Isaiah 5
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Text: Isaiah 7:14-16
We open this collection from Isaiah with a brand new section. Interestingly enough this one begins with a narrative. As you can imagine from our text this has been called the Book of Emmanuel.
Like all Scripture the passage we are in can really only be understood in its context: So lets take the time to set up the meaning of the passage.
Chapter 7 opens with Jerusalem under siege. (1-9)
Pekah (king of Israel/murderer) and the first captives - 2 Kings 15:25
But Pekah the son of Remaliah, a captain of his, conspired against him, and smote him in Samaria, in the palace of the king’s house, with Argob and Arieh, and with him fifty men of the Gileadites: and he killed him, and reigned in his room.
And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord: he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin. In the days of Pekah king of Israel came Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, and took Ijon, and Abel-beth-maachah, and Janoah, and Kedesh, and Hazor, and Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali, and carried them captive to Assyria.
Partnered with Rezin king of Syria
Ahaz, an evil king of Judah, did not do right – 2 Ch 28:1-6
Ahaz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem: but he did not that which was right in the sight of the Lord, like David his father: For he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, and made also molten images for Baalim. Moreover he burnt incense in the valley of the son of Hinnom, and burnt his children in the fire, after the abominations of the heathen whom the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel. He sacrificed also and burnt incense in the high places, and on the hills, and under every green tree. Wherefore the Lord his God delivered him into the hand of the king of Syria; and they smote him, and carried away a great multitude of them captives, and brought them to Damascus. And he was also delivered into the hand of the king of Israel, who smote him with a great slaughter. For Pekah the son of Remaliah slew in Judah an hundred and twenty thousand in one day, which were all valiant men; because they had forsaken the Lord God of their fathers.
2 Kings 16:1-9
Sends to Tilgathpilzer for help
[] Israel (Pekah) + Syria (Rezin) vs. Judah (Ahaz) + Assyria (Tilgathpilzer)
It makes sense humanly speaking that Ahaz would reach out to Assyria for help they were the largest super power in that corner of the world in that time. So it was like asking the biggest bully on the playground to help you keep your lunch money.
[] map of the WORLD
The faithlessness of Ahaz is that he will send for payment to Assyria the gold out of the house of God in Jerusalem.
[] Israel (Pekah) + Syria (Rezin) vs. Judah (Ahaz) + Heaven (GOD)
The function of faith is to establish – their instability was due to their failure to believe
This promise of safety is a promise of Mercy not for Ahaz sake, but rather for the sake of David. You’ll find over and again a reference to the “house of David”.
While Syria and Israel has conspired against Judah so God has conspired against Rezin & the son of Ramaliah (this was meant as a slap in the face of Pekah. You will note that God’s feelings are demons tried in thef fact that he stopped using their names.
Ephraim = Israel
Son of Remaliah = Pekah
God comes through Isaiah to Ahaz.
“fear not. The confederacy/conspiracy will fail.” (3-7) “Within 65 years Ephraim will not be a people (8-9) – Hos 1:6-8 (2 Ki 17:22-24) Pekah will not make it but a couple more years
He uses the image of a baby with butter and honey…
This illustration is used to point to the age of a child being able to discern with something is right and wrong. Like you can tell the difference between milk and honey you can tell the difference between right and wrong and before a child can be knowledgeable about good and evil Pekah and Rezin will be out. This will be fulfilled in II Chronicles 28:7-9. Smoking
To assure Ahaz that this message is in fact from God Isaiah instructs him to request a sign from God. In the “depth... height” – earth, below the earth, sky, heavens, stars, etc.
Ahaz in a fained spirituality will quote a bible verse back at Isaiah about no wanting to tempt God.
Ye shall not tempt the Lord your God, as ye tempted him in Massah.
You have heard the danger of tempting God before and it is not anything that we should play around with.
One great illustration of tempting God is when Jesus was tempted by Satan at he start of his ministry. His 2nd temptation was to throw himself from the temple peak and watch the angels save his life and grow a great crowd for the kingdom.
Jesus response was
Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
Ahaz’s command was different than Jesus however. Primarily because it is God commanding it. Jesus was dealing with Satan. When the God of heaven asks you to request a sign you request a sign.
The issue is the pride shown by Ahaz for not only does he not ask for a sign, but he will refuse to trust God and instead will run the king of the Assyrians for help.
God’s estimation of this is that – Ahaz trespassed even more in his distress – 2 Chron 28:22
And in the time of his distress did he trespass yet more against the Lord: this is that king Ahaz.
At the rejection of this sign God will give the most significant Messianic prophecy as also Isa 9:6 and 11:1-2(each like the layers of an onion will deepen our understanding of this Emmanuel.
Notice the change from talking to “thee” to talking to “you” – 7:11, 7:14
So at the rejection of this sign God gave the House of David a sign that would come to pass 700 years after Ahaz was in the grave.
This was a sign for Israel. To not go the way of Ahaz to self trust and instead trust the God of David.
This sign was a child born to a virgin who would be called Emanuel
This stresses to the individual today how much importance God puts on faith. Hey preacher we don’t have Syro-Ephraimetic army knocking at our door? So how would this connect to us. Actually this isn’t an issue of war it is an issue of trusting God’s Word. AND the foolish lengths we will go to trust ourselves.
Trusting God is not an easy time experiment. Trusting God is meant for the times that don’t make sense. I’m sure that you have said something similar to your children as I have said to mine. “If you only have a good attitude when things are good then you have a bad attitude.”
So it is with the trusting God. If you can only follow him when everything is low risk then we are not really exercising faith. The reason that Ahaz was not ready to trust God when asked to request a sign. Or even trust God instead of Assyria was that he had fallen out of the practice of trusting him in the small things.
Consider the sign for the House of David.
God is coming to Earth - Emmanuel
He is coming by way of the womb of a Virgin.
Let me ask you which is harder to believe.
A smaller nation can hold off the invading army with God’s help or
God coming from a virgin.
History demonstrates that he hardest to believe is the later.
But if you don’t accept that this same God in the flesh, lived and died and rose again than you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven and your end will be worse than that of Ahaz.
You see God’s plan is not that you follow him when it is easy and you can figure it out on your own. He is not just looking for people that can say the right thing and meet the obligation of religion as Ahaz did.
He is looking for those that claim him actually believe what he says in his word whether you like it or not.
Quote:
On the website with of his name Kevin M. Watson reviews a book by author Larry Crabb In Soul Talk, Kevin pulls three excerpts specifically:
“The weakness of modern Christianity, with its shallow worship and rootless excitement and crowd-friendly relevance, can be traced to one assumption: We think God’s Spirit was sent to earth to give us the happiness that blessings bring” (220).
He continues:
“Now we’re in competition with every other religion and self-help movement and political ideology to produce the good life. It’s a competition we cannot win, because Christ never promised us the blessings of heaven till we get there” (221).
One more:
“Modern Christianity has dramatically reversed its ancient form by assuming that the Spirit is moving toward giving us a good life (as we define it) more than growing Christ in us” (221-222).
-Kevin M. Watson
https://kevinmwatson.com/2007/11/14/the-weakness-of-modern-christianity/
This is an important point. Faith is not a tool to use to make your life better but rather through the regular use of our faith we are prepared to obey in the times when it seems less that easy. In other words it is the faith in God’s word in little things that make us ready for the difficult.
Ahaz will make a tragic error in his lack of faith. You see he wins his war against Israel and Syria. But Assyria will send a hired group to come and collect. The Babylonians will come and while they are there picking up Assyria’s wind fall they see the good things in the land of Judah. And it will be just a matter of time till Ahaz’ faithlessness will catch up to him.