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<center><h1>Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary
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on the Whole Bible</h1>
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[<A HREF="MHC00000.HTM">Table of Contents</A>]<BR>
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Matthew Henry<BR><I>Commentary on the Whole Bible</I> (1712)
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<!-- (Begin Body) -->
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<CENTER>
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<BR><FONT SIZE=+3><B>I S A I A H.</B></FONT>
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<BR>
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<BR><FONT SIZE=+2>CHAP. VII.</FONT>
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<HR SIZE=1 WIDTH=50>
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</CENTER>
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<FONT SIZE=-1>
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<P>
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This chapter is an occasional sermon, in which the prophet sings both
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of mercy and judgment to those that did not perceive or understand
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either; he piped unto them, but they danced not, mourned unto them, but
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they wept not. Here is,
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I. The consternation that Ahaz was in upon an attempt of the
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confederate forces of Syria and Israel against Jerusalem,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:1,2">ver. 1, 2</A>.
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II. The assurance which God, by the prophet, sent him for his
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encouragement, that the attempt should be defeated and Jerusalem should
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be preserved,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:3-9">ver. 3-9</A>.
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III. The confirmation of this by a sign which God gave to Ahaz, when he
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refused to ask one, referring to Christ, and our redemption by him,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:10-16">ver. 10-16</A>.
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IV. A threatening of the great desolation that God would bring upon
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Ahaz and his kingdom by the Assyrians, notwithstanding their escape
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from this present storm, because they went on still in their wickedness,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:17-25">ver. 17-25</A>.
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And this is written both for our comfort and for our admonition.</P>
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</FONT>
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<A NAME="Isa7_1"> </A>
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<A NAME="Isa7_2"> </A>
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<A NAME="Isa7_3"> </A>
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<A NAME="Isa7_4"> </A>
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<A NAME="Isa7_5"> </A>
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<A NAME="Isa7_6"> </A>
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<A NAME="Isa7_7"> </A>
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<A NAME="Isa7_8"> </A>
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<A NAME="Isa7_9"> </A>
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<A NAME="Sec1"> </A>
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<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
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<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>The Distress of Ahaz; Comfort Administered to Ahaz.</I></FONT></TD>
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<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 740.</TD></TR>
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<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
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</TABLE>
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<P>
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<FONT SIZE=+1>1 And it came to pass in the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham,
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the son of Uzziah, king of Judah, <I>that</I> Rezin the king of Syria,
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and Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, went up toward
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Jerusalem to war against it, but could not prevail against it.
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2 And it was told the house of David, saying, Syria is
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confederate with Ephraim. And his heart was moved, and the heart
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of his people, as the trees of the wood are moved with the wind.
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3 Then said the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> unto Isaiah, Go forth now to meet Ahaz,
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thou, and Shear-jashub thy son, at the end of the conduit of the
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upper pool in the highway of the fuller's field;
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4 And say unto him, Take heed, and be quiet; fear not, neither
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be fainthearted for the two tails of these smoking firebrands,
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for the fierce anger of Rezin with Syria, and of the son of
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Remaliah.
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5 Because Syria, Ephraim, and the son of Remaliah, have taken
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evil counsel against thee, saying,
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6 Let us go up against Judah, and vex it, and let us make a
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breach therein for us, and set a king in the midst of it, <I>even</I>
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the son of Tabeal:
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7 Thus saith the Lord G<FONT SIZE=-1><B>OD</B></FONT>, It shall not stand, neither shall it
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come to pass.
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8 For the head of Syria <I>is</I> Damascus, and the head of Damascus
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<I>is</I> Rezin; and within threescore and five years shall Ephraim be
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broken, that it be not a people.
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9 And the head of Ephraim <I>is</I> Samaria, and the head of Samaria
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<I>is</I> Remaliah's son. If ye will not believe, surely ye shall not
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be established.
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</FONT></P>
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<P>
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The prophet Isaiah had his commission renewed in the year that king
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Uzziah died,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+6:1"><I>ch.</I> vi. 1</A>.
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Jotham his son reigned, and reigned well, sixteen years. All that time,
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no doubt, Isaiah prophesied as he was commanded, and yet we have not in
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this book any of his prophecies dated in the reign of Jotham; but this,
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which is put first, was in the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham. Many
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excellent useful sermons he preached which were not published and left
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upon record; for, if all that was memorable had been written, <I>the
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world could not have contained the books,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Joh+21:25">John xxi. 25</A>.
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Perhaps in the reign of Ahaz, a wicked king, he had not opportunity to
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preach so much at court as in Jotham's time, and therefore then he
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wrote the more, for a testimony against them. Here is,</P>
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<P>
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I. A very formidable design laid against Jerusalem by Rezin king of
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Syria and Pekah king of Israel, two neighbouring potentates, who had of
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late made descents upon Judah severally. At the end of the reign of
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Jotham, <I>the Lord began to send against Judah Rezin and Pekah,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ki+15:37">2 Kings xv. 37</A>.
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But now, in the second or third year of the reign of Ahaz, encouraged
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by their former successes, they entered into an alliance against Judah.
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Because Ahaz, though he found the sword over his head, began his reign
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with idolatry, <I>God delivered him into the hand of the king of Syria
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and of the king of Israel</I>
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+28:5">2 Chron. xxviii. 5</A>),
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and a great slaughter they made in his kingdom,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:6,7"><I>v.</I> 6, 7</A>.
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Flushed with this victory, they went up towards Jerusalem, the royal
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city, to war against it, to besiege it, and make themselves masters of
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it; but it proved in the issue that they could not gain their point.
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Note, The sin of a land brings foreign invasions upon it and betrays
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the most advantageous posts and passes to the enemy; and God sometimes
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makes one wicked nation a scourge to another; but judgment, ordinarily,
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begins at the house of God.</P>
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<P>
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II. The great distress that Ahaz and his court were in when they
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received advice of this design: <I>It was told the house of David</I>
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that Syria and Ephraim had signed a league against Judah,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:2"><I>v.</I> 2</A>.
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This degenerate royal family is called the <I>house of David,</I> to
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put us in mind of that article of God's covenant with David
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ps+89:30-33">Ps. lxxxix. 30-33</A>),
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<I>If his children forsake my law, I will chasten their transgression
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with the rod; but my loving-kindness will I not utterly take away,</I>
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which is remarkably fulfilled in this chapter. News being brought that
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the two armies of Syria and Israel were joined, and had taken the
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field, the court, the city, and the country, were thrown into
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consternation; <I>The heart of Ahaz was moved with fear,</I> and then
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no wonder that <I>the heart of his people was so, as the trees of the
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wood are moved with the wind.</I> They were tossed and shaken, and put
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into a great disorder and confusion, were wavering and uncertain in
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their counsels, hurried hither and thither, and could not fix in any
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steady resolution. They yielded to the storm, and gave up all for gone,
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concluding it in vain to make any resistance. Now that which caused
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this fright was the sense of guilt and the weakness of their faith.
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They had made God their enemy, and knew not how to make him their
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friend, and therefore their fears tyrannised over them; while those
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whose consciences are kept <I>void of offence, and whose hearts are
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fixed, trusting in God, need not be afraid of evil tidings; though the
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earth be removed, yet will not they fear; but the wicked flee at the
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shaking of a leaf,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Le+26:36">Lev. xxvi. 36</A>.</P>
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<P>
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III. The orders and directions given to Isaiah to go and encourage Ahaz
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in his distress; not for his own sake (he deserved to hear nothing from
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God but words of terror, which might add affliction to his grief), but
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because he was a son of David and king of Judah. God had kindness for
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him for his father's sake, who must not be forgotten, and for his
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people's sake, who must not be abandoned, but would be encouraged if
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Ahaz were. Observe,</P>
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<P>
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1. God appointed the prophet to meet Ahaz, though he did not send to
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the prophet to speak with him, nor desire him to enquire of the Lord
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for him
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:3"><I>v.</I> 3</A>):
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<I>Go to meet Ahaz.</I> Note, God is often found of those who seek him
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not, much more will he be found of those who seek him diligently. He
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speaks comfort to many who not only are not worthy of it, but do not so
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much as enquire after it.</P>
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<P>
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2. He ordered him to take his little son with him, because he carried a
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sermon in his name, <I>Shear-jashub--A remnant shall return.</I> The
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prophets sometimes recorded what they preached in the significant names
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of their children (as
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ho+1:4,6,9">Hos. i. 4, 6, 9</A>);
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therefore Isaiah's children are said to be <I>for signs,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+8:18"><I>ch.</I> viii. 18</A>.
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This son was so called for the encouragement of those of God's people
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who were carried captive, assuring them that they should return, at
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least a remnant of them, which was more than they could pretend to
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merit; yet at this time God was better than his word; for he took care
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not only that a remnant should return, but the whole number of those
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whom the confederate forces of Syria and Israel had taken prisoners,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+28:15">2 Chron. xxviii. 15</A>.</P>
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<P>
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3. He directed him where he should find Ahaz. He was to meet with him
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not in the temple, or the synagogue, or royal chapel, but <I>at the end
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of the conduit of the upper pool,</I> where he was, probably with many
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of his servants about him, contriving how to order the water-works, so
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as to secure them to the city, or deprive the enemy of the benefits of
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them
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+22:9-11,2Ch+32:3,4"><I>ch.</I> xxii. 9-11; 2 Chron. xxxii. 3, 4</A>),
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or giving some necessary directions for the fortifying of the city as
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well as they could; and perhaps finding every thing in a bad posture or
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defence, the conduit out of repair, as well as other things gone to
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decay, his fears increased, and he was now in greater perplexity than
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ever; therefore, <I>Go, meet him there.</I> Note, God sometimes sends
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comforts to his people very seasonably, and, what time they are most
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afraid, encourages them to trust in him.</P>
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<P>
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4. He put words in his mouth, else the prophet would not have known how
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to bring a message of good to such a bad man, a sinner in Zion, that
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ought to be afraid; but God intended it for the support of faithful
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Israelites.</P>
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<P>
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(1.) The prophet must rebuke their fears, and advise them by no means
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to yield to them, but keep their temper, and preserve the possession of
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their own souls
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:4"><I>v.</I> 4</A>):
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<I>Take heed, and be quiet.</I> Note, In order to comfort there is need
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of caution; that we may be quiet, it is necessary that we take heed and
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watch against those things that threaten to disquiet us. "Fear not with
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this amazement, this fear, that weakens, and has torment; neither
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<I>let thy heart be tender,</I> so as to melt and fail within thee; but
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pluck up thy spirits, have a good heart on it, and be courageous; let
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not fear betray the succours which reason and religion offer for thy
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support." Note, Those who expect God should help them must help
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themselves,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ps+27:14">Ps. xxvii. 14</A>.</P>
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<P>
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(2.) He must teach them to despise their enemies, not in pride, or
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security, or incogitancy (nothing more dangerous than so to despise an
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enemy), but in faith and dependence upon God. Ahaz's fear called them
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two powerful politic princes, for either of whom he was an unequal
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match, but, if united, he durst not look them in the face, nor make
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head against them. "No," says the prophet, "they are <I>two tails of
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smoking firebrands;</I> they are angry, they are fierce, they are
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furious, as firebrands, as fireballs; and they make one another worse
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by being in a confederacy, as sticks of fire put together burn the more
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violently. But they are only smoking firebrands: and where there is
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smoke there is some fire, but it may be not so much as was feared.
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Their threatenings will vanish into smoke. <I>Pharaoh king of Egypt is
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but a noise</I>
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+46:17">Jer. xlvi. 17</A>),
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and Rezin king of Syria but a smoke; and such are all the enemies of
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God's church, <I>smoking flax,</I> that will soon be quenched. Nay,
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they are but <I>tails</I> of smoking firebrands, in a manner burnt out
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already; their force is spent; they have consumed themselves with the
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heat of their own anger; you may put your foot on them, and tread them
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out." The two kingdoms of Syria and Israel were now near expiring.
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Note, The more we have an eye to God as a consuming fire the less
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reason we shall have to fear men, though they are ever so furious, nay,
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we shall be able to despise them as smoking firebrands.</P>
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<P>
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(3.) He must assure them that the present design of these high allies
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(so they thought themselves) against Jerusalem should certainly be
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defeated and come to nothing,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:5-7"><I>v.</I> 5-7</A>.
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[1.] That very thing which Ahaz thought most formidable is made the
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ground of their defeat--and that was the depth of their designs and the
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height of their hopes: "<I>Therefore</I> they shall be baffled and sent
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back with shame, <I>because they have taken evil counsel against
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thee,</I> which is an offence to God. These firebrands are a <I>smoke
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in his nose</I>
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+65:5"><I>ch.</I> lxv. 5</A>),
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and therefore must be extinguished." <I>First,</I> They are very
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spiteful and malicious, and, therefore they shall not prosper. Judah
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had done them no wrong; they had no pretence to quarrel with Ahaz; but,
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without any reason, they said, <I>Let us go up against Judah, and vex
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it.</I> Note, Those that are vexatious cannot expect to be prosperous,
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those that love to do mischief cannot expect to do well.
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<I>Secondly,</I> They are very secure, and confident of success. They
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will vex Judah by going up against it; yet that is not all: they do not
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doubt but to make a breach in the wall of Jerusalem wide enough for
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them to march their army in at; or they count upon dissecting or
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dividing the kingdom into two parts, one for the king of Israel, the
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other for the king of Syria, who had agreed in one viceroy--<I>a
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king</I> to be <I>set in the midst of it, even the son of Tabeal,</I>
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some obscure person, it is uncertain whether a Syrian or an Israelite.
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So sure were they of gaining their point that they divided the prey
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before they had caught it. Note, Those that are most scornful are
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commonly least successful, for surely God scorns the scorners.
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[2.] God himself gives them his word that the attempt should not take
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effect
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:7"><I>v.</I> 7</A>):
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"<I>Thus saith the Lord God,</I> the sovereign Lord of all, who
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<I>brings the counsel of the heathen to naught</I>
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ps+33:10">Ps. xxxiii. 10</A>),
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<I>It shall not stand, neither shall it come to pass;</I> their
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measures shall all be broken, and they shall not be able to bring to
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pass their enterprise." Note, Whatever stands against God, or thinks to
|
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stand without him, cannot stand long. Man purposes, but God disposes;
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and <I>who is he that saith and it cometh to pass if the Lord commands
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it not or countermands it?</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=La+3:37">Lam. iii. 37</A>.
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See
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Pr+19:21">Prov. xix. 21</A>.</P>
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<P>
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(4.) He must give them a prospect of the destruction of these enemies,
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at last, that were now such a terror to them.
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[1.] They should neither of them enlarge their dominions, nor push
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their conquests any further; <I>The head city of Syria is Damascus, and
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|
the head man of Damascus is Rezin;</I> this he glories in, and this let
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him be content with,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:8"><I>v.</I> 8</A>.
|
|
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|
<I>The head city of Ephraim</I> has long been <I>Samaria, and the head
|
|
man in Samaria is</I> now Pekah <I>the son of Remaliah.</I> These shall
|
|
be made to know their own, their bounds are fixed, and they shall not
|
|
pass them, to make themselves masters of the cities of Judah, much less
|
|
to make Jerusalem their prey. Note, As God has appointed men the
|
|
bounds of their habitation
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ac+17:26">Acts xvii. 26</A>),
|
|
|
|
so he has appointed princes the bounds of their dominion, within which
|
|
they ought to confine themselves, and not encroach upon their
|
|
neighbours' rights.
|
|
|
|
[2.] Ephraim, which perhaps was the more malicious and forward enemy of
|
|
the two, should shortly be quite rooted out, and should be so far from
|
|
seizing other people's lands that they should not be able to hold their
|
|
own. Interpreters are much at a loss how to compute the sixty-five
|
|
years within which <I>Ephraim shall cease to be a people;</I> for the
|
|
captivity of the ten tribes was but eleven years after this: and some
|
|
make it a mistake of the transcriber, and think it should be read
|
|
<I>within six and five years,</I> just eleven. But it is hard to allow
|
|
that. Others make it to be sixty-five years from the time that the
|
|
prophet Amos first foretold the ruin of the kingdom of the ten tribes;
|
|
and some late interpreters make it to look as far forward as the last
|
|
desolation of that country by Esarhaddon, which was about sixty-five
|
|
years after this; then Ephraim was so broken that it was no more a
|
|
people. Now it was the greatest folly in the world for those to be
|
|
ruining their neighbours who were themselves marked for ruin, and so
|
|
near to it. See what a prophet told them at this time, when they were
|
|
triumphing over Judah,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+28:10">2 Chron. xxviii. 10</A>.
|
|
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|
<I>Are there not with you, even with you, sins against the Lord your
|
|
God?</I></P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
(5.) He must urge them to mix faith with those assurances which he had
|
|
given them
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:9"><I>v.</I> 9</A>):
|
|
|
|
"<I>If you will not believe</I> what is said to you, <I>surely you
|
|
shall not be established;</I> your shaken and disordered state shall
|
|
not be established, your unquiet unsettled spirit shall not; though the
|
|
things told you are very encouraging, yet they will not be so to you,
|
|
unless you believe them, and be willing to take God's word." Note, The
|
|
grace of faith is absolutely necessary to the quieting and composing of
|
|
the mind in the midst of all the tosses of this present time,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+20:20">2 Chron. xx. 20</A>.</P>
|
|
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|
<A NAME="Isa7_10"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa7_11"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa7_12"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa7_13"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa7_14"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa7_15"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa7_16"> </A>
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Sec2"> </A>
|
|
<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
|
|
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>The Promise of Immanuel.</I></FONT></TD>
|
|
<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 740.</TD></TR>
|
|
<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
|
|
</TABLE>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
<FONT SIZE=+1>10 Moreover the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> spake again unto Ahaz, saying,
|
|
11 Ask thee a sign of the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> thy God; ask it either in the
|
|
depth, or in the height above.
|
|
12 But Ahaz said, I will not ask, neither will I tempt the
|
|
L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>.
|
|
13 And he said, Hear ye now, O house of David; <I>Is it</I> a small
|
|
thing for you to weary men, but will ye weary my God also?
|
|
14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a
|
|
virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name
|
|
Immanuel.
|
|
15 Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse
|
|
the evil, and choose the good.
|
|
16 For before the child shall know to refuse the evil, and
|
|
choose the good, the land that thou abhorrest shall be forsaken
|
|
of both her kings.
|
|
</FONT></P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
Here,
|
|
|
|
I. God, by the prophet, makes a gracious offer to Ahaz, to confirm the
|
|
foregoing predictions, and his faith in them, by such sign or miracle
|
|
as he should choose
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:10,11"><I>v.</I> 10, 11</A>):
|
|
|
|
<I>Ask thee a sign of the Lord thy God;</I> See here the divine
|
|
faithfulness and veracity. God tells us nothing but what he is able and
|
|
ready to prove. See his wonderful condescension to the children of men,
|
|
in that he is so <I>willing to show to the heirs of promise the
|
|
immutability of his counsel,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Heb+6:17">Heb. vi. 17</A>.
|
|
|
|
He considers our frame, and that, living in a world of sense, we are
|
|
apt to require sensible proofs, which therefore he has favoured us with
|
|
in sacramental signs and seals. Ahaz was a bad man, yet God is called
|
|
the Lord his God, because he was a child of Abraham and David, and of
|
|
the covenants made with them. See how gracious God is even to the evil
|
|
and unthankful; Ahaz is bidden to choose his sign, as Gideon about the
|
|
fleece
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jdg+6:37">Judg. vi. 37</A>);
|
|
|
|
let him ask for a sign in the air, or earth, or water, for God's power
|
|
is the same in all.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
II. Ahaz rudely refuses this gracious offer, and (which is not mannerly
|
|
towards any superior) kicks at the courtesy, and puts a slight upon it
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:12"><I>v.</I> 12</A>):
|
|
|
|
<I>I will not ask.</I> The true reason why he would not ask for a sign
|
|
was because, having a dependence upon the Assyrians, their forces, and
|
|
their gods, for help, he would not thus far be beholden to the God of
|
|
Israel, or lay himself under obligations to him. He would not ask a
|
|
sign for the confirming of his faith because he resolved to persist in
|
|
his unbelief, and would indulge his doubts and distrusts; yet he
|
|
pretends a pious reason: <I>I will not tempt the Lord;</I> as if it
|
|
would be a tempting of God to do that which God himself invited and
|
|
directed him to do. Note, A secret disaffection to God is often
|
|
disguised with the specious colours of respect to him; and those who
|
|
are resolved that they will not trust God yet pretend that they will
|
|
not tempt him.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
III. The prophet reproves him and his court, him and the house of
|
|
David, the whole royal family, for their contempt of prophecy, and the
|
|
little value they had for divine revelation
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:13"><I>v.</I> 13</A>)
|
|
|
|
"<I>Is it a small thing for you to weary men</I> by your oppression and
|
|
tyranny, with which you make yourselves burdensome and odious to all
|
|
mankind? But <I>will you weary my God also</I> with the affronts you
|
|
put upon him?" As the unjust judge that neither <I>feared God nor
|
|
regarded man,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Lu+18:2">Luke xviii. 2</A>.
|
|
|
|
<I>You have wearied the Lord with your words,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Mal+2:17">Mal. ii. 17</A>.
|
|
|
|
Nothing is more grievous to the God of heaven than to be distrusted.
|
|
"<I>Will you weary my God?</I> Will you suppose him to be tired and
|
|
unable to help you, or to be weary of doing you good? Whereas <I>the
|
|
youths may faint and be weary,</I> you may have tired all your friends,
|
|
<I>the Creator of the ends of the earth faints not, neither is
|
|
weary.</I>"
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+40:28-31"><I>ch.</I> xl. 28-31</A>.
|
|
|
|
Or this: "In affronting the prophets, you think you put a slight only
|
|
upon men like yourselves, and consider not that you affront God
|
|
himself, whose messengers they are, and put a slight upon him, who will
|
|
resent it accordingly." The prophet here calls God his God with a great
|
|
deal of pleasure: Ahaz would not say, He is my God, though the prophet
|
|
had invited him to say so
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:11"><I>v.</I> 11</A>):
|
|
|
|
<I>The Lord thy God;</I> but Isaiah will say, "He is mine." Note,
|
|
Whatever others do, we must avouch the Lord for ours and abide by
|
|
him.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
IV. The prophet, in God's name, gives them a sign: "You will not ask a
|
|
sign, but the unbelief of man shall not make the promise of God of no
|
|
effect: <I>The Lord himself shall give you a sign</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:14"><I>v.</I> 14</A>),
|
|
|
|
a double sign."</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
1. "A sign in general of his good-will to Israel and to the house of
|
|
David. You may conclude it that he has mercy in store for you, and that
|
|
you are not forsaken of your God, how great soever your present
|
|
distress and danger are; for of your nation, of your family, the
|
|
Messiah is to be born, and you cannot be destroyed while that blessing
|
|
is in you, which shall be introduced,"
|
|
|
|
(1.) "In a glorious manner; for, whereas you have been often told that
|
|
he should be born among you, I am now further to tell you that he shall
|
|
be born of a virgin, which will signify both the divine power and the
|
|
divine purity with which he shall be brought into the world,--that he
|
|
shall be a extraordinary person, for he shall not be born by ordinary
|
|
generation,--and that he shall be a holy thing, not stained with the
|
|
common pollutions of the human nature, therefore incontestably fit to
|
|
have the throne of his father David given him." Now this, though it was
|
|
to be accomplished above 500 years after, was a most encouraging sign
|
|
to the house of David (and to them, under that title, this prophecy is
|
|
directed,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:13"><I>v.</I> 13</A>)
|
|
|
|
and an assurance that God would not cast them off. Ephraim did indeed
|
|
envy Judah
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+11:13"><I>ch.</I> xi. 13</A>)
|
|
|
|
and sought the ruin of that kingdom, but could not prevail; for the
|
|
sceptre should never depart from Judah till the coming of Shiloh,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+49:10">Gen. xlix. 10</A>.
|
|
|
|
Those whom God designs for the great salvation may take that for a sign
|
|
to them that they shall not be swallowed up by any trouble they meet
|
|
with in the way.
|
|
|
|
(2.) The Messiah shall be introduced on a glorious errand, wrapped up
|
|
in his glorious name: They <I>shall call his name Immanuel--God with
|
|
us,</I> God in our nature, God at peace with us, in covenant with us.
|
|
This was fulfilled in their calling him <I>Jesus--a Saviour</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Mt+1:21-25">Matt. i. 21-25</A>),
|
|
|
|
for, if he had not been <I>Immanuel--God with us,</I> he could not have
|
|
been <I>Jesus--a Saviour.</I> Now this was a further sign of God's
|
|
favour to the house of David and the tribe of Judah; for he that
|
|
intended to work this great salvation among them no doubt would work
|
|
out for them all those other salvations which were to be the types and
|
|
figures of this, and as it were preludes to this. "Here is a sign for
|
|
you, not in the depth nor in the height, but in the prophecy, in the
|
|
promise, in the covenant made with David, which you are no strangers
|
|
to. The promised seed shall be Immanuel, <I>God with us;</I> let that
|
|
word comfort you
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+8:10"><I>ch.</I> viii. 10</A>),
|
|
|
|
that <I>God is with us,</I> and
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:8"><I>v.</I> 8</A>)
|
|
|
|
that your land is Immanuel's land. Let not <I>the heart of the house of
|
|
David</I> be moved thus
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:2"><I>v.</I> 2</A>),
|
|
|
|
nor let Judah fear the setting up of the son of Tabeal
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:6"><I>v.</I> 6</A>),
|
|
|
|
for nothing can cut off the entail on the Son of David that shall be
|
|
Immanuel." Note, The strongest consolations, in time of trouble, are
|
|
those which are borrowed from Christ, our relation to him, our interest
|
|
in him, and our expectations of him and from him. Of this child it is
|
|
further foretold
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:15"><I>v.</I> 15</A>)
|
|
|
|
that though he shall not be born like other children, but of a virgin,
|
|
yet he shall be really and truly man, and shall be nursed and brought
|
|
up like other children: <I>Butter and honey shall he eat,</I> as other
|
|
children do, particularly the children of that land which <I>flowed
|
|
with milk and honey.</I> Though he be conceived by the power of the
|
|
Holy Ghost, yet he shall not therefore be fed with angels' food, but,
|
|
as it becomes him, shall be <I>in all things made like unto his
|
|
brethren,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Heb+2:17">Heb. ii. 17</A>.
|
|
|
|
Nor shall he, though born thus by extraordinary generation, be a man
|
|
immediately, but, as other children, shall advance gradually through
|
|
the several states of infancy, childhood, and youth, to that of
|
|
manhood, and growing in wisdom and stature, shall at length wax strong
|
|
in spirit, and come to maturity, so as to know how <I>to refuse the
|
|
evil and choose the good.</I> See
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Lu+2:40,52">Luke ii. 40, 52</A>.
|
|
|
|
Note, Children are fed when they are little that they may be taught and
|
|
instructed when they have grown up; they have their maintenance in
|
|
order to their education.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
2. Here is another sign in particular of the speedy destruction of
|
|
these potent princes that were now a terror to Judah,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:16"><I>v.</I> 16</A>.
|
|
|
|
"Before <I>this</I> child (so it should be read), this child which I
|
|
have now in my arms" (he means not Immanuel, but Shear-jashub his own
|
|
son, whom he was ordered to take with him for a sign,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:3"><I>v.</I> 3</A>),
|
|
|
|
"before this <I>child shall know how to refuse the evil and choose the
|
|
good</I>" (and those who saw what his present stature and forwardness
|
|
were would easily conjecture how long that would be), "before this
|
|
child be three or four years older, <I>the land that thou
|
|
abhorrest,</I> these confederate forces of Israelites and Syrians,
|
|
which thou hast such an enmity to and standest in such dread of,
|
|
<I>shall be forsaken of both their kings,</I> both Pekah and Rezin,"
|
|
who were in so close an alliance that they seemed as if they were the
|
|
kings of but one kingdom. This was fully accomplished; for within two
|
|
or three years after this, Hoshea conspired against Pekah, and slew him
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ki+15:30">2 Kings xv. 30</A>),
|
|
|
|
and, before that, the king of Assyria took Damascus, and slew Rezin,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ki+16:9">2 Kings xvi. 9</A>.
|
|
|
|
Nay, there was a present event, which happened immediately, and when
|
|
this child carried the prediction of in his name, which was a pledge
|
|
and earnest of this future event. <I>Shear-jashub</I> signifies <I>The
|
|
remnant shall return,</I> which doubtless points at the wonderful
|
|
return of those 200,000 captives whom Pekah and Rezin had carried away,
|
|
who were brought back, not by might or power, but by the Spirit of the
|
|
Lord of hosts. Read the story,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+28:8-15">2 Chron. xxviii. 8-15</A>.
|
|
|
|
The prophetical naming of this child having thus had its
|
|
accomplishment, no doubt this, which was further added concerning him,
|
|
should have its accomplishment likewise, that Syria and Israel should
|
|
be deprived of both their kings. One mercy from God encourages us to
|
|
hope for another, if it engages us to prepare for another.</P>
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Isa7_17"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa7_18"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa7_19"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa7_20"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa7_21"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa7_22"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa7_23"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa7_24"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa7_25"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa7_26"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa7_27"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa7_28"> </A>
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Sec3"> </A>
|
|
<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
|
|
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>Judgments Announced.</I></FONT></TD>
|
|
<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 740.</TD></TR>
|
|
<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
|
|
</TABLE>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
<FONT SIZE=+1>17 The L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> shall bring upon thee, and upon thy people, and
|
|
upon thy father's house, days that have not come, from the day
|
|
that Ephraim departed from Judah; <I>even</I> the king of Assyria.
|
|
18 And it shall come to pass in that day, <I>that</I> the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> shall
|
|
hiss for the fly that <I>is</I> in the uttermost part of the rivers of
|
|
Egypt, and for the bee that <I>is</I> in the land of Assyria.
|
|
19 And they shall come, and shall rest all of them in the
|
|
desolate valleys, and in the holes of the rocks, and upon all
|
|
thorns, and upon all bushes.
|
|
20 In the same day shall the Lord shave with a razor that is
|
|
hired, <I>namely,</I> by them beyond the river, by the king of
|
|
Assyria, the head, and the hair of the feet: and it shall also
|
|
consume the beard.
|
|
21 And it shall come to pass in that day, <I>that</I> a man shall
|
|
nourish a young cow, and two sheep;
|
|
22 And it shall come to pass, for the abundance of milk <I>that</I>
|
|
they shall give he shall eat butter: for butter and honey shall
|
|
every one eat that is left in the land.
|
|
23 And it shall come to pass in that day, <I>that</I> every place
|
|
shall be, where there were a thousand vines at a thousand
|
|
silverlings, it shall <I>even</I> be for briers and thorns.
|
|
24 With arrows and with bows shall <I>men</I> come thither; because
|
|
all the land shall become briers and thorns.
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25 And <I>on</I> all hills that shall be digged with the mattock,
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there shall not come thither the fear of briers and thorns: but
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it shall be for the sending forth of oxen, and for the treading
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of lesser cattle.
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</FONT></P>
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<P>
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|
After the comfortable promises made to Ahaz as a branch of the house of
|
|
David, here follow terrible threatenings against him, as a degenerate
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|
branch of that house; for though the loving-kindness of God shall not
|
|
be utterly taken away, for the sake of David and the covenant made with
|
|
him, yet his iniquity shall be <I>chastened with the rod,</I> and his
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|
sin with stripes. Let those that will not mix faith with the promises
|
|
of God expect to hear the alarms of his threatenings.</P>
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|
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<P>
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|
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|
I. The judgment threatened is very great,
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|
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|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:17"><I>v.</I> 17</A>.
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It is very great, for it is general; it shall be brought upon the
|
|
prince himself (high as he is, he shall not be out of the reach of it),
|
|
and upon the people, the whole body of the nation, and upon the royal
|
|
family, <I>upon</I> all <I>thy father's house;</I> it shall be a
|
|
judgment entailed on posterity, and shall go along with the royal
|
|
blood. It is very great, for it shall be unprecedented--<I>days that
|
|
have not come;</I> so dark, so gloomy, so melancholy, as never were the
|
|
like since the revolt of the ten tribes, when Ephraim departed from
|
|
Judah, which was indeed a sad time to the house of David. Note, The
|
|
longer men continue in sin the sorer punishments they have reason to
|
|
expect. It is the Lord that will bring these days upon them, for our
|
|
times are in his hand, and who can resist or escape the judgments he
|
|
brings?</P>
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|
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<P>
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|
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II. The enemy that should be employed as the instrument of this
|
|
judgment is the king of Assyria. Ahaz reposed great confidence in that
|
|
prince for help against the confederate powers of Israel and Syria, and
|
|
minded the less what God said to him by his prophet for his
|
|
encouragement because he built much upon his interest in the king of
|
|
Assyria, and had meanly promised to be his servant if he would send him
|
|
some succours; he had also, made him a present of gold and silver, for
|
|
which he drained the treasures both of church and state,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ki+16:7,8">2 Kings xvi. 7, 8</A>.
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|
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|
Now God threatens that that king of Assyria whom he made his stay
|
|
instead of God should become a scourge to him. He was so speedily; for,
|
|
when he <I>came to him, he distressed him, but strengthened him not</I>
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|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+28:20">2 Chron. xxviii. 20</A>),
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|
|
|
the reed not only broke under him, but ran into his hand, and pierced
|
|
it, and thenceforward the kings of Assyria were, for a long time,
|
|
grieving thorns to Judah, and gave them a great deal of trouble. Note,
|
|
The creature that we make our hope commonly proves our hurt. The king
|
|
of Assyria, not long after this, made himself master of the ten tribes,
|
|
carried them captive, and laid their country waste, so as fully to
|
|
answer the prediction here; and perhaps it may refer to that, as an
|
|
explication of
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:8"><I>v.</I> 8</A>,
|
|
|
|
where it is foretold that Ephraim shall be broken, that it shall not be
|
|
a people; and it is easy to suppose that the prophet (at
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:17"><I>v.</I> 17</A>)
|
|
|
|
turns his speech to the king of Israel, denouncing God's judgments
|
|
against him for invading Judah. But the expositors universally
|
|
understand it of Ahaz and his kingdom. Now observe,
|
|
|
|
1. Summons given to the invaders
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:18"><I>v.</I> 18</A>):
|
|
|
|
<I>The Lord shall whistle for the fly and the bee.</I> See
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+5:26"><I>ch.</I> v. 26</A>.
|
|
|
|
Enemies that seem as contemptible as a fly or a bee, and are as easily
|
|
crushed, shall yet, when God pleases, do his work as effectually as
|
|
lions and young lions. Though they are as far distant from one another
|
|
as the rivers of Egypt and the land of Assyria, yet they shall
|
|
punctually meet to join in this work when God commands their
|
|
attendance; for, when God has work to do, he will not be at a loss for
|
|
instruments to do it with.
|
|
|
|
2. Possession taken by them,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:19"><I>v.</I> 19</A>.
|
|
|
|
It should seem as if the country were in no condition to make
|
|
resistance. They find no difficulties in forcing their way, but
|
|
<I>come and rest all of them in the desolate valleys,</I> which the
|
|
inhabitants had deserted upon the first alarm, and left them a cheap
|
|
and easy prey to the invaders. They shall come and rest in the low
|
|
grounds like swarms of flies and bees, and shall render themselves
|
|
impregnable by taking shelter in the holes of the rocks, as bees often
|
|
do, and showing themselves formidable by appearing openly upon all
|
|
thorns and all bushes; so generally shall the land be overspread with
|
|
them. These bees shall knit upon the thorns and bushes, and there rest
|
|
undisturbed.
|
|
|
|
3. Great desolations made, and the country generally depopulated
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:20"><I>v.</I> 20</A>):
|
|
|
|
<I>The Lord shall shave the hair of the head, and beard, and feet;</I>
|
|
he shall sweep all away, as the leper, when he was cleansed, <I>shaved
|
|
off all his hair,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Le+14:8,9">Lev. xiv. 8, 9</A>.
|
|
|
|
This is done with a razor which is hired, either which God has hired
|
|
(as if he had none of his own; but what he hires, and whom he employs
|
|
in any service for him, he will pay for. See
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+29:18,19">Ezek. xxix. 18, 19</A>),
|
|
|
|
or which Ahaz has hired for his assistance. God will make that to be
|
|
an instrument of his destruction which he hired into his service. Note,
|
|
Many are beaten with that arm of flesh which they trusted to rather
|
|
than to the arm of the Lord, and which they were at a great expense
|
|
upon, when by faith and prayer they might have found cheap and easy
|
|
succour in God.
|
|
|
|
4. The consequences of this general depopulation.
|
|
|
|
(1.) The flocks of cattle shall be all destroyed, so that a man who had
|
|
herds and flocks in abundance shall be stripped of them all by the
|
|
enemy, and shall with much ado save for his own use a young cow and two
|
|
sheep--a poor stock
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:21"><I>v.</I> 21</A>),
|
|
|
|
yet he shall think himself happy in having any left.
|
|
|
|
(2.) The few cattle that are left shall have such a large compass of
|
|
ground to feed in that <I>they shall give abundance of milk,</I> and
|
|
very good milk, such as shall produce butter enough,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:22"><I>v.</I> 22</A>.
|
|
|
|
There shall also be such want of men that the milk of one cow and two
|
|
sheep shall serve a whole family, which used to keep abundance of
|
|
servants and consume a great deal, but is now reduced.
|
|
|
|
(3.) The breed of cattle shall be destroyed; so that those who used to
|
|
eat flesh ( as the Jews commonly did) shall be necessitated to confine
|
|
themselves to butter and honey, for there shall be no flesh for them;
|
|
and the country shall be so depopulated that there shall be butter and
|
|
honey enough for the few that are left in it.
|
|
|
|
(4.) Good land, that used to be let well, shall be all overrun with
|
|
briers and thorns
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:23"><I>v.</I> 23</A>);
|
|
|
|
where there used to be a thousand vines planted, for which the tenants
|
|
used to pay a thousand shekels, or pieces of silver, yearly rent, there
|
|
shall be nothing now but briers and thorns, no profit either for
|
|
landlord or tenant, all being laid waste by the army of the invaders.
|
|
Note, God can soon turn a fruitful land into barrenness; and it is just
|
|
with him to turn vines into briers if we, instead of bringing forth
|
|
grapes to him, bring forth wild grapes,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+5:4"><I>ch.</I> v. 4</A>.
|
|
|
|
(5.) The implements of husbandry shall be turned into instruments of
|
|
war,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:24"><I>v.</I> 24</A>.
|
|
|
|
The whole land having become briers and thorns, the grounds that men
|
|
used to come to with sickles and pruning-hooks to gather in the fruits
|
|
they shall now come to with arrows and bows, to hunt for wild beasts in
|
|
the thickets, or to defend themselves from the robbers that lurk in the
|
|
bushes, seeking for prey, or to kill the serpents and venomous beasts
|
|
that are hid there. This denotes a very sad change of the face of that
|
|
pleasant land. But what melancholy change is there which sin will not
|
|
make with a people?
|
|
|
|
(6.) Where briers and thorns were wont to be of use and to do good
|
|
service, even in the hedges, for the defence of the enclosed grounds,
|
|
they shall be plucked up, and all laid in common. There shall be
|
|
briers and thorns in abundance where they should not be, but none where
|
|
they should be,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+7:25"><I>v.</I> 25</A>.
|
|
|
|
<I>The hills that shall be digged with the mattock,</I> for special
|
|
use, from which the cattle used to be kept off with the fear of briers
|
|
and thorns, shall now be thrown open, the <I>hedges broken down for the
|
|
boar out of the wood</I> to waste it,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ps+80:12,13">Ps. lxxx. 12, 13</A>.
|
|
|
|
It shall be left at large for oxen to run in and less cattle. See the
|
|
effect of sin and the curse; it has made the earth a forest of thorns
|
|
and thistles, except as it is forced into some order by the constant
|
|
care and labour of man. And see what folly it is to set our hearts upon
|
|
possessions of lands, be they every so fruitful, ever so pleasant; if
|
|
they lie ever so little neglected and uncultivated, or if they be
|
|
abused by a wasteful careless heir or tenant, or the country be laid
|
|
waste by war, they will soon become frightful deserts. Heaven is a
|
|
paradise not subject to such changes.</P>
|
|
|
|
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