The Time Between Times
The last chapter was rather difficult to write and explain. In my own journey through scripture, I have arrived at different conclusions about particular prophecies. Once, my own interpretation of Isaiah 7:14 was a “dual fulfillment” view. However, as explained in the previous section, my view has changed—for the better I hope! Isaiah chapter 8 expounds a bit upon the previous discussion. This topic happens to bring a great deal of mental strain and is less about application of virtuous character but rather about properly investigating information to find the true truth. Perhaps the Lord had me write my Isaiah chapter 4, “The Knowledge of the Lord” discussion on the responsibility of properly pursing wisdom and knowledge to keep my own heart driving forward in this topic.
Isaiah 8:1-4 appear to tie directly to the previous prophecy about Immanuel. However, it seems to me this is a faulty perspective. Because I don’t want to mislead or assume any reader has the verses directly in front of them, I will quote the whole passage here for context.
“The Lord said to me, “Take a large scroll and write on it with an ordinary pen: Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz. And I will call in Uriah the priest and Zechariah son of Jeberekiah as reliable witnesses for me.” Then I went to the prophetess, and she conceived and gave birth to a son. And the Lord said to me, “Name him Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz. Before the boy knows how to say “My father” or “My mother,” the wealth of Damascus and the plunder of Samaria will be carried off by the king of Assyria.” – Isaiah 8:1-4
This passage appears to equate Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz with Immanuel from chapter 7; this is primarily concluded because of the similar age requirements. However, this does not seem to be the case. Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz and Immanuel are not the same person. General commentary agrees that Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz was Isaiah’s son with the prophetess. However, I haven’t found any scripture that explicitly states the relationship. Its possible I am missing a piece of the puzzle. Regardless of Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz person or heritage, this prophecy does come to pass with the invasion of Assyria in 2 Chronicles 28:20-21 and eventually king Ahaz turns to worship the gods of Damascus since they conquered him earlier in 2 Chronicles 28:5-6.
Secondly, another difference between Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz and Immanuel are the meanings of the names. Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz means “quick to plunder, swift to the spoil” while Immanuel means “God with us.” The purpose of drawing this distinction is to inspect scripture for other names of Christ. From my search and understanding, Jesus is never given a name that means “quick to plunder, swift to the spoil.” Jesus is given many names, but never one associated with Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz. Immanuel must also be from the House of David and Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz is not in the lineage of David at all. At best, he is from Isaiah’s lineage but not an heir to the land of Israel. Thus, Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz is not Immanuel and is not the fulfillment of Isaiah 7:14.
Moving further down the passage, the Lord speaks again to Isaiah and reveals the reason for bringing Assyria upon Judah. Verses 6-10 say, “Because this people has rejected the gently flowing waters of Shiloah and rejoices over Rezin and the son of Remaliah, therefore the Lord is about to bring against them the mighty floodwaters of the River—the king of Assyrai with all his pomp. It will overflow all its channels, run over all its banks and sweep on into Judah, swirling over it, passing through it and reaching up to the neck. Its outspread wings will cover the breadth of your land, O Immanuel!” This verdict is the judgement that the Lord placed on Ahaz if he did “not stand firm in [his] faith” (Is. 7:9).
From the 2 Chronicles 28 account, Ahaz was extremely inconsistent and followed any man-made god available to him. There was no trust in Yahweh the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Further, even the people of Judah were not faithful. The Lord makes it a point to tell Isaiah to not be like the rest of Judah (Is. 8:12-14).
The last sentence of verse 8 is fascinating because Immanuel is brought up again. God has done something rather curious between Isaiah 7 and 8. First the Lord introduces Immanuel’s person and provides a sign of his coming: a virgin birth. In Isaiah 7:13, the Lord reveals the message is for the “House of David,” which means this Immanuel will be in the lineage of David. Then, in Isaiah 8:8 the Lord directly addresses Immanuel, saying “Its outspread wings will cover the breadth of your land, O Immanuel.” This brings a rather brilliant collection of details together: that Immanuel is born to a virgin, will come after Assyria conquers Israel and the heir of David to rule over all of Israel (which assumes Israel is no longer split into two nations: Israel and Judah—the split occurred at Solomon’s death in 2 Chronicles 10 and 1 Kings 12).
At the time, I’m sure all this made no sense. Israel was divided in a civil war spanning 11 generations and nearly 200 years. External nations were invading and your “kin” had allied themselves with previous enemies. Often people think that the conflict in Israel today is somehow new, but it is not. These neighbors have been fighting each other since roughly 930BC, nearly 3000 years ago. Understanding and grasping the implications of the Lord’s words to Isaiah would have been difficult. Today, we have the benefit of the Holy Spirit and a whole Bible of information.
Please note: the prophecy about Immanuel has not been completely fulfilled yet! Although the heir to the Promise Land, Immanuel/Jesus is still waiting to come and reclaim his home and inheritance! Today is still the time between times; where prophecies have been given and started but we wait patiently for their fulfillment to arrive.
