# 2 Nephi 17

*Paraphrase*

### Two Kings Attack Jerusalem

During the reign of Ahaz—son of Jotham, grandson of Uzziah—king of Judah, Rezin king of Syria and Pekah son of Remaliah, king of Israel, marched toward Jerusalem to attack it. But they couldn’t break through. Word reached the house of David: “Syria has joined forces with Ephraim.” When Ahaz heard this, his heart shook—and his people’s hearts with him—like trees trembling in the wind.

### Isaiah Brings God’s Message

Then the Lord said to Isaiah, “Go meet Ahaz. Take your son Shear-jashub with you. You’ll find him at the end of the aqueduct from the upper pool, on the road to the launderer’s field. Tell him this: Stay calm. Don’t be afraid. Don’t lose heart over these two dying embers—Rezin and Syria, and Remaliah’s son—no matter how furious they are.”

“Syria, Ephraim, and Remaliah’s son have plotted against you. They’re saying, ’Let’s invade Judah, tear it apart, conquer it, and put Tabeal’s son on the throne.’”

“But the Lord God says: It won’t happen. Their plan won’t succeed.”

“The head of Syria is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is Rezin. Within sixty-five years, Ephraim will be shattered—no longer a people. The head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is Remaliah’s son. If you don’t stand firm in faith, you won’t stand at all.”

### The Sign of Immanuel

The Lord spoke to Ahaz again: “Ask me for a sign—any sign you want. From the depths below or the heights above.” But Ahaz said, “I won’t ask. I won’t test the Lord.”

Then Isaiah said, “Listen, house of David. Isn’t it enough that you wear out people’s patience? Must you wear out God’s patience too?”

“So the Lord himself will give you a sign: A virgin will conceive and bear a son, and she will name him Immanuel. He will eat curds and honey—the food of those who know how to refuse evil and choose good. Before the child is old enough to know right from wrong, the land ruled by those two kings you dread will be abandoned.”

### Coming Invasion and Devastation

“The Lord will bring on you, your people, and your father’s house days unlike any since Ephraim broke away from Judah. He’ll bring the king of Assyria.”

“When that day comes, the Lord will whistle for flies from the distant streams of Egypt and for bees from the land of Assyria. They’ll come and settle in the steep ravines, in the crevices of rocks, on all the thornbushes, and at every watering hole. On that day, the Lord will use a razor hired from beyond the river—the king of Assyria—to shave your head and the hair of your legs, and to strip off your beard.”

“In that day, a man will keep alive a young cow and two goats. Because they’ll give so much milk, he’ll have curds to eat. Everyone left in the land will eat curds and honey.”

“Where there were once a thousand vines worth a thousand pieces of silver, there will be only briars and thorns. People will go there with bow and arrow, because the whole land will be covered with briars and thorns. As for the hills once cultivated with the hoe, you won’t go there anymore for fear of briars and thorns. They’ll become places where cattle are turned loose and sheep trample.”

---

*Source: [The Book of Mormon](https://bookofmormon.com/paraphrase/2-nephi/17)*
