Ask For A Sign

Sometime after Ahaz became the new King of Judah, he received word that King Rezin of Aram (Syria) and King Pekah (an Isrealite king) were conspiring to join forces against Judah. In this chapter is a prophecy that was given to Isaiah for King Ahaz concerning the fate of his kingdom. Notice how in this chapter we see God’s people referred to as the “House of David”(v.2), which makes this chapter’s intent to be a reminder and an encouragement to Israel, even if it comes across as harsh in our context. God wants his people to remain faithful to him only, and He uses the unfaithful king Ahaz as an example of the consequences that follow anyone who places their hope in anything or anyone other than Yahweh.

Isaiah’s message meets a king and people whose hearts are shook as the trees of the forest shake before the wind.(v.2)

What do you do when you feel fearful or anxious?

Isaiah’s message is timely:

“Take heed, be quiet, do not fear, and do not let your heart be faint because of these two smoldering stumps of firebrands, because of the fierce anger of Rezin and Aram and the son of Remaliah. Because Aram—with Ephraim and the son of Remaliah—has plotted evil against you, saying, Let us go up against Judah and cut off Jerusalem and conquer it for ourselves and make the son of Tabeel king in it; therefore thus says the Lord God: It shall not stand,  and it shall not come to pass. For the head of Aram is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is Rezin. (Within sixty-five years Ephraim will be shattered, no longer a people.) The head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is the son of Remaliah. If you do not stand firm in faith, you shall not stand at all.” - Isaiah 7:4-9

God sends a tailor made message for king Ahaz, that the bad report that he heard about being attacked by Aram and Ephraim, shall not come to pass.(v.6) And there is only one single requirement needed from Ahaz for the success of Judah to be realized; his faith.

The words, “If you do not stand firm in faith, you shall not stand at all.”(v.9), teaches us that even with the good news of Isaiah’s prosperous prophecy, faith is somehow needed for God to act.

Has there ever been a prosperous prophecy spoken over you that is still waiting for your faith to kick in?

The lack of Ahaz’s faith causes this chapter to take a sharp turn.

The Lord spoke to Ahaz a second time telling him to ask for a sign of the LORD your God (v.11). God told him it doesn’t matter how big or small, spiritual or secular, heavenly or earthly, God basically makes it easy for King Ahaz to get proof that God is still with his people. And Ahaz responds with non-existent faith, “I will not put the LORD to the test.”(v.12)

Because of Ahaz lack of faith he gets a sign he really didn't want, a prophecy now against him and Judah, his kingdom.

 “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Look, the young woman is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name Immanuel. He shall eat curds and honey by the time he knows him how to refuse the evil and choose the good. For before the child knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land before whose two kings you are in dread will be deserted. The Lord will bring on you and on your people and on your ancestral house such days as have not come since the day that Ephraim departed from Judah—the king of Assyria.” - Isaiah 7:14-17

There are 2 implications for this sign:

1. The birth of Isaiah’s son to a virgin (whom of course he would marry before having intercorse and producing a son). The son was in fact too young to choose good from evil when the Assyrians defeated Aram. The child was indeed a sign to the House of David after Judah’s coming destruction that “Immanuel” (God was with them).

2. The birth of Jesus to the virgin Mary during the time of the Roman occupation (oppression) of Jerusalem. Jesus was indeed a sign to the House of David, and all the world, that “Immanuel” (God was with them).

Could Isaiah not have known the complete depth to his prophecy when he wrote it down?

Ahaz’s bad example.

So all Ahaz had to do was ask the LORD for a sign to prove and seal his prophecy of fortune, but because of Ahaz’s lack of faith he gets a sign of a prophecy of misfortune instead. Why would God let the King of Assyria help Judah by getting rid Aram, then send that same king to later attack Judah? The answer is in 2 Kings 16:7-14.

In 2 Kings 16 we learn 3 reasons why God changed his mind with Ahaz and Judah:

1. Ahaz’s lack of faith in Yahweh for protection when he begged the Assyrian king Tiglath-pileser, III for help with Aram, even referring to the Assyrian king as, “I am your servant, and your son.”(2 Kings 16:7).

2. “Ahaz also took the silver and gold found in the house of the Lord and in the treasures of the king’s house, and sent a present to the king of Assyria”(2 Kings 16:8).

3. After the Assyrians defeated Aram for Judah’s sake, Ahaz, King of Judah, went up to thank the Assyrian King. While Ahaz was with him he saw an altar to an Assyrian god, King Ahaz sent to the priest Uriah a model of the altar, and its pattern, exact in all details.(2 Kings 16:10) Ahaz later has a replica of the Assyrian altar built in Judah in the vary place of the bronze altar that was before the LORD at the entrance of the house.

The theme of idolatry is again the reason for Judah’s prophecies of their destruction. Here in chapter 7 of Isaiah along with 2 Kings 16 we get a narrative of how Judah’s lack of faith was not miniscule, and it was evident even in their king. We also see the desperation in Ahaz’s case at the moment when he chose to forsake the LORD. Judah, called here House of David, are afraid for their lives, and because they lack faith, instead of asking the LORD for a sign, they ask someone else for help and worship their sign. In desperation they steal from God to pay the Assyrian army to fight for them.

Rather than putting their trust in the LORD, they relied on the help of the Assyrians and even made an idol to an Assyrian god. Judah learned the hard lesson of “Know who to trust”, because the same Assyrian army who King Ahaz was quick to offer thanks, would later turn and attack Judah, sending them into exile.

Has God ever made you wait very long for a promise?

You are welcomed to pray this prayer with me:

Gracious LORD,

I thank you for your word, even as it highlights the mistakes made in the past, it also gives me caution as I move into the future. Your word is truly alive and active, not old and outdated as some have said. I need your word to strengthen my faith in you, to give me confidence in you, and to give me hope in your promises. Remove my anxious thoughts day by day, and help me not to rely on the wrong people or the wrong things to give me a plastic peace. Help me to wait on the deliverance that you have promised, and only you can give. Protect my heart from people with ulterior motives, but help me to value wise counsel. I thank you in advance for the deliverance that you have promised, and although times are hard, I will wait patiently on you. In Jesus Name, Amen!