2 Kings 18-20
New King James Version
Hezekiah Reigns in Judah(A)
18 Now it came to pass in the third year of (B)Hoshea the son of Elah, king of Israel, that (C)Hezekiah the son of Ahaz, king of Judah, began to reign. 2 He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was (D)Abi[a] the daughter of Zechariah. 3 And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father David had done.
4 (E)He removed the [b]high places and broke the sacred pillars, cut down the [c]wooden image and broke in pieces the (F)bronze serpent that Moses had made; for until those days the children of Israel burned incense to it, and called it [d]Nehushtan. 5 He (G)trusted in the Lord God of Israel, (H)so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor who were before him. 6 For he (I)held fast to the Lord; he did not depart from following Him, but kept His commandments, which the Lord had commanded Moses. 7 The Lord (J)was with him; he (K)prospered wherever he went. And he (L)rebelled against the king of Assyria and did not serve him. 8 (M)He [e]subdued the Philistines, as far as Gaza and its territory, (N)from watchtower to fortified city.
9 Now (O)it came to pass in the fourth year of King Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Hoshea the son of Elah, king of Israel, that Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up against Samaria and besieged it. 10 And at the end of three years they took it. In the sixth year of Hezekiah, that is, (P)the ninth year of Hoshea king of Israel, Samaria was taken. 11 (Q)Then the king of Assyria carried Israel away captive to Assyria, and put them (R)in Halah and by the Habor, the River of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes, 12 because they (S)did not obey the voice of the Lord their God, but transgressed His covenant and all that Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded; and they would neither hear nor do them.
13 And (T)in the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them. 14 Then Hezekiah king of Judah sent to the king of Assyria at Lachish, saying, “I have done wrong; turn away from me; whatever you impose on me I will pay.” And the king of Assyria assessed Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold. 15 So Hezekiah (U)gave him all the silver that was found in the house of the Lord and in the treasuries of the king’s house. 16 At that time Hezekiah stripped the gold from the doors of the temple of the Lord, and from the pillars which Hezekiah king of Judah had overlaid, and gave [f]it to the king of Assyria.
Sennacherib Boasts Against the Lord(V)
17 Then the king of Assyria sent the [g]Tartan, the [h]Rabsaris, and the [i]Rabshakeh from Lachish, with a great army against Jerusalem, to King Hezekiah. And they went up and came to Jerusalem. When they had come up, they went and stood by the (W)aqueduct from the upper pool, (X)which was on the highway to the Fuller’s Field. 18 And when they had called to the king, (Y)Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, Shebna the [j]scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph, the recorder, came out to them. 19 Then the Rabshakeh said to them, “Say now to Hezekiah, ‘Thus says the great king, the king of Assyria: (Z)“What confidence is this in which you trust? 20 You speak of having plans and power for war; but they are [k]mere words. And in whom do you trust, that you rebel against me? 21 (AA)Now look! You are trusting in the staff of this broken reed, Egypt, on which if a man leans, it will go into his hand and pierce it. So is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust in him. 22 But if you say to me, ‘We trust in the Lord our God,’ is it not He (AB)whose [l]high places and whose altars Hezekiah has taken away, and said to Judah and Jerusalem, ‘You shall worship before this altar in Jerusalem’?” ’ 23 Now therefore, I urge you, give a pledge to my master the king of Assyria, and I will give you two thousand horses—if you are able on your part to put riders on them! 24 How then will you repel one captain of the least of my master’s servants, and put your trust in Egypt for chariots and horsemen? 25 Have I now come up without the Lord against this place to destroy it? The Lord said to me, ‘Go up against this land, and destroy it.’ ”
26 (AC)Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, Shebna, and Joah said to the Rabshakeh, “Please speak to your servants in (AD)Aramaic, for we understand it; and do not speak to us in [m]Hebrew in the hearing of the people who are on the wall.”
27 But the Rabshakeh said to them, “Has my master sent me to your master and to you to speak these words, and not to the men who sit on the wall, who will eat and drink their own waste with you?”
28 Then the Rabshakeh stood and called out with a loud voice in [n]Hebrew, and spoke, saying, “Hear the word of the great king, the king of Assyria! 29 Thus says the king: (AE)‘Do not let Hezekiah deceive you, for he shall not be able to deliver you from his hand; 30 nor let Hezekiah make you trust in the Lord, saying, “The Lord will surely deliver us; this city shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.” ’ 31 Do not listen to Hezekiah; for thus says the king of Assyria: ‘Make peace with me [o]by a present and come out to me; and every one of you eat from his own (AF)vine and every one from his own fig tree, and every one of you drink the waters of his own cistern; 32 until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, (AG)a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive groves and honey, that you may live and not die. But do not listen to Hezekiah, lest he persuade you, saying, “The Lord will deliver us.” 33 (AH)Has any of the gods of the nations at all delivered its land from the hand of the king of Assyria? 34 Where are the gods of (AI)Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim and Hena and (AJ)Ivah? Indeed, have they delivered Samaria from my hand? 35 Who among all the gods of the lands have delivered their countries from my hand, (AK)that the Lord should deliver Jerusalem from my hand?’ ”
36 But the people held their peace and answered him not a word; for the king’s commandment was, “Do not answer him.” 37 Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph, the recorder, came to Hezekiah (AL)with their clothes torn, and told him the words of the Rabshakeh.
Isaiah Assures Deliverance(AM)
19 And (AN)so it was, when King Hezekiah heard it, that he tore his clothes, covered himself with (AO)sackcloth, and went into the house of the Lord. 2 Then he sent Eliakim, who was over the household, Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz. 3 And they said to him, “Thus says Hezekiah: ‘This day is a day of trouble, and rebuke, and blasphemy; for the children have come to birth, but there is no strength to [p]bring them forth. 4 (AP)It may be that the Lord your God will hear all the words of the Rabshakeh, whom his master the king of Assyria has sent to (AQ)reproach the living God, and will (AR)rebuke the words which the Lord your God has heard. Therefore lift up your prayer for the remnant that is left.’ ”
5 So the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah. 6 (AS)And Isaiah said to them, “Thus you shall say to your master, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Do not be (AT)afraid of the words which you have heard, with which the (AU)servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed Me. 7 Surely I will send (AV)a spirit upon him, and he shall hear a rumor and return to his own land; and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.” ’ ”
Sennacherib’s Threat and Hezekiah’s Prayer(AW)
8 Then the Rabshakeh returned and found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah, for he heard that he had departed (AX)from Lachish. 9 And (AY)the king heard concerning Tirhakah king of Ethiopia, “Look, he has come out to make war with you.” So he again sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying, 10 “Thus you shall speak to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying: ‘Do not let your God (AZ)in whom you trust deceive you, saying, “Jerusalem shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.” 11 Look! You have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands by utterly destroying them; and shall you be delivered? 12 (BA)Have the gods of the nations delivered those whom my fathers have destroyed, Gozan and Haran and Rezeph, and the people of (BB)Eden who were in Telassar? 13 (BC)Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, and the king of the city of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivah?’ ”
14 (BD)And Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and read it; and Hezekiah went up to the house of the Lord, and spread it before the Lord. 15 Then Hezekiah prayed before the Lord, and said: “O Lord God of Israel, the One (BE)who dwells between the cherubim, (BF)You are God, You alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. 16 (BG)Incline Your ear, O Lord, and hear; (BH)open Your eyes, O Lord, and see; and hear the words of Sennacherib, (BI)which he has sent to reproach the living God. 17 Truly, Lord, the kings of Assyria have laid waste the nations and their lands, 18 and have cast their gods into the fire; for they were (BJ)not gods, but (BK)the work of men’s hands—wood and stone. Therefore they destroyed them. 19 Now therefore, O Lord our God, I pray, save us from his hand, (BL)that all the kingdoms of the earth may (BM)know that You are the Lord God, You alone.”
The Word of the Lord Concerning Sennacherib(BN)
20 Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying, “Thus says the Lord God of Israel: (BO)‘Because you have prayed to Me against Sennacherib king of Assyria, (BP)I have heard.’ 21 This is the word which the Lord has spoken concerning him:
‘The virgin, (BQ)the daughter of Zion,
Has despised you, laughed you to scorn;
The daughter of Jerusalem
(BR)Has shaken her head behind your back!
22 ‘Whom have you reproached and blasphemed?
Against whom have you raised your voice,
And lifted up your eyes on high?
Against (BS)the Holy One of Israel.
23 (BT)By your messengers you have reproached the Lord,
And said: (BU)“By the multitude of my chariots
I have come up to the height of the mountains,
To the limits of Lebanon;
I will cut down its tall cedars
And its choice cypress trees;
I will enter the extremity of its borders,
To its fruitful forest.
24 I have dug and drunk strange water,
And with the soles of my feet I have (BV)dried up
All the brooks of defense.”
25 ‘Did you not hear long ago
How (BW)I made it,
From ancient times that I formed it?
Now I have brought it to pass,
That (BX)you should be
For crushing fortified cities into heaps of ruins.
26 Therefore their inhabitants had little power;
They were dismayed and confounded;
They were as the grass of the field
And the green herb,
As (BY)the grass on the housetops
And grain blighted before it is grown.
27 ‘But (BZ)I know your dwelling place,
Your going out and your coming in,
And your rage against Me.
28 Because your rage against Me and your tumult
Have come up to My ears,
Therefore (CA)I will put My hook in your nose
And My bridle in your lips,
And I will turn you back
(CB)By the way which you came.
29 ‘This shall be a (CC)sign to you:
‘You shall eat this year such as grows [q]of itself,
And in the second year what springs from the same;
Also in the third year sow and reap,
Plant vineyards and eat the fruit of them.
30 (CD)And the remnant who have escaped of the house of Judah
Shall again take root downward,
And bear fruit upward.
31 For out of Jerusalem shall go a remnant,
And those who escape from Mount Zion.
(CE)The zeal of the Lord [r]of hosts will do this.’
32 “Therefore thus says the Lord concerning the king of Assyria:
‘He shall (CF)not come into this city,
Nor shoot an arrow there,
Nor come before it with shield,
Nor build a siege mound against it.
33 By the way that he came,
By the same shall he return;
And he shall not come into this city,’
Says the Lord.
34 ‘For (CG)I will (CH)defend this city, to save it
For My own sake and (CI)for My servant David’s sake.’ ”
Sennacherib’s Defeat and Death(CJ)
35 And (CK)it came to pass on a certain night that the [s]angel of the Lord went out, and killed in the camp of the Assyrians one hundred and eighty-five thousand; and when people arose early in the morning, there were the corpses—all dead. 36 So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed and went away, returned home, and remained at (CL)Nineveh. 37 Now it came to pass, as he was worshiping in the temple of Nisroch his god, that his sons (CM)Adrammelech and Sharezer (CN)struck him down with the sword; and they escaped into the land of Ararat. Then (CO)Esarhaddon his son reigned in his place.
Hezekiah’s Life Extended(CP)
20 In (CQ)those days Hezekiah was sick and near death. And Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, went to him and said to him, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Set your house in order, for you shall die, and not live.’ ”
2 Then he turned his face toward the wall, and prayed to the Lord, saying, 3 (CR)“Remember now, O Lord, I pray, how I have walked before You in truth and with a loyal heart, and have done what was good in Your sight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.
4 And it happened, before Isaiah had gone out into the middle court, that the word of the Lord came to him, saying, 5 “Return and tell Hezekiah (CS)the leader of My people, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: (CT)“I have heard your prayer, I have seen (CU)your tears; surely I will heal you. On the third day you shall go up to the house of the Lord. 6 And I will add to your days fifteen years. I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria; and (CV)I will defend this city for My own sake, and for the sake of My servant David.” ’ ”
7 Then (CW)Isaiah said, “Take a lump of figs.” So they took and laid it on the boil, and he recovered.
8 And Hezekiah said to Isaiah, (CX)“What is the sign that the Lord will heal me, and that I shall go up to the house of the Lord the third day?”
9 Then Isaiah said, (CY)“This is the sign to you from the Lord, that the Lord will do the thing which He has spoken: shall the shadow go forward ten degrees or go backward ten degrees?”
10 And Hezekiah answered, “It is an easy thing for the shadow to go down ten [t]degrees; no, but let the shadow go backward ten degrees.”
11 So Isaiah the prophet cried out to the Lord, and (CZ)He brought the shadow ten [u]degrees backward, by which it had gone down on the sundial of Ahaz.
The Babylonian Envoys(DA)
12 (DB)At that time [v]Berodach-Baladan the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present to Hezekiah, for he heard that Hezekiah had been sick. 13 And (DC)Hezekiah was attentive to them, and showed them all the house of his treasures—the silver and gold, the spices and precious ointment, and [w]all [x]his armory—all that was found among his treasures. There was nothing in his house or in all his dominion that Hezekiah did not show them.
14 Then Isaiah the prophet went to King Hezekiah, and said to him, “What did these men say, and from where did they come to you?”
So Hezekiah said, “They came from a far country, from Babylon.”
15 And he said, “What have they seen in your house?”
So Hezekiah answered, (DD)“They have seen all that is in my house; there is nothing among my treasures that I have not shown them.”
16 Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Hear the word of the Lord: 17 ‘Behold, the days are coming when all that is in your house, and what your fathers have accumulated until this day, (DE)shall be carried to Babylon; nothing shall be left,’ says the Lord. 18 ‘And (DF)they shall take away some of your sons who will [y]descend from you, whom you will beget; (DG)and they shall be (DH)eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.’ ”
19 So Hezekiah said to Isaiah, (DI)“The word of the Lord which you have spoken is good!” For he said, “Will there not be peace and truth at least in my days?”
Death of Hezekiah(DJ)
20 (DK)Now the rest of the acts of Hezekiah—all his might, and how he (DL)made a (DM)pool and a [z]tunnel and (DN)brought water into the city—are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 21 So (DO)Hezekiah [aa]rested with his fathers. Then Manasseh his son reigned in his place.
Footnotes
- 2 Kings 18:2 Abijah, 2 Chr. 29:1ff.
- 2 Kings 18:4 Places for pagan worship
- 2 Kings 18:4 Heb. Asherah, a Canaanite goddess
- 2 Kings 18:4 Lit. Bronze Thing, also similar to Heb. nahash, serpent
- 2 Kings 18:8 Lit. struck
- 2 Kings 18:16 Lit. them
- 2 Kings 18:17 A title, probably Commander in Chief
- 2 Kings 18:17 A title, probably Chief Officer
- 2 Kings 18:17 A title, probably Chief of Staff or Governor
- 2 Kings 18:18 secretary
- 2 Kings 18:20 Lit. a word of the lips
- 2 Kings 18:22 Places for pagan worship
- 2 Kings 18:26 Lit. Judean
- 2 Kings 18:28 Lit. Judean
- 2 Kings 18:31 By paying tribute
- 2 Kings 19:3 give birth
- 2 Kings 19:29 Without cultivation
- 2 Kings 19:31 So with many Heb. mss. and ancient vss. (cf. Is. 37:32); MT omits of hosts
- 2 Kings 19:35 Or Angel
- 2 Kings 20:10 Lit. steps
- 2 Kings 20:11 Lit. steps
- 2 Kings 20:12 Merodach-Baladan, Is. 39:1
- 2 Kings 20:13 So with many Heb. mss., Syr., Tg.; MT omits all
- 2 Kings 20:13 Lit. the house of his armor
- 2 Kings 20:18 be born from
- 2 Kings 20:20 aqueduct
- 2 Kings 20:21 Died and joined his ancestors
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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