Isaiah 8:1-4 - Hawker's Poor Man's Commentary

The prophet is commanded to commit to writing what he had to deliver. We have reason to bless God for this appointment, by which scripture records have been handed down to us. We find several prophets speaking of it, Jeremiah 36:28; Jeremiah 36:28; Hosea 8:12; and he that seems to have represented the Prince of the prophets, is said to have had a writer's inkhorn by his side, to mark his people, Ezekiel 9:2. Precious Jesus! may it be found, that thou hast written my name in thy book of life; Luke 10:20. No doubt, this scripture record of Isaiah was very weighty; for the Lord gave a name to it, and commanded the prophet to call his son by the same name, Maher-shalalhash-baz; which in the nearest sense of the words signifies, a making speed to the spoil; like one that hastens to lay hold of his prey in battle. And thus doubled as it were to the prophet's mind, Isaiah was taught himself the certainty that the Lord would accomplish what he had pronounced. His child should never be named without bringing with him a fresh memorandum. Concerning those witnesses he took with him, to record what he had written at the Lord's command in the roll, the Prophet calls them faithful witnesses; by which presume he meant, men in office, who could not afterwards depart from what they had subscribed their hands to; for one of those men, Uriah the priest, as we read 2 Kings 16:10-16, proved very unfaithful to the Lord, in setting up an altar after the pattern of the idolatrous altar which Ahaz brought from Damascus. But probably this act of Uriah was after this prophecy of Isaiah. The same scripture gives an account of the fulfillment of Isaiah's prophecy, 2 Kings 16:9.