In the fourth year of king Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up against Samaria, and besieged it. At the end of three years they took it. In the sixth year of Hezekiah, which was the ninth year of Hoshea king of Israel, Samaria was taken. The king of Assyria carried Israel away to Assyria, and put them in Halah, and on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes, because they didn’t obey Yahweh their God’s voice, but transgressed his covenant, even all that Moses the servant of Yahweh commanded, and would not hear it or do it.
Now in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah, Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah, and took them. Hezekiah king of Judah sent to the king of Assyria to Lachish, saying, “I have offended you. Return from me. That which you put on me, I will bear.” The king of Assyria appointed to Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold. Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found in Yahweh’s house, and in the treasures of the king’s house. At that time, Hezekiah cut off the gold from the doors of Yahweh’s temple, and from the pillars which Hezekiah king of Judah had overlaid, and gave it to the king of Assyria.
The king of Assyria sent Tartan and Rabsaris and Rabshakeh from Lachish to king Hezekiah with a great army to Jerusalem. They went up and came to Jerusalem. When they had come up, they came and stood by the conduit of the upper pool, which is in the highway of the fuller’s field. When they had called to the king, Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebnah the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder came out to them. Rabshakeh said to them, “Say now to Hezekiah, ‘The great king, the king of Assyria, says, “What confidence is this in which you trust? You say (but they are but vain words), ‘There is counsel and strength for war.’ Now on whom do you trust, that you have rebelled against me? Now, behold, you trust in the staff of this bruised reed, even in Egypt. If a man leans on it, it will go into his hand, and pierce it. So is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust on him. But if you tell me, ‘We trust in Yahweh our God;’ isn’t that he whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah has taken away, and has said to Judah and to Jerusalem, ‘You shall worship before this altar in Jerusalem?’ Now therefore, please give pledges to my master the king of Assyria, and I will give you two thousand horses, if you are able on your part to set riders on them. How then can you turn away the face of one captain of the least of my master’s servants, and put your trust on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen? Have I now come up without Yahweh against this place to destroy it? Yahweh said to me, ‘Go up against this land, and destroy it.’ ” ’ ”
Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, Shebnah, and Joah, said to Rabshakeh, “Please speak to your servants in the Syrian language, for we understand it. Don’t speak with us in the Jews’ language, in the hearing of the people who are on the wall.”
But Rabshakeh said to them, “Has my master sent me to your master and to you, to speak these words? Hasn’t he sent me to the men who sit on the wall, to eat their own dung, and to drink their own urine with you?” Then Rabshakeh stood, and cried with a loud voice in the Jews’ language, and spoke, saying, “Hear the word of the great king, the king of Assyria. The king says, ‘Don’t let Hezekiah deceive you; for he will not be able to deliver you out of his hand. Don’t let Hezekiah make you trust in Yahweh, saying, “Yahweh will surely deliver us, and this city shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.” Don’t listen to Hezekiah.’ For the king of Assyria says, ‘Make your peace with me, and come out to me; and everyone of you eat from his own vine, and everyone from his own fig tree, and everyone drink water from his own cistern; until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive trees and of honey, that you may live, and not die. Don’t listen to Hezekiah, when he persuades you, saying, “Yahweh will deliver us.” Has any of the gods of the nations ever delivered his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria? Where are the gods of Hamath, and of Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim, of Hena, and Ivvah? Have they delivered Samaria out of my hand? Who are they among all the gods of the countries, that have delivered their country out of my hand, that Yahweh should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand?’ ”
But the people stayed quiet, and answered him not a word; for the king’s commandment was, “Don’t answer him.” Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, came with Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder, to Hezekiah with their clothes torn, and told him Rabshakeh’s words.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv14, 17, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 26, 27, 29, 31, 32, 35 As his zeal was before praised, so his weakness…
As his zeal was before praised, so his weakness is here set forth, that none should glory in himself.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv9–37 2Ki 18:9 And it came to pass in the…
2Ki 18:9 And it came to pass in the fourth year of king Hezekiah, which [was] the seventh year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, [that] Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up against Samaria, and besieged it.
Ver. 9. In the fourth year, &c.] See on 2Ki 18:1.
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That Shalmaneser, &c.] At which time Hezekiah sat in safety, and might keep a passover for his preservation. To teach us thus much it is, saith Pellican, that Israel’s ruin is here repeated.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 17, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 31, 32, 34, 36 The seventh year of Hoshea; the seventh of those…
The seventh year of Hoshea; the seventh of those nine years expressed 2Ki 17:1.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On vv9, 17 The kingdom of Assyria had now grown considerable, though…
The kingdom of Assyria had now grown considerable, though we never read of it till the last reign. Such changes there are in the affairs of nations and families: those that have been despicable become formidable, and those, on the contrary, are brought low that have made a great noise and figure. We have here an account,
I. Of the success of Shalmaneser, king of Assyria, against Israel, his besieging Samaria (Kg2 18:9), taking it (Kg2 18:10), and carrying the people into captivity (Kg2 18:11), with the reason why God brought this judgment upon them (Kg2 18:12): Because they obeyed not the voice of the Lord their God. This was related more largely in the foregoing chapter, but it is here repeated, 1. As that which stirred up Hezekiah and his people to purge out idolatry with so much zeal, because they saw the ruin which it brought upon Israel. When their neighbour's house was on fire, and their own in danger, it was time to cast away the accursed thing. 2. As that which Hezekiah much lamented, but had not strength to prevent. Though the ten tribes had revolted from, and often been vexatious to, the house of David, no longer ago than in his father's reign, yet being of the seed of Israel he could not be glad at their calamities. 3. As that which laid Hezekiah and his kingdom open to the king of Assyria, and made it much more easy for him to invade the land. It is said of the ten tribes here that they would neither hear God's commandments nor do them, Kg2 18:12. Many will be content to give God the hearing that will give him no more (Eze 33:31), but these, being resolved not to do their duty, did not care to hear of it.
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II. Of the attempt of Sennacherib, the succeeding king of Assyria, against Judah, in which he was encouraged by his predecessor's success against Israel, whose honours he would vie with and whose victories he would push forward. The descent he made upon Judah was a great calamity to that kingdom, by which God would try the faith of Hezekiah and chastise the people, who are called a hypocritical nation (Isa 10:6), because they did not comply with Hezekiah's reformation, nor willingly part with their idols, but kept them up in their hearts, and perhaps in their houses, though their high places were removed. Even times of reformation may prove troublesome times, made so by those that oppose it, and then the blame is laid upon the reformers. This calamity will appear great upon Hezekiah if we consider, 1. How much he lost of his country, Kg2 18:13. The king of Assyria took all or most of the fenced cities of Judah, the frontier-towns and the garrisons, and then all the rest fell into his hands of course. The confusion which the country was put into by this invasion is described by the prophet, Isa 10:28-31. 2. How dearly he paid for his peace. He saw Jerusalem itself in danger of falling into the enemies' hand, as Samaria had done, and was willing to purchase its safety at the expense, (1.) Of a mean submission: "I have offended in denying the usual tribute, and am ready to make satisfaction as shall be demanded," Kg2 18:14. Where was Hezekiah's courage? Where his confidence in God? Why did he not advise with Isaiah before he sent this crouching message? (2.) Of a vast sum of money - 300 talents of silver and thirty of gold (above 200,000l.), not to be paid annually, but as a present ransom. To raise this sum, he was forced not only to empty the public treasures (Kg2 18:15), but to take the golden plates off from the doors of the temple, and from the pillars, Kg2 18:16. Though the temple sanctified the gold which he had dedicated, yet, the necessity being urgent, he thought he might make as bold with that as his father David (whom he took for his pattern) did with the show-bread, and that it was neither impious nor imprudent to give a part for the preservation of the whole. His father Ahaz had plundered the temple in contempt of it, Ch2 28:24. He had repaid with interest what his father took; and now, with all due reverence, he only begged leave to borrow it again in an exigency and for a greater good, with a resolution to restore it in full as soon as he should be in a capacity to do so.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv9–14 And at the end of three years they took…
And at the end of three years they took it,.... That is, at the first end of them, at the beginning, in which sense the phrase is taken in Deu 15:1, even in the sixth year of Hezekiah, that is, the ninth year of Hoshea king of Israel, Samaria was taken: see Kg2 17:6.
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2 Kings 18:11
kg2 18:11
kg2 18:11
kg2 18:11And the king of Assyria did carry away Israel unto Assyria,.... Of the places he disposed of them in, after mentioned; see Gill on Kg2 17:6.
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John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv13, 14, 17, 19, 21, 22, 25, 27, 28, 31 Them - Many of them; universal particles being frequently…
Them - Many of them; universal particles being frequently so used both in scripture, and other authors; and this success God gave him; to lift him up to his own greater and more shameful destruction: to humble and chastise his own people for their manifold sins, and, to gain an eminent opportunity to advance his own honour by that miraculous deliverance which he designed for his people.
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Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv9, 17, 18, 19, 21, 22, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28, 32, 34, 36, 37 Verse 9. In the fourth year] This history has…
Verse 9. In the fourth year] This history has been already given, 2Kg 17:3, &c.
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Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv13, 14, 17, 18, 19, 21, 22, 23, 25, 26, 27, 30, 32, 34, 36 2Ki 18:13. Sennacherib king of Assyria — Who succeeded…
2Ki 18:13. Sennacherib king of Assyria — Who succeeded Shalmaneser, probably his son. He was encouraged to make this attempt against Judah by his predecessor’s success against Israel, whose honours he wished to emulate, and whose victories he would push forward. This invasion of Judah was a great calamity to that kingdom, by which God tried the faith of Hezekiah, and chastised the people, who are called a hypocritical nation, (Isa 10:6,) because they did not heartily concur with Hezekiah in effecting a reformation, nor willingly part with their idols; much less did they give up all their sins, and turn to God in true repentance. Against the fenced cities of Judah, and took them — That is, most of them: for that they were not all taken appears from 2Ki 19:8. When he had made himself master of the frontier towns and garrisons, most of the others fell into his hands of course. By this success he was lifted up to his own greater and more shameful destruction, and an eminent occasion was afforded for the manifestation of God’s power and glory in that miraculous deliverance which he designed to effect for his people.
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Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv9, 13, 14, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 26, 27, 29, 31, 33, 34 These verses repeat the account given in the marginal…
These verses repeat the account given in the marginal reference. The extreme importance of the event may account for the double insertion.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv9, 11, 13, 16, 17, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 26, 27, 29, 31, 32, 34, 36, 37 Samaria. The same history is given, chap. xvii. 3.…
Samaria. The same history is given, chap. xvii. 3. (Calmet)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv13, 14, 17, 18, 19, 27 Sennacherib--the son and successor of Shalmaneser.
Sennacherib--the son and successor of Shalmaneser.
all the fenced cities of Judah--not absolutely all of them; for, besides the capital, some strong fortresses held out against the invader (Kg2 18:17; Kg2 19:8). The following account of Sennacherib's invasion of Judah and the remarkable destruction of his army, is repeated almost verbatim in 2Ch. 32:1-33 and Isa. 36:1-37:38. The expedition seems to have been directed against Egypt, the conquest of which was long a leading object of ambition with the Assyrian monarchs. But the invasion of Judah necessarily preceded, that country being the key to Egypt, the highway through which the conquerors from Upper Asia had to pass. Judah had also at this time formed a league of mutual defense with Egypt (Kg2 18:24). Moreover, it was now laid completely open by the transplantation of Israel to Assyria. Overrunning Palestine, Sennacherib laid siege to the fortress of Lachish, which lay seven Roman miles from Eleutheropolis, and therefore southwest of Jerusalem on the way to Egypt [ROBINSON]. Among the interesting illustrations of sacred history furnished by the recent Assyrian excavations, is a series of bas-reliefs, representing the siege of a town, which the inscription on the sculpture shows to be Lachish, and the figure of a king, whose name is given, on the same inscription, as Sennacherib. The legend, sculptured over the head of the king, runs thus: "Sennacherib, the mighty king, king of the country of Assyria, sitting on the throne of judgment before the city of Lachish [Lakhisha], I give permission for its slaughter" [Nineveh and Babylon]. This minute confirmation of the truth of the Bible narrative is given not only by the name Lachish, which is contained in the inscription, but from the physiognomy of the captives brought before the king, which is unmistakably Jewish.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv9, 10, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 31, 32, 33, 34, 36 FALL OF THE KINGDOM OF ISRAEL, 2Ki_18:9-12.
FALL OF THE KINGDOM OF ISRAEL, 2Ki_18:9-12.
The fall of the kingdom of Israel was so important and memorable a catastrophe that it was recorded in the annals of Judah as well as in those of Israel; and one object of our historian in introducing a notice of it here, seems to be to contrast it with the greater permanence of Judah under the God-fearing Hezekiah. Judah successfully rebelled against Assyria because her king trusted in Jehovah and kept his law; Israel fell because her people “obeyed not the voice of the Lord their God, but transgressed his covenant, and all that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded.” 2Ki_18:12.
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9. Fourth year… seventh year — That is, the greater part of the fourth year of Hezekiah fell in the seventh year of Hoshea. See note on 2Ki_18:1.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 9–12. Israel finally carried captive by Shalmaneser (Not in…
9–12. Israel finally carried captive by Shalmaneser (Not in Chronicles)
9. Shalmaneser … came up against Samaria and besieged it] Probably the negotiations with So king of Egypt had still gone forward (2Ki_17:4), and the tribute due from Israel to Assyria had continued to be unpaid.
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and besieged it] Shalmaneser commenced the siege, but the city was not taken till the reign of his successor Sargon. (See Schrader Cuneiform Inscriptions, Engl. Trans. 1. p. 266.)
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv9, 10, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35 (9-12) The account of the captivity of northern Israel…
(9-12) The account of the captivity of northern Israel is repeated here, because the editor faithfully reproduces what he found in the abstract of the Judœan history of the kings. (Comp. 2Ki_17:3-6, and the Notes.) We may also see a contrast between the utter overthrow of the stronger kingdom and the deliverance of its smaller and weaker neighbour, because Hezekiah trusted in Jehovah (2Ki_18:5).
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv9–37 Vers. 9-12. THE PUNISHMENT OF SAMARIA FOR DISOBEDIENCE. In…
Vers. 9-12. THE PUNISHMENT OF SAMARIA FOR DISOBEDIENCE. In contrast with Hezekiah"s piety and consequent prosperity, the author places the disobedience (ver. 12) and consequent extinction of the sister kingdom (vers. 9-11), which Belonged to Hezekiah"s earlier years, and was an event of the greatest importance to him, since it made his dominions conterminous with those of Assyria, and exposed his northern frontier to attack at any moment from the Assyrian forces. According to all probable human calculation, the fall of Samaria should have been followed at once by an attack on Judaea; and but for the change of dynasty, and troubles on all sides which ensued thereupon, this would naturally have taken place. As it was, Judaea was allowed a Breathing-space, during which she strengthened her power in Philistia (see the comment on the preceding verse), and otherwise prepared herself to resist attack (see 2Ch_33:3-6; Isa_22:8-11)
And it came to pass in the fourth year of King Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Hoshea son of Elah King of Israel. Hezekiah Began to reign before Hoshea had completed his third year (ver. 1). His first year thus ran parallel with part of Hoshea"s third and part of his fourth; his fourth with part of Hoshea"s sixth and part of his seventh; his sixth with part of Hoshea"s eighth and part of his ninth. That Shalmaneser King of Assyria came up against Samaria, and besieged it. (see the comment on 2Ki_17:4, 2Ki_17:5)
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Vers. 9-12. Captivity and its cause.
(See homily on preceding chapter, vers. 6-23.) C.H.I.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv10, 13 At the end of three years they took it.
2Ki_18:10
At the end of three years they took it.
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The gains of perseverance
I do admire the perseverance of Shalmaneser and his successor. For three years they battered at its doors and waited patiently for success. Preaching the other night at Portsmouth, an unknown Christian came up to me after the service with sad face and tearful eye and said, I wanted a word with you, Mr. Spurgeon. I have been working for two years in the London lodging-houses and I have seen no result. The people were crowding around me; I wanted to have a word with this one and the other, and yet others were pressing for a handshake, so I could not say much, but I hope that the message that was so casually delivered somewhat encouraged him. For two years, I said, you have been working and seen no result! Well, it does seem discouraging, but you must keep on But, he said, there is not a solitary sign. Well, said I in parting with him, perhaps they will all come in a lump. Well, that was just an off-hand and unpremeditated way of answering him, but I think I saw a sparkle in his eye, and I hope he went away encouraged to believe that God was saving up a blessing for him, and that when it did rain it would pour. God grant it may be so here. At the end of three years they took it. If I had thought of this text when the friend greeted me at Portsmouth, I think I should have spoken it. At the end of three years they took it. You have only been labouring two; go on for at least another twelve months and then, if not before, the hard hearts of men will open and the brazen gates may yield. (Thomas Spurgeon.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Expositor's Bible 1887 · Public Domain On v13 2Ki_18:13-37; 2Ki_19:1-37
HEZEKIAH AND ASSYRIA
B.C. 701
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2Ki_18:13-37; 2Ki_19:1-37
"When, sudden-how think ye the end?
Did I say without friend?
Say rather from marge to blue marge
The whole sky grew his targe,
With the suns self for visible boss.
While an Arm ran across
Which the earth heaved beneath like a breast,
Where the wretch was safe pressed."
- BROWNING
ALTHOUGH during a few memorable scenes the relations of Judah with Assyria in the reign of Hezekiah leap into fierce light, many previous details are unfortunately left in the deepest obscurity-an obscurity all the more impenetrable from the lack of certain dates. It will perhaps help to simplify our conceptions if we first sketch what is known of Assyria from the cuneiform inscriptions, and then fill up the sketch of those scenes which are more minutely delineated in the Book of Kings and in the prophecies of Isaiah.
Sargon-perhaps a successful general of royal blood, though he never calls himself the son of anyone-seems to have usurped the throne on the death of Shalmaneser IV during the siege of Samaria in B.C. 722. He took Samaria, deported its inhabitants, and re-peopled it from the Assyrian dominions. "In their place," he says, in his tablets in the halls of his palace at Khorsabad, "I settled the men of countries conquered [by my hand]." In 720 he suppressed a futile attempt at revolt, headed by a pretender named Yahubid, in Hamath, which he reduced to "a heap of ruins." For some years after this he was occupied mainly on his northern frontiers, but he tells us that until 711 tribute continued to come in from Judah and Philistia. Meanwhile, these terrified and oppressed feudatories, writhing under the remorseless dominion of Nineveh, naturally began to listen to the intrigues of Egypt, whose interest it was to create a bulwark between herself and the invasion of the armies which were the abhorrence of the world. Under the influence of Sabaco which gave new strength and unity to Egypt, she succeeded in seducing Ashdod from its allegiance to Sargon. Sargon at once deposed Azuri, King of Ashdod, and put his brother Ahimit in his place. The Ashdodites soon after deposed Ahimit, and elected in his place Jaman, who was in alliance with Sabaco. This revolt was evidently favoured by Judah, Edom, and Moab; for Sargon says that they, as well as the people of Philistia, "were speaking treason." The rebellion was crushed by Sargons promptitude. He tells his own tale thus: "In the wrath of my heart I did not divide my army, and I did not diminish the ranks, but I marched against Ashdod with my warriors, who did not separate themselves from the traces of my sandals. I besieged, I took Ashdod and Gunt-Asdodim. I then re-established these towns. I placed [in them] the people whom my arms had conquered, I put over them my lieutenant as governor. I regarded them as Assyrians, and they practiced obedience." Sargon does not, however, seem to have conducted this campaign in person; for we read in Isa_20:1 "that he sent his Turtan - i.e., his commander-in-chief, whose name seems to have been Zirbani-to Ashdod, who fought against it and took it. The wretched Philistines had put their trust in Sabaco." The people, says Sargon, "and their evil chiefs sent their presents to Pharaoh, King of Egypt, a prince who could not save them, and besought his alliance." Isaiah had for three years been indicating how vain this policy was by one of those acted parables which so powerfully affect the Eastern mind. He had, by the word of the Lord, stripped the shoes from off his feet and the upper robe of sackcloth from his loins, and walked, "naked and barefoot, for a sign and portent against Egypt and Ethiopia," to indicate that even thus should the people of Egypt and Ethiopia be carried away as captives, naked and barefoot, by the kings of Assyria. Egypt was the boast of one party at Jerusalem, and Ethiopia, which had now become master of Egypt under Sabaco, was their expectation; but Isaiahs public self-humiliation showed how utterly their hopes should come to naught. Before the outbreak at Ashdod, Sargon had suppressed a revolt of Hanun, or Hanno, King of Gaza, and Egypt and Assyria first met face to face at Raphia (about B.C. 720), where Sabaco fought in person with an Egyptian contingent, at a spot halfway between Gaza and the "river of Egypt." {Isa_20:1-6} Sabaco, whom Sargon calls "the Sultan of Egypt" (Siltannu Muzri), had been defeated, and fled precipitately, but Sargon was not then sufficiently free from other complications to advance to the Nile. The hoarded vengeance of Assyria was inflicted upon Egypt nearly a century later by Esarhaddon and Assurbanipal. In the two suppressions of revolt at Ashdod, Sargon or his Turtan must have come perilously near Jerusalem, and perhaps he may have inflicted insufficient damage to admit of the boast that he had "conquered" Judaea. If so, his military vanity made him guilty of an exaggeration.
Far more serious to Sargon was the revolt of Merodach-Baladan, King of Chaldaea. Babylon had always been a rival of Nineveh in the competition for world-wide dominion, and for twelve years, as Sargon says, Merodach-Baladan had been "sending ambassadors"-to Hezekiah among others - in the patient effort to consolidate a formidable league. Elam and Media were with him; and at a solemn banquet, for which they had "spread the carpets," and eaten and drank, the cry had risen, "Arise, ye princes! anoint the shield." Standing in ideal vision on his watch-tower, Isaiah saw the sweeping rush of the Assyrian troops on their horses and camels on their way to Babylon. What should come of it? The answer is in the words, "Fallen, fallen is Babylon, and all the images of her gods he [Sargon] hath broken to the ground." Alas! there is no hope from Babylon or its embassy! Would that Isaiah could have held out a hope! But no, "O my threshed one, son of my threshing-floor, that which I have heard from the Lord of hosts; the God of Israel, that have I declared unto you." And so it came to pass. The brave Babylonian was defeated. In 709 Sargon occupied his palace, took Dur-yakin, to which he had fled for refuge, and made himself Lord Paramount as far as the Persian Gulf. It was his last great enterprise. He built and adorned his palaces, and looked forward to long years of peace and splendor; but in 705 the dagger-thrust of an assassin-a malcontent of the town of Kullum-found its way to his heart; and Sennacherib reigned in his stead.
Sennacherib-Siu-ahi-irba ("Sin, the moon-god, has multiplied brothers")-was one of the haughtiest, most splendid, and most powerful of all the kings of Assyria, though the petty state of Judah, relying on her God, defied and flouted him. The son of a mighty conqueror, at the head of a magnificent army, he regarded himself as the undisputed lord of the world. Born in the purple, and bred up as crown prince, his primary characteristic was an overweening pride and arrogance, which shows itself in all his inscriptions. He calls himself "the Great King, the Powerful King, the King of the Assyrians, of the nations of the four regions, the diligent ruler, the favorite of the Great Gods, the observer of sworn faith, the guardian of law, the establisher of monuments, the noble hero, the strong warrior, the first of kings, the punisher of unbelievers, the destroyer of wicked men." He was mighty both in war and peace. His warlike glories are attested by Herodotus, by Polyhistor, by Abydenus, by Demetrius, and by his own annals. His peaceful triumphs are attested by the great palace which he erected at Nineveh, and the magnificent series of sculptured slabs with which he adorned it; by his canals and aqueducts, his gateways and embankments, his Bevian sculpture, and his stele at the Nahr-el-Kelb. He was a worthy successor of his father Sargon, and of the second Tiglath-Pileser-active in his military enterprises, indefatigable, persevering, full of resource.
On one of his bas-reliefs we see this magnificent potentate seated on his throne, holding two arrows in his right hand, while his left grasps the bow. A rich bracelet clasps each of his brawny arms. On his head is the jeweled pyramidal crown of Assyria, with its embroidered lappets. His dark locks stream down over his shoulders, and the long, curled beard flows over his breast. His strongly marked, sensual features wear an aspect of unearthly haughtiness. He is clad in superbly broidered robes, and his throne is covered with rich tapestries, and bas-reliefs of Assyrians or captives, who, like the Greek caryatides, uphold its divisions with their heads and arms.
Yet all this glory faded into darkness, and all this colossal pride crumbled into dust. Sennacherib not only died, like his father, by murder, but by the murderous hands of his own sons, and after the shattering of all his immense pretensions-a defeated and dishonored man.
One of his invasions of Judaea occupies a large part of the Scripture narrative. It was the fourth time of that terrible contact between the great world-power which symbolized all that was tyrannical and idolatrous, and the insignificant tribe which God had chosen for His own inheritance.
In the reign of Ahaz, about B.C. 732, Judah had come into collision with Tiglath-Piteser II.
Under Shalmaneser IV and Sargon, the Northern Kingdom had ceased to exist in 722.
Under Sargon, Judah had been harassed and humbled, and had witnessed the suppression of the Philistian revolt, and of the defeat of the powerful Sabaco at Raphia about 720.
Now came the fourth and most overwhelming calamity. If the patriots of Jerusalem had placed any hopes in the disappearance of the ferocious Sargon, they must speedily have recognized that he had left behind him a no less terrible successor.
Sennacherib reigned apparently twenty-four years (B.C. 705-681). On his accession he placed a brother, whose name is unknown, on the viceregal throne of Babylon, and contented himself with the title of King of the Assyrians. This brother was speedily dethroned by a usurper named Hagisa, who only reigned thirty days, and was then slain by the indefatigable Merodach-Baladan, who held the throne for six months. He was driven out by Belibus, who had been trained "like a little dog" in the palace of Nineveh, but was now made King of Sumir and Accad-i.e., of Babylonia. Sennacherib entered the palace of Babylon and carried off the wife of Merodach and endless spoil in triumph, while Merodach fled into the land of Guzumman, and (like the Duke of Monmouth) hid himself "among the marshes and reeds," where the Assyrians searched for him for five days, but found no trace of him. After three years (702-699) Belibus proved faithless, and Sennacherib made his son Assur-nadin-sum viceroy of Babylon.
His second campaign was against the Medes in Northern Elam.
His third (701) was against the Khatti (the Hittites)-i.e., against Phoenicia and Palestine. He drove King Luli from Sidon "by the mere terror of the splendor of my sovereignty," and placed Tubalu (i.e., Ithbaal) in his place, and subdued into tributary districts Arpad, Byblos, Ashdod, Ammon, Moab, and Edom, suppressing at the same time a very abortive rising in Samaria. "All these brought rich presents and kissed my feet." He also subdued Zidka, King of Askelon, from whom he took Beth-Dagon, Joppa, and other towns. Padi, the King of Ekron, was a faithful vassal of Assyria; he was therefore deposed by the revolting Ekronites, and sent in chains into the safe custody of Hezekiah, who "imprisoned him in darkness." The rebel states all relied on the Egyptians and Ethiopians. Sennacherib fought against Egyptians and Ethiopians, "in reliance upon Assur my God," at Altaqu (B.C. 701), and claims to have defeated them, and carried off the sons and charioteers of the King of Egypt, and the charioteers of the kings of Ethiopia. He then tells us that he punished Altaqu and Timnath. {See Jos_19:43} He impaled the rebels of Ekron on stakes all round the city. He restored Padi, and made him a vassal. "Hezekiah [Chazaqiahu] of Judah, who had not submitted to my yoke, the terror of the splendor of my sovereignty overwhelmed. Himself as a bird in a cage, in the midst of Jerusalem, his royal city, I shut up. The Arabians and his dependants, whom he had introduced for the defense of Jerusalem, his royal city, together with thirty talents of gold, eight hundred of silver bullion, precious stones, ivory couches and thrones, an abundant treasure, with his daughters, his harem, and his attendants, I caused to be brought after me to Nineveh. He sent his envoy to pay tribute and render homage." At the same time, he overran Judaea, took forty-six fenced cities and many smaller towns, "with laying down of walls, hewing about, and trampling down," and carried off more than two hundred thousand captives with their spoil. Part of Hezekiahs domains was divided among three Philistine vassals who had remained faithful to Assyria.
It was in the midst of this terrible crisis that Hezekiah had sent to Sennacherib at Lachish his offer of submission, saying, "I have offended; return from me; that which thou puttest upon me I will bear." The spoiling of the palace and Temple was rendered necessary to raise the vast mulct which the Assyrian King requited.
It is at Lachish-now Um-Lakis, a fortified hill in the Shephelah, south of Jerusalem, between Gaza and Eleutheropolis-that we catch another personal glimpse of the mighty oppressor. We see him depicted on his triumphal tablets in the palace-chambers of Kouyunjik, engaged in the siege; for the town offered a determined resistance, and required all the energies and all the trained heroism of his forces. We see him next, carefully painted, seated on his royal throne in magnificent apparel, with his tiara and bracelets, receiving the spoils and captives of the city. The inscription says: "Sennacherib, the mighty king, the king of the country of Assyria, sitting on the throne of judgment at the entrance of the city of Lakisha. I give permission for its slaughter." He certainly implies that he took the city, but a doubt is thrown on this by 2Ch_32:1, which only says that "he thought to win these cities"; and the historian says {2Ki_19:8} that he "departed from Lachish." Lachish was evidently a very strong city, and it is so depicted in the palace-tablets at Kouyunjik. It had been fortified by Rehoboam, and had furnished a refuge to the wretched Amaziah.
If Judah and Jerusalem had listened to the messages of Isaiah, {Isaiah 29, 30, 31} they might have been saved the humiliating affliction which seemed to have plunged the brief sun of their prosperity into seas of blood. He had warned them incessantly and in vain. He had foretold their present desolation, in which Zion should be like a woman seated on the ground, wailing in her despair. He had taught them that formalism was no religion, and that external rites did not win Jehovahs approval. He had told them how foolish it was to put trust in the shadow of Egypt, and had not shrunk from revealing the fearful consequences which should follow the setting up of their own false wisdom against the wisdom of Jehovah. Yet, intermingled with pictures of suffering, and threats of a harvestless year, designed to punish the vanity and display of their women, and the intimation-never actually fulfilled-that even the palace and Temple should become "the joy of wild asses, a pasture of flocks," he constantly implies that the disaster would be followed by a mysterious, divine, complete deliverance, and ultimately by a Messianic reign of joy arid peace. Night is at hand, he said, and darkness; but after the darkness will come a brighter dawn.
William Robertson Nicoll, ed., The Expositor's Bible (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1887–1910) — public domain. 65 of 66 books (1 Corinthians is not separately keyed, as that volume carries no machine-parseable verse references); section-level commentary keyed to the opening verse. Introductory and overview sections not keyed to a specific passage are excluded.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain On v13 2Ki_18:13. In the fourteenth year of Hezekiah did Sennacherib,…
CRITICAL AND EXPLANATORY NOTES.—
2Ki_18:13. In the fourteenth year of Hezekiah did Sennacherib, &c.—Comp. Isaiah 36. This mighty Assyrian was with his vast army on his way to war with his hated and dreaded rival, Egypt. Judah lay in the line of his march, and its conquest was essential to his safe advance to Egypt. Hezekiah trembled as this terrible foe swept down upon the land; and being without support from Egypt, he purchased temporary respite by a heavy tribute valuing £351,000, to raise which he had to empty the palace, and even strip the gold from the temple (2Ki_18:16).
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2Ki_18:14. The king of Assyria to Lachish—A strongly fortified town south-west of Jerusalem on the way to Egypt. One of the Assyrian bas-reliefs recently discovered represents the seige of a town; shows the figure of an Assyrian king conducting it, and a string of captives whose physiognomy is unmistakably Jewish. Over the head of the king runs this inscription: “Sennacherib, the mighty king, king of the country of Assyria, sitting on the throns of judgment before the city of Lachish: I give permission for its slaughter.”
2Ki_18:17. Tartan and Rabsaris … against Jerusalem—Sennacherib himself marched forward against Egypt, where he found himself engaged in a three years’ campaign, ending in defeat. Tartan was general; Rabsaris, chief of the eunuchs; Rab-shakeh, chief cup-bearer. The general’s insolent message to Hezekiah was met with the silence (2Ki_18:36) which the king had imposed on his delegates (2Ki_18:18). and which the people also maintained. This avoided provocation to the Assyrian general. The am bassadors, grieved at the menacing and insulting language to their king, and the blasphemies against Jehovah to which they had listened, returned to Hezekiah covered with the signs of humiliation and mourning.—W. H. J.
HOMILETICS OF 2Ki_18:13-37
A BOASTFUL AND ARROGANT SPIRIT
I. Is the offspring of military success (2Ki_18:13-16). The Assyrian king invaded Judah, captured the fenced cities, compelled Hezekiah to pay a heavy tribute, and now his victorious legions surrounded Jerusalem and threatened it with immediate destruction. Flushed with success and with unlimited confidence in the power of their arms, the captains of the great king indulge in a spirit of proud vaunting. It is the tendency of all military success—especially as war was carried on in those days—to inspire an arrogant and self-confident spirit. Few men know how to behave themselves in the moment of victory. Some soldiers are so elated with triumph, that their bounce and vanity are intolerable. It is forgotten that, in the changing fortunes of warfare, the winners of the fight to-day may be the vanquished of to-morrow.
II. Is plausible in speech and lavish in promises (2Ki_18:17-32). There is a sort of cleverness in this speech of Rabshakeh’s—the cleverness of craft and guile and flattery. He rallies Hezekiah on his trust in Egypt and in Jehovah, as though they were one and the same in the Assyrian estimation. He promises 2,000 horses if the Jews will come out and fight, though by their inability to find a sufficient number of horsemen he thus shows off the superiority of his attacking forces. He claims to have the authority of Jehovah for his enterprise, and, turning to the people who crowded the city walls, he entices them to submission by promises of peace and plenty. A boastful and arrogant spirit has endless inflexibility; it can adapt itself to anything to gain a purpose. It can hide the most sinister designs under a mask of bewitching plausibility, like certain birds which imitate in their attitudes the forms of the grasses and flowers where they watch for their prey.
III. Hesitates not to insult and defy the only true God (2Ki_18:33-35). Rabshakeh boasts that none of the gods of the vanquished nations have been able to deliver their worshippers from the invincible power of the Assyrian arms; and in insulting and defiant terms he charges Jehovah with similar helplessness. But ah! Rabshakeh, thou dost not know the God of the Jews, or thou wouldst not so speak. Thou art carried away with the bombast of pride; and thy mind shaded with the dark screen of idolatrous ideas, thou canst not conceive the superlative greatness and grandeur of Jehovah. Ere long thou shalt be startled with His presence and awed with the ghastly evidences of His desolating power.
IV. Is best treated with dignified silence (2Ki_18:36). Silence is what a proud man least can bear. It irritates and annoys him. He does not know whether you are laughing at him or are afraid of him. And yet what better answer than silence can we give to the threats and coaxings of the arrogant? Euripides was wont to say silence was an answer to a wise man; but we seem to have greater occasion for it in our dealing with fools and unreasonable persons; for men of breeding and sense will be satisfied with reason and fair words.
LESSONS:—
1. Few men can bear with becoming modesty and dignity the power which success brings.
2. The flatteries and promises of a boastful man are unworthy of credence.
3. Neither threats nor flatteries should seduce us from our trust in Jehovah.
GERM NOTES ON THE VERSES
2Ki_18:13-16. Submission.
1. Distasteful to a liberty-loving king.
2. Inevitable in the face of superior force.
3. May prevent or postpone more serious consequences.
4. Often a heavy drain on national resources.
—The gold of faith can only be made to appear through the fires of adversity. If thy faith is not a mere notion, or opinion, or feeling, or sensation, then it will not diminish in time of trial, but grow and become stronger and purer. Whence should we have had David’s Psalms, if he had not been tried?
2Ki_18:14-16. Hezekiah held it good policy to make his enemy a golden bridge to go over: so to be rid of him. If Ahaz, that church-robber, had done this, it would better have become him. Hezekiah, for doing it, lost his cost (2Ki_18:17).—Trapp.
2Ki_18:17-37. Diplomatic rhetoric.
1. Is a dangerous weapon in the hands of an unscrupulous orator.
2. Is often a specious mixture of truth and falsehood.
3. Seeks to weaken allegiance by flattering promises.
4. Awakens grave anxiety with its tone of confidence and power.
5. Sometimes best answered with dignified silence.
2Ki_18:17-35. Rabshakeh, the wolf in sheep’s clothing.—I. He appears to warn against Egypt as a power which neither can nor will help, just as Isaiah himself does, while he himself comes to destroy and devour (Mat_7:15; Matthew 1Jn_4:1). II. He represents what had been ordained by Hezekiah, according to the law of the Lord and for His honour, as a sin and a breach of religion, while he himself cared nothing whatever for the law of the Lord or the true and right worship. Beware of those who represent as weakness and folly that which is Divine wisdom and strength. III. He claims that the Lord is with him, and has commanded to do what he is doing, whereas, in fact, he is only the rod of God’s wrath, the staff of His anger, a “hired razor”; and ambition, lust for gold and land, desire for glory and plunder, are his only motives (Mat_7:22). Be not deceived by the prosperity and the victory of the godless. They are like chaff which the wind scatters, and their way disappears.—Lange.
2Ki_18:17. O lamentable and in sight desperate condition of distressed Jerusalem! Wealth it had none; strength it had but a little; all the country around about was subdued to the Assyrian; that proud victor has begirt the walls of it with an innumerable army, scorning that such a shovelful of earth should stand out but one day. Poor Jerusalem stands alone, blocked up with a world of enemies, helpless, friendless, comfortless, looking for the worst of a hostile fury, when Tartan and Rabsaris, and Rabshakeh, the great captains of the Assyrians, call to a parley. Lord! what insolent blasphemies does that foul mouth of Rabshakeh belch out against the living God, against His anointed servant!—Bp. Hall.
—We can never rely upon the fidelity of a man who is simply bought with money. Want of courage in one’s self invites an enemy to arrogance. The more humbly one approaches an enemy, the more insolent he becomes. Peace and quiet which are bought with money have no duration.—Lange.
2Ki_18:21. A false friend compared to the reed of an Egyptian bulrush.
1. Because though it appears outwardly strong, it is brittle and hollow.
2. Because it fails when we most depend upon it.
3. Because it injures us when we expected it would help us.
2Ki_18:30. “The Lord will deliver us.” I. A noble saying in the mouth of a king speaking to his people. He thereby admits that his own power is insufficient and vain. He leads his people in that faith which is a confidence in what is hoped for, and which admits no doubt of what is not seen. How well it would be for all princes, and people if they had such faith. II. In this saying, all the hope of the Christian life is expressed. With God we overcome the world, for the Lord will at length deliver us from all evil, and bring us to His heavenly kingdom. The blasphemer and boaster wanted to remove these words of the king from the heart of the people, because he knew he should then have won. Now-a-days, also, these words are laughed at and scorned. Let them not be torn from your heart!—Lange.
2Ki_18:36. Silence.
1. Is the wisest answer to provocation and threatening.
2. Increases the perplexity of a proud and cruel aggressor.
3. Implies confidence in the help which has been so grossly maligned.
—They punished him with silence, as Isaac did Ishmael. Silence is the best answer to words of scorn and petulency. It is best to stop an open mouth with saying nothing. Princes used to punish the indecencies of ambassadors by denying them audience. Rabshakeh could not be more spited than with no answer. This sulphurous flask therefore died in his own smoke, only leaving a hateful stench behind it.—Trapp.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain On v11 did carry
did carry
Times of the Gentiles. 2Ki 18:9; 2Ki 18:12; 2Ki 25:1-21; Luk 21:24; Rev 16:19.
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On vv9, 17 The Assyrian Campaign against Samaria and Jerusalem
The Assyrian Campaign against Samaria and Jerusalem
v. 9. And it came to pass in the fourth year of King Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Hoshea, son of Elah, king of Israel, that Shalmaneser, king of Assyria, came up against Samaria and besieged it.
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v. 10. And at the end of three years they took it; even in the sixth year of Hezekiah, that is the ninth year of Hoshea, king of Israel, Samaria was taken.
v. 11. And the king of Assyria did carry away Israel unto Assyria, and put them in Halah and in Habor by the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes,
v. 12. because they obeyed not the voice of the Lord, their God, but transgressed His covenant, and all that Moses, the servant of the Lord, commanded, and would not hear them nor do them. Cf 2Ki 17:5-8. The account is here repeated because the catastrophe which overtook Israel was of great importance to the entire covenant people and probably aided Hezekiah in carrying out his reforms, since the people continually had the warning example of their northern neighbors before them.
v. 13. Now, in the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah did Sennacherib, king of Assyria, come up against all the fenced cities of Judah and took them, all the fortified towns outside of Jerusalem, his purpose being to leave behind him conquered territory as he advanced against Egypt.
v. 14. And Hezekiah, King of Judah, sent to the king of Assyria to Lachish, a city some fifteen hours southwest of Jerusalem, on the way to Egypt, against which Sennacherib (or Sargon, as the inscriptions have his real name) was then encamped, saying, I have offended, he acknowledged that he had acted foolishly in not submitting to the invaders. Return from me; that which thou puttest on me, namely, in the form of ransom- or tribute-money, will I bear. And the king of Assyria appointed unto Hezekiah, king of Judah, three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold, a sum which would amount to at least $2,000,000 in modern money.
v. 15. And Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found in the house of the Lord and in the treasures of the king’s house.
v. 16. At that time did Hezekiah cut off the gold from the doors of the Temple of the Lord, which he himself had put on the door-casings, 2Ch 29:3, and from the pillars which Hezekiah, king of Judah, had overlaid, and gave it to the king of Assyria. It was a very heavy tribute and drained the resources of Hezekiah. It was a momentary weakness of Hezekiah, which caused him even to enter into negotiations with the enemy; for the Lord was well able to preserve Judah, as the subsequent events showed. The strongest test of faith in God comes on the darkest days; it is then that the heart must cling to Him to the exclusion of everything else.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv9, 11, 13, 16, 19, 22, 24, 26, 28, 31, 33, 36 Hoshea ... Elah ... Shalmaneser
Hoshea ... Elah ... Shalmaneser
These are the names of men. (See: How to Translate Names)
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translationWords
Hezekiah
Hoshea
kingdom of Israel
Samaria
siege
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv9, 13, 14, 15, 17, 19, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28, 31, 32, 37 18:9-12 The narrator introduces the fall of Samaria as…
18:9-12 The narrator introduces the fall of Samaria as a reminder that Assyria was the prevailing power of the era and that Samaria fell because of Hoshea’s apostasy, thus setting the stage for the account of Hezekiah’s demonstration of spiritual fiber and God’s dealing with him (18:19–19:19).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.