2 Kings 15:32-33

Jotham’s Reign over Judah

15:32 In the second year of the reign of Israel’s King Pekah son of Remaliah, Uzziah’s son Jotham became king over Judah. 15:33 He was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned for sixteen years in Jerusalem. ¹  His mother was Jerusha the daughter of Zadok.

2 Kings 16:1

Ahaz’s Reign over Judah

16:1 In the seventeenth year of the reign of Pekah son of Remaliah, Jotham’s son Ahaz became king over Judah.

2 Kings 17:1-2

Hoshea’s Reign over Israel

17:1 In the twelfth year of King Ahaz’s reign over Judah, Hoshea son of Elah became king over Israel. He reigned in Samaria ²  for nine years. 17:2 He did evil in the sight of ³  the Lord, but not to the same degree as the Israelite kings who preceded him.

2 Kings 1:4-6

1:4 Therefore this is what the Lord says, “You will not leave the bed you lie on, for you will certainly die!”’” So Elijah went on his way.

1:5 When the messengers returned to the king, ⁴  he asked them, “Why have you returned?” 1:6 They replied, ⁵  “A man came up to meet us. He told us, “Go back to the king who sent you and tell him, ‘This is what the Lord says: “You must think there is no God in Israel! That explains why you are sending for an oracle from Baal Zebub, the god of Ekron. ⁶  Therefore you will not leave the bed you lie on, for you will certainly die.”’”

2 Kings 1:16

1:16 Elijah ⁷  said to the king, ⁸  “This is what the Lord says, ‘You sent messengers to seek an oracle from Baal Zebub, the god of Ekron. You must think there is no God in Israel from whom you can seek an oracle! ⁹  Therefore you will not leave the bed you lie on, for you will certainly die.’” ¹⁰ 

Isaiah 7:1-9

Ahaz Receives a Sign

7:1 During ¹¹  the reign of Ahaz son of Jotham, son of Uzziah, king of Judah, King Rezin of Syria and King Pekah son of Remaliah of Israel marched up to Jerusalem ¹²  to do battle, but they were unable to prevail against it. ¹³ 

7:2 It was reported to the family ¹⁴  of David, “Syria has allied with ¹⁵  Ephraim.” They and their people were emotionally shaken, just as the trees of the forest shake before the wind. ¹⁶  7:3 So the Lord told Isaiah, “Go out with your son Shear-jashub ¹⁷  and meet Ahaz at the end of the conduit of the upper pool which is located on the road to the field where they wash and dry cloth. ¹⁸  7:4 Tell him, ‘Make sure you stay calm! ¹⁹  Don’t be afraid! Don’t be intimidated ²⁰  by these two stubs of smoking logs, ²¹  or by the raging anger of Rezin, Syria, and the son of Remaliah. 7:5 Syria has plotted with Ephraim and the son of Remaliah to bring about your demise. ²²  7:6 They say, “Let’s attack Judah, terrorize it, and conquer it. ²³  Then we’ll set up the son of Tabeel as its king.” ²⁴  7:7 For this reason the sovereign master, ²⁵  the Lord, says:

“It will not take place;

it will not happen.

7:8 For Syria’s leader is Damascus,

and the leader of Damascus is Rezin.

Within sixty-five years Ephraim will no longer exist as a nation. ²⁶ 

7:9 Ephraim’s leader is Samaria,

and Samaria’s leader is the son of Remaliah.

If your faith does not remain firm,

then you will not remain secure.” ²⁷ 

Isaiah 8:6

8:6 “These people ²⁸  have rejected the gently flowing waters of Shiloah ²⁹  and melt in fear over Rezin and the son of Remaliah. ³⁰ 

[15:33]  ¹ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[17:1]  ² map For location see Map2 B1; Map4 D3; Map5 E2; Map6 A4; Map7 C1.

[17:2]  ³ tn Heb “in the eyes of.”

[1:5]  ⁴ tn Heb “to him.”

[1:6]  ⁵ tn Heb “said to him.”

[1:6]  ⁶ tn Heb “Is it because there is no God in Israel [that] you are sending to inquire of Baal Zebub, the god of Ekron?” The translation seeks to bring out the sarcastic tone of the rhetorical question. In v. 3 the messengers are addressed (in the phrase “you are on your way” the second person plural pronoun is used in Hebrew), but here the king is addressed (in the phrase “you are sending” the second person singular pronoun is used).

[1:16]  ⁷ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Elijah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[1:16]  ⁸ tn Heb “him”; the referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[1:16]  ⁹ tn Heb “Because you sent messengers to inquire of Baal Zebub, the god of Ekron, is there no God in Israel to inquire of his word?”

[1:16]  ¹⁰ sn For the third time in this chapter we read the Lord’s sarcastic question to king and the accompanying announcement of judgment. The repetition emphasizes one of the chapter’s main themes. Israel’s leaders should seek guidance from their own God, not a pagan deity, for Israel’s sovereign God is the one who controls life and death.

[7:1]  ¹¹ tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.

[7:1]  ¹² map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[7:1]  ¹³ tn Or perhaps, “but they were unable to attack it.” This statement sounds like a summary of the whole campaign. The following context explains why they were unable to defeat the southern kingdom. The parallel passage (2 Kgs 16:5; cf. Num 22:11; 1 Sam 17:9 for a similar construction) affirms that Syria and Israel besieged Ahaz. Consequently, the statement that “they were not able to battle against them” must refer to the inability to conquer Ahaz.

[7:2]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “house.” In this context the “house of David” includes King Ahaz, his family, and the royal court. See also Jer 21:12; Zech 12:7-8, 10, 12, for a similar use of the phrase.

[7:2]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “rests upon.” Most understand the verb as נוּחַ (nuakh, “rest”), but HALOT 685 s.v. II נחה proposes that this is a hapax legomenon which means “stand by.”

[7:2]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “and his heart shook and the heart of his people shook, like the shaking of the trees of the forest before the wind.” The singular pronoun “his” is collective, referring to the Davidic house/family. לֵבָב (levav, “heart”) here refers to the seat of the emotions.

[7:3]  ¹⁷ tn The name means “a remnant will return.” Perhaps in this context, where the Lord is trying to encourage Ahaz, the name suggests that only a few of the enemy invaders will return home; the rest will be defeated.

[7:3]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “the field of the washer”; traditionally “the fuller’s field” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV); NIV “the Washerman’s Field.”

[7:4]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “guard yourself and be quiet,” but the two verbs should be coordinated.

[7:4]  ²⁰ tn Heb “and let not your heart be weak”; ASV “neither let thy heart be faint.”

[7:4]  ²¹ sn The derogatory metaphor indicates that the power of Rezin and Pekah is ready to die out.

[7:5]  ²² tn This sentence opens with the conjunction יַעַן כִּי (ya’an ki, “because”). Consequently some take vv. 5-6 with what precedes, as another reason why Ahaz might be tempted to fear (see v. 4). However, it is more likely that vv. 5-6 give the basis for the Lord’s announcement in vv. 7-9. The conjunction יַעַן כִּי here introduces the basis for judgment (as in 3:16; 8:6; 29:13), which is then followed by the formal announcement of judgment.

[7:6]  ²³ tn Heb “and let us break it open for ourselves”; NASB “make for ourselves a breach in its walls”; NLT “fight our way into.”

[7:6]  ²⁴ tn Heb “and we will make the son of Tabeel king in its midst.”

[7:7]  ²⁵ tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here and in vv. 14, 19 is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).

[7:8]  ²⁶ tn Heb “Ephraim will be too shattered to be a nation”; NIV “to be a people.”

[7:9]  ²⁷ tn Heb “if you do not believe, you will not endure.” The verb forms are second plural; the Lord here addresses the entire Davidic family and court. (Verse 4 was addressed to the king.) There is a wordplay in the Hebrew text, designed to draw attention to the alternatives set before the king (cf. 1:20). “Believe” (תַאֳמִינוּ, ta’aminu) is a Hiphil form of the verb אָמָן (’aman); “endure” (תֵאָמֵנוּ, te’amenu) is a Niphal form of this same verb.

[8:6]  ²⁸ tn The Hebrew text begins with “because.” In the Hebrew text vv. 6-7 are one long sentence, with v. 6 giving the reason for judgment and v. 7 formally announcing it.

[8:6]  ²⁹ sn The phrase “waters of Shiloah” probably refers to a stream that originated at the Gihon Spring and supplied the city of Jerusalem with water. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:225. In this context these waters stand in contrast to the flood waters of Assyria and symbolize God’s presence and blessings.

[8:6]  ³⁰ tn The precise meaning of v. 6 has been debated. The translation above assumes that “these people” are the residents of Judah and that מָשׂוֹשׂ (masos) is alternate form of מָסוֹס (masos, “despair, melt”; see HALOT 606 s.v. מסס). In this case vv. 7-8 in their entirety announce God’s disciplinary judgment on Judah. However, “these people” could refer to the Israelites and perhaps also the Syrians (cf v. 4). In this case מָשׂוֹשׂ probably means “joy.” One could translate, “and rejoice over Rezin and the son of Remaliah.” In this case v. 7a announces the judgment of Israel, with vv. 7b-8 then shifting the focus to the judgment of Judah.