Examples include the Immanuel prophecy in Isaiah 7:14 which is understood as referring in its first fulfilment to the birth of a child at the time of Isaiah of a child who would be a sign to Ahaz of the impending destruction of Rezin and Pekah by Tiglath Pileser III, often with the associated interpretation that the child to be born is Ahaz' heir, Hezekiah and the maiden Abijah, daughter of Zechariah.
Ahaz |
Chapter 1:1 identifies the prophet as "Micah of Moresheth" (a town in southern Judah), and states that he lived during the reigns of Yehotam, Ahaz and Hezekiah, roughly 750–700 BC.
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Thus declaring that the burnt offering of both animals and humans (which may have been practiced in Judah under Kings Ahaz and Manasseh) is not necessary for God.
Ahaz Merchant, Mayor Samuel Starkweather and Richard Hilliard were listed as trustees, and a street grid was laid out, which remains intact to this day.
Isaiah 7:1–8:15, although set in the time of king Ahaz, apparently dates from the reign of Ahaz's son Hezekiah some thirty years later, and its purpose was to persuade Hezekiah not to join with other kings who intended to rebel against their joint overlord, Assyria.
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As for Immanuel, "God is with us", Isaiah might mean simply that any young pregnant woman in 734 BCE would be able to name her child "God is with us" by the time he is born; but if a specific child is meant, then it might be a son of Ahaz, possibly his successor Hezekiah (which is the traditional Jewish understanding); or, since the other symbolic children are Isaiah's, Immanuel might be the prophet's own son.
Another extra-biblical source regarding the historicity of Ahaz comes from Tiglath-Pileser III, mentioning tributes he received in gold and silver from Ahaz, and from the bulla known as Ushna seal.
When Hezekiah made reparation for the abominations of his father Ahaz, he invited all Israel to keep the Passover in the house of the Lord.