Isa 37 | ABEn | STEP | And it came to pass in [ 3 hearing 1 king 2 Hezekiah], that he split his garments, and put on sackcloth, and ascended unto the house of the lord .

‏ Isaiah 37

CHAPTER 37 Hezekiah Inquires of The LORD

1 And it came to pass in [³hearing ¹king ²Hezekiah], that he split his garments, and put on sackcloth, and ascended unto the house of the lord. 2 And he sent Eliakim the manager, and Shebna the scribe (with the elders of the priests putting on sackcloths) to Isaiah son of Amoz the prophet. 3 And they said to him, Thus says Hezekiah, A day of affliction, and scorning, and rebuke, and anger is today's day. For [⁴come ¹the ²pangs ³of giving birth], [⁴strength ¹but ²she does not ³have] to give birth. 4 If by any means [³may listen to ¹the lord ²your God] the words of Rabshakeh, whom [⁴sent ²the king ³of the Assyrians ¹his master] to berate [²God ¹the living], and to berate by the words which [³heard ¹the lord ²your God], therefore you shall make beseechment to the lord your God concerning these being left. 5 And [⁵came ¹the ²servants ³of king ⁴Hezekiah] to Isaiah. 6 And [²said ³to them ¹Isaiah], Thus you shall say to your master, Thus says the lord, You should not be fearful of the words which you heard, which [⁵berated ⁶me ¹the ²ambassadors ³of the king ⁴of the Assyrians]. 7 Behold, I shall put upon him a spirit, and hearing a message he shall return unto his place, and he shall fall by the sword in his land. 8 And Rabshakeh returned, and overtook the king of the Assyrians while assaulting Libna, for he heard that he departed from Lachish. 9 And there came forth Tirhakah king of the Ethiopians to assault him; and hearing he returned and sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying, 10 Thus you shall say to Hezekiah king of Judea, Let not [²deceive ³you ¹your God]! upon whom you rely upon him, saying, In no way shall Jerusalem be delivered up into the hand of the king of the Assyrians. 11 Behold, have you not heard what [³did ¹the kings ²of the Assyrians], [³the whole ⁴earth ¹how ²they destroyed]? and shall you be rescued? 12 Have [⁵rescued ⁶them ¹the ²gods ³of the ⁴nations] whom [²destroyed ¹my fathers], both Gozan, and Haran, and Rezeph, which are in the place of Telassar? 13 Where are the kings of Hamath? and where is Arphad? and where is the city Sepharvaim, Henah and Ivah?

The Prayer of Hezekiah

14 And Hezekiah took the scroll from the messengers, and read it. And he ascended into the house of the lord, and opened it before the lord. 15 And Hezekiah prayed to the lord, saying, 16 O lord of Hosts, God of Israel, the one sitting upon the cherubim. You are God alone of every kingdom of the world. You made the heaven and the earth. 17 Lean, O lord, your ear! Hearken, O lord! Open, O lord, your eyes! Look in, O lord, and know and hear all the words of Sennacherib! which he sent to berate [²God ¹the living]. 18 [²in ³truth ¹For], O lord, [³made desolate ¹the kings ²of the Assyrians] the [²inhabitable world ¹entire], and their region. 19 And they raised their idols unto the fire, [³not ¹for ⁴gods ²they were], but works of the hands of men, wood and stones -- and they destroyed them. 20 But now, O lord our God, deliver us from out of his hand! that [⁵should know ¹every ²kingdom ³of the ⁴earth] that you are God alone. 21 And [⁴was sent ¹Isaiah ²son ³of Amoz] to Hezekiah. And he said to him, Thus says the lord God of Israel, I heard what you prayed to me concerning Sennacherib king of the Assyrians. 22 This is the word which [²spoke ³concerning ⁴him ¹God]; [⁴treated you as worthless ⁵and ⁶sneered at ⁷you ¹The virgin ²daughter ³of Zion]; [⁵against ⁶you ⁴her head ³shook ¹the daughter ²of Jerusalem]. 23 Whom did you berate and provoke? or, to whom did you raise up high your voice and lift [²unto ³the height ¹your eyes] against the holy one of Israel? 24 For through messengers you berated the lord. For you said, With the multitude of chariots I shall ascend unto the height of mountains, and into the ends of Lebanon; and I felled the height of its cedar, and the beauty of the cypress; and I entered unto the height of the portion of the forest; 25 and I made a dam, and made desolate the waters and every gathering of water. 26 Have you not heard these things [⁴earlier ¹which ²I ³did]? From [²days ¹ancient] I ordered it. But now I displayed to make [⁴desolate ¹nations ²in ³fortified places], and the ones living in [²cities ¹fortified]. 27 I weakened the hands, and they were dried up; and they became as [²grass ¹dry] upon the roofs, and as wild grass. 28 But now [³your rest ⁴and ⁵your exit ⁶and ⁷your entrance ¹I ²know], 29 and your rage which you were enraged. And your bitterness ascended to me. And I will put a rein into your nose, and a bit into your lips, and I will return you in the way in which you came by it. 30 And this [³to you ¹is the ²sign], Eat this year what you have sown; and the [²year ¹second] the vestige left; and the third year, sow, and reap, and plant vineyards, and eat of their fruit! 31 And they shall be the ones being left behind in Judea. They shall germinate a root below, and they shall produce grain upward. 32 For from out of Jerusalem shall come forth the ones surviving, and the ones being preserved from out of mount Zion. The zeal of the lord of Hosts shall do these things.

The Angel Slays the Assyrians

33 Therefore thus says the lord concerning the king of the Assyrians, In no way shall he enter into this city, nor throw [²against ³it ¹an arrow], nor shall he put [²against ³it ¹a shield], nor shall he encircle [²against ³it ¹a siege mound]. 34 But in the way in which he came by it, he shall return; and [³into ⁴this city ¹in no way ²shall he enter]. Thus says the lord. 35 I will shield over this city to deliver it, because of myself and because of David my servant. 36 And [³came forth ¹an angel ²of the lord], and he did away with the camp of the Assyrians -- a hundred eighty-five thousand. And rising up in the morning he found all the [²bodies ¹dead]. 37 And he went forth returning. And [⁴returned ¹Sennacherib ²king ³of the Assyrians], and lived in Nineveh. 38 And while he did obeisance in the house of Nisroch his god, Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons struck him with swords; and they came through safe into Armenia. And [³took reign ¹Esar-haddon ²his son] instead of him.