THE BOOK
OF ISAIAH
The Times of Isaiah
B.C.
Uzziah (790-739)
Kings of Judah
Jotham
(750-735)
Ahaz
Hezekiah
(732-715)
(715-686)
THE BOOK OF ISAIAH
THE KINGS OF ISAIAH’S DAY
Isaiah 1:1, “The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz,
which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem,
in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and
Hezekiah, kings of Judah.”
“Shebnayahu,
official to Uzziah”
THE KINGS OF
ISAIAH’S DAY
bulla
Isaiah 1:1, “The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz,
which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem,
in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and
Hezekiah, kings of Judah.”
“Belonging to Ahaz,
(son of) Jotham,
king of Judah”
THE KINGS OF
ISAIAH’S DAY
The Kings of Isaiah’s Day
B.C.
Uzziah (790-739)
Kings of Judah
Kings of Assyria
Jotham
(750-735)
Ahaz
Hezekiah
(732-715)
(715-686)
Tiglathpileser III
745-727 B.C.
Tiglath-pileser III (r. 745-727)
THE KINGS OF
ISAIAH’S DAY
“I received the tribute of Kushtashpi of
Commagene, Urik of Qu’e….Jehoahaz of
Judah...” (The Ancient Near East, vol. 1,
James Pritchard, p. 193)
Isaiah 1:1, “The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz,
which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem,
in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and
Hezekiah, kings of Judah.”
“Belonging to
Hizqiyahu, (son of)
Ahaz, king of Judah.”
THE KINGS OF
ISAIAH’S DAY
The Kings of Isaiah’s Day
B.C.
Uzziah (790-739)
Kings of Judah
Kings of Assyria
Jotham
(750-735)
Tiglathpileser III
Ahaz
Hezekiah
(732-715)
(715-686)
Sennacherib
705-681 B.C.
Isaiah 1:1, “The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz,
which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem,
in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and
Hezekiah, kings of Judah.”
“The officials, the patricians
and the (common) people of
Ekron -- who had thrown Padi,
their king, in fetters (because
he was) loyal to (his) solemn
oath (sworn) by the god Ashur,
and had handed him over to
Hezekiah, the Jew -- (and) he
held him in prison…” (ANE,
Pritchard, p. 199)
THE BOOK OF ISAIAH
ISAIAH’S RECORD OF PALESTINE IN
THE EIGHTH CENTURY B.C.
• The threat from Israel and Syria during
Ahaz’s reign, 7:1-17; 8:3-4
ISAIAH’S RECORD OF PALESTINE IN
THE EIGHTH CENTURY B.C.
B.C.
Uzziah (790-739)
Kings of Judah
Jotham
(750-735)
Ahaz
Hezekiah
(732-715)
(715-686)
Pekah
(742-732)
Tiglathpileser III
Kings of Assyria
745-727 B.C.
Hoshea
2 Kgs, 16:7, “So Ahaz
sent messengers to
Tiglathpileser king of
Assyria, saying, I am
thy servant and thy
son: come up, and save
me out of the hand of
the king of Syria, and
out of the hand of the
king of Israel, which
rise up against me.”
2 Kgs. 16:8, “And Ahaz
took the silver and gold
that was found in the
house of Jehovah, and in
the treasures of the
king's house, and sent it
for a present to the king
of Assyria. 9 And the
king of Assyria hearkened unto him; and the
king of Assyria went up
against Damascus, and
took it, and carried the
people of it captive to
Kir, and slew Rezin.”
2 Kgs. 15:29, “In the days of Pekah king of Israel
came Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, and took
Ijon, and Abel-beth-maacah, and Janoah, and
Kedesh, and Hazor, and Gilead, and Galilee, all
the land of Naphtali; and he carried them captive
to Assyria.”
“Israel…all its inhabitants
(and) their possessions I led
to Assyria.” (ANE, Pritchard,
194)
“…And the spoil of Samaria
shall be carried away before
the king of Assyria” (Isa. 8:4)
2Kgs. 15:30, “And Hoshea the son of Elah
made a conspiracy against Pekah the son of
Remaliah, and smote him, and slew him,
and reigned in his stead, in the twentieth
year of Jotham the son of Uzziah.”
“….They overthrew their
king Pekah and I placed
Hoshea king over them.”
(ANE, Pritchard, 194)
Isaiah 7:1-8:4
THE BOOK OF ISAIAH
ISAIAH’S RECORD OF PALESTINE IN
THE EIGHTH CENTURY B.C.
• The threat from Israel and Syria during
Ahaz’s reign, 7:1-17; 8:3-4
• Sargon’s capture of Ashdod, 20:1
SARGON II’S
PALACE
ISAIAH’S RECORD OF PALESTINE IN
THE EIGHTH CENTURY B.C.
B.C.
Uzziah (790-739)
Kings of Judah
Kings of Assyria
Jotham
(750-735)
Tiglathpileser III
Ahaz
Hezekiah
(732-715)
(715-686)
Sargon
II,
722-705
Sennacherib
“Azuri, king of Ashdod, had schemed not to
deliver tribute any more and sent messages (full)
of hostilities against Assyia, to the kings (living)
in his neighborhood….
“I besieged (and) captured the
cities of Ashdod, Gath,
Asdudimmu…” (ANE,
Pritchard, 197)
Isaiah 20:1
THE BOOK OF ISAIAH
ISAIAH’S RECORD OF PALESTINE IN
THE EIGHTH CENTURY B.C.
• The threat from Israel and Syria during
Ahaz’s reign, 7:1-17; 8:3-4
• Sargon’s capture of Ashdod, 20:1
• Sennacherib’s first invasion, 36:1
ISAIAH’S RECORD OF PALESTINE IN
THE EIGHTH CENTURY B.C.
B.C.
Uzziah (790-739)
Kings of Judah
Kings of Assyria
Jotham
(750-735)
Ahaz
Hezekiah
(732-715)
(715-686)
TiglathShalpileser III maneser Sargon
Sennacherib
705-681 B.C.
“As to Hezekiah, the Jew, he did not submit to
my yoke, I laid siege to 46 of his strong cities,
walled forts and to the countless small villages in
their vicinity, and conquered (them) by means of
well-stamped (earth-)ramps,
and battering-rams brought
(thus) near (to the walls) ….
“I drove out 200,150 people,
young and old, male and
female…” (ANE, Pritchard, p.
199)
Isaiah 36:1
THE BOOK OF ISAIAH
ISAIAH’S RECORD OF PALESTINE IN
THE EIGHTH CENTURY B.C.
• The threat from Israel and Syria during
Ahaz’s reign, 7:1-17; 8:3-4
• Sargon’s capture of Ashdod, 20:1
• Sennacherib’s first invasion, 36:1
• The siege of Lachish, 36:2
(Siege of Lachish)
"Sennacherib, king of the world, king of Assyria,
sat on his nimedu-throne, and passed in review
the booty taken from Lachish.” (ANE, Pritchard,
201)
THE BOOK OF ISAIAH
ISAIAH’S RECORD OF PALESTINE IN
THE EIGHTH CENTURY B.C.
• The threat from Israel and Syria during
Ahaz’s reign, 7:1-17; 8:3-4
• Sargon’s capture of Ashdod, 20:1
• Sennacherib’s first invasion, 36:1
• The siege of Lachish, 36:2
• The fall of Samaria, 36:19
ISAIAH’S RECORD OF PALESTINE IN
THE EIGHTH CENTURY B.C.
B.C.
Uzziah (790-739)
Kings of Judah
Kings of Assyria
Jotham
(750-735)
Tiglathpileser III
Ahaz
Hezekiah
(732-715)
(715-686)
Shalmanezer
Sargon
II
Sennach.
Isa. 36:19, “Where are the gods of Hamath
and Arpad? where are the gods of
Sepharvaim? and have they delivered
Samaria out of my hand?”
“Property of Sargon…
king of Assyria…
conqueror of Samaria
and of the entire
(country of) Israel…”
(ANE, Pritchard, 195)
THE BOOK OF ISAIAH
ISAIAH’S PREDICTIVE PROPHECIES,
13:1, 19; 45:1, 13
Prophecies concerning nations
Prophecies concerning nations
“...Jehovah stirred up the
spirit of Cyrus king of
Persia, so that he made a
proclamation throughout
“Thus saith Jehovah all his kingdom...All the
to his anointed, to
kingdoms of the earth
Cyrus….he shall
hath Jehovah, the God of
build my city, and he heaven, given me; and he
shall let my exiles
hath charged me to build
go free…” (Isa. 45:
him a house in Jerusalem...” (Ezra 1:1-2)
1,13)
Prophecies concerning nations
The Dead Sea Scrolls
Dating the Isaiah Scroll
Zurich carbon dating
at 1-σ level: 201-93 BC
Tucson carbon dating
at 1-σ level: 341-325 or 202-114 BC
Zurich carbon dating
at 2-σ level: 351-296 or 230-48 BC
Tucson carbon dating
at 2-σ level: 351-295 or 230-53 BC
(The Meaning of the Dead Sea Scrolls: Their
Significance for Understanding the Bible, Judaism,
Jesus, and Christianity, by James C. VanderKam
and Peter Flint, p. 32)
Carbon Dating
(Years B.C.)
Paleography:
English Script of the 17th Century
Dating the Isaiah Scroll
Paleography:
“Among Semitic paleographers in Great
Britain, Dr. S.A. Birnbaum, of the London School
of Oriental and African Studies, occupies a
position second to none....His verdict on the date
of...the complete Isaiah scroll (Isaiah A) between
175 and 150 B.C.” (F.F. Bruce, Second Thoughts
on the Dead Sea Scrolls, pp. 42-43)
Paleography
(Years B.C.)
Probable Date of
the Isaiah Scroll
LXX
(Years B.C.)
Probable Date of
the Book of Isaiah
(Years B.C.)
(Years B.C.)
THE BOOK OF ISAIAH
ISAIAH’S PREDICTIVE PROPHECIES,
9:6, 7; 53:1ff
Why the Suffering Servant of
Isaiah 53 is not the Nation of Israel:
• He is portrayed in detailed features as a human
personality. Could Israel have been personified
in poetic language lacking any hint of allegory?
(cf. Gal. 4:21-24).
• He is an innocent sufferer (vs. 9, 12).
Was
Israel an innocent sufferer? (v. 8)
• “For the transgression of my people was he
stricken” (v. 8). If the servant is the nation, how
could he be stricken for Israel?
Why the Suffering Servant of
"Judaism
not even
Isaiah 53 is does
not the Nation
of Israel:
claim
to
be
the
response
to
• He is a voluntary sufferer (vs. 9, 12). Was Israel
thesesufferer?
hopes. It has no
a voluntary
•HisMessiah
suffering is to
redemptive
offer, and
nospiritual in
nature ( vs. 5, 11). Can this be said of Israel?
Suffering Servant that can
• Hisgather
suffering is vicarious, that is,
to
Himself
the
things
substitutionary (vs. 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 11, 12). Has
Israel
suffered to redeem
other
nations (52:15)?
predicated
of the
Servant
in
• Histhe
suffering
ends in death
(vs. 8, of
10, 12). Have
fifty-third
chapter
the sufferings of Israel ended in death?
Isaiah...” (H.H. Rowley, The Unity of the
Bible, p. 118)
The Suffering of the “Suffering Servant”
and the Suffering of Jesus
Isaiah 53
With his stripes we are
healed (v. 5)
Jesus
By whose stripes ye
were healed (1 Pet.
2:24)
He is the propitiation
He shall see the travail
for our sins; and not for
of his soul, and shall be
ours only, but also for
satisfied (v. 11)
the whole world (1 Jn.
2:2)
The Suffering of the “Suffering Servant”
and the Suffering of Jesus
Isaiah 53
As a lamb that is led to
the slaughter (v. 7)
He shall bear their
iniquities….He poured
out his soul unto death
(vs. 11-12)
Jesus
...the Lamb of God, that
taketh away the sin of the
world (Jn. 1:29) Philip...
beginning from this
Scripture, preached unto
him Jesus (Acts 8:35)
This is my blood of the
covenant, which is
poured out for many unto
remission of sins (Matt.
26:28)
The Suffering of the “Suffering Servant”
and the Suffering of Jesus
Isaiah 53
Thou shalt make his
soul an offering for sin
(v. 10)
Jesus
The Son of man
came…to give his life a
ransom for many (Matt.
20:28)
He bare the sin of many Who his own self bare
(v. 12); He shall bear
our sins in his body
their iniquities (v. 11)
upon the tree (1 Pet.
2:24)
THE BOOK OF ISAIAH
 THE KINGS OF ISAIAH’S DAY
 ISAIAH’S RECORD OF PALESTINE IN THE
EIGHTH CENTURY B.C.
 ISAIAH’S PREDICTIVE PROPHECIES
The Times of Isaiah
B.C.
Uzziah (790-739)
Kings of Judah
Jeroboam II
(793-753)
Jotham
(750-735)
Ahaz
Hezekiah
(732-715)
(715-686)
Menahem Pekah Hoshea
(752-742) (742-732)
Kings of Israel
ShalTiglathSargon II Sennacherib
Kings of Assyria
pileser III manezer