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Isaiah 37:14-35
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Isaiah 37:14-35
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
14 Hezekiah took the letter from the hand of the messengers and read it; then he went up to the house of the Lord, and spreading it out before the Lord, 15 Hezekiah prayed to the Lord:
16 “Lord of hosts, God of Israel,
enthroned on the cherubim!
You alone are God
over all the kingdoms of the earth.
It is you who made
the heavens and the earth.[a]
17 Incline your ear, Lord, and listen!
open your eyes, Lord, and see!
Hear all the words Sennacherib has sent
to taunt the living God.
18 Truly, O Lord,
the kings of Assyria have laid waste
the nations and their lands.
19 They gave their gods to the fire
—they were not gods at all,
but the work of human hands—
Wood and stone, they destroyed them.(A)
20 Therefore, Lord, our God,
save us from this man’s power,
That all the kingdoms of the earth may know
that you alone, Lord, are God.”
21 [b]Then Isaiah, son of Amoz, sent this message to Hezekiah: “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, to whom you have prayed concerning Sennacherib, king of Assyria: I have listened! 22 This is the word the Lord has spoken concerning him:(B)
She despises you, laughs you to scorn,
the virgin daughter Zion;
Behind you she wags her head,
daughter Jerusalem.
23 Whom have you insulted and blasphemed,
at whom have you raised your voice
And lifted up your eyes on high?
At the Holy One of Israel!(C)
24 Through the mouths of your messengers
you have insulted the Lord when you said:
‘With my many chariots I went up
to the tops of the peaks,
to the recesses of Lebanon,
To cut down its lofty cedars,
its choice cypresses;
I reached the farthest shelter,
the forest ranges.
25 I myself dug wells
and drank foreign water;
Drying up all the rivers of Egypt
beneath the soles of my feet.’
26 Have you not heard?
A long time ago I prepared it,
from days of old I planned it,
Now I have brought it about:
You are here to reduce
fortified cities to heaps of ruins,(D)
27 Their people powerless,
dismayed and distraught,
They are plants of the field,
green growth,
thatch on the rooftops,
Grain scorched by the east wind.
28 I know when you stand or sit,
when you come or go,
and how you rage against me.
29 Because you rage against me
and your smugness has reached my ears,
I will put my hook in your nose
and my bit in your mouth,
And make you leave by the way you came.(E)
30 This shall be a sign[c] for you:
This year you shall eat the aftergrowth,
next year, what grows of itself;
But in the third year, sow and reap,
plant vineyards and eat their fruit!
31 The remaining survivors of the house of Judah
shall again strike root below
and bear fruit above.(F)
32 For out of Jerusalem shall come a remnant,
and from Mount Zion, survivors.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts shall do this.(G)
33 Therefore, thus says the Lord about the king of Assyria:
He shall not come as far as this city,
nor shoot there an arrow,
nor confront it with a shield,
Nor cast up a siege-work against it.
34 By the way he came he shall leave,
never coming as far as this city,
oracle of the Lord.
35 I will shield and save this city
for my own sake and the sake of David my servant.”(H)
Footnotes
- 37:16 In contrast to the empty boasting of the Assyrians, Hezekiah proclaims the Lord as “God over all the kingdoms of the earth.”
- 37:21–37 The reversal of Isaiah’s attitude toward Hezekiah’s revolt (see note on 36:1) and a wonderful deliverance after Hezekiah had already submitted and paid tribute raise questions difficult to answer. See note on 22:1–14. Some have postulated that chaps. 36–37 combine accounts of two different Assyrian invasions.
- 37:30 A sign: sets a time limit. After two years the normal conditions of life will be resumed. See the similar use of time limits as signs in 7:15–16; 8:4; 16:14; and 21:16. You: Hezekiah.
Isaiah 37:14-35
New International Version
Isaiah 37:14-35
New International Version
Hezekiah’s Prayer(A)
14 Hezekiah received the letter(B) from the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the temple(C) of the Lord and spread it out before the Lord. 15 And Hezekiah prayed(D) to the Lord: 16 “Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, enthroned(E) between the cherubim,(F) you alone are God(G) over all the kingdoms(H) of the earth. You have made heaven and earth.(I) 17 Give ear, Lord, and hear;(J) open your eyes, Lord, and see;(K) listen to all the words Sennacherib(L) has sent to ridicule(M) the living God.(N)
18 “It is true, Lord, that the Assyrian kings have laid waste all these peoples and their lands.(O) 19 They have thrown their gods into the fire(P) and destroyed them,(Q) for they were not gods(R) but only wood and stone, fashioned by human hands.(S) 20 Now, Lord our God, deliver(T) us from his hand, so that all the kingdoms of the earth(U) may know that you, Lord, are the only God.[a](V)”
Sennacherib’s Fall(W)
21 Then Isaiah son of Amoz(X) sent a message to Hezekiah: “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Because you have prayed to me concerning Sennacherib king of Assyria, 22 this is the word the Lord has spoken against him:
“Virgin Daughter(Y) Zion(Z)
despises and mocks you.
Daughter Jerusalem
tosses her head(AA) as you flee.
23 Who is it you have ridiculed and blasphemed?(AB)
Against whom have you raised your voice(AC)
and lifted your eyes in pride?(AD)
Against the Holy One(AE) of Israel!
24 By your messengers
you have ridiculed the Lord.
And you have said,
‘With my many chariots(AF)
I have ascended the heights of the mountains,
the utmost heights(AG) of Lebanon.(AH)
I have cut down its tallest cedars,
the choicest of its junipers.(AI)
I have reached its remotest heights,
the finest of its forests.
25 I have dug wells in foreign lands[b]
and drunk the water there.
With the soles of my feet
I have dried up(AJ) all the streams of Egypt.(AK)’
26 “Have you not heard?
Long ago I ordained(AL) it.
In days of old I planned(AM) it;
now I have brought it to pass,
that you have turned fortified cities
into piles of stone.(AN)
27 Their people, drained of power,
are dismayed and put to shame.
They are like plants in the field,
like tender green shoots,
like grass(AO) sprouting on the roof,(AP)
scorched[c] before it grows up.
28 “But I know where you are
and when you come and go(AQ)
and how you rage(AR) against me.
29 Because you rage against me
and because your insolence(AS) has reached my ears,
I will put my hook(AT) in your nose(AU)
and my bit in your mouth,
and I will make you return
by the way you came.(AV)
30 “This will be the sign(AW) for you, Hezekiah:
“This year(AX) you will eat what grows by itself,
and the second year what springs from that.
But in the third year(AY) sow and reap,
plant vineyards(AZ) and eat their fruit.(BA)
31 Once more a remnant of the kingdom of Judah
will take root(BB) below and bear fruit(BC) above.
32 For out of Jerusalem will come a remnant,(BD)
and out of Mount Zion a band of survivors.(BE)
The zeal(BF) of the Lord Almighty
will accomplish this.
33 “Therefore this is what the Lord says concerning the king of Assyria:
“He will not enter this city(BG)
or shoot an arrow here.
He will not come before it with shield
or build a siege ramp(BH) against it.
34 By the way that he came he will return;(BI)
he will not enter this city,”
declares the Lord.
35 “I will defend(BJ) this city and save it,
for my sake(BK) and for the sake of David(BL) my servant!”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 37:20 Dead Sea Scrolls (see also 2 Kings 19:19); Masoretic Text you alone are the Lord
- Isaiah 37:25 Dead Sea Scrolls (see also 2 Kings 19:24); Masoretic Text does not have in foreign lands.
- Isaiah 37:27 Some manuscripts of the Masoretic Text, Dead Sea Scrolls and some Septuagint manuscripts (see also 2 Kings 19:26); most manuscripts of the Masoretic Text roof / and terraced fields
New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE)
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