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Isaiah 37:14-38
Contemporary English Version
Isaiah 37:14-38
Contemporary English Version
Hezekiah Prays
(2 Kings 19.14-19)
14 After Hezekiah had read the note from the king of Assyria, he took it to the temple and spread it out for the Lord to see. 15 Then he prayed:
16 (A)Lord God All-Powerful of Israel, your throne is above the winged creatures.[a] You created the heavens and the earth, and you alone rule the kingdoms of this world. 17 Just look and see how Sennacherib has insulted you, the living God.
18 It is true, our Lord, that Assyrian kings have turned nations into deserts. 19 They destroyed the idols of wood and stone that the people of those nations had made and worshiped. 20 But you are our Lord and our God! We ask you to keep us safe from the Assyrian king. Then everyone in every kingdom on earth will know that you are the only Lord.
Isaiah Gives the Lord's Answer to Hezekiah
(2 Kings 19.20-34)
21-22 I went to Hezekiah and told him that the Lord God of Israel had said:
Hezekiah, you prayed to me about King Sennacherib of Assyria.[b] Now this is what I say to that king:
The people of Jerusalem
hate and make fun of you;
they laugh behind your back.
23 Sennacherib, you cursed,
shouted and sneered at me,
the holy One of Israel.
24 You let your officials
insult me, the Lord.
And here is what you
have said about yourself,
“I led my chariots
to the highest heights
of Lebanon's mountains.
I went deep into its forest,
cutting down the best cedar
and cypress trees.
25 I dried up every stream
in the land of Egypt,
and I drank water
from wells I had dug.”
26 Sennacherib, now listen
to me, the Lord.
I planned all of this long ago.
And you don't even know
that I alone am the one
who decided that you
would do these things.
I let you make ruins
of fortified cities.
27 Their people became weak,
terribly confused.
They were like wild flowers
or like tender young grass
growing on a flat roof
or like a field of grain
before it matures.[c]
28 I know all about you,
even how fiercely angry
you are with me.
29 I have seen your pride
and the tremendous hatred
you have for me.
Now I will put a hook
in your nose,
a bit in your mouth,[d]
then I will send you back
to where you came from.
30 Hezekiah, I will tell you what's going to happen. This year you will eat crops that grow on their own, and the next year you will eat whatever springs up where those crops grew. But the third year, you will plant grain and vineyards, and you will eat what you harvest. 31 Those who survive in Judah will be like a vine that puts down deep roots and bears fruit. 32 I, the Lord All-Powerful, will see to it that some who live in Jerusalem will survive.
33 I promise that the king of Assyria won't get into Jerusalem, or shoot an arrow into the city, or even surround it and prepare to attack. 34 As surely as I am the Lord, he will return by the way he came and will never enter Jerusalem. 35 I will protect it for the sake of my own honor and because of the promise I made to my servant David.
The Death of King Sennacherib
(2 Kings 19.35-37)
36 The Lord sent an angel to the camp of the Assyrians, and he killed 185,000 of them all in one night. The next morning, the camp was full of dead bodies. 37 After this, King Sennacherib went back to Assyria and lived in the city of Nineveh. 38 One day he was worshiping in the temple of his god Nisroch, when his sons, Adrammelech and Sharezer, killed him with their swords. They escaped to the land of Ararat, and his son Esarhaddon became king.[e]
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 37.16 winged creatures: Two winged creatures made of gold were on the top of the sacred chest and were symbols of the Lord's throne on earth (see Exodus 25.18; 2 Samuel 6.2).
- 37.21,22 Hezekiah, you prayed … Assyria: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 37.27 tender young grass … matures: The Standard Hebrew Text; the Dead Sea Scrolls and some Hebrew manuscripts “tender young grass, growing on a flat roof and scorched by the heat.” Many of the houses had roofs made of packed earth. Grass would sometimes grow on the roof, but would die quickly because of the sun and hot winds.
- 37.29 I will put … your mouth: This is how the Assyrians treated their prisoners, and now the Lord will treat Sennacherib the same way.
- 37.38 Esarhaddon became king: He ruled Assyria 681–669 b.c.
Isaiah 37:14-38
New International Version
Isaiah 37:14-38
New International Version
Hezekiah’s Prayer(A)
14 Hezekiah received the letter(B) from the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the temple(C) of the Lord and spread it out before the Lord. 15 And Hezekiah prayed(D) to the Lord: 16 “Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, enthroned(E) between the cherubim,(F) you alone are God(G) over all the kingdoms(H) of the earth. You have made heaven and earth.(I) 17 Give ear, Lord, and hear;(J) open your eyes, Lord, and see;(K) listen to all the words Sennacherib(L) has sent to ridicule(M) the living God.(N)
18 “It is true, Lord, that the Assyrian kings have laid waste all these peoples and their lands.(O) 19 They have thrown their gods into the fire(P) and destroyed them,(Q) for they were not gods(R) but only wood and stone, fashioned by human hands.(S) 20 Now, Lord our God, deliver(T) us from his hand, so that all the kingdoms of the earth(U) may know that you, Lord, are the only God.[a](V)”
Sennacherib’s Fall(W)
21 Then Isaiah son of Amoz(X) sent a message to Hezekiah: “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Because you have prayed to me concerning Sennacherib king of Assyria, 22 this is the word the Lord has spoken against him:
“Virgin Daughter(Y) Zion(Z)
despises and mocks you.
Daughter Jerusalem
tosses her head(AA) as you flee.
23 Who is it you have ridiculed and blasphemed?(AB)
Against whom have you raised your voice(AC)
and lifted your eyes in pride?(AD)
Against the Holy One(AE) of Israel!
24 By your messengers
you have ridiculed the Lord.
And you have said,
‘With my many chariots(AF)
I have ascended the heights of the mountains,
the utmost heights(AG) of Lebanon.(AH)
I have cut down its tallest cedars,
the choicest of its junipers.(AI)
I have reached its remotest heights,
the finest of its forests.
25 I have dug wells in foreign lands[b]
and drunk the water there.
With the soles of my feet
I have dried up(AJ) all the streams of Egypt.(AK)’
26 “Have you not heard?
Long ago I ordained(AL) it.
In days of old I planned(AM) it;
now I have brought it to pass,
that you have turned fortified cities
into piles of stone.(AN)
27 Their people, drained of power,
are dismayed and put to shame.
They are like plants in the field,
like tender green shoots,
like grass(AO) sprouting on the roof,(AP)
scorched[c] before it grows up.
28 “But I know where you are
and when you come and go(AQ)
and how you rage(AR) against me.
29 Because you rage against me
and because your insolence(AS) has reached my ears,
I will put my hook(AT) in your nose(AU)
and my bit in your mouth,
and I will make you return
by the way you came.(AV)
30 “This will be the sign(AW) for you, Hezekiah:
“This year(AX) you will eat what grows by itself,
and the second year what springs from that.
But in the third year(AY) sow and reap,
plant vineyards(AZ) and eat their fruit.(BA)
31 Once more a remnant of the kingdom of Judah
will take root(BB) below and bear fruit(BC) above.
32 For out of Jerusalem will come a remnant,(BD)
and out of Mount Zion a band of survivors.(BE)
The zeal(BF) of the Lord Almighty
will accomplish this.
33 “Therefore this is what the Lord says concerning the king of Assyria:
“He will not enter this city(BG)
or shoot an arrow here.
He will not come before it with shield
or build a siege ramp(BH) against it.
34 By the way that he came he will return;(BI)
he will not enter this city,”
declares the Lord.
35 “I will defend(BJ) this city and save it,
for my sake(BK) and for the sake of David(BL) my servant!”
36 Then the angel(BM) of the Lord went out and put to death(BN) a hundred and eighty-five thousand in the Assyrian(BO) camp. When the people got up the next morning—there were all the dead bodies! 37 So Sennacherib(BP) king of Assyria broke camp and withdrew. He returned to Nineveh(BQ) and stayed there.
38 One day, while he was worshiping in the temple(BR) of his god Nisrok, his sons Adrammelek and Sharezer killed him with the sword, and they escaped to the land of Ararat.(BS) And Esarhaddon(BT) his son succeeded him as king.(BU)
Footnotes
- Isaiah 37:20 Dead Sea Scrolls (see also 2 Kings 19:19); Masoretic Text you alone are the Lord
- Isaiah 37:25 Dead Sea Scrolls (see also 2 Kings 19:24); Masoretic Text does not have in foreign lands.
- Isaiah 37:27 Some manuscripts of the Masoretic Text, Dead Sea Scrolls and some Septuagint manuscripts (see also 2 Kings 19:26); most manuscripts of the Masoretic Text roof / and terraced fields
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