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NASB | Isaiah 1:1 The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz concerning Judah and Jerusalem, which he saw during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Isaiah 1:1 The vision of [the prophet] Isaiah the son of Amoz concerning [the kingdom of] Judah and [its capital] Jerusalem, which he saw [as revealed by God] during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah. |
Bible Question:
are there 3 isaiah's or one? the dating of isaiah is controversial so who do i believe? |
Bible Answer: Dear frewal, you are quite right, the Isaiah authorship is somewhat controversial. It has in fact been the focus of more scholarly discussion than any other single question regarding the prophetic books of the Old Testament. More liberal scholars and theologians tend to hold to the theory of two or more "Isaiahs" while their conservative counterparts opt for one Isaiah....Dr. Henry Morris does a fine job of stating the conservation viewpoint, and refuting the liberal, in his Introduction to Isaiah found in the Defender's Study Bible (World Publishing)..... Here are some excerpts from his Introduction: ....."Critics have viciously attacked the book of Isaiah, insisting there were at least two "Isaiahs" -- one who wrote chapters 1-39 and the other chapters 40-66. Some have even suggested 3 or 4 authors. The ostensible reason for the unwarranted assertion is that the two divisions have two different literary styles. Critics ignore the fact, however, that the two different styles relate to the two different themes of the two sections. Far more similarities than differences can be found in the two sections..... The real reason, however, for the "two Isaiahs" notion is that the second division contains many remarkable prophecies that were later fulfilled -- for example, the naming of the Persian emperor Cyrus a century and a half in advance (Isaiah 45:1-4) Skeptical theologians are unwilling to believe that God can supernaturally reveal the future to His divinely called prophets. So most of them assume that the last part of Isaiah was written by an unknown writer living among the exiles in Babylon after Cyrus had conquered the city."..... Dr. Morris goes on to point out that Jesus quoted "the prophet Isaiah" in Matthew 3:3 and his quote is from Isaiah 40:3 -- a passage the liberal view attributes to a "second Isaiah" or, in other words, someone other than the prophet Isaiah. ....Furthermore, the oldest extant manuscript of Isaiah is in one of the Dead Sea Scrolls, dated circa 100 B.C., and this gives no indication whatever that it was not all written by the same man. The same is true of the Greek Septuagint translaton of the Old Testament. In fact, all genuine historical evidence agrees on the unity of Isaiah. There is absolutely no reason to doubt the authenticity of the entire book..... I hope this has been a fairly adequate answer to your question. --Hank |