In this episode, I'll have two discussions with Eric Van Meter, Jeff Pospisil. Eric and I discuss the messianic prophecy of Isaiah 7:10-17, and Jeff and I will discuss Isaiah 9:1-7. We discuss the fact that all these "prophetic" passages had very specific meanings in their own political context. Isaiah 7 was originally written to strengthen Ahaz in about 735 BC as he was facing the combined armies of Israel and Syria (not Assyria) who were wanting to force Judah into an anti-Assyrian alliance. The prophecy probably refers to the wife of King Ahaz whose child's birth (probably Hezekiah) was to represent the protective care and presence of God with them even though Jerusalem was under siege. How can these prophecies be applied to Jesus when, in their context, they likely refer to a child born 725 years before the birth of Christ. 725 years! That is a long time!