Yesaya 7:25

7:25 They will stay away from all the hills that were cultivated, for fear of the thorns and briers. ¹  Cattle will graze there and sheep will trample on them. ² 

Yesaya 15:2

15:2 They went up to the temple, ³ 

the people of Dibon went up to the high places to lament. ⁴ 

Because of what happened to Nebo and Medeba, ⁵  Moab wails.

Every head is shaved bare,

every beard is trimmed off. ⁶ 

Yesaya 44:3

44:3 For I will pour water on the parched ground ⁷ 

and cause streams to flow ⁸  on the dry land.

I will pour my spirit on your offspring

and my blessing on your children.

[7:25]  ¹ tn Heb “and all the hills which were hoed with a hoe, you will not go there [for] fear of the thorns and briers.”

[7:25]  ² tn Heb “and it will become a pasture for cattle and a trampling place for sheep.”

[7:25]  sn At this point one is able to summarize the content of the “sign” (vv. 14-15) as follows: A young woman known to be present when Isaiah delivered this message to Ahaz (perhaps a member of the royal family or the prophetess mentioned in 8:3) would soon give birth to a boy whom the mother would name Immanuel, “God is with us.” Eventually Immanuel would be forced to eat sour milk and honey, which would enable him to make correct moral decisions. How would this situation come about and how would it constitute a sign? Before this situation developed, the Israelites and Syrians would be defeated. But then the Lord would usher in a period of time unlike any since the division of the kingdom almost 200 years before. The Assyrians would overrun the land, destroy the crops, and force the people to subsist on goats’ milk and honey. At that time, as the people saw Immanuel eating his sour milk and honey, the Davidic family would be forced to acknowledge that God was indeed with them. He was present with them in the Syrian-Israelite crisis, fully capable of rescuing them; but he was also present with them in judgment, disciplining them for their lack of trust. The moral of the story is quite clear: Failure to appropriate God’s promises by faith can turn potential blessing into disciplinary judgment.

[15:2]  ³ tn Heb “house.”

[15:2]  ⁴ tn Heb “even Dibon [to] the high places to weep.” The verb “went up” does double duty in the parallel structure.

[15:2]  ⁵ tn Heb “over [or “for”] Nebo and over [or “for”] Medeba.”

[15:2]  ⁶ sn Shaving the head and beard were outward signs of mourning and grief.

[44:3]  ⁷ tn Heb “the thirsty.” Parallelism suggests that dry ground is in view (see “dry land” in the next line.)

[44:3]  ⁸ tn Heb “and streams”; KJV “floods.” The verb “cause…to flow” is supplied in the second line for clarity and for stylistic reasons.