2 Kings 19
1 And it came to pass, when king Hezekiah heard it, that he tore his clothes, and covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the LORD.
It came about that when King Hezekiah heard their report, he tore his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of Yahweh.
2 And he sent Eliakim, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz.
He sent Eliakim, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, all covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah son of Amoz, the prophet.
3 And they said to him, Thus saith Hezekiah, This day is a day of trouble, and of rebuke, and blasphemy: for the children have come to the birth, and there is not strength to bring forth.
They said to him, “Hezekiah says, 'This day is a day of distress, rebuke, and disgrace, for the children have come to the time of birth, but there is no strength for them to be born.
4 It may be the LORD thy God will hear all 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: therefore lift up thy prayer for the remnant that are left.
It may be that Yahweh your God will hear all the words of the chief commander, whom the king of Assyria his master has sent to defy the living God, and will rebuke the words which Yahweh your God has heard. Now lift up your prayer for the remnant that is still here.'”
5 So the servants of king Hezekiah came to Isaiah.
So the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah,
6 And Isaiah said to them, Thus shall ye say to your master, Thus saith the LORD, Be not afraid of the words which thou hast heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me.
and Isaiah said to them, “Say to your master: 'Yahweh says, “Do not be afraid of the words that you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have insulted me.
7 Behold, I will send a spirit upon him, and he shall hear a rumour, and shall return to his own land; and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.
Look, I will put a spirit in him, and he will hear a certain report and go back to his own land. 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 had departed from Lachish.
Then the chief commander returned and found the king of Assyria fighting against Libnah, for he had heard that the king had gone away from Lachish.
9 And when he heard it said of Tirhakah king of Cush, Behold, he hath come out to fight against thee: he sent messengers again to Hezekiah, saying,
Then Sennacherib heard that Tirhakah king of Cush and Egypt had mobilized to fight against him, so he sent messengers again to Hezekiah with a message:
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 delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria.
“Say to Hezekiah king of Judah, 'Do not let your God in whom you trust deceive you, saying, “Jerusalem will not be given over 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?
See, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands by destroying them completely. So will you be rescued?
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 who were in Thelasar?
Have the gods of the nations rescued them, the nations that my fathers destroyed: Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the people of Eden in Tel Assar?
13 Where is the king of Hamath, and the king of Arpad, and the king of the city of Sepharvaim, of Hena, and Ivah?
Where are the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the cities of Sepharvaim, of Hena, and Ivvah?'”
14 And Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and read it: and Hezekiah went up into the house of the LORD, and spread it before the LORD.
Hezekiah received this letter from the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the house of Yahweh and spread it before him.
15 And Hezekiah prayed before the LORD, and said, O LORD God of Israel, who dwellest between the cherubim, thou art the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; thou hast made heaven and earth.
Then Hezekiah prayed before Yahweh and said, “Yahweh of hosts, God of Israel, you who sit above the cherubim, you are God alone over all the kingdoms of the earth. You made the heavens and the earth.
16 LORD, bow down thy ear, and hear: open, LORD, thy eyes, and see: and hear the words of Sennacherib, who hath sent him to reproach the living God.
Turn your ear, Yahweh, and listen. Open your eyes, Yahweh, and see, and hear the words of Sennacherib, which he has sent to mock the living God.
17 Of a truth, LORD, the kings of Assyria have destroyed the nations and their lands,
Truly, Yahweh, the kings of Assyria have destroyed the nations and their lands.
18 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.
They have put their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but the work of men's hands, just wood and stone. So the Assyrians have destroyed them.
19 Now therefore, O LORD our God, I beseech thee, save thou us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou art the LORD God, even thou only.
Now then, Yahweh our God, save us, I implore you, from his power, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, Yahweh, are God alone.”
20 Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, That which thou hast prayed to me against Sennacherib king of Assyria I have heard.
Then Isaiah son of Amoz sent a message to Hezekiah, saying, “Yahweh, the God of Israel says, 'Because you have prayed to me concerning Sennacherib king of Assyria, I have heard you.
21 This is the word that the LORD hath spoken concerning him; The virgin the daughter of Zion hath despised thee, and mocked thee; the daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee.
This is the word that Yahweh has spoken about him: “The virgin daughter of Zion despises you and laughs you to scorn. The daughter of Jerusalem shakes her head at you.
22 Whom hast thou reproached and blasphemed? and against whom hast thou exalted thy voice, and lifted up thy eyes on high? even against the Holy One of Israel.
Whom have you defied and insulted? Against whom have you exalted your voice and lifted up your eyes in pride? Against the Holy One of Israel!
23 By thy messengers thou hast reproached the Lord, and hast said, With the multitude of my chariots I am come up to the height of the mountains, to the sides of Lebanon, and will cut down its tall cedar trees, and its choice fir trees: and I will enter into the lodgings of his borders, and into the forest of his Carmel.
By your messengers you have defied the Lord, and have said, 'With the multitude of my chariots I have gone up to the heights of the mountains, to the highest elevations of Lebanon. I will cut down the tall cedars and the choice cypress trees there. I will enter into its farthest parts, its most fruitful forest.
24 I have dug and drank strange waters, and with the sole of my feet have I dried up all the rivers of besieged places.
I have dug wells and have drunk foreign waters. I dried up all the rivers of Egypt under the soles of my feet.'
25 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 fortified cities in ruinous heaps.
Have you not heard how I determined it long ago, and worked it out in ancient times? Now I am bringing it to pass. You are here to reduce impregnable cities into heaps of ruins.
26 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 grain blighted before it is grown up.
Their inhabitants, of little strength, are shattered and ashamed. They are plants in the field, green grass, the grass on the roof or in the field, burned before it has grown up.
27 But I know thy abode, and thy going out, and thy coming in, and thy rage against me.
But I know your sitting down, your going out, your coming in, and your raging against me.
28 Because thy rage against me and thy tumult is come up into my ears, therefore I will 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.
Because of your raging against me, and because your arrogance has reached my ears, I will put my hook in your nose, and my bit in your mouth; I will turn you back the way you came.”
29 And this shall be a sign to thee, Ye shall eat this year such things as grow of themselves, and in the second year that which springeth of the same; and in the third year sow ye, and reap, and plant vineyards, and eat the fruits of it.
This will be the sign for you: This year you will eat what grows wild, and in the second year what grows from that. But in the third year you must plant and harvest, plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
30 And the remnant that hath escaped of the house of Judah shall yet again take root downward, and bear fruit upward.
The remnant of the house of Judah that survives will again take root and bear fruit.
31 For out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and they that escape from mount Zion: the zeal of the LORD of hosts shall do this.
For from Jerusalem a remnant will come out, from Mount Zion survivors will come. The zeal of Yahweh of hosts will do this.
32 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 shield, nor cast a bank against it.
Therefore Yahweh says this about the king of Assyria: “He will not come into this city nor shoot an arrow here. Neither will he come before it with shield or build up a siege ramp against it.
33 By the way that he came, by the same shall he return, and shall not come into this city, saith the LORD.
The way by which he came will be the same way he will leave; he will not enter this city— this is Yahweh's declaration.”
34 For I will defend this city, to save it, for my own sake, and for my servant David’s sake.
For I will defend this city and rescue it, for my own sake and for my servant David's sake.'”
35 And it came to pass that night, that the angel of the LORD went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred and eighty and five thousand: and when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead bodies.
It came about that night that the angel of Yahweh went out and attacked the camp of the Assyrians, putting to death 185,000 soldiers. When the men arose early in the morning, dead bodies lay everywhere.
36 So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, and went and returned, and dwelt at Nineveh.
So Sennacherib king of Assyria left Israel and went home and stayed in Nineveh.
37 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.
Later, as he was worshiping in the house of Nisrok his god, his sons Adrammelek and Sharezer killed him with the sword. Then they escaped into the land of Ararat. Then Esarhaddon his son became king in his place.
