁵⁶  8:2 Then I will summon ⁵⁷  as my reliable witnesses Uriah the priest and Zechariah son of Jeberekiah.” 8:3 I then had sexual relations with the prophetess; she conceived and gave birth to a son. The Lord told me, “Name him Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz, 8:4 for before the child knows how to cry out, ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the wealth of Damascus and the plunder of Samaria ⁵⁸  will be carried off by the king of Assyria.” ⁵⁹ 

8:5 The Lord spoke to me again: 8:6 “These people ⁶⁰  have rejected the gently flowing waters of Shiloah ⁶¹  and melt in fear over Rezin and the son of Remaliah. ⁶²  8:7 So look, the sovereign master ⁶³  is bringing up against them the turbulent and mighty waters of the Euphrates River ⁶⁴  – the king of Assyria and all his majestic power. It will reach flood stage and overflow its banks. ⁶⁵  8:8 It will spill into Judah, flooding and engulfing, as it reaches to the necks of its victims. He will spread his wings out over your entire land, ⁶⁶  O Immanuel.” ⁶⁷ 

8:9 You will be broken, ⁶⁸  O nations;

you will be shattered! ⁶⁹ 

Pay attention, all you distant lands of the earth!

Get ready for battle, and you will be shattered!

Get ready for battle, and you will be shattered! ⁷⁰ 

8:10 Devise your strategy, but it will be thwarted!

Issue your orders, but they will not be executed! ⁷¹ 

For God is with us! ⁷² 

8:11 Indeed this is what the Lord told me. He took hold of me firmly and warned me not to act like these people: ⁷³ 

8:12 “Do not say, ‘Conspiracy,’ every time these people say the word. ⁷⁴ 

Don’t be afraid of what scares them; don’t be terrified.

8:13 You must recognize the authority of the Lord who commands armies. ⁷⁵ 

He is the one you must respect;

he is the one you must fear. ⁷⁶ 

8:14 He will become a sanctuary, ⁷⁷ 

but a stone that makes a person trip,

and a rock that makes one stumble –

to the two houses of Israel. ⁷⁸ 

He will become ⁷⁹  a trap and a snare

to the residents of Jerusalem. ⁸⁰ 

8:15 Many will stumble over the stone and the rock, ⁸¹ 

and will fall and be seriously injured,

and will be ensnared and captured.”

8:16 Tie up the scroll as legal evidence, ⁸² 

seal the official record of God’s instructions and give it to my followers. ⁸³ 

8:17 I will wait patiently for the Lord,

who has rejected the family of Jacob; ⁸⁴ 

I will wait for him.

8:18 Look, I and the sons whom the Lord has given me ⁸⁵  are reminders and object lessons ⁸⁶  in Israel, sent from the Lord who commands armies, who lives on Mount Zion.

8:19 ⁸⁷ 

They will say to you, “Seek oracles at the pits used to conjure up underworld spirits, from the magicians who chirp and mutter incantations. ⁸⁸  Should people not seek oracles from their gods, by asking the dead about the destiny of the living?” ⁸⁹  8:20 Then you must recall the Lord’s instructions and the prophetic testimony of what would happen. ⁹⁰  Certainly they say such things because their minds are spiritually darkened. ⁹¹  8:21 They will pass through the land ⁹²  destitute and starving. Their hunger will make them angry, ⁹³  and they will curse their king and their God ⁹⁴  as they look upward. 8:22 When one looks out over the land, he sees ⁹⁵  distress and darkness, gloom ⁹⁶  and anxiety, darkness and people forced from the land. ⁹⁷  9:1 ⁹⁸  The gloom will be dispelled for those who were anxious. ⁹⁹ 

In earlier times he ¹⁰⁰  humiliated

the land of Zebulun,

and the land of Naphtali; ¹⁰¹ 

but now he brings honor ¹⁰² 

to the way of the sea,

the region beyond the Jordan,

and Galilee of the nations. ¹⁰³ 

9:2 The people walking in darkness

see a bright light; ¹⁰⁴ 

light shines

on those who live in a land of deep darkness. ¹⁰⁵ 

9:3 You ¹⁰⁶  have enlarged the nation;

you give them great joy. ¹⁰⁷ 

They rejoice in your presence

as harvesters rejoice;

as warriors celebrate ¹⁰⁸  when they divide up the plunder.

9:4 For their oppressive yoke

and the club that strikes their shoulders,

the cudgel the oppressor uses on them, ¹⁰⁹ 

you have shattered, as in the day of Midian’s defeat. ¹¹⁰ 

9:5 Indeed every boot that marches and shakes the earth ¹¹¹ 

and every garment dragged through blood

is used as fuel for the fire.

9:6 For a child has been ¹¹²  born to us,

a son has been given to us.

He shoulders responsibility

and is called: ¹¹³ 

Extraordinary Strategist, ¹¹⁴ 

Mighty God, ¹¹⁵ 

Everlasting Father, ¹¹⁶ 

Prince of Peace. ¹¹⁷ 

9:7 His dominion will be vast ¹¹⁸ 

and he will bring immeasurable prosperity. ¹¹⁹ 

He will rule on David’s throne

and over David’s kingdom, ¹²⁰ 

establishing it ¹²¹  and strengthening it

by promoting justice and fairness, ¹²² 

from this time forward and forevermore.

The Lord’s intense devotion to his people ¹²³  will accomplish this.

9:8 ¹²⁴ 

The sovereign master ¹²⁵  decreed judgment ¹²⁶  on Jacob,

and it fell on Israel. ¹²⁷ 

9:9 All the people were aware ¹²⁸  of it,

the people of Ephraim and those living in Samaria. ¹²⁹ 

Yet with pride and an arrogant attitude, they said, ¹³⁰ 

9:10 “The bricks have fallen,

but we will rebuild with chiseled stone;

the sycamore fig trees have been cut down,

but we will replace them with cedars.” ¹³¹ 

9:11 Then the Lord provoked ¹³²  their adversaries to attack them, ¹³³ 

he stirred up ¹³⁴  their enemies –

9:12 Syria from the east,

and the Philistines from the west,

they gobbled up Israelite territory. ¹³⁵ 

Despite all this, his anger does not subside,

and his hand is ready to strike again. ¹³⁶ 

9:13 The people did not return to the one who struck them,

they did not seek reconciliation ¹³⁷  with the Lord who commands armies.

9:14 So the Lord cut off Israel’s head and tail,

both the shoots and stalk ¹³⁸  in one day.

9:15 The leaders and the highly respected people ¹³⁹  are the head,

the prophets who teach lies are the tail.

9:16 The leaders of this nation were misleading people,

and the people being led were destroyed. ¹⁴⁰ 

9:17 So the sovereign master was not pleased ¹⁴¹  with their young men,

he took no pity ¹⁴²  on their orphans and widows;

for the whole nation was godless ¹⁴³  and did wicked things, ¹⁴⁴ 

every mouth was speaking disgraceful words. ¹⁴⁵ 

Despite all this, his anger does not subside,

and his hand is ready to strike again. ¹⁴⁶ 

9:18 For ¹⁴⁷  evil burned like a fire, ¹⁴⁸ 

it consumed thorns and briers;

it burned up the thickets of the forest,

and they went up in smoke. ¹⁴⁹ 

9:19 Because of the anger of the Lord who commands armies, the land was scorched, ¹⁵⁰ 

and the people became fuel for the fire. ¹⁵¹ 

People had no compassion on one another. ¹⁵² 

9:20 They devoured ¹⁵³  on the right, but were still hungry,

they ate on the left, but were not satisfied.

People even ate ¹⁵⁴  the flesh of their own arm! ¹⁵⁵ 

9:21 Manasseh fought against ¹⁵⁶  Ephraim,

and Ephraim against Manasseh;

together they fought against Judah.

Despite all this, his anger does not subside,

and his hand is ready to strike again. ¹⁵⁷ 

10:1 Those who enact unjust policies are as good as dead, ¹⁵⁸ 

those who are always instituting unfair regulations, ¹⁵⁹ 

10:2 to keep the poor from getting fair treatment,

and to deprive ¹⁶⁰  the oppressed among my people of justice,

so they can steal what widows own,

and loot what belongs to orphans. ¹⁶¹ 

10:3 What will you do on judgment day, ¹⁶² 

when destruction arrives from a distant place?

To whom will you run for help?

Where will you leave your wealth?

10:4 You will have no place to go, except to kneel with the prisoners,

or to fall among those who have been killed. ¹⁶³ 

Despite all this, his anger does not subside,

and his hand is ready to strike again. ¹⁶⁴ 

10:5 Assyria, the club I use to vent my anger, is as good as dead, ¹⁶⁵ 

a cudgel with which I angrily punish. ¹⁶⁶ 

10:6 I sent him ¹⁶⁷  against a godless ¹⁶⁸  nation,

I ordered him to attack the people with whom I was angry, ¹⁶⁹ 

to take plunder and to carry away loot,

to trample them down ¹⁷⁰  like dirt in the streets.

10:7 But he does not agree with this,

his mind does not reason this way, ¹⁷¹ 

for his goal is to destroy,

and to eliminate many nations. ¹⁷² 

10:8 Indeed, ¹⁷³  he says:

“Are not my officials all kings?

10:9 Is not Calneh like Carchemish?

Hamath like Arpad?

Samaria like Damascus? ¹⁷⁴ 

10:10 I overpowered kingdoms ruled by idols, ¹⁷⁵ 

whose carved images were more impressive than Jerusalem’s ¹⁷⁶  or Samaria’s.

10:11 As I have done to Samaria and its idols,

so I will do to Jerusalem and its idols.” ¹⁷⁷ 

10:12 But when ¹⁷⁸  the sovereign master ¹⁷⁹  finishes judging ¹⁸⁰  Mount Zion and Jerusalem, then I ¹⁸¹  will punish the king of Assyria for what he has proudly planned and for the arrogant attitude he displays. ¹⁸²  10:13 For he says:

“By my strong hand I have accomplished this,

by my strategy that I devised.

I invaded the territory of nations, ¹⁸³ 

and looted their storehouses.

Like a mighty conqueror, ¹⁸⁴  I brought down rulers. ¹⁸⁵ 

10:14 My hand discovered the wealth of the nations, as if it were in a nest,

as one gathers up abandoned eggs,

I gathered up the whole earth.

There was no wing flapping,

or open mouth chirping.” ¹⁸⁶ 

10:15 Does an ax exalt itself over the one who wields it,

or a saw magnify itself over the one who cuts with it? ¹⁸⁷ 

As if a scepter should brandish the one who raises it,

or a staff should lift up what is not made of wood!

10:16 For this reason ¹⁸⁸  the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, will make his healthy ones emaciated. ¹⁸⁹  His majestic glory will go up in smoke. ¹⁹⁰ 

10:17 The light of Israel ¹⁹¹  will become a fire,

their Holy One ¹⁹²  will become a flame;

it will burn and consume the Assyrian king’s ¹⁹³  briers

and his thorns in one day.

10:18 The splendor of his forest and his orchard

will be completely destroyed, ¹⁹⁴ 

as when a sick man’s life ebbs away. ¹⁹⁵ 

10:19 There will be so few trees left in his forest,

a child will be able to count them. ¹⁹⁶ 

10:20 At that time ¹⁹⁷  those left in Israel, those who remain of the family ¹⁹⁸  of Jacob, will no longer rely on a foreign leader that abuses them. ¹⁹⁹  Instead they will truly ²⁰⁰  rely on the Lord, the Holy One of Israel. ²⁰¹  10:21 A remnant will come back, a remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God. ²⁰²  10:22 For though your people, Israel, are as numerous as ²⁰³  the sand on the seashore, only a remnant will come back. ²⁰⁴  Destruction has been decreed; ²⁰⁵  just punishment ²⁰⁶  is about to engulf you. ²⁰⁷  10:23 The sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, is certainly ready to carry out the decreed destruction throughout the land. ²⁰⁸ 

10:24 So ²⁰⁹  here is what the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, says: “My people who live in Zion, do not be afraid of Assyria, even though they beat you with a club and lift their cudgel against you as Egypt did. ²¹⁰  10:25 For very soon my fury ²¹¹  will subside, and my anger will be directed toward their destruction.” 10:26 The Lord who commands armies is about to beat them ²¹²  with a whip, similar to the way he struck down Midian at the rock of Oreb. ²¹³  He will use his staff against the sea, lifting it up as he did in Egypt. ²¹⁴ 

10:27 At that time ²¹⁵ 

the Lord will remove their burden from your shoulders, ²¹⁶ 

and their yoke from your neck;

the yoke will be taken off because your neck will be too large. ²¹⁷ 

10:28 ²¹⁸ 

They ²¹⁹  attacked ²²⁰  Aiath,

moved through Migron,

depositing their supplies at Micmash.

10:29 They went through the pass,

spent the night at Geba.

Ramah trembled,

Gibeah of Saul ran away.

10:30 Shout out, daughter of Gallim!

Pay attention, Laishah!

Answer her, Anathoth! ²²¹ 

10:31 Madmenah flees,

the residents of Gebim have hidden.

10:32 This very day, standing in Nob,

they shake their fist at Daughter Zion’s mountain ²²²  –

at the hill of Jerusalem.

10:33 Look, the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies,

is ready to cut off the branches with terrifying power. ²²³ 

The tallest trees ²²⁴  will be cut down,

the loftiest ones will be brought low.

10:34 The thickets of the forest will be chopped down with an ax,

and mighty Lebanon will fall. ²²⁵ 

11:1 A shoot will grow out of Jesse’s ²²⁶  root stock,

a bud will sprout ²²⁷  from his roots.

11:2 The Lord’s spirit will rest on him ²²⁸  –

a spirit that gives extraordinary wisdom, ²²⁹ 

a spirit that provides the ability to execute plans, ²³⁰ 

a spirit that produces absolute loyalty to the Lord. ²³¹ 

11:3 He will take delight in obeying the Lord. ²³² 

He will not judge by mere appearances, ²³³ 

or make decisions on the basis of hearsay. ²³⁴ 

11:4 He will treat the poor fairly, ²³⁵ 

and make right decisions ²³⁶  for the downtrodden of the earth. ²³⁷ 

He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, ²³⁸ 

and order the wicked to be executed. ²³⁹ 

11:5 Justice will be like a belt around his waist,

integrity will be like a belt around his hips. ²⁴⁰ 

11:6 A wolf will reside ²⁴¹  with a lamb,

and a leopard will lie down with a young goat;

an ox and a young lion will graze together, ²⁴² 

as a small child leads them along.

11:7 A cow and a bear will graze together,

their young will lie down together. ²⁴³ 

A lion, like an ox, will eat straw.

11:8 A baby ²⁴⁴  will play

over the hole of a snake; ²⁴⁵ 

over the nest ²⁴⁶  of a serpent

an infant ²⁴⁷  will put his hand. ²⁴⁸ 

11:9 They will no longer injure or destroy

on my entire royal mountain. ²⁴⁹ 

For there will be universal submission to the Lord’s sovereignty,

just as the waters completely cover the sea. ²⁵⁰ 

11:10 At that time ²⁵¹  a root from Jesse ²⁵²  will stand like a signal flag for the nations. Nations will look to him for guidance, ²⁵³  and his residence will be majestic. 11:11 At that time ²⁵⁴  the sovereign master ²⁵⁵  will again lift his hand ²⁵⁶  to reclaim ²⁵⁷  the remnant of his people ²⁵⁸  from Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, ²⁵⁹  Cush, ²⁶⁰  Elam, Shinar, ²⁶¹  Hamath, and the seacoasts. ²⁶² 

11:12 He will lift a signal flag for the nations;

he will gather Israel’s dispersed people ²⁶³ 

and assemble Judah’s scattered people

from the four corners of the earth.

11:13 Ephraim’s jealousy will end, ²⁶⁴ 

and Judah’s hostility ²⁶⁵  will be eliminated.

Ephraim will no longer be jealous of Judah,

and Judah will no longer be hostile toward Ephraim.

11:14 They will swoop down ²⁶⁶  on the Philistine hills to the west; ²⁶⁷ 

together they will loot the people of the east.

They will take over Edom and Moab, ²⁶⁸ 

and the Ammonites will be their subjects.

11:15 The Lord will divide ²⁶⁹  the gulf ²⁷⁰  of the Egyptian Sea; ²⁷¹ 

he will wave his hand over the Euphrates River ²⁷²  and send a strong wind, ²⁷³ 

he will turn it into seven dried-up streams, ²⁷⁴ 

and enable them to walk across in their sandals.

11:16 There will be a highway leading out of Assyria

for the remnant of his people, ²⁷⁵ 

just as there was for Israel,

when ²⁷⁶  they went up from the land of Egypt.