2 Kings 19

Isaiah Reassures Hezekiah

1 As soon as King Hezekiah heard it, he tore his clothes and covered himself with sackcloth and went into the house of the Lord.2 And he sent Eliakim, who was over the household, and Shebna the secretary, and the senior priests, covered with sackcloth, to the prophet Isaiah the son of Amoz.3 They said to him, "Thus says Hezekiah, This day is a day of distress, of rebuke, and of disgrace; children have come to the point of birth, and there is no strength to bring them forth.4 It may be that the Lord your God heard all the words of the Rabshakeh, whom his master the king of Assyria has sent to mock the living God, and will rebuke the words that the Lord your God has heard; therefore lift up your prayer for the remnant that is left."5 When the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah,6 Isaiah said to them, "Say to your master, 'Thus says the Lord: Do not be afraid because of the words that you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have reviled me.7 Behold, I will put a spirit in him, so that he shall hear a rumor and return to his own land, and I will make him fall by the sword in his own land.'"

Sennacherib Defies the Lord

8 The Rabshakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria fighting against Libnah, for he heard that the king had left Lachish.9 Now the king heard concerning Tirhakah king of Cush, "Behold, he has set out to fight against you." So he sent messengers again to Hezekiah, saying,10 "Thus shall you speak to Hezekiah king of Judah: 'Do not let your God in whom you trust deceive you by promising that Jerusalem will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.11 Behold, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands, devoting them to destruction. And shall you be delivered?12 Have the gods of the nations delivered them, the nations that my fathers destroyed, Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the people of Eden who were in Telassar?13 Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the city of Sepharvaim, the king of Hena, or the king of Ivvah?'"

Hezekiah's Prayer

14 Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers and read it; and Hezekiah went up to the house of the Lord and spread it before the Lord.15 And Hezekiah prayed before the Lord and said: "O Lord, the God of Israel, enthroned above the cherubim, you are the God, you alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; you have made heaven and earth.16 Incline your ear, O Lord, and hear; open your eyes, O Lord, and see; and hear the words of Sennacherib, which he has sent to mock the living God.17 Truly, O Lord, the kings of Assyria have laid waste the nations and their lands18 and have cast their gods into the fire, for they were not gods, but the work of men's hands, wood and stone. Therefore they were destroyed.19 So now, O Lord our God, save us, please, from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, O Lord, are God alone."

Isaiah Prophesies Sennacherib's Fall

20 Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying, "Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Your prayer to me about Sennacherib king of Assyria I have heard.

21 This is the word that the Lord has spoken concerning him:
"She despises you, she scorns you—
the virgin daughter of Zion;
she wags her head behind you—
the daughter of Jerusalem.

22  "Whom have you mocked and reviled?
Against whom have you raised your voice
and lifted your eyes to the heights?
Against the Holy One of Israel!
23  By your messengers you have mocked the Lord,
and you have said, 'With my many chariots
I have gone up the heights of the mountains,
to the far recesses of Lebanon;
I felled its tallest cedars,
its choicest cypresses;
I entered its farthest lodging place,
its most fruitful forest.
24  I dug wells
and drank foreign waters,
and I dried up with the sole of my foot
all the streams of Egypt.'

25  "Have you not heard
that I determined it long ago?
I planned from days of old
what now I bring to pass,
that you should turn fortified cities
into heaps of ruins,
26  while their inhabitants, shorn of strength,
are dismayed and confounded,
and have become like plants of the field
and like tender grass,
like grass on the housetops,
blighted before it is grown.

27  "But I know your sitting down
and your going out and coming in,
and your raging against me.
28  Because you have raged against me
and your complacency has come into my ears,
I will put my hook in your nose
and my bit in your mouth,
and I will turn you back on the way
by which you came.

29 "And this shall be the sign for you: this year eat what grows of itself, and in the second year what springs of the same. Then in the third year sow and reap and plant vineyards, and eat their fruit.30 And the surviving remnant of the house of Judah shall again take root downward and bear fruit upward.31 For out of Jerusalem shall go a remnant, and out of Mount Zion a band of survivors. The zeal of the Lord will do this.

32 "Therefore thus says the Lord concerning the king of Assyria: He shall not come into this city or shoot an arrow there, or come before it with a shield or cast up a siege mound against it.33 By the way that he came, by the same he shall return, and he shall not come into this city, declares the Lord.34 For I will defend this city to save it, for my own sake and for the sake of my servant David."

35 And that night the angel of the Lord went out and struck down 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians. And when people arose early in the morning, behold, these were all dead bodies.36 Then Sennacherib king of Assyria departed and went home and lived at Nineveh.37 And as he was worshiping in the house of Nisroch his god, Adrammelech and Sharezer, his sons, struck him down with the sword and escaped into the land of Ararat. And Esarhaddon his son reigned in his place.

2 Kings 19

1 When King Hezekiah heard this, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth, and went to the Lord’s temple.2 He sent Eliakim the palace supervisor, Shebna the scribe, and the leading priests,t clothed in sackcloth, with this message to the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz:3 “This is what Hezekiah says:t ‘This is a day of distress, insults,t and humiliation,t as when a baby is ready to leave the birth canal, but the mother lacks the strength to push it through.t

4 Perhaps the Lord your God will hear all these things the chief adviser has spoken on behalf of his master, the king of Assyria, who sent him to taunt the living God.t When the Lord your God hears, perhaps he will punish him for the things he has said.t So pray for this remnant that remains.’”t
5 When King Hezekiah’s servants came to Isaiah,6 Isaiah said to them, “Tell your master this: ‘This is what the Lord says: “Don’t be afraid because of the things you have heard – these insults the king of Assyria’s servants have hurled against me.t

7 Look, I will take control of his mind;t he will receivet a report and return to his own land. I will cut him downt with a sword in his own land.”’”
8 When the chief adviser heard the king of Assyria had departed from Lachish, he left and went to Libnah, where the king was campaigning.t9 The kingt heard that King Tirhakah of Ethiopia was marching out to fight him.t He again sent messengers to Hezekiah, ordering them:10 “Tell King Hezekiah of Judah this: ‘Don’t let your God in whom you trust mislead you when he says, “Jerusalem will not be handed overt to the king of Assyria.”11 Certainly you have heard how the kings of Assyria have annihilated all lands.t Do you really think you will be rescued?t12 Were the nations whom my ancestors destroyed – the nations of Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the people of Eden in Telassar – rescued by their gods?t

13 Where are the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, and the king of Lair,s Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah?’”
14 Hezekiah took the letters from the messengers and read it.s Then Hezekiah went up to the Lord’s temple and spread it out before the Lord.15 Hezekiah prayed before the Lord: “Lord God of Israel, who is enthroned on the cherubs!s You alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You made the skyt and the earth.16 Pay attention, Lord, and hear! Open your eyes, Lord, and observe! Listen to the message Sennacherib sent and how he taunts the living God!t17 It is true, Lord, that the kings of Assyria have destroyed the nations and their lands.18 They have burned the gods of the nations,t for they are not really gods, but only the product of human hands manufactured from wood and stone. That is why the Assyrians could destroy them.t

19 Now, O Lord our God, rescue us from his power, so that all the kingdoms of the earth will know that you, Lord, are the only God.”
20 Isaiah son of Amoz sent this message to Hezekiah: “This is what the Lord God of Israel says: ‘I have heard your prayer concerning King Sennacherib of Assyria.t

21 This is what the Lord says about him:t
“The virgin daughter Zions
despises you, she makes fun of you;
Daughter Jerusalem
shakes her head after you.s

22 Whom have you taunted and hurled insults at?
At whom have you shouted,t
and looked so arrogantly?t
At the Holy One of Israel!s

23 Through your messengers you taunted the sovereign master,t
‘With my many chariotss
I climbed up the high mountains,
the slopes of Lebanon.
I cut down its tall cedars,
and its best evergreens.
I invaded its most remote regions,t
its thickest woods.

24 I dug wells and drank
water in foreign lands.t
With the soles of my feet I dried up
all the rivers of Egypt.’

25 tCertainly you must have heard!t
Long ago I worked it out,
In ancient times I plannedt it;
and now I am bringing it to pass.
The plan is this:
Fortified cities will crash
into heaps of ruins.t

26 Their residents are powerless,t
they are terrified and ashamed.
They are as short-lived as plants in the field,
or green vegetation.t
They are as short-lived as grass on the rooftopst
when it is scorched by the east wind.s

27 I know where you live,
and everything you do.s

28 Because you rage against me,
and the uproar you create has reached my ears;s
I will put my hook in your nose,s
and my bridle between your lips,
and I will lead you back the way
you came.”
29 t This will be your confirmation that I have spoken the truth:t This year you will eat what grows wild,s and next yeart what grows on its own from that. But in the third year you will plant seed and harvest crops; you will plant vines and consume their produce.t

30 Those who remain in Judah will take root in the ground and bear fruit.t

31 For a remnant will leave Jerusalem;
survivors will come out of Mount Zion.
The intense devotion of the sovereign Lordt to his peoplet will accomplish this.

32 So this is what the Lord says about the king of Assyria:
“He will not enter this city,
nor will he shoot an arrow here.t
He will not attack it with his shield-carrying warriors,t
nor will he build siege works against it.

33 He will go back the way he came.
He will not enter this city,” says the Lord.

34 I will shield this city and rescue it for the sake of my reputation and because of my promise to David my servant.’”t
35 That very night the Lord’s messenger went out and killed 185,000 men in the Assyrian camp. When theyt got up early the next morning, there were all the corpses.t36 So King Sennacherib of Assyria broke camp and went on his way. He went home and stayed in Nineveh.t

37 One day,s as he was worshiping in the temple of his god Nisroch,s his sonss Adrammelech and Sharezer struck him down with the sword.s They escaped to the land of Ararat; his son Esarhaddon replaced him as king.