And awhen King Hezekiah
heard
it, he tore
his clothes
, covered
himself with sackcloth
and entered
the house
of the LORD
.
Then he sent aEliakim
who
was over
the household
with bShebna
the scribe
and the elders
of the priests
, covered
with sackcloth
, to cIsaiah
the prophet
, the son
of Amoz
.
They said to him, "Thus
says
Hezekiah
, `This
day
is a aday
of distress
, rebuke
and rejection
; for bchildren
have come
to birth
, and there
is no
strength
to 1deliver
.
`Perhaps the LORD
your God
will hear
the words
of Rabshakeh
, whom
his master
the king
of Assyria
has sent
to areproach
the living
God
, and will rebuke
the words
which
the LORD
your God
has heard
. Therefore, offer
a prayer
for bthe remnant
that is left
.' "
So the servants of King
Hezekiah
came
to Isaiah
.
Isaiah said
to them, "Thus
you shall say
to your master
, `Thus
says
the LORD
, " aDo not be afraid
because
of the words
that you have heard
, with which
the servants
of the king
of Assyria
have blasphemed
Me.
"Behold, I will put
a spirit
in him so that he will ahear
a rumor
and breturn
to his own land
. And I will make him fall
by the sword
in his own land
.""'
Then Rabshakeh returned
and found
the king of Assyria
fighting
against
aLibnah
, for he had heard
that 1the king had left
bLachish
.
When he aheard them say
concerning
Tirhakah
king
of 1 bCush
, "He has come
out to fight
against
you," and when he heard
it he sent
messengers
to Hezekiah
, saying
,
"Thus you shall say
to Hezekiah
king
of 1Judah
, ` aDo not let your God
in whom
you trust
deceive
you, saying
, "Jerusalem
will not be given
into the hand
of the king
of Assyria
."
` aBehold, you have heard
what
the kings
of Assyria
have done
to all
the lands
, destroying
them completely
. So will you be 1spared
?
`Did the gods of 1those nations
which
my fathers
have destroyed
deliver
them, even aGozan
and bHaran
and Rezeph
and the sons
of Eden
who
were in Telassar
?
`Where is the king
of Hamath
, the king
of Arpad
, the king
of the city
of Sepharvaim
, and of Hena
and Ivvah
?' "
Then Hezekiah took
the 1letter
from the hand
of the messengers
and read
it, and he went
up to the house
of the LORD
and 2spread
it out before
the LORD
.
Hezekiah prayed
to the LORD
saying
,
"O LORD of hosts
, the God
of Israel
, awho is enthroned
above the cherubim
, You are the bGod
, You alone
, of all
the kingdoms
of the earth
. cYou have made
heaven
and earth
.
" aIncline Your ear
, O LORD
, and hear
; open
Your eyes
, O LORD
, and see
; and blisten
to all
the words
of Sennacherib
, who sent
them to creproach
the living
God
.
"Truly, O LORD
, the akings
of Assyria
have devastated
all
the countries
and their lands
,
and have cast their gods
into the fire
, for they were not gods
but the awork
of men's
hands
, wood
and stone
. So they have bdestroyed
them.
"Now, O LORD
our God
, adeliver
us from his hand
that ball
the kingdoms
of the earth
may know
that You alone
, LORD
, 1are God
."
Then aIsaiah the son
of Amoz
sent
word to Hezekiah
, saying
, "Thus
says
the LORD
, the God
of Israel
, `Because
you have prayed
to Me about
Sennacherib
king
of Assyria
,
this is the word
that the LORD
has spoken
against
him: "She has despised
you and mocked
you, The avirgin
bdaughter
of Zion
; She has cshaken
her head
behind
you, The daughter
of Jerusalem
!
"Whom have you areproached
and blasphemed
? And against
whom
have you raised
your voice
And 1haughtily
blifted
up your eyes
? Against
the cHoly
One
of Israel
!
"Through your servants
you have reproached
the Lord
, And you have said
, `With my many
chariots
I came
up to the heights
of the mountains
, To the remotest
parts
of aLebanon
; And I cut
down
its tall
bcedars
and its choice
cypresses
. And I will go
to its 1highest
peak
, its thickest
cforest
.
`I dug wells and drank
waters
, And awith the sole
of my feet
I dried
up All
the rivers
of 1Egypt
.'
" aHave you not heard? Long
ago
I did
it, From ancient
times
I bplanned
it. Now
cI have brought
it to pass
, That dyou should turn
fortified
cities
into eruinous
heaps
.
"Therefore their inhabitants were short
of strength
, They were dismayed
and put
to shame
; They were as the avegetation
of the field
and as the green
herb
, As bgrass
on the housetops
1is scorched
before
it is grown
up.
"But I aknow your sitting
down
And your going
out and your coming
in And your raging
against
Me.
"Because of your raging
against
Me And because your 1 aarrogance
has come
up to My ears
, Therefore I will put
My bhook
in your nose
And My cbridle
in your lips
, And I will turn
you back
dby the way
which
you came
.
"Then this shall be the sign
for you: 1you will eat
this year
what
agrows
of itself, in the second
year
what
springs
from the same, and in the third
year
sow
, reap
, plant
vineyards
and eat
their fruit
.
"The asurviving bremnant
of the house
of Judah
will again
ctake root
downward
and bear
fruit
upward
.
"For out of Jerusalem will go
forth
a aremnant
and out of Mount
Zion
1survivors
. The bzeal
of the LORD
of hosts
will perform
this
."'
"Therefore, thus
says
the LORD
concerning
the king
of Assyria
, `He will not come
to this
city
or shoot
an arrow
there
; and he will not come
before
it with a shield
, or
throw
up a asiege
ramp
against
it.
` aBy the way that he came
, by the same he will return
, and he will not come
to this
city
,' declares
the LORD
.
`For I will adefend this
city
to save
it bfor My own sake
and for My servant
David's
sake
.' "
Then the aangel of the LORD
went
out and struck
185,000
in the camp
of the Assyrians
; and when 1men arose
early
in the morning
, behold
, all
of these were 2dead
.
So Sennacherib king
of Assyria
departed
and 1returned
home and lived
at aNineveh
.
It came about as he was worshiping
in the house
of Nisroch
his god
, that Adrammelech
and Sharezer
his sons
killed
him with the sword
; and they escaped
into the land
of aArarat
. And bEsarhaddon
his son
became
king
in his place
.