2 Kings 19
Christian Standard Bible
Hezekiah Seeks Isaiah’s Counsel
19 When King Hezekiah heard their report, he tore his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth,(A) and went into the Lord’s temple.(B) 2 He sent Eliakim, who was in charge of the palace, Shebna the court secretary,(C) and the leading priests, who were covered with sackcloth,(D) to the prophet Isaiah(E) son of Amoz. 3 They said to him, “This is what Hezekiah says: ‘Today is a day of distress, rebuke, and disgrace, for children have come to the point of birth,(F) but there is no strength to deliver them. 4 Perhaps the Lord your God(G) will hear(H) all the words of the royal spokesman, whom his master the king of Assyria sent to mock the living God, and will rebuke(I) him for the words that the Lord your God has heard. Therefore, offer a prayer for the surviving remnant.’”(J)
5 So the servants of King Hezekiah went to Isaiah, 6 who said to them, “Tell your master, ‘The Lord says this: Don’t be afraid(K) because of the words you have heard, with which the king of Assyria’s attendants(L) have blasphemed(M) me. 7 I am about to put a spirit in him, and he will hear a rumor and return to his own land,(N) where I will cause him to fall by the sword.’”(O)
Sennacherib’s Departing Threat
8 When(P) the royal spokesman heard that the king of Assyria had pulled out of Lachish,(Q) he left and found him fighting against Libnah.(R) 9 The king had heard concerning King Tirhakah of Cush, “Look, he has set out to fight against you.” So he again sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying, 10 “Say this to King Hezekiah of Judah: ‘Don’t let your God, on whom you rely,(S) deceive you by promising that Jerusalem will not be handed over to the king of Assyria.(T) 11 Look, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the countries: They completely destroyed them. Will you be rescued? 12 Did the gods of the nations(U) that my predecessors destroyed rescue them—nations such as Gozan,(V) Haran,(W) Rezeph, and the Edenites(X) in Telassar? 13 Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the city of[a] Sepharvaim, Hena, or Ivvah?’” (Y)
Hezekiah’s Prayer
14 Hezekiah took(Z) the letter(AA) from the messengers’ hands, read it, then went up to the Lord’s temple, and spread it out before the Lord.(AB) 15 Then Hezekiah prayed before the Lord:
Lord God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim,(AC) you are God—you alone—of all the kingdoms of the earth. You made the heavens and the earth.(AD) 16 Listen closely, Lord, and hear; open your eyes, Lord, and see.(AE) Hear the words that Sennacherib has sent to mock the living God.(AF) 17 Lord, it is true that the kings of Assyria have devastated the nations and their lands.(AG) 18 They have thrown their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but made by human hands—wood and stone.(AH) So they have destroyed them. 19 Now, Lord our God, please save us from his power so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, Lord, are God—you alone.(AI)
God’s Answer through Isaiah
20 Then(AJ) Isaiah son of Amoz sent a message to Hezekiah: “The Lord, the God of Israel says, ‘I have heard your prayer(AK) to me about King Sennacherib of Assyria.’(AL) 21 This is the word the Lord has spoken against him:
Virgin Daughter Zion(AM)
despises you and scorns you;
Daughter Jerusalem
shakes her head behind your back.(AN)
22 Who is it you mocked and blasphemed?(AO)
Against whom have you raised your voice
and lifted your eyes in pride?
Against the Holy One of Israel!(AP)
23 You have mocked the Lord[b] through[c] your messengers.(AQ)
You have said, ‘With my many chariots(AR)
I have gone up to the heights of the mountains,
to the far recesses of Lebanon.
I cut down its tallest cedars,
its choice cypress trees.
I came to its farthest outpost,
its densest forest.
24 I dug wells
and drank water in foreign lands.
I dried up all the streams of Egypt(AS)
with the soles of my feet.’
25 Have you not heard?(AT)
I designed it long ago;
I planned it in days gone by.
I have now brought it to pass,(AU)
and you have crushed fortified cities
into piles of rubble.
26 Their inhabitants have become powerless,
dismayed, and ashamed.
They are plants of the field,
tender grass,
grass on the rooftops,(AV)
blasted by the east wind.[d]
27 But I know your sitting down,(AW)
your going out and your coming in,
and your raging against me.
28 Because your raging against me
and your arrogance have reached my ears,
I will put my hook in your nose(AX)
and my bit in your mouth;
I will make you go back
the way you came.
29 “This will be the sign(AY) for you: This year you will eat what grows on its own, and in the second year what grows from that. But in the third year sow and reap, plant vineyards and eat their fruit. 30 The surviving remnant(AZ) of the house of Judah will again take root downward and bear fruit upward. 31 For a remnant will go out from Jerusalem, and survivors, from Mount Zion.(BA) The zeal of the Lord of Armies will accomplish this.(BB)
32 Therefore, this is what the Lord says about the king of Assyria:
He will not enter this city,
shoot an arrow here,
come before it with a shield,
or build up a siege ramp against it.(BC)
33 He will go back
the way he came,
and he will not enter this city.
This is the Lord’s declaration.
34 I will defend this city and rescue it
for my sake and for the sake of my servant David.”(BD)
Defeat and Death of Sennacherib
35 That night the angel of the Lord went out and struck down one hundred eighty-five thousand in the camp of the Assyrians. When the people got up the next morning—there were all the dead bodies!(BE) 36 So King Sennacherib of Assyria broke camp and left. He returned home and lived in Nineveh.(BF)
37 One day, while he was worshiping in the temple of his god Nisroch, his sons Adrammelech(BG) and Sharezer struck him down with the sword and escaped to the land of Ararat.(BH) Then his son Esar-haddon(BI) became king in his place.
2 Kings 19
New American Standard Bible
Isaiah Encourages Hezekiah
19 (A)Now when King Hezekiah heard the report, he (B)tore his clothes, (C)covered himself with sackcloth, and entered the house of the Lord. 2 Then he sent Eliakim, who was in charge of the household, with Shebna the scribe and the elders of the priests, (D)covered with sackcloth, to (E)Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz. 3 And they said to him, “This is what Hezekiah says: ‘This day is a day of distress, rebuke, and humiliation; for children have come to the point of birth, and there is no strength to deliver them. 4 (F)Perhaps the Lord your God will hear all the words of Rabshakeh, whom his master the king of Assyria has sent (G)to taunt the living God, and will avenge the words which the Lord your God has heard. Therefore, offer a prayer for (H)the remnant that is [a]left.’” 5 So the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah. 6 And Isaiah said to them, “This is what you shall say to your master: ‘The Lord says this: “Do not be fearful because of the words that you have heard, with which the (I)servants of the king of Assyria (J)have blasphemed Me. 7 Behold, I am going to put a spirit in him so that (K)he will hear news and return to his own land. And (L)I will make him fall by the sword in his own land.”’”
Sennacherib Defies God
8 Then Rabshakeh returned and found the king of Assyria fighting against (M)Libnah, for he had heard that the king had left (N)Lachish. 9 When he heard them say about Tirhakah king of [b]Cush, “Behold, he has come out to fight you,” he sent messengers again to Hezekiah, saying, 10 “This is what you shall say to Hezekiah king of [c]Judah: ‘Do not (O)let your God in whom you trust deceive you by saying, “(P)Jerusalem will not be handed over to the king of Assyria.” 11 Behold, you yourself have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the lands, destroying them completely. So will you be saved? 12 (Q)Did the gods of the nations which my fathers destroyed save them: (R)Gozan, (S)Haran, Rezeph, and (T)the sons of Eden who were in Telassar? 13 (U)Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the city of Sepharvaim, and of Hena and Ivvah?’”
Hezekiah’s Prayer
14 Then (V)Hezekiah took the [d]letter from the hand of the messengers and read it, and he went up to the house of the Lord and [e]spread it out before the Lord. 15 Hezekiah prayed before the Lord and said, “Lord, God of Israel, [f](W)enthroned above the cherubim, (X)You are the God, You alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. 16 (Y)Incline Your ear, Lord, and hear; (Z)open Your eyes, Lord, and see; and listen to the words of Sennacherib, which he has sent (AA)to taunt the living God. 17 It is true, Lord; the kings of Assyria have laid waste the nations and their lands, 18 and have [g]hurled their gods into the fire; (AB)for they were not gods, but only the work of human hands, wood and stone. So they have destroyed them. 19 But now, Lord our God, please, save us from his hand, (AC)so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You alone, (AD)Lord, are God.”
God’s Answer through Isaiah
20 Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent word to Hezekiah, saying, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel says: ‘Because you have prayed to Me about Sennacherib king of Assyria, (AE)I have heard you.’ 21 This is the word that the Lord has spoken against him:
‘She, (AF)the virgin daughter of Zion, has shown contempt for you and mocked you;
She, the daughter of Jerusalem, (AG)has shaken her head behind you!
22 Whom have you (AH)taunted and (AI)blasphemed?
And against whom have you raised your voice,
And [h]haughtily raised your eyes?
Against the (AJ)Holy One of Israel!
23 (AK)Through your messengers you have taunted the Lord,
And you have said, “With my many chariots
I went up to the heights of the mountains,
To the remotest parts of Lebanon;
And I cut down its tall cedars and its choicest junipers.
And I entered its farthest resting place, its (AL)thickest forest.
24 I dug wells and drank foreign waters,
And with the soles of my feet I (AM)dried up
All the streams of Egypt.”
25 ‘(AN)Have you not heard?
Long ago I did it;
From ancient times I planned it.
(AO)Now I have brought it about,
That you would turn fortified cities into ruined heaps.
26 Therefore their inhabitants were [i]powerless,
They were shattered and put to shame.
They were (AP)like the vegetation of the field and the green grass,
Like grass on the housetops that is scorched before it has grown.
27 But (AQ)I know your sitting down,
Your going out, your coming in,
And your raging against Me.
28 Because of your raging against Me,
And because your complacency has come up to My ears,
I (AR)will put My hook in your nose,
And My bridle in your lips,
And (AS)I will turn you back by the way by which you came.
29 ‘Then this shall be (AT)the sign for you: [j]you will eat this year what grows of itself, in the second year what grows by itself, and in the third year sow, harvest, plant vineyards, and eat their fruit. 30 (AU)The survivors that are left of the house of Judah will again take root downward and bear fruit upward. 31 For out of Jerusalem will go a remnant, and survivors (AV)out of Mount Zion. (AW)The zeal of [k]the Lord will perform this.
32 ‘Therefore this is what the Lord says about the king of Assyria: “(AX)He will not come to this city nor shoot an arrow there; and he will not come before it with a shield nor heap up an assault ramp against it. 33 (AY)By the way that he came, by [l]the same he will return, and he shall not come to this city,”’ declares the Lord. 34 ‘(AZ)For I will protect this city to save it for My own sake, and (BA)for My servant David’s sake.’”
35 (BB)Then it happened that night that the angel of the Lord went out and struck 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians; and when the rest got up early in the morning, behold, all of [m]the 185,000 were [n]dead. 36 So (BC)Sennacherib the king of Assyria departed and [o]returned home, and lived at (BD)Nineveh. 37 Then it came about, as he was worshiping in the house of Nisroch his god, that [p](BE)Adrammelech and Sharezer killed him with the sword; and they escaped to (BF)the land of Ararat. And his son (BG)Esarhaddon became king in his place.
Footnotes
- 2 Kings 19:4 Lit found
- 2 Kings 19:9 Or Ethiopia
- 2 Kings 19:10 Lit Judah, saying,
- 2 Kings 19:14 Lit letters...read them
- 2 Kings 19:14 Lit Hezekiah spread
- 2 Kings 19:15 Lit sitting
- 2 Kings 19:18 Lit given
- 2 Kings 19:22 Lit on high
- 2 Kings 19:26 Lit short of hand
- 2 Kings 19:29 Lit to eat
- 2 Kings 19:31 Some ancient mss the Lord of armies
- 2 Kings 19:33 Lit it
- 2 Kings 19:35 Lit them
- 2 Kings 19:35 Lit dead bodies
- 2 Kings 19:36 Lit went and returned
- 2 Kings 19:37 Some ancient mss his sons Adrammelech
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