"*** ISAIAH 04 ****" 
"King Ahaz dies and his son"
"Hezekiah becomes king Now Ahaz king of Judah died and was buried in the city of Jerusalem , but not in the tombs of the kings . He had reigned for sixteen years . Hezekiah his son became king . A prophecy against the Philistines A prophecy of Isaiah the year Ahaz died : Do not rejoice O Philistines that the rodwhich struck you is broken. From the broken rod will spring a viper. My poor will find food, and shall lie down in safety, but you Philistines I will destroy by famine and sword. Howl O Philistines See Invaders come from the north like a cloud, and not a straggler in the ranks. "
"Hezekiah a righteous king Hezekiah was twenty-five years old when he became king . He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord , just as his forefather David had done . Hezekiah reopens the Temple and ends idol worship In the first year of his reign he reopened the doors of the Temple . He removed the high places of worship , smashed the sacred stones , and cut down the Asherah poles . He also broke into pi eces the bronze snake that Moses had made in the desert , for the people had been burning incense to it . Hezekiah the most faithful of all the kings of Judah Hezekiah trusted in Jehovah"
"the God of Israel . There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah , either before him or after him . He was faithful to the Lord and kept all the commandments the Lord had given Moses . And because the Lord was with him he was successful in whatever he undertook . The priests and Levites instructed to purify the Temple Hezekiah assembled the priests and the Levites in the court of the Temple and said to them , Purify yourselves , and then purify the Temple of the Lord . Remove all defilement from the Sanctuary . Our fathers were unfaithful and forsook the house of the Lord ."
"Therefore his anger has fallen upon Judah and he has made us an object of horror and scorn as you can see with your own eyes . 12Our fathers have fallen by the sword and our wives and children are in captivity . Hezekiah to make a covenant with the Lord Now I intend to make a covenant with Jehovah so that his anger will turn away fromus. My sons do not be negligent . The Temple is purified So the Levites purified themselves and set to work . The priests went into the Temple and brought out into the court every unclean thing they found . The Levites carried it all away and threw it into the"
"Kidron Valley . 15By the sixteenth day they had completed their work . Sacrifices and singing to the Lord The following morning Hezekiah gathered the city officials together at an early hour . Then they, along with the people went up to the Temple of the Lord . There they sacrificed seven bulls , seven rams , seven male lambs and seven male goats , as a sin offering for the kingdom . As the offering began , the Levites sung to the Lord , accompanied by trumpets , cymbals , harps and lyres , in the manner prescribed by David . 18The whole assembly bowed in worship as the singers sang and the"
"music played . This continued until the sacrifice of the burnt offering was completed . The king and everyone present then knelt down and worshipped and the Levites again sang praises to the Lord with gladness , the words of David and of Asaph the seer . animals offered in sacrifice Then all whose hearts were willing offeredtheir own sacrifices and peace offerings . 600 bulls and 3000 sheep and goats were offered as sacrifice . Too few priests purified so the Levites help out The priests however were too few in number to skin all the offerings , so the Levites helped out until more priests"
"had purified themselves . For the Levites had been more conscientious than the priests at purifying themselves . The people rejoice for it all happened so quickly So the service of the Temple of the Lord was once again established and Hezekiah and the people rejoiced , for it had all happened so quickly . Hezekiah invites all of Judah and Israel to celebrate the Passover in Jerusalem Then Hezekiah sent couriers with letters to all Israel and Judah from Dan to Beersheba ,inviting them to come to Jerusalem and celebrate the Passover . This is what he wrote : People of Israel , return to"
"Jehovah , the God of Abraham , Isaac and Jacob that he may return to you who have escaped from the hand of Assyria . Be not like your fathers and brothers , who were unfaithful to the Lord so that he made them an object ofhorror . Submit to the Lord and come to the Temple which he has consecrated that his fierce anger turn away fromyou. If you return to the Lord , then your brothers and children in exile will come back to this land , for Jehovah is a compassionate God . He will not turn his face from you if you return to him . Northern Israel mock Hezekiahs invitation The couriers went from"
"town to town throughout Israel , but the people scorned and mocked them . Nevertheless the men of Judah , and some of the men of Ephraim , Manasseh , Issachar , Asher and Zebulun humbled themselves andwent to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover." 
"*** ISAIAH 05 ****" 
"A very large assembly gather in Jerusalem Now the king had decided to celebrate the Passover in the second month , as not enough priests had purified themselves and the people had not yet assembled in Jerusalem . 2So in the second month a very large assembly ofpeople gathered in Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover . Also included"
"were foreigners from throughout Israel and Judah . The people remove the idolatrous street altars The people first of all removed all the idolatrous altars in Jerusalem and threw them into the Kidron Valley . The Passover begins On the fourteenth day , the priests and Levites , after having been shamed , purified themselves and took up their prescribed positions . The priests then began to sprinkle the blood of the slaughtered lambs that the Levites passed to them from the people . The Levites kill the Passover lambs for those who are not purified However many men in the crowd had not"
"purified themselves so the Levites had to killthe Passover lambs for them .  Those still unpurified unlawfully eat the Passover Also those who were still unclean ate the Passover , contrary to what was written in the Law. King Hezekiah prays for their pardon But Hezekiah the king prayed for them saying , May Jehovah pardon every man who sets his heart on seeking the Lord . The Lord heard Hezekiah s prayer and no harm befell the people . The Passover celebrated an extra seven days The Israelites celebrated the Passover for seven days , with great rejoicing and Hezekiah spoke encouragingly to"
"all the Levites who showed good understanding of the service ofthe Lord . Then all the people agreed to celebrate the festival for seven more days . Further sacrificial animals provided by the king and officials The king provided for the people 1000 bulls and 7000 sheep and goats , and the officials provided a further 1000 bulls and 10 ,000 sheep and goats . There was great joy in Jerusalem for there had been nothing like this since the days of Solomon . The people destroy the remaining idolatrous sites throughout Judah Afterwards all the people went out to the towns of Judah and destroyed"
"the remainingsacred stones , Asherah poles , and altars . The people begin to tithe again When all the assembly had returned to their homes , Hezekiah ordered the people living in Jerusalem to give the tenth due to the priests and Levites , so they could devote themselves fully to the Law of the Lord . The people gave generously ; a tithe of everything , and the firstfruits of their grain , new wine, oil and honey . Those who lived in the towns of Judah also brought a tithe of their herds and flocks . When Hezekiah and his officials saw the huge heap of tithes they praised the Lord andblessed"
"the people . Azariah the high priest said to the king , Since the people began bringing their tithes to the Temple , we have had enough to eat and plenty to spare . This great amount you see is left over . Surplus tithes distributed to priests and Levites in other towns So Hezekiah gave orders to prepare storerooms in the Temple , and men were appointed to distribute the tithes to the Levites and priests who lived on the farmlands around the towns . King Hezekiah prospers in everything he undertakes So Hezekiah did what was good and right before the Lord . In everything he undertook he sought"
"guidance from his God , and then worked wholeheartedly and he prospered . Samaria soon to be thrown to the ground A prophecy of Isaiah concerning Samaria : Woe to Samaria, the proud wreath of Ephraims  drunkards, set on the heads of those bloated with rich food The Lord has one who is powerful and strong who will throw you forcefully to the ground. Your drunkards will be trampledunderfoot. The remnant of northern Israel to be saved in latter days But the day will come when Jehovah Almighty will be a glorious crown and a source of strength for the remnant of his people." 
"*** ISAIAH 06 ****"
"Assyria begins a siege of Samaria In Hezekiah s fourth year , Shalmaneser king of Assyria marched against the northern kingdom of Israel and began a siege of theroyal city of Samaria . For Hoshea king of Israel had ceased to pay him tribute . The word of the Lord to Samaria during the three year siege by the Assyrians The word of the Lord through the prophet Isaiah against the people of Samaria andIsrael . You say with arrogance, The bricks have fallen down but we shall rebuild with dressed stone. The fig trees have beenfelled but we shall replace them with cedars. The Lord is spurring"
"Samarias enemies on But I Jehovah have spurred your enemies on. Assyria is devouring Israel. Yetfor all this my anger is not turned away, for the people have not returned to me. Northern Israel to be cut off without pity So I will cut off both head and tail from Israel in a single day. The elders are the head, and the prophets who speak lies are the tail. Those who guide the people leadthem astray. Nor will I pity the young men or the fatherless and widows, for everyone isungodly, every mouth speaks vileness. Wickedness burns like a fire. Woe to those who make unjust laws to deprive the poor"
"of their rights. What will you do on the day of reckoning when disaster comes? Where will you leave yourriches? Nothing will remain but to cringe among the captives or fall among the slain. Woe also to the king of Assyria because of pride Woe also to the king of Assyria, the rod of my anger. I have sent him against a godless nation to trample them down like mud in the streets, but that is not what hehas in mind. His purpose is to put an end to many nations. He says, I will deal next with Jerusalem, just as I have dealt withSamaria. The Assyrian army to be eventually punished by a devastating"
"plague Therefore when I the Lord have finished my work against Jerusalem I will punish the king of Assyria for the pride of his heart, for he says, By the strength of my own hand Ihave done this. Is the axe superior to him who swings it? Therefore I the Lord will send adevastating plague upon his sturdy warriors.  12Under his pride a fire will be kindled and in a single day it shall burn andconsume his splendour. Israel has continually provoked the Lord and is full of hypocrisy To this nation Israel that did not call upon my name, I said, Here am I. All day long I held out my hands to an"
"obstinatepeople who walk in evil ways. A people who continually provoke me to my very face. A people who offer sacrifices in groves, who frequent tombs, and spend their nights in secret places, who eat the flesh of pigsand then say to foreigners, Do not come near me, I am too sacred for you. The people to pay for their sins Such people are like smoke in my nostrils. I will not keep silent but will payyou back in full for both your sins and the sins of your fathers says the Lord. Israel full of superstiti on, divination, idolatry, treasures and no end of horses and chariots O Lord, you have"
"abandoned your The land is full of idolatry, for they bow down to what their hands have made. Therefore all the people are debased. Donot forgive them O Lord. Samaria falls after a three year siege and the survivors are exiled to Assyria At the end of three years Sargon king of Assyria took the city of Samaria and exiled the survivors to Assyria . This happened because Israel had not kept the commandments of Jehovah their God and had followed the practices of the nations thatthe Lord had driven out before them . Isaiah stripped and barefoot prophesies that Assyria will take stripped"
"captives from Egypt In the year that the Assyrians captured the Philistine city of Ashdod , the Lord spoke to Isaiah who was wearing sackcloth . 21He said to him, Remove the sackcloth from your body and the sandals from your feet. And Isaiah did so . Then the Lord said , Just as my servant Isaiah is stripped and barefoot, in three years from now the king of Assyria will leadaway stripped and barefoot Egyptian and Ethiopian captives, young and old with buttocks bared to their shame. No deliverance of Judah from Assyria by Egypt In that day the people who live in Judah will say, See what has"
"happened to Egypt and Ethiopia to whom we looked for deliverance from Assyria? How then can weescape?"