New King James Version
Isaiah 7:9
9The head of Ephraim is Samaria, And the head of Samaria is Remaliah’s son. If you will not believe, Surely you shall not be established.” ’ ”
Isaiah 7:9 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is Remaliah’s son. If ye will not believe, surely ye shall not be established.
- New International Version (NIV)The head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is only Remaliah’s son. If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all.’ ”
- English Standard Version (ESV)And the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is the son of Remaliah. If you are not firm in faith, you will not be firm at all.'"
- New Living Translation (NLT)Israel is no stronger than its capital, Samaria, and Samaria is no stronger than its king, Pekah son of Remaliah. Unless your faith is firm, I cannot make you stand firm.”
Context of Isaiah 7:9
7thus says the Lord God: “It shall not stand, Nor shall it come to pass. 8For the head of Syria is Damascus, And the head of Damascus is Rezin. Within sixty-five years Ephraim will be broken, So that it will not be a people. The head of Ephraim is Samaria, And the head of Samaria is Remaliah’s son. If you will not believe, Surely you shall not be established.” ’ ” 10Moreover the Lord spoke again to Ahaz, saying, 11“Ask a sign for yourself from the Lord your God; ask it either in the depth or in the height above.”
Read all of Isaiah 7Isaiah 7:9 word by word
וְרֹ֤אשׁ אֶפְרַ֙יִם֙ שֹׁמְר֔וֹן וְרֹ֥אשׁ שֹׁמְר֖וֹן בֶּן־רְמַלְיָ֑הוּ אִ֚ם לֹ֣א תַאֲמִ֔ינוּ כִּ֖י לֹ֥א תֵאָמֵֽנוּ׃ סRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Isaiah 7:9
- 1 Kings 16:24And he bought the hill of Samaria from Shemer for two talents of silver; then he built on the hill, and called the name of the city which he built, Samaria, after the name of Shemer, owner of the hill.
- 2 Kings 15:27In the fifty-second year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekah the son of Remaliah became king over Israel in Samaria, and reigned twenty years.
- 2 Chronicles 20:20So they rose early in the morning and went out into the Wilderness of Tekoa; and as they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me, O Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem: Believe in the Lord your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper.”
- Acts 27:11Nevertheless the centurion was more persuaded by the helmsman and the owner of the ship than by the things spoken by Paul.
- Romans 11:20Well said. Because of unbelief they were broken off, and you stand by faith. Do not be haughty, but fear.
- Hebrews 11:6But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
- 1 John 5:10He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself; he who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed the testimony that God has given of His Son.
Commentaries on Isaiah 7:9
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 9And the head of Ephraim - The capital city of Ephraim, or of Israel. Is Samaria - This was long the capital of the kingdom of Israel. For a description of this city, see the notes at Isaiah 28:1. The meaning of the prophet is, that Samaria should continue to be the head of Ephraim; that is, Jerusalem should not be made its capital. If ye will not believe, surely ye shall not be established - There is considerable variety in the interpretation of these…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 9The last sentence is a play on two Hebrew words: If you do not stand firm (te’amenu) in your faith (ta’aminu), you will not stand at all. Firm trust in the Lord is essential, especially for a leader of God's people (see also 2 Chronicles 20:20). Leaders must act on their faith to show it exists. Ahaz and the people of his time trusted Assyria, their enemy, instead of trusting God. They looked for help from a foreign power rather than from the Lord. Later…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 99. believe, ... be established--There is a paronomasia, or play on the words, in the Hebrew: "if ye will not confide, ye shall not abide." Ahaz brought distress on himself by distrust in the Lord, and trust in Assyria.Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 7:9
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 7
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
New King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries