Reading
Isaiah 7:1-9—This is what the Lord God Says
Notes
The setting for this encounter between Isaiah and Ahaz is briefly sketched in verses 1–2. A resurgent Assyria under Tiglath-Pileser III has begun to push west and south into Palestine. The kings of Israel and Syria have formed an anti-Assyrian pact and are determined to force Judah to join them by deposing Ahaz and installing a puppet king in his place (6). It is the year 734 BC.
Ahaz is torn between two fears. He is panic-stricken in the face of the invasion by Syria and Israel (2), but he is even more fearful of joining them against Assyria. When Isaiah confronts him he appears to have already decided to try to hold out in the hope of finding security through submission to Assyria. Isaiah offers him a radical alternative: forswear all alliances and trust wholly in the LORD (7–9). In view of Ahaz’s refusal to do this (10–11), Isaiah announces that Judah will soon be overrun and devastated by that very Assyria that Ahaz has foolishly decided to turn to for help (17–20).
Questions
- What was Ahaz afraid of?
- What did God, through Isaiah, call Ahaz to do?
- What did God call these two nations fighting against Judah?
Praise
Psalm 33c, 1a
Prayer
- Ask God to help you trust him in whatever particular matters you fear.
- Pray for a specific application from yesterday’s sermons.
- Pray for a member of our church, for your family, and for a non-Christian friend/family member.