The One Year Bible for Men - Flipbook - Page 4
July 1
speak to us in Aramaic, for we understand it
well. Don’t speak in Hebrew,* for the people on
the wall will hear.”
27 But Sennacherib’s chief of staff replied,
“Do you think my master sent this message
only to you and your master? He wants all the
people to hear it, for when we put this city
under siege, they will suffer along with you.
They will be so hungry and thirsty that they
will eat their own dung and drink their own
urine.”
28 Then the chief of staff stood and shouted
in Hebrew to the people on the wall, “Listen to
this message from the great king of Assyria!
29 This is what the king says: Don’t let Hezekiah
deceive you. He will never be able to rescue
you from my power. 30 Don’t let him fool you
into trusting in the Lord by saying, ‘The Lord
will surely rescue us. This city will never fall
into the hands of the Assyrian king!’
31 “Don’t listen to Hezekiah! These are the
terms the king of Assyria is offering: Make
peace with m
e—open the gates and come out.
Then each of you can continue eating from
your own grapevine and fig tree and drinking
from your own well. 32 Then I will arrange to
take you to another land like this one—a land
of grain and new wine, bread and vineyards,
olive groves and honey. Choose life instead of
death!
“Don’t listen to Hezekiah when he tries to
mislead you by saying, ‘The Lord will res
cue us!’ 33 Have the gods of any other nations
ever saved their people from the king of As
syria? 34 What happened to the gods of Ha
math and Arpad? And what about the gods
of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah? Did any god
rescue Samaria from my power? 35 What god
of any nation has ever been able to save its
people from my power? So what makes you
think that the Lord can rescue Jerusalem
from me?”
36 But the people were silent and did not
utter a word because Hezekiah had com
manded them, “Do not answer him.”
37 Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah, the palace
administrator; Shebna the court secretary;
and Joah son of A
saph, the royal historian,
went back to Hezekiah. They tore their clothes
in despair, and they went in to see the king and
told him what the Assyrian chief of staff had
said.
19:1 When King Hezek
iah heard their report, he
tore his clothes and put on burlap and went
into the Temple of the Lord. 2 And he sent Eli
akim the palace administrator, Shebna the
court secretary, and the leading priests, all
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dressed in burlap, to the prophet Isaiah son of
Amoz. 3 They told him, “This is what King Hez
ekiah says: Today is a day of trouble, insults,
and disgrace. It is like when a child is ready to
be born, but the mother has no strength to de
liver the baby. 4 But perhaps the Lord your God
has heard the Assyrian chief of staff,* sent by
the king to defy the living God, and will pun
ish him for his words. Oh, pray for those of us
who are left!”
5 After King Hezekiah’s officials delivered
the king’s message to Isaiah, 6 the prophet
replied, “Say to your master, ‘This is what the
Lord says: Do not be disturbed by this blas
phemous speech against me from the Assyr
ian king’s messengers. 7 Listen! I myself will
move against him,* and the king will receive a
message that he is needed at home. So he will
return to his land, where I will have him killed
with a sword.’”
8 Meanwhile, the Assyrian chief of staff left
Jerusalem and went to consult the king of As
syria, who had left Lachish and was attacking
Libnah.
9 Soon afterward King Sennacherib received
word that King Tirhakah of Ethiopia* was
leading an army to fight against him. Before
leaving to meet the attack, he sent messen
gers back to Hezek
iah in Jerusalem with this
message:
10 “This message is for King Hezekiah of
Judah. Don’t let your God, in whom you
trust, deceive you with promises that
Jerusalem will not be captured by the king
of Assyria. 11 You know perfectly well what
the kings of Assyria have done wherever
they have gone. They have completely
destroyed everyone who stood in their
way! Why should you be any different?
12 Have the gods of other nations rescued
them—such nations as Gozan, Haran,
Rezeph, and the people of Eden who were
in T
el-assar? My predecessors destroyed
them all! 13 What happened to the king
of Hamath and the king of Arpad? What
happened to the kings of Sepharvaim,
Hena, and Ivvah?”
14 After Hezekiah received the letter from
the messengers and read it, he went up to the
Lord’s Temple and spread it out before the
Lord. 15 And Hezekiah prayed this prayer
before the Lord: “O Lord, God of Israel, you
are enthroned between the mighty cheru
bim! You alone are God of all the kingdoms
of the earth. You alone created the heavens
and the earth. 16 Bend down, O Lord, and lis
ten! Open your eyes, O Lord, and see! Listen
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