2 Kings 18

Hezekiah Reigns in Judah

1 Now it came to pass in the third year of Hoshea the son of Elah, king of Israel, that Hezekiah the son of Ahaz, king of Judah, began to reign.2 He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mothers name was Abi the daughter of Zechariah.3 And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father David had done.4 He removed the high places and broke the sacred pillars, cut down the wooden image and broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made; for until those days the children of Israel burned incense to it, and called it Nehushtan.5 He trusted in the Lord God of Israel, so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor who were before him.6 For he held fast to the Lord; he did not depart from following Him, but kept His commandments, which the Lord had commanded Moses.7 The Lord was with him; he prospered wherever he went. And he rebelled against the king of Assyria and did not serve him.8 He subdued the Philistines, as far as Gaza and its territory, from watchtower to fortified city.9 Now it came to pass in the fourth year of King Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Hoshea the son of Elah, king of Israel, that Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up against Samaria and besieged it.10 And at the end of three years they took it. In the sixth year of Hezekiah, that is, the ninth year of Hoshea king of Israel, Samaria was taken.11 Then the king of Assyria carried Israel away captive to Assyria, and put them in Halah and by the Habor, the River of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes,12 because they did not obey the voice of the Lord their God, but transgressed His covenant and all that Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded; and they would neither hear nor do them. 13 And in the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them.14 Then Hezekiah king of Judah sent to the king of Assyria at Lachish, saying, I have done wrong; turn away from me; whatever you impose on me I will pay. And the king of Assyria assessed Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold.15 So Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found in the house of the Lord and in the treasuries of the kings house.16 At that time Hezekiah stripped the gold from the doors of the temple of the Lord, and from the pillars which Hezekiah king of Judah had overlaid, and gave it to the king of Assyria.

Sennacherib Boasts Against the Lord

17 Then the king of Assyria sent the Tartan, the Rabsaris, and the Rabshakeh from Lachish, with a great army against Jerusalem, to King Hezekiah. And they went up and came to Jerusalem. When they had come up, they went and stood by the aqueduct from the upper pool, which was on the highway to the Fullers Field.18 And when they had called to the king, Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph, the recorder, came out to them.19 Then the Rabshakeh said to them, Say now to Hezekiah, Thus says the great king, the king of Assyria: What confidence is this in which you trust?20 You speak of having plans and power for war; but they are mere words. And in whom do you trust, that you rebel against me?21 Now look! You are trusting in the staff of this broken reed, Egypt, on which if a man leans, it will go into his hand and pierce it. So is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust in him.22 But if you say to me, We trust in the Lord our God, is it not He whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah has taken away, and said to Judah and Jerusalem, You shall worship before this altar in Jerusalem?23 Now therefore, I urge you, give a pledge to my master the king of Assyria, and I will give you two thousand horsesif you are able on your part to put riders on them!24 How then will you repel one captain of the least of my masters servants, and put your trust in Egypt for chariots and horsemen?25 Have I now come up without the Lord against this place to destroy it? The Lord said to me, Go up against this land, and destroy it.26 Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, Shebna, and Joah said to the Rabshakeh, Please speak to your servants in Aramaic, for we understand it; and do not speak to us in Hebrew in the hearing of the people who are on the wall.27 But the Rabshakeh said to them, Has my master sent me to your master and to you to speak these words, and not to the men who sit on the wall, who will eat and drink their own waste with you?28 Then the Rabshakeh stood and called out with a loud voice in Hebrew, and spoke, saying, Hear the word of the great king, the king of Assyria!29 Thus says the king: Do not let Hezekiah deceive you, for he shall not be able to deliver you from his hand;30 nor let Hezekiah make you trust in the Lord, saying, The Lord will surely deliver us; this city shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.31 Do not listen to Hezekiah; for thus says the king of Assyria: Make peace with me by a present and come out to me; and every one of you eat from his own vine and every one from his own fig tree, and every one of you drink the waters of his own cistern;32 until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive groves and honey, that you may live and not die. But do not listen to Hezekiah, lest he persuade you, saying, The Lord will deliver us.33 Has any of the gods of the nations at all delivered its land from the hand of the king of Assyria?34 Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim and Hena and Ivah? Indeed, have they delivered Samaria from my hand?35 Who among all the gods of the lands have delivered their countries from my hand, that the Lord should deliver Jerusalem from my hand?36 But the people held their peace and answered him not a word; for the kings commandment was, Do not answer him.37 Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph, the recorder, came to Hezekiah with their clothes torn, and told him the words of the Rabshakeh.

2 KINGS 18

King Hezekiah of Judah

(2 Chronicles 29.1,2; 31.1)

1 Hezekiah son of Ahaz became king of Judah in the third year of Hoshea's rule in Israel.

2 Hezekiah was 25 years old when he became king, and he ruled 29 years from Jerusalem. His mother Abi was the daughter of Zechariah.
3 Hezekiah obeyed the [Lord], just as his ancestor David had done.

4 t He destroyed the local shrines, then tore down the images of foreign gods and cut down the sacred pole for worshiping the goddess Asherah. He also smashed the bronze snake Moses had made. The people had named it Nehushtant and had been offering sacrifices to it.
5 Hezekiah trusted the [Lord] God of Israel. No other king of Judah was like Hezekiah, either before or after him. 6 He was completely faithful to the [Lord] and obeyed the laws the [Lord] had given to Moses for the people. 7 The [Lord] helped Hezekiah, so he was successful in everything he did. He even rebelled against the king of Assyria, refusing to be his servant.

8 Hezekiah defeated the Philistine towns as far away as Gaza—from the smallest towns to the large, walled cities.
9 During the fourth year of Hezekiah's rule, which was the seventh year of Hoshea's rule in Israel, King Shalmaneser of Assyria led his troops to Samaria, the capital city of Israel. They attacked 10 and captured it three years later, t in the sixth year of Hezekiah's rule and the ninth year of Hoshea's rule. 11 The king of Assyriat took the Israelites away as prisoners; he forced some of them to live in the town of Halah, others to live near the Habor River in the territory of Gozan, and still others to live in towns where the Median people lived.

12 All of that happened because the people of Israel had not obeyed the [Lord] their God. They rejected the solemn agreement he had made with them, and they ignored everything that the [Lord]'s servant Moses had told them.

King Sennacherib of Assyria //Invades Judah

(2 Chronicles 32.1-19; Isaiah 36.1-22)

14 Hezekiah sent this message to Sennacherib, who was in the town of Lachish: “I know I am guilty of rebellion. But I will pay you whatever you want, if you stop your attack.”
Sennacherib told Hezekiah to pay ten tons of silver and one ton of gold. 15 So Hezekiah collected all the silver from the [Lord]'s temple and the royal treasury.

16 He even stripped the gold that he had used to cover the doors and doorpostst in the temple. He gave it all to Sennacherib.
17 The king of Assyria ordered his three highest military officers to leave Lachish and take a large army to Jerusalem. When they arrived, the officers stood on the road near the cloth makers' shops along the canal from the upper pool.

18 They called out to Hezekiah, and three of his highest officials came out to meet them. One of them was Hilkiah's son Eliakim, who was the prime minister. The other two were Shebna, assistant to the prime minister, and Joah son of Asaph, keeper of the government records.

19 One of the Assyrian commanders told them:
I have a message for Hezekiah from the great king of Assyria. Ask Hezekiah why he feels so sure of himself. 20 Does he think he can plan and win a war with nothing but words? Who is going to help him, now that he has turned against the king of Assyria?

21 Is he depending on Egypt and its king? That's the same as leaning on a broken stick, and it will go right through his hand.

22 Is Hezekiah now depending on the [Lord] your God? Didn't Hezekiah tear down all except one of the [Lord]'s altars and places of worship?t Didn't he tell the people of Jerusalem and Judah to worship at that one place?
23 The king of Assyria wants to make a bet with you people. He will give you 2,000 horses, if you have enough troops to ride them. 24 How could you even defeat our lowest ranking officer, when you have to depend on Egypt for chariots and cavalry?

25 Don't forget that it was the [Lord] who sent me here with orders to destroy your nation!

26 Eliakim, Shebna, and Joah said, “Sir, we don't want the people listening from the city wall to understand what you are saying. So please speak to us in Aramaic instead of Hebrew.”

27 The Assyrian army commander answered, “My king sent me to speak to everyone, not just to you leaders. These people will soon have to eat their own body waste and drink their own urine! And so will the three of you.”

28 Then, in a voice loud enough for everyone to hear, he shouted in Hebrew:
Listen to what the great king of Assyria says! 29 Don't be fooled by Hezekiah. He can't save you. 30 Don't trust him when he tells you that the [Lord] will protect you from the king of Assyria. 31 Stop listening to Hezekiah! Pay attention to my king. Surrender to him. He will let you keep your own vineyards, fig trees, and cisterns

32 for a while. Then he will come and take you away to a country just like yours, where you can plant vineyards, raise your own grain, and have plenty of olive oil and honey. Believe me, you won't starve there.
Hezekiah claims the [Lord] will save you. But don't be fooled by him. 33 Were any other gods able to defend their land against the king of Assyria? 34 What happened to the gods of Hamath and Arpad? What about the gods of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah? Were the gods of Samaria able to protect their land against the Assyrian forces?

35 None of these gods kept their people safe from the king of Assyria. Do you think the [Lord] your God can do any better?
36-37 Eliakim, Shebna, and Joah had been warned by King Hezekiah not to answer the Assyrian commander. So they tore their clothes in sorrow and reported to Hezekiah everything the commander had said.