Immanuel, God With Us: Isaiah 7:1-17 (Sermon)

Immanuel, God With Us

Introduction:

Thank you, worship team. Typically, we don’t talk about politics in church. I will break that habit today as we enter the church’s Advent season. Why not? Right? This morning, I want to talk about a political leader who,

Was an opportunist.
Used spirituality for personal gain.
Helped divide his nation.
Sought alliances with enemy states.
And broke the law.

You might know who I am talking about. (Don’t answer that.) Obviously, I am talking about Ahaz. He was the father of Hezekiah, the king of Judah, born around 763 BC in the southern kingdom of Israel. We will look at a period in his life from the book of Isaiah. We are taking a break from our sermon series in the book of Matthew for December. Matthew quotes Isaiah more than any other prophet. In fact, he quotes our text in his first chapter.

AHAZ

Who was Ahaz? We read about him in 2 Chronicles chapter 28.

Ahaz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. And he did not do what was right in the eyes of the LORD, as his father David had done, but he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel. He even made metal images for the Baals, and he made offerings in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom and burned his sons as an offering, according to the abominations of the nations whom the LORD drove out before the people of Israel. And he sacrificed and made offerings on the high places and on the hills and under every green tree. (2 Chronicles 28:1–4, ESV)

This guy was leading God’s people to hell. He was so bad that he sacrificed his sons to the gods of the nations around him. He killed his children. What kind of father does that? Yet, we will read that God extends an opportunity for mercy in Isaiah chapter 7. Ahaz’s life was at a crossroads. He had a chance to repent from his wicked ways and follow God. What did he do? Would he listen? Would he obey? Or not? I will have E. and Y. B. read Isaiah chapter 7, verses 1 through 17, for us this morning. Would you please stand with me, if you are able?

In the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, son of Uzziah, king of Judah, Rezin the king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah the king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to wage war against it, but could not yet mount an attack against it. When the house of David was told, “Syria is in league with Ephraim,” the heart of Ahaz and the heart of his people shook as the trees of the forest shake before the wind.

And the LORD said to Isaiah, “Go out to meet Ahaz, you and Shear-jashub your son, at the end of the conduit of the upper pool on the highway to the Washer’s Field. And say to him, ‘Be careful, be quiet, do not fear, and do not let your heart be faint because of these two smoldering stumps of firebrands, at the fierce anger of Rezin and Syria and the son of Remaliah. Because Syria, with Ephraim and the son of Remaliah, has devised evil against you, saying, “Let us go up against Judah and terrify it, and let us conquer it for ourselves, and set up the son of Tabeel as king in the midst of it,” thus says the Lord GOD:

“ ‘It shall not stand,

and it shall not come to pass.

For the head of Syria is Damascus,

and the head of Damascus is Rezin.

And within sixty-five years

Ephraim will be shattered from being a people.

And the head of Ephraim is Samaria,

and the head of Samaria is the son of Remaliah.

If you are not firm in faith,

you will not be firm at all.’ ”

Again the LORD spoke to Ahaz: “Ask a sign of the LORD your God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven.” But Ahaz said, “I will not ask, and I will not put the LORD to the test.” And he said, “Hear then, O house of David! Is it too little for you to weary men, that you weary my God also? Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. He shall eat curds and honey when he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good. For before the boy knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land whose two kings you dread will be deserted. The LORD will bring upon you and upon your people and upon your father’s house such days as have not come since the day that Ephraim departed from Judah—the king of Assyria!” (Isaiah 7:1–17, ESV)

Thank you. Let’s pray. Dear God, we need you. I need you. Help us now to hear you speak. Change and comfort us; in Jesus’s name, we pray, amen. You may be seated.

CONTEXT

The situation was dire. Israel was divided in two: the north and the south. The tribes of Israel didn’t get along. Here is a picture for you. You can see Judah in pink and Israel in green.

God desired a relationship with his nation. He longed for them to worship him alone and follow his ways. He yearned for their trust. In our passage, I see a situation, an invitation, a prediction, and a condemnation. Ahaz listened to God and had to decide if he would follow him. The chapter loosely breaks down into four parts.

Verses 1 through 3 - The Situation

Verses 4 through 13 - The Invitation

Verses 14 through 16 - The Prediction

Verses 17 through 25 - The Condemnation

SITUATION

What was the situation? The tribe was freaking out. On the border of Judah was a threat. The neighbors wanted to invade.

FEEL LIKE

What would that be like? I don’t know. I can’t relate. I have never feared Canada or Mexico. We don’t have intrastate conflicts like the Civil War. Probably the closest thing to that for me was the craziness of COVID-19. I freaked out imagining roving gangs coming from Chicago up the 94 looking for food and fuel. How would I protect my family? Thankfully, that didn’t happen. However, it did contribute to my stockpiling nearly a three-month supply of toilet paper. If you want some tuna or rice, I still might have some from 2020. I have heard the expiration dates are “best used by,” not really “expirations.” Looking back, I realize that my stockpiling was an overreaction. But, some people, like Ahaz, wouldn’t be off base to be shaking in their boots. Let’s read more.

VERSE 3

Go to verse 3.

“And the LORD said to Isaiah, ‘Go out to meet Ahaz, you and Shear-jashub your son, at the end of the conduit of the upper pool on the highway to the Washer’s Field’” (Isaiah 7:3, ESV).

Apparently, Isaiah was married and working in Jerusalem. His son’s name was Shear-Jashub, meaning a remnant shall return. Isaiah’s name means Yhaweh is our salvation. In the threat of deportation and prediction of future destruction, Isaiah and his son were a hopeful pair. Isaiah obeyed, took his son, and spoke to the king. What did he say? Read verse 4.

VERSE 4

And say to him, ‘Be careful, be quiet, do not fear, and do not let your heart be faint because of these two smoldering stumps of firebrands, at the fierce anger of Rezin and Syria and the son of Remaliah (Isaiah 7:4, ESV)

This was an invitation. We have seen the situation. Here is an invitation. The message God gave Isaiah was not to get caught up emotionally or even take action. His enemies’ fury was flaming out. They rattled their swords, and God said to Ahaz, “Don’t worry.”

Verses 5 and 6 provide some explanation as to why they would worry.

Because Syria, with Ephraim and the son of Remaliah, has devised evil against you, saying, “Let us go up against Judah and terrify it, and let us conquer it for ourselves, and set up the son of Tabeel as king in the midst of it.” (Isaiah 7:5–6, ESV)

God knew what these kings said in their bedrooms, back rooms, and boardrooms. This information may have been new, or it may have been a well-circulated rumor. Regardless, these two nations were planning evil. They wanted Ahaz out of the picture and a no-name successor to take his place. And if we heard these plans, we would naturally be worried.

However, God was inviting Ahaz to trust, not respond, and not fear. Ephraim and Syria were like wild animals prowling. Ahaz would be better off standing still than running or fighting. Don’t engage. It reminds me of the advice I heard about walking in Chicago, “Don’t look people in the eye. Just keep walking. Don’t engage; you may be asking for a fight.” God knows all things. Read God’s prophecy in verse 7.

“Thus says the Lord GOD: ‘It shall not stand,

and it shall not come to pass’” (Isaiah 7:7, ESV).

The plans for evil will fall flat on their face. Don’t worry, Ahaz. Trust God. Verses 8 and 9 give more reasons to trust.

For the head of Syria is Damascus,

and the head of Damascus is Rezin.

And within sixty-five years Ephraim will be

shattered from being a people.

And the head of Ephraim is Samaria,

and the head of Samaria is the son of Remaliah.

If you are not firm in faith,

you will not be firm at all.’ ” (Isaiah 7:8–9, ESV)

Notice that it goes from nation to capital, to the king, to destruction. The people who pose a clear and present danger soon won’t be a problem. What was missing in this pattern? Which group, town, and king did Isaiah not mention? He didn’t say the head of Judah: Jerusalem or the head of Jerusalem: Ahaz. Perhaps the message at the end of verse 9 was for Ahaz. Don’t you think?

“If you are not firm in faith,

you will not be firm at all” (Isaiah 7:9, ESV).

God invited Ahaz to believe the King of kings. It may be an invitation to us as well.

“If you are not firm in faith,

you will not be firm at all” (Isaiah 7:9, ESV).

Isaiah was reminding Ahaz of his identity and the ancient promises of God. He had forgotten that he was part of David's house. In 2 Samuel chapter 7, Samuel told King David this:

When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. (2 Samuel 7:12–14, ESV)

Solomon was David’s son. Solomon built the Temple in Jerusalem, the house of the Lord. Every ancestor after him could remember, “This kingdom will last forever.” Ahaz had an opportunity to put his faith in God’s promise. Would he?

We have a similar invitation this Christmas season. Will we believe when our enemies seem to be knocking at the door? Will we trust? Through faith, we have become sons and daughters of the Living God. We are co-heirs with Christ. Brothers and sisters in the Body. Do we remember who we are when trials happen? Do we remember who our God is when our world falls apart? Do we forget that when the tests come back positive, our expectations aren’t met, and people are upset with us? God was reminding Ahaz and inviting Ahaz to go back to a right relationship.

What did Ahaz do? God predicted that the enemies would only last sixty-five years. If Ahaz was at the start of his career, twenty, that meant he had to survive till he was eighty-five to see this come to pass.

His dad, Jotham, died at 41.
His grandfather, Uzziah, died at 68.
His great-grandfather Amaziah died at 54.
His Great-great-grandfather died at 47.

Living until he was in his eighties was not looking bright. Would he trust the law of averages and experience, or would he rely on the promises of God? This message of hope would be challenging for him to believe. In verse 10, Isaiah’s voice disappears. All we hear is Yahweh.

“Again the LORD spoke to Ahaz: ‘Ask a sign of the LORD your God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven’” (Isaiah 7:10–11, ESV).

God wanted him to seek him. We can measure our faith by our actions. God was going to do something extraordinary, unparalleled, magical.

How did Ahaz respond? Look at verse 12.

“But Ahaz said, ‘I will not ask, and I will not put the LORD to the test’ (Isaiah 7:12, ESV).

He quoted Deuteronomy 6:16. Nice. But was it? Verse 13 helps us understand the heart behind this. Isaiah says back to Ahaz:

“And he said, ‘Hear then, O house of David! Is it too little for you to weary men, that you weary my God also?’” (Isaiah 7:13, ESV).

Isaiah called him by his house, his family name, remember? Ahaz needed to remember his roots. He was from the line of promise. He forgot his identity. He forgot who his God was. He did not trust God. He was rejecting God with pious language. It was like telling Isaiah, “I got this. I don’t need your help. Leave me alone.”

God let him go his own way. Consequently, Ahaz would have a reason to worry. We read in 2 Chronicles 28 that God allowed Syria and Israel to defeat Judah. The king of Israel, Peka, killed 120,000 from Judah in one day. A mighty man named Zichri of the tribe of Ephraim killed three of the top leaders in Juday: one of Ahaz’s sons, the commander of the palace, and the second in command. Israel went on to enslave 200,000 women and children and take away plunder. God would let Ahaz try to figure it out. Ahaz rejected God’s invitation.

This reminds me of my kids. For example, there have been times when I offered to help them with school or cooking. They refused. I watch. They fail. I am tempted to say, “I told you so.” But I don’t. Ahaz rejected him instead. This disaster for Judah was preventable. Ahaz had to trust God.

What was his alternative? Ahaz hawked some of the temple valuables, pawned off his stuff, and sought help from a superpower a world away, Assyria. In 1873, archeologists unearthed this tablet from the Assyrian king in Iraq. It recorded what Ahaz sent him.

https://bryanwindle.files.wordpress.com/2019/10/tiglath-pileser-summary-statement-7-british-museum.jpg

It corresponds to 2 Chronicle chapter 28, verse 16. It is long but worth reading.

At that time King Ahaz sent to the king of Assyria for help. For the Edomites had again invaded and defeated Judah and carried away captives. And the Philistines had made raids on the cities …. And they settled there. For the LORD humbled Judah because of Ahaz king of Israel, for he had made Judah act sinfully and had been very unfaithful to the LORD. So Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria came against him and afflicted him instead of strengthening him. For Ahaz took a portion from the house of the LORD and the house of the king and of the princes, and gave tribute to the king of Assyria, but it did not help him.

In the time of his distress he became yet more faithless to the LORD—this same King Ahaz. For he sacrificed to the gods of Damascus that had defeated him and said, “Because the gods of the kings of Syria helped them, I will sacrifice to them that they may help me.” But they were the ruin of him and of all Israel. And Ahaz gathered together the vessels of the house of God and cut in pieces the vessels of the house of God, and he shut up the doors of the house of the LORD, and he made himself altars in every corner of Jerusalem. In every city of Judah he made high places to make offerings to other gods, provoking to anger the LORD, the God of his fathers. (2 Chronicles 28:16–25, ESV)

Things went from bad to worse. Ahaz rejected God, so God rejected Ahaz.

But we are getting ahead of ourselves. God gave Ahaz an extraordinary sign and hope for us today. This is my third point, a prediction. We have talked about the situation and the invitation, now let’s talk about the prediction. What was that? Look at verse 1.

“Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14, ESV).

Matthew quoted this in his first chapter—Matthew Chapter 1, verse 20.

But as he [Joseph] considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: [Isaiah]

“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,

and they shall call his name Immanuel”

(which means, God with us). (Matthew 1:20–23, ESV)

God will be with his people. He was with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. They sinned, and he removed them from his presence and paradise. God was with Abraham when he led him out of his home country to the land he would show him. God was with Moses when he appeared in the burning bush. God was with his people as they wandered for forty years in the desert. He was with Shadrach, Meshack, and Abedenego in the fiery furnace. And 700 years after Isaiah appealed to Aahaz, another messenger of God spoke similar words to a young teenage girl. He told her that God had shown her favor. She, being a virgin, would miraculously have a baby. Matthew identified her and her child as the fulfillment of Isaiah 7:14.

John, the apostle, agreed. He wrote:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it….And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:1–5, 14 ESV)

The apostle Paul wrote of this Immanuel,

Who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. (Philippians 2:6–7, ESV)

Paul also wrote.

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell. (Colossians 1:15–19, ESV)

The author of Hebrews wrote,

Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature. (Hebrews 1:1–3, ESV)

God is with us in the Spirit of Christ. Isaiah kept predicting the future in verse 15. He wrote:

“He shall eat curds and honey when he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good” (Isaiah 7:15, ESV).

That he will eat curds and honey was not a sign of wealth, which was my first reading of the text. It was one of poverty. It was eating the subsistence from the land. This Immanuel would be born in obscurity. Jesus’s parents left town for the census. They had to give birth to Jesus in a barn to live in. When Jesus was only a couple of years old, he had to feel the country because of persecution. In his early years, he was a refugee in Egypt.

Verse 16 was the last prediction Ahaz had that carried some good news.

“For before the boy knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land whose two kings you dread will be deserted” (Isaiah 7:16, ESV).

What Ahaz feared would soon not be an issue. He should have trusted God. But he forgot who he was and who God was.

CONDEMNATION

This brings us to the consequences: Condemnation. I will be quick. Look at verse 17.

The LORD will bring upon you and upon your people and upon your father’s house such days as have not come since the day that Ephraim departed from Judah—the king of Assyria!” (Isaiah 7:17, ESV).

Ahaz made a deal with the Devil. He would not follow God. He would be a sell-out. God made his decision. He let Ahaz face the consequences. Why would Ahaz do this? He must have thought his way was better than God’s. He trusted his way more than God’s. He forgot who he was and who God was.

Do we ever act like that? Do we listen to God but go our own way? As we enter into the season of Advent, let us remember the radical solution God gave to help us against our enemies, sin, death, and the Devil. What was God’s provision? He sent his one and only Son, Jesus. He lived, died, and rose for our sins. He came to save us from our sins. He loved us to death. Let us not forget who we are and who God is.

Through faith, we are forgiven,
free from the slavery of sin,
and holy.
We join David’s family by adoption.
We are brothers and sisters to Christ,
sons and daughters of God.
And inheritors of the kingdom.
We are royalty
And we are called into a community of faith.

This Immanuel calls us to remember and move toward God. He is here with us. We are not alone. He is Immanuel.

I must confess that it is easy to forget this. Let us turn from our shortcuts, shortcomings, and short-circuits to follow God with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength.

He is our help and hope for today and tomorrow and forever.

Let us pray.