²³ Now therefore, give ye pledges to my lord, the king of Assyrians, and I shall give to you two thousand of horses, and see ye, whether ye be able to have riders of them? (And so now, give ye pledges to my lord, the king of Assyria, and I shall give you two thousand horses, and see ye, if ye be able to have enough riders for them.)

²⁴ And how may ye withstand before one prince of the least servants of my lord? Whether thou hast trust in Egypt, for chariots and knights thereof?

²⁵ Whether I ascended without God’s will to this place, that I should destroy it? The Lord said to me, Ascend thou to this land, and destroy thou it. (Did I come up to destroy this place outside of God’s will? No! The Lord said to me, Go thou up to this land, and destroy it!)