We studied this episode of history during our study of the kings, in which Ahaz appealed to the king of Assyria for help: "Ahaz sent messengers to say to Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria, 'I am your servant and vassal. Come up and save me out of the hand of the king of Aram and of the king of Israel, who are attacking me.' And Ahaz took the silver and gold found in the temple of the Lord and in the treasuries of the royal palace and sent it as a gift to the king of Assyria. The king of Assyria complied by attacking Damascus and capturing it. He deported its inhabitants to Kir and put Rezin to death." (2 Kings 16:7-9)
You may be familiar with the expression, "They who kneel before God can stand before anyone". If the idolatrous Ahaz had been willing to kneel before God and say to Him, "I submit myself to You and I trust You to protect the nation of Judah," he would not have had to say to the heathen king of Assyria, "I submit myself to you and I trust you to protect the nation of Judah". He should have placed his faith in God rather than in man, for the nation he believes is his friend will soon become his foe.
Here in Chapter 7 the king of Assyria has not yet come to Ahaz's aid, but when he does Ahaz will go up to meet him in person to thank him, at which point he will see an altar in Damascus that he wants copied for Jerusalem. In 2 Kings 16 we learned that after the idolatrous altar was erected he commanded that all of his own offerings and all of the people's offerings be made to it. He also removed the Lord's bronze altar from in front of the temple and relegated it to an out-of-the-way place. This has not happened yet but the Lord knows it will happen. He knows Ahaz will continue falling deeper into idolatry and that he will influence countless others to engage in it with him, so He sends a very serious warning to him from the prophet Isaiah that the nation of Assyria will be no help to him; rather, they will be a hardship to him.
"The Lord will bring on you and on your people and on the house of your father a time unlike any since Ephraim broke away from Judah---He will bring the king of Assyria." (Isaiah 7:17) The Lord will allow Assyria to plague Judah as a method of discipline for the way the king and so many citizens have turned away from Him. Ahaz is making a huge mistake placing his trust in Assyria. If he had placed his trust in the Lord, no nation could have stood against Judah, for the Lord promised this if they would be faithful to Him: "No one will be able to stand against you. The Lord your God, as He promised you, will put the terror and fear of you on the whole land, wherever you go." (Deuteronomy 11:25)
Why aren't King Pekah and King Rezin terrified to attack Judah and Jerusalem? Why won't King Tiglath-Pileser and his successors be afraid to attack Judah and Jerusalem? Because the king and so many of the people haven't remained faithful to the Lord. Instead of Judah's enemies being afraid of her, Judah is afraid of her enemies. This is because she stopped fearing (having a reverent respect for) the Lord. This is because she stopped kneeling before the Lord and began bowing to false gods and to the temporary things of this world.
If we are willing to kneel before God we can stand before anyone because He will enable us to stand. Then we can say, as David said, "The Lord is my light and my salvation---whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life---of whom shall I be afraid?" (Psalm 27:1)
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