God told Isaiah to write on a big tablet with large letters: "Maher-shalal-hash-baz," which means "the spoil hastens, the prey speeds along." When Isaiah's wife gave birth to a son, God told him to give the boy this special name as a sign. God warned the people not to fear man's plots and not to ask mediums and wizards, but to honor the LORD of Armies as holy and to return to His word and law for guidance. Isaiah declared: he and his children were signs and wonders in Israel from the LORD of Armies who lives on Mount Zion, calling the people to discern between true and false voices and to follow the calling God had given to His prophet.
God had Isaiah give his son a name full of prophetic meaning, so that the family itself became a living witness speaking to the people. This was the special calling God gave to Isaiah, and a call for the people to return to His word. When people are afraid, they easily run to false gods and witchcraft, instead of seeking the true God. Through this God teaches us to discern: in trouble and the unknown, do not look for the wrong kind of help — go back to God's word for the answer. Every one of us can be one of God's little witnesses, answering His calling, looking with eyes that discern true from false, and pointing the people around us in the right direction with our own lives — to trust in the one God who is in charge of everything.
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