God Delivered Judah

Hezekiah and his officials were sorrowful at the ultimatum given to them by the king of Assyria. They’d torn their royal clothing and covered themselves with sackcloth. The king then went to the house of the Lord.

He sent his prime minister, Eliakim, to visit Isaiah the prophet. Along with them went Shebna, the recorder and the highest officials in the priestly order with them. They met with Isaiah the prophet reporting on behalf of king Hezekiah.

They said this has been a troublesome day. A day of rebuke and blasphemy because the children are ready for birth, but the woman has no strength to push them out. They reported that they are hopeful that the Lord has heard all the words of Rabshakeh, the servant of Sennacherib.

Do not be afraid…

He came and disgraced the living God, and hopefully the Lord will reprimand the king of Assyria because of this. They asked Isaiah to lift the nation up in prayer. Isaiah then responded with a message for Hezekiah, king of Judah.

He said the Lord says Do not be afraid of the words spoken by the servants of the king of Assyria that he spoke blasphemously. The Lord has said He will send a blast on him, a message of negative things going on in his own country. He will return to his land and there he will be killed.

Rabshakeh left Jerusalem and found his king warring against Libnah after receiving word that he’d left Lachish. Rabshakeh heard that Tirhakah, the king of Ethiopia, was going to come out to fight against Assyria. When he heard this, he sent another message to king Hezekiah.

…gods of the other nations…

He said to the king of Judah, Do not let your God, whom you trust deceive you to believe Jerusalem will not be delivered into the hands of Assyria. He continued saying You’ve heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands, destroying them completely. The Assyrian messenger asked the king does he want to be next? Does he truly believe they will be delivered?

He really pleaded with king Hezekiah emotionally and logically. Rabshakeh asked about the gods of the other nations that had not been delivered, like in Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the children of Eden in the land of Thelasar.

He asked about certain kings, such as the king of Hamath, Arpad, Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivah; where are they? When Hezekiah read the letter, he went to the house of the Lord again, and spread the letter out before the Lord. The king then prayed to the Lord.

Open Your Eyes and Ears… Please

His prayer went as this, “O Lord God of Israel, who dwells between the cherubims; You are God alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth.” King Hezekiah continued, “You have made heaven and earth, so Lord please bow down Your ear and hear; O Lord, open Your eyes and see, and Your ears to hear what Sennacherib has said to reproach the living God.

It’s true Lord, the kings of Assyria have destroyed the nations and their lands. They have thrown out these nations gods into the fire, but they were not really gods. These gods were the work of men’s hands, they were wood and stone and that is why they were destroyed.

Therefore O Lord, I beg You to save us out of his hand so all kingdoms of the earth may know that You are the Lord God, only.” Afterwards, Isaiah the son of Amoz was sent to the king of Judah. He had a message from the Lord that said, “The prayer you have asked Me regarding Sennacherib of Assyria, I have heard.”

the king of Assyria Reproached the Sovereign Lord

Isaiah reported this from the Lord. The virgin daughters of Zion has despised the king of Assyria and are laughing at him. She is shaking her head at him. Who has he reproached and blasphemed, and exalted his voice, lifting up his eyes at? At the Lord, the Holy One of Israel?

The king of Assyria has reproached the Lord with his messengers, threatening that with all his chariots, he will come to the height of the mountains. The Assyrian king has boasted regarding his accomplishments but now he must hear this!

The king of Assyria, Sennacherib by name, does not know that the Lord has done this long ago. In the ancient days the Lord created this very situation he is in. The Lord knows about Sennacherib, his going out and coming in, and his rage against the living God.

Nevertheless, his rage has come to the hearing of the Lord and the Lord will put a hook in his nose. The Lord will bridle in his lips and turn him back to where he came from; with his arrogant ass (donkey). This will be the sign to Hezekiah, he will eat this year things that grow of themselves; and in the second year the things that spring up of the same.

Sennacherib will step foot in Jerusalem…

In the third year, he will sow and reap, plant vineyards and eat from them. Whatever is left of the house of Judah, it will send a root down and the fruit will still come up. The people remaining, they will go out of Jerusalem and will be saved because of the sincere love of the Lord, He will do this.

Back to the king of Assyria, “This is what the Lord says, Sennacherib will not come into Jerusalem. He will not shoot as much as one single arrow there, neither will he come before this city with a shield. The same way he came, the same way he will return.

He will not come into this city, says the Lord. I will defend this city and save it, for My own sake and for the sake of my steward David.” Later that night, an angel of the Lord went out and struck the military camp of the Assyrians.

One hundred and eighty-five thousand (185,000) soldiers were killed in one night. When Judah awoke early the next morning, they saw nothing but dead corpses. Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, left for Nineveh, his home.

God Delivered Judah and Jerusalem

When he returned home, devastated and scared, he went to inquire at his god, Nisroch. While he was praying, his sons, Adrammelech and Sharezer, both struck him dead with their swords. They then escaped out of Nineveh into the land of Armenia. Sennacherib’s son Esarhaddon took over the Assyrian throne. God delivered Judah.

Selah (this article is based on 2 Kings chapter 19)

Thank you for joining us today. It’s always a pleasure to have you. BibleStudyMinistry.com (BSM), believes the Bible is one assimilated account leading and pointing to Jesus the Messiah. Also to His Kingdom on the Earth, and His Royal Family.

BSM also believes the Bible has a lot of profound and practical wisdom everyone can use in the journey of life; and towards the Kingdom of the Lord.

You’ll find we blog and vlog on different study topics, chapter studies, current events, biblical interludes, and all things pertaining to scripture. We do all of this so we can share this story the best we can with you.

We appreciate and are grateful for all your love and support in all ways possible… even something as simple as leaving a cool or encouraging comment. Blessings to you.