Isaiah 36
36
The Assyrians Invade Judah
1During Hezekiah’s fourteenth year as king, Sennacherib king of Assyria attacked Judah. He attacked all the strong, walled cities of Judah and defeated them. 2The king of Assyria sent out his field commander. He went with a large army from Lachish to King Hezekiah in Jerusalem. When the commander came near the waterway from the upper pool, he stopped. The upper pool is on the road to the Washerman’s Field. 3Eliakim, Shebna and Joah went out to meet him. Eliakim son of Hilkiah was the palace manager. Shebna was the royal assistant. And Joah son of Asaph was the recorder.
4The field commander said to them, “Tell Hezekiah this:
“‘The great king, the king of Assyria, says: You have nothing to trust in to help you. 5You say you have battle plans and power for war. But your words mean nothing. Whom are you trusting for help so that you turn against me? 6Look, you are depending on Egypt to help you. Egypt is like a splintered walking stick. If you lean on it for help, it will stab you and hurt you. The king of Egypt will hurt those who depend on him. 7You might say, “We are depending on the Lord our God.” But Hezekiah destroyed the Lord’s altars and the places of worship. Hezekiah told Judah and Jerusalem, “You must worship only at this one altar.”
8“‘Now make an agreement with my master, the king of Assyria: I will give you 2,000 horses if you can find enough men to ride them. 9You cannot defeat one of my master’s least important officers. So why do you depend on Egypt to give you chariots and horsemen? 10I have not come to attack and destroy this country without an order from the Lord. The Lord himself told me to come to this country and destroy it.’”
11Then Eliakim, Shebna and Joah spoke to the field commander. They said, “Please speak to us in the Aramaic language. We understand it. Don’t speak to us in Hebrew because the people on the city wall can hear you.”
12But the commander said, “No. My master did not send me to tell these things only to you and your king. My master sent me to tell them also to those people sitting on the wall. They will have to eat their own dung and drink their own urine like you.”
13Then the commander stood and shouted loudly in the Hebrew language. He said, “Listen to the words from the great king, the king of Assyria! 14The king says you should not let Hezekiah fool you. Hezekiah can’t save you. 15Don’t let Hezekiah talk you into trusting the Lord. Hezekiah says, ‘The Lord will surely save us. This city won’t be given over to the king of Assyria.’
16“Don’t listen to Hezekiah. The king of Assyria says, ‘Make peace with me. Come out of the city to me. Then everyone will be free to eat the fruit from his own grapevine and fig tree. Everyone will be free to drink water from his own well. 17Then I will come and take you to a land like your own. It is a land with grain and new wine. It has bread and vineyards.’
18“Don’t let Hezekiah fool you. He says, ‘The Lord will save us.’ The god of any other nation has not saved his people from the power of the king of Assyria. 19Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim? They did not save Samaria from my power. 20Not one of all the gods of these countries has saved his people from me. Then the Lord cannot save Jerusalem from my power.”
21The people were silent. They didn’t answer the commander at all. This was because King Hezekiah had ordered, “Don’t answer him.”
22Then Eliakim, Shebna and Joah tore their clothes to show how upset they were. (Eliakim son of Hilkiah was the palace manager. Shebna was the royal assistant. And Joah son of Asaph was the recorder.) The three men went to Hezekiah and told him what the field commander had said.
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Isaiah 36: ICB
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Copyright © 2015 by Tommy Nelson™, a Division of Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
Isaiah 36
36
Sennacherib’s Invasion
1In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah,#2Kg 18:13,17–37; 2Ch 32:1–16,18 King Sennacherib of Assyria attacked all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them. 2Then the king of Assyria sent his royal spokesman, along with a massive army, from Lachish#Jos 15:20,39 to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem. The Assyrian stood near the conduit of the upper pool, by the road to Launderer’s Field.#Is 7:3 3Eliakim son of Hilkiah, who was in charge of the palace, Shebna the court secretary,#Is 22:15,20–21 and Joah son of Asaph, the court historian, came out to him.
4The royal spokesman said to them, “Tell Hezekiah:
The great king, the king of Assyria, says this: What are you relying on? 5You#36:5 Many Hb mss, DSS, 2Kg 18:20; MT reads I think mere words are strategy and strength for war. Who are you now relying on that you have rebelled against me?#2Kg 18:7 6Look, you are relying on Egypt, that splintered reed of a staff#Ezk 29:6–7 that will pierce the hand of anyone who grabs it and leans on it. This is how Pharaoh king of Egypt is to all who rely on him.#Is 30:3–7 7Suppose you say to me, ‘We rely on the Lord our God.’ Isn’t he the one whose high places and altars Hezekiah has removed, saying to Judah and Jerusalem, ‘You are to worship at this altar’?#Dt 12:2–5; 2Kg 18:4–5
8“Now make a deal with my master, the king of Assyria. I’ll give you two thousand horses if you’re able to supply riders for them! 9How then can you drive back a single officer among the least of my master’s servants? How can you rely on Egypt for chariots and horsemen?#Is 20:5; 30:2–5,7; 31:3 10Have I attacked this land to destroy it without the Lord’s approval? The Lord said to me, ‘Attack this land and destroy it.’”
11Then Eliakim, Shebna, and Joah said to the royal spokesman, “Please speak to your servants in Aramaic,#Ezr 4:7; Dn 2:4 since we understand it. Don’t speak to us in Hebrew#36:11 Lit Judahite, also in v. 13 within earshot of the people who are on the wall.”
12But the royal spokesman replied, “Has my master sent me to speak these words to your master and to you, and not to the men who are sitting on the wall, who are destined with you to eat their own excrement and drink their own urine?”
13Then the royal spokesman stood and called out loudly in Hebrew:
Listen to the words of the great king, the king of Assyria! 14This is what the king says: “Don’t let Hezekiah deceive you,#Is 37:10 for he cannot rescue you. 15Don’t let Hezekiah persuade you to rely on the Lord, saying, ‘The Lord will certainly rescue us! This city will not be handed over to the king of Assyria.’”
16Don’t listen to Hezekiah, for this is what the king of Assyria says: “Make peace#36:16 Lit a blessing with me and surrender to me. Then every one of you may eat from his own vine and his own fig tree#1Kg 4:25; Mc 4:4; Zch 3:10 and drink water from his own cistern 17until 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. 18Beware that Hezekiah does not mislead you by saying, ‘The Lord will rescue us.’#Is 37:10 Has any one of the gods of the nations#1Ch 5:25; Is 37:12 rescued his land from the power of the king of Assyria? 19Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad?#Is 10:9–11; 37:11–13; Jr 49:23 Where are the gods of Sepharvaim? Have they rescued Samaria from my power?#2Kg 17:6 20Who among all the gods of these lands ever rescued his land from my power? So will the Lord rescue Jerusalem from my power?”
21But they kept silent; they didn’t say anything, for the king’s command was, “Don’t answer him.”#Pr 26:4 22Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah, who was in charge of the palace, Shebna the court secretary, and Joah son of Asaph, the court historian, came to Hezekiah with their clothes torn and reported to him the words of the royal spokesman.
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