Isaiah 37
37
Hezekiah Consults Isaiah
1When King Hezekiah heard it, he tore his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the Lord. 2And he sent Eliakim, who was in charge of the palace, and Shebna the secretary, and the senior priests, covered with sackcloth, to the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz. 3They said to him, “Thus says Hezekiah, This day is a day of distress, of rebuke, and of disgrace; children have come to the birth, and there is no strength to bring them forth. 4It may be that the Lord your God heard the words of the Rabshakeh, whom his master the king of Assyria has sent to mock the living God, and will rebuke the words that the Lord your God has heard; therefore lift up your prayer for the remnant that is left.”
5When the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah, 6Isaiah said to them, “Say to your master, ‘Thus says the Lord: Do not be afraid because of the words that you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have reviled me. 7I myself will put a spirit in him, so that he shall hear a rumor, and return to his own land; I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.’ ”
8The Rabshakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria fighting against Libnah; for he had heard that the king had left Lachish. 9Now the king#37.9 Heb he heard concerning King Tirhakah of Ethiopia,#37.9 Or Nubia; Heb Cush “He has set out to fight against you.” When he heard it, he sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying, 10“Thus shall you speak to King Hezekiah of Judah: Do not let your God on whom you rely deceive you by promising that Jerusalem will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria. 11See, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands, destroying them utterly. Shall you be delivered? 12Have the gods of the nations delivered them, the nations that my predecessors destroyed, Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the people of Eden who were in Telassar? 13Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the city of Sepharvaim, the king of Hena, or the king of Ivvah?”
Hezekiah's Prayer
14Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers and read it; then Hezekiah went up to the house of the Lord and spread it before the Lord. 15And Hezekiah prayed to the Lord, saying: 16“O Lord of hosts, God of Israel, who are enthroned above the cherubim, you are God, you alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; you have made heaven and earth. 17Incline your ear, O Lord, and hear; open your eyes, O Lord, and see; hear all the words of Sennacherib, which he has sent to mock the living God. 18Truly, O Lord, the kings of Assyria have laid waste all the nations and their lands, 19and have hurled their gods into the fire, though they were no gods, but the work of human hands—wood and stone—and so they were destroyed. 20So now, O Lord our God, save us from his hand, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you alone are the Lord.”
21Then Isaiah son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying: “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Because you have prayed to me concerning King Sennacherib of Assyria, 22this is the word that the Lord has spoken concerning him:
‘She despises you, she scorns you—
virgin daughter Zion;
she tosses her head—behind your back,
daughter Jerusalem.
23‘Whom have you mocked and reviled?
Against whom have you raised your voice
and haughtily lifted your eyes?
Against the Holy One of Israel!
24By your servants you have mocked the Lord,
and you have said, “With my many chariots
I have gone up the heights of the mountains,
to the far recesses of Lebanon;
I felled its tallest cedars,
its choicest cypresses;
I came to its remotest height,
its densest forest.
25I dug wells
and drank waters,
I dried up with the sole of my foot
all the streams of Egypt.”
26‘Have you not heard
that I determined it long ago?
I planned from days of old
what now I bring to pass,
that you should make fortified cities
crash into heaps of ruins,
27while their inhabitants, shorn of strength,
are dismayed and confounded;
they have become like plants of the field
and like tender grass,
like grass on the housetops,
blighted#37.27 With 2 Kings 19.26: Heb field before it is grown.
28‘I know your rising up#37.28 Q Ms Gk: MT lacks your rising up and your sitting down,
your going out and coming in,
and your raging against me.
29Because you have raged against me
and your arrogance has come to my ears,
I will put my hook in your nose
and my bit in your mouth;
I will turn you back on the way
by which you came.
30“ ‘And this shall be the sign for you: This year eat what grows of itself, and in the second year what springs from that; then in the third year sow, reap, plant vineyards, and eat their fruit. 31The surviving remnant of the house of Judah shall again take root downward, and bear fruit upward; 32for from Jerusalem a remnant shall go out, and from Mount Zion a band of survivors. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.
33“ ‘Therefore thus says the Lord concerning the king of Assyria: He shall not come into this city, shoot an arrow there, come before it with a shield, or cast up a siege ramp against it. 34By the way that he came, by the same he shall return; he shall not come into this city, says the Lord. 35For I will defend this city to save it, for my own sake and for the sake of my servant David.’ ”
Sennacherib's Defeat and Death
36Then the angel of the Lord set out and struck down one hundred eighty-five thousand in the camp of the Assyrians; when morning dawned, they were all dead bodies. 37Then King Sennacherib of Assyria left, went home, and lived at Nineveh. 38As he was worshiping in the house of his god Nisroch, his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer killed him with the sword, and they escaped into the land of Ararat. His son Esar-haddon succeeded him.
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Isaiah 37: NRSV-CI
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New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1989 Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Isaiah 37
37
Hezekiah Seeks Isaiah’s Counsel
1When King Hezekiah heard their report,#2Kg 19:1–34 he tore his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth,#Gn 37:34; 2Sm 3:31; 1Kg 21:27; Is 3:24 and went to the Lord’s temple. 2He sent Eliakim, who was in charge of the palace, Shebna the court secretary, and the leading priests, who were covered with sackcloth, to the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz. 3They said to him, “This is what Hezekiah says: ‘Today is a day of distress, rebuke, and disgrace.#Is 22:5; 26:16; 33:2; Nah 1:7; Hab 3:16 It is as if children have come to the point of birth, and there is no strength to deliver them.#Is 26:17–18; 66:9; Hs 13:13 4Perhaps the Lord your God will hear all the words of the royal spokesman, whom his master the king of Assyria sent to mock the living God,#Dt 5:26; 1Sm 17:26,36; Jr 10:10 and will rebuke him for the words that the Lord your God has heard. Therefore offer a prayer for the surviving remnant.’”#Is 1:9; 46:3
5So the servants of King Hezekiah went to Isaiah, 6who said to them, “Tell your master, ‘The Lord says this: Don’t be afraid#Is 7:4; 35:4 because of the words you have heard, with which the king of Assyria’s attendants have blasphemed me.#Ps 44:7,13–16; Is 52:5; Rm 2:24 7I am about to put a spirit#Nm 5:14; Is 19:14; Hs 4:12; Zch 13:2; 2Tm 1:7 in him and he will hear a rumor and return to his own land, where I will cause him to fall by the sword.’”#Is 37:36–38
Sennacherib’s Letter
8When the royal spokesman heard that the king of Assyria had pulled out of Lachish,#Jos 10:31–32 he left and found him fighting against Libnah.#Nm 33:20; Jos 10:29 9The king had heard concerning King Tirhakah of Cush,#Is 18:1; 20:5 “He has set out to fight against you.” So when he heard this, he sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying, 10“Say this to King Hezekiah of Judah: ‘Don’t let your God, on whom you rely, deceive you#Is 36:14–15 by promising that Jerusalem won’t be handed over to the king of Assyria. 11Look, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the countries: they completely destroyed them. Will you be rescued? 12Did the gods of the nations#Is 36:18 that my predecessors destroyed rescue them — Gozan,#2Kg 17:6; 18:11 Haran,#Gn 11:31; 12:1–4; Ac 7:2 Rezeph, and the Edenites in Telassar? 13Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the city of#37:13 Or king of Lair, Sepharvaim, Hena, or Ivvah? ’”
Hezekiah’s Prayer
14Hezekiah took the letter from the messengers’ hands, read it, then went up to the Lord’s temple and spread it out before the Lord.#Dt 22:17; 1Kg 8:22; Ezk 2:10 15Then Hezekiah prayed#2Ch 32:20 to the Lord:
16 Lord of Armies, God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim,#Ex 25:22; Nm 7:89; 1Sm 4:4; 2Sm 6:2; Ps 80:1; 99:1 you are God#Dt 10:17; 2Sm 7:28; Ps 86:10; 90:2; 136:2–3 — you alone#1Kg 8:39; Neh 9:6; Ps 4:8; 83:18; 86:10; Rv 15:4 — of all the kingdoms of the earth.#2Ch 36:20; Ps 68:32; Rv 11:15 You made the heavens and the earth.#Ex 20:11; Neh 9:6; Ps 146:6; Ac 4:24 17Listen closely, Lord, and hear;#2Ch 6:40; Ps 17:6; Dn 9:18 open your eyes, Lord, and see.#Is 42:5; 45:12; Jr 10:12 Hear all the words that Sennacherib has sent to mock the living God.#Is 37:4 18Lord, it is true that the kings of Assyria have devastated all these countries and their lands. 19They have thrown their gods into the fire, for they were not gods#Dt 32:17; 2Ch 13:9; Jr 2:11; 5:7; 16:20; Hs 8:6; Ac 19:26; Gl 4:8 but made from wood and stone#Dt 4:28; 28:36,64; 29:17; Ezk 20:32 by human hands.#Is 2:8,20; 17:8; 31:7; 41:24,29; 44:9–20; 46:6 So they have destroyed them. 20Now, Lord our God, save us from his power so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, Lord, are God#37:20 are God supplied for clarity; see v. 16#Jos 4:24; 1Kg 8:60; 20:13; Is 45:3,6 — you alone.#Is 37:16
God’s Answer through Isaiah
21Then Isaiah son of Amoz sent a message to Hezekiah: “The Lord, the God of Israel, says, ‘Because you prayed to me about King Sennacherib of Assyria, 22this is the word the Lord has spoken against him:
Virgin Daughter Zion#Lm 2:13; Is 1:8; 3:16–17; 4:4; 52:2; 62:11
despises you and scorns you;
Daughter Jerusalem shakes her head#Jb 16:4; Ps 22:7; 109:25; Jr 18:16; Lm 2:15
behind your back.
23Who is it you have mocked#Ps 74:10,18; Is 37:4; Gl 6:7 and blasphemed?
Against whom have you raised your voice
and lifted your eyes in pride?#Is 2:11; 5:15,21
Against the Holy One of Israel!#Gn 12:3; Ex 23:22
24You have mocked the Lord through your servants.
You have said, “With my many chariots#Ex 14:26–28; 15:4,19; Dt 20:1; Jos 11:4–9; 2Ch 16:8; Ps 68:17
I have gone up to the heights of the mountains,
to the far recesses of Lebanon.
I cut down its tallest cedars,
its choice cypress trees.
I came to its distant heights,
its densest forest.
25I dug wells and drank water in foreign lands.#37:25 DSS, 2Kg 19:24; MT omits in foreign lands
I dried up all the streams of Egypt
with the soles of my feet.”#Dt 11:10; 1Kg 20:10
26Have you not heard?#Is 40:21,28
I designed it long ago;
I planned it in days gone by.#Is 5:19; 10:5–6; 14:24–26; 22:11; 46:11; Jr 18:11; Ac 2:23; 4:27–28; 1Pt 2:8
I have now brought it to pass,
and you have crushed fortified cities#Is 34:13
into piles of rubble.
27Their inhabitants have become powerless,
dismayed, and ashamed.
They are plants of the field,
tender grass,
grass on the rooftops,
blasted by the east wind.#37:27 DSS; MT reads rooftops, field before standing grain
28But I know your sitting down,
your going out and your coming in,#Ps 139:1
and your raging against me.
29Because your raging against me
and your arrogance have reached my ears,#Is 10:12
I will put my hook in your nose#Ezk 19:9; 29:4; 38:4
and my bit in your mouth;#Is 30:28
I will make you go back
the way you came.
30“‘This will be the sign for you:#Ex 3:12; 1Sm 2:34; 1Kg 13:3; Is 7:14; 38:7; Jr 44:29; Lk 2:12 This year you will eat what grows on its own, and in the second year what grows from that. But in the third year sow and reap, plant vineyards and eat their fruit. 31The surviving remnant of the house of Judah will again take root#Is 27:6 downward and bear fruit upward. 32For a remnant#Ezr 9:14; Is 10:20–22 will go out from Jerusalem, and survivors from Mount Zion. The zeal of the Lord of Armies will accomplish this.’#2Kg 19:31; Is 9:7; 59:17; Jl 2:18; Zch 1:14
33“Therefore, this is what the Lord says about the king of Assyria:
He will not enter this city,
shoot an arrow here,
come before it with a shield,
or build up a siege ramp against it.
34He will go back
the way he came,
and he will not enter this city.
This is the Lord’s declaration.
35I will defend this city and rescue it
for my sake#Is 43:25; 48:9,11
and for the sake of my servant David.”#1Kg 11:13,32–38; 2Kg 20:6; Ezk 34:23
Defeat and Death of Sennacherib
36Then#2Kg 19:35–37; 2Ch 32:21 the angel of the Lord#Gn 16:7–11; Ex 3:2; Nm 22:22–35; Jdg 6:11–12; 2Sm 24:16; Ps 34:7 went out and struck down one hundred eighty-five thousand in the camp of the Assyrians. When the people got up the next morning, there were all the dead bodies! 37So King Sennacherib of Assyria broke camp and left. He returned home and lived in Nineveh.#Gn 10:11; Jnh 1:2; 3:3; 4:11; Zph 2:13
38One day, while he was worshiping in the temple of his god Nisroch, his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer struck him down with the sword and escaped to the land of Ararat.#Gn 8:4; Jr 51:27 Then his son Esar-haddon#Ezr 4:2 became king in his place.
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