Verse

Isaiah 8:4

ESV for before the boy knows how to cry ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the wealth of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria will be carried away before the king of Assyria."
NIV For before the boy knows how to say ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the wealth of Damascus and the plunder of Samaria will be carried off by the king of Assyria."
NASB for before the boy knows how to cry out ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the wealth of Damascus and the spoils of Samaria will be carried away before the king of Assyria.'
CSB for before the boy knows how to call ‘Father,’ or ‘Mother,’ the wealth of Damascus and the spoils of Samaria will be carried off to the king of Assyria."
NLT For before this child is old enough to say ‘Papa’ or ‘Mama,’ the king of Assyria will carry away both the abundance of Damascus and the riches of Samaria.'
KJV For before the child shall have knowledge to cry, My father, and my mother, the riches of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria shall be taken away before the king of Assyria.
NKJV for before the child shall have knowledge to cry ‘My father’ and ‘My mother,’ the riches of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria will be taken away before the king of Assyria.”

What does Isaiah 8:4 mean?

The Lord told Isaiah to write a name on a signboard or scroll at least nine months earlier, maybe longer. That name was Maher-shalal-hash-baz, which means "speeding to the plunder, hurrying to the spoil (Isaiah 8:1)." Now, after the birth of his son, the Lord tells Isaiah to call the boy by that name (Isaiah 8:3).

It is explained by the Lord to Isaiah that the boy's name refers to the coming defeat of two of Judah's enemies, Israel and Syria. Before Isaiah's son knows how to call out to his parents, the king of Assyria would oversee the plunder of Damascus, which is the capital of Syria. As well as Samaria, the capital of Israel.

That means that Israel and Syria would be laid to waste within two or three years. Two years after writing these words, Isaiah observed Syria being utterly destroyed, and Israel's provinces conquered, in 732 BC.
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