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2 Kings 19
Legacy Standard Bible

Isaiah Tells Hezekiah Not to Be Afraid

19 (A)Now it happened that when King Hezekiah heard it, he (B)tore his clothes, (C)covered himself with sackcloth, and entered the house of Yahweh. 2 Then he sent Eliakim who was over 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, “Thus says Hezekiah, ‘This day is a day of distress, reproof, and rejection; for children have come to the point of breaking forth, but there is no strength to give birth. 4 (F)Perhaps Yahweh your God will hear all the words of Rabshakeh, whom his master the king of Assyria has sent (G)to [a]reproach the living God, and will reprove the words which Yahweh your God has heard. Therefore, lift up a prayer for (H)the remnant that is left.’” 5 So the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah. 6 And Isaiah said to them, “Thus you shall say to your master, ‘Thus says Yahweh, “Do not be afraid because of the words that you have heard, with which the (I)young men of the king of Assyria (J)have blasphemed Me. 7 Behold, I will put a spirit in him so that (K)he will hear a report and return to his own land. And (L)I will make him fall by the sword in his own land.”’”

Sennacherib Deceives Hezekiah

8 Then Rabshakeh returned and found the king of Assyria fighting against (M)Libnah, for he had heard that [b]the king had set out from (N)Lachish. 9 Then he heard them say concerning Tirhakah king of [c]Ethiopia, “Behold, he has come out to fight against you.” So he sent messengers again to Hezekiah saying, 10 “Thus you shall say to Hezekiah king of [d]Judah, ‘Do not (O)let your God in whom you trust deceive you, saying, “(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 the lands, devoting them to destruction. So will you be delivered? 12 (Q)Did the gods of [e]those nations which my fathers brought to ruin deliver them, even (R)Gozan and (S)Haran and 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 [f]letter from the hand of the messengers and read it, and he went up to the house of Yahweh and [g]spread it out before Yahweh. 15 And Hezekiah prayed before Yahweh and said, “O Yahweh, the God of Israel, (W)who is [h]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 Yahweh, and hear; (Z)open Your eyes, O Yahweh, and see; and listen to the words of Sennacherib, who sent them (AA)to [i]reproach the living God. 17 Truly, O Yahweh, the kings of Assyria have laid waste the nations and their lands 18 and have put their gods into the fire, (AB)for they were not gods but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone. So they have destroyed them. 19 But now, O Yahweh our God, I pray, save us from his hand (AC)that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You alone, O (AD)Yahweh, are God.”

Isaiah Speaks of Sennacherib’s Fall

20 Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent word to Hezekiah saying, “Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel, ‘Because you have prayed to Me about Sennacherib king of Assyria, (AE)I have heard you.’ 21 This is the word that Yahweh has spoken against him:

‘She has despised you and mocked you,
(AF)The virgin daughter of Zion;
She (AG)has shaken her head behind you,
The daughter of Jerusalem!
22 Whom have you [j](AH)reproached and (AI)blasphemed?
And against whom have you heightened your voice,
And [k]haughtily lifted up your eyes?
Against the (AJ)Holy One of Israel!
23 (AK)Through your messengers you have [l]reproached the Lord,
And you have said, “With my many chariots
I came up to the heights of the mountains,
To the remotest parts of Lebanon;
And I [m]cut down its tall cedars and its choice cypresses.
And I [n]entered its farthest lodging place, its (AL)thickest forest.
24 I dug wells and drank foreign waters,
And with the sole of my feet I [o](AM)dried up
All the rivers of [p]Egypt.”

25 ‘(AN)Have you not heard?
Long ago I did it;
From days of old I formed it.
(AO)Now I have brought it to pass,
That you should devastate fortified cities into ruinous heaps.
26 So their inhabitants were short of power,
They were dismayed and put to shame;
They were (AP)as the plant of the field and as the green herb,
As grass on the rooftops is scorched before it rises.
27 But (AQ)I know your sitting down,
And your going out and your coming in,
And your raging against Me.
28 Because of your raging against Me,
And because your [q]presumptuousness has come up to My ears,
Therefore 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 which you came.

29 ‘Then this shall be (AT)the sign for you: [r]you will eat this year what grows of its own accord, in the second year what springs from the same, and in the third year sow, reap, plant vineyards, and eat their fruit. 30 (AU)And the surviving remnant of the house of Judah will again take root downward and bear fruit upward. 31 For out of Jerusalem will go forth a remnant, and (AV)out of Mount Zion [s]survivors. (AW)The zeal of [t]Yahweh will do this.

32 ‘Therefore thus says Yahweh concerning the king of Assyria, “(AX)He will not come to this city or shoot an arrow there; and he will not come before it with a shield or throw up a siege ramp against it. 33 (AY)By the way that he came, by the same he will return, and he shall not come to this city,”’ declares Yahweh. 34 ‘(AZ)Indeed I will defend this city to save it for My own sake and (BA)for My servant David’s sake.’”

35 (BB)Now it happened that night, that the angel of Yahweh went out and struck 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians. And the [u]men arose early in the morning, and behold, all of [v]them were dead bodies. 36 So (BC)Sennacherib king of Assyria set out and went away and returned home and lived at (BD)Nineveh. 37 Now it happened that as he was worshiping in the house of Nisroch his god, [w](BE)Adrammelech and Sharezer struck him down with the sword; and they escaped into (BF)the land of Ararat. And (BG)Esarhaddon his son became king in his place.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Kings 19:4 Or defy, cf. 1 Sam 17:26
  2. 2 Kings 19:8 Lit he
  3. 2 Kings 19:9 Or Cush, cf. Gen 10:6
  4. 2 Kings 19:10 Lit Judah, saying,
  5. 2 Kings 19:12 Lit the
  6. 2 Kings 19:14 Lit letters...read them
  7. 2 Kings 19:14 Lit Hezekiah spread
  8. 2 Kings 19:15 Lit seated
  9. 2 Kings 19:16 Or defy, cf. 1 Sam 17:26
  10. 2 Kings 19:22 Or defied, cf. 1 Sam 17:26
  11. 2 Kings 19:22 Lit on high
  12. 2 Kings 19:23 Or defied, cf. 1 Sam 17:26
  13. 2 Kings 19:23 As in some ancient versions; M.T. will cut...will enter
  14. 2 Kings 19:23 As in some ancient versions; M.T. will cut...will enter
  15. 2 Kings 19:24 As in some ancient versions; M.T. will dry up
  16. 2 Kings 19:24 Lit the besieged place
  17. 2 Kings 19:28 Or complacency
  18. 2 Kings 19:29 Lit eating
  19. 2 Kings 19:31 Lit those who escape
  20. 2 Kings 19:31 Some ancient mss Yahweh of hosts
  21. 2 Kings 19:35 Lit they
  22. 2 Kings 19:35 Assyrians
  23. 2 Kings 19:37 Some ancient mss Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons struck him down
Close ISV

2 Kings 19
International Standard Version

Isaiah Encourages Hezekiah

19 When King Hezekiah heard Eliakim’s report,[a] he tore his clothes, put on a sackcloth covering, entered the Lord’s Temple, 2 and sent Eliakim the household supervisor, Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests—all of them covered in sackcloth—to Amoz’s son, the prophet Isaiah. 3 They announced to him:

“This is what Hezekiah says: ‘Today is a day of trouble, rebuke, and blasphemy,[b] because children are about to be born, but there is no strength to bring them to birth. 4 Perhaps the Lord your God will take note of everything that Rab-shakeh has said, whom his master the king of Assyria sent to taunt the living God, and then he will rebuke the words that the Lord your God has heard. Therefore offer a prayer for the survivors who remain.’”

5 That is how the King Hezekiah’s servants approached Isaiah.

6 In reply, Isaiah responded to them, “Here’s how you’re to report to your master:

‘This is what the Lord says: “Never be afraid of the words that you have heard by which the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me. 7 Look! I’m going to cause an attitude[c] to grow within him so that he’ll hear a rumor and return to his own territory, where I’ll make him die by the sword in his own land!”’”

Sennacherib Defies God(A)

8 So Rab-shakeh returned and found the king of Assyria at war with Libnah, because Rab-shakeh had heard that the king had left Lachish. 9 When he heard that it was being said about King Tirhakah of Ethiopia,[d] “Look! He has come out to attack you!” he again sent messengers to Hezekiah.

The messengers were told, 10 “This is what you are to say to King Hezekiah of Judah: ‘Don’t let your God in whom you trust deceive you by telling you[e] “Jerusalem won’t be turned over to the control[f] of Assyria’s king.” 11 ‘Look! you’ve heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the lands—they completely destroyed them! Will you be spared? 12 Did the gods of those nations whom my ancestors destroyed deliver them, including Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and Eden’s descendants in Telassar? 13 Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the city of Sephar-vaim, the king of Hena, or the king of Ivvah?’”

Hezekiah’s Prayer for Help

14 Hezekiah took the messages from the couriers, read them, went up to the Lord’s Temple, and laid them out in the presence of the Lord. 15 Then Hezekiah prayed in the presence of the Lord, “Lord God of Israel! You live between the cherubim! You alone are the God of all the kingdoms of the earth. You have fashioned the heavens and the earth. 16 Turn[g] your ear, Lord, and listen! Open your eyes, Lord, and observe! Listen to the message sent by Sennacherib to insult the living God! 17 Truly, Lord, the kings of Assyria have devastated nations and their territories, 18 throwing their gods into the fire, since they weren’t gods but rather were the product of men’s handiwork—wood and stone. And so they destroyed them. 19 Now, Lord our God, I’m praying that you will deliver us from his control, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you alone, Lord, are God!”

God’s Answer through Isaiah the Prophet

20 Then Amoz’s son Isaiah sent word to Hezekiah, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel says: ‘Because you have prayed to me about King Sennacherib of Assyria, I have listened.’”

21 “This is what the Lord has spoken against him:

‘She despises and mocks you,
    this virgin daughter of Zion!
Behind your back she shakes her head,
    this daughter of Jerusalem!
22 Who are you reproaching and blaspheming?
    Against whom have you raised your voice?
And against whom[h] have you lifted up your eyes in arrogance?
    Against the Holy One of Israel!
23 By your messengers you have insulted the Lord.
    You have claimed,
“With my many chariots
    I ascended the heights of the mountains,
        including the remotest regions of Lebanon;
I cut down its tall cedars
    and the best of its cypress trees.
I entered its most remote lodging place
    and its most fruitful[i] forest.
24 I myself dug for and drank foreign water.
    With the sole of my foot I dried up all the streams of Egypt!”

25 ‘Didn’t you hear?
    I determined it years ago!
I planned this from ancient times,
    and now I’ve brought it to pass,
to turn fortified cities
    into piles of ruins
26 while their inhabitants, lacking strength,
    stand dismayed and confused.
They were like vegetation out in the fields,
    and like green herbs—
just as grass that grows on a housetop
    dries out before it can grow.

27 ‘But when you sit down,
    when you go out,
and when you come in,
    I’m aware of it!
28 Because of your rage against me,
    your complacency has reached my ears.
I’ll put my hook into your nostrils
    and my bit into your mouth.
Then I’ll turn you back on the road
    by which you came.’

29 “This will serve as a sign for you: you’ll eat this year from what grows by itself, in the second year what grows from that, and in the third year you’ll sow, reap, plant vineyards, and enjoy[j] their fruit. 30 Those who survive from Judah’s household will again put down deep roots and bear fruit extensively,[k] 31 because a remnant will go out from Jerusalem, and survivors from Mount Zion. The zeal of the Lord[l] will bring this about.”

32 “Therefore this is what the Lord says concerning the king of Assyria: ‘Not only will he not approach this city or shoot an arrow in its direction, he won’t approach it with so much as a shield, nor will he throw up a siege ramp against it. 33 He’ll return on the same route by which he came—he won’t come to this city,’ declares the Lord. 34 ‘I will defend this city and preserve it for my own reasons, and because of my servant David.’”

God Destroys the Assyrian Army(B)

35 That very night, the angel of the Lord went out to the camp of the Assyrian army and killed 185,000 men. Early the next morning, when the army of Israel[m] arose, all 185,000 soldiers[n] were dead. 36 As a result, King Sennacherib of Assyria left and returned to Nineveh where he lived. 37 Later on, as he was worshiping in the temple of his god Nisroch, Adrammelech[o] and Sharezer killed him with a sword and fled into the territory of Ararat. Then Sennacherib’s[p] son Esarhaddon became king in his place.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Kings 19:1 The Heb. lacks Eliakim’s report
  2. 2 Kings 19:3 Or contempt
  3. 2 Kings 19:7 Or to bring a spirit
  4. 2 Kings 19:9 Lit. Cush
  5. 2 Kings 19:10 The Heb. lacks you
  6. 2 Kings 19:10 Lit. hand
  7. 2 Kings 19:16 Or Bow down
  8. 2 Kings 19:22 The Heb. lacks against whom
  9. 2 Kings 19:23 Or its densest
  10. 2 Kings 19:29 Lit. eat
  11. 2 Kings 19:30 Or upwards
  12. 2 Kings 19:31 So MT; LXX and a MT variant read Lord of the Heavenly Armies
  13. 2 Kings 19:35 Lit. when they
  14. 2 Kings 19:35 The Heb. lacks 185,000 soldiers
  15. 2 Kings 19:37 So MT; LXX and a MT variant read his sons Adrammelech
  16. 2 Kings 19:37 Lit. his
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2 Kings 18
2 Kings 20
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