Keraia
Isaiah 7

Isaiah 7:20

Judgment to Come · Isaiah 7:17–25
Read Isaiah 7

Translations

Modern
On that day the Lord will use a razor hired from beyond the Euphrates—the king of Assyria—to shave your head and the hair of your legs, and to remove your beard as well.
Traditional
In the same day shall the Lord shave with a razor that is hired, namely, by them beyond the river, by the king of Assyria, the head, and the hair of the feet: and it shall also consume the beard.
Literal
In that day the Lord will shave with a razor that is hired—with those beyond the River, with the king of Assyria—the head and the hair of the legs and also the beard He will sweep away.
Latin
In die illa radet Dominus in novacula conducta in his qui trans flumen sunt, in rege Assyriorum, caput et pilos pedum, et barbam universam.

Original

Hebrew
English
On that day the Lord will use a razor hired from beyond the Euphrates—the king of Assyria—to shave your head and the hair of your legs, and to remove your beard as well.

Notes

Isaiah 7:20

shave your head and the hair of your legs, and to remove your beard as well: In the ancient Near East, forced shaving was a disgraceful act (see 2 Samuel 10:4–5). Here, it served as a metaphor for the destruction of the country.

Isaiah 7:18–25

The phrase on that day refers to the future Day of the LORD, when God acts to judge and to save.

Judah would first experience the judgment Isaiah had announced. This would be a warning of a greater judgment still to come. That greater judgment was the exile in Babylon from 586 to 538 BC.

Isaiah 7:1–25

At one point in his reign, Ahaz faced a serious crisis. The kings of Syria and Israel attacked Judah. They planned to remove Ahaz and force Judah to join them in resisting Assyria.

Instead of trusting the Lord, Ahaz asked Assyria for help (2 Kings 16:7–10). By doing this, he rejected Isaiah’s call to trust in God (Isaiah 7:12).

The Assyrians defeated Syria and Israel. In time, both nations fell. However, Assyria later turned against Judah and sought to control it completely.

Isaiah 7:1–12:6

These prophecies occurred when Assyria rose to power. Syria and Israel formed an alliance against Judah (Isaiah 7:1–2; see 2 Kings 16:5). God used Assyria as a tool to punish Syria, Israel, and Judah (Isaiah 7–10).

Theme notes and profiles

Ahaz Isaiah Fearing People Salvation in Isaiah

Events

Parallels

Micah 1:1–7

People

LORD: Names or title used to refer to God

Places

Assyria: A powerful ancient empire, often in conflict with Israel Euphrates: Major river in ancient Near East; boundary of Promised Land

Glossary

Ahaz (King) Hairstyles and Beards Isaiah, Book of Razor

Topics

Ahaz: King of Judah, Son and Successor of Jotham: Prophecies Concerning Art: Primitive of the Barber Assyria: Predictions Respecting: Invasion of Judah By Assyria: Prophecies Concerning Assyria: Situated Beyond the Euphrates Beard: Cut Hypocrisy: Ahaz Isaiah: Prophecies, Reproofs, and Exhortations of Denounces Calamities Against Israel and Judah Prophecies Concerning Israel: Prophecies Concerning of War and Other Judgments Razor: Figurative The Beard: Shaving, Illustrative of Severe Judgments The Euphrates: Assyria Bounded By The Hair: Judgments Expressed by Shaving