7:8 Ephraim be broken. Isaiah here prophesied the coming Assyrian destruction and captivity of Ephraim and the whole northern kingdom.

7:8 be not a people. Ephraim and the northern tribes would never again be a viable national entity, thus refuting the modern notion of some that these “lost tribes” eventually became the British nation. Many members of the ten tribes, however, did eventually migrate back to become a part of Judah after its return from Babylonian exile.