Isaiah 37

1It came about that when King Hezekiah heard their report, he tore his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of Yahweh. 2He sent Eliakim, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, all covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah son of Amoz, the prophet. 3They said to him, “Hezekiah says, 'This day is a day of distress, rebuke, and disgrace, like when a child is ready to be born, but the mother has no strength to give birth to her child. 4It may be Yahweh your God will hear the words of the chief commander, whom the king of Assyria his master has sent to defy the living God, and will rebuke the words which Yahweh your God has heard. Now lift up your prayer for the remnant that is still here.'” 5So the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah, 6and Isaiah said to them, “Say to your master: 'Yahweh says, “Do not be afraid of the words that you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have insulted me. 7Look, I will put a spirit in him, and he will hear a certain report and go back to his own land. I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.”'” 8Then the chief commander returned and found the king of Assyria fighting against Libnah, for he had heard that the king had gone away from Lachish. 9Then Sennacherib heard that Tirhakah king of Cush and Egypt had mobilized to fight against him, so he sent messengers again to Hezekiah with a message: 10“Say to Hezekiah, king of Judah, 'Do not let your God in whom you trust deceive you, saying, “Jerusalem will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.” 11See, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands by destroying them completely. So will you be rescued? 12Have the gods of the nations rescued them, the nations that my fathers destroyed: Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the people of Eden in Tel Assar? 13Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the cities of Sepharvaim, of Hena, and Ivvah?'” 14Hezekiah received this letter from hand of the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the house of Yahweh and spread it before him. 15Hezekiah prayed to Yahweh: 16“Yahweh of hosts, God of Israel, you who sit above the cherubim, you are God alone over all the kingdoms of the earth. You made the heavens and the earth. 17Turn your ear, Yahweh, and listen. Open your eyes, Yahweh, and see, and hear the words of Sennacherib, which he has sent to mock the living God. 18It is true, Yahweh, the kings of Assyria have destroyed all the nations and their lands. 19They have put their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but the work of men's hands, just wood and stone. So the Assyrians have destroyed them. 20So now, Yahweh our God, save us from his power, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you are Yahweh alone.” 21Then Isaiah son of Amoz sent a message to Hezekiah, saying, “Yahweh, the God of Israel says, 'Because you have prayed to me concerning Sennacherib king of Assyria, 22this is the word that Yahweh has spoken about him: 23Whom have you defied and insulted? Against whom have you exalted your voice 24By your servants you have defied the Lord and have said, 'With the multitude of my chariots 25I have dug wells and drunk water; Some ancient and modern versions have I have dug wells and drunk water in foreign lands . 26Have you not heard how I determined it long ago 27Their inhabitants, of little strength, are shattered and ashamed. 28But I know your sitting down, your going out, your coming in, and your raging against me. 29Because of your raging against me, and because your arrogance has reached my ears, 30This will be the sign for you: 31The remnant of the house of Judah that survives will again take root and bear fruit. 32For from Jerusalem a remnant will come out; from Mount Zion survivors will come. 33Therefore Yahweh says this about the king of Assyria: 34The way by which he came will be the same way he will leave; he will not enter this city—this is Yahweh's declaration. 35For I will defend this city and rescue it, for my own sake and for David my servant's sake.” 36Then the angel of Yahweh went out and attacked the camp of the Assyrians, putting to death 185,000 soldiers. When the men arose early in the morning, dead bodies lay everywhere. 37So Sennacherib king of Assyria left Israel and went home and stayed in Nineveh.