1 ^aAND it came to pass in the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, [ Who was also known as Azariah and reigned from 767 to 740 BC. We are now going to deal with prophecies that will take place during the life of Isaiah. ] king of Judah, that Rezin, king of Syria, and Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, went up toward Jerusalem to war against it, but could not prevail against it.

2 And it was told the house of David, [ Refers to king Ahaz, a descendant of King David and heir to the throne of the kingdom of Judah. ] saying: Syria is confederate [ Means to make an alliance with. Syria had formed an alliance with Ephraim, the northern kingdom of Israel. ] with Ephraim. And his heart was moved, [ The king of Judah. Shows that Ahaz and his people were afraid when they learned that Syria and Ephraim were allies. THe idea that Assyria is rising in power, conquering all the surrounding nations and forcing them each to pay tribute. The Northern Kingdom had been voluntary been paying tribute already to avoid war. However, Menahem, the former King of Israel was murdered by Pekah, who then succeeded him as the king. Pekah ahd formerly been the captain of the kings guard, to protect his own interests he stopped paying tribute to Assyria and formed an alliance with Syria as protection for himself and his wealth. Pekah invited Judah to join his alliance, but Judah wanted nothing to do with resisting the mighty Assyrian king. So Pekah decides to force Judah to do so by going to war with them. So in the passages here Ephraim represents the leadership of the Northern kingdom of Israel, and David represents the kingdom of Judah. So what will follow in the next verse through verse 9 is what the Lord instructs Isaiah to tell the King Of Judah to do. ] and the heart of his people, as the trees of the wood are moved with the wind.

3 Then said the Lord unto Isaiah: Go forth now to meet Ahaz, thou and Shearjashub [ Means “the remnant shall return” (see 2 Nephi 20:21–22; Isaiah 7:3a). Isaiah sets this up in naming his son in Isaiah 7:3 Shear-Jashub, or "a remnant will return." Isaiah prophecies that there is going to be a scattering, but God's covenants permeate and can last throughout history, permeate history, and a remnant will be gathered. And this is going to make all the difference to Nephi who's seen a vision of his people be destroyed, that name of Isaiah's son, but a remnant will return. ] thy son, [ So the Lord has commanded Isaiah to bring his son with him, his son is named "Shearjashub" which translates to "a remnant shall return", a reference to the latter day restoration of the House of Israel, but for now Shearjashub is to serve as a sign for Israel. Ahz id not a man of faith so God says that he will show him a sign. Verse 10-16. ] at the end of the conduit [ An aqueduct. Ahaz may have been checking the city’s water supply in case of a siege during war. ] of the upper pool in the highway of the fuller’s field; [ Was a place where the clothes were washed. So the Lord knows exactly where Ahaz is going to be and when he would be there. Just as he knows where and when you and I will be where we will be - he is in the details. Ahaz is not a good man, he will ultimately turn the entire nation into a nation of Canaanites, a direct perversion of true faith. So By Isaiah going to Ahza nd telling him what he does Ahaz will be placed in a difficult position of believing Isaiah or not. Ahaz knows that the Northern kingdom of Israel is much larger than Judah. Their combined strength with Syria would have been terrifying as an enemy. Isaiah is telling Ahaz to ignore them because both countries will cease to exist at the hand of Assyria. This news is difficult for Ahaz to believe, and even if he does sixty- five years away is a long time away, and these two nations are at his door now and threatening to attack, which would mean that he would no longer be king of Judah either. ]

4 And say unto him: Take heed, and be quiet; fear not, neither be faint-hearted for the two tails of these smoking firebrands, [ is the image of a torch burned out, symbolic of having spent their strength. Rezin and Pekah were, in fact, powerless and soon to be crushed by Assyria.] for the fierce anger of Rezin with Syria, and of the son of Remaliah.

5 Because Syria, Ephraim, and the son of Remaliah, have taken evil counsel against thee, saying:

6 Let us go up against Judah and vex [ To irrate or torment. ] it, and let us make a breach [ Indicating that Syria and Ephraim were going to try and force their way into Jerusalem through a strong hold. ] therein for us, and set a king in the midst of it, yea, the son of Tabeal. [ A Syrian chosen by Syria and Ephraim to be the puppet ruler in Jerusalem. ]

7 Thus saith the Lord God: [ Hebrew - Yahweh ( or Jehovah which means "to become" or "to exist") translated as Lord; Elohim translated as God ("the Gods") which together the words mean "He will cause Gods to be". ] : It shall not stand, neither shall it come to pass.

8 For the head of Syria is Damascus, and the head of Damascus, Rezin; and within three score [ Or 60 as a score equals 20. ] and five years shall Ephraim be broken that it be not a people. [ The northern kingdom of Israel was captured by Assyria in 722 B.C., and many of the inhabitants (known today as the lost tribes of Israel) were carried away. Captives from other lands were relocated in the area and eventually intermarried with the remaining Israelites and became known as the Samaritans. “Ephraim be broken” happened as prophesied; within the span of 65 years, Ephraim was no more. ]

9 And the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is Remaliah’s son. If ye will not believe surely ye shall not be established.

10 Moreover, the Lord spake again unto Ahaz, saying:

11 Ask thee a sign of the Lord thy God; ask it either in the depths, or in the heights above.

12 But Ahaz said: I will not ask, n [ He is not a man of faith, he does not believe in God so what is the use to ask. ] neither will I tempt the Lord.

13 And he said: Hear ye now, O house of David; is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will ye weary my God also?

14 Therefore, the Lord himself shall give you a sign— [ When the Lord suggests that he will show a sign what does he mean? The Lord is going to use the unlikely to bring about his purpose so that there should be no doubt. Compare with Judges 7 the Lord sends most of the army home so that when the defeat takes place they will know that is was because of the Lord and not of their own doing. The odds here were 500 to 1 abut the same odd as we have as members in the church today (number of LDS verses number of people in the world. President Russell M Nelson Bishops training Kaysville Stake center Nov 19, 2016). ] Behold, a virgin [ The Hebrew word for virgin is (‘almah) literally means “young woman,” also having the connotation of a virgin. ] shall conceive, [ The fact the the son is born of a virgin is was meant as a sign to the Jews - to convince them that he was their Messiah. ] and shall bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. [ Immanuel, a name for Jesus Christ, comes from words in Hebrew that mean “God with us.” Immanuel is a name-title given as a sign of God’s deliverance (see Isaiah 7:14). Isaiah’s reference to Immanuel had both a possible historic meaning and a prophetic meaning. In its most immediate meaning, it could indicate a child to be born in Isaiah’s time whose coming of age operated as a sign (see 2 Nephi 17:16–19). In its more important prophetic meaning, Immanuel is specifically identified by Matthew as a prophecy of Jesus’s birth into mortality (see Matthew 1:18–25). The name also appears in latter-day scripture (see 2 Nephi 17:14; 18:8; D&C 128:22). (For more information, see Guide to the Scriptures, “Immanuel,” 117; Bible Dictionary, “Immanuel,” 706.) “God with us” was meant to reassure King Ahaz that if he turned to the Lord, then God would help him. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles explained how this also became another type and shadow of the Savior: “There are plural or parallel elements to this prophecy, as with so much of Isaiah’s writing. The most immediate meaning was probably focused on Isaiah’s wife, a pure and good woman who brought forth a son about this time, the child becoming a type and shadow of the greater, later fulfillment of the prophecy that would be realized in the birth of Jesus Christ. The symbolism in the dual prophecy acquires additional importance when we realize that Isaiah’s wife may have been of royal blood, and therefore her son would have been royalty of the line of David. Here again is a type, a prefiguration of the greater Immanuel, Jesus Christ, the ultimate son of David, the royal King who would be born of a literal virgin. Indeed, his title Immanuel would be carried forward to the latter days, being applied to the Savior in section 128 verse 22 of the Doctrine and Covenants” (Christ and the New Covenant [1997], 79).

There is a signifigance to the use of "EL" according to strongs dictionary the use of "El" in a name means "god, god-like one, mighty one". Hence it is used in names like Nathanel...to show god like qualities. The "Im" is an contraction of "I am". Notice that "Eloh'im" (God) is the inverse in spelling of "Immanuel" as the "El" is at the front on one and at the end of the other and the "Im" is swapped in either case. Two different individuals very much the same in character and purpose. ]

15 Butter and honey [ Ancient Hebrew idiom for the trials of mortality. ] shall he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil and to choose the good.

16 For before the child [ Before this Christ child will be born. ] shall know to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land that thou abhorrest [ ] shall be forsaken of both her kings. [ Both Syria and the Northern Kingdom will both be disolved - they will loose their kings. ]

17 The Lord shall bring upon thee, and upon thy people, and upon thy father’s house, days that have not come from the day that Ephraim departed from Judah, the king of Assyria.

18 And it shall come to pass in that day that the Lord shall hiss for the fly that is in the uttermost part of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria.

19 And they shall come, and shall rest all of them in the desolate valleys, and in the holes of the rocks, and upon all thorns, and upon all bushes.

20 In the same day shall the Lord shave with a razor that is hired, [ Shaving the head or beard was customarily done to mourn a death in the family. The forcible shearing of a captive, however, insulted and identified the one in subjection. The Lord through Isaiah is saying that the King of Assyria is being used as a tool to fulfill the Lords will, not out of hatred but because Israel and Judah have become corrupt The deed restrictions on the land in which they possess is that they follow him, when they do not they are no longer under his divine protection. ] by them beyond the river, by the king of Assyria, the head, and the hair of the feet; and it shall also consume the beard.

21 And it shall come to pass in that day, a man shall nourish a young cow [ There is not much left in the land, strays here and there. THe Assyrian army would have eaten or taken every cow that they could milk and or eat, so everything that was available would have been used for the now. Leaving what was left as unusable at least for now. Slim pickings. ] and two sheep;

22 And it shall come to pass, for the abundance of milk [ Plenty of milk because there are so few survivors? ] they shall give he shall eat butter; for butter and honey [ Butter and Honey may seem like luxury items, but the land was laid waste by the Assyrians (see 2 Nephi 17:23). Consequently, the survivors had to live off the land like nomadic Bedouins with no crops to eat. Butter and honey likely referred to the curdled yogurt that would come from goats or sheep and any wild honey that could be found. So while it may seem good it was destitution from the lack of resources available after the destruction by the Assyrian army. ] shall every one eat that is left in the land. [ Painting a picture that the desolation of the northern country of Israel after the Assyrian destruction. ]

23 And it shall come to pass in that day, every place shall be, where there were a thousand vines [ Where once was a beautiful vineyard. ] at a thousand silverlings, which shall be for briers and thorns. [ The vineyard is now grown over with thorns and weeds. ]

24 With arrows and with bows shall men come thither, because all the land shall become briers and thorns.

25 And all hills that shall be digged with the mattock, [ The terraces hills are now uncultivated. ] there shall not come thither the fear of briers and thorns; but it shall be for the sending forth of oxen, and the treading of lesser cattle.