2 Kings 18-19
Christian Standard Bible
Judah’s King Hezekiah
18 In the third year of Israel’s King Hoshea(A) son of Elah, Hezekiah(B) son of Ahaz became king of Judah. 2 He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Abi[a] daughter of Zechariah. 3 He did what was right in the Lord’s sight just as his ancestor David had done.(C) 4 He removed the high places, shattered the sacred pillars, and cut down the Asherah poles.(D) He broke into pieces the bronze snake that Moses made,(E) for until then the Israelites were burning incense to it. It was called Nehushtan.[b]
5 Hezekiah relied on the Lord God of Israel;(F) not one of the kings of Judah was like him, either before him or after him.(G) 6 He remained faithful to the Lord(H) and did not turn from following him but kept the commands the Lord had commanded Moses.
7 The Lord was with him, and wherever he went he prospered.(I) He rebelled against the king of Assyria and did not serve him.(J) 8 He defeated the Philistines as far as Gaza and its borders,(K) from watchtower(L) to fortified city.
Review of Israel’s Fall
9 In the fourth year of King Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Israel’s King Hoshea son of Elah, Assyria’s King Shalmaneser marched against Samaria and besieged it.(M) 10 The Assyrians captured it at the end of three years. In the sixth year of Hezekiah, which was the ninth year of Israel’s King Hoshea, Samaria was captured. 11 The king of Assyria deported the Israelites to Assyria and put them in Halah, along the Habor (Gozan’s river), and in the cities of the Medes,(N) 12 because they did not listen to the Lord their God but violated his covenant—all he had commanded Moses the servant of the Lord. They did not listen, and they did not obey.(O)
Sennacherib’s Invasion
13 In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Assyria’s King Sennacherib attacked all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them.(P) 14 So King Hezekiah of Judah sent word to the king of Assyria at Lachish:(Q) “I have done wrong;(R) withdraw from me. Whatever you demand from me, I will pay.” The king of Assyria demanded eleven tons[c] of silver and one ton[d] of gold from King Hezekiah of Judah. 15 So Hezekiah gave him all the silver found in the Lord’s temple and in the treasuries of the king’s palace.
16 At that time Hezekiah stripped the gold from the doors of the Lord’s sanctuary and from the doorposts he had overlaid and gave it to the king of Assyria.(S)
17 Then the king of Assyria sent the field marshal,(T) the chief of staff, and his royal spokesman, along with a massive army, from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem.(U) They advanced and came to Jerusalem, and[e] they took their position by the aqueduct of the upper pool, by the road to the Launderer’s Field.(V) 18 They called for the king, but Eliakim(W) son of Hilkiah, who was in charge of the palace, Shebnah(X) the court secretary, and Joah son of Asaph, the court historian, came out to them.(Y)
The Royal Spokesman’s Speech
19 Then(Z) the royal spokesman said to them, “Tell Hezekiah this is what the great king, the king of Assyria, says: ‘What are you relying on?[f](AA) 20 You think mere words are strategy and strength for war. Who are you now relying on so that you have rebelled against me?(AB) 21 Now look, you are relying on Egypt, that splintered reed of a staff(AC) that will pierce the hand of anyone who grabs it and leans on it.(AD) This is what Pharaoh king of Egypt is to all who rely on him. 22 Suppose you say to me, “We rely on the Lord our God.” Isn’t he the one whose high places and altars Hezekiah has removed,(AE) saying to Judah and to Jerusalem, “You must worship at this altar in Jerusalem”?’
23 “So now, make a bargain with my master the king of Assyria. I’ll give you two thousand horses if you’re able to supply riders for them! 24 How then can you drive back a single officer(AF) among the least of my master’s servants? How can you rely on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen? 25 Now, have I attacked this place to destroy it without the Lord’s approval?(AG) The Lord said to me, ‘Attack this land and destroy it.’”
26 Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah, Shebnah, and Joah said to the royal spokesman, “Please speak to your servants in Aramaic,(AH) since we understand it. Don’t speak with us in Hebrew[g] within earshot of the people on the wall.”
27 But the royal spokesman said to them, “Has my master sent me to speak these words only to your master and to you? Hasn’t he also sent me to the men who sit on the wall, destined with you to eat their own excrement and drink their own urine?” (AI)
28 The royal spokesman stood and called out loudly in Hebrew: “Hear the word of the great king, the king of Assyria. 29 This is what the king says: ‘Don’t let Hezekiah deceive(AJ) you; he can’t rescue you from my power.(AK) 30 Don’t let Hezekiah persuade you to rely on the Lord by saying, “Certainly the Lord will rescue us! This city will not be handed over to the king of Assyria.”’(AL)
31 “Don’t listen to Hezekiah, for this is what the king of Assyria says: ‘Make peace[h] with me and surrender to me. Then each of you may eat from his own vine and his own fig tree,(AM) and each may drink water from his own cistern 32 until I come and take you away to a land like your own land—a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive trees and honey(AN)—so that you may live(AO) and not die. But don’t listen to Hezekiah when he misleads you, saying, “The Lord will rescue us.” 33 Has any of the gods of the nations ever rescued(AP) his land from the power of the king of Assyria? 34 Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah?[i] Have they rescued Samaria from my power?(AQ) 35 Who among all the gods of the lands has rescued his land from my power? So will the Lord rescue Jerusalem from my power?’” (AR)
36 But the people kept silent; they did not answer him at all, for the king’s command was, “Don’t answer him.” 37 Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah, who was in charge of the palace, Shebna the court secretary, and Joah son of Asaph, the court historian,(AS) came to Hezekiah with their clothes torn(AT) and reported to him the words of the royal spokesman.
Hezekiah Seeks Isaiah’s Counsel
19 When King Hezekiah heard their report, he tore his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth,(AU) and went into the Lord’s temple.(AV) 2 He sent Eliakim, who was in charge of the palace, Shebna the court secretary,(AW) and the leading priests, who were covered with sackcloth,(AX) to the prophet Isaiah(AY) 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,(AZ) but there is no strength to deliver them. 4 Perhaps the Lord your God(BA) will hear(BB) all the words of the royal spokesman, whom his master the king of Assyria sent to mock the living God, and will rebuke(BC) him for the words that the Lord your God has heard. Therefore, offer a prayer for the surviving remnant.’”(BD)
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(BE) because of the words you have heard, with which the king of Assyria’s attendants(BF) have blasphemed(BG) me. 7 I am about to put a spirit in him, and he will hear a rumor and return to his own land,(BH) where I will cause him to fall by the sword.’”(BI)
Sennacherib’s Departing Threat
8 When(BJ) the royal spokesman heard that the king of Assyria had pulled out of Lachish,(BK) he left and found him fighting against Libnah.(BL) 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,(BM) deceive you by promising that Jerusalem will not be handed over to the king of Assyria.(BN) 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(BO) that my predecessors destroyed rescue them—nations such as Gozan,(BP) Haran,(BQ) Rezeph, and the Edenites(BR) in Telassar? 13 Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the city of[j] Sepharvaim, Hena, or Ivvah?’” (BS)
Hezekiah’s Prayer
14 Hezekiah took(BT) the letter(BU) from the messengers’ hands, read it, then went up to the Lord’s temple, and spread it out before the Lord.(BV) 15 Then Hezekiah prayed before the Lord:
Lord God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim,(BW) you are God—you alone—of all the kingdoms of the earth. You made the heavens and the earth.(BX) 16 Listen closely, Lord, and hear; open your eyes, Lord, and see.(BY) Hear the words that Sennacherib has sent to mock the living God.(BZ) 17 Lord, it is true that the kings of Assyria have devastated the nations and their lands.(CA) 18 They have thrown their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but made by human hands—wood and stone.(CB) 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.(CC)
God’s Answer through Isaiah
20 Then(CD) Isaiah son of Amoz sent a message to Hezekiah: “The Lord, the God of Israel says, ‘I have heard your prayer(CE) to me about King Sennacherib of Assyria.’(CF) 21 This is the word the Lord has spoken against him:
Virgin Daughter Zion(CG)
despises you and scorns you;
Daughter Jerusalem
shakes her head behind your back.(CH)
22 Who is it you mocked and blasphemed?(CI)
Against whom have you raised your voice
and lifted your eyes in pride?
Against the Holy One of Israel!(CJ)
23 You have mocked the Lord[k] through[l] your messengers.(CK)
You have said, ‘With my many chariots(CL)
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(CM)
with the soles of my feet.’
25 Have you not heard?(CN)
I designed it long ago;
I planned it in days gone by.
I have now brought it to pass,(CO)
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,(CP)
blasted by the east wind.[m]
27 But I know your sitting down,(CQ)
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(CR)
and my bit in your mouth;
I will make you go back
the way you came.
29 “This will be the sign(CS) 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(CT) 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.(CU) The zeal of the Lord of Armies will accomplish this.(CV)
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.(CW)
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.”(CX)
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!(CY) 36 So King Sennacherib of Assyria broke camp and left. He returned home and lived in Nineveh.(CZ)
37 One day, while he was worshiping in the temple of his god Nisroch, his sons Adrammelech(DA) and Sharezer struck him down with the sword and escaped to the land of Ararat.(DB) Then his son Esar-haddon(DC) became king in his place.
Footnotes
- 18:2 = Abijah in 2Ch 29:1
- 18:4 = A Bronze Thing
- 18:14 Lit 300 talents
- 18:14 Lit 30 talents
- 18:17 LXX, Syr, Vg; MT reads and came and
- 18:19 Lit ‘What is this trust which you trust
- 18:26 Lit Judahite, also in v. 28
- 18:31 Lit a blessing
- 18:34 Some LXX mss, Old Lat read Sepharvaim? Where are the gods of the land of Samaria?
- 19:13 Or king of Lair,
- 19:23 Many mss read Lord
- 19:23 Lit by the hand of
- 19:26 DSS; MT reads blasted before standing grain; Is 37:27
2 Chronicles 32
Christian Standard Bible
Sennacherib’s Invasion
32 After Hezekiah’s faithful deeds, King Sennacherib of Assyria came and entered Judah. He laid siege to the fortified cities and intended[a] to break into them.(A) 2 Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had come and that he planned[b] war on Jerusalem, 3 so he consulted with his officials and his warriors about stopping up the water of the springs that were outside the city, and they helped him. 4 Many people gathered and stopped up all the springs(B) and the stream that flowed through the land;(C) they said, “Why should the kings of Assyria come and find abundant water?” 5 Then Hezekiah strengthened his position by rebuilding the entire broken-down wall(D) and heightening the towers and the other outside wall.(E) He repaired the supporting terraces(F) of the city of David, and made an abundance of weapons and shields.
6 He set military commanders over the people and gathered the people in the square of the city gate. Then he encouraged them,[c](G) saying, 7 “Be strong and courageous!(H) Don’t be afraid or discouraged before the king of Assyria or before the large army that is with him, for there are more with us than with him.(I) 8 He has only human strength,[d] but we have the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles.”(J) So the people relied on the words of King Hezekiah of Judah.
Sennacherib’s Servant’s Speech
9 After this,(K) while King Sennacherib of Assyria with all his armed forces besieged[e] Lachish, he sent his servants to Jerusalem against King Hezekiah of Judah and against all those of Judah who were in Jerusalem, saying, 10 “This is what King Sennacherib of Assyria says: ‘What are you relying on that you remain in Jerusalem under siege? 11 Isn’t Hezekiah misleading you to give you over to death by famine and thirst when he says, “The Lord our God will keep us from the grasp of the king of Assyria”? 12 Didn’t Hezekiah himself remove his high places and his altars(L) and say to Judah and Jerusalem, “You must worship before one altar, and you must burn incense on it”?
13 “‘Don’t you know(M) what I and my predecessors have done to all the peoples of the lands? Have any of the national gods of the lands been able to rescue their land from my power? 14 Who among all the gods of these nations that my predecessors completely destroyed was able to rescue his people from my power, that your God should be able to deliver you from my power?(N) 15 So now,(O) don’t let Hezekiah deceive you, and don’t let him mislead you like this. Don’t believe him, for no god of any nation or kingdom has been able to rescue his people from my power or the power of my predecessors. How much less will your God rescue you from my power!’”
16 His servants said more against the Lord God and against his servant Hezekiah. 17 He also wrote letters to mock the Lord, the God of Israel, saying against him:
Just like the national gods of the lands that did not rescue their people from my power, so Hezekiah’s God will not rescue his people from my power.(P)
18 Then they called out loudly in Hebrew[f] to the people of Jerusalem, who were on the wall, to frighten and discourage them in order that he might capture the city. 19 They spoke against the God of Jerusalem like they had spoken against the gods of the peoples of the earth, which were made by human hands.
Deliverance from Sennacherib
20 King Hezekiah and the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz prayed about this and cried out to heaven,(Q) 21 and the Lord sent an angel who annihilated every valiant warrior, leader, and commander in the camp of the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria returned in disgrace to his land. He went to the temple of his god, and there some of his own children struck him down with the sword.(R)
22 So the Lord saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem from the power of King Sennacherib of Assyria and from the power of all others. He gave them rest[g](S) on every side. 23 Many were bringing an offering to the Lord to Jerusalem and valuable gifts to King Hezekiah of Judah, and he was exalted in the eyes of all the nations after that.(T)
Hezekiah’s Illness and Pride
24 In those days Hezekiah became sick to the point of death, so he prayed to the Lord, who spoke to him and gave him a miraculous sign.(U) 25 However, because his heart was proud,(V) Hezekiah didn’t respond according to the benefit that had come to him. So there was wrath on him, Judah, and Jerusalem.(W) 26 Then Hezekiah humbled himself for the pride of his heart—he and the inhabitants of Jerusalem—so the Lord’s wrath didn’t come(X) on them during Hezekiah’s lifetime.(Y)
Hezekiah’s Wealth and Works
27 Hezekiah had abundant riches and glory, and he made himself treasuries for silver, gold, precious stones, spices, shields, and every desirable item. 28 He made warehouses for the harvest of grain, new wine, and fresh oil, and stalls for all kinds of cattle, and pens for flocks. 29 He made cities for himself, and he acquired vast numbers of flocks and herds, for God gave him abundant possessions.
30 This same Hezekiah blocked the upper outlet of the water from the Gihon Spring(Z) and channeled it smoothly downward and westward to the city of David.(AA) Hezekiah succeeded in everything he did. 31 When the ambassadors of Babylon’s rulers(AB) were sent[h] to him to inquire about the miraculous sign(AC) that happened in the land, God left him to test him and discover what was in his heart.(AD)
Hezekiah’s Death
32 As for the rest of the events(AE) of Hezekiah’s reign and his deeds of faithful love, note that they are written in the Visions of the Prophet Isaiah son of Amoz,(AF) and in the Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel.(AG) 33 Hezekiah rested with his ancestors and was buried on the ascent to the tombs of David’s descendants. All Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem paid him honor at his death. His son Manasseh became king in his place.
Psalm 67
Christian Standard Bible
Psalm 67
All Will Praise God
For the choir director: with stringed instruments. A psalm. A song.
1 May God be gracious to us and bless us;
may he make his face shine upon us(A)Selah
2 so that your way may be known on earth,
your salvation among all nations.(B)
1 Corinthians 9
Christian Standard Bible
Paul’s Example as an Apostle
9 Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord? 2 If I am not an apostle to others, at least I am to you, because you are the seal(A) of my apostleship in the Lord.
3 My defense to those who examine me is this: 4 Don’t we have the right to eat and drink?(B) 5 Don’t we have the right to be accompanied by a believing wife[a] like the other apostles,(C) the Lord’s brothers, and Cephas?(D) 6 Or do only Barnabas(E) and I have no right to refrain from working? 7 Who serves as a soldier at his own expense?(F) Who plants a vineyard and does not eat its fruit? Or who shepherds a flock and does not drink the milk from the flock?
8 Am I saying this from a human perspective? Doesn’t the law also say the same thing? 9 For it is written in the law of Moses, Do not muzzle an ox(G) while it treads out grain.[b](H) Is God really concerned about oxen? 10 Isn’t he really saying it for our sake? Yes, this is written for our sake,(I) because he who plows ought to plow in hope,(J) and he who threshes should thresh in hope of sharing the crop.(K) 11 If we have sown spiritual things for you, is it too much if we reap material benefits from you? 12 If others have this right to receive benefits from you, don’t we even more? Nevertheless, we have not made use of this right; instead, we endure everything(L) so that we will not hinder the gospel of Christ.
13 Don’t you know that those who perform the temple services eat the food from the temple, and those who serve at the altar(M) share in the offerings of the altar? 14 In the same way, the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should earn their living by the gospel.(N)
15 For my part I have used none of these rights, nor have I written these things that they may be applied in my case. For it would be better for me to die than for anyone to deprive me of my boast! 16 For if I preach the gospel, I have no reason to boast, because I am compelled to preach[c]—and woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! 17 For if I do this willingly, I have a reward, but if unwillingly, I am entrusted(O) with a commission. 18 What then is my reward? To preach the gospel and offer it free of charge and not make full use of my rights in the gospel.(P)
19 Although I am free from all and not anyone’s slave, I have made myself a slave to everyone, in order to win(Q) more people. 20 To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win Jews; to those under the law, like one under the law—though I myself am not under the law[d]—to win those under the law.(R) 21 To those who are without the law,(S) like one without the law—though I am not without God’s law but under the law of Christ—to win those without the law. 22 To the weak I became weak, in order to win the weak. I have become all things to all people, so that I may by every possible means save some.(T) 23 Now I do all this because of the gospel, so that I may share in the blessings.
24 Don’t you know that the runners in a stadium all race,(U) but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way to win the prize.(V) 25 Now everyone who competes exercises self-control(W) in everything. They do it to receive a perishable crown,(X) but we an imperishable crown. 26 So I do not run like one who runs aimlessly or box like one beating the air. 27 Instead, I discipline my body and bring it under strict control, so that after preaching to others, I myself will not be disqualified.(Y)
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