Isaiah 7:4-6 “And say unto him, Take heed, and be quiet: fear not, neither be fainthearted, for the two tails of these smoking firebrands, for the fierce anger of Rezin with Syria, and of the son of Remaliah. Because Syria, Ephraim, and the son of Remaliah have taken evil counsel against thee, saying, Let us go up against Judah, and vex it, and let us make a breach therein for us, and set a king in the midst of it, even the son of Tabeal.”
In spite of Judah’s turning away from God; in spite of the wickedness and idolatry that had finally brought God’s judgment down on their heads, God was still willing to open His hand of protection over Judah and Jerusalem. Even at the final hour, God makes an offer of peace and protection.
God promised Ahab, in verse 4, that the northern confederacy between Ephraim and Aram would be overthrown, and that Ephraim would be broken in pieces ( vv. 4-9). Syria, under Rezin, and Ephraim, under Pekah, King of Israel, even had a plan to install a man named Tabeal (there are many different spellings of this name) as King in Judah. The most I could find out about this man is that he was apparently in the Aramean army, possibly the son of a general, and he would be nothing more than a figurehead.
The thing that would be appalling to Judah was that he was not of the house or lineage of King David, and had no right to sit on David’s throne. They would be governed by someone who was not of their faith, not of their blood.
And still, Ahaz set his stubborn face against God’s gracious offer of intervention.
Linda's Bible Study 