Isaiah 7

Isaiah 7
Chapter 6 refers to the year of Uzziah’s death; chapter 7 passes by the 16 year reign of his godly son Jotham and tells of the time of the wicked Ahaz, Uzziah’s grandson. 2 Chronicles 28 gives the inspired account of this thoroughly bad king; God delivered him into the hand of the king of Syria, and into the hand of the king of Israel; many were killed in battle and far more were carried away as captives. The Edomites also attacked Judah, and carried away captives, and the Philistines seized several cities during Ahaz’ reign.
We learn from Isaiah 7 that the kings of Syria and Israel were not able to capture Jerusalem; God spared Judah to that extent—yet the people as well as the king and his family were stricken with fear, and no wonder, since the king who sat on David’s throne walked in ways utterly displeasing to God.
It was the intent of these northern kings (and one of them an Israelite) to substitute for David’s line a king of their own choice. God would not allow this; His word to David must stand. Those who in unbelief have criticized our Bible, have pointed to the sixty-five years of verse 8, as a blunder, because the ten tribes were carried away in about 21 years, but the 65 year limit was reached when a colony of foreigners was planted in their land, in Samaria. God does not err; the word is “within 65 years shall Ephraim be broken so as to be no more a people.” They then lost their land, and have never gone back to it.
Ahaz, utterly unbelieving, will not ask of God (verse 12), but Isaiah is privileged to tell him of a marvelous sign that God would and did give,
“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and shall bring forth a Son, and call His name Immanuel” (meaning “God with us”). (See Matthew 1:2323Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us. (Matthew 1:23) for the fulfilment in the birth of Jesus the Lord).
Thus is the promise of Genesis 3:1515And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. (Genesis 3:15) made clear. Not partaking of the sinful nature of Adam, but truly man, yet fully and essentially God, came the eternal Son of God into the world to save sinners.
The end of verse 16 should read, “the land whose two kings thou fearest (or abhorrest) shall be forsaken.”
The Assyrians were coming; they came twice in Hezekiah’s day and ravaged the land of Judah.