Isaiah / Chapter 36

Isaiah 36

22 verses • Westminster Leningrad Codex 1 tradition available

Translator's Introduction

What This Chapter Is About

In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib of Assyria captures Judah's fortified cities and sends his Rabshakeh to Jerusalem with a massive force. The Rabshakeh delivers a devastating speech in Hebrew, taunting Hezekiah's reliance on Egypt and on the LORD.

What Makes This Chapter Remarkable

The Rabshakeh's speech is a masterpiece of psychological warfare. He addresses the people directly in Hebrew (yehudit) after the officials beg him to speak Aramaic (v. 11). His most provocative claim: 'The LORD Himself told me to march against this land and destroy it' (v. 10). He co-opts Israel's own theology, using YHWH's name to undermine trust in YHWH. The chapter parallels 2 Kings 18:13-37 almost verbatim.

Translation Friction

The title Rabshakeh (rav-shaqeh) is an Assyrian military rank, not a proper name. We transliterated it and noted its meaning ('chief cupbearer' or 'chief officer'). The request to speak Aramit ('Aramaic,' v. 11) rather than Yehudit ('Judahite/Hebrew') reveals the linguistic politics of the ancient Near East — Aramaic was the diplomatic lingua franca.

Connections

This chapter parallels 2 Kings 18:13-37 with minor variations. The Rabshakeh's taunt about trusting Egypt echoes Isaiah's own warnings (30:1-7, 31:1-3). Sennacherib's invasion is documented in Assyrian records (the Taylor Prism). The theological crisis — can YHWH defend His own city? — drives chapters 36-37.

Isaiah 36:1

וַיְהִ֗י בְּאַרְבַּ֤ע עֶשְׂרֵה֙ שָׁנָ֔ה לַמֶּ֖לֶךְ חִזְקִיָּ֑הוּ עָלָ֞ה סַנְחֵרִ֤יב מֶֽלֶךְ־אַשּׁוּר֙ עַל֩ כׇּל־עָרֵ֨י יְהוּדָ֧ה הַבְּצֻר֛וֹת וַֽיִּתְפְּשֵֽׂם׃

In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib king of Assyria marched against all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them.

KJV Now it came to pass in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah, that Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the defenced cities of Judah, and took them.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

This verse is nearly identical to 2 Kings 18:13. The date formula places the invasion around 701 BCE. Sennacherib's own records (the Taylor Prism) confirm the campaign against Judah, claiming he shut Hezekiah up 'like a bird in a cage' — but notably never claims to have captured Jerusalem.

Isaiah 36:2

וַיִּשְׁלַ֣ח מֶלֶךְ־אַשּׁ֣וּר ׀ אֶת־רַב־שָׁקֵ֨ה מִלָּכִ֧ישׁ יְרוּשָׁלַ֛͏ְמָה אֶל־הַמֶּ֥לֶךְ חִזְקִיָּ֖הוּ בְּחֵ֣יל כָּבֵ֑ד

The king of Assyria sent the Rabshakeh from Lachish to Jerusalem, to King Hezekiah, with a large force. He took his stand by the conduit of the upper pool, on the highway to the Washerman's Field.

KJV And the king of Assyria sent Rabshakeh from Lachish to Jerusalem unto king Hezekiah with a great army.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The Rabshakeh (rav-shaqeh) is a title meaning 'chief cupbearer' or 'chief officer' — a high-ranking Assyrian military official, not a personal name. Lachish, Judah's second most important city, had already fallen. The location by the 'upper pool' is the same spot where Isaiah met Ahaz in 7:3 — the site of failed faith now becomes the site of the crisis faith must face.

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"Rabshakeh"

1QIsaiah-a writes רבשקה as one word without the maqqef of the MT. The title means 'chief cupbearer' or 'chief officer.' This spelling difference — hyphenated vs. solid — has no impact on meaning.

Isaiah 36:3

וַיֵּצֵ֣א אֵלָ֔יו אֶלְיָקִ֥ים בֶּן־חִלְקִיָּ֖הוּ אֲשֶׁ֣ר עַל־הַבָּ֑יִת וְשֶׁבְנָא֙ הַסֹּפֵ֔ר וְיוֹאָ֥ח בֶּן־אָסָ֖ף הַמַּזְכִּֽיר׃

Eliakim son of Hilkiah, who was over the palace, Shebna the secretary, and Joah son of Asaph, the recorder, went out to meet him.

KJV Then came forth unto him Eliakim, Hilkiah's son, which was over the house, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah, Asaph's son, the recorder.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

Eliakim is now 'over the palace' — the position Isaiah prophesied he would hold in 22:20-22, replacing Shebna. Shebna has been demoted to secretary (sopher). The three officials represent Hezekiah's diplomatic delegation.

Isaiah 36:4

וַיֹּ֤אמֶר אֲלֵיהֶם֙ רַב־שָׁקֵ֔ה אִמְרוּ־נָ֖א אֶל־חִזְקִיָּ֑הוּ כֹּֽה־אָמַ֞ר הַמֶּ֤לֶךְ הַגָּדוֹל֙ מֶ֣לֶךְ אַשּׁ֔וּר מָ֧ה הַבִּטָּח֛וֹן הַזֶּ֖ה אֲשֶׁ֥ר בָּטָֽחְתָּ׃

The Rabshakeh said to them, 'Say to Hezekiah: This is what the great king, the king of Assyria, says — What is this trust in which you are trusting?'

KJV And Rabshakeh said unto them, Say ye now to Hezekiah, Thus saith the great king, the king of Assyria, What confidence is this wherein thou trustest?

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The Rabshakeh uses the same prophetic messenger formula (ko amar) for Sennacherib that prophets use for God — a deliberate rhetorical provocation. The title 'the great king' (hammelekh haggadol) is the standard Assyrian royal title, set in opposition to Hezekiah's implied smallness.

Isaiah 36:5

אָמַ֙רְתִּי֙ אַךְ־דְּבַר־שְׂפָתַ֔יִם עֵצָ֥ה וּגְבוּרָ֖ה לַמִּלְחָמָ֑ה עַתָּה֙ עַל־מִ֣י בָטַ֔חְתָּ כִּ֥י מָרַ֖דְתָּ בִּֽי׃

'I say — your claim of strategy and strength for war is mere talk. Now, on whom are you relying, that you have rebelled against me?'

KJV I say, sayest thou, (but they are but vain words) I have counsel and strength for war: now on whom dost thou trust, that thou rebellest against me?

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The phrase devar-sefatayim ('word of lips') dismisses Hezekiah's military preparations as empty talk — all mouth, no substance. The verb maradta ('you have rebelled') frames Hezekiah's resistance as political rebellion against Assyrian suzerainty, not as faithfulness to God.

Isaiah 36:6

הִנֵּ֣ה בָטַ֗חְתָּ עַל־מִשְׁעֶ֜נֶת הַקָּנֶ֤ה הָרָצוּץ֙ הַזֶּ֔ה עַל־מִצְרַ֔יִם אֲשֶׁ֨ר יִסָּמֵ֥ךְ אִישׁ֙ עָלָ֔יו וּבָ֥א בְכַפּ֖וֹ וּנְקָבָ֑הּ כֵּ֚ן פַּרְעֹ֣ה מֶלֶךְ־מִצְרַ֔יִם לְכׇל־הַבֹּטְחִ֖ים עָלָֽיו׃

'Look — you are trusting in the staff of this broken reed, Egypt! If a man leans on it, it goes into his hand and pierces it. That is what Pharaoh king of Egypt is to everyone who trusts in him.'

KJV Lo, thou trustest in the staff of this broken reed, on Egypt; whereon if a man lean, it will go into his hand, and pierce it: so is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all that trust in him.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The 'broken reed' (qaneh haratsuts) metaphor for Egypt is devastatingly vivid — the reed looks supportive but splinters under weight and pierces the hand that grips it. Isaiah himself used similar language against Egyptian alliances (30:1-7). The Rabshakeh ironically agrees with the prophet.

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"Egypt"

Identical consonantal text. The taunt that Egypt is a 'broken reed' that pierces the hand of anyone who leans on it is preserved identically. No impact on meaning.

Isaiah 36:7

וְכִי־תֹאמַ֣ר אֵלַ֔י אֶל־יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֵ֖ינוּ בָּטָ֑חְנוּ הֲלוֹא־ה֗וּא אֲשֶׁ֨ר הֵסִ֤יר חִזְקִיָּ֙הוּ֙ אֶת־בָּמֹתָ֣יו וְאֶת־מִזְבְּחֹתָ֔יו

'And if you say to me, We trust in the LORD our God — is He not the one whose high places and altars Hezekiah has removed, telling Judah and Jerusalem, You must worship before this altar?'

KJV But if thou say to me, We trust in the LORD our God: is it not he, whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah hath taken away, and said to Judah and to Jerusalem, Ye shall worship before this altar?

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The Rabshakeh's most theologically sophisticated argument: Hezekiah's religious reforms (removing high places, centralizing worship) are reframed as offending YHWH rather than honoring Him. To an outsider unfamiliar with Deuteronomic theology, destroying altars to a deity would seem sacrilegious, not faithful. The argument has surface plausibility.

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"his altars"

1QIsaiah-a writes המזבחותיו with identical consonants. The Rabshakeh's devastating argument — 'Is it not Hezekiah who removed the LORD's high places and altars?' — uses Hezekiah's reform against him, claiming that Judah's own God is angry. The irony is that Hezekiah's reform was faithful, but the Rabshakeh twists it into evidence of divine displeasure.

Isaiah 36:8

וְעַתָּ֗ה הִתְעָ֤רֶב נָא֙ אֶת־אֲדֹנִ֔י אֶת־מֶ֖לֶךְ אַשּׁ֑וּר וְאֶתְּנָ֤ה לְךָ֙ אַלְפַּ֣יִם סוּסִ֔ים אִם־תּוּכַ֕ל לָ֥תֶת לְךָ֖ רֹכְבִ֥ים עֲלֵיהֶֽם׃

'Now then, make a wager with my master the king of Assyria: I will give you two thousand horses — if you can find riders for them!'

KJV Now therefore give pledges, I pray thee, to my master the king of Assyria, and I will give thee two thousand horses, if thou be able on thy part to set riders upon them.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The taunt exposes Judah's military weakness — even if given horses for free, they lack trained cavalry to ride them. The verb hit'arev ('make a wager, exchange pledges') frames the challenge as a dare Hezekiah cannot accept.

Isaiah 36:9

וְאֵ֣יךְ תָּשִׁ֗יב אֵ֠ת פְּנֵ֨י פַחַ֥ת אַחַ֛ד עַבְדֵ֥י אֲדֹנִ֖י הַקְּטַנִּ֑ים וַתִּבְטַ֤ח לְךָ֙ עַל־מִצְרַ֔יִם לְרֶ֖כֶב וּלְפָרָשִֽׁים׃

'How then can you repel even a single officer among the least of my master's servants? Yet you trust in Egypt for chariots and horsemen!'

KJV How then wilt thou turn away the face of one captain of the least of my master's servants, and put thy trust on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen?

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The argument escalates: Judah cannot repel even one minor Assyrian official, yet trusts in Egypt's distant cavalry. The word pachat ('governor, officer') describes a low-ranking provincial administrator — the insult is that even Assyria's least is more than Judah's best.

Isaiah 36:10

וְעַתָּה֙ הֲמִבַּלְעֲדֵ֣י יְהוָ֔ה עָלִ֖יתִי עַל־הָאָ֣רֶץ הַזֹּ֑את לְהַשְׁחִיתָ֑הּ יְהוָ֞ה אָמַ֣ר אֵלַ֗י עֲלֵ֛ה אֶל־הָאָ֥רֶץ הַזֹּ֖את וְהַשְׁחִיתָֽהּ׃

'And have I marched against this land to destroy it without the LORD? The LORD Himself said to me: March against this land and destroy it!'

KJV And am I now come up without the LORD against this land to destroy it? the LORD said unto me, Go up against this land, and destroy it.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The Rabshakeh's most audacious claim: YHWH commissioned the Assyrian invasion. This is either blasphemous presumption or — ironically — partially true, since Isaiah's own oracles describe Assyria as God's instrument of judgment (10:5-6). The theological ambiguity is deliberately unsettling.

Isaiah 36:11

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֶלְיָקִ֤ים וְשֶׁבְנָא֙ וְיוֹאָ֔ח אֶל־רַב־שָׁקֵ֑ה דַּבֶּר־נָ֤א אֶל־עֲבָדֶ֙יךָ֙ אֲרָמִ֔ית כִּ֥י שֹׁמְעִ֖ים אֲנָ֑חְנוּ וְאַל־תְּדַבֵּ֤ר אֵלֵ֙ינוּ֙ יְהוּדִ֔ית בְּאׇזְנֵ֣י הָעָ֔ם אֲשֶׁ֖ר עַל־הַחוֹמָֽה׃

Then Eliakim, Shebna, and Joah said to the Rabshakeh, 'Please speak to your servants in Aramaic, for we understand it. Do not speak to us in Hebrew in the hearing of the people who are on the wall.'

KJV Then said Eliakim and Shebna and Joah unto Rabshakeh, Speak, I pray thee, unto thy servants in the Syrian language; for we understand it: and speak not to us in the Jews' language, in the ears of the people that are on the wall.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The officials' request reveals their fear: the Rabshakeh's Hebrew speech is aimed not at the diplomats but at the common people on the wall. Aramit ('Aramaic') was the international diplomatic language; Yehudit ('Judahite/Hebrew') was the language of the populace. The linguistic shift is a weapon.

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"Aramaic"

1QIsaiah-a reads ארמית identically. The request to speak in Aramaic (the diplomatic lingua franca) rather than Judahite Hebrew — so the soldiers on the wall cannot understand — is a pivotal dramatic moment. The Rabshakeh refuses, choosing psychological warfare over diplomacy. Both traditions preserve this linguistically self-aware passage.

Isaiah 36:12

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר רַב־שָׁקֵ֗ה הַאֶל־אֲדֹנֶ֤יךָ וְאֵלֶ֙יךָ֙ שְׁלָחַ֣נִי אֲדֹנִ֔י לְדַבֵּ֖ר אֶת־הַדְּבָרִ֣ים הָאֵ֑לֶּה הֲלֹ֣א עַל־הָאֲנָשִׁ֗ים הַיֹּשְׁבִ֤ים עַל־הַחוֹמָה֙ לֶאֱכֹ֤ל אֶת־צוֹאָתָם֙ וְלִשְׁתּ֤וֹת אֶת־מֵימֵ֥י רַגְלֵיהֶ֖ם עִמָּכֶֽם׃

But the Rabshakeh said, 'Has my master sent me only to your master and to you to speak these words? Has he not sent me to the men sitting on the wall — who will eat their own dung and drink their own urine along with you?'

KJV But Rabshakeh said, Hath my master sent me to thy master and to thee to speak these words? hath he not sent me to the men that sit upon the wall, that they may eat their own dung, and drink their own piss with you?

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The Rabshakeh's response is deliberately crude — he refuses the diplomatic register and describes siege conditions in graphic terms to terrify the civilian population. The words tso'atam ('their excrement') and mei ragleihem ('water of their feet,' a euphemism for urine) are meant to demoralize by making the coming siege viscerally real.

Isaiah 36:13

וַֽיַּעֲמֹד֙ רַב־שָׁקֵ֔ה וַיִּקְרָ֥א בְקוֹל־גָּד֖וֹל יְהוּדִ֑ית וַיֹּ֕אמֶר שִׁמְע֗וּ אֶת־דִּבְרֵ֛י הַמֶּ֥לֶךְ הַגָּד֖וֹל מֶ֥לֶךְ אַשּֽׁוּר׃

Then the Rabshakeh stood and called out in a loud voice in Hebrew: 'Hear the words of the great king, the king of Assyria!'

KJV Then Rabshakeh stood, and cried with a loud voice in the Jews' language, and said, Hear ye the words of the great king, the king of Assyria.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

Having been asked to speak Aramaic, the Rabshakeh deliberately speaks louder in Hebrew — escalating the psychological assault. He now addresses the people directly, bypassing the officials entirely.

Isaiah 36:14

כֹּ֣ה אָמַ֣ר הַמֶּ֔לֶךְ אַל־יַשִּׁ֥א לָכֶ֖ם חִזְקִיָּ֑הוּ כִּ֥י לֹא־יוּכַ֖ל לְהַצִּ֥יל אֶתְכֶֽם׃

'This is what the king says: Do not let Hezekiah deceive you, for he cannot deliver you.'

KJV Thus saith the king, Let not Hezekiah deceive you: for he shall not be able to deliver you.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The Rabshakeh now uses the messenger formula for Sennacherib directly to the people — 'This is what the king says' parallels 'This is what the LORD says,' setting Assyria's king as a rival authority to Israel's God.

Isaiah 36:15

וְאַל־יַבְטַ֨ח אֶתְכֶ֤ם חִזְקִיָּ֙הוּ֙ אֶל־יְהוָ֣ה לֵאמֹ֔ר הַצֵּ֥ל יַצִּילֵ֖נוּ יְהוָ֑ה לֹ֤א תִנָּתֵן֙ הָעִ֣יר הַזֹּ֔את בְּיַ֖ד מֶ֥לֶךְ אַשּֽׁוּר׃

'Do not let Hezekiah make you trust in the LORD by saying, The LORD will surely deliver us — this city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.'

KJV Neither let Hezekiah make you trust in the LORD, saying, The LORD will surely deliver us: this city shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The Rabshakeh explicitly names YHWH and challenges trust in Him — this is the theological center of the crisis. The infinitive absolute hatsel yatsilenu ('surely delivering He will deliver') uses emphatic grammar to mock the certainty of divine deliverance.

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"will deliver"

Identical consonantal text. The Rabshakeh's challenge — 'Do not let Hezekiah deceive you, for he will not be able to deliver you' — is preserved identically. No impact on meaning.

Isaiah 36:16

אַל־תִּשְׁמְע֖וּ אֶל־חִזְקִיָּ֑הוּ כִּ֣י כֹ֤ה אָמַר֙ מֶ֣לֶךְ אַשּׁ֔וּר עֲשׂוּ־אִתִּ֣י בְרָכָ֗ה וּצְא֣וּ אֵלַ֔י

'Do not listen to Hezekiah. For this is what the king of Assyria says: Make peace with me and come out to me, and each of you will eat from his own vine and fig tree and drink from his own cistern —'

KJV Hearken not to Hezekiah: for thus saith the king of Assyria, Make an agreement with me by a present, and come out to me; and eat ye every one of his vine, and every one of his fig tree, and drink ye every one the waters of his own cistern;

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The phrase asu itti verakhah ('make a blessing/peace with me') offers surrender disguised as prosperity. The vine-and-fig-tree image (v. 16) deliberately echoes the prophetic vision of peace (Micah 4:4, 1 Kings 4:25) — the Assyrian king offers what only God can give.

Isaiah 36:17

עַד־בֹּאִ֕י וְלָקַחְתִּ֣י אֶתְכֶ֔ם אֶל־אֶ֖רֶץ כְּאַרְצְכֶ֑ם אֶ֤רֶץ דָּגָן֙ וְתִיר֔וֹשׁ אֶ֥רֶץ לֶ֖חֶם וּכְרָמִֽים׃

'— until I come and take you to a land like your own land, a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards.'

KJV Until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of corn and wine, a land of bread and vineyards.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The 'promise' is deportation — dressed in the language of abundance. A 'land like your own' means exile, resettlement in Assyrian territory. The Rabshakeh makes forced displacement sound like a real-estate upgrade.

Isaiah 36:18

פֶּן־יַסִּ֤ית אֶתְכֶם֙ חִזְקִיָּ֣הוּ לֵאמֹ֔ר יְהוָ֖ה יַצִּילֵ֑נוּ הַהִצִּ֗ילוּ אֱלֹהֵ֤י הַגּוֹיִם֙ אִ֣ישׁ אֶת־אַרְצ֔וֹ מִיַּ֖ד מֶ֥לֶךְ אַשּֽׁוּר׃

'Do not let Hezekiah mislead you by saying, The LORD will deliver us. Has any god of the nations delivered his land from the hand of the king of Assyria?'

KJV Beware lest Hezekiah persuade you, saying, The LORD will deliver us. Hath any of the gods of the nations delivered his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria?

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The Rabshakeh's logic: no national deity has withstood Assyria; therefore YHWH will not either. He treats YHWH as one god among many — the fundamental category error that Isaiah's theology exists to refute.

Isaiah 36:19

אַיֵּ֥ה אֱלֹהֵ֖י חֲמָ֣ת וְאַרְפָּ֑ד אַיֵּ֖ה אֱלֹהֵ֥י סְפַרְוָֽיִם וְכִֽי־הִצִּ֥ילוּ אֶת־שֹׁמְר֖וֹן מִיָּדִֽי׃

'Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim? Have they delivered Samaria from my hand?'

KJV Where are the gods of Hamath and Arphad? where are the gods of Sepharvaim? and have they delivered Samaria out of my hand?

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The mention of Samaria is the most painful thrust — Israel's northern kingdom fell to Assyria in 722 BCE, within living memory. The implication: Samaria's God is Judah's God, and He already failed once. The cities listed (Hamath, Arpad, Sepharvaim) are all Assyrian conquests whose patron deities proved powerless.

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"Sepharvaim"

1QIsaiah-a writes ספרוים with plene spelling. The catalog of cities conquered by Assyria — Hamath, Arpad, Sepharvaim — is preserved identically. No impact on meaning.

Isaiah 36:20

מִ֞י בְּכׇל־אֱלֹהֵ֤י הָאֲרָצוֹת֙ הָאֵ֔לֶּה אֲשֶׁר־הִצִּ֥ילוּ אֶת־אַרְצָ֖ם מִיָּדִ֑י כִּֽי־יַצִּ֧יל יְהוָ֛ה אֶת־יְרוּשָׁלַ֖͏ִם מִיָּדִֽי׃

'Who among all the gods of these lands has delivered his land from my hand, that the LORD should deliver Jerusalem from my hand?'

KJV Who are they among all the gods of these lands, that have delivered their land out of my hand, that the LORD should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand?

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The climactic challenge: YHWH is placed in a lineup with failed deities. The question is meant to be rhetorical — no god has succeeded, so why should YHWH? Isaiah 37 will answer this question decisively.

Isaiah 36:21

וַֽיַּחֲרִ֔שׁוּ וְלֹא־עָנ֥וּ אֹת֖וֹ דָּבָ֑ר כִּ֣י מִצְוַ֧ת הַמֶּ֛לֶךְ הִ֖יא לֵאמֹ֥ר לֹ֥א תַעֲנֻֽהוּ׃

But they remained silent and did not answer him a word, for the king's command was: 'Do not answer him.'

KJV But they held their peace, and answered him not a word: for the king's commandment was, saying, Answer him not.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

Hezekiah's command to remain silent is strategically wise (deny the Rabshakeh a public debate) and theologically significant — the answer will come not from human diplomats but from God through Isaiah (ch. 37). The silence echoes Isaiah's own commission to a people who will 'hear but not understand' (6:9).

Isaiah 36:22

וַיָּבֹ֣א אֶלְיָקִ֣ים בֶּן־חִלְקִיָּ֗הוּ אֲשֶׁר֙ עַל־הַבַּ֔יִת וְשֶׁבְנָ֖א הַסֹּפֵ֑ר וְיוֹאָ֣ח בֶּן־אָסָ֗ף הַמַּזְכִּ֛יר אֶל־חִזְקִיָּ֖הוּ קְרוּעֵ֣י בְגָדִ֑ים וַיַּגִּ֣דוּ ל֔וֹ אֵ֖ת דִּבְרֵ֥י רַב־שָׁקֵֽה׃

Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah, who was over the palace, Shebna the secretary, and Joah son of Asaph, the recorder, came to Hezekiah with their clothes torn and reported to him the words of the Rabshakeh.

KJV Then came Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah, that was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah, the son of Asaph, the recorder, to Hezekiah with their clothes rent, and told him the words of Rabshakeh.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The torn garments (qeru'ei vegadim) signal grief and distress — the officials heard the Rabshakeh's words as a national crisis, not mere diplomacy. The chapter ends in suspense: the challenge has been delivered, the people are silent, and everything depends on what Hezekiah does next.

Chapter 35 Report an error Isaiah index Chapter 37