Isaiah 7:17 - Printer Friendly

ESV: The LORD will bring upon you and upon your people and upon your father’s house such days as have not come since the day that Ephraim departed from Judah—the king of Assyria!”

NIV: The LORD will bring on you and on your people and on the house of your father a time unlike any since Ephraim broke away from Judah--he will bring the king of Assyria.'

NASB: The Lord will bring on you, on your people, and on your father’s house such days as have not come since the day that Ephraim separated from Judah— the days of the king of Assyria.'

CSB: The Lord will bring on you, your people, and your father's house such a time as has never been since Ephraim separated from Judah: He will bring the king of Assyria."

NLT: Then the Lord will bring things on you, your nation, and your family unlike anything since Israel broke away from Judah. He will bring the king of Assyria upon you!'

KJV: The LORD 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; even the king of Assyria.

NKJV: The Lord will bring the king of Assyria upon you and your people and your father’s house—days that have not come since the day that Ephraim departed from Judah.”

The news Isaiah delivered to King Ahaz would have been the best news he could have hoped to hear (Isaiah 7:16). But Ahaz refused God's command to ask Him for a miraculous sign (Isaiah 7:12). Through this action he essentially rejected the Lord's offer to protect Judah from the kings who wanted to take Jerusalem and remove him from the throne (Isaiah 7:6). Based on the reaction from God, it seems Ahaz was not being faithful, but stubborn. He didn't want to see God's confirmation because he'd already made up his mind to do as he saw fit.

Isaiah has responded to this rejection harshly. Then he gives Ahaz the good news, that within a very few years the lands of the two kings Ahaz fears will be deserted (Isaiah 7:16). In other words, both the northern ten tribes of Israel and the nation of Syria will be defeated. Ahaz doesn't need to worry about them.

Yet this good outcome will come about because of the terrible events which make it possible. It's true that Assyria will destroy both of Judah's enemies: Israel and Syria. But Assyria, and Egypt, will also terrorize Judah. The Lord will use those two nations to make things worse in Judah than they have been since Israel divided into two nations. This is referring to when Ephraim departed from Judah.

The verse ends Isaiah's dramatic revelation of who will bring terror on Judah: the king of Assyria himself. The irony for Ahaz is that he had hoped to protect himself from Israel and Syria by becoming an ally of the king of Assyria (2 Kings 16:7–9). He had put his faith in this instead of trusting the Lord to protect Judah. Now Assyria will bring worse destruction than what Ahaz was dreading in the first place.

Isaiah 7:10–25 describes the Lord's response, through Isaiah, to King Ahaz's refusal to obey the Lord. He was told to ask for a sign to confirm the prophecy that Israel and Syria would fail to conquer Judah. Isaiah prophecies that a virgin will conceive and name her child Immanuel. Before the child is old enough to reject evil, Israel and Syria will be wiped out. Then the Lord will use the king of Assyria to harshly judge Judah, humiliate His own people, and empty the land of Judah's citizens.

Isaiah 7 begins with the threat of invasion from two of Judah's enemies: Israel and Syria. Judah's King Ahaz and his people are terrified. Speaking for the Lord, Isaiah tells Ahaz to not be afraid because it will not happen. Israel and Syria will soon be gone. Ahaz, though, refuses the Lord's command to ask for a sign. In response, Isaiah tells Ahaz that after Syria and Israel are destroyed, the Lord will use the king of Assyria to bring judgment on Judah through invading armies, emptying the land until little remains.

Isaiah 7 follows the description of Isaiah's commission as a prophet in Isaiah 6. Now the Lord tells him to go and speak to Judah's king Ahaz, who is terrified about an impending invasion from Syria and Israel. Isaiah promises this invasion will not happen. Instead, both nations will soon be destroyed. Ahaz refuses the Lord's command to ask for a sign to confirm His words. Isaiah tells Ahaz that after Israel and Syria are wiped out, the Lord will use the king of Assyria to bring harsh judgment against Judah in the form of relentless invading armies.

Isaiah is among the most important prophetic books in the entire Bible. The first segment details God's impending judgment against ancient peoples for sin and idolatry (Isaiah 1—35). The second part of Isaiah briefly explains a failed assault on Jerusalem during the rule of Hezekiah (Isaiah 36—39). The final chapters predict Israel's rescue from Babylonian captivity (Isaiah 40—48), the promised Messiah (Isaiah 49—57), and the final glory of Jerusalem and God's people (Isaiah 58—66).