37 When King Hezekiah heard the report of his officers, he tore his clothes. Then he put on rough sackcloth and he went into the Lord 's temple. 2 He sent Eliakim, Shebna and the leaders of the priests to Amoz's son, Isaiah the prophet. Eliakim was the most important officer in the king's palace. Shebna was a government officer. They were all wearing sackcloth. 3 They told Hezekiah's message to Isaiah:
‘This is a time of great trouble. Assyria has insulted us to make us ashamed. Our nation is like a woman who is ready to give birth, but she is too weak to push the child out. 4 The Assyrian officer has brought a message from his king to insult the God who lives for ever. Maybe the Lord your God has heard that message. He should punish the officer for his wicked message. So please pray for the people who remain in Jerusalem.’
5 When King Hezekiah's officers told their message to Isaiah, 6 Isaiah said to them, ‘Tell your master that the Lord says this: “Do not let the words that you have heard make you afraid. The servants of the king of Assyria have insulted me, the Lord . 7 Listen to me! I will put a spirit into the king of Assyria's mind. He will hear a report which will cause him to return to his own country. There, in his own land, I will cause someone to kill him with a sword.” ’
8 At that time, the king of Assyria had left Lachish city. When the Assyrian officer heard that news, he left Jerusalem. He went to meet the king at Libnah, where the king was now fighting a battle. 9 Then the king of Assyria heard a report about Tirhakah, the king of Ethiopia. People told him, ‘He has brought his army from Ethiopia to fight against you.’
When the king of Assyria heard that news, he sent another message to Hezekiah in Jerusalem. 10 This was his message to King Hezekiah of Judah: ‘You are hoping that your God will help you. Your God may say that the king of Assyria will not destroy Jerusalem. But do not let him deceive you. 11 You have heard how the kings of Assyria have completely destroyed all other countries. So do not think that your God will rescue you. 12 The gods of those other countries did not save them. Our kings destroyed the nations of Gozan, Haran and Rezeph. They killed the people of Eden who lived in Tel Assar. 13 The kings of Hamath and Arpad have gone. The king of Sepharvaim city has gone. The kings of Hena and Ivvah have also gone.’
14 When Hezekiah received the letter with this message, he read it. Then he went up to the Lord 's temple. He put the letter there, in front of the Lord . 15 Hezekiah prayed to the Lord . He said:
16 ‘ Lord Almighty, you are Israel's God. You sit on your throne between the cherubs. [ a ] Only you are the God who rules all the kingdoms in the world. You have made the heavens and the earth. 17 Lord , please listen carefully to me. Lord , look carefully at this letter. Listen to Sennacherib's message. He is insulting you, the God who lives for ever. 18 It is true, Lord , that the kings of Assyria have destroyed all these people and their lands. 19 They threw the gods of these nations into the fire. Those idols are not really gods. People used wood and stone to make them. So the Assyrians could destroy them. 20 So now, Lord , you are our God! Save us from the power of Sennacherib! Then all the kingdoms in the world will know that you alone are the Lord .’
21 Then Amoz's son, Isaiah, sent this message to Hezekiah: ‘The Lord , Israel's God, says, “You have prayed to me about Sennacherib, the king of Assyria.” 22 This is the Lord 's reply. The Lord says this about King Sennacherib:
“The holy people of Zion laugh at you!
They think that you are useless.
Yes, the people of Jerusalem shake their heads
as you run away.
23 Who do you think it is that you have insulted?
Who have you shouted at?
Who have you looked at so proudly?
The answer is the Holy God of Israel!
24 You have sent your servants
to insult the Lord God.
You have said, ‘I have taken all my chariots
and I have gone up high mountains,
the highest mountains in Lebanon.
I have cut down its tall cedar trees,
and I have cut down its best pine trees.
I went up to its highest places,
and I went far into its forests.
25 I dug wells and they gave me water to drink.
My army marched through all the rivers in Egypt,
and the rivers became dry.’
26 You said that, but now listen to this! [ b ]
You must surely have heard it already.
I decided what to do a long time ago!
Now I am causing it to happen.
I decided that you would destroy strong cities
so that they became heaps of stones.
27 The people of those cities have no power.
They are afraid and they are confused.
They are like plants in a field,
that cannot live for a long time.
They are like fresh green grass,
or grass that grows on the roof of a house.
When a hot wind blows on them,
it burns them and they die.
28 I know everything about you.
I know where you live.
I know when you go out.
And I know when you return home.
I know how much you shout against me,
when you are angry.
29 Yes, you do shout at me!
And I have heard all your proud noise.
So I will put my hook in your nose.
I will tie a rope to your mouth.
Then I will pull you back home
by the same way that you came.”
30 King Hezekiah, this is how you will know that I have spoken a true message from the Lord . [ c ] This year, you will eat crops that grow by themselves. And next year you will eat what grows from the same seeds. But in the third year you will plant seeds for yourselves, and they will give you a harvest of crops. You will plant vines again and you will eat grapes from them. 31 The people who remain in Judah will be like strong plants that put their roots down into the ground. Their branches will give lots of fruit.
32 A small number of people will still be alive in Jerusalem. They will leave Mount Zion and they will go to other places. The great love that the Lord Almighty has for his people will cause that to happen!
33 This is what the Lord says about the king of Assyria:
“His army will not come into this city.
His soldiers will not shoot any arrows here.
They will not attack the city as they hold their shields.
They will not build heaps of earth against the city's walls.
34 No! The king will return home by the way that he came.
He will not come into this city.”
That is what the Lord says.
35 “I will make this city safe and I will rescue it.
I will do that to show that I am great.
I promised my servant David that I would do it.
So I will do it.” ’
36 Then the Lord 's angel went to the camp of the Assyrian army. He killed 185,000 of their soldiers. When people got up in the morning, they saw all those dead bodies! 37 So King Sennacherib of Assyria took his army away. He returned to Assyria and he lived in Nineveh.
38 One day, Sennacherib was worshipping his god Nisrok, in Nisrok's temple. Two of Sennacherib's sons, Adrammelech and Sharezer, went in and they killed him with their swords. [ d ] Then they ran away to the region of Ararat. Sennacherib's son, Esarhaddon, now ruled Assyria as king.
37 When King Hezekiah listened to their message, he tore his clothes to show he was upset. Then he put on sackcloth and went to the Lord ’s Temple.
2 Hezekiah sent Eliakim, the palace manager, Shebna, the royal secretary, and the elders of the priests to the prophet, Isaiah son of Amoz. They wore the special clothes that showed they were sad and upset. 3 They said to Isaiah, “King Hezekiah has commanded that today will be a special day for sorrow and sadness. It will be a very sad day—as sad as when a baby should be born, but there is not enough strength for the birth. 4 The commander’s master, the king of Assyria, has sent him to say bad things about the living God. Maybe the Lord your God will hear it and prove the enemy is wrong. So pray for those who are still left alive.”
5 When King Hezekiah’s officers came to Isaiah, 6 he said to them, “Give this message to your master, Hezekiah: The Lord says, ‘Don’t be afraid of what you heard from the commanders! Don’t believe what those “boys” from the king of Assyria said to make fun of me. 7 Look, I will send a spirit against the king of Assyria. He will get a report that will make him return to his own country. And I will cut him down with a sword in his own country.’”
8 The commander heard that the king of Assyria had left Lachish. He found him at Libnah, fighting against that city. 9 Then the king of Assyria got a report that said, “King Tirhakah [ a ] of Ethiopia is coming to fight you.”
So the king of Assyria sent messengers to Hezekiah again. 10 He told them, “Tell King Hezekiah of Judah these things:
‘Don’t be fooled by the god you trust when he says, “Jerusalem will not be defeated by the king of Assyria.” 11 You have heard what the kings of Assyria did to all the other countries. We destroyed them completely. Will you be saved? No! 12 Did the gods of those people save them? No, my ancestors destroyed them all. They destroyed the cities of Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the people of Eden living in Tel Assar. 13 Where is the king of Hamath? The king of Arpad? The king of the city of Sepharvaim? The kings of Hena and Ivvah?’”
14 Hezekiah received the letters from the messengers and read them. Then he went up to the Lord ’s Temple and laid the letters out in front of the Lord . 15 He prayed to the Lord : 16 “ Lord All-Powerful, God of Israel, you sit as King above the Cherub angels. You alone are the God who rules all the kingdoms on earth. You made heaven and earth. 17 Lord , please pay attention and hear this. Open your eyes, Lord , and see what is happening. Listen to all the insults against the living God in the message Sennacherib sent! 18 It is true, Lord . The kings of Assyria did destroy all those nations. 19 They did throw the gods of those nations into the fire, but they were not real gods. They were only wood and stone—statues that people made. That is why the kings of Assyria could destroy them. 20 But you are the Lord our God, so please save us from the king of Assyria. Then all the other nations will know that you are the Lord , the only God.”
21 Then Isaiah son of Amoz sent this message to Hezekiah: “The Lord , the God of Israel, says, ‘You prayed to me about the message that came from King Sennacherib of Assyria. I have heard you. [ b ] ’
22 “So this is the Lord ’s message against Sennacherib:
‘The virgin daughter Zion [ c ] does not think you are important.
She makes fun of you.
Daughter Jerusalem shakes her head at you
and laughs behind your back.
23 But who was it that you insulted and made fun of?
Who was it that you spoke against?
You were speaking against the Holy One of Israel.
You acted like you were great and he was nothing.
24 You sent your officers to insult the Lord.
This is what you said:
“I took my many chariots up the high mountains
deep inside Lebanon.
I cut down its tallest cedars
and its best fir trees.
I have been on its highest mountain
and deep inside its forests.
25 I dug wells and drank water from new places.
I dried up the rivers of Egypt
and walked where the water was.”
26 ‘How could you say this, Sennacherib?
Did no one ever tell you that I, the Lord, planned these things long ago?
From ancient times I decided what would happen.
And now I have made it happen.
I let you tear down strong cities
and change them into piles of rocks.
27 The people living there had no power.
They were afraid and confused.
They were about to be cut down
like grass and plants in the field.
They were like grass growing on the housetops,
dying before it grows tall.
28 I know all about your battles;
I know when you rested,
when you went out to war,
and when you came home.
I also know when you got upset at me.
29 Yes, you were upset at me.
I heard your proud insults.
So I will put my hook in your nose
and my bit in your mouth.
Then I will turn you around
and lead you back the way you came.’”
30 Then the Lord said, “I will give you a sign to show you that these words are true. You will not be able to plant seeds this year, so next year you will eat grain that grew wild from the previous year’s crop. But in the third year, you will eat grain from seeds that you planted. You will harvest your crops, and you will have plenty to eat. You will plant vineyards and eat grapes from them.
31 “The people from the family of Judah who have escaped and are left alive will be like plants that send their roots deep into the ground and produce fruit above the ground. 32 That is because a few people will come out of Jerusalem alive. There will be survivors coming from Mount Zion.” The strong love [ d ] of the Lord All-Powerful will do this.
33 So the Lord says this about the king of Assyria:
“He will not come into this city
or shoot an arrow here.
He will not bring his shields up against this city
or build up a hill of dirt to attack its walls.
34 He will go back the way he came.
He will not come into this city.
The Lord says this!
35 I will protect this city and save it.
I will do this for myself and for my servant David.”
36 That night the angel of the Lord went out and killed 185,000 men in the Assyrian camp. When the people got up in the morning, they saw all the dead bodies. 37 So King Sennacherib of Assyria went back to Nineveh and stayed there.
38 One day Sennacherib was in the temple of his god Nisroch, worshiping him. His sons Adrammelech and Sharezer killed him with a sword and ran away to Ararat. So Sennacherib’s son Esarhaddon became the new king of Assyria.
37 And it came to pass, when king Hezekiah heard it, that he rent his clothes, and covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the Lord .
2 And he sent Eliakim, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests covered with sackcloth, unto Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz.
3 And they said unto him, Thus saith Hezekiah, This day is a day of trouble, and of rebuke, and of blasphemy: for the children are come to the birth, and there is not strength to bring forth.
4 It may be the Lord thy God will hear the words of Rabshakeh, whom the king of Assyria his master hath sent to reproach the living God, and will reprove the words which the Lord thy God hath heard: wherefore lift up thy prayer for the remnant that is left.
5 So the servants of king Hezekiah came to Isaiah.
6 And Isaiah said unto them, Thus shall ye say unto your master, Thus saith the Lord , Be not afraid of the words that thou hast heard, wherewith the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me.
7 Behold, I will send a blast upon him, and he shall hear a rumour, and return to his own land; and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.
8 So Rabshakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah: for he had heard that he was departed from Lachish.
9 And he heard say concerning Tirhakah king of Ethiopia, He is come forth to make war with thee. And when he heard it, he sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying,
10 Thus shall ye speak to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying, Let not thy God, in whom thou trustest, deceive thee, saying, Jerusalem shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.
11 Behold, thou hast heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands by destroying them utterly; and shalt thou be delivered?
12 Have the gods of the nations delivered them which my fathers have destroyed, as Gozan, and Haran, and Rezeph, and the children of Eden which were in Telassar?
13 Where is the king of Hamath, and the king of Arphad, and the king of the city of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivah?
14 And Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and read it: and Hezekiah went up unto the house of the Lord , and spread it before the Lord .
15 And Hezekiah prayed unto the Lord , saying,
16 O Lord of hosts, God of Israel, that dwellest between the cherubims, thou art the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth: thou hast made heaven and earth.
17 Incline thine ear, O Lord , and hear; open thine eyes, O Lord , and see: and hear all the words of Sennacherib, which hath sent to reproach the living God.
18 Of a truth, Lord , the kings of Assyria have laid waste all the nations, and their countries,
19 And have cast their gods into the fire: for they were no gods, but the work of men's hands, wood and stone: therefore they have destroyed them.
20 Now therefore, O Lord our God, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou art the Lord , even thou only.
21 Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent unto Hezekiah, saying, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Whereas thou hast prayed to me against Sennacherib king of Assyria:
22 This is the word which the Lord hath spoken concerning him; The virgin, the daughter of Zion, hath despised thee, and laughed thee to scorn; the daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee.
23 Whom hast thou reproached and blasphemed? and against whom hast thou exalted thy voice, and lifted up thine eyes on high? even against the Holy One of Israel.
24 By thy servants hast thou reproached the Lord, and hast said, By the multitude of my chariots am I come up to the height of the mountains, to the sides of Lebanon; and I will cut down the tall cedars thereof, and the choice fir trees thereof: and I will enter into the height of his border, and the forest of his Carmel.
25 I have digged, and drunk water; and with the sole of my feet have I dried up all the rivers of the besieged places.
26 Hast thou not heard long ago, how I have done it; and of ancient times, that I have formed it? now have I brought it to pass, that thou shouldest be to lay waste defenced cities into ruinous heaps.
27 Therefore their inhabitants were of small power, they were dismayed and confounded: they were as the grass of the field, and as the green herb, as the grass on the housetops, and as corn blasted before it be grown up.
28 But I know thy abode, and thy going out, and thy coming in, and thy rage against me.
29 Because thy rage against me, and thy tumult, is come up into mine ears, therefore will I put my hook in thy nose, and my bridle in thy lips, and I will turn thee back by the way by which thou camest.
30 And this shall be a sign unto thee, Ye shall eat this year such as groweth of itself; and the second year that which springeth of the same: and in the third year sow ye, and reap, and plant vineyards, and eat the fruit thereof.
31 And the remnant that is escaped of the house of Judah shall again take root downward, and bear fruit upward:
32 For out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and they that escape out of mount Zion: the zeal of the Lord of hosts shall do this.
33 Therefore thus saith the Lord concerning the king of Assyria, He shall not come into this city, nor shoot an arrow there, nor come before it with shields, nor cast a bank against it.
34 By the way that he came, by the same shall he return, and shall not come into this city, saith the Lord .
35 For I will defend this city to save it for mine own sake, and for my servant David's sake.
36 Then the angel of the Lord went forth, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians a hundred and fourscore and five thousand: and when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses.
37 So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, and went and returned, and dwelt at Nineveh.
38 And it came to pass, as he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god, that Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons smote him with the sword; and they escaped into the land of Armenia: and Esarhaddon his son reigned in his stead.
37 Now ( A ) when King Hezekiah heard the report , he tore his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth, and entered the house of the Lord . 2 Then he sent ( B ) Eliakim, who was in charge of the household, with ( C ) Shebna the scribe and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to ( D ) Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz. 3 And they said to him, “This is what Hezekiah says: ‘This day is a ( E ) day of distress, rebuke, and humiliation; for ( F ) children have come to the point of birth, and there is no strength to [ a ] deliver them . 4 Perhaps the Lord your God will hear the words of Rabshakeh, whom his master the king of Assyria has sent to ( G ) taunt the living God, and will avenge the words which the Lord your God has heard. Therefore, offer a prayer for ( H ) the remnant that is left.’”
5 So the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah. 6 And Isaiah said to them, “This is what you shall say to your master: ‘This is what the Lord says: “ ( I ) Do not be afraid because of the words that you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed Me. 7 Behold, I am going to put a spirit in him so that he will ( J ) hear news and ( K ) return to his own land. And I will make him fall by the sword in his own land.”’”
8 Then Rabshakeh returned and found the king of Assyria fighting against ( L ) Libnah, for he had heard that [ b ] the king had left ( M ) Lachish. 9 Now he ( N ) heard them say regarding Tirhakah king of [ c ] ( O ) Cush, “He has come out to fight against you,” and when he heard it he sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying, 10 “This is what you shall say to Hezekiah king of [ d ] Judah: ‘ ( P ) Do not let your God in whom you trust deceive you by saying, “Jerusalem will not be handed over to the king of Assyria.” 11 ( Q ) Behold, you yourself have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the lands, destroying them completely. So will you be saved? 12 Did the gods of the nations which my fathers destroyed save them: ( R ) Gozan, ( S ) Haran, Rezeph, and the sons of Eden who were in Telassar? 13 Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the city of Sepharvaim, and of Hena and Ivvah?’”
14 Then Hezekiah took the [ e ] letter from the hand of the messengers and read it, and he went up to the house of the Lord and [ f ] spread it out before the Lord . 15 Hezekiah prayed to the Lord , saying, 16 “ Lord of armies, God of Israel, ( T ) who is enthroned above the cherubim, You are the ( U ) God, You alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. ( V ) You made heaven and earth. 17 ( W ) Incline Your ear, Lord , and hear; open Your eyes, Lord , and see; and ( X ) listen to all the words of Sennacherib, who sent them to ( Y ) taunt the living God. 18 Truly, Lord , the ( Z ) kings of Assyria have laid waste all the countries and their lands, 19 and have thrown their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but only the ( AA ) work of human hands, wood and stone. So they have ( AB ) destroyed them. 20 But now Lord , our God, ( AC ) save us from his hand, so that ( AD ) all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You alone, [ g ] Lord , are God.”
21 Then ( AE ) Isaiah the son of Amoz sent word to Hezekiah, saying, “This is what the Lord , the God of Israel says: ‘Because you have prayed to Me about Sennacherib king of Assyria, 22 this is the word that the Lord has spoken against him:
“She has shown contempt for you and derided you,
The ( AF ) virgin ( AG ) daughter of Zion;
The daughter of Jerusalem has ( AH ) shaken her head behind you!
23 Whom have you ( AI ) taunted and blasphemed?
And against whom have you raised your voice
And [ h ] haughtily ( AJ ) raised your eyes?
Against the ( AK ) Holy One of Israel!
24 Through your servants you have taunted the Lord,
And you have said, ‘With my many chariots I came up to the heights of the mountains,
To the remotest parts of ( AL ) Lebanon;
And I cut down its tall ( AM ) cedars and its choice junipers.
And I will come to its [ i ] highest peak, its thickest ( AN ) forest.
25 I dug wells and drank waters,
And ( AO ) with the sole of my feet I dried up
All the canals of [ j ] Egypt.’
26 ( AP ) Have you not heard?
Long ago I did it,
From ancient times I ( AQ ) planned it.
Now ( AR ) I have brought it about
That ( AS ) you would turn fortified cities into ( AT ) ruined heaps.
27 Therefore their inhabitants were [ k ] powerless,
They were shattered and put to shame;
They were like the ( AU ) vegetation of the field and the green grass,
Like ( AV ) grass on the housetops [ l ] that is scorched before it has grown.
28 But I ( AW ) know your sitting down,
Your going out, your coming in,
And your raging against Me.
29 Because of your raging against Me
And because your ( AX ) complacency has come up to My ears,
I will put My ( AY ) hook in your nose
And My ( AZ ) bridle in your lips,
And I will turn you back ( BA ) by the way that you came.
30 “Then this shall be the sign for you: [ m ] you will eat this year what ( BB ) grows of itself, in the second year what grows from the same, and in the third year sow, harvest, plant vineyards, and eat their fruit. 31 The ( BC ) survivors that are ( BD ) left of the house of Judah will again ( BE ) take root downward and bear fruit upward. 32 For out of Jerusalem a ( BF ) remnant will go, and out of Mount Zion survivors. The ( BG ) zeal of the Lord of armies will perform this.”’
33 “Therefore, this is what the Lord says about the king of Assyria: ‘He will not come to this city nor shoot an arrow there; and he will not come before it with a shield, nor heap up an ( BH ) assault ramp against it. 34 ( BI ) By the way that he came, by the same he will return, and he will not come to this city,’ declares the Lord . 35 ‘For I will ( BJ ) protect this city to save it ( BK ) for My own sake, and for My servant David’s sake.’”
36 Then the ( BL ) angel of the Lord went out and struck 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians; and when the rest got up early in the morning, behold, all of [ n ] the 185,000 were [ o ] dead. 37 So Sennacherib the king of Assyria departed and [ p ] returned home and lived in ( BM ) Nineveh. 38 Then it came about, as he was worshiping in the house of Nisroch his god, that his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer killed him with the sword; and they escaped to the land of ( BN ) Ararat. And his son ( BO ) Esarhaddon became king in his place.
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 )
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 ) ”
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 )
