Matthew Henry Commentary Isaiah 7
Matthew Henry Commentary
Isaiah 7
Matthew Henry Commentary
Isaiah 7
"And it came to pass in the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, king of Judah, that Rezin the king of Syria, and Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, went up to Jerusalem to war against it, but could not prevail against it. And it was told the house of David, saying, Syria is confederate with Ephraim. And his heart trembled, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the forest tremble with the wind. Then said Jehovah unto Isaiah, Go forth now to meet Ahaz, thou, and Shear-jashub thy son, at the end of the conduit of the upper pool, in the highway of the fuller`s field; and say unto him, Take heed, and be quiet; fear not, neither let thy heart be faint, because of these two tails of smoking firebrands, for the fierce anger of Rezin and Syria, and of the son of Remaliah. Because Syria, Ephraim, and the son of Remaliah, have purposed evil against thee, saying, Let us go up against Judah, and vex it, and let us make a breach therein for us, and set up a king in the midst of it, even the son of Tabeel; thus saith the Lord Jehovah, It shall not stand, neither shall it come to pass. For the head of Syria is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is Rezin; and within threescore and five years shall Ephraim be broken in pieces, so that is shall not be a people: and the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is Remaliah`s son. If ye will not believe, surely ye shall not be established." — Isaiah 7:1-9 (ASV)
Ungodly men are often punished by others as bad as themselves. Being in great distress and confusion, the Jews gave up all for lost. They had made God their enemy, and did not know how to make him their friend. The prophet must teach them to despise their enemies, in faith and dependence on God.
Ahaz, in fear, called them two powerful princes. No, says the prophet, they are merely tails of smoking firebrands, already burnt out. The two kingdoms of Syria and Israel were nearly expiring. While God has work for the firebrands of the earth, they consume all before them; but when their work is fulfilled, they will be extinguished in smoke.
What Ahaz thought most formidable is made the ground of their defeat, because they have taken evil counsel against thee; which is an offence to God. God scorns the scorners, and gives his word that the attempt should not succeed. Man purposes, but God disposes.
It was folly for those to be trying to ruin their neighbours, who were themselves near to ruin. Isaiah must urge the Jews to rely on the assurances given them. Faith is absolutely necessary to quiet and compose the mind in trials.
"And Jehovah spake again unto Ahaz, saying, Ask thee a sign of Jehovah thy God; ask it either in the depth, or in the height above. But Ahaz said, I will not ask, neither will I tempt Jehovah. And he said, Hear ye now, O house of David: Is it a small thing for you to weary men, that ye will weary my God also? Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. Butter and honey shall he eat, when he knoweth to refuse the evil, and choose the good. For before the child shall know to refuse the evil, and choose the good, the land whose two kings thou abhorrest shall be forsaken." — Isaiah 7:10-16 (ASV)
Secret disaffection toward God is often disguised with the pretense of respect for him; and those who are resolved that they will not trust God, yet pretend they will not tempt him. The prophet reproved Ahaz and his court for the little value they placed on Divine revelation. Nothing is more grievous to God than distrust, but human unbelief will not render God's promise ineffective; the Lord himself will give a sign. However great your distress and danger, from you the Messiah is to be born, and you cannot be destroyed while that blessing is in you.
It will be brought to pass in a glorious manner; and the strongest consolations in time of trouble are derived from Christ: our relation to him, our interest in him, our expectations of him and from him. He would grow up like other children, by eating the food of those countries; but he would, unlike other children, uniformly refuse the evil and choose the good. And although his birth would be by the power of the Holy Spirit, yet he would not be fed with angels' food.
May we trust in and love Him, and copy his example.
"Jehovah will 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. And it shall come to pass in that day, that Jehovah will hiss for the fly that is in the uttermost part of the rivers of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria. And they shall come, and shall rest all of them in the desolate valleys, and in the clefts of the rocks, and upon all thorn-hedges, and upon all pastures. In that day will the Lord shave with a razor that is hired in the parts beyond the River, [even] with the king of Assyria, the head and the hair of the feet; and it shall also consume the beard. And it shall come to pass in that day, that a man shall keep alive a young cow, and two sheep; and it shall come to pass, that because of the abundance of milk which they shall give he shall eat butter: for butter and honey shall every one eat that is left in the midst of the land. And it shall come to pass in that day, that every place, where there were a thousand vines at a thousand silverlings, shall be for briers and thorns. With arrows and with bow shall one come thither, because all the land shall be briers and thorns. 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 7:17-25 (ASV)
Let those who will not believe the promises of God expect to hear the alarms of His threats; for who can resist or escape His judgments? The Lord shall sweep all away; and whoever He employs in any service for Him, He will pay.
All speaks of a sad change of the face of that pleasant land. But what melancholy change is there that sin will not bring upon a people? Agriculture would cease. Sorrows of every kind will come upon all who neglect the great salvation. If we remain unfruitful under the means of grace, the Lord will say, Let no fruit grow on you henceforth for ever.
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