2 Kings 19
English Standard Version
Isaiah Reassures Hezekiah
19 (A)As soon as King Hezekiah heard it, (B)he tore his clothes and (C)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, (D)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 (E)It may be that the Lord your God heard all the words of the Rabshakeh, whom his master the king of Assyria has sent (F)to mock the living God, and will rebuke the words that the Lord your God has heard; therefore lift up your prayer for (G)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 (H)the servants of the king of Assyria have (I)reviled me. 7 Behold, I will put a spirit in him, so that (J)he shall hear a rumor and return to his own land, and I will make him (K)fall by the sword in his own land.’”
Sennacherib Defies the Lord
8 The Rabshakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria fighting against (L)Libnah, for he heard that the king had left (M)Lachish. 9 (N)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 (O)in whom you trust deceive you by promising that (P)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 (Q)Have the gods of the nations delivered them, the nations that my fathers destroyed, (R)Gozan, (S)Haran, Rezeph, and the people of (T)Eden who were in Telassar? 13 (U)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 (V)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, (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, O Lord, and hear; (Z)open your eyes, O Lord, and see; and hear the words of Sennacherib, which he has sent (AA)to mock the living God. 17 Truly, O Lord, the kings of Assyria have laid waste the nations and their lands 18 and have cast their gods into the fire, for they were not gods, (AB)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, (AC)that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that (AD)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 (AE)I have heard. 21 This is the word that the Lord has spoken concerning him:
“She despises you, she scorns you—
(AF)the virgin daughter of Zion;
she (AG)wags her head behind you—
the daughter of Jerusalem.
22 “Whom have you (AH)mocked and (AI)reviled?
Against whom have you raised your voice
and lifted your eyes to the heights?
Against (AJ)the Holy One of Israel!
23 (AK)By your messengers you have mocked the Lord,
and you have said, (AL)‘With my many chariots
I have gone up the heights of the mountains,
to the far recesses of (AM)Lebanon;
I felled its tallest cedars,
its choicest cypresses;
I entered its farthest lodging place,
its most (AN)fruitful forest.
24 I dug wells
and drank foreign waters,
and I dried up with the sole of my foot
all the streams (AO)of Egypt.’
25 “Have you not heard
that (AP)I determined it long ago?
I planned from days of old
what (AQ)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 (AR)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
(AS)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 (AT)put my hook in your nose
and my bit in your mouth,
and (AU)I will turn you back on the way
by which you came.
29 “And this shall be (AV)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 (AW)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 (AX)a band of survivors. (AY)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 (AZ)cast up a siege mound against it. 33 (BA)By the way that he came, by the same he shall return, and he shall not come into this city, declares the Lord. 34 (BB)For I will defend this city to save it, for my own sake (BC)and for the sake of my servant David.”
35 And that night (BD)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 (BE)Nineveh. 37 And as he was worshiping in the house of Nisroch his god, (BF)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
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
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
