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. ² 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) 3} 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. ⁴ 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.”

⁵ When King Hezekiah’s officials came to Isaiah, ⁶ 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. ⁷ 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.’”

⁸ When the field commander heard that the king of Assyria had left Lachish,^(T) he withdrew and found the king fighting against Libnah.^(U)

⁹ 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:

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

³³ “Therefore this is what the Lord says concerning the king of Assyria:

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)

Hezekiah’s Illness^(A)

38 In those days Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz^(B) went to him and said, “This is what the Lord says: Put your house in order,^(C) because you are going to die; you will not recover.”^(D)

² Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, ³ “Remember, Lord, how I have walked^(E) before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion^(F) and have done what is good in your eyes.^(G)” And Hezekiah wept^(H) bitterly.

⁴ Then the word^(I) of the Lord came to Isaiah: ⁵ “Go and tell Hezekiah, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of your father David,^(J) says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears;^(K) I will add fifteen years^(L) to your life. ⁶ And I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria. I will defend^(M) this city.

⁷ “‘This is the Lord’s sign^(N) to you that the Lord will do what he has promised: ⁸ I will make the shadow cast by the sun go back the ten steps it has gone down on the stairway of Ahaz.’” So the sunlight went back the ten steps it had gone down.^(O)

⁹ A writing of Hezekiah king of Judah after his illness and recovery:

²¹ Isaiah had said, “Prepare a poultice of figs and apply it to the boil, and he will recover.”

²² Hezekiah had asked, “What will be the sign^(AZ) that I will go up to the temple of the Lord?”

Jesus Greater Than Moses

3 Therefore, holy brothers and sisters,^(A) who share in the heavenly calling,^(B) fix your thoughts on Jesus, whom we acknowledge^(C) as our apostle and high priest.^{(D) 2} He was faithful to the one who appointed him, just as Moses was faithful in all God’s house.^{(E) 3} Jesus has been found worthy of greater honor than Moses,^(F) just as the builder of a house has greater honor than the house itself. ⁴ For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything.^{(G) 5} “Moses was faithful as a servant^(H) in all God’s house,”^[a](I) bearing witness to what would be spoken by God in the future. ⁶ But Christ is faithful as the Son^(J) over God’s house. And we are his house,^(K) if indeed we hold firmly^(L) to our confidence and the hope^(M) in which we glory.

Warning Against Unbelief

⁷ So, as the Holy Spirit says:^(N)

¹² See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God.^{(T) 13} But encourage one another daily,^(U) as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.^{(V) 14} We have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold^(W) our original conviction firmly to the very end.^{(X) 15} As has just been said:

¹⁶ Who were they who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt?^{(Z) 17} And with whom was he angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies perished in the wilderness?^{(AA) 18} And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest^(AB) if not to those who disobeyed?^{(AC) 19} So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.^(AD)