Yǐsaìyàshū 7

1 Wū xī yǎ de sūnzi Yuētǎn de érzi Yóudà wáng Yàhāsī zaì wèi de shíhou , Yàlán wáng Lìxùn , hé lì mǎ lì de érzi Yǐsèliè wáng bǐ jiā shang lái gōngdǎ Yēlùsǎlĕng , què bùnéng gōng qǔ .

2 Yǒu rén gàosu Dàwèi jiā shuō , Yàlán yǔ Yǐfǎlián yǐjing tóngméng . wáng de xīn hé bǎixìng de xīn jiù dōu tiào dòng , hǎoxiàng lín zhōng de shù beì fēng chuī dòng yíyàng .

3 Yēhéhuá duì Yǐsaìyà shuō , nǐ hé nǐde érzi shī Yàyǎ shù chū qù , dào shang chí de shuǐgōu tóu , zaì piāo bù dì de dà lù shang , qù yíngjiē Yàhāsī .

4 Duì tā shuō , nǐ yào jǐnshèn ānjìng . búyào yīn Yàlán wáng Lìxùn , hé lì mǎ lì de érzi , zhè liǎng gĕ mào yān de huǒbǎ tóu suǒ fā de liè nù haìpà , yĕ búyào xīnli dǎnqiè .

5 Yīnwei Yàlán , hé Yǐfǎlián , bìng lì mǎ lì de érzi , shè è móu haì nǐ ,

6 Shuō , wǒmen kĕyǐ shang qù , gōngjī Yóutaì , rǎoluàn tā , gōng pò tā , zaì qízhōng lì tā bǐ lēi de érzi wèi wáng .

7 Suǒyǐ zhǔ Yēhéhuá rúcǐ shuō , zhè suǒ móu de bì lì bù zhù , yĕ bùdé chéngjiù .

8 Yuánlái Yàlán de shǒu chéng shì Dàmǎsè , Dàmǎsè de shǒulǐng shì Lìxùn . liù shí wǔ nián zhī neì , Yǐfǎlián bìrán pò huaì , bú zaì chéngwéi guó mín .

9 Yǐfǎlián de shòu shǒu chéng shì Sāmǎlìyà , Sāmǎlìyà de shǒulǐng shì lì mǎ lì de érzi . nǐmen ruò shì bú xìn , déng rán bùdé lì wĕn .

10 Yēhéhuá yòu xiǎoyù Yàhāsī shuō ,

11 Nǐ xiàng Yēhéhuá nǐde shén qiú yī ge zhào tóu . huò qiú xiǎn zaì shēn chù , huò qiú xiǎn zaì gāo chù .

12 Yàhāsī shuō , wǒ bù qiú , wǒ bù shìtan Yēhéhuá .

13 Yǐsaìyà shuō , Dàwèi jiā a , nǐmen dāng tīng . nǐmen shǐ rén yànfán qǐ suàn xiǎoshì , hái yào shǐ wǒde shén yànfán ma .

14 Yīncǐ , zhǔ zìjǐ yào gĕi nǐmen yī ge zhào tóu , bì yǒu tóngnǚ huáiyùn shēng zǐ , gĕi tā qǐmíng jiào Yǐmǎneìlì . ( jiù shì shén yǔ wǒmen tóng zaì de yìsi )

15 Dào tā xiǎodé qì è zé shàn de shíhou , tā bì chī nǎi yóu yǔ fēngmì .

16 Yīnwei zaì zhè háizi hái bù xiǎodé qì è zé shàn zhī xiān , nǐ suǒ zēngwù de nà liǎng wáng zhī dì , bì zhì jiàn qì .

17 Yēhéhuá bì shǐ Yàshù wáng gōngjī nǐde rìzi líndào , nǐ hé nǐde bǎixìng , bìng nǐde fù jiā , zì cóng Yǐfǎlián líkāi Yóutaì yǐlái , wèicéng yǒu zhèyàng de rìzi .

18 Nàshí , Yēhéhuá yào fā sī shēng , shǐ Āijí jiāng hé yuán tóu de cāngying , hé Yàshù dì de fēng zǐ fēi lái .

19 Dōu bì fēi lái ,luō zaì huāngliáng de yù neì , pánshí de xué lǐ , hé yīqiè jīngjí líba zhōng , bìng yīqiè de cǎo cháng shang .

20 Nàshí , zhǔ bì yòng dà hé waì lìn de tì tóu dāo , jiù shì Yàshù wáng , tì qù tóufa , hé jiǎo shang de maó , bìng yào tì jìng hú xū .

21 Nàshí , yī gèrén yào yǎnghuo yī zhī mǔ niúdú , liǎng zhī mǔ miányáng .

22 Yīnwei chū de nǎi duō , tā jiù dé chī nǎi yóu . zaì jìng neì suǒ shèng de rén , dōu yào chī nǎi yóu yǔ fēngmì .

23 Cóng qián fán zhǒng yī qiā kē pútàoshù , zhí yín yī qiā Shĕkèlè de dìfang , dào nàshí , bì zhǎng jīngjí hé jíli .

24 Rén shang nàli qù , bì daì gōng jiàn , yīnwei biàn dì mǎn le jīngjí hé jíli .

25 Suǒ yǒu yòng chú bào wā de shān dì , nǐ yīn pà jīngjí hé jíli , bù gǎn shang nàli qù . zhī kĕ chéng le fàng niú zhī chù , wèi yáng jiàntà zhī dì .

Yǐsaìyàshū 7 Commentary

Chapter 7

Ahaz threatened by Israel and Syria; and is assured their attack would be in vain. (1-9) God gives a sure sign by the promise of the long-expected Messiah. (10-16) The folly and sin of seeking relief from Assyria are reproved. (17-25)

Verses 1-9 Ungodly men are often punished by others as bad as themselves. Being in great distress and confusion, the Jews gave up all for lost. They had made God their enemy, and knew not how to make him their friend. The prophet must teach them to despise their enemies, in faith and dependence on God. Ahaz, in fear, called them two powerful princes. No, says the prophet, they are but tails of smoking firebrands, burnt out already. The two kingdoms of Syria and Israel were nearly expiring. While God has work for the firebrands of the earth, they consume all before them; but when their work is fulfilled, they will be extinguished in smoke. That which Ahaz thought most formidable, is made the ground of their defeat; because they have taken evil counsel against thee; which is an offence to God. God scorns the scorners, and gives his word that the attempt should not succeed. Man purposes, but God disposes. It was folly for those to be trying to ruin their neighbours, who were themselves near to ruin. Isaiah must urge the Jews to rely on the assurances given them. Faith is absolutely necessary to quiet and compose the mind in trials.

Verses 10-16 Secret disaffection to God is often disguised with the colour of respect to him; and those who are resolved that they will not trust God, yet pretend they will not tempt him. The prophet reproved Ahaz and his court, for the little value they had for Divine revelation. Nothing is more grievous to God than distrust, but the unbelief of man shall not make the promise of God of no effect; the Lord himself shall give a sign. How great soever your distress and danger, of you the Messiah is to be born, and you cannot be destroyed while that blessing is in you. It shall be brought to pass in a glorious manner; and the strongest consolations in time of trouble are derived from Christ, our relation to him, our interest in him, our expectations of him and from him. He would grow up like other children, by the use of the diet of those countries; but he would, unlike other children, uniformly refuse the evil and choose the good. And although his birth would be by the power of the Holy Ghost, yet he should not be fed with angels' food. Then follows a sign of the speedy destruction of the princes, now a terror to Judah. "Before this child," so it may be read; "this child which I have now in my arms," (Shear-jashub, the prophet's own son, ver. ( Isaiah 7:3 ) ,) shall be three or four years older, these enemies' forces shall be forsaken of both their kings. The prophecy is so solemn, the sign is so marked, as given by God himself after Ahaz rejected the offer, that it must have raised hopes far beyond what the present occasion suggested. And, if the prospect of the coming of the Divine Saviour was a never-failing support to the hopes of ancient believers, what cause have we to be thankful that the Word was made flesh! May we trust in and love Him, and copy his example.

Verses 17-25 Let those who will not believe the promises of God, expect to hear the alarms of his threatenings; for who can resist or escape his judgments? The Lord shall sweep all away; and whomsoever he employs in any service for him, he will pay. All speaks a sad change of the face of that pleasant land. But what melancholy change is there, which sin will not make with a people? Agriculture would cease. Sorrows of every kind will come upon all who neglect the great salvation. If we remain unfruitful under the means of grace, the Lord will say, Let no fruit grow on thee henceforth for ever.

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO ISAIAH 7

This chapter contains a prophecy of the preservation of the kingdom of Judah, from its enemies; a confirmation of it by a sign; and a prediction of various calamities that should come upon it, antecedent to the accomplishment of that sign. The enemies of Judea are named, and the besieging of Jerusalem by them, and the date of it, which was without effect, are mentioned, Isa 7:1 the fear and dread which seized the house of David upon the news of this confederacy, Isa 7:2 the orders given by the Lord to the Prophet Isaiah, to take with him his son, and meet Ahaz, at a certain place pointed at, Isa 7:3 whose errand was to comfort him, and exhort him to be quiet and easy; since the conspiracy formed against him should be fruitless, and the kingdom of Israel should be broken to pieces, Isa 7:4-9 after which the king is put upon asking a sign of the Lord, for the confirmation of it; which he refusing to do, under a pretence of tempting the Lord, is reproved; and a sign nevertheless is given; which is that of the birth of the Messiah of a virgin, who would be truly God, as his name Immanuel shows, and truly man, as his birth, his food, and gradual knowledge of good and evil, prove, Isa 7:10-15 yea, it is suggested that the deliverance of Judea from the two kings of Syria and Israel should be very speedy; even before the young child Isaiah had with him was capable of knowing to refuse evil, and chose good, Isa 7:16 but as a chastisement of the house of David for their incredulity in this matter, and slight of the divine goodness, various things are threatened to befall them, before the birth of the Messiah; even such as had not been since the revolt of the ten tribes; as that their enemies, the Assyrians and others, should come upon them in great numbers, and fill all places, so that they would be in the utmost distress, and not be able to escape, Isa 7:17-19 there would be a great consumption of men of all sorts, high and low, signified by shaving off the hair of the head, beard, and feet; so that the few that remained would enjoy plenty, Isa 7:20-22 and for want of men to till the land, it would be covered with thorns and briers; and because of wild beasts, the few men in it would be obliged to defend themselves with bows and arrows, Isa 7:23,24 and yet, after this, the land should become fruitful again, before the Messiah's coming, Isa 7:25, as some interpret it.