And it came to pass in the days of Ahaz the son of
Jotham, the son of Uzziah king of Judah
Here begins a new prophecy under the reign of another king; who, though a wicked king, had religious ancestors; and who are mentioned, not, as the Jewish writers F21 generally say, because it was owing to their worthiness that the enemies of Ahaz could not prevail against him; but because it was under these kings the prophet had prophesied: what is contained in the first five chapters were delivered in the times of Uzziah; and the vision in the sixth was in the times of Jotham, in the beginning of his reign; and what is said here, and in some following chapters, was in the time of Ahaz; so that this is mentioned to fix and carry on the date of the prophecy: [that] Rezin the king of Syria, and Pekah, the son of Remaliah king
of Israel, went up towards Jerusalem to war against it;
at the latter end of Jotham's reign, and the beginning of Ahaz's; these two separately came up against Judah, and greatly distressed and afflicted the kingdom, slew many, and carried others captive, ( 2 Kings 15:37 ) ( 2 Chronicles 28:5-7 ) but afterwards, in the third F23 or fourth F24 year of Ahaz, as it is said, they joined together to besiege Jerusalem, which this refers to, ( 2 Kings 16:5 ) : but could not prevail against it;
or "he could not"; that is, according to Aben Ezra, the king of Israel, Pekah, the son of Remaliah; but, according to Kimchi, it was Rezin king of Syria, who, he says, was the principal in the war, and brought Pekah along with him; but it may very well be understood of them both, since in ( 2 Kings 16:5 ) , the plural number is used; "and they could not"; and so the Septuagint, Vulgate Latin, and Oriental versions here.
F21 Jarchi & Kimchi in loc. & Yalkut Simeoni, ex Bereshit Rabba, sect. 63. fol. 54. 4.
F23 Yalkut Simeoni in loc.
F24 Seder Olam Rabba, c. 23. p. 85. Jarchi in ver. 14.