4 for before the boy knows how to cry out 'My father ' or 'My mother ,' the wealth of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria will be carried away before the king of Assyria ." 5 Again the Lord spoke to me further , saying , 6 "Inasmuch e as these people have rejected the gently flowing waters of Shiloah And rejoice in Rezin and the son of Remaliah ; 7 "Now therefore , behold , the Lord is about to bring on them the strong and abundant waters of the Euphrates , Even the king of Assyria and all his glory ; And it will rise up over all its channels and go over all its banks . 8 "Then it will sweep on into Judah , it will overflow and pass through , It will reach even to the neck ; And the spread of its wings will fill the breadth of your land , O Immanuel .

9 " Be broken , O peoples , and be shattered ; And give ear , all remote places of the earth . Gird yourselves, yet be shattered ; Gird yourselves, yet be shattered . 10 " Devise a plan , but it will be thwarted ; State a proposal , but it will not stand , For God is with us."

Matthew Henry's Commentary on Isaiah 8:4-10

Commentary on Isaiah 8:1-8

(Read Isaiah 8:1-8)

The prophet is to write on a large roll, or on a metal tablet, words which meant, "Make speed to spoil, hasten to the prey:" pointing out that the Assyrian army should come with speed, and make great spoil. Very soon the riches of Damascus and of Samaria, cities then secure and formidable, shall be taken away by the king of Assyria. The prophet pleads with the promised Messiah, who should appear in that land in the fulness of time, and, therefore, as God, would preserve it in the mean time. As a gentle brook is an apt emblem of a mild government, so an overflowing torrent represents a conqueror and tyrant. The invader's success was also described by a bird of prey, stretching its wings over the whole land. Those who reject Christ, will find that what they call liberty is the basest slavery. But no enemy shall pluck the believer out of Emmanuel's hand, or deprive him of his heavenly inheritance.

Commentary on Isaiah 8:9-16

(Read Isaiah 8:9-16)

The prophet challenges the enemies of the Jews. Their efforts would be vain, and themselves broken to pieces. It concerns us, in time of trouble, to watch against all such fears as put us upon crooked courses for our own security. The believing fear of God preserves against the disquieting fear of man. If we thought rightly of the greatness and glory of God, we should see all the power of our enemies restrained. The Lord, who will be a Sanctuary to those who trust in him, will be a Stone of stumbling, and a Rock of offence, to those who make the creature their fear and their hope. If the things of God be an offence to us, they will undo us. The apostle quotes this as to all who persisted in unbelief of the gospel of Christ, 1 Peter 2:8. The crucified Emmanuel, who was and is a Stumbling-stone and Rock of offence to unbelieving Jews, is no less so to thousands who are called Christians. The preaching of the cross is foolishness in their esteem; his doctrines and precepts offend them.