Isaiah 7:2
New International Version
Now the house of David was told, “Aram has allied itself with Ephraim"; so the hearts of Ahaz and his people were shaken, as the trees of the forest are shaken by the wind.

New Living Translation
The news had come to the royal court of Judah: “Syria is allied with Israel against us!” So the hearts of the king and his people trembled with fear, like trees shaking in a storm.

English Standard Version
When the house of David was told, “Syria is in league with Ephraim,” the heart of Ahaz and the heart of his people shook as the trees of the forest shake before the wind.

Berean Standard Bible
When it was reported to the house of David that Aram was in league with Ephraim, the hearts of Ahaz and his people trembled like trees in the forest shaken by the wind.

King James Bible
And it was told the house of David, saying, Syria is confederate with Ephraim. And his heart was moved, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the wood are moved with the wind.

New King James Version
And it was told to the house of David, saying, “Syria’s forces are deployed in Ephraim.” So his heart and the heart of his people were moved as the trees of the woods are moved with the wind.

New American Standard Bible
When it was reported to the house of David, saying, “The Arameans have taken a stand by Ephraim,” his heart and the hearts of his people shook as the trees of the forest shake from the wind.

NASB 1995
When it was reported to the house of David, saying, “The Arameans have camped in Ephraim,” his heart and the hearts of his people shook as the trees of the forest shake with the wind.

NASB 1977
When it was reported to the house of David, saying, “The Arameans have camped in Ephraim,” his heart and the hearts of his people shook as the trees of the forest shake with the wind.

Legacy Standard Bible
When it was told to the house of David, saying, “The Arameans have camped in Ephraim,” his heart and the hearts of his people shook as the trees of the forest shake before the wind.

Amplified Bible
When the house of David (Judah) was told, “Aram is allied with Ephraim (Israel),” the hearts of Ahaz and his people trembled as the trees of the forest tremble in the wind.

Christian Standard Bible
When it became known to the house of David that Aram had occupied Ephraim, the heart of Ahaz and the hearts of his people trembled like trees of a forest shaking in the wind.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
When it became known to the house of David that Aram had occupied Ephraim, the heart of Ahaz and the hearts of his people trembled like trees of a forest shaking in the wind.

American Standard Version
And it was told the house of David, saying, Syria is confederate with Ephraim. And his heart trembled, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the forest tremble with the wind.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And it was said to the house of David: “Aram is intertwined with Aphreim”, and his heart was shaken and the heart of his people, as a tree of the forest is shaken from before the wind

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And a message was brought to the house of David, saying, Aram has conspired with Ephraim. And his soul was amazed, and the soul of his people, as in a wood a tree is moved by the wind.

Contemporary English Version
When news reached the royal palace that Syria had joined forces with Israel, King Ahaz and everyone in Judah were so terrified that they shook like trees in a windstorm.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And they told the house of David, saying: Syria hath rested upon Ephraim, and his heart was moved, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the woods are moved with the wind.

English Revised Version
And it was told the house of David, saying, Syria is confederate with Ephraim. And his heart was moved, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the forest are moved with the wind.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
When word reached David's family that the Arameans had made an alliance with Ephraim, the hearts of the king and his people were shaken as the trees of the forest are shaken by the wind.

Good News Translation
When word reached the king of Judah that the armies of Syria were already in the territory of Israel, he and all his people were so terrified that they trembled like trees shaking in the wind.

International Standard Version
When it was reported to the house of David, "Aram has joined forces with Ephraim!" the heart of the people of Ahaz trembled like forest trees in a windstorm.

JPS Tanakh 1917
And it was told the house of David, saying: 'Aram is confederate with Ephraim.' And his heart was moved, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the forest are moved with the wind.

Literal Standard Version
And it is declared to the house of David, saying, “Aram has been led toward Ephraim,” and his heart and the heart of his people is moved, like the moving of trees of a forest by the presence of wind.

Majority Standard Bible
When it was reported to the house of David that Aram was in league with Ephraim, the hearts of Ahaz and his people trembled like trees in the forest shaken by the wind.

New American Bible
When word came to the house of David that Aram had allied itself with Ephraim, the heart of the king and heart of the people trembled, as the trees of the forest tremble in the wind.

NET Bible
It was reported to the family of David, "Syria has allied with Ephraim." They and their people were emotionally shaken, just as the trees of the forest shake before the wind.

New Revised Standard Version
When the house of David heard that Aram had allied itself with Ephraim, the heart of Ahaz and the heart of his people shook as the trees of the forest shake before the wind.

New Heart English Bible
It was told the house of David, saying, "Aram is allied with Ephraim." His heart trembled, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the forest tremble with the wind.

Webster's Bible Translation
And it was told the house of David, saying, Syria is confederate with Ephraim. And his heart was moved, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the wood are moved with the wind.

World English Bible
David’s house was told, “Syria is allied with Ephraim.” His heart trembled, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the forest tremble with the wind.

Young's Literal Translation
And it is declared to the house of David, saying, 'Aram hath been led towards Ephraim,' And his heart and the heart of his people is moved, like the moving of trees of a forest by the presence of wind.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
A Message to Ahaz
1Now in the days that Ahaz son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, was king of Judah, Rezin king of Aram marched up to wage war against Jerusalem. He was accompanied by Pekah son of Remaliah the king of Israel, but he could not overpower the city. 2When it was reported to the house of David that Aram was in league with Ephraim, the hearts of Ahaz and his people trembled like trees in the forest shaken by the wind. 3Then the LORD said to Isaiah, “Go out with your son Shear-jashub to meet Ahaz at the end of the aqueduct that feeds the upper pool, on the road to the Launderer’s Field,…

Cross References
Isaiah 7:5
For Aram, along with Ephraim and the son of Remaliah, has plotted your ruin, saying:

Isaiah 7:13
Then Isaiah said, "Hear now, O house of David! Is it not enough to try the patience of men? Will you try the patience of my God as well?

Isaiah 8:12
"Do not call conspiracy everything these people regard as conspiracy. Do not fear what they fear; do not live in dread.

Isaiah 9:9
All the people will know it--Ephraim and the dwellers of Samaria. With pride and arrogance of heart they will say:

Isaiah 22:22
I will place on his shoulder the key to the house of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open.

Jeremiah 21:12
O house of David, this is what the LORD says: 'Administer justice every morning, and rescue the victim of robbery from the hand of his oppressor, or My wrath will go forth like fire and burn with no one to extinguish it because of their evil deeds.


Treasury of Scripture

And it was told the house of David, saying, Syria is confederate with Ephraim. And his heart was moved, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the wood are moved with the wind.

the house

Isaiah 7:13
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?

Isaiah 6:13
But yet in it shall be a tenth, and it shall return, and shall be eaten: as a teil tree, and as an oak, whose substance is in them, when they cast their leaves: so the holy seed shall be the substance thereof.

Isaiah 37:35
For I will defend this city to save it for mine own sake, and for my servant David's sake.

is confederate with.

Isaiah 7:17
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; even the king of Assyria.

Isaiah 11:13
The envy also of Ephraim shall depart, and the adversaries of Judah shall be cut off: Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not vex Ephraim.

2 Chronicles 25:10
Then Amaziah separated them, to wit, the army that was come to him out of Ephraim, to go home again: wherefore their anger was greatly kindled against Judah, and they returned home in great anger.

and his heart

Isaiah 8:12
Say ye not, A confederacy, to all them to whom this people shall say, A confederacy; neither fear ye their fear, nor be afraid.

Isaiah 37:27
Therefore their inhabitants were of small power, they were dismayed and confounded: they were as the grass of the field, and as the green herb, as the grass on the housetops, and as corn blasted before it be grown up.

Leviticus 26:36,37
And upon them that are left alive of you I will send a faintness into their hearts in the lands of their enemies; and the sound of a shaken leaf shall chase them; and they shall flee, as fleeing from a sword; and they shall fall when none pursueth…

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Isaiah 7
1. Ahaz, being troubled with fear of Rezin and Pekah, is comforted by Isaiah
10. Ahaz, having liberty to choose a sign, and refusing it, has for a sign, Christ promised
17. His judgment is prophesied to come by Assyria














(2) Syria is confederate with Ephraim.--Literally, rests upon . . . Ephraim stands, of course, as often elsewhere, for the northern kingdom of Israel as a whole.

His heart was moved.--There was a general panic. King and people alike asked, How could they resist? Would it not be better to join the confederacy, and take their chance with it in attacking the king of Assyria? The image of the trees is generic, but suggests something like the quivering of the aspen leaves.

(2) The other interpretation sets out from an entirely different starting-point. The words of Matthew 1:23 are taken as, once for all, deciding the entire meaning of the Immanuel prophecy. The prophet is supposed to have passed into a state of ecstasy in which he sees clearly, and with a full consciousness of its meaning, the history of the incarnation and the marvel of the travail-pangs of the Virgin mother. The vision of the future Christ thus presented to his mind, colours all his after-thoughts, and forms the basis of his whole work. The article emphasises the definiteness of his visions. He sees "the virgin mother" of the far-off future. And the prophet learns to connect the vision with the history of his own time. The growth of that Christ-child in the far-off future serves as a measure of time for the events that were passing, or about to pass, within the horizon of his earthly vision. Before the end of an interval not longer than that which separates youth from manhood, the Syro-Ephraiminitic confederacy should be broken up. So far, here also, we have a coherent and consistent view. It is attended, however, by some serious difficulties. A "sign," in the language of Hebrew prophets, is that which proves to the person to whom it is offered that there is a supernatural power working with him who gives it. If a prediction, it is one which will speedily be tested by a personal experience, the very offer of which implies in the prophet the certainty of its fulfilment. He stakes, as it were, his reputation as a prophet on the issue. (Comp. Isaiah 37:30; Isaiah 38:7; Exodus 4:8-14; 1Samuel 12:16.) But how could the prediction of a birth in the far-off distance, divided by several centuries from Isaiah's time, be a sign to Ahaz or his people? And what would be the meaning, we may ask again, of the words "butter and honey shall he eat," as applied to the Christ-child? Do not the words "Before the child shall know to refuse the evil . . ." point, not to a child seen as afar in vision, but to one who was to be born and grow up among the men of that generation? Should we not have expected, if the words had implied a clear revelation of the mystery of the virgin-birth, that Isaiah himself would have dwelt upon it elsewhere, that later prophets would have named it as one of the notes of the Messiah, that it would have become a tradition of the Jewish schools of interpretation? As a matter of fact, no such allusion is found in Isaiah, nor in the prophets that follow him (see Note on Jeremiah 31:22, for the only supposed, one cannot say even "apparent," exception); the Jewish interpreters never include this among their notes of the Christ. It is indeed, as has been said in the New Testament portion of this Commentary, one of the strongest arguments for the historical, non-mythical character of the series of events in Matthew 1, Luke 1, 2, that they were contrary to prevailing expectation. (See Note on Matthew 1:23.) . . .

Verse 2. - It was told the house of David. Before the actual siege began, news of the alliance reached Ahaz. It is said to have been" told the house of David," because the design was to supersede the family of David by another - apparently a Syrian - house (see note on ver. 6). Syria is confederate with Ephraim; literally, rests upon Ephraim. Under ordinary circumstances the kingdoms of Syria and Israel were hostile the one to the other (see 1 Kings 15:20; 1 Kings 20:1-3; 1 Kings 22:3-36; 2 Kings 5:2; 2 Kings 6:8-24; 2 Kings 8:29; 2 Kings 10:32; 2 Kings 13:3, 22, 25). But occasionally, under the pressure of a great danger, the relations were changed, and a temporary league was formed. The inscriptions of Shalmaneser II. show such a league to have existed in the time of Benhadad II. and Ahab ('Ancient Monarchies,' vol. it. pp. 103, 104). The invasion of Pul, and the threatening attitude of Tiglath-Pileser. It had now once more drown the two countries together. On the use of the word "Ephraim" to designate the kingdom of Israel, see Hosea, passim. His heart was moved; or, shook. If the two kings had each been able separately to inflict on him such loss (see the introductory paragraph), what must he not expect, now that both were about to attack him together? It is not clear whether Ahuz had as yet applied to Assyria for help or not.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
When it became known
וַיֻּגַּ֗ד (way·yug·gaḏ)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Hofal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 5046: To be conspicuous

to the house
לְבֵ֤ית (lə·ḇêṯ)
Preposition-l | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 1004: A house

of David
דָּוִד֙ (dā·wiḏ)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 1732: David -- perhaps 'beloved one', a son of Jesse

that Aram
אֲרָ֖ם (’ă·rām)
Noun - proper - feminine singular
Strong's 758: Aram -- Syria

was in league with
נָ֥חָֽה (nā·ḥāh)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person feminine singular
Strong's 5117: To rest, settle down

Ephraim,
אֶפְרָ֑יִם (’ep̄·rā·yim)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 669: Ephraim -- a son of Joseph, also his descendants and their territory

the hearts
לְבָבוֹ֙ (lə·ḇā·ḇōw)
Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 3824: Inner man, mind, will, heart

of Ahaz
וּלְבַ֣ב (ū·lə·ḇaḇ)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 3824: Inner man, mind, will, heart

and his people
עַמּ֔וֹ (‘am·mōw)
Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 5971: A people, a tribe, troops, attendants, a flock

trembled
וַיָּ֤נַע (way·yā·na‘)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 5128: To quiver, wave, waver, tremble, totter

like trees
עֲצֵי־ (‘ă·ṣê-)
Noun - masculine plural construct
Strong's 6086: Tree, trees, wood

in the forest
יַ֖עַר (ya·‘ar)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 3293: A copse of bushes, a forest, honey in the comb

shaken
כְּנ֥וֹעַ (kə·nō·w·a‘)
Preposition-k | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct
Strong's 5128: To quiver, wave, waver, tremble, totter

by the wind.
רֽוּחַ׃ (rū·aḥ)
Noun - common singular
Strong's 7307: Wind, breath, exhalation, life, anger, unsubstantiality, a region of the sky, spirit


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OT Prophets: Isaiah 7:2 It was told the house of David (Isa Isi Is)
Isaiah 7:1
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