John Calvin Commentary Isaiah 7:25

"And all the hills that were digged with the mattock, thou shalt not come thither for fear of briers and thorns; but it shall be for the sending forth of oxen, and for the treading of sheep." — Isaiah 7:25 (ASV)

And on all the hills that are dug with the hoe. Here the Prophet appears to contradict himself; for, having until now spoken of the desolation of the land, he now describes what may be called a new condition, when he says that where thorns and briers were, there oxen will feed.

The consequence has been that some have applied these words to the consolation of the people. But the Prophet's intention is totally different. For he means that hills, which were far from crowded populations and difficult to approach, will become suitable for pasture because of the large number of people who go there. That is, because people will resort to desert mountains, which were formerly inaccessible, there will be no need to be afraid of briers, for there will be an abundance of inhabitants.

Now, this is a most wretched state of things, when people cannot escape death except by resorting to thorns and briers. For he means hills formerly desolate and uncultivated, where people will seek a residence and abode because no part of the country will be safe. Thus he describes a distressing and melancholy condition of the whole country, and destruction so awful that the aspect of the country will be altogether different from what it had been before.

When he foretold these things to King Ahaz, there can be no doubt that Ahaz despised them. For that wicked king, relying on his forces and on his league with the Assyrians, settled, as it were, on his lees, as soon as the siege of the city was raised. But Isaiah was bound to persevere in fulfilling his office, in order to show that there was no help except from God, and to inform the wretched hypocrite that his destruction would come from the very source from which he expected his preservation.