“For thus the Lord spoke to me with mighty power and instructed me not to walk in the way of this people, saying,
“You are not to say, ‘It is a conspiracy!’
In regard to all that this people call a conspiracy,
And you are not to fear what they fear or be in dread of it.
It is the Lord of hosts whom you should regard as holy.
And He shall be your fear,
And He shall be your dread.
Then He shall become a sanctuary;
But to both the houses of Israel, a stone to strike and a rock to stumble over,
And a snare and a trap for the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
Many will stumble over them,
Then they will fall and be broken;
They will even be snared and caught.””
Isaiah 8:11-15 NASB1995
The Lord spoke to Isaiah with mighty power and instructed him not to walk in the way of the people. Isaiah is not to say that this is a conspiracy. This is an interesting word choice in the NASB. Let’s look at the original Hebrew word from the Blue Letter Bible:
Conspiracy (Strong’s H7195) comes from the Hebrew masculine noun קֶשֶׁר qesher, keh'-sher; from H7194 with the following usages:
conspiracy, treason, (unlawful) alliance (also confederacy from Strong’s definition).
Isaiah is told to not fear what the people fear or be in dread of it. It is the Lord of Hosts that should be regarded as holy. He shall be Isaiah’s fear and dread. By focusing on God and His attributes, He will become a sanctuary. Here is what Oswald Chambers says about this fear, as quoted in Precept Austin:
The remarkable thing about fearing God, is that, when you fear God, you fear nothing else; whereas, if you do not fear God, you fear everything else.
Fear is the primary emotional driver of our media and our culture. With comfortable lives full of blessings, many people instead embrace fear and dread as their default positions. Every social media blip, news broadcast, election, strange weather day, or unexpected world event keeps people on edge. I see this on both sides of the political spectrum; it is no secret that my political beliefs tend toward conservative positions, but there is a tendency to sow fear in every direction and we must be discerning.
People also see deep conspiracies where there are none; they live in on-line echo chambers that reinforce these conspiracies and add to them. I’m not a conspiracy buff because I have more important things to do in my life rather than contribute to the insanity, although I have spent plenty of time debunking certain conspiracies that I find personally abhorrent or insulting to anyone with an ounce of integrity or intelligence (I won’t go into details, but I will note that one of those conspiracies that I deeply detest is Holocaust denial).
If you center your life on fear of the Lord of hosts, you begin to realize that there is nothing in this life worth fearing! The Lord is our sanctuary! This fact is a stumbling block to many; as the scripture says:
But to both the houses of Israel, a stone to strike and a rock to stumble over,
And a snare and a trap for the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
Besides this text in Isaiah, there are many other indications in scripture that Christ Himself is the Rock/Stone. Here is a screen shot of a table from Precept Austin describing the various ways in scripture in which He is described as a stone (the links probably won’t work as this is a screen shot):
Let’s look at verses in 1 Peter 2 (I studied this epistle many months ago):
“And coming to Him as to a living stone which has been rejected by men, but is choice and precious in the sight of God, you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For this is contained in Scripture:
“BEHOLD, I LAY IN ZION A CHOICE STONE, A PRECIOUS CORNER STONE,
AND HE WHO BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.”
This precious value, then, is for you who believe; but for those who disbelieve,
“THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED,
THIS BECAME THE VERY CORNER STONE,” and,
“A STONE OF STUMBLING AND A ROCK OF OFFENSE”;
for they stumble because they are disobedient to the word, and to this doom they were also appointed.
But you are a CHOSEN RACE, a royal PRIESTHOOD, a HOLY NATION, a PEOPLE for God’s OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; for you once were NOT A PEOPLE, but now you are the PEOPLE OF GOD; you had NOT RECEIVED MERCY, but now you have RECEIVED MERCY”.
1 Peter 2:4-10 NASB1995
I always found that verses 9-10 of 1 Peter to be among the most wonderful words in the New Testament. We are chosen, a priesthood, a holy nation, and a people for God’s own possession. What else do you need?
Let’s end this with the commentary from Enduring Word for this passage in Isaiah:
a. Do not say, “A conspiracy”…nor be afraid of their threats: Isaiah, and all the people of Judah, were tempted to give in to fear and panic, knowing the dangerous place they were in. At the time of this prophecy, the combined armies of Israel and Syria had destroyed much of Judah. Their armies either encircled Jerusalem or were on the way. They planned to depose King Ahaz of Judah and set their own man on the throne (Isaiah 7:6). Now, Isaiah’s prophecy declared the armies of Syria and Israel would not succeed in conquering Judah, but the Assyrians (who they trusted to help them) would attack them and do much damage. In the midst of all this, it would be easy to let your heart or mind settle on conspiracies and threats. But God tells them not to.
b. The LORD of hosts, Him you shall hallow; let Him be your fear: Instead of fearing conspiracies and threats, fear God. Don’t see yourself at the mercy of opposing armies; you are in God’s hands. Worry about your place with the LORD instead of your enemies.
c. He will be as a sanctuary: The LORD will be our sacred place and our place of protection. He will keep us safe from our enemies.
d. But a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense: For those who trust Him, the LORD will be as a sanctuary. But for those who don’t, He will be a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense. Instead of finding protection from the LORD, they will “trip” over Him, falling to destruction. Indeed, many among them shall stumble; they shall fall and be broken.
i. We love to sing the song, “What A Friend We Have in Jesus,” and every line of the song is true. But for those who reject the LORD, they could sing, “What an Enemy I Have in God.” Instead of being as a sanctuary, He will be a trap and a snare. Instead of being protected, they shall fall and be broken. No wonder Psalm 2:12 says, Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and you perish in the way, when His wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him.
ii. We know that Jesus is this stone of stumbling and a rock of offense (1 Peter 2:6-8). This is a strong statement of the deity of Jesus, because clearly in Isaiah 8:13-14, the LORD of hosts is the stone, and clearly in 1 Peter 2:6-8, Jesus Christ is the stone.
iii. This same idea is behind the statement of Simeon when he held the child Jesus, as recorded in Luke 2:34: Behold, this Child is destined for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign which will be spoken against.
A key takeaway: Worry about your place with the Lord instead of your enemies.
My next devotional examines Isaiah 8:16-18 - And I will wait for the Lord.
Heaven on Wheels Daily Prayer:
Dear Lord - I am so grateful You are the cornerstone of my faith and not a stumbling block. I believe and I am not disappointed!! 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.
“H7195 - qešer - Strong’s Hebrew Lexicon (NASB95).” Blue Letter Bible. Web. 3 Oct, 2026. <https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/h7195/nasb95/wlc/0-1/>.
Precept Austin was accessed on 10/03/2026 to review commentary for Isaiah 8:11-15.
Biblehub.org was accessed on 10/03/2026 to review commentary for Isaiah 8:11-15.
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.
“H7195 - qešer - Strong’s Hebrew Lexicon (NASB95).” Blue Letter Bible. Web. 3 Oct, 2026. <https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/h7195/nasb95/wlc/0-1/>.