Isaiah assures Ahaz that he need not fear the belligerent intentions of Rezin, king of Syria, and Pekah (v. 1), the son of Remaliah, the king of Israel (the northern kingdom). Ludlow suggests that Isaiah’s referring to Pekah only by his father’s name communicates disdain. Rezin and Pekah are probably the “smoking firebrands,” while the “two tails” may refer to their retreat after their defeat by Tiglath-Pileser III of Assyria in 732 B.C.