Online Bible

The Coming Assyrian Invasion

Then Yahweh said to me, “Take for yourself a large tablet and ^awrite on it ¹in ordinary letters: ^bConcerning ²Maher-shalal-hash-baz. 2 And ¹I will take to Myself faithful witnesses for testimony, ^aUriah the priest and Zechariah the son of Jeberechiah.” 3 Then I drew near to the prophetess, and she conceived and bore a son. Then Yahweh said to me, “Call his name ¹^aMaher-shalal-hash-baz, 4 for ^abefore the boy knows how to cry out ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the wealth of ^bDamascus and the spoil of Samaria will be carried away before the king of Assyria.”

5 Again Yahweh spoke to me further, saying,

6 “Inasmuch as these people have ^arejected the gently flowing waters of ShiloahAnd rejoice in ^bRezin and the son of Remaliah;7 Now therefore, behold, the Lord is about to bring on them the ^amighty and abundant waters of the ¹^bRiver—The ^cking of Assyria and all his glory;And it will ^drise up over all its channels and go over all its banks.8 “Then ^ait will sweep on into Judah; it will overflow and pass through;It will ^breach even to the neck;And the spread of its wings will ¹fill the breadth of ²Your land, O ^cImmanuel.

Yahweh, a Sanctuary and a Stumbling Stone

9 “^aBe broken, O peoples, and be ¹^bshattered;And give ear, all remote places of the earth.Gird yourselves, yet be ²shattered;Gird yourselves, yet be ³shattered.10 “^aDevise counsel, but it will be thwarted;Speak a word, but ^bit will not stand,For ¹^cGod is with us.”

11 For thus Yahweh spoke to me with a ^astrong hand and disciplined me ^bnot to walk in the way of this people, saying,

12 “You are not to say, ‘It is a ^aconspiracy!’In regard to all that this people call a conspiracy;And ^byou are not to fear ¹what they fear, and you shall not tremble.13 “It is ^aYahweh of hosts ^bwhom you should regard as holy.And He shall be your fear,And He shall be your cause of trembling.14 “Then He shall become a ^asanctuary;But to both the houses of Israel, a ^bstone to strike and a rock to stumble over,And a snare and a ^ctrap for the inhabitants of Jerusalem.15 “And many ^awill stumble over them;Then they will fall and be broken;They will even be snared and caught.”

16 ^aBind up the testimony, ^bseal the ¹law among ^cmy disciples. 17 And I will ^await for Yahweh ^bwho is hiding His face from the house of Jacob; and I will hope for Him. 18 ^aBehold, I and the children whom Yahweh has given me are for ^bsigns and wonders in Israel from Yahweh of hosts, who ^cdwells on Mount Zion.

Darkness to Light Through the Prince of Peace

19 Now when they say to you, “^aInquire of the mediums and the spiritists who whisper and mutter,” should not a people ^binquire of their God? Should they ^cinquire of the dead on behalf of the living? 20 To the ¹^alaw and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because ^bthey have no dawn. 21 And they will pass through ¹the land ^ahard-pressed and hungry, and it will be that when they are hungry, they will be angry and curse ²their king and their God as they face upward. 22 Then they will ^alook to the earth, and behold, distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish; and they will be ^bbanished into thick darkness.

Damascus and Samaria Fall

Then the LORD said to me, “Take for yourself a large tablet and ^awrite on it ¹in ordinary letters: ²^bMaher-shalal-hash-baz. 2 And ¹I will take to Myself faithful witnesses for testimony, ^aUriah the priest and Zechariah the son of Jeberechiah.” 3 So I approached the prophetess, and she conceived and gave birth to a son. Then the LORD said to me, “Name him ¹^aMaher-shalal-hash-baz; 4 for ^abefore the boy knows how to cry out ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the wealth of ^bDamascus and the spoils of Samaria will be carried away before the king of Assyria.”

5 Again the LORD spoke to me further, saying,

6 “Inasmuch as these people have ^arejected the gently flowing waters of ShiloahAnd rejoice in ^bRezin and the son of Remaliah;7 Now therefore, behold, the Lord is about to bring on them the ^astrong and abundant waters of the ^bEuphrates River,That is, the ^cking of Assyria and all his glory;And it will ^drise over all its channels and go over all its banks.8 “Then ^ait will sweep on into Judah, it will overflow and pass through,It will ^breach as far as the neck;And the spread of its wings will ¹fill the expanse of ²your land, ^cImmanuel.

A Believing Remnant

9 “^aBe broken, you peoples, and be ¹^bshattered;And listen, all remote places of the earth.²Get ready, yet be ³shattered;⁴Get ready, yet be ⁵shattered.10 “^aDevise a plan, but it will fail;State a ¹proposal, but ^bit will not stand,For ²^cGod is with us.”

11 For so the LORD spoke to me ¹with ^amighty power and instructed me ^bnot to walk in the way of this people, saying,

12 “You are not to say, ‘It is a ^aconspiracy!’Regarding everything that this people call a conspiracy,And ^byou are not to fear ¹what they fear or be in dread of it.13 “It is the ^aLORD of armies ^bwhom you are to regard as holy.And He shall be your fear,And He shall be your dread.14 “Then He will become a ^asanctuary;But to both houses of Israel, He will be a ^bstone of stumbling and a rock ¹of offense,And a snare and a ^ctrap for the inhabitants of Jerusalem.15 “Many ^awill stumble over them,Then they will fall and be broken;They will be snared and caught.”

16 ^aBind up the testimony, ^bseal the ¹Law among ^cmy disciples. 17 And I will ^await for the LORD ^bwho is hiding His face from the house of Jacob; I will wait eagerly for Him. 18 ^aBehold, I and the children whom the LORD has given me are for ^bsigns and wonders in Israel from the LORD of armies, who ^cdwells on Mount Zion.

19 When they say to you, “^aConsult the mediums and the spiritists who whisper and mutter,” should a people not ^bconsult their God? Should they ^cconsult the dead in behalf of the living? 20 To the ¹^aLaw and to the testimony! If they do not speak in accordance with this word, it is because ^bthey have no dawn. 21 They will pass through ¹the land ^adejected and hungry, and it will turn out that when they are hungry, they will become enraged and curse ²their king and their God as they face upward. 22 Then they will ^alook to the earth, and behold, distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish; and they will be ^bdriven away into darkness.