In this story, Isaiah speaks to a king and a nation in
stressful times. There are two nations
in league against them, King Ahaz has already lost battles to both nations, and
now he hears they plan on taking his city and setting up their own king. The result is, as Isaiah so vividly puts it, “the
heart of his people shook as the trees of the forest shake before the wind”
(vs. 2). The way things look to Ahaz,
there is very little hope of success unless he is able to form an allegiance with
another, stronger nation, so that is what he does by sending treasures from the
Temple to the nation of Assyria (2 Kings 16). He hopes to buy their support and
save the day. Isaiah sees things
differently.
Ahaz is shaken at the prospect of enemies at the gate and
an uncertain future. Isaiah, though a
citizen of the city in danger, is not shaken by foreign nations no matter how
strong. Isaiah has seen the One who
shakes the foundations of the earth and whose glory saturates everything that
exists, so the fears of this world pale in comparison to him. Isaiah has seen the Lord and there is now no
question of his faith and trust. Ahaz
only sees the foreign threat and everything that could possibly go wrong, so
his faith and trust in God is shaky at best.
The difference is in what each man sees; one trusts God in the face of
anything and everything, and the other cannot trust God no matter what God
does. And in the end, this difference is
also the difference in how the greatest gift of God to a broken people in a difficult
world is received. What does it mean
that, “God is with us”?
God wants Ahaz to learn to trust him. Isaiah tells the king, “If you are not firm in
the faith, you will not be firm at all” (vs 9).
What God means is that the only place to stand firm and secure in a
world like ours is in him. Even if
Assyria sends the treaty back with good news, they will fail (and ultimately
attack) Judah. Ahaz will fall no matter
where he stands unless he stands on God alone.
When God presents himself as the answer to our fears, he does not make
our fears small, he makes himself great.
Our fears are real, but our God is greater than any fear we do or will
possibly ever face. Isaiah knew
this. Ahaz needed to learn it.
It is true that without God, Ahaz, and I, have everything
to fear. Every conspiracy has the
potential to destroy me. Every
relationship has the potential to leave me hurt and alone. Every career has the possibility of failure. Every bank can collapse. And on it goes ad infinitum, ad phobium. But with God, it turns out that none of those
fears are greater than he is and all of them put together are smaller than he
is. So standing in faith in God is the
only safe place to stand.
I said God wanted Ahaz to have faith in him. He wants it so much he goes to the
extraordinary length of offering the king the opportunity to ask him for a sign
– anything he can imagine. And when he
refuses out of false piety, God in exasperation offers a sign that would blow
anyone’s mind – a virgin will give birth to a son whose life will mean
salvation for God’s people. And his life
is a message – “God with us.”
Ahaz was waiting for a treaty to be signed that meant, “Assyria
is with you!” God was giving him what
only God can possibly give, “God is with you!”
Ahaz missed it. Will we?
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