Prophet Isaiah the Prophet

The Holy Prophet Isaiah is the greatest of the Old Testament prophets, called the "Old Testament Evangelist" for the abundance of his messianic prophecies. Born in Jerusalem around 765 BC into a noble family, by tradition of royal descent. He began his prophetic ministry in the year King Uzziah died and preached for about 60 years under kings Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah of Judah. He was married and called his wife a prophetess. His book contains the fullest Old Testament revelation of Christ the Savior — His birth of a Virgin, His redemptive suffering (ch. 53), and His glory, earning him the title "Evangelist of the Old Testament." He denounced the sins of the Jewish people, foretold the Babylonian captivity and the return from it under the Persian king Cyrus, and the destruction and restoration of Jerusalem and its Temple. According to tradition, he suffered a martyr's death under the impious King Manasseh, sawn in two with a wooden saw. Commemorated May 9/22.