said: I wil not aske, and [1] I wil not tempte our Lord. 13 And he said: Heare ye therfore o house of David: Is it a smal thing for you, to be grevous to men, that you are grevous to my God also? 14 Therfore shal our Lord himselfe [2] geve you a signe. Behold a virgin shal conceive, and beare a sonne, & his name shal be called Emmanuel. 15 He shal eate butter and honie, that he may know to refuse evil, and choose the good. 16 For before the childe know to refuse evil, and choose good, the land which thou doest detest shal be forsaken of the face of her two kinges. 17 Our Lord wil bring upon thee, & upon thy people, and upon the house of thy father, daies that came not since the daies of the separation of Ephraim from Juda, with the king of the Assirian. 18 And it shal be in that day: our Lord shal hiss to the to the flie, that is in the utter most part of the rivers of Ægypt, and to the bee, that is in the land of Assur. 19 And they shal come, and shal rest al in the torrentes of valleis, and in the caves of rockes, and in al shrubbe places, and in al holes. 20 In that day our Lord shal shave with a raser, hyred by them, that are beyond the river, by the king of the Assirians, the head, and the haires of the feete, and the whole beard. 21 And it shal be in that day: a man shal nourish a young cowe, and two ewes. 22 And for the abundance of milke he shal eate butter: for butter and honie shal everie one eate, that shal be least in the middes of the land. 23 And it shal be in that day: everie place where there shal be a thousand vines, for a thousand peeces of silver, they shal be into thornes and bryers. 24 With arrowes and bow they shal goe in thither: for bryers and thornes shal be in al the land. 25 And al mountaines, that shall be weeded with a weeding hooke, the terrour of thornes and bryers shal not come thither, and it shal be for the oxe to feede on, and cattle to treade upon.
CHAP. VIII.
Under the figure of a new name, Christs birth of a virgin is againe prophecied 4. but first the kingdomes of Syria, and Israel shal be destroyed: and Juda sore afflicted: 8. yet conserved with losse of manie. 16. Which is a mysterie hidden from the Jewes. 21. Great evils hang over them, that depart from the Law.
AND our Lord sayd to me: Take thee [3] a great booke, & write in it with the pen of man. Take away the spoiles spedely, quickly take prayes. 2 And I tooke to me faithful
- ↑ Though Achaz was very wicked and committed idolatrie, 4.Reg.16.2. Par.28 yet he beleved in God Almightie, knowing that he ought not to tempt him.
- ↑ Upon occasion of Gods mercie promised without mass defert, which king Achaz hardly beleved, to confirme the fame with a farre greater example, God inspired the Prophet also to forshew the greater mysterie of Christs Incarnation, his conception & birth of a virgin, for the redemption of al mankind.
- ↑ The mysterie here prophecied is of so great importance, as would require a very great booke for ful explication therof.
