Isaiah 7:1–17

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Dean, School of Christian Studies, University of Mobile

DO YOU TAKE GOD AT HIS WORD?
Isaiah 7:1–17
The Assyrian tyrant Pul was bent on conquering the world. Judah had a new king, Ahaz, only 20 years old. Pul’s plan was to overthrow uncooperative Ahaz and replace him with ben-Tabeel, a Syrian who would be a puppet king. Rezin of Syria and Pekah of Israel invited Ahaz to join their coalition against Assyria but he refused. Therefore, this pair of kings intended to attack Judah and force Ahaz to join their alliance. They invaded Judah and marched on Jerusalem.

A Threat (1–9)
News of the invasion so frightened Ahaz and his people that they shook “as the trees of the forest.” Inside the city wall was an aqueduct that led from the Gihon Spring in the Kidron Valley to a pool at the southern end of the hill Ophel. The array insured a supply of water during siege. One day, while the king was inspecting the channel in preparation for the attack by Rezin and Pekah, God sent Isaiah out to meet him. Isaiah’s message was, “Take heed, be quiet, do not fear,” because God had determined that the attack would not happen. He urged the king to trust the Lord. Verses 8–9a imply the danger would pass quickly and both Syria and Damascus, smoking sticks taken out of a fire, would soon go out forever. If Ahaz did not trust God completely, then neither he nor the royal house of Judah would be secure. “Faith” here means unwavering trust in God and His word no matter what things look like. But Ahaz chose to make an alliance with Assyria and pay them heavy tribute, i.e. protection money.

A Sign (10–17)
To show that the king could trust him, God offered Ahaz a sign. Ahaz piously refused but the Lord gave a sign anyhow: a young woman, or a virgin, would bear a son and name him “Immanu-el,” meaning “God is with us!” The purpose of the sign was to assure His people that God is with them.

Some say that interpreting 7:14 as a prophecy of the birth of the Messiah 700 years later would make it mean little, if anything, to Ahaz or anyone of his generation. For these, the sign/prophecy had an immediate fulfillment, i.e. a woman who was unmarried at the time would marry, conceive and bear a son. Before that child reached age 12 (the age of moral discernment, “knowing how to reject evil and choose right”), the Syria/Israel coalition would no longer pose a threat.

It is preferable, however, to accept the general outlines of the interpretation above and to hold that the sign/prophecy had an ultimate fulfillment in the birth of Jesus. Indeed, it is impossible for a Christian who believes Holy Scripture is trustworthy to fail to see here a prediction of the virgin birth. Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Matthew (1:23) wrote that Isaiah 7:14 referred to the birth of Jesus to the virgin Mary. The truth is that the sign/prophecy had both “near” and “far” fulfillments, an immediate fulfillment in the days of Ahaz and an ultimate fulfillment in the birth of Jesus. Inspired writers of the New Testament saw things in many Old Testament prophecies that no one might have expected.

Moreover it should trouble no one that the word sometimes translated “virgin” (almah) means “young woman.” Both terms appear to have been used for one and the same person. In Genesis 24:16, Rebekah is called “a virgin” (bethulah) while in Genesis 24:43, she is called “a young woman” (almah). Surely no one would suggest that this young woman lost her virginity between these two verses. “Young woman” (almah) not only means “young woman of marriageable age” but also was a term never used of a married person. It was assumed that such a woman would come to her marriage as a virgin. Again, regardless of the meaning of the term in Isaiah’s prophecy, Matthew’s use of the Greek word for “virgin” (parthenos) in his Gospel clearly indicates he is reporting a virgin birth.

Isaiah 7:17 concludes with the promise that the Lord will bring on Judah and the dynasty of David an unprecedented great thing, an incredible terror — “the king of Assyria!”  Much more than millions in tribute, Ahaz’s lack of trust in the Lord and His word would cost him the annihilation of his nation.