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37 And it was done, when king Hezekiah had heard, he rent his clothes, and he was wrapped in a sackcloth, and entered into the house of the Lord. (And it was done, when King Hezekiah had heard this, he tore his clothes, and wrapped himself in a sackcloth, and entered into the House of the Lord.)

And he sent Eliakim, that was on the house, and Shebna, the scribe, and the elder men of (the) priests, covered with sackcloths, to Isaiah, the prophet, the son of Amoz. (And he sent Eliakim, who was over the king’s household, and Shebna, the writer, or the royal secretary, and the elders of the priests, covered in sackcloths, to the prophet Isaiah, the son of Amoz.)

And they said to him, Hezekiah saith these things, A day of tribulation, and of anguish, and of chastising, and of blasphemy is this day; for children came unto childbearing, and strength of childbearing is not (for the child is ready to be born, but there is no strength for giving birth).

Therefore raise thou [up] prayer for the remnants (of our people) that be found, if in any manner thy Lord God (shall) hear the words of Rabshakeh, whom the king of Assyrians, his lord, sent, for to blaspheme [the] living God, and to despise by the words, which thy Lord God heard (and to punish them for the words which the Lord thy God himself hath heard).

And the servants of king Hezekiah came to Isaiah;

and Isaiah said to them, Ye shall say these things to your lord, The Lord saith these things, Dread thou not of the face of [the] words which thou heardest, by which the servants of the king of Assyrians blasphemed me. (and Isaiah said to them, Ye shall say these things to your lord, The Lord saith these things, Fear thou not the words which thou hast heard, by which the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me.)

Lo! I shall give to him a spirit, and he shall hear a messenger; and he shall turn again to his land, and I shall make him to fall down by sword in his land.

Forsooth Rabshakeh turned again, and found the king of Assyrians fighting against Libnah; for he had heard, that the king was gone from Lachish. (And Rabshakeh turned back, and found the king of Assyria fighting against Libnah; for he had heard, that the king had left Lachish.)

And (then) the king heard (from) messengers saying of Tirhakah, king of Ethiopians, He is gone out to fight against thee. And when he had heard this thing, he sent messengers to Hezekiah, and said,

10 Ye shall say, speaking these things to Hezekiah, king of Judah, Thy God deceive not thee, in whom thou trustest, and sayest, Jerusalem shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyrians. (Ye shall say these things to Hezekiah, the king of Judah, Let not thy God, in whom thou trustest, deceive thee, by saying that Jerusalem shall not be given into the hands of the king of Assyria.)

11 Lo! thou heardest all things which the kings of Assyrians did to all lands which they destroyed; and mayest thou be delivered? (Lo! thou hast heard of all the things which the kings of Assyria did to all the lands which they destroyed; and can thou alone be rescued, or saved?)

12 Whether the gods of folks delivered them, which my fathers destroyed (Did the gods of the nations whom my forefathers destroyed, save them); Gozan, and Haran, and Rezeph, and the sons of Eden, that were in Telassar?

13 Where is the king of Hamath, and the king of Arphad, and the king of the city of Sepharvaim, and of Hena, and of Ivah?

14 And Hezekiah took the books from the hand of the messengers, and read them; and he went up into the house of the Lord, and spreaded abroad them before the Lord; (And Hezekiah took the letter from the messengers, and read it; and he went up into the House of the Lord, and spread it out before the Lord;)

15 and prayed to the Lord, and said,

16 Lord of hosts, God of Israel, that sittest on cherubim (Lord of hosts, God of Israel, who sittest between the cherubim), thou art God alone of all the realms of [the] earth; thou madest heaven and earth.

17 Lord, bow down thine ear, and hear; Lord, open thine eyes, and see; and hear thou all the words of Sennacherib, which he sent for to blaspheme (the) living God.

18 For verily, Lord, the kings of Assyrians made lands desert, and the countries of them, (For truly, Lord, the kings of Assyria have made into desert, or laid waste, many lands, and all their countryside,)

19 and gave the gods of them to (the) fire; for they were not gods, but the works of men’s hands, wood and stones; and they all-brake those gods.

20 And now, our Lord God, save thou us from the hand of him; and all [the] realms of earth know, that thou art the Lord God alone. (And now, Lord our God, save thou us from his hand, or from his power; and then all the kingdoms of the earth shall know, that thou art the Lord God alone.)

21 And Isaiah, the son of Amoz, sent to Hezekiah, and said, The Lord God of Israel saith these things, For which things thou prayedest me of Sennacherib, the king of Assyrians (the king of Assyria),

22 this is the word which the Lord spake on him, Thou virgin, the daughter of Zion, he despised thee, he scorned thee; thou virgin, the daughter of Jerusalem, he moved his head after thee. (this is the word which the Lord spoke about him, saying, O Sennacherib, the virgin, the daughter of Zion, despiseth thee, and she mocketh thee; the virgin, the daughter of Jerusalem, shaketh her head over thee.)

23 (But) Whom despisest thou, and whom blasphemedest thou? and on whom raisedest thou thy voice, and raisedest the highness of thine eyes? To the Holy of Israel. (For whom hast thou despised, and whom hast thou blasphemed? and against whom hast thou raised up thy voice, and raised up the highness of thine eyes? To the Holy One of Israel.)

24 By the hand of thy servants thou despisedest the Lord, and saidest, In the multitude of my carts (In the multitude of my chariots), I ascended [up]on the highnesses of (the) hills, on the yokes of Lebanon; and I shall cut down the high things of cedars thereof, and the chosen beeches thereof; and I shall enter into the highness of the top thereof, into the forest of Carmel thereof.

25 I digged, and drank water; and I made dry with the step of my foot all the strands of [the] fields.

26 Whether thou, Sennacherib, heardest not what things I did sometime? From eld days I formed that thing, and now I have brought (it to pass); and it is made into the drawing up by the root of (the) little hills fighting together, and of strong cities (In the old days, I formed that thing, and now I have brought it to pass; yea, bringing down strengthened cities into heaps of rubble).

27 The dwellers of those cities trembled together with hand made short, and be ashamed; they be made as hay of the field, and as the grass of [the] pasture, and as herb of house roofs, either ridges, that dried up before that it waxed ripe. (The inhabitants of those cities trembled together with shortened hand, or powerless, and were ashamed; they were made like the hay of the field, and like the grass of the pasture, and like the herbs on the rooftops, that dried up before that they could ripen.)

28 I knew thy dwelling (place), and thy going out, and thine entering (in), and thy strong vengeance against me.

29 When thou were wroth against me, thy pride ascended into mine ears; therefore I shall set a ring in thy nostrils, and a bridle in thy lips; and I shall lead thee into the way, by which thou camest. (When thou were angry against me, thy pride came into my ears; and so I shall set a ring in thy nose, and a bridle upon thy lips, and I shall lead thee back by the way, by which thou camest.)

30 Forsooth to thee, Hezekiah, this shall be a sign; eat thou in this year those things that grow by their free will, and in the second year eat thou apples; but in the third year, sow ye, and reap ye, and plant ye vineries (and plant ye vineyards), and eat ye the fruit of them.

31 And that that is saved of the house of Judah, and that, that is left, shall send [the] root beneath, and shall make fruit above;

32 for why (the) remnants (of the people) shall go out of Jerusalem, and salvation from the hill of Zion (and those who be saved, from Mount Zion); the fervent love of the Lord of hosts shall do this thing.

33 Therefore the Lord saith these things of the king of Assyrians, He shall not enter into this city, and he shall not shoot there an arrow; and a shield shall not occupy it, and he shall not send [an heap of] earth in the compass thereof. (And so the Lord saith these things about the king of Assyria, He shall not enter into this city, and he shall not shoot an arrow there; and he shall not occupy it with his shield, and he shall not build up a heap of earth all around it.)

34 In the way in which he came, he shall turn again by it (By the way in which he came, so he shall return); and he shall not enter into this city, saith the Lord.

35 And I shall defend this city, that I save it, for me, and for David, my servant. (And I shall defend this city, so that I save it, for me, and for my servant David.)

36 Forsooth the angel of the Lord went out, and killed an hundred thousand and fourscore and five thousand in the tents of (the) Assyrians; and they rose early, and lo! all men were [the] carrions of dead men (all the men were corpses).

37 And Sennacherib went out of Judah, and went away. And Sennacherib, the king of Assyrians, turned again, and dwelled in Nineveh (And Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, returned home, and lived in Nineveh).

38 And it was done, when he worshipped Nisroch, his god, in the temple, Adrammelech and Sharezer, his sons, killed him with sword, and fled into the land of Ararat, that is, Armenia; and Esarhaddon, his son, reigned for him.

Jerusalem’s Deliverance Foretold(A)

37 When King Hezekiah heard this, he tore his clothes(B) and put on sackcloth(C) and went into the temple(D) of the Lord. He sent Eliakim(E) the palace administrator, Shebna(F) the secretary, and the leading priests, all wearing sackcloth, to the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz.(G) They told him, “This is what Hezekiah says: This day is a day of distress(H) and rebuke and disgrace, as when children come to the moment of birth(I) and there is no strength to deliver them. It may be that the Lord your God will hear the words of the field commander, whom his master, the king of Assyria, has sent to ridicule(J) the living God,(K) and that he will rebuke him for the words the Lord your God has heard.(L) Therefore pray(M) for the remnant(N) that still survives.”

When King Hezekiah’s officials came to Isaiah, Isaiah said to them, “Tell your master, ‘This is what the Lord says: Do not be afraid(O) of what you have heard—those words with which the underlings of the king of Assyria have blasphemed(P) me. Listen! When he hears a certain report,(Q) I will make him want(R) to return to his own country, and there I will have him cut down(S) with the sword.’”

When the field commander heard that the king of Assyria had left Lachish,(T) he withdrew and found the king fighting against Libnah.(U)

Now Sennacherib(V) received a report(W) that Tirhakah, the king of Cush,[a](X) was marching out to fight against him. When he heard it, he sent messengers to Hezekiah with this word: 10 “Say to Hezekiah king of Judah: Do not let the god you depend on deceive(Y) you when he says, ‘Jerusalem will not be given into the hands of the king of Assyria.’(Z) 11 Surely you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the countries, destroying them completely. And will you be delivered?(AA) 12 Did the gods of the nations that were destroyed by my predecessors(AB) deliver them—the gods of Gozan, Harran,(AC) Rezeph and the people of Eden(AD) who were in Tel Assar? 13 Where is the king of Hamath or the king of Arpad?(AE) Where are the kings of Lair, Sepharvaim,(AF) Hena and Ivvah?”(AG)

Hezekiah’s Prayer(AH)

14 Hezekiah received the letter(AI) from the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the temple(AJ) of the Lord and spread it out before the Lord. 15 And Hezekiah prayed(AK) to the Lord: 16 Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, enthroned(AL) between the cherubim,(AM) you alone are God(AN) over all the kingdoms(AO) of the earth. You have made heaven and earth.(AP) 17 Give ear, Lord, and hear;(AQ) open your eyes, Lord, and see;(AR) listen to all the words Sennacherib(AS) has sent to ridicule(AT) the living God.(AU)

18 “It is true, Lord, that the Assyrian kings have laid waste all these peoples and their lands.(AV) 19 They have thrown their gods into the fire(AW) and destroyed them,(AX) for they were not gods(AY) but only wood and stone, fashioned by human hands.(AZ) 20 Now, Lord our God, deliver(BA) us from his hand, so that all the kingdoms of the earth(BB) may know that you, Lord, are the only God.[b](BC)

Sennacherib’s Fall(BD)

21 Then Isaiah son of Amoz(BE) 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(BF) Zion(BG)
    despises and mocks you.
Daughter Jerusalem
    tosses her head(BH) as you flee.
23 Who is it you have ridiculed and blasphemed?(BI)
    Against whom have you raised your voice(BJ)
and lifted your eyes in pride?(BK)
    Against the Holy One(BL) of Israel!
24 By your messengers
    you have ridiculed the Lord.
And you have said,
    ‘With my many chariots(BM)
I have ascended the heights of the mountains,
    the utmost heights(BN) of Lebanon.(BO)
I have cut down its tallest cedars,
    the choicest of its junipers.(BP)
I have reached its remotest heights,
    the finest of its forests.
25 I have dug wells in foreign lands[c]
    and drunk the water there.
With the soles of my feet
    I have dried up(BQ) all the streams of Egypt.(BR)

26 “Have you not heard?
    Long ago I ordained(BS) it.
In days of old I planned(BT) it;
    now I have brought it to pass,
that you have turned fortified cities
    into piles of stone.(BU)
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(BV) sprouting on the roof,(BW)
    scorched[d] before it grows up.

28 “But I know where you are
    and when you come and go(BX)
    and how you rage(BY) against me.
29 Because you rage against me
    and because your insolence(BZ) has reached my ears,
I will put my hook(CA) in your nose(CB)
    and my bit in your mouth,
and I will make you return
    by the way you came.(CC)

30 “This will be the sign(CD) for you, Hezekiah:

“This year(CE) you will eat what grows by itself,
    and the second year what springs from that.
But in the third year(CF) sow and reap,
    plant vineyards(CG) and eat their fruit.(CH)
31 Once more a remnant of the kingdom of Judah
    will take root(CI) below and bear fruit(CJ) above.
32 For out of Jerusalem will come a remnant,(CK)
    and out of Mount Zion a band of survivors.(CL)
The zeal(CM) 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(CN)
    or shoot an arrow here.
He will not come before it with shield
    or build a siege ramp(CO) against it.
34 By the way that he came he will return;(CP)
    he will not enter this city,”
declares the Lord.
35 “I will defend(CQ) this city and save it,
    for my sake(CR) and for the sake of David(CS) my servant!”

36 Then the angel(CT) of the Lord went out and put to death(CU) a hundred and eighty-five thousand in the Assyrian(CV) camp. When the people got up the next morning—there were all the dead bodies! 37 So Sennacherib(CW) king of Assyria broke camp and withdrew. He returned to Nineveh(CX) and stayed there.

38 One day, while he was worshiping in the temple(CY) of his god Nisrok, his sons Adrammelek and Sharezer killed him with the sword, and they escaped to the land of Ararat.(CZ) And Esarhaddon(DA) his son succeeded him as king.(DB)

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 37:9 That is, the upper Nile region
  2. Isaiah 37:20 Dead Sea Scrolls (see also 2 Kings 19:19); Masoretic Text you alone are the Lord
  3. Isaiah 37:25 Dead Sea Scrolls (see also 2 Kings 19:24); Masoretic Text does not have in foreign lands.
  4. 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