1 And it comes to pass in the days of Ahaz, son of Jotham, son of Uzziah, king of Judah, [that] Rezin king of Aram, and Pekah, son of Remaliah, king of Israel, have gone up to Jerusalem, to battle against it, and he is not able to fight against it. 2 And it is declared to the house of David, saying, “Aram has been led toward Ephraim,” and his heart and the heart of his people is moved, like the moving of trees of a forest by the presence of wind. 3 And YHWH says to Isaiah, “Now go forth to meet Ahaz, you and your son Shear-Jashub, to the end of the conduit of the upper pool, to the highway of the fuller’s field, 4 and you have said to him: Take heed, and be quiet, do not fear, || And do not let your heart be timid, || Because of these two tails of smoking brands, || For the fierceness of the anger of Rezin and Aram, || And the son of Remaliah. 5 Because that Aram counseled evil against you, Ephraim and the son of Remaliah, saying, 6 We go up into Judah, and we distress it, || And we divide it to ourselves, || And we cause a king to reign in its midst—The son of Tabeal. 7 Thus said Lord YHWH: It does not stand, nor will it be! 8 For the head of Aram [is] Damascus, || And the head of Damascus [is] Rezin, || And within sixty-five years || Is Ephraim broken from [being] a people. 9 And the head of Ephraim [is] Samaria, || And the head of Samaria [is] the son of Remaliah. If you do not give credence, || Surely you are not steadfast.” 10 And YHWH adds to speak to Ahaz, saying, 11 “Ask for a sign from your God YHWH, || Make the request deep, or make [it] high upwards.” 12 And Ahaz says, “I do not ask nor try YHWH.” 13 And he says, “Now hear, O house of David, || Is it a little thing for you to weary men, || That you also weary my God? 14◆ Therefore the Lord Himself gives a sign to you, || Behold, the virgin is conceiving, || And is bringing forth a Son, || And has called His Name Immanuel, 15 He eats butter and honey, || When He knows to refuse evil, and to fix on good. 16 For before the youth knows || To refuse evil, and to fix on good, || The land you are distressed with is forsaken, because of her two kings. 17 YHWH brings on you, and on your people, || And on the house of your father, || Days that have not come, || Even from the day of the turning aside of Ephraim from Judah, || By the king of Asshur.” 18 And it has come to pass in that day, || YHWH hisses for a fly that [is] in the extremity of the brooks of Egypt, || And for a bee that [is] in the land of Asshur. 19 And they have come, and all of them rested in the desolate valleys, || And in holes of the rocks, and on all the thorns, || And on all the commendable things. 20 In that day the Lord shaves, || By a razor that is hired beyond the river, || By the king of Asshur, || The head, and the hair of the feet, || Indeed, it also consumes the beard. 21 And it has come to pass in that day, || A man keeps alive a heifer of the herd, || And two of the flock, 22 And it has come to pass, || He eats butter from the abundance of the yielding of milk, || For everyone who is left in the heart of the land eats butter and honey. 23 And it has come to pass in that day, || Every place where there are one thousand vines, || At one thousand pieces of silver, || Is for briers and for thorns. 24 He comes there with arrows and with bow, || Because all the land is brier and thorn. 25 And all the hills that are kept in order with a mattock, || There does not come [for] fear of brier and thorn, || And it has been for the sending forth of ox, || And for the treading of sheep!
Isaiah · Literal Standard Version
Isaiah 7 Literal Standard Version
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
People & places in this chapter
From this site's family tree and Bible maps, only where those guides cite this chapter.
People
Ahaz
A faithless king who courted Assyria and even sacrificed his own son.
Cited in the guide: 2 Kings 16; 2 Chron. 28; Isa. 7:14; Matt. 1:9
Tabeal
Named only as the father of a man Aram and Ephraim planned to install as king over Judah.
Cited in the guide: Isaiah 7:6
Cross references (24)
Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.
- 1 2 Kings 15:37; 2 Kings 16:1; Isaiah 7:4–9; Isaiah 8:6; Psalm 83:3–5
- 2 Isaiah 8:12; Isaiah 7:13; Isaiah 9:9; Proverbs 28:1; 2 Kings 7:6–7
- 3 2 Kings 18:17; Isaiah 36:2; Romans 9:27; Isaiah 6:13; Isaiah 10:21
- 4 Isaiah 35:4; Lamentations 3:26; Deuteronomy 20:3; Matthew 24:6; Isaiah 30:15
- 5 Psalm 83:3–4; Zechariah 1:15; Psalm 2:2; Nahum 1:11
- 7 Isaiah 8:10; Lamentations 3:37; Isaiah 46:10–11; Psalm 33:11; Proverbs 21:30
- 8 Isaiah 17:1–3; Genesis 14:15; 2 Samuel 8:6; Hosea 1:6–10; 2 Kings 17:5–23
- 9 Hebrews 11:6; Romans 11:20; 2 Chronicles 20:20; 1 John 5:10; Acts 27:25
- 10 Isaiah 8:5; Isaiah 1:5; Isaiah 10:20; Hosea 13:2; Isaiah 1:13
- 11 Isaiah 37:30; Isaiah 38:7–8; 2 Kings 19:29; Judges 6:36–40; Isaiah 38:22
- 12 2 Kings 16:15; Acts 5:9; Ezekiel 33:31; Malachi 3:15; Deuteronomy 6:16
- 13 Isaiah 43:24; Malachi 2:17; Hebrews 3:10; Jeremiah 6:11; Isaiah 63:10
- 14 Matthew 1:23; Isaiah 9:6; Luke 1:31; John 1:1–2; John 1:14
- 15 Isaiah 7:22; Amos 5:15; Philippians 1:9–10; Matthew 3:4; Romans 12:9
- 16 Isaiah 8:4; Deuteronomy 1:39; 2 Kings 16:9; Hosea 5:9; Amos 1:3–5
- 17 Isaiah 8:7–8; Isaiah 10:5–6; Isaiah 36:1–22; 2 Chronicles 33:11; 2 Chronicles 32:1–33
- 18 Isaiah 5:26; Deuteronomy 1:44; Isaiah 31:1; Deuteronomy 7:20; Joshua 24:12
- 19 Isaiah 2:19; Jeremiah 16:16; Isaiah 2:21; Micah 7:17; 2 Chronicles 33:11
- 20 Isaiah 8:7; Ezekiel 29:18; Ezekiel 5:1–4; Isaiah 10:15; Jeremiah 27:6–7
- 21 Isaiah 5:17; Jeremiah 39:10; Isaiah 17:2; Isaiah 37:30; Isaiah 7:25
- 22 Isaiah 7:15; Matthew 3:4; 2 Samuel 17:29
- 23 Isaiah 5:6; Song of Songs 8:11–12; Matthew 21:33; Hebrews 6:8; Jeremiah 4:26
- 24 Genesis 27:3
- 25 Isaiah 13:20–22; Isaiah 17:2; Isaiah 5:17; Isaiah 7:21–22; Zephaniah 2:6
Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences
Why does my Bible say something different?
- Isaiah 7:14: “a virgin” or “the young woman”?
The Hebrew text of Isaiah 7:14 says ha-almah, “the young woman.” The Greek Septuagint, translated by Jews before the time of Christ, says hē parthenos, “the virgin,” and St Matthew quotes that Greek wording (Matthew 1:23). The Orthodox Church reads the Septuagint here, as the Apostles did. The faith in the virgin birth does not rest on one Hebrew word, but the word still deserves an honest look.
What the Fathers said
Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).
How these were chosen
“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).
And hear again how Isaiah in express words foretold that He should be born of a virgin; for he spoke thus: "Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bring forth a son, and they shall say for His name, God with us.' " For things which were incredible and seemed impossible with men, these God predicted by the Spirit of prophecy …
5. And when He says, "Hear, O house of David," He performed the part of one indicating that He whom God promised David that He would raise up from the fruit of his belly (ventris) an eternal King, is the same who was born of the Virgin, herself of the lineage of David.
For so had the prophet foretold: "Behold, a virgin shall conceive in the womb, and bring forth a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel, which, being interpreted, is, God with us." He did many miracles that He might commend God in Himself, some of which, even as many as seemed sufficient to proclaim Him, are contained in the …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 2 (1887)
For he doth not merely say, "Behold, the Virgin shall be with child," but having first said, "Behold, the Lord Himself shall give you a sign," then he subjoins, "Behold, the Virgin shall be with child." Whereas, if she that was to give birth was not a virgin, but this happened in the way of marriage, what sort of sign …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 10 (1888)
the virgin shall conceive in her womb, and shall bring forth a Son, and they shall call His name Emmanuel.
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 2, vol. 7 (1894)