9 After this did Sennacherib king of Assyria send his servants to Jerusalem, (but he himself laid siege against Lachish, and all his power with him,) unto Hezekiah king of Judah, and unto all Judah that were at Jerusalem, saying,
10 Thus saith Sennacherib king of Assyria, Whereon do ye trust, that ye abide in the siege in Jerusalem?
11 Doth not Hezekiah persuade you to give over yourselves to die by famine and by thirst, saying, The LORD our God shall deliver us out of the hand of the king of Assyria?
12 Hath not the same Hezekiah taken away his high places and his altars, and commanded Judah and Jerusalem, saying, Ye shall worship before one altar, and burn incense upon it?
13 Know ye not what I and my fathers have done unto all the people of other lands? were the gods of the nations of those lands any ways able to deliver their lands out of mine hand?
14 Who was there among all the gods of those nations that my fathers utterly destroyed, that could deliver his people out of mine hand, that your God should be able to deliver you out of mine hand?
15 Now therefore let not Hezekiah deceive you, nor persuade you on this manner, neither yet believe him: for no god of any nation or kingdom was able to deliver his people out of mine hand, and out of the hand of my fathers: how much less shall your God deliver you out of mine hand?
16 And his servants spake yet more against the LORD God, and against his servant Hezekiah.
17 He wrote also letters to rail on the LORD God of Israel, and to speak against him, saying, As the gods of the nations of other lands have not delivered their people out of mine hand, so shall not the God of Hezekiah deliver his people out of mine hand.
18 Then they cried with a loud voice in the Jews' speech unto the people of Jerusalem that were on the wall, to affright them, and to trouble them; that they might take the city.
19 And they spake against the God of Jerusalem, as against the gods of the people of the earth, which were the work of the hands of man.
9 After H310 this did Sennacherib H5576 king H4428 of Assyria H804 send H7971 his servants H5650 to Jerusalem, H3389 (but he himself laid siege against Lachish, H3923 and all his power H4475 with him,) unto Hezekiah H3169 king H4428 of Judah, H3063 and unto all Judah H3063 that were at Jerusalem, H3389 saying, H559
10 Thus saith H559 Sennacherib H5576 king H4428 of Assyria, H804 Whereon do ye trust, H982 that ye abide H3427 in the siege H4692 in Jerusalem? H3389
11 Doth not Hezekiah H3169 persuade H5496 you to give H5414 over yourselves to die H4191 by famine H7458 and by thirst, H6772 saying, H559 The LORD H3068 our God H430 shall deliver H5337 us out of the hand H3709 of the king H4428 of Assyria? H804
12 Hath not the same Hezekiah H3169 taken away H5493 his high places H1116 and his altars, H4196 and commanded H559 Judah H3063 and Jerusalem, H3389 saying, H559 Ye shall worship H7812 before H6440 one H259 altar, H4196 and burn incense H6999 upon it?
13 Know H3045 ye not what I and my fathers H1 have done H6213 unto all the people H5971 of other lands? H776 were the gods H430 of the nations H1471 of those lands H776 any ways H3201 able H3201 to deliver H5337 their lands H776 out of mine hand? H3027
14 Who was there among all the gods H430 of those nations H1471 that my fathers H1 utterly destroyed, H2763 that could H3201 deliver H5337 his people H5971 out of mine hand, H3027 that your God H430 should be able H3201 to deliver H5337 you out of mine hand? H3027
15 Now therefore let not H3808 Hezekiah H2396 deceive H5377 you, nor persuade H5496 you on this manner, neither yet believe H539 him: for no god H433 of any nation H1471 or kingdom H4467 was able H3201 to deliver H5337 his people H5971 out of mine hand, H3027 and out of the hand H3027 of my fathers: H1 how much less shall your God H430 deliver H5337 you out of mine hand? H3027
16 And his servants H5650 spake H1696 yet more against the LORD H3068 God, H430 and against his servant H5650 Hezekiah. H3169
17 He wrote H3789 also letters H5612 to rail H2778 on the LORD H3068 God H430 of Israel, H3478 and to speak H559 against him, saying, H559 As the gods H430 of the nations H1471 of other lands H776 have not delivered H5337 their people H5971 out of mine hand, H3027 so shall not the God H430 of Hezekiah H3169 deliver H5337 his people H5971 out of mine hand. H3027
18 Then they cried H7121 with a loud H1419 voice H6963 in the Jews' speech H3066 unto the people H5971 of Jerusalem H3389 that were on the wall, H2346 to affright H3372 them, and to trouble H926 them; that they might take H3920 the city. H5892
19 And they spake H1696 against H5921 the God H430 of Jerusalem, H3389 as against the gods H430 of the people H5971 of the earth, H776 which were the work H4639 of the hands H3027 of man. H120
9 After this did Sennacherib king of Assyria send his servants to Jerusalem, (now he was before Lachish, and all his power with him,) unto Hezekiah king of Judah, and unto all Judah that were at Jerusalem, saying,
10 Thus saith Sennacherib king of Assyria, Whereon do ye trust, that ye abide the siege in Jerusalem?
11 Doth not Hezekiah persuade you, to give you over to die by famine and by thirst, saying, Jehovah our God will deliver us out of the hand of the king of Assyria?
12 Hath not the same Hezekiah taken away his high places and his altars, and commanded Judah and Jerusalem, saying, Ye shall worship before one altar, and upon it shall ye burn incense?
13 Know ye not what I and my fathers have done unto all the peoples of the lands? Were the gods of the nations of the lands in any wise able to deliver their land out of my hand?
14 Who was there among all the gods of those nations which my fathers utterly destroyed, that could deliver his people out of my hand, that your God should be able to deliver you out of my hand?
15 Now therefore let not Hezekiah deceive you, nor persuade you after this manner, neither believe ye him; for no god of any nation or kingdom was able to deliver his people out of my hand, and out of the hand of my fathers: how much less shall your God deliver you out of my hand?
16 And his servants spake yet more against Jehovah God, and against his servant Hezekiah.
17 He wrote also letters, to rail on Jehovah, the God of Israel, and to speak against him, saying, As the gods of the nations of the lands, which have not delivered their people out of my hand, so shall not the God of Hezekiah deliver his people out of my hand.
18 And they cried with a loud voice in the Jews' language unto the people of Jerusalem that were on the wall, to affright them, and to trouble them; that they might take the city.
19 And they spake of the God of Jerusalem, as of the gods of the peoples of the earth, which are the work of men's hands.
9 After this hath Sennacherib king of Asshur sent his servants to Jerusalem -- and he `is' by Lachish, and all his power with him -- against Hezekiah king of Judah, and against all Judah, who `are' in Jerusalem, saying,
10 `Thus said Sennacherib king of Asshur, On what are ye trusting and abiding in the bulwark, in Jerusalem?
11 `Is not Hezekiah persuading you, to give you up to die by famine, and by thirst, saying, Jehovah our God doth deliver us from the hand of the king of Asshur?
12 Hath not Hezekiah himself turned aside His high places, and His altars, and speaketh to Judah and to Jerusalem, saying, Before one altar ye bow yourselves, and on it ye make perfume?
13 `Do ye not know what I have done -- I and my fathers -- to all peoples of the lands? Were the gods of the nations of the lands at all able to deliver their land out of my hand?
14 Who among all the gods of these nations whom my fathers have devoted to destruction `is' he who hath been able to deliver his people out of my hand, that your God is able to deliver you out of my hand?
15 `And, now, let not Hezekiah lift you up, nor persuade you thus, nor give credence to him, for no god of any nation and kingdom is able to deliver his people from my hand, and from the hand of my fathers: also, surely your God doth not deliver you from my hand!'
16 And again have his servants spoken against Jehovah God, and against Hezekiah His servant,
17 and letters he hath written to give reproach to Jehovah, God of Israel, and to speak against Him, saying, `As the gods of the nations of the lands that have not delivered their people from my hand, so the God of Hezekiah doth not deliver His people from my hand.'
18 And they call with a great voice `in' Jewish, against the people of Jerusalem who `are' on the wall, to frighten them, and to trouble them, that they may capture the city,
19 and they speak against the God of Jerusalem as against the gods of the peoples of the land -- work of the hands of man.
9 After this, Sennacherib king of Assyria sent his servants to Jerusalem (but he himself was before Lachish, and all his power with him), unto Hezekiah king of Judah, and unto all Judah that were at Jerusalem, saying,
10 Thus says Sennacherib king of Assyria: On what do ye rely that ye abide in the siege in Jerusalem?
11 Does not Hezekiah persuade you, to give yourselves over to die by famine and by thirst, saying, Jehovah our God will deliver us out of the hand of the king of Assyria?
12 Has not the same Hezekiah removed his high places and his altars, and commanded Judah and Jerusalem saying, Ye shall worship before *one* altar, and burn incense upon it?
13 Do ye not know what I and my fathers have done to all the peoples of the countries? Were the gods of the nations of the countries in any wise able to deliver their country out of my hand?
14 Who is there among all the gods of those nations that my fathers have utterly destroyed, that was able to deliver his people out of my hand, that your God should be able to deliver you out of my hand?
15 And now, let not Hezekiah deceive you, nor persuade you in this manner, neither yet believe him; for no +god of any nation or kingdom was able to deliver his people out of my hand, nor out of the hand of my fathers: how much less shall your God deliver you out of my hand?
16 And his servants spoke yet more against Jehovah, the [true] God, and against his servant Hezekiah.
17 And he wrote a letter to rail at Jehovah the God of Israel, and to speak against him saying, As the gods of the nations of the countries have not delivered their people out of my hand, so shall not the God of Hezekiah deliver his people out of my hand.
18 And they cried with a loud voice in the Jewish [language] to the people of Jerusalem that were on the wall, to frighten them and to trouble them; that they might take the city.
19 And they spoke of the God of Jerusalem as of the gods of the peoples of the earth, the work of man's hand.
9 After this did Sennacherib king of Assyria send his servants to Jerusalem, (now he was before Lachish, and all his power with him), to Hezekiah king of Judah, and to all Judah who were at Jerusalem, saying,
10 Thus says Sennacherib king of Assyria, Whereon do you trust, that you abide the siege in Jerusalem?
11 Does not Hezekiah persuade you, to give you over to die by famine and by thirst, saying, Yahweh our God will deliver us out of the hand of the king of Assyria?
12 Has not the same Hezekiah taken away his high places and his altars, and commanded Judah and Jerusalem, saying, You shall worship before one altar, and on it shall you burn incense?
13 Don't you know what I and my fathers have done to all the peoples of the lands? Were the gods of the nations of the lands in any wise able to deliver their land out of my hand?
14 Who was there among all the gods of those nations which my fathers utterly destroyed, that could deliver his people out of my hand, that your God should be able to deliver you out of my hand?
15 Now therefore don't let Hezekiah deceive you, nor persuade you after this manner, neither believe you him; for no god of any nation or kingdom was able to deliver his people out of my hand, and out of the hand of my fathers: how much less shall your God deliver you out of my hand?
16 His servants spoke yet more against Yahweh God, and against his servant Hezekiah.
17 He wrote also letters, to rail on Yahweh, the God of Israel, and to speak against him, saying, As the gods of the nations of the lands, which have not delivered their people out of my hand, so shall the God of Hezekiah not deliver his people out of my hand.
18 They cried with a loud voice in the Jews' language to the people of Jerusalem who were on the wall, to frighten them, and to trouble them; that they might take the city.
19 They spoke of the God of Jerusalem, as of the gods of the peoples of the earth, which are the work of men's hands.
9 After this, Sennacherib, king of Assyria, sent his servants to Jerusalem (at that time he was stationed with all his army in front of Lachish), to say to Hezekiah and all the men of Judah in Jerusalem,
10 Sennacherib, king of Assyria, says, In what are you placing your hope, waiting here in the walled town of Jerusalem?
11 Is it not Hezekiah who has got you to do it, causing your death from need of food and water, by saying, The Lord our God will give us salvation out of the hands of the king of Assyria?
12 Has not this same Hezekiah taken away his high places and his altars, saying to Judah and Jerusalem, Give worship before one altar only, burning offerings on it?
13 Have you no knowledge of what I and my fathers have done to all the peoples of every land? were the gods of the nations of those lands able to keep their land from falling into my hands?
14 Who was there among all the gods of those nations, which my fathers put to destruction, who was able to keep his people safe from my hands? and is it possible that your God will keep you safe from my hands?
15 So do not be tricked by Hezekiah or let him get you to do this, and do not put any faith in what he says: for no god of any nation or kingdom has been able to keep his people safe from my hands, or the hands of my fathers: how much less will your God keep you safe from my hands!
16 And his servants said even more against the Lord God and against his servant Hezekiah.
17 And he sent letters, in addition, to put shame on the Lord, the God of Israel, and to say evil against him, saying, As the gods of the nations of other lands have not been able to keep their people safe from my hands, no more will the God of Hezekiah keep his people safe from my hands.
18 These things they said, crying out with a loud voice in the Jews' language, to the people of Jerusalem who were on the wall, with the purpose of troubling them and putting fear into them, so that they might take the town;
19 Talking of the God of Jerusalem as if he was like the gods of the peoples of the earth, the work of men's hands.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on 2 Chronicles 32
Commentary on 2 Chronicles 32 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 32
2Ch 32:1-20. Sennacherib Invades Judah.
1. After these things, and the establishment thereof—that is, the restoration of the temple-worship. The precise date is given, 2Ki 18:13. Determined to recover the independence of his country, Hezekiah had decided to refuse to pay the tribute which his father had bound himself to pay to Assyria.
Sennacherib … entered into Judah, and encamped against the fenced cities—The whole land was ravaged; the strong fortresses of Ashdod (Isa 20:1) and Lachish had fallen; the siege of Libnah had commenced, when the king of Judah, doubting his ability to resist, sent to acknowledge his fault, and offer terms of submission by paying the tribute. The commencement of this Assyrian war was disastrous to Hezekiah (2Ki 18:13). But the misfortunes of the early period of the war are here passed over, as the historian hastens to relate the remarkable deliverance which God wrought for His kingdom of Judah.
2-8. when Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib … was purposed to fight against Jerusalem—An account of the means taken to fortify Jerusalem against the threatened siege is given only in this passage. The polluting or filling up of wells, and the altering of the course of rivers, is an old practice that still obtains in the wars of the East. Hezekiah's plan was to cover the fountain heads, so that they might not be discovered by the enemy, and to carry the water by subterranean channels or pipes into the city—a plan which, while it would secure a constant supply to the inhabitants, would distress the besiegers, as the country all around Jerusalem was very destitute of water.
4. So there was gathered much people … who stopped all the fountains, and the brook that ran through the midst of the land—"Where these various fountains were, we have now no positive means of ascertaining; though En-rogel, and the spring now called the Virgin's Fount, may well be numbered among them. Josephus mentions the existence of various fountains without the city, but does not mention any of them in this connection but Siloam. 'The brook,' however, is located with sufficient precision to enable us to trace it very definitely. We are told that it 'ran through the midst of the land.' Now a stream running through either the Kedron or Hinnom Valley, could, in no proper sense, be said to run through the midst of the land, but one flowing through the true Gihon valley, and separating Akra and Zion from Bezetha, Moriah, and Ophel, as a stream once, doubtless, did, could, with peculiar propriety, be said to run through the midst of the land on which the [Holy] City was built. And that this is the correct meaning of the phrase is not only apparent from the force of circumstances, but is positively so declared in the Septuagint, where, moreover, it is called a 'river,' which, at least, implies a much larger stream than the Kedron, and comports well with the marginal reading, where it is said to overflow through the midst of the land. Previous to the interference of man, there was, no doubt, a very copious stream that gushed forth in the upper portion of that shallow, basin-like concavity north of Damascus Gate, which is unquestionably the upper extremity of the Gihon valley, and pursuing its meandering course through this valley, entered the Tyropœon at its great southern curve, down which it flowed into the valley of the Kedron" [Barclay, City of the Great King].
5, 6. he strengthened himself—He made a careful inspection of the city defenses for the purpose of repairing breaches in the wall here, renewing the masonry there, raising projecting machines to the towers, and especially fortifying the lower portion of Zion, that is, Millo, "(in) the original city of David." "In" is a supplement of our translators, and the text reads better without it, for it was not the whole city that was repaired, but only the lower portion of Zion, or the original "city of David."
6. he … gathered them together … in the street—that is, the large open space at the gate of Eastern cities. Having equipped his soldiers with a full suit of military accoutrements, he addressed them in an animated strain, dwelling on the motives they had to inspire courage and confidence of success, especially on their consciousness of the favor and helping power of God.
9-20. (See on 2Ki 18:17-35; also 2Ki 19:8-34).
18. they cried with a loud voice … unto the people of Jerusalem … on the wall—It appears that the wall on the west side of the city reached as far to the side of the uppermost pool of Gihon at that time as it does now, if not farther; and the wall was so close to that pool that those sent to negotiate with the Assyrian general answered him in their own tongue (see on 2Ki 18:27).
2Ch 32:21-23. An Angel Destroys the Assyrians.
21. an angel … cut off all the mighty men—(See on 2Ki 19:35-37).
2Ch 32:24-26. Hezekiah's Sickness and Recovery.
24. In those days Hezekiah was sick to the death—(See on 2Ki 20:1-11).
2Ch 32:27-33. His Riches and Works.
27-29. he had exceeding much riches and honour—(compare 2Ki 20:13; Isa 39:2). A great portion of his personal wealth, like that of David and Uzziah, consisted in immense possessions of agricultural and pastoral produce. Besides, he had accumulated large treasures in gold, silver, and precious things, which he had taken as spoils from the Philistines, and which he had received as presents from neighboring states, among which he was held in great honor as a king under the special protection of Heaven. Much of his great wealth he expended in improving his capital, erecting forts, and promoting the internal benefit of his kingdom.
30. stopped the … watercourse of Gihon, and brought it … to the west side of the city, &c.—(Compare 2Ki 20:20). Particular notice is here taken of the aqueduct, as among the greatest of Hezekiah's works. "In exploring the subterranean channel conveying the water from Virgin's Fount to Siloam, I discovered a similar channel entering from the north, a few yards from its commencement; and on tracing it up near the Mugrabin gate, where it became so choked with rubbish that it could be traversed no farther, I there found it turn to the west in the direction of the south end of the cleft, or saddle, of Zion, and if this channel was not constructed for the purpose of conveying the waters of Hezekiah's aqueduct, I am unable to suggest any purpose to which it could have been applied. Perhaps the reason why it was not brought down on the Zion side, was that Zion was already well-watered in its lower portion by the Great Pool, 'the lower pool of Gihon.' And accordingly Williams [Holy City] renders this passage, 'He stopped the upper outflow of the waters of Gihon, and led them down westward to the city'" [Barclay, City of the Great King]. The construction of this aqueduct required not only masonic but engineering skill; for the passage was bored through a continuous mass of rock. Hezekiah's pool or reservoir made to receive the water within the northwest part of the city still remains. It is an oblong quadrangular tank, two hundred forty feet in length, from one hundred forty-four to one hundred fifty in breadth, but, from recent excavations, appears to have extended somewhat farther towards the north.
31. in the business of the ambassadors who sent … to inquire of the wonder that was done in the land, &c.—They brought a present (2Ch 32:23; see on 2Ki 20:12, 13), and a letter of congratulation on his recovery, in which particular enquiries were made about the miracle of the sun's retrocession—a natural phenomenon that could not fail to excite great interest and curiosity at Babylon, where astronomy was so much studied. At the same time, there is reason to believe that they proposed a defensive league against the Assyrians.
God left him, to try him, &c.—Hezekiah's offense was not so much in the display of his military stores and treasures, as in not giving to God the glory both of the miracle and of his recovery, and thus leading those heathen ambassadors to know Him.