Urijah

10King Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglath-pileser. There he saw an altar, a table where offerings were burned. Ahaz sent a model of it to Urijah the priest, the man who led worship at God's house. He sent full plans showing how it was built.

And king Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglathpileser king of Assyria, and saw an altar that was at Damascus: and king Ahaz sent to Urijah the priest the fashion of the altar, and the pattern of it, according to all the workmanship thereof.

NoteAn altar is a stone table where offerings were burned. A priest was a man whose job was leading worship at God's house.

11So Urijah the priest built an altar just like the plans. He finished the work before King Ahaz came home from Damascus.

And Urijah the priest built an altar according to all that king Ahaz had sent from Damascus: so Urijah the priest made it against king Ahaz came from Damascus.

12When the king came back, he saw the new altar. He walked up to it and gave offerings on it.

And when the king was come from Damascus, the king saw the altar: and the king approached to the altar, and offered thereon.

13He burned his burnt offering and his grain offering there. He poured out his drink offering. He sprinkled the blood of his peace offerings on the altar.

And he burnt his burnt offering and his meat offering, and poured his drink offering, and sprinkled the blood of his peace offerings, upon the altar.

NoteThese were four ways of giving a gift to God. A burnt offering was an animal burned up completely. A grain offering was flour and oil. A drink offering was wine poured out on the ground. A peace offering was a shared meal, part burned and part eaten.

14The bronze altar for the LORD stood in front of the temple. It sat between the new altar and the LORD's house. Ahaz moved it away and set it on the north side of the new altar.

And he brought also the brasen altar, which was before the LORD, from the forefront of the house, from between the altar and the house of the LORD, and put it on the north side of the altar.

NoteBronze is a hard brown metal. The spot right in front of the temple door was the most honored spot of all. That is where the LORD's own altar had always stood.

15King Ahaz gave an order to Urijah the priest. He said, "Use the big new altar for the offerings. Burn the morning burnt offering and the evening grain offering there. Burn my own offerings there too. Burn all the offerings of the people and pour out their drink offerings. Sprinkle all the blood from the offerings on that altar. I will use the bronze altar to ask God questions."

And king Ahaz commanded Urijah the priest, saying, Upon the great altar burn the morning burnt offering, and the evening meat offering, and the king’s burnt sacrifice, and his meat offering, with the burnt offering of all the people of the land, and their meat offering, and their drink offerings; and sprinkle upon it all the blood of the burnt offering, and all the blood of the sacrifice: and the brasen altar shall be for me to enquire by.

NoteKings wanted to know what God wanted them to do. A priest would help them ask at the altar. That is what "enquire by" means in the King James.

16Urijah the priest did everything that King Ahaz told him to do.

Thus did Urijah the priest, according to all that king Ahaz commanded.

1The LORD said to me, "Take a large scroll, a long roll of paper for writing. Write these words on it with an ordinary pen: Maher-shalal-hash-baz."

Moreover the LORD said unto me, Take thee a great roll, and write in it with a man’s pen concerning Mahershalalhashbaz.

NoteA scroll was paper rolled up like a long tube. Maher-shalal-hash-baz is one long name in Isaiah's language. It means "hurry to grab things, run and take them." The name itself was the warning God wanted written down.

2"I will choose men you can trust to watch you write it. They are Uriah the priest, a man who helped people worship God, and Zechariah, the son of Jeberekiah."

And I took unto me faithful witnesses to record, Uriah the priest, and Zechariah the son of Jeberechiah.

NoteWitnesses are people who watch something happen. Later they can tell everyone that it really happened. These two men watched Isaiah write, so nobody could say he made it up afterward.

3Then I went to my wife, a prophetess, a woman who told people what God said. She was going to have a baby, and she gave birth to a son. The LORD said to me, "Name him Maher-shalal-hash-baz."

And I went unto the prophetess; and she conceived, and bare a son. Then said the LORD to me, Call his name Mahershalalhashbaz.

NoteIn those days a name often carried a message. This baby's name told people what God said was coming.

4"The boy is little. He cannot even say 'Daddy' or 'Mommy' yet. Before he can say those words, the king of Assyria will take away all the riches of the city of Damascus and everything valuable in the city of Samaria."

For before the child shall have knowledge to cry, My father, and my mother, the riches of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria shall be taken away before the king of Assyria.

NoteDamascus was the main city of a country called Syria. Samaria was the main city of northern Israel. Assyria was a huge country with a strong army far away. Its soldiers carried off the gold and goods of cities they beat.