Isaiah 7:10-14; 8:10
Chapter 7
Second Warning: The Sign of Immanuel
Again the Lord addressed Ahaz:“Ask the Lord your God for a sign, whether it comes from the deepest depths or from the heights of heaven.”
But Ahaz answered: “I will not ask, nor will I test the Lord.”
Then Isaiah said: “Now listen, descendants of David. Have you not been satisfied in testing the patience of people, and now you also test the patience of my God?
Therefore, the Lord himself will give you a sign: The young woman is with child and bears a son and calls him Immanuel.
He will live on curds and honey by the time he learns to refuse evil and choose good.
For before the child knows how to reject evil and cherish virtue, the land of the two kings that you abhor will be deserted.
The Lord will bring a time much worse than any since Ephraim Broke away from Judah.
Assyrian Invasion
On that day the Lord will whistle for flies from the farthest streams of Egypt and for bees from the land of Assyria.
They will come and settle in the steep ravines, in the clefts of the rocks, on all the bushes, and on every pasture.
On that day, with a razor hired from beyond the river (with the king of Assyria), the Lord will shave the head and the hair of the legs and the beard as well.
On that day a man will raise a heifer and a couple of sheep,
and from the abundance of milk those who survive in the land will feed on curds and honey.
On that day, every place planted with a thousand vines worth a thousand silver shekels will be covered with briers and thorns.
Men will go there armed with bows and arrows, for the whole country will be covered with briers and thorns.
No one will dare come to all the hills which used to be cultivated with the hoe, for fear of briers and thorns. There, cattle will be let loose and sheep left to graze.
Commentaries
Second Warning: The Sign of Immanuel – Assyrian Invasion.
Ahaz is a very young king (cf. 2 Kgs 16:2). The political situation overwhelms him. The kings of Samaria and Syria declare war on him to depose him and replace him with another king, thus cutting off the Davidic dynasty. The prophecy that the king does not want to hear assures him that the Davidic line will remain on the throne. As for the child’s mother, she is a “virgin” (according to the Greek text) or a maiden ready for marriage, as in the case of Rebecca in Genesis 24:14-16. The evangelists Matthew and Luke draw on this tradition to interpret the birth of Jesus as the Davidic Messiah (cf. Mt 1:16, 18; Lk 1:26-34). This mysterious and anonymous woman is also mentioned by the prophet Micah in the same messianic context (Mi 5:2).
Verses 18-25 contain a series of four prophecies, each introduced by the phrase “in that day” or “in those days” (18, 20, 21, 23). Note that here, the ones involved in war are no longer the Syro-Ephraimites, but Egypt and the Southern Kingdom. The mention of milk and honey brings to mind the days of the desert once again. The desert is highly symbolic. Was it not in the desert that the Lord created a nation? Will it not be necessary to return to the desert for the people to reconnect with their source and renew their covenant with God? (cf. Hos 2:14ff).