Isaiah 7

I was reading Isaiah 7 this morning, and it puzzled me. Here is the passage:

¹⁴Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. ¹⁵He shall eat curds and honey when he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good. ¹⁶ For before the boy knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land whose two kings you dread will be deserted.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.”

¹⁸In that day the LORD will whistle for the fly that is at the end of the streams of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria. ¹⁹And they will all come and settle in the steep ravines, and in the clefts of the rocks, and on all the thornbushes, and on all the pastures.

²⁰In that day the Lord will shave with a razor that is hired beyond the River—with the king of Assyria—the head and the hair of the feet, and it will sweep away the beard also.

²¹ In that day a man will keep alive a young cow and two sheep, ²²and because of the abundance of milk that they give, he will eat curds, for everyone who is left in the land will eat curds and honey.

²³In that day every place where there used to be a thousand vines, worth a thousand shekels of silver, will become briers and thorns. ²⁴ With bow and arrows a man will come there, for all the land will be briers and thorns.²⁵ And as for all the hills that used to be hoed with a hoe, you will not come there for fear of briers and thorns, but they will become a place where cattle are let loose and where sheep tread.

At first, I wondered how this whole passage could be a messianic prophecy. I mean the part about the virgin conceiving makes sense because of Mary, but what about the rest of it? Why isn’t it just a prophecy for the time it was written? What do curds and honey have to do with Jesus in a manger?

Then I started seeing connections to Jesus. I’m no expert on this passage, so I may be bringing some really wrong ideas to the passage, but here they are:

Immanuel, God with us, is more than just “God is on our side.” That was the affirmation needed at the time when it seemed like God had abandoned His people. In Jesus, this is fulfilled because Jesus Himself is God, made flesh, dwelling among us.

Verse 16 talks about land of the two dreaded kings being deserted. If the enemy land is deserted, it means they are no longer a threat. Your enemies are gone; you are free! “For freedom Christ has set us free.”

The curds and honey (v. 15) make a little more sense if you read down to verse 21-22. When there is prosperity in the land, everyone gets to eat curds and honey because they have their own cows. With this, I think of Jesus providing bread and fish for the 5000, Jesus being the Bread of Life, and the coming Wedding Feast of the Lamb. Because Jesus came to earth, we have spiritual food and we have a feast awaiting us in Heaven.

What about v. 18-19? Why are we talking about bees and flies? The bees and flies are provided a home. They are taken from every corner of the world and are given safety, security, and a place to live. Is it not the same with Jesus? He calls people from all nations (Great Commission) and brings them into His flock. In the New Jerusalem in Revelation, we see people of every nation, tribe and tongue praising God. He gives us a place to live. “In my Father’s house are many mansions…I go to prepare a place for you.”

What about the beard-shaving (v.20)? What’s wrong with facial hair? I’m guessing that this has something to do with cleanliness. If you have lice, you shave your head to get rid of it. We are purified and cleansed by identifying with Christ’s sufferings.

The part about the briars and thorns overtaking the vineyard is interesting. Why would this prophecy be talking about good things, then talk about the thorns winning out? Vinyards produce wine. Wine makes me think of communion. Jesus’ blood was spilled out for us. There may be a connection with the crown of thorns and the wine. The thorns and the crucifixion took life from Jesus’ body (thorns overtaking the vineyard), but the sheep benefit from this. They get to use the field for grazing. Through Jesus’ death, we are able to graze in safe pastures.

Again, I may be reading this passage in the wrong way, but there are some ideas of how the whole thing could be a Messianic prophecy.