Yeshayah 37
37
1And it came to pass, when HaMelech Chizkiyah heard it, that he tore his begadim, and covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the Beis Hashem.
2And he sent Elyakim, who was over the Bais, and Shevna the Sofer, and the Ziknei HaKohanim covered with sackcloth, unto HaNavi Yeshayah Ben Amotz.
3And they said unto him, Thus saith Chizkiyah, This yom is a yom tzarah, and of tokhechah, and of ne'atzah; for the banim are come to the mashber, and there is not ko'ach to bring forth.
4It may be Hashem Eloheicha will hear the words of Rav Shakeh, whom Melech Ashur adonav hath sent to ridicule the Elohim Chai, and will rebuke the devarim which Hashem Eloheicha hath heard; therefore lift up thy tefillah for the she'erit that are left surviving.
5So the avadim of HaMelech Chizkiyah came to Yeshayah.
6And Yeshayah said unto them, Thus shall ye say unto adoneichem, Thus saith Hashem, Be not afraid before the words that thou hast heard, wherewith the na'arei Melech Ashur have made gidduf (blasphemy) against Me.
7Hineni, I will put a ruach in him, when he shall hear a shemuah (report), and return to his own land; and I will cause him to fall by the cherev in his own land.
8So Rav Shakeh left [Yerushalayim], and found Melech Ashur warring against Livnah; for he had heard that he#37:8 Melech Ashur was departed from Lakhish.
9And he heard concerning Tirhakah Melech Kush, He is come forth to make war with thee. And when he heard it, he sent malachim to Chizkiyah, saying,
10Thus shall ye speak to Chizkiyah Melech Yehudah, saying, Let not Eloheicha, in Whom thou trustest, deceive thee, saying, Yerushalayim shall not be given into the yad Melech Ashur.
11Hinei, thou hast heard what the melachim of Ashur have done to all lands by destroying them utterly; and shalt thou be saved?
12Have the elohei HaGoyim delivered them which my avot have destroyed, as Gozan, and Charan, and Retzeph, and the Bnei Eden which were in Telassar?
13Where is Melech Chamat, and Melech Arpad, and the Melech of the Ir of Sepharvayim, Hena, and Ivah?
14And Chizkiyah received the sefarim (letters) from the yad hamalachim, and read it; and Chizkiyah went up unto the Beis Hashem, and spread it before Hashem.
15And Chizkiyah davened unto Hashem, saying,
16 Hashem Tzva'os, Elohei Yisroel, that dwellest between the keruvim, Thou art HaElohim, even Thou alone, of kol mamlechot ha'aretz; Thou hast made Shomayim and HaAretz.
17Incline Thine ear, Hashem, and hear; open Thine eyes, Hashem, and see; and hear all the words of Sancheriv, which he sent to insult the Elohim Chai.
18Truly, Hashem, the melachim of Ashur have laid waste all the countries and their lands,
19And have cast eloheihem into the eish; for they were no elohim, but the ma'aseh yedei adam, etz and even (stone); therefore they have destroyed them.
20Now therefore, Hashem Eloheinu, save us from his yad, that kol mamlechot ha'aretz may know that Thou art Hashem, even Thou only.
21Then Yeshayah Ben Amotz sent unto Chizkiyah, saying, Thus saith Hashem Elohei Yisroel, Whereas thou hast davened to Me against Sancheriv Melech Ashur;
22This is the davar which Hashem hath spoken concerning him; The Betulat Bat Tziyon, hath despised thee, and laughed thee to scorn; the Bat Yerushalayim hath shaken her head at thee.
23Whom hast thou insulted and made gidduf against? And against whom hast thou raised thy voice, and lifted up thine eyes marom? Even against Kadosh Yisroel.
24By thy avadim hast thou insulted Adonoi, and hast said, By the multitude of my chariots am I come up marom harim, to the heights of Levanon; and I will cut down the tall cedars thereof, and the choice pine trees thereof; and I will enter into its most remote height, and the ya'ar (forest) of its fruitful land.
25I have dug, and drunk mayim; and with the sole of my feet have I dried up all the streams of the besieged places.
26Hast thou not heard long ago, how I have done it; and of yemei kedem (days of old), that I have formed it? Now have I brought it to pass, that thou shouldest be to lay waste fortified cities into ruinous heaps.
27Therefore their inhabitants were of small power, they were dismayed and put to shame; they were as the esev of the sadeh, and as the green herb, as the khatzir (grass) on the gagot (rooftops) is sun-scorched before it is grown up.
28But I know thy sitting, and thy going out, and thy coming in, and thy rage against Me.
29Because thy rage against Me, and thy insolence, is come up into Mine ears, therefore will I put My hook in thy nose, and My bit in thy sfatayim (lips), and I will turn thee back by the derech by which thou camest.
30And this shall be HaOt unto thee, Ye shall eat this year such as groweth of itself; and the second year that which springeth from the same; and in the third year sow ye, and reap, and plant kramim (vineyards), and eat the fruit thereof.
31And the remnant that is escaped of the Bais Yehudah shall again take shoresh (root) downward, and bear pri upward;
32For out of Yerushalayim shall go forth She'erit (remnant) and they that escape out of Mt Tziyon; the zeal of Hashem Tzva'os shall accomplish this.
33Therefore thus saith Hashem concerning Melech Ashur, He shall not come into this city, nor shoot khetz (an arrow) there, nor come before it with mogen, nor cast a siege ramp against it.
34By the derech that he came, by the same shall he return, and shall not come into this city, saith Hashem.
35For I will defend this city to save it for Mine Own sake, and for the sake of Dovid Avdi.
36Then the Malach Hashem went forth, and struck down in the Machaneh Ashur a hundred and fourscore and five elef; and when they arose early in the boker, hinei, they were all pegarim mesim (dead corpses).
37So Sancheriv Melech Ashur departed, and went and returned, and dwelt in Nineveh.
38And it came to pass, as he was worshiping in the Bais Nisroch elohav, that Adramelech and Saretzer, his banim, cut him down with the cherev; they escaped into Eretz Ararat; Esar-Chaddon bno reigned in his place.
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Yeshayah 37: TOJB2011
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THE ORTHODOX JEWISH BIBLE
FOURTH EDITION © Artists For Israel Intl Inc., 2002-2011, 2021.
Isaiah 37
37
Hezekiah Asks Isaiah for Advice
(2 Kings 19.1-13)
1As soon as Hezekiah heard the news, he tore off his clothes in sorrow and put on sackcloth. Then he went into the temple of the Lord. 2He told Prime Minister Eliakim, Assistant Prime Minister Shebna, and the senior priests to dress in sackcloth and tell me:
3Isaiah, these are difficult and disgraceful times. Our nation is like a woman too weak to give birth, when it's time for her baby to be born. 4Please pray for those of us who are left alive. The king of Assyria sent his army commander to insult the living God. Perhaps the Lord heard what he said and will do something, if you will pray.
5When these leaders came to me, 6I told them that the Lord had this message for Hezekiah:
I am the Lord. Don't worry about the insulting things that have been said about me by these messengers from the king of Assyria. 7I will upset him with rumors about what's happening in his own country. He will go back, and there I will make him die a violent death.
8Meanwhile the commander of the Assyrian forces heard that his king had left the town of Lachish and was now attacking Libnah. So he went there.
9About this same time, the king of Assyria learned that King Tirhakah of Ethiopia#37.9 Ethiopia: See the note at 11.11. was on his way to attack him. Then the king of Assyria sent some messengers with this note for Hezekiah:
10Don't trust your God or be fooled by his promise to defend Jerusalem against me. 11You have heard how we Assyrian kings have completely wiped out other nations. What makes you feel so safe? 12The Assyrian kings before me destroyed the towns of Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and everyone from Eden who lived in Telassar. What good did their gods do them? 13The kings of Hamath, Arpad, Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah have all disappeared.
Hezekiah Prays
(2 Kings 19.14-19)
14After 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. 15Then he prayed:
16 #
Ex 25.22. Lord God All-Powerful of Israel, your throne is above the winged creatures.#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). You created the heavens and the earth, and you alone rule the kingdoms of this world. 17Just look and see how Sennacherib has insulted you, the living God.
18It is true, our Lord, that Assyrian kings have turned nations into deserts. 19They destroyed the idols of wood and stone that the people of those nations had made and worshiped. 20But 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)
21-22I went to Hezekiah and told him that the Lord God of Israel had said:
Hezekiah, you prayed to me about King Sennacherib of Assyria.#37.21,22 Hezekiah, you prayed … Assyria: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text. Now this is what I say to that king:
The people of Jerusalem
hate and make fun of you;
they laugh behind your back.
23Sennacherib, you cursed,
shouted and sneered at me,
the holy One of Israel.
24You 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.
25I dried up every stream
in the land of Egypt,
and I drank water
from wells I had dug.”
26Sennacherib, 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.
27Their 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.#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.
28I know all about you,
even how fiercely angry
you are with me.
29I 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,#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.
then I will send you back
to where you came from.
30Hezekiah, 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. 31Those who survive in Judah will be like a vine that puts down deep roots and bears fruit. 32I, the Lord All-Powerful, will see to it that some who live in Jerusalem will survive.
33I 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. 34As surely as I am the Lord, he will return by the way he came and will never enter Jerusalem. 35I 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)
36The 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. 37After this, King Sennacherib went back to Assyria and lived in the city of Nineveh. 38One 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.#37.38 Esarhaddon became king: He ruled Assyria 681–669 b.c.
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Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.