September 20, 2020
Lessons Learned
By Wayne Gaeddert
Isaiah 7
1. The Northern Kingdom was ruled by 19 kings from the city of Samaria.
2. All the kings of the Northern Kingdom were evil—leading the people to worship idols.
3. The Northern Kingdom lasted approximately 200 years before it fell to Assyria.
4. Ephraim was the strongest tribe of the Northern Kingdom and therefore Isaiah refers to the Northern Kingdom as Ephraim. Samaria was its capital city.
5. The political scene:
A. In Judah- In chapter 6 the good king Uzziah died. Then his son Jotham reigned for 16 years (2 Kings 15:32). He also was a good king like his father. Then Jotham’s son Ahaz became king. He also reigned 16 years (2 Kings 16:2), but was an evil king who worshiped idols and burned his son as an offering (2 Kings 16:2-4).
B. The Northern Kingdom- The northern kings were all evil in that they worshiped idols and did not allow people to go to Jerusalem to worship God at the temple. Pekah was king and ruled from Samaria at the time Ahaz was king of Judah in Jerusalem.
C. In Syria- Rezin son of Remaliah was the king who reigned from Damascus at the same time Ahaz and Pekah reigned in Judah and the Northern Kingdom.
D. Assyria- The Assyrian Empire was expanding westward. Tiglath-Pileser was the current ruler.
E. How it all fits together- In order to combat Assyrian aggression, the Northern Kingdom and the Syrian king banded together and tried to compel other nearby states to join them to fight against the expansion of the Assyrian Empire. Judah would not join in the effort even when the Northern Kingdom and Syria made war and defeated some cities of Judah and took 200,000 captives and killed 120,000 men (2 Chronicles 28:5-8). However, they were not able to conquer Jerusalem (2 Kings 16:5, Isaiah 7:1) and kill king Ahaz (Isaiah 7:6) in order to gain control of the fighting men of Judah.
In 2 Kings 16:7-9 we see the plan that king Ahaz employed to protect himself from the Northern Kingdom and Syria. He went to the king of Assyria and paid him with silver and gold from the temple for protection. (As a side note: King Ahaz meet the Assyrian king in Damascus after the Syrian king had been defeated. There he saw an altar that he liked so much he copied the plans and had one just like it built to replace the altar in the temple in Jerusalem. This would have demonstrated to the Assyrian king that Ahaz was serving his god. 2 Kings 16:10-16)
6. Even though Ahaz was an evil king, it was not God’s plan for Ephraim and Syria to rule over Judah.
7. Even though Ahaz was an evil king, God gave him an opportunity to change his ways and demonstrate faith that God would protect him.
8. The Lord’s sign of the virgin birth had a long-term and near-term fulfillment.
> Matthew 1:23 makes clear the ultimate fulfillment was when Jesus was born of the virgin Mary more than 700 years later.
> It had to mean something as a near-term prophecy during the life of Ahaz.
1. Verse 14 says God will ‘give you a sign’, an indication that Ahaz would see
the sign.
2. No natural exegesis can apply verse 16 to the long-term future. FF Bruce
3. The Hebrew word translated ‘virgin’ is ‘almah’ which includes virgins but is
not restricted to them. FF Bruce
4. The name Immanuel means ‘God with us’.
5. Before nine months could elapse the Syrian and Northern Kingdom invaders would have departed and those taken captive by the Northern Kingdom returned home (2 Chronicles 28:9-15). On the basis of this, many mothers in Judah would have interpreted those circumstances as ‘God with us’ and named their son Immanuel. Immanuel would have become a popular name for baby boys in Judah. FF Bruce
9. “Since God is sovereign, His people can trust His promises.” Dr. Blake Hearson
10. Isaiah challenged Ahaz to have faith in God. It was the only way for him to not end in destruction.
11. Isaiah having his son Shear-jashub present was an object lesson for King Ahaz
saying:
> Standing before him were Isaiah (his name means ‘the LORD is salvation’) and Shear-jashub (his name means ‘A remanant shall return’).
> Choosing to follow the LORD’s direction would bring about the deliverance (salvation) of Judah
> If he chose not to follow the LORD’s direction, Judah will fall.
> In God’s grace there will be a remnant to come back to the land.
12. Isaiah referred to the king of the Northern Kingdom and the king of Syria with contempt by referring to them as, ‘smoldering stumps of firebrands.’
13. Ephraim lost its identity. Many were taken captive by Assyria. Those left in the land intermarried with the people brought in to replace those taken captive. These people became known as Samaritans.
14. The wordplay in verse 9, ‘not firm...not be firm’ connects unbelief with instability. Unbelief in God destabilizes everything, not just your religious life. ESV study notes
15. Ahaz chose to put his hope in human power (the Assyrian king) rather than to have faith for God’s deliverance. 2 Kings 16:5-9
16. The refusal of Ahaz to seek a sign from God came at the cost of the very one he was turning to for protection would ultimately be the one to bring hardship on Judah.
17. When you run into a problem, who do you talk to? A lawyer, accountant, counselor, etc., or do you talk to God about the problem first?
18. “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” Hebrews 11:6
19. “Faith faces what to the natural mind are impossibilities, and, resting on the promises of God, relies upon Him to fulfill His counsel concerning them and to turn the obstacles to account for His glory.” W. E. Vine
17. Verses 18-25 describe how Judah will be attacked by Egypt (the fly) and Assyria (the bee) as God’s tools for judgment on Judah. The people will be humiliated and live off the land. Rather than a land flowing with milk and honey, briers and thorns would fill the land.
