“Then the Lord said to me, “Take for yourself a large tablet and write on it in ordinary letters: Swift is the booty, speedy is the prey. And I will take to Myself faithful witnesses for testimony, Uriah the priest and Zechariah the son of Jeberechiah.” So I approached the prophetess, and she conceived and gave birth to a son. Then the Lord said to me, “Name him Maher-shalal-hash-baz; for before the boy knows how to cry out ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the wealth of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria will be carried away before the king of Assyria.””
Isaiah 8:1-4 NASB1995
Isaiah 8 begins with the Lord speaking to Isaiah and telling him to take for himself a large tablet and write on it in ordinary ledgers: Swift is the booty, speedy is the prey. And the Lord designates faithful witnesses for testimony, Uriah the priest and Zechariah the son of Jeberechiah (this is not the minor prophet Zechariah). The presence of two witnesses attests to the legal implications of the writing on the ledger (this was a requirement from Deuteronomy 19:15). Apparently Isaiah is wed to a prophetess because he approaches her and she conceives and gives birth to a son, or perhaps she is called a prophetess because of her relationship with Isaiah. She participates in a prophecy merely by becoming the mother of Maher-shalal-hash-baz.
The son will be named Maher-shalal-hash-baz, which is Hebrew for the words that Isaiah wrote on the large tablet. This is the longest name in the Bible. The NASB is the only popular translation I looked at that does not call out the name directly for what is written on the ledger but shows the translation from Hebrew. Here’s an approximate chronology for this second son of Isaiah and his prophetic name (from Precept Austin):
APPROXIMATE CHRONOLOGY OF MAHER-SHALAL-HASH-BAZ - Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz was born around 734 BC, during the reign of King Ahaz of Judah
735–732 BC Syro-Ephraimite crisis
734 BC - His birth is recorded in Isaiah 8:1–4, where the LORD commands Isaiah to give his son this symbolic name.
The prophecy explicitly ties the child’s infancy (“before the boy knows how to cry ‘My father’ or ‘My mother’”) to the imminent fall of Damascus (Aram) and Samaria (Israel).
732 BC - Historically, Damascus fell in 732 BC, and Samaria’s collapse followed soon after (culminating in 722 BC).
This places the birth slightly before 732 BC, most commonly dated c. 734 BC, during the Syro-Ephraimite crisis (ca. 735–732 BC).
Gotquestions.org has these observations on the message this name sends to King Ahaz:
The message of Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz to stubborn King Ahaz also contains lessons for us today:
1) No matter how powerful and terrifying your enemies, do not fear them; rather, trust in God, who is in complete control (Romans 8:28; Psalm 33:10–11). God is our strength and defense (Exodus 15:2; Judges 7:2; Isaiah 12:2). When Assyria later attacked Jerusalem in 701 BC, godly King Hezekiah, terrified as he was, accepted Isaiah’s prophecy and turned to God for help. Jerusalem was miraculously delivered (Isaiah 37).
2) Do not be surprised at the instruments God uses to execute His will. He may use the wicked to carry out His good plans (Genesis 50:20; 2 Chronicles 36:15–17).
3) Being used as an instrument of God is no guarantee of His future blessings for the wicked, whether for individuals (1 Kings 14:7–11) or empires (Isaiah 10:12; Jeremiah 50:18). Assyria’s wickedness would be punished (Isaiah 10:15–17), a prophecy fulfilled in the death of 185,000 soldiers attacking Jerusalem (Isaiah 37:36) and the total destruction of the Assyrian Empire (Isaiah 13:1–14:27).
4) As Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz’s name was written into a legal contract before he was even conceived, God wrote the plan for our entire lives before we were conceived (Psalm 139:16; Jeremiah 1:5), even before the beginning of time (Romans 8:29–30; Ephesians 1:4–5; 2 Timothy 1:9).
Believing these powerful truths and acting on them in faith channels the power of God Almighty to make a difference not only in our own lives, but possibly in our communities, our nation, and the whole world (Matthew 17:20; John 14:12).
There’s a powerful lesson in this fulfillment of prophecy in the name of Isaiah’s second son during that time of upheaval for Judah and Jerusalem. We should not be afraid of our enemies, but should trust in God. People spend all day doom-scrolling social media and are fearful for many things, including upcoming elections, the cost of living, employment opportunities, market downturns, possible expanding wars, artificial intelligence, democratic socialism, terrorism, crime, loss of freedoms, climate “change”…the list is endless. As believers, we can take this admonition from Jesus to heart and stop the doom-scrolling and start living for Him:
“When they came to the crowd, a man came up to Jesus, falling on his knees before Him and saying, “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is a lunatic and is very ill; for he often falls into the fire and often into the water. And Jesus answered and said, “You unbelieving and perverted generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him here to Me.” And Jesus rebuked him, and the demon came out of him, and the boy was cured at once. Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not drive it out?” And He *said to them, “Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you.”
Matthew 17:14-15, 17-20 NASB1995
My next devotional examines Isaiah 8:5-8 - A flood will sweep down from Assyria.
Heaven on Wheels Daily Prayer:
Dear Lord - We are sheltered in Your presence from the things the world can do to us, so help me to stop worrying and start praying and increase my faith! Amen.
Citations and Credits:
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. www.Lockman.org.
Precept Austin was accessed on 09/27/2026 to review commentary for Isaiah 8:1-4
Gotquestions.org was accessed on 09/27/2026 to answer the question, Who was Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz? COPYRIGHT 2002-2026 GOT QUESTIONS MINISTRIES. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Commentary from Enduring Word is used with written permission and without any alteration. ©1996-present The Enduring Word Bible Commentary by David Guzik – enduringword.com. At the link referenced, the bibliography used by David Guzik can be accessed.