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Isaiah 36:4-10 King James Version (KJV)

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4 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?

5 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?

6 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.

7 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?

8 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.

9 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?

10 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.

Isaiah 36:4-10 King James Version with Strong's Concordance (STRONG)

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4 And Rabshakeh H7262 said H559 unto them, Say H559 ye now to Hezekiah, H2396 Thus saith H559 the great H1419 king, H4428 the king H4428 of Assyria, H804 What confidence H986 is this wherein thou trustest? H982

5 I say, H559 sayest thou, (but they are but vain H8193 words) H1697 I have counsel H6098 and strength H1369 for war: H4421 now on whom dost thou trust, H982 that thou rebellest H4775 against me?

6 Lo, thou trustest H982 in the staff H4938 of this broken H7533 reed, H7070 on Egypt; H4714 whereon if a man H376 lean, H5564 it will go H935 into his hand, H3709 and pierce H5344 it: so is Pharaoh H6547 king H4428 of Egypt H4714 to all that trust H982 in him.

7 But if thou say H559 to me, We trust H982 in the LORD H3068 our God: H430 is it not he, whose high places H1116 and whose altars H4196 Hezekiah H2396 hath taken away, H5493 and said H559 to Judah H3063 and to Jerusalem, H3389 Ye shall worship H7812 before H6440 this altar? H4196

8 Now therefore give pledges, H6148 I pray thee, to my master H113 the king H4428 of Assyria, H804 and I will give H5414 thee two thousand H505 horses, H5483 if thou be able H3201 on thy part to set H5414 riders H7392 upon them.

9 How then wilt thou turn away H7725 the face H6440 of one H259 captain H6346 of the least H6996 of my master's H113 servants, H5650 and put thy trust H982 on Egypt H4714 for chariots H7393 and for horsemen? H6571

10 And am I now come up H5927 without H1107 the LORD H3068 against this land H776 to destroy H7843 it? the LORD H3068 said H559 unto me, Go up H5927 against this land, H776 and destroy H7843 it.

Isaiah 36:4-10 American Standard (ASV)

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4 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?

5 I say, `thy' counsel and strength for the war are but vain words: now on whom dost thou trust, that thou hast rebelled against me?

6 Behold, thou trustest upon the staff of this bruised reed, even upon 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 on him.

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

8 Now therefore, I pray thee, give pledges 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.

9 How then canst 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?

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

Isaiah 36:4-10 Young's Literal Translation (YLT)

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4 And Rabshakeh saith unto them, `Say ye, I pray you, unto Hezekiah, `Thus said the great king, the king of Asshur, What `is' this confidence in which thou hast confided?

5 I have said: Only, a word of the lips! counsel and might `are' for battle: now, on whom hast thou trusted, that thou hast rebelled against me?

6 `Lo, thou hast trusted on the staff of this broken reed -- on Egypt -- which a man leaneth on, and it hath gone into his hand, and pierced it -- so `is' Pharaoh king of Egypt to all those trusting on him.

7 `And dost thou say unto me, Unto Jehovah our God we have trusted? is it not He, whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah hath turned aside, and saith to Judah and to Jerusalem, Before this altar ye do bow yourselves?

8 `And now, negotiate, I pray thee, with my lord the king of Asshur, and I give to thee two thousand horses, if thou art able to put for thee riders on them.

9 And how dost thou turn back the face of one captain of the least of the servants of my lord, and dost trust for thee on Egypt, for chariot and for horsemen?

10 And now, without Jehovah have I come up against this land to destroy it? Jehovah said unto me, Go up unto this land, and thou hast destroyed it.'

Isaiah 36:4-10 Darby English Bible (DARBY)

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4 And Rab-shakeh said to them, Say now to Hezekiah, Thus says the great king, the king of Assyria: What confidence is this in which thou trustest?

5 Thou sayest, but it is a word of the lips, [There is] counsel and strength for war. Now on whom dost thou rely, that thou hast revolted against me?

6 Behold, thou reliest upon the staff of that broken reed, upon Egypt, on which if a man lean, it goes into his hand, and pierces it: so is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all that rely upon him.

7 And if thou say to me, We rely upon Jehovah our God: is it not he, whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah has removed, saying to Judah and Jerusalem, Ye shall worship before this altar?

8 And now engage, I pray thee, with 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.

9 How then wilt thou turn away the face of one captain of the least of my master's servants? And thou reliest upon Egypt for chariots and for horsemen!

10 And now am I come up without Jehovah against this land to destroy it? Jehovah said to me, Go up against this land and destroy it.

Isaiah 36:4-10 World English Bible (WEB)

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4 Rabshakeh said to them, Say you now to Hezekiah, Thus says the great king, the king of Assyria, What confidence is this in which you trust?

5 I say, [your] counsel and strength for the war are but vain words: now on whom do you trust, that you have rebelled against me?

6 Behold, you trust on the staff of this bruised reed, even on Egypt, whereon if a man lean, it will go into his hand, and pierce it: so is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust on him.

7 But if you tell me, We trust in Yahweh our God: isn't that he, whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah has taken away, and has said to Judah and to Jerusalem, You shall worship before this altar?

8 Now therefore, please give pledges to my master the king of Assyria, and I will give you two thousand horses, if you are able on your part to set riders on them.

9 How then can you turn away the face of one captain of the least of my master's servants, and put your trust on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen?

10 Am I now come up without Yahweh against this land to destroy it? Yahweh said to me, Go up against this land, and destroy it.

Isaiah 36:4-10 Bible in Basic English (BBE)

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4 And the Rab-shakeh said to them, Say now to Hezekiah, These are the words of the great king, the king of Assyria: In what are you placing your hope?

5 You say you have a design and strength for war, but these are only words: now to whom are you looking for support, that you have gone against my authority?

6 See, you are basing your hope on that broken rod of Egypt, which will go into a man's hand if he makes use of it for a support; for so is Pharaoh, king of Egypt, to all who put their faith in him.

7 And if you say to me, Our hope is in the Lord our God; is it not he whose high places and altars Hezekiah has taken away, saying to Judah and Jerusalem that worship may only be given before this altar?

8 And now, take a chance with my master, the king of Assyria, and I will give you two thousand horses, if you are able to put horsemen on them.

9 How then may you put to shame the least of my master's servants? and you have put your hope in Egypt for war-carriages and horsemen:

10 And have I now come to send destruction on this land without the Lord's authority? It was the Lord himself who said to me, Go up against this land and make it waste.

Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Isaiah 36

Commentary on Isaiah 36 Matthew Henry Commentary

John Gill   Keil & Delitzsch   Robert Jamieson: Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible  

Chapter 36

The prophet Isaiah is, in this and the three following chapters, an historian; for the scripture history, as well as the scripture prophecy, is given by inspiration of God, and was dictated to holy men. Many of the prophecies of the foregoing chapters had their accomplishment in Sennacherib's invading Judah and besieging Jerusalem, and the miraculous defeat he met with there; and therefore the story of this is here inserted, both for the explication and for the confirmation of the prophecy. The key of prophecy is to be found in history; and here, that we might have the readier entrance, it is, as it were, hung at the door. The exact fulfilling of this prophecy might serve to confirm the faith of God's people in the other prophecies, the accomplishment of which was at a greater distance. Whether this story was taken from the book of the Kings and added here, or whether it was first written by Isaiah here and hence taken into the book of Kings, is not material. But the story is the same almost verbatim; and it was so memorable an event that it was well worthy to be twice recorded, 2 Ki. 18 and 19, and here, and an abridgment of it likewise, 2 Chr. 32. We shall be but short in our observations upon this story here, having largely explained it there. In this chapter we have,

  • I. The descent which the king of Assyria made upon Judah, and his success against all the defenced cities (v. 1).
  • II. The conference he desired to have with Hezekiah, and the managers on both sides (v. 2, 3).
  • III. Rabshakeh's railing blasphemous speech, with which he designed to frighten Hezekiah into a submission, and persuade him to surrender at discretion (v. 4-10).
  • IV. His appeal to the people, and his attempt to persuade them to desert Hezekiah, and so force him to surrender (v. 11-20).
  • V. The report of this made to Hezekiah by his agents (v. 21, 22).

Isa 36:1-10

We shall here only observe some practical lessons.

  • 1. A people may be in the way of their duty and yet meet with trouble and distress. Hezekiah was reforming, and his people were in some measure reformed; and yet their country is at that time invaded and a great part of it laid waste. Perhaps they began to grow remiss and cool in the work of reformation, were doing it by halves, and ready to sit down short of a thorough reformation; and then God visited them with this judgment, to put life into them and that good cause. We must not wonder if, when we are doing well, God sends afflictions to quicken us to do better, to do our best, and to press forward towards perfection.
  • 2. That we must never be secure of the continuance of our peace in this world, nor think our mountain stands so strong that it cannot be moved. Hezekiah was not only a pious king, but prudent, both in his administration at home and in his treaties abroad. His affairs were in a good posture, and he seemed particularly to be upon good terms with the king of Assyria, for he had lately made his peace with him by a rich present (2 Ki. 18:14), and yet that perfidious prince pours an army into his country all of a sudden and lays it waste. It is good for us therefore always to keep up an expectation of trouble, that, when it comes, it may be no surprise to us, and then it will be the less a terror.
  • 3. God sometimes permits the enemies of his people, even those that are most impious and treacherous, to prevail far against them. The king of Assyria took all, or most, of the defenced cities of Judah, and then the country would of course be an easy prey to him. Wickedness may prosper awhile, but cannot prosper always.
  • 4. Proud men love to talk big, to boast of what they are, and have, and have done, nay and of what they will do, to insult over others, and set all mankind at defiance, though thereby they render themselves ridiculous to all wise men and obnoxious to the wrath of that God who resists the proud. But thus they think to make themselves feared, though they make themselves hated, and to carry their point by great swelling words of vanity, Jude 16.
  • 5. The enemies of God's people endeavour to conquer them by frightening them, especially by frightening them from their confidence in God. Thus Rabshakeh here, with noise and banter, runs down Hezekiah as utterly unable to cope with his master, or in the least to make head against him. It concerns us therefore, that we may keep our ground against the enemies of our souls, to keep up our spirits by keeping up our hope in God.
  • 6. It is acknowledged, on all hands, that those who forsake God's service forfeit his protection. If that had been true which Rabshakeh alleged, that Hezekiah had thrown down God's altars, he might justly infer that he could not with any assurance trust in him for succour and relief, v. 7, We may say thus to presuming sinners, who say that they trust in the Lord and in his mercy. Is not this he whose commandments they have lived in the contempt of, whose name they have dishonoured, and whose ordinances they have slighted? How then can they expect to find favour with him?
  • 7. It is an easy thing, and very common, for those that persecute the church and people of God to pretend a commission from him for so doing. Rabshakeh could say, Have I now come up without the Lord? when really he had come up against the Lord, ch. 37:28. Those that kill the servants of the Lord think they do him service and say, Let the Lord be glorified. But, sooner or later, they will be made to know their error to their cost, to their confusion.

Isa 36:11-22

We may hence learn these lessons:-

  • 1. That, while princes and counsellors have public matters under debate, it is not fair to appeal to the people. It was a reasonable motion which Hezekiah's plenipotentiaries made, that this parley should be held in a language which the people did not understand (v. 11), because reasons of state are secret things and ought to be kept secret, the vulgar being incompetent judges of them. It is therefore an unfair practice, and not doing as men would be done by, to incense subjects against their rulers by base insinuations.
  • 2. Proud and haughty scorners, the fairer they are spoken to, commonly speak the fouler. Nothing could be said more mildly and respectfully than that which Hezekiah's agents said to Rabshakeh. Besides that the thing itself was just which they desired, they called themselves his servants, they petitioned for it: Speak, we pray thee; but this made him the more spiteful and imperious. To give rough answers to those who give us soft answers is one way of rendering evil for good; and those are wicked indeed, and it is to be feared incurable, with whom that which usually turns away wrath does but make bad worse.
  • 3. When Satan would tempt men from trusting in God, and cleaving to him, he does so by insinuating that in yielding to him they may better their condition; but it is a false suggestion, and grossly absurd, and therefore to be rejected with the utmost abhorrence. When the world and the flesh say to us, "Make an agreement with us and come out to us, submit to our dominion and come into our interests, and you shall eat every one of his own vine,' they do but deceive us, promising liberty when they would lead us into the basest captivity and slavery. One might as well take Rabshakeh's word as theirs for kind usage and fair quarter; therefore, when they speak fair, believe them not. Let them say what they will, there is no land like the land of promise, the holy land.
  • 4. Nothing can be more absurd in itself, nor a greater affront to the true and living God, than to compare him with the gods of the heathen; as if he could do no more for the protection of his worshippers than they can for the protection of theirs, and as if the God of Israel could as easily be mastered as the gods of Hamath and Arphad, whereas they are vanity and a lie. They are nothing; he is the great I AM: they are the creatures of men's fancy and the works of men's hands; he is the Creator of all things.
  • 5. Presumptuous sinners are ready to think that, because they have been too hard for their fellow-creatures, they are therefore a match for their Creator. This and the other nation they have subdued, and therefore the Lord himself shall not deliver Jerusalem out of their hand. But, though the potsherds may strive with the potsherds of the earth, let them not strive with the potter.
  • 6. It is sometimes prudent not to answer a fool according to his folly. Hezekiah's command was, "Answer him not; it will but provoke him to rail and blaspheme yet more and more; leave it to God to stop his mouth, for you cannot.' They had reason enough on their side, but it would be hard to speak it to such an unreasonable adversary without a mixture of passion; and, if they should fall a railing like him, Rabshakeh would be much too hard for them at that weapon.
  • 7. It becomes the people of God to lay to heart the dishonour done to God by the blasphemies of wicked men, though they do not think it prudent to reply to those blasphemies. Though they answered him not a word, yet they rent their clothes, in a holy zeal for the glory of God's name and a holy indignation at the contempt put upon it. They tore their garments when they heard blasphemy, as taking no pleasure in their own ornaments when God's honour suffered.