2 Kings · Chapter 19

V. 1. Rent his cloaths, &c.-Great men must not think it any disparagement to them, to sympathize with the injured honour of the great God.

Verse 1. When Hezekiah heard it, he rent his clothes — Good men were wont to do so, when they heard of any reproach cast on God’s name; and great men must not think it any disparagement to them to sympathize with the injured honour of the great God.

HEZEKIAH’S GRIEF AND MESSAGE TO ISAIAH, 1-5.

1. Rent his clothes, and covered himself with sackcloth — Customary signs of deep distress and grief. Went into the house of the Lord — For it was supposed that Jehovah’s eyes were upon that place night and day. Compare verse 14 and 1 Kings 8:29.

Verse 2. To Isaiah the prophet] His fame and influence were at this time great in Israel; and it was well known that the word of the Lord was with him. Here both the Church and the state unite in fervent application to, and strong dependence upon, God; and behold how they succeed!

2. Sent Eliakim… and Shebna — Two of the same officers who had heard Rab-shakeh’s speech, and could give an exact report. But in place of Joah, the recorder, he sends the elders of the priests, that is, the heads of the priestly families, who from their age and office would give weight to the message. To Isaiah — Who as the prophet of Jehovah was regarded as an authorized expounder of the Divine will.

V. 3. The children-We are like a poor travailing woman in great extremity, having no strength left to help herself, and to bring forth her infant into the world. We have attempted to deliver ourselves from the Assyrian yoke; and had carried on that work to some maturity, and as we thought, brought it to the birth; but now we have no might to finish. We have begun an happy reformation, and are hindered by this insolent Assyrian, from bringing it to perfection.

Verse 3. The children are come to the birth] The Jewish state is here represented under the emblem of a woman in travail, who has been so long in the pangs of parturition, that her strength is now entirely exhausted, and her deliverance is hopeless, without a miracle. The image is very fine and highly appropriate.

A similar image is employed by Homer, when he represents the agonies which Agamemnon suffers from his wound:—

Ofra oi aimJ eti qermon anhnoqen ex wteilhv,

Lutar epei to men elkov eterseto pausato dJ aima,

Oxeiai odunai dunon menov Atreidao,

Wv dJ otan wdinousan ech belov oxu gunaika,

Drimu, to te proeisi mogostokoi Eileiquiai

JHrhv qugaterev pik rav wdinav ecousai,

JWv oxeiJ odunai dunon menov Atreidao.

Il. xi., ver. 266.

This, while yet warm, distill’d the purple flood;

But when the wound grew stiff with clotted blood,

Then grinding tortures his strong bosom rend.

Less keen those darts the fierce Ilythiæ send,

The powers that cause the teeming matron’s throes,

Sad mothers of unutterable woes.

POPE.

Better translated by Macpherson; but in neither well: “So long as from the gaping wound gushed forth, in its warmth, the blood; but when the wound became dry, when ceased the blood to flow amain, sharp pains pervade the strength of Atrides. Racking pangs glide through his frame; as when the Ilythiæ, who preside over births, the daughters of white armed Juno, fierce dealers of bitter pains, throw all their darts on hapless women, that travail with child. Such pains pervade the strength of Atrides.”

Verse 3. This is a day of rebuke and blasphemy — From the Assyrian, who reviles and reproaches us. For the children, &c. — We are like a poor travailing woman in great extremity, having no strength left to help herself, and to bring forth her infant into the world. We have attempted to deliver ourselves from the Assyrian yoke, and carried on that work to some maturity, and, as we thought, brought it to the birth; but now we have no might to finish. We have begun a happy reformation, and are hindered by this insolent Assyrian from bringing it to perfection.

3. A day of trouble — Better, a day of anguish, or, of deep distress. Rebuke — Hezekiah recognised in his affliction a Divine reproval and chastisement. Blasphemy — A reference to the contempt with which Rab-shakeh had treated the God of Israel; a day when such blasphemy abounds, or goes unpunished. Others render hxan rejection, or disdain, and understand it of contemptuous treatment and rejection of Judah on the part of God. The word is capable of either sense. Not strength to bring forth — “The proverb is taken from the crisis in childbearing, where the child is in the midst of the birth, but the strength of the mother fails on account of the continuous pains, so that she and the child are both in danger. Clericus, therefore, interprets it of the situation of those in great peril, who know what they must do in order to escape, but who feel that it is beyond their power to take the necessary measures, and who fear that, if they should make the attempt, all would be lost.” — Bahr.

V. 4. For the remnant-For Judah, which is but a remnant, now the ten tribes are gone: for Jerusalem, which is but a remnant, now the defenced cities of Judah are taken.

Verse 4. The remnant that are left] That is, the Jews; the ten tribes having been already carried away captive by the kings of Assyria.

Verse 4. It may be, &c. — He speaks doubtfully, because he knew not whether God would not deliver them all up into the hands of the Assyrians, as he knew he and his people deserved. That the Lord thy God — To whom thou art dear and precious, and who will regard thy petitions: will hear all the words of Rab-shakeh — Will show by his actions that he hath heard them with just indignation. Hezekiah does not say our God, because God seemed to have forsaken and rejected them; and they, by their sins, had forfeited all their interest in him. And will reprove the words — Or rather, will reprove him for the words, as the Syriac, Arabic, and Chaldee render it. Wherefore lift up thy prayer for the remnant — For Judah, which is but a remnant, now the ten tribes are gone: for Jerusalem, which is but a remnant, now the defenced cities of Judah are taken.

4. The remnant that are left — Jerusalem and its besieged inhabitants. The word rendered left is better rendered found. The thought is, the remnant that are still to be found, those still in existence.

HEZEKIAH’S GRIEF AND MESSAGE TO ISAIAH, 1-5.

1. Rent his clothes, and covered himself with sackcloth — Customary signs of deep distress and grief. Went into the house of the Lord — For it was supposed that Jehovah’s eyes were upon that place night and day. Compare verse 14 and 1 Kings 8:29.

ISAIAH’S REPLY, 6, 7.

7. I will send a blast upon him — The translators here evidently meant by blast some destructive plague or pestilence. The Hebrew is, literally, Behold, I put in him a spirit. Some understand by spirit the destroying angel mentioned in verse 35, but it is better to understand it of a Divine impulse that is to seize him, and hurry him blindly on, so that as soon as he hears a certain rumour of approaching hosts, he will hasten a retreat to his own land, namely, Assyria. The rumour, here mentioned seems most naturally to refer to the report of the approach of the king of Ethiopia to fight against him. Verse 9. Others understand it of the report of the destruction of his army by the angel of the Lord; but it does not appear from verse 35 that he was absent from his army when the destroying angel smote it. We take it that when the rumour of Tirhakah’s approach reached him, he was seized with sudden alarm. He first sends Rab-shakeh to demand again the surrender of Jerusalem, hoping, in case of its surrender, to be able to resist the forces of Egypt. But meantime Jerusalem disdains an answer, the angel suddenly smites his army, and under the impulse of a spirit of alarm and terror he returns to Nineveh. Fall by the sword — See the fulfilment of this prediction recorded in verse 37.

Verse 7. Behold, I will send a blast-and he shall hear a rumour] The rumour was, that Tirhakah had invaded Assyria. The blast was that which slew one hundred and eighty-five thousand of them in one night, see 2 Kings 19:35.

Cause him to fall by the sword] Alluding to his death by the hands of his two sons, at Nineveh. See 2 Kings 19:35-37.

Verse 7. I will send a blast upon him — Hebrew, a wind, a storm or tempest, by which name God’s judgments are often called: that is, a violent, sudden, and terrible stroke; namely, that miraculous destruction of his army, recorded verse 35.

Verse 7. I will send a blast, not the simoon or hot wind, very sulphurous and destructive, as in Berosus, but the immediate visitation of an angel, as when the firstborn of the Egyptians were all slain, and the Israelites spared. Scoffing at religion is often among the last revolts allowed to the wicked. 2 Chronicles 32.

ISAIAH’S REPLY, 6, 7.

7. I will send a blast upon him — The translators here evidently meant by blast some destructive plague or pestilence. The Hebrew is, literally, Behold, I put in him a spirit. Some understand by spirit the destroying angel mentioned in verse 35, but it is better to understand it of a Divine impulse that is to seize him, and hurry him blindly on, so that as soon as he hears a certain rumour of approaching hosts, he will hasten a retreat to his own land, namely, Assyria. The rumour, here mentioned seems most naturally to refer to the report of the approach of the king of Ethiopia to fight against him. Verse 9. Others understand it of the report of the destruction of his army by the angel of the Lord; but it does not appear from verse 35 that he was absent from his army when the destroying angel smote it. We take it that when the rumour of Tirhakah’s approach reached him, he was seized with sudden alarm. He first sends Rab-shakeh to demand again the surrender of Jerusalem, hoping, in case of its surrender, to be able to resist the forces of Egypt. But meantime Jerusalem disdains an answer, the angel suddenly smites his army, and under the impulse of a spirit of alarm and terror he returns to Nineveh. Fall by the sword — See the fulfilment of this prediction recorded in verse 37.

V. 8. Returned-To the king, to give him an account of the treaty; leaving behind him the army under the other commanders.

Verse 8. Libnah-Lachish.] These two places were not very distant from each other; they were in the mountains of Judah, southward of Jerusalem.

Verse 8. Rab-shakeh returned — To the king, to give him an account of what had been done, and to receive further orders; leaving behind him the army under the other commanders, mentioned 2 Kings 18:17. For it seems most probable, from the other threatening message here following, that the siege was not raised. He was departed from Lachish — Not being able to take it.

SENNACHERIB’S SECOND MESSAGE TO HEZEKIAH, 8-13.

8. Returned — From Jerusalem to the king, who was now at Libnah, but he probably left “the great host” with which he went up to Jerusalem (verse 17) still encamped against the city, and under command of Tartan, the chief general, Rab-shakeh himself being rather an ambassador and herald than military officer. See note on 2 Kings 18:19. Libnah was situated in the great Philistine plain, apparently between Makkedah and Lachish, but its site has not been identified. He was departed from Lachish — Whether he had captured the city or had been forced to raise the siege does not appear from the Scriptures, but on a slab discovered at Nineveh appears a plan of Lachish after its capture, with the Assyrian tents pitched within its walls, and Assyrian worship going on. Compare note on 2 Kings 18:14.

Verse 9. He heard say of Tirhakah, king of Ethiopia, &c. — Probably of Ethiopia beyond Egypt. For Josephus affirms that the Egyptians (against whom, according to Herodotus and Berosus, this Sennacherib warred) and Ethiopians were confederates in this expedition. It is most likely he was the same with the Sabaco of Herodotus. See Universal Hist., vol. 4, p. 321. He sent messengers again unto Hezekiah — It is probable the king of Assyria thought by this message to terrify Hezekiah and the people to compliance, which it was now the more necessary for him to do, as the invasion of Tirhakah rendered it less proper for him to attempt so long a siege as that of Jerusalem was likely to prove.

9. Tirhakah king of Ethiopia — According to Manetho he was the third and last king of the twenty-fifth Egyptian dynasty. His successful resistance of the Assyrian invasion is chronicled on the walls of a temple at Thebes, and his monuments still exist in Egypt and Ethiopia. Rawlinson treats of the events connected with this verse as follows: “The Apis stelae show that Tirhakah did not ascend the throne of Egypt till B.C. 690, eight years after this; but he may have been already, as he is called in Scripture, king of Ethiopia. It is probable that Sennacherib, having received the submission of Libnah, had advanced upon Egypt. It was important to crush an Egyptian army which had been collected against him by a certain Sethos, one of the many native princes who at this time ruled in the lower country, before the great Ethiopian monarch Tehrak, or Tirhakah, who was known to be on his march, should effect a junction with the troops of this minor potentate. Sethos, with his army, was at Pelusium, (Herodotus, 2:141,) and Sennacherib, advancing to attack him, had arrived within sight of the Egyptian host, and pitched his camp over against the camp of the enemy, just at the time when Hezekiah received his letter and made the prayer to which Isaiah was instructed to respond. The two hosts lay down at night in their respective stations, the Egyptians and their king full of anxious alarm, Sennacherib and his Assyrians proudly confident, intending on the morrow to advance to the combat and repeat the lesson taught at Raphia and Attaku.” — Ancient Monarchies, vol. ii, p. 167. Sent messengers again — For with the Ethiopian forces before him he did not wish to have Jerusalem fall upon his rear, and he apparently hoped to awe Hezekiah into a surrender.

Verse 10. Let not thy God in whom thou trustest] This letter is nearly the same with the speech delivered by Rab-shakeh. See 2 Kings 18:29.

Verses 10, 11. Thus shall ye speak to Hezekiah — That is, these things shall ye communicate; for they did not signify them by word of mouth, but in writing. Let not thy God, in whom thou trustest, deceive thee — Rab-shakeh had said to the people, Let not Hezekiah deceive you. Sennacherib writes to Hezekiah, Let not thy God deceive thee. Those who have the God of Jacob for their help, and whose hope is in the Lord their God, need not fear being deceived by him, as the heathen were by their pretended gods. It is probable Sennacherib had heard that Hezekiah professed to have an assurance from the Lord, that the king of Assyria should not prevail against him. Behold thou hast heard, &c. — This letter is of the same import with the former message, presuming that the God of Israel was like the gods of other countries, and had no more power to preserve his worshippers than they had to preserve theirs.

10. Let not thy God… deceive thee — The arguments urged in this second message are substantially identical with those urged by Rab-shakeh in 2 Kings 18:19-35, and were probably prepared by the same officer.

Verses 10, 11. Thus shall ye speak to Hezekiah — That is, these things shall ye communicate; for they did not signify them by word of mouth, but in writing. Let not thy God, in whom thou trustest, deceive thee — Rab-shakeh had said to the people, Let not Hezekiah deceive you. Sennacherib writes to Hezekiah, Let not thy God deceive thee. Those who have the God of Jacob for their help, and whose hope is in the Lord their God, need not fear being deceived by him, as the heathen were by their pretended gods. It is probable Sennacherib had heard that Hezekiah professed to have an assurance from the Lord, that the king of Assyria should not prevail against him. Behold thou hast heard, &c. — This letter is of the same import with the former message, presuming that the God of Israel was like the gods of other countries, and had no more power to preserve his worshippers than they had to preserve theirs.

SENNACHERIB’S SECOND MESSAGE TO HEZEKIAH, 8-13.

8. Returned — From Jerusalem to the king, who was now at Libnah, but he probably left “the great host” with which he went up to Jerusalem (verse 17) still encamped against the city, and under command of Tartan, the chief general, Rab-shakeh himself being rather an ambassador and herald than military officer. See note on 2 Kings 18:19. Libnah was situated in the great Philistine plain, apparently between Makkedah and Lachish, but its site has not been identified. He was departed from Lachish — Whether he had captured the city or had been forced to raise the siege does not appear from the Scriptures, but on a slab discovered at Nineveh appears a plan of Lachish after its capture, with the Assyrian tents pitched within its walls, and Assyrian worship going on. Compare note on 2 Kings 18:14.

12. Gozan — The district on the upper Habor. See note on 2 Kings 17:6. Haran — Also in Mesopotamia, but lying some distance northwest of Gozan. Here Abraham abode for a time after leaving Ur of the Chaldees, (Genesis 11:31,) and here a Roman army under Crassus was defeated by the Parthians. It is called Carrae, by the classical writers, and Charran in Acts 7:4. It is doubtless identical with the modern Haran, which is situated on the river Belik, one of the branches of the upper Euphrates. Rezeph is still a common name in the East, and applied to a number of cities. Most interpreters incline to identify this Rezeph with a place in eastern Syria which Ptolemy calls Resapha. It is about a day’s journey west of the Euphrates. Children of Eden which were in Thelasar — This last name should be written Telassar, and may signify the hill of Asshur; so called, perhaps, from some shrine which the Assyrians had there erected to Asshur. Eden would seem to be a district of which Telassar was a chief city, but no trace of either has been found.

Verse 13. Where is the king of Hamath, &c. — He may mean the gods of these places, calling them their kings, because the people looked upon them as their protectors and governors, which kings are or should be to their subjects: or rather, he means their kings, properly so called. And so, as before he compared their gods with the God of Jerusalem, so now he compares their kings with King Hezekiah; and by both comparisons intends to persuade Hezekiah and his people that neither he, their king, nor their God, was able to save them out of his hand.

13. Where is the king of Hamath — In 2 Kings 18:34, we have “gods of Hamath.” The arrogant Assyrian claims that neither gods nor kings can resist his power.

Verse 14. Spread it before the Lord] The temple was considered to be God’s dwelling-place; and that whatever was there was peculiarly under his eye. Hezekiah spread the letter before the Lord, as he wished him to read the blasphemies spoken against himself.

Verse 14. Hezekiah went up into the house of the Lord — Into the outward court of the temple, for further he might not go, and at the entrance of the court of the priests, he looked toward the sanctuary, where God was peculiarly present, and spread the letter before him; which he did, not to acquaint God with its contents, but as a token that he appealed to him concerning them, and referred himself and his cause to his righteous judgment, expecting him to answer for himself, and manifest that power which the king of Assyria had so daringly blasphemed. He meant also hereby to affect his own mind, strengthen his own faith, and quicken his desires in prayer, to a greater degree of fervency.

HEZEKIAH’S PRAYER, 14-19.

14. Spread it before the Lord — As containing that which burdens his soul, and brings him in profound humiliation before the most holy place. “The act of spreading out the letter before Jehovah,” says Sisco, “is a symbolic presentation of the great distress into which Hezekiah has been brought by Sennacherib, and to which his prayer refers.”

V. 15. O Lord God of Israel, &c.-He calls him the God of Israel, because Israel was his peculiar people; but yet the God of the whole earth, not as Sennacherib fancied, the God of Israel only. Let them say what they will, thou art sovereign Lord, the God of gods, even thou alone: Universal Lord of all the kingdoms of the earth; and rightful Lord; for thou hast made heaven and earth. Being creator of all, by an incontestable title thou art owner and ruler of all.

Verse 15. Thou art the God, &c.] Thou art not only God of Israel, but God also of Assyria, and of all the nations of the world.

Verse 15. Hezekiah prayed and said, O Lord God of Israel, &c. — He calls him the God of Israel, because Israel was his peculiar people; and the God that dwelt between the cherubim, because there was the peculiar residence of his glory on earth; but he gives glory to him as the God of the whole earth, and not, as Sennacherib fancied, the God of Israel only. Let them say what they will, thou art sovereign Lord, the God of gods, even thou alone; universal Lord of all the kingdoms of the earth; and rightful Lord; for thou hast made heaven and earth — Being Creator of all, by an incontestable title thou art owner and ruler of all.

15. Between the cherubim — Allusion to the arrangements of the place of communion in the sanctuary. See at Exodus 25:22. Thou alone, of all the kingdoms — The true Hebrew doctrine of the absolute supremacy and ubiquity of God, in distinction from the heathen notion, which the Assyrians held, that each land or kingdom had its god.

V. 16. Him-Rabshakeh: he would not do him the honour to name him.

Verses 16-18. Which hath sent him — That is, the messenger who brought this railing letter; or rather Rab-shakeh, who is easily understood to be referred to from the contents of the former chapter, although he would not do him the honour to name him. Of a truth, Lord, the kings of Assyria have destroyed the nations, &c. — He acknowledges their triumphs over the gods of the heathen, but distinguishes between them and the God of Israel. And have cast their gods into the fire: for they were no gods — They were unable to help either themselves or their worshippers, and therefore it is no wonder that the Assyrians have destroyed them. And, in destroying them, though they knew it not, they really served the justice and jealousy of the God of Israel, who has determined to annihilate all the gods of the heathen. But they were deceived in thinking they could therefore be too hard for him, who was so far from being one of the gods whom men’s hands had made, that he himself made all things.

16. Thine ear… thine eyes — “This express mention of the two chief senses, the development of each of the two chief ideas, according to their details, into a twofold prayer, the complete symmetry of the two clauses of the sentence, the repetition of Jehovah in the second clause — all these conspire to give to the prayer the greatest urgency and emphasis.” — Drechsler. Which hath sent him — Rather, which he hath sent; that is, the words or the message which Sennacherib had sent.

Verses 16-18. Which hath sent him — That is, the messenger who brought this railing letter; or rather Rab-shakeh, who is easily understood to be referred to from the contents of the former chapter, although he would not do him the honour to name him. Of a truth, Lord, the kings of Assyria have destroyed the nations, &c. — He acknowledges their triumphs over the gods of the heathen, but distinguishes between them and the God of Israel. And have cast their gods into the fire: for they were no gods — They were unable to help either themselves or their worshippers, and therefore it is no wonder that the Assyrians have destroyed them. And, in destroying them, though they knew it not, they really served the justice and jealousy of the God of Israel, who has determined to annihilate all the gods of the heathen. But they were deceived in thinking they could therefore be too hard for him, who was so far from being one of the gods whom men’s hands had made, that he himself made all things.

HEZEKIAH’S PRAYER, 14-19.

14. Spread it before the Lord — As containing that which burdens his soul, and brings him in profound humiliation before the most holy place. “The act of spreading out the letter before Jehovah,” says Sisco, “is a symbolic presentation of the great distress into which Hezekiah has been brought by Sennacherib, and to which his prayer refers.”

Verses 16-18. Which hath sent him — That is, the messenger who brought this railing letter; or rather Rab-shakeh, who is easily understood to be referred to from the contents of the former chapter, although he would not do him the honour to name him. Of a truth, Lord, the kings of Assyria have destroyed the nations, &c. — He acknowledges their triumphs over the gods of the heathen, but distinguishes between them and the God of Israel. And have cast their gods into the fire: for they were no gods — They were unable to help either themselves or their worshippers, and therefore it is no wonder that the Assyrians have destroyed them. And, in destroying them, though they knew it not, they really served the justice and jealousy of the God of Israel, who has determined to annihilate all the gods of the heathen. But they were deceived in thinking they could therefore be too hard for him, who was so far from being one of the gods whom men’s hands had made, that he himself made all things.

18. Cast their gods into the fire — The gods here meant were the idols, or graven images of wood and stone, as the sequel shows. Having thus destroyed the idols of many nations, and the gods not resisting, well might the king of Assyria ask, Where are those gods? 2 Kings 18:34. “The application of the word gods to the mere external image is common in profane as well as sacred writings, and arises from the fact that all idolaters, whatever they may theoretically hold as to the nature of their deities, identify them practically with the stocks and stones to which they pay their adorations.” — Alexander.

Verse 19. Now therefore, save us out of his hand — For if we be conquered, as other lands have been, they will say that thou art conquered, as the gods of those lands were; but, Lord, distinguish thyself by distinguishing us; and let all the world know, and be made to confess, that thou art the Lord, the self-existent God, even thou only, and that all pretenders to divinity are vanity and a lie. Let it be observed here, that the best pleas in prayer are those which are taken from God’s honour, and the concerns thereof; and therefore the Lord’s prayer begins with, Hallowed be thy name, and concludes with, Thine is the glory.

19. Now — That is, at length; after so much success, and in view of his pride and blasphemy, show the king of Assyria, and all the kingdoms he has conquered, that there is one God with whom it is folly to contend.

Verse 20. Then Isaiah, the son of Amoz, sent to Hezekiah — Isaiah was informed, by the spirit of prophecy, that Hezekiah had represented his case to God in the temple, and he was commissioned to assure him his petition was granted.

ISAIAH’S ORACLE, 20-34.

This prophecy, so rich in poetic diction, so emphatic in its outbursts of righteous indignation and scorn against Assyria, and so comforting to Judah for its predictions of Assyrian defeat and of coming prosperity and glory for the people of God, consists, 1.) of a scornful rebuke of Sennacherib’s pride and boasting, with a prophecy of his humiliation and retreat, (verses 21-28;) 2.) of a cheering pledge that Jehovah would bring about the peace and triumph of Judah and Jerusalem, (29-31;) and, 3.) a solemn announcement of the utter failure of Sennacherib to take the holy city, (32-34.)

20. Sent to Hezekiah — This oracle was delivered to Hezekiah in the form of a letter, just as Sennacherib’s message had been sent. Verse 14. As by one letter Hezekiah had been brought to profoundest grief and humiliation before God, so would Jehovah, by another letter, cheer his soul.

V. 21. Virgin-So he calls Zion, or Jerusalem; because she was pure in good measure from that gross idolatry wherewith other people were defiled, which is called spiritual whoredom: and to signify, that God would defend her from the rape which Sennacherib intended to commit upon her with no less care than parents do their virgin daughters from those who seek to force and deflower them.

Verse 21. The virgin the daughter of Zion hath despised thee, and laughed thee to scorn; the daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee.] “So truly contemptible is thy power, and empty thy boasts, that even the young women of Jerusalem, under the guidance of Jehovah, shall be amply sufficient to discomfit all thy forces, and cause thee to return with shame to thy own country, where the most disgraceful death awaits thee.”

When Bishop Warburton had published his Doctrine of Grace, and chose to fall foul on some of the most religious people of the land, a young woman of the city of Gloucester exposed his graceless system in a pamphlet, to which she affixed the above words as a motto!

Verse 21. The daughter of Zion — That is, Jerusalem; which is called the daughter of Zion, say some, because the hill of Zion, as being the strongest and safest part, was first inhabited, and by the increase of inhabitants, Jerusalem arising around, as it were, sprang from it, and might therefore properly enough be termed its daughter. But it is more probable that the people of Zion, or of Jerusalem, (Zion, an eminent part of the city, being put for the whole,) are here termed its daughter, cities and countries being often called mothers, and their inhabitants daughters. Thus we read of the daughter of Babylon, the daughter of Tyre, &c., Psalm 137:8, and 45:13. Zion or Jerusalem is termed a virgin, because she was pure in good measure from that gross idolatry wherewith other people were defiled, which is called spiritual whoredom; and to signify that God would defend her from the rape which Sennacherib intended to commit upon her, with no less care than parents do their virgin daughters from those who seek to force and deflour them. The image is extremely fine, whereby the contempt of Sennacherib’s threats is expressed.

21. The virgin the daughter of Zion — Better, the virgin daughter Zion. Zion, the chief mountain on which the Jewish metropolis stood, is metaphorically represented as a virgin daughter, and thus becomes a personification of Jerusalem and its inhabitants. These are collectively called in the next line of the parallelism daughter of Jerusalem. Jerusalem is called a virgin, because yet unconquered and inviolate. Compare Isaiah 23:12; 47:1; Jeremiah 46:11; Lamentations 1:15. Despised — A very appropriate word to express the feelings of a virgin towards one who aims to destroy her honour. Laughed thee to scorn — As one conscious of impregnability. Hath shaken her head at thee — Literally, after thee the head she has shaken. Jerusalem shakes her head as a gesture of triumphant derision after Sennacherib, as after a smitten and flying foe.

Verse 22. And lifted up thieve eyes on high — As those do who have haughty thoughts, and look down on others with contempt and scorn. Even against the Holy One of Israel — Whose honour is dear to him, and who has power to vindicate it, which the gods of the heathen have not.

22. Whom hast thou reproached — Art thou aware of the exalted and holy character of Him against whom thou hast exalted thyself? Thine eyes on high — He had uttered his blasphemies as if looking up to the skies on purpose to defy Jehovah.

V. 23. Mountains-I have brought up my very chariots to those mountains which were thought inaccessible by my army. Lebanon-An high hill, famous for cedars and fir-trees. Cut down-I will cut down the trees that hinder my march, and plane the way for my numerous army and chariots. Lodgings-Those cities (which he calls lodgings in way of contempt) which are in his utmost borders. I am come into the land of Canaan at one border, Lebanon, and I resolve to march on to the other border, and so destroy the whole country, from one border to the other. Carmel-The forest of mount Carmel, which may seem to be another inaccessible place, like Lebanon.

Verse 23. The tall cedar trees-the choice fir trees] Probably meaning the princes and nobles of the country.

The forest of his Carmel.] Better in the margin: the forest and his fruitful field.

Verse 23. By thy messengers thou hast reproached the Lord — Advancing hereby thy very servants above him. And hast said, With the multitude of my chariots, I am come up, &c. — I have brought up my very chariots to those mountains, which were thought inaccessible by my army. To the sides of Lebanon — A high hill famous for cedars and fir-trees, as is signified in what follows. And will cut down the tall cedars thereof, &c. — This may be understood, 1st, Mystically, I will destroy the princes and nobles of Judah, sometimes compared to cedars and fir-trees, or their strongest cities. “Cities,” says Dr. Dodd, “in the prophetical writings are metaphorically represented by woods or forests, especially those of Lebanon and Carmel; and the several ranks of inhabitants by the taller and lesser trees growing there. Hence we may collect the true sense of this passage, which represents the Assyrian prince as threatening to take mount Zion, together with the capital city Jerusalem, and to destroy their principal inhabitants.” The following words, the height of his border, and the forest of his Carmel, or, as the latter clause is more properly rendered, the grove of his fruitful field, are generally thought figuratively to refer to the temple and city. The Chaldee paraphrast renders it, And I will also take the house of their sanctuary, and I will subject to me their fortified cities. If, 2d, The reader prefer understanding the words literally, the meaning is, I will cut down the trees and woods that hinder my march, and will prepare and make plain the way for all my numerous army and chariots. Nothing shall stand in my way, nor be able to obstruct or impede my march, no, not the highest and strongest places. The words contain an admirable description of the boastings of a proud monarch, puffed up with his great success. As if he had said, What place is there into which I cannot make my way? Or, what is there I cannot achieve? Even if it were to go up to the top of the steepest mountains with my chariots? My power is sufficient to remove all obstacles, and overcome all opposition.

23. By thy messengers — Hebrew, by the hand of thy messengers, referring to the letter mentioned verse 14, and also other messages. The multitude of my chariots — So the Keri and the parallel passage, Isaiah 37:24; but the Chethib seems to be the more original reading, and is, literally, with chariot of my chariots. The sense in either case is substantially the same, the latter expression (ybkr bkr) meaning with my numberless chariots, or chariots on chariots. Compare ybwg bwg, locust of locusts, in Nahum 3:17, which is properly rendered swarms of locusts; not great grasshoppers, as in our version. Lebanon… cedar trees… fir trees — See notes on 1 Kings 5:6, 8. Lodgings of his borders — Literally, lodging place of his extremity. The Hebrew hxq ˆwlm, is explained, but not to be emended, by the parallel passage in Isaiah, where we have wxq µwrm, height of his extremity, that is, its extreme summit. Sennacherib’s boast is, that he pitches his camp and lodges on the very summit of Lebanon. Forest of his Carmel — The word Carmel is here to be taken in its primary sense of garden, cultivated field; not as a proper name. The forest of his garden, or garden forest, designates the orchard-like groves, or beautiful parks of choice trees, on the terraces and summit of Lebanon. This pompous boasting of the king of Assyria is not to be understood as literally historical, nor yet as without historical foundation. Sennacherib probably entered Palestine from the north, and so would cross the summit and sides of some part of Lebanon, and this, in connexion with the various triumphs of his march, would be sufficient ground for the hyperbolical language of his boasts. His language is poetical, but not mere poetry; and the whole verse is to be understood of what he has power to do.

V. 24. Strange waters-Such as were never discovered by others. Dried up-And as I can furnish my army with water digged out of the earth; so I can deprive my enemies of their water, and can dry up their rivers, and that with the sole of my feet; with the march of my vast and numerous army, who will easily do this, either by marching through them, and each carrying away part with them: or by making new channels, and driving the waters of the river into them.

Verse 24. I have digged and drunk strange waters] I have conquered strange countries, in which I have digged wells for my army; or, I have gained the wealth of strange countries.

With the sole of my feet] My infantry have been so numerous that they alone have been sufficient to drink up the rivers of the places I have besieged.

Verse 24. I have digged and drunk strange waters — That is, says Vitringa, “I have hitherto possessed all my desires; whatever I have vehemently thirsted after, I have attained.” Others understand this and the following clause more literally, thus: “I have marched through deserts, where it was expected my army would have perished with thirst; and yet even there have I digged and found water: and I have rendered rivers fordable by turning their streams from their ancient beds, and have deprived the besieged of the benefit of those waters.” Vitringa, however, renders the last clause, with the sole of my feet will I dry up all the rivers of Egypt. The prophet is thought to allude to a custom of the Egyptians, who commonly made use of machines, which were worked by the foot, to draw water from rivers, for whatever purpose it might be wanted; and the meaning, according to Vitringa, is, that the Assyrian, by the assistance of his very numerous army, the sole of his foot, would dry up all the rivers of Egypt, so that they should not delay the success of his expedition. The expression is of the hyperbolic kind, and well suits this haughty monarch, whose mind was at this time full of his expedition into Judea and Egypt. — See Dr. Dodd.

24. Strange waters — That is, waters of foreign countries; waters strange to a native Assyrian. He boasts that he enters strange lands, and digs and drinks their waters. With the sole of my feet — As though I were a god, and able to dry up rivers by merely setting my foot upon their waters. All the rivers of besieged places — Better, all the canals of Matzor; commonly rendered, all the streams of Egypt. rwxm, Matzor, is a poetical name for Egypt, (compare Isaiah 19:6,) and the rivers would naturally refer to the arms or canals of the Nile. So this verse contains Sennacherib’s boast of what he intends to do to Egypt. “Just as Lebanon could not stop the expeditions of the Assyrians, or keep them back from the conquest of the land of Canaan, so the desert which separated Egypt from Asia, notwithstanding its want of water, could not prevent his forcing his way through it and laying Egypt waste. The digging of water is not merely ‘a reopening of the wells that had been choked up with rubbish, and the cisterns that had been covered up before the approaching enemy,’ (Thenius,) but the digging of wells in the waterless desert. Strange water is not merely water belonging to others, but water not belonging to this soil, that is, water supplied by a region which had none at other times. By the perfects [I have digged, etc.] the thing is represented as already done — as exposed to no doubt whatever. The drying up of the rivers with the soles of the feet is an hyperbolical expression denoting the omnipotence with which the Assyrian rules over the earth. Just as he digs water in the desert where no water is to be had, so does he annihilate it where mighty rivers exist.” — Keil.

V. 25. Hast thou not, &c.-Hast thou not long since learned, that which some of thy philosophers could teach thee; that there is a supreme and powerful God, by whose decree and providence all these wars and calamities were sent, and ordered; whose mere instrument thou art, so that thou hast no cause for these vain boastings? This work is mine, not thine. I have, &c.-I have so disposed of things by my providence, that thou shouldest be a great and victorious prince, and that thou shouldest be so successful as thou hast hitherto been, first against the kingdom of Israel, and now against Judah.

Verse 25. Hast thou not heard] Here Jehovah speaks, and shows this boasting king that what he had done was done by the Divine appointment, and that of his own counsel and might he could have done nothing. It was because God had appointed them to this civil destruction that he had overcome them; and it was not through his might; for God had made their inhabitants of small power, so that he only got the victory over men whom God had confounded, dismayed, and enervated, 2 Kings 19:26.

Verse 25. Hast thou not heard long ago, &c. — Hast thou not long since learned that which some of thy philosophers could have taught thee; that there is a supreme and powerful God, by whose decree and providence all these wars and calamities are sent and ordered; whose mere instrument thou art; so that thou hast no cause for these vain boastings? This work is mine, not thine. I have done it, &c. — I have so disposed of things by my providence, that thou shouldest be a great and victorious prince, and that thou shouldest be so successful as thou hast hitherto been, first against the kingdom of Israel, and now against Judah. Thus God answers the boastings of this proud prince, and shows him that all his counsel and power are nothing; since these events wholly depended on a superior cause; namely, on God’s sovereign decree and overruling providence, whereof he had made this Assyrian the instrument in his almighty hand.

25. Hast thou not heard — The question expresses surprise that the king of Assyria should be ignorant of a matter so notorious as that Assyria was to be the instrument divinely chosen to scourge Israel and Judah. Of ancient times that I have formed it — That is, Jehovah, long before, had appointed these triumphs of Assyria, ordained that Assyria should lay waste the land of Judah, and he had announced it by his holy prophets. Compare Isaiah 7:17-20; 8:7, 8; 10:5-11. That thou shouldest be to lay waste — This is thy preordained destiny, namely, to lay waste fenced cities into ruinous heaps. So far was he from working his conquests by his own power, that he was unconsciously working out the preordained plans of Jehovah.

V. 26. Therefore-Because I had armed thee with my commission and strength, and taken away their spirit and courage.

Verse 26. Therefore their inhabitants were of small power — The people of Israel and Judah, and of other countries which thou hast conquered, because I had armed thee with my commission and strength, and had taken away their spirit and courage, and had withdrawn my help from them to give it to thee. They were as the grass of the field — Which is weak, and quickly fades, and is unable to resist any hand or instrument which offers violence to it. As corn blasted before it be grown up — All their designs and hopes were disappointed before they could come to any perfection or success.

26. Therefore their inhabitants were of small power — The margin renders, more literally, were short of hand — unable to resist the invader. So Sennacherib is informed that the dismay and confusion of the people he had conquered were not produced by his greatness, but by Jehovah’s decree. Grass… green herb — Images of frailty and sudden decay. Compare Psalm 37:2; 90:5; Isaiah 40:6. Grass on the housetops — Which is more perishable even than that of the field, for it has no depth of soil, and quickly withers away. Compare Psalm 129:6. Blasted before it be grown up — Blighted at the very outset, before it has become a stalk.

V. 27. I know-Though thou dost not know me, yet I throughly know thee, and all thy designs and actions, all thy secret contrivances in the place of thy abode, in thy own kingdom and court; and the execution of thy designs abroad, what thou intendest in thy going out, and with what farther thoughts thou comest in, or returnest to thy own land.

Verse 27. But I know thy abode, &c. — Though thou dost not know me, yet I thoroughly know thee, and all thy designs and actions, all thy secret contrivances in the place of thy abode, in thy own kingdom and court; and the execution of thy designs abroad, what thou intendest in thy going out, and with what farther thoughts thou comest in, or returnest to thy own land. And thy rage against me — Against Hezekiah my servant, and my people, because they will not deliver up Jerusalem to thee, and against my temple, to destroy it. Things are frequently said to be done against God which are only done against his people, his cause, and worship, because of that near relation and union which are between them.

27. Thy abode — Rather, thy sitting down. The expressions sitting down, going out, coming in, are often used to denote all the actions of men. Psalm 139:2. Jehovah was fully acquainted with all the works and life of the impious Sennacherib.

V. 28. My hook, &c.-What a comfort is it, that God has a hook in the nose and a bridle in the jaws of all his and our enemies?

Verse 28. I will put my hook in thy nose] This seems to be an allusion to the method of guiding a buffalo; he has a sort of ring put into his nose, to which a cord or bridle is attached, by which he can be turned to the right, or to the left, or round about, according to the pleasure of his driver.

Verse 28. Thy rage and thy tumult is come into mine ears — That is, thy tumultuous noise, thy clamours and blasphemies, belched forth against me by thyself, and thy servants in thy name. I will put my hook in thy nose, and my bridle in thy lips — The metaphor in the latter clause is plainly taken from a horse, or ass, or mule, that must be thus governed; and that in the former may allude, perhaps, to the manner in which they managed their beasts in the east, particularly the dromedaries, which are led by a cord fastened to a ring run through the nostrils of the beast. Or the allusion may be to the absolute power which a man has over a fish which is fastened by the nose to his hook. The meaning of the passage is, that God would so order and dispose matters by his providence, that the Assyrian monarch should be compelled to return back with his army, being circumscribed and led like a horse or wild beast, wherever and as God pleased. See Dodd. What a comfort it is that God has a hook in the nose, and a bridle in the jaws, of all his and our enemies!

28. Thy tumult — Rather, thy arrogance; a reference to his impious and haughty boasts. Hook… bridle — Allusion to the method of taming and controlling wild and restive animals. The Assyrians and Babylonians were also wont, as appears from the monuments, to lead their most distinguished prisoners by a rope or chain fastened in the lower lip, or the nose. The way by which thou camest — These words indicate an ignominious retreat. An invader who goes back by the same route he came usually goes back disappointed and humbled from having failed to carry out his plans.

V. 29. A sign-Of the certain accomplishment of the promises here made: that God will not only preserve the city from his present fury, but also, bless his people with a durable prosperity, ver. 30,31. The third year-This was an excellent sign; especially, considering the waste and havock which the Assyrians had made in the land; and that the Jews had been forced to retire into their strong hold, and consequently to neglect their tilling, and sowing, and reaping; and yet this year they should have sufficient provision from those fruits of the earth which the Assyrians left; and the second year, which was the year of release, in which they might neither sow, nor reap, from such fruits as the earth brought forth of its own accord; and so in the third year. And eat-You shall not sow, and another reap, as lately you did; but you shall enjoy the fruit of your own labours.

Verse 29. This shall be a sign unto thee] To Hezekiah; for to him this part of the address is made.

Ye shall eat this year] Sennacherib had ravaged the country, and seed-time was now over, yet God shows them that he would so bless the land, that what should grow of itself that year, would be quite sufficient to supply the inhabitants and prevent all famine; and though the second year was the sabbatical rest or jubilee for the land, in which it was unlawful to plough or sow; yet even then the land, by an especial blessing of God, should bring forth a sufficiency for its inhabitants; and in the third year they should sow and plant, &c. and have abundance, &c. Now this was to be a sign to Hezekiah, that his deliverance had not been effected by natural or casual means; for as without a miracle the ravaged and uncultivated land could not yield food for its inhabitants, so not without miraculous interference could the Assyrian army be cut off and Israel saved.

Verse 29. This shall be a sign unto thee — Of the certain accomplishment of the promises here made; that Zion shall triumph over this insulting enemy, verse 21; and that God will not only preserve the city from Sennacherib’s present fury, but also will bless his people with durable prosperity, and a happy increase, verses 30, 31. For the sign here given is not so much intended to be a token of their present deliverance from Sennacherib, which would be effected before the sign took place, as of their future preservation from him and the Assyrians, and of blessings which were to continue long after it. In other passages of Scripture we have signs given in the same manner, particularly in Exodus 3:12 and Isaiah 7:14. At the time that Isaiah spoke this, nothing seemed more improbable than that the Jews, delivered from the Assyrians, should freely use and enjoy their own land, and be supported from its productions. They had cause to fear that the Assyrians would be greatly enraged at their shameful repulse, and the destruction of their army, and would quickly recruit their forces and come against them with far greater strength and violence than before. But if not, they had reason to fear another enemy equally formidable and destructive, a grievous famine. The Assyrian army had trodden down or eaten up all their corn, and the next year, which was the fifteenth of Hezekiah, was the sabbatical year, in which their law neither allowed them to plough nor sow. How were they to be supported? God engages they shall have sufficient support: Ye shall eat this year — jyps, sapiach, sponte natum, the natural produce of the ground, which the invasion of the Assyrian army in a great measure prevented you from ploughing and sowing. And the second year, that which springeth of the same — vyjs, sachish, sponte renatum, the name here given to the spontaneous productions of the earth the second year that it had not been sown. And in the third year, sow ye, and reap — You shall not sow, and another reap, as has lately been the case; but you shall enjoy the fruit of your own labour. Now this was an excellent sign, for it was miraculous, especially considering the waste and destruction which the Assyrians had made in the land, and that the Jews had been forced to retire into their strong holds, and consequently to neglect their tilling, sowing, and reaping. And these events taking place accordingly, year after year, and the predictions being punctually fulfilled, the hopes of Hezekiah and his people would be revived and confirmed more and more, and assurance would be given them that they had nothing further to fear from the Assyrians, and that God would yet defend, bless, and prosper his people.

29. A sign unto thee — Unto Hezekiah; for the oracle of the prophet here turns to comfort Judah and Jerusalem. Such things as grow of themselves — The spontaneous growth which springs up from the leavings of the previous harvest. Compare Leviticus 25:5, 11. That which springeth of the same — Hebrew, vyjs, sachish, which Furst defines as the “aftergrowth out of the roots of stocks in the second year after sowing.” Strabo (xi, 4, 3) says of Albania, “In many places the ground, which has once been sown, produces two or three crops, the first of which is even fiftyfold, and that without a fallow.” The same is true of various parts of Palestine. The third year sow ye, and reap — But if, as verse 35 implies, the Assyrian army was smitten soon after this prophecy of Isaiah, why should they wait till the third year to cultivate the soil? Some say that this year was a sabbatical year, and the second year the year of jubilee, during both of which, according to the law, (Leviticus 25:4, 11,) no sowing or reaping was allowed. This supposition may be true, but it seems to us far more simple and satisfactory to understand this year as that of Sennacherib’s invasion, which was now near its close, but during which the Jews had been obliged to eat such things as grow of themselves; the next, or second year, came so soon after the retreat of the Assyrians, and found the land in so unsettled a state, that there could be no cultivation of the soil that year; and so it was not till the third year that they could sow and reap. And all this, as it came to pass, was to be a sign to Hezekiah and his people of their miraculous deliverance from Assyria. So the sign in this case was not to be a prophecy or pledge of any thing yet future, as that the Assyrians would retreat the third year, for when that year came, and long before, the Assyrians had retreated; but the sign was of the nature of a suggestive memorial — a proof or testimonial of the Divine interposition in their behalf.

V. 30. The remnant, &c.-They shall be well fixt and provided for themselves, and then do good to others.

Verse 30. The remnant-shall yet again take root] As your corn shall take root in the soil, and bring forth and abundantly multiply itself, so shall the Jewish people; the population shall be greatly increased, and the desolations occasioned by the sword soon be forgotten.

Verse 30. The remnant that is escaped shall yet again bear fruit upward — Shall increase and multiply greatly. It is a metaphor taken from plants. “The prophet passes from fields to men, and from the cultivation of land to the state of the church; for, having just said, that, being delivered from the Assyrians, they should cultivate their land as usual, he adds, that it should also come to pass that the kingdom and church, delivered from this calamity, should flourish again, increase, and bring forth much fruit; which we know happened under Hezekiah.” — Dodd.

30. The remnant… of Judah — Those who witness the sign just mentioned, having been delivered from the hand of Assyria. There is here a reference to the remnant for whom the king had asked Isaiah to pray. Ver.

4. Yet again take root — Literally, add root; that is, strike out new roots, and thereby take firmer hold downward into the soil. Bear fruit upward — Not only striking its roots deep in the earth, but its upspringing boughs yielding bountiful harvests. The general sense of this verse is, that Judah shall survive and vigorously flourish.

V. 31. Go forth-That handful of Jews who were now gathered together, and shut up in Jerusalem, shall go out of their several habitations, and by my singular blessing increase exceedingly. The zeal-Although when you reflect upon yourselves, and consider either your present fewness, and weakness, or your great unworthiness, this may seem too great a blessing for you to expect; yet God will do it from the zeal which he hath, both for his own name, and for the good of his undeserving people.

Verse 31. Out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant] The Jews shall be so multiplied as not only to fill Jerusalem, but all the adjacent country. And they that escape out of Mount Zion] Some think that this refers to the going forth of the apostles to the Gentile world, and converting the nations by the preaching of the Gospel.

Verse 31. For out of Judah shall go forth a remnant — That handful of Jews who were now gathered together, and shut up in Jerusalem, should go out to their several habitations, and, by God’s singular blessing, increase exceedingly. The zeal of the Lord shall do this — Although, when you reflect upon yourselves, and consider either your present fewness and weakness, or your great unworthiness, this may seem too great a blessing for you to expect; yet God will do it from the zeal which he hath, both for his own name, and for the good of his undeserving people.

31. For — The blessings of Judah mentioned above are based on still deeper reasons. Out of Jerusalem… out of mount Zion — This holy city and this sacred mountain were the divinely chosen centre of the kingdom of God. From it were to proceed the evangelizing forces of the Messianic age, (Isaiah 2:3,) so that Jerusalem and Zion were ever to be associated with the holiest communion and noblest hopes of the saints of God. Hebrews 12:22. A remnant — The “remnant according to the election of grace” (Romans 11:5) who were to form the nucleus around which all the elect of Jehovah out of every nation should be gathered, and by the eternal covenant “have access by one Spirit unto the Father.” Ephesians 2:18. The zeal of the Lord… shall do this — So closes the Messianic prophecy of Isaiah 9:1-7; this fact favours the Messianic reference of this verse. The zeal of the Lord, is his jealous care for his people, (Zechariah 1:14,) his profound interest in their welfare, as manifested in the entire history of the chosen race.

V. 32. He shall not-The army sent with Rabshaketh did not form a close siege against it, but only disposed themselves so as to block it up at some distance; possibly waiting ‘till the king of Assyria had taken Libnah and Lachish, (which they presumed he would speedily do.)

Verse 32. He shall not, &c.] Here follow the fullest proofs that Jerusalem shall not be taken by the Assyrians. 1. He shall not come into this city; 2. He shall not be able to get so near as to shoot an arrow into it; 3. He shall not be able to bring an army before it, 4. Nor shall he be able to raise any redoubt or mound against it; 5. No; not even an Assyrian shield shall be seen in the country; not even a foraging party shall come near the city.

Verse 32. Thus saith the Lord, He shall not come to this city — The king of Assyria shall be so far from possessing himself of the city at this time, that he shall not shoot so much as an arrow into it, much less raise any bulwarks to besiege it. There is a gradation in the words, says Dr. Dodd, as is usual with Isaiah. The first declaration is, that Sennacherib, if he shall attempt to besiege the city, shall never be able to succeed; he shall not come into this city. The second is, that he shall not bring his army so near the city as to come before it with shields, wherewith to defend themselves from those on the wall, or raise a bank against it. The third, that he shall not even shoot an arrow into the city, which might be done from far. It seems the army sent with Rab-shakeh did not form a close siege against it, but only disposed themselves so as to block it up at some distance; possibly waiting till the king of Assyria had taken Libnah and Lachish, (which they presumed he would speedily do.)

32. Therefore — In view of this decreed permanency of Judah. He shall not come — The different expressions here used indicate Sennacherib’s total failure to injure Jerusalem. “The four clauses,” says Keil, “stand in a graduated relation to one another — not to take, not even to shoot at and attack, yea, not even to besiege, the city, will he come.”

Verse 33. By the way that he came] Though his army shall not return, yet he shall return to Assyria; for because of his blasphemy he is reserved for a more ignominious death.

Verses 33, 34. By the same shall he return — Whereas he expected to devour the kingdom of Judah at one morsel, and then to proceed farther and conquer Egypt, and other neighbouring countries; and to cut off nations not a few, as is said of him concerning this very time and design, (Isaiah 10:7,) he shall meet with so sad a disappointment and rebuke here, that he shall make haste to return with shame to his own country. For my servant David’s sake — For my promise and covenant’s sake made with David, concerning the stability and eternity of his kingdom, 1 Kings 11:12, 13. It must be remembered, that all the promises made to David were made to him in Christ: he and his kingdom were types of the kingdom of Christ. It is to this, and not to the personal merits of David, that the sacred writer here alludes.

33. By the way that he came — See note on verse 28.

SMITING AND FLIGHT OF THE ASSYRIANS — SENNACHERIB’S DEATH, 35-37. That night — Apparently the night that succeeded the day on which Isaiah sent his oracle to Hezekiah. The angel of the Lord went out — A supernatural minister of Jehovah’s will, as the one whom, in David’s time, Jehovah sent to scatter deadly pestilence upon Israel. 2 Samuel 24:15, 16, notes. Josephus says, that in this case God sent upon the Assyrian army a pestilential plague, (loimikhn noson,) and some interpreters assume that the angel of the Lord is a Hebraism for a destructive pestilence. It is very possible that the angel made use of plague or pestilence in his work of destruction, but there is no need of confounding the angel with the plague. There is no more improbability in Jehovah’s using superhuman beings than the Assyrian army to execute his judgments, and the numbers slain on this occasion clearly evidence a preternatural stroke of Divine vengeance. Smote in the camp of the Assyrians — “Where this overthrow took place, whether before Jerusalem, or at Libnah, or at some intervening point, has been disputed, and cannot be determined, in the absence of all data, monumental or historical. Throughout the sacred narrative it seems to be intentionally left uncertain whether Jerusalem was besieged at all — whether Sennacherib, in person, ever came before it; whether his army was divided or united when the stroke befel them, and also what proportion of the host escaped. It is enough to know that one hundred and eighty-five thousand men perished in a single night.” — Alexander. When they arose — When the survivors arose. All dead corpses — The one hundred and eighty-five thousand had perished while asleep. It is interesting in this connexion to note that this preternatural stroke against the Assyrian army is also recorded in legendary form in profane history. Herodotus relates (ii, 141): “As the two armies [Egyptian and Assyrian] lay opposite one another, there came in the night a multitude of field mice which devoured all the quivers and bowstrings of the enemy, [Assyrians,] and ate the thongs by which they managed their shields. Next morning they commenced their flight, and great multitudes fell, as they had no arms with which to defend themselves.”

Verses 33, 34. By the same shall he return — Whereas he expected to devour the kingdom of Judah at one morsel, and then to proceed farther and conquer Egypt, and other neighbouring countries; and to cut off nations not a few, as is said of him concerning this very time and design, (Isaiah 10:7,) he shall meet with so sad a disappointment and rebuke here, that he shall make haste to return with shame to his own country. For my servant David’s sake — For my promise and covenant’s sake made with David, concerning the stability and eternity of his kingdom, 1 Kings 11:12, 13. It must be remembered, that all the promises made to David were made to him in Christ: he and his kingdom were types of the kingdom of Christ. It is to this, and not to the personal merits of David, that the sacred writer here alludes.

ISAIAH’S ORACLE, 20-34.

This prophecy, so rich in poetic diction, so emphatic in its outbursts of righteous indignation and scorn against Assyria, and so comforting to Judah for its predictions of Assyrian defeat and of coming prosperity and glory for the people of God, consists, 1.) of a scornful rebuke of Sennacherib’s pride and boasting, with a prophecy of his humiliation and retreat, (verses 21-28;) 2.) of a cheering pledge that Jehovah would bring about the peace and triumph of Judah and Jerusalem, (29-31;) and, 3.) a solemn announcement of the utter failure of Sennacherib to take the holy city, (32-34.)

20. Sent to Hezekiah — This oracle was delivered to Hezekiah in the form of a letter, just as Sennacherib’s message had been sent. Verse 14. As by one letter Hezekiah had been brought to profoundest grief and humiliation before God, so would Jehovah, by another letter, cheer his soul.

V. 35. Angel-Such an angel as destroyed the first-born of Egypt. Arose-The few that were left alive: all their companions were dead.

Verse 35. That night] The very night after the blasphemous message had been sent, and this comfortable prophecy delivered.

The angel of the Lord went out] I believe this angel or messenger of the Lord was simply a suffocating or pestilential WIND; by which the Assyrian army was destroyed, as in a moment, without noise confusion or any warning. See Clarke’s note “1 Kings 20:30”. Thus was the threatening, 2 Kings 19:7, fulfilled, I will send a BLAST upon him; for he had heard the rumour that his territories were invaded; and on his way to save his empire, in one night the whole of his army was destroyed, without any one even seeing who had hurt them. This is called an angel or messenger of the Lord: that is, something immediately sent by him to execute his judgments.

When they arose early] That is, Sennacherib, and probably a few associates, who were preserved as witnesses and relaters of this most dire disaster. Rab-shakeh, no doubt, perished with the rest of the army.

Verse 35. And it came to pass that night, &c. — Sometimes it was long before prophecies were accomplished, and promises performed, but here the word was no sooner spoken than the work was done. The night which immediately followed the sending of this message to Hezekiah, was the main body of the besieging army slain. Hezekiah had not force sufficient to sally out upon them, and attack their camp, nor would God destroy them by sword or bow; but he sent a destroying angel, in the dead of night, to make an assault upon them, which their sentinels, though ever so watchful, could neither discover nor resist: such an angel as slew the firstborn of Egypt. Josephus says, the angel slew them by inflicting a pestilential disease which caused death immediately. “But his authority,” says Vitringa, “in matters of this kind, is of no great weight. It is my opinion,” continues he, “that in a dreadful storm, raised by this destroying angel, these men were killed by lightning; their bodies being burned within, while their outward garments were untouched.” The number slain was prodigious, and Rab-shakeh, probably, among them. And when they rose early in the morning — Namely, the few that were left alive; behold, they were all dead corpses — Scarce a living man of their companions and fellow-soldiers remained. How great in power and might must the holy angels be, when one angel, in one night, could make so great a slaughter! And how weak are the mightiest men before the almighty God! Who ever hardened himself against him, and prospered? The pride and blasphemy of the king and his general are punished by the destruction of one hundred and eighty-five thousand men! O God, how terrible art thou in thy justice! All these lives are sacrificed to the glory of God and the safety of his people!

V. 36. So Sennacherib, &c.-The manner of the expression intimates the great disorder and distraction of mind he was in.

Verse 36. Dwelt at Nineveh.] This was the capital of the Assyrian empire.

Verse 36. So Sennacherib departed — Ashamed to see himself, after all his proud boasts, thus defeated, and disabled to pursue his conquests, or even to secure what he had gained, the flower of his army being cut off; nay, and continually afraid of falling under the like stroke himself. The manner of the expression, He departed, and went, and returned, intimates the great disorder and distraction of mind he was in.

36. Sennacherib… departed — For Jehovah had put his hook in his nose, (verse 28,) and led him back, like a strayed bull, to the place whence he had broken loose. Returned, and dwelt at Nineveh — “The murder of the disgraced Sennacherib ‘within fifty-five days’ of his return to Nineveh, seems to be an invention of the Alexandrian Jew who wrote the Book of Tobit, (i, 21.) The total destruction of the empire in consequence of the blow, is an exaggeration of Josephus, (Antiquities, 10:2, 2,) rashly credited by some moderns. Sennacherib did not die till seventeen years after this misfortune; and the empire suffered so little that we find Esar-haddon, a few years later, in full possession of all the territory that any king before him had ever held, ruling from Babylonia to Egypt. Even Sennacherib himself was not prevented by his calamity from undertaking important wars during the latter part of his reign.” — RAWLINSON, Ancient Monarchies, vol. ii, p. 169

V. 37. Was worshipping, &c.-The God of Israel had done enough to convince him, that he was the only true God. Yet he persists in his idolatry. Justly then is his blood mingled with his sacrifices, who will not be convinced by so dear-bought a demonstration, of his folly in worshipping idols.

Verse 37. Nisroch his god] We know nothing of this deity; he is nowhere else mentioned.

Smote him with the sword] The rabbins say that his sons had learned that he intended to sacrifice them to this god, and that they could only prevent this by slaying him.

The same writers add, that he consulted his wise men how it was that such miracles should be wrought for the Israelites; who told him that it was because of the merit of Abraham who had offered his only son to God: he then said, I will offer to him my two sons; which when they heard, they rose up and slew him. When a rabbin cannot untie a knot, he feels neither scruple nor difficulty to cut it.

II KINGS

Verse 37. He was worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god — The God of Israel had done enough to convince him that he was the only true God, yet he persists in his idolatry: justly then is his blood mingled with his sacrifices, who will not be convinced, by so dear-bought a demonstration, of his folly in worshipping idols. His sons smote him — Smote their own father, (whom they were bound to protect at the hazard of their own lives,) and that when they saw him engaged in the very act of his devotion! Monstrous villany! But God was righteous in it. Justly are the sons suffered to rebel against their father that begat them, when he was in rebellion against the God that made him. They, whose children are undutiful to them, ought to consider whether they have not been so to their Father in heaven. They escaped into the land of Armenia — Which was a country most fit for that purpose, because it was near to that part of Assyria, and was very mountainous, and inaccessible by armies; and the people were stout and warlike, and constant enemies to the Assyrians. And Esar-haddon his son reigned in his stead — Who, according to Ezra, (Ezra 4:2,) sent great supplies to his new colony at Samaria; fearing, probably, lest Hezekiah should improve the last great advantage to disturb his late conquest there.

37. Nisroch — The rank and character of this god in the Assyrian pantheon is not yet determined. Gesenius suggests that the word comes from the Hebrew root rvn, eagle; and Layard proposes to identify Nisroch with the eagle-headed human figure, which is one of the most prominent on the earliest Assyrian monuments. Keil says, “the eagle was worshipped as a god by the Arabs, was regarded as sacred to Melkarth by the Phenicians, and according to a statement of Philo, (that Zoroaster taught that the supreme deity was represented with an eagle’s head,) was also a symbol of Ormuzd among the Persians; consequently Movers regards Nisroch as the supreme deity or the Assyrians. It is not improbable that it was also connected with the constellation of the eagle.” But all the above suppositions concerning the Assyrian deity are largely conjectural. Adrammelech was the name of one of the gods of Sepharvaim, (see chap. 17:31, note,) and Sharezer was doubtless the name of some other deity. It was a common and widespread custom in the East to name princes after the gods. The following summary of Rawlinson, gathered from the monuments and other sources, is the best commentary on this verse: “Our various sources of information make it clear that Sennacherib had a large family of sons. Adrammelech and Sharezer, anxious to obtain the throne for themselves, plotted against the life of their father, and having slain him in a temple as he was worshipping, proceeded further to remove their brother Nergilus, who claimed the crown and wore it for a brief space after Sennacherib’s death. Having murdered him, they expected to obtain the throne without further difficulty; but Esar-haddon, who at the time commanded the army which watched the Armenian frontier, now came forward, assumed the title of king, and prepared to march upon Nineveh. It was winter, and the inclemency of the weather precluded immediate movement. For some months, probably, the two assassins were recognised as monarchs at the capital, while the northern army regarded Esar-haddon as the rightful successor of his father. Thus died the great Sennacherib, a victim to the ambition of his sons. Esar-haddon’s inscriptions show that he was engaged for some time after his accession in a war with his half-brothers, who, at the head of a large body of troops, disputed his right to the crown. According to Abydenus, Adrammelech fell in the battle; but better authorities state that both he and his brother, Sharezer, escaped into Armenia, where they were kindly treated by the reigning monarch, who gave them lands, which long continued in the possession of their posterity.” — Anc. Mon., vol. ii, pp. 185, ff.