Isaiah in the context of "Emmanuel"

The Book of Isaiah (Hebrew: ספר ישעיהו [ˈseː.fɛr jə.ʃaʕ.ˈjɔː.huː]) is the first of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible and the first of the major prophets in the Christian Old Testament. It is identified by a superscription as the words of the 8th-century BCE prophet Isaiah ben Amoz, but there is evidence that much of it was composed during the Babylonian captivity and later.

Johann Christoph Döderlein suggested in 1775 that the book contained the works of two prophets separated by more than a century, and Bernhard Duhm originated the view, held as a consensus through most of the 20th century, that the book comprises three separate collections of oracles: Proto-Isaiah (chapters 1–39), containing the words of the 8th-century BCE prophet Isaiah; Deutero-Isaiah, or "the Book of Consolation", (chapters 40–55), the work of an anonymous 6th-century BCE author writing during the Exile; and Trito-Isaiah (chapters 56–66), composed after the return from Exile. Isaiah 1–33 promises judgment and restoration for Judah, Jerusalem and the nations, and chapters 34–66 presume that judgment has been pronounced and restoration follows soon. While few scholars today attribute the entire book, or even most of it, to one person, the book's essential unity has become a focus in more recent research.

In religion, a prophet or prophetess is an individual who is regarded as being in contact with a divine being and is said to speak on behalf of that being, serving as an intermediary with humanity by delivering messages or teachings from the supernatural source to other people. The message that the prophet conveys is called a prophecy.

Prophethood has existed in many cultures and religions throughout history, including Mesopotamian religion, Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Christianity, Manichaeism, Islam, the Baháʼí Faith, and Thelema.

Messiah (HWV 56) is an English-language oratorio composed in 1741 by George Frideric Handel. The text was compiled from the King James Bible and the Coverdale Psalter by Charles Jennens. It was first performed in Dublin on 13 April 1742 and received its London premiere a year later. After an initially modest public reception, the oratorio gained in popularity, eventually becoming one of the best-known and most frequently performed choral works in Western music.

Handel's reputation in England, where he had lived since 1712, had been established through his compositions of Italian opera. He turned to English oratorio in the 1730s in response to changes in public taste; Messiah was his sixth work in this genre. Although its structure resembles that of opera, it is not in dramatic form; there are no impersonations of characters and no direct speech. Instead, Jennens's text is an extended reflection on Jesus as the Messiah called Christ. The text begins in Part I with prophecies by Isaiah and others, and moves to the annunciation to the shepherds, the only "scene" taken from the Gospels. In Part II, Handel concentrates on the Passion of Jesus and ends with the Hallelujah chorus. In Part III, he covers Paul's teachings on the resurrection of the dead and Christ's glorification in heaven.

The major prophets is a grouping of books in the Christian Old Testament that does not occur in the Hebrew Bible. All of these books are traditionally regarded as authored by the prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel. The term major prophets refers to the length of the books and not the achievement or importance of the prophets. In comparison to the books of the Twelve Minor Prophets, whose books are short and grouped together into one single book in the Hebrew Bible, the books of the major prophets are much longer.

This list of Sephardi chief rabbis of the Land of Israel documents the rabbis who served as the spiritual leader of the Sephardic community in the Land of Israel from the mid-17th century to present. The Hebrew title for the position, Rishon LeZion (literally "First to Zion"), has been used since the beginning of the 17th century, and is sourced from a verse in Isaiah 41:27. Between 1842 and 1920 the position of Hakham Bashi of the Damascus Bilayet was officially recognised by the Ottoman and British governments.

The Gathering of Israel (Hebrew: קִבּוּץ גָּלֻיּוֹת, Modern: Kibbutz Galuyot, Tiberian: Qibbuṣ Galuyoth, lit. 'Ingathering of the Exiles'), or the Ingathering of the Jewish diaspora, is the biblical promise of Deuteronomy 30:1–5, made by Moses to the Israelites prior to their entry into the Land of Israel.

During the days of the Babylonian captivity, writings by the Israelite prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel encouraged their people with the promise of a future gathering of the exiles to the Land of Israel. Since the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 AD, the continual hope for exiled Jews' return to the Land of Israel has served as a core theme of Judaism. Maimonides, a prominent medieval Jewish scholar, connected the materialization of this return with the coming of the Davidic Messiah.

Hezekiah (/ˌhɛzɪˈkaɪ.ə/; Biblical Hebrew: חִזְקִיָּהוּ‎, romanized: Ḥizqiyyāhū), or Ezekias (born c. 741 BC, sole ruler c. 716/15–687/86), was the son of Ahaz and the thirteenth king of Judah according to the Hebrew Bible. He is described as "the best-attested figure in biblical history," due to the extensive documentation of his reign in biblical texts and external sources (notably Assyrian inscriptions). His reign was marked by his significant religious reforms and his revolt against the Assyrian Empire. He witnessed the destruction of the northern Kingdom of Israel by the Assyrians under Sargon II in c. 722 BC and later faced the Assyrian siege of Jerusalem by King Sennacherib in 701 BC.

Hezekiah's changes to the official Yahweh worship, especially his centralization of worship in Jerusalem and his efforts to rid Judah of the worship of other cult gods and goddesses, are a major focus of biblical accounts. He is considered a very righteous king in both the Second Book of Kings and the Second Book of Chronicles. His efforts to consolidate worship around the God of Israel and his destruction of other cult objects, such as the bronze serpent made by Moses, are seen as his way of consolidating power and temple resources during a turbulent time. His reign was marked by prophetic activity, with prophets such as Isaiah and Micah delivering their messages during his time.