Birth and Ancestors

• Timeframe: Approximate birth: 760–755 BCE
  • (Reason: Isaiah's call vision occurred "in the year King Uzziah died" = 740/739 BCE (Isaiah 6:1). Prophets typically began ministry in adulthood, often around age 30–40 or later. If Isaiah was roughly 20–30 at his call, birth falls in the late 760s or mid-750s.)
• Place:
• Father:: - Amoz (father, mentioned Isaiah 1:1; 2 Kings 19:2)
• Mother::
• Sibling::
• Hebrew meaning of Name: - Yesha'yahu (יְשַׁעְיָהוּ) — “YHWH is salvation”
• Other Relatives of Note:

Marriage and Descendants

• Spouse #1: the prophetess (Isaiah 8:3)
  • Story:
  • Children:
    • Shear-jashub (“a remnant shall return”) — Isaiah 7:3
    • Maher-shalal-hash-baz (“spoil speeds, prey hastens”) — Isaiah 8:3

Land and Dwelling

Dwelling Places

• Jerusalem (in the Southern Kingdom of Judah)

Journeys

Occupation and Military

• Prophet of YHWH during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah kings of Judah (Isaiah 1:1)
  • Call to prophetic ministry: 740/739 BCE (year of Uzziah’s death)
  • Active ministry period (biblically attested): ≈ 740 – at least 701 BCE (Sennacherib crisis under Hezekiah; Isaiah 36–39)

Medical and Death

• Jewish tradition (e.g., Talmud, Ascension of Isaiah, and some church fathers) states Isaiah was martyred by being sawn in two under King Manasseh (who reigned 697/696 – 642 BCE). If true, Isaiah lived into the 680s BCE or slightly later.
• Approximate death:
  • If martyred under Manasseh: ≈ 680–670 BCE
  • If natural death: still sometime in the late 8th or very early 7th century BCE

Righteousness and Unrighteousness

Righteousness

Unrighteousness

Other

• Called to prophetic ministry in the year King Uzziah died (Isaiah 6:1)
• Ministry spanned approximately 740–680 BC (traditional range within Scripture’s timeline)

Extra Biblical Information

Landmarks:

• Ophel area (Jerusalem, just south of the Temple Mount) — site of the excavation where the possible Isaiah bulla was found
• Hezekiah's Tunnel (Siloam Tunnel) and Pool of Siloam (City of David, Jerusalem) — engineering project from Hezekiah's reign (contemporary with Isaiah), referenced in Isaiah 8:6 as the "gently flowing waters of Shiloah"

Archeology:

• Isaiah Bulla (seal impression): A small (about 1 cm) clay bulla discovered in 2009 (published 2018) by Eilat Mazar in the Ophel excavations, reading "Yesha‘yahu nvy" (likely "Isaiah the prophet" if a damaged letter is reconstructed as aleph); found only ~3 meters from a confirmed bulla of King Hezekiah; dates to late 8th century BCE; widely regarded as the strongest candidate for the first extra-biblical reference to the prophet Isaiah (though some scholars note the damage prevents absolute certainty and the name Isaiah was common)
• Hezekiah Bulla: Royal seal impression of King Hezekiah (Isaiah's contemporary and advisor) found in the same Ophel excavation context
• Siloam (Shiloah) Inscription: Paleo-Hebrew inscription (discovered 1880) inside Hezekiah's Tunnel describing its construction; confirms the biblical account of the water project during Hezekiah's preparations against Assyria (2 Kings 20:20; 2 Chronicles 32:30), a period when Isaiah was active
• Various 8th-century BCE bullae and lmlk ("to the king") jar handles from Hezekiah's reign found throughout Judah, corroborating the historical setting of Isaiah's ministry

Connections