MPV Commentary

Adonai says to Sennacherib through Isaiah: "It is I who have heard your boasts against Jerusalem and Judah. You said, 'By my own power, I will capture this city and its people.' But it's not by your might or power that you'll succeed; it's because of the Living God that you'll be defeated.

You've blasphemed Me, saying, 'The gods of other nations are on our side.' But those gods are nothing but idols. It's I who have created the heavens and the earth, and I will judge all nations. You're just a mortal king, and your power is fleeting.

I will defend this city for My own sake and for David's sake. The promise I made to David will not be broken. I will save Jerusalem from you and your army.

You'll return home with nothing but shame. Your sons will be taken captive, and your daughters will be forced into slavery. You'll never again hear the sound of music or laughter in your palace.

Hezekiah, king of Judah, is a righteous man who has sought My face. I have heard his prayers and seen his tears. I will give him a sign that this prophecy will come true: for two years, you've been eating from the land without planting or harvesting. But in the third year, you'll sow and reap, but not as usual. You'll harvest only enough to eat, and nothing more.

The remnant of Judah who survive your invasion will be like a tree that's been scorched by fire; they'll be left with nothing but stumps. The Assyrian army will come near Jerusalem, but they won't be able to conduct a proper siege because I will defend the city.

I will defend this city for My own sake and for David's sake. The promise I made to David will not be broken. I will save Jerusalem from you and your army.

The destruction of your army will be so complete that it will be like a plague, leaving nothing but corpses behind. But don't think that the Jews will be spared; they'll also suffer greatly. You, Sennacherib, will return home with nothing but shame. Your sons will be taken captive, and your daughters will be forced into slavery.

You dwelt at Nineveh for about twenty years after your disaster, a city founded by Nimrod, who was an exceedingly impious rebel. He abandoned the patriarchal order of society and set up a system of chieftainship based on conquest. You worshiped the eagle-headed human figure Nisroch, which is no doubt Asshur, the chief Assyrian god.

Esar-haddon, your son, will succeed you as king. He's the one who brought colonists into Samaria and may have carried Manasseh captive to Babylon. His palace was built on the mound Nebbiyunus, but it was destroyed by fire.