Isaiah 8:12

“Say ye not, a confederacy, &c.] With the king of Assyria, or any other; do not cry it up as a right thing, and express pleasure and satisfaction in it, and encourage others to come into it, and vote for it, and declare an approbation of it; or a “rebellion”, as the Targum, that is, against Ahaz; and so deliver up the kingdom of the house of David into the hands of its enemies: to all [them] to whom this people shall say, a confederacy: who either were for entering into an alliance with the Assyrian monarch, and sending for him to help; or were for joining with their enemies, to the subversion of the present government. Jarchi interprets this of Shebna the Scribe, and his company; who, as he…”

“The words of Jehovah. confederacy--rather, a conspiracy; an appropriate term for the unnatural combination of Israel with Syrian foreigners against Judea and the theocracy, to which the former was bound by ties of blood and hereditary religion [MAURER]. to all . . . say--rather, of all which this people calleth a conspiracy [G. V. SMITH]. their fear--namely, object of fear: the hostile conspiracy. be afraid--rather [MAURER], "nor make others to be afraid."”

“Say ye not - Do not join in their purposes of forming a confederacy. Do not unite with the king and the people of Judah in their alarms about the threatened invasion by the kings of Syria and Samaria, and in their purpose to form an alliance with the king of Assyria. The reason why they should not do this, he states in Isaiah 8:13, where he exhorts the nation to put confidence in the Lord rather than in man. There has been, however, great diversity in the interpretation of this passage. The Septuagint renders the word קשׁר qesher, ‘confederacy,’ by the word σκληρόν sklēron - ‘Everything which this people say, is hard.’ The Syriac, ‘Do not say, rebellion,’ etc. The Chaldee understands the…”

“Say not - Thou Isaiah, and my children, do not consent to this confederacy with the king of Assyria. Their fear - That thing which they fear, that, if they do not call in the Assyrian succours, they shall be destroyed by those two potent kings. Isaiah 8:13”

“8:12 People regarded Isaiah’s message of non-involvement with Assyria as treasonous, part of a conspiracy. But Isaiah was not trying to play political games; rather, he proclaimed God’s message. • What frightens them was the alliance of Syria and Israel attacking Judah (see 7:1, 4).”

“A confederacy: Isa 7:2-6, Isa 51:12, Isa 51:13; Kg2 16:5-7 fear ye: Isa 7:4, Isa 57:9-11; Psa 53:5; Mat 28:2-5; Luk 12:4, Luk 12:5, Luk 21:9; Pe1 3:14, Pe1 3:15 Isaiah 8:13”