Assyria in the Bible

Meaning: country of Assur or Ashur

Exact Match

And now what hast thou to do in the way of Egypt, to drink the waters of Sihor? or what hast thou to do in the way of Assyria, to drink the waters of the river?

Why gaddest thou about so much to change thy way? thou also shalt be ashamed of Egypt, as thou wast ashamed of Assyria.

Israel is a scattered sheep; the lions have driven him away: first the king of Assyria hath devoured him; and last this Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon hath broken his bones.

Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will punish the king of Babylon and his land, as I have punished the king of Assyria.

Thematic Bible



The Lord will bring on you, your people, and the house of your father, such a time as has never been since Ephraim separated from Judah-the king of Assyria [is coming]. On that day the Lord will whistle to the fly that is at the farthest streams of the Nile and to the bee that is in the land of Assyria. All of them will come and settle in the steep ravines, in the clefts of the rocks, in all the thornbushes, and in all the water holes. read more.
On that day the Lord will use a razor hired from beyond the Euphrates River-the king of Assyria-to shave the head, the hair on the legs, and to remove the beard as well. On that day a man will raise a young cow and two sheep, and from the abundant milk they give he will eat butter, for every survivor in the land will eat butter and honey. And on that day every place where there were 1,000 vines, worth 1,000 pieces of silver, will become thorns and briers. A man will go there with bow and arrows because the whole land will be thorns and briers. You will not go to all the hills that were once tilled with a hoe, for fear of the thorns and briers. [Those hills] will be places for oxen to graze and for sheep to trample.

for before the boy knows how to call out father or mother, the wealth of Damascus and the spoils of Samaria will be carried off to the king of Assyria." The Lord spoke to me again: Because these people rejected the slowly flowing waters of Shiloah and rejoiced with Rezin and the son of Remaliah, read more.
the Lord will certainly bring against them the mighty rushing waters of the Euphrates River- the king of Assyria and all his glory. It will overflow its channels and spill over all its banks. It will pour into Judah, flood over it, and sweep through, reaching up to the neck; and its spreading streams will fill your entire land, Immanuel! Band together, peoples, and be broken; pay attention, all you distant lands; prepare for war, and be broken; prepare for war, and be broken. Devise a plan; it will fail. Make a prediction; it will not happen. For God is with us.

Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger- the staff in their hands is My wrath. I will send him against a godless nation; I will command him [to go] against a people destined for My rage, to take spoils, to plunder, and to trample them down like clay in the streets. But this is not what he intends; this is not what he plans. It is his intent to destroy and to cut off many nations. read more.
For he says: Aren't all my commanders kings? Isn't Calno like Carchemish? Isn't Hamath like Arpad? Isn't Samaria like Damascus? As my hand seized the idolatrous kingdoms, whose idols exceeded those of Jerusalem and Samaria, and as I did to Samaria and its idols will I not also do to Jerusalem and its idols? But when the Lord finishes all His work against Mount Zion and Jerusalem, [He will say,] "I will punish the king of Assyria for his arrogant acts and the proud look in his eyes." For he said: I have done [this] by my own strength and wisdom, for I am clever. I abolished the borders of nations and plundered their treasures; like a mighty warrior, I subjugated the inhabitants. My hand has reached out, as if into a nest, to seize the wealth of the nations. Like one gathering abandoned eggs, I gathered the whole earth. No wing fluttered; no beak opened or chirped. Does an ax exalt itself above the one who chops with it? Does a saw magnify itself above the one who saws with it? As if a staff could wave those who lift it! As if a rod could lift what isn't wood! Therefore the Lord God of Hosts will inflict an emaciating disease on the well-fed of Assyria, and He will kindle a burning fire under its glory. Israel's Light will become a fire, and its Holy One, a flame. In one day it will burn up Assyria's thorns and thistles. He will completely destroy the glory of its forests and orchards as a sickness consumes a person. The remaining trees of its forest will be so few in number that a child could count them. On that day the remnant of Israel and the survivors of the house of Jacob will no longer depend on the one who struck them, but they will faithfully depend on the Lord, the Holy One of Israel. The remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, to the Mighty God. Israel, even if your people were as numerous as the sand of the sea, [only] a remnant of them will return. Destruction has been decreed; justice overflows. For throughout the land the Lord God of Hosts is carrying out a destruction that was decreed. Therefore, the Lord God of Hosts says this: "My people who dwell in Zion, do not fear Assyria, though he strikes you with a rod and raises his staff over you as the Egyptians did. In just a little while My wrath will be spent and My anger will turn to their destruction." And the Lord of Hosts will brandish a whip against him as [He did when He] struck Midian at the rock of Oreb; and He will raise His staff over the sea as [He did] in Egypt. On that day his burden will fall from your shoulders, and his yoke from your neck. The yoke will be broken because of [his] fatness. Assyria has come to Aiath and has gone through Migron, storing his equipment at Michmash. They crossed over at the ford, saying, "We will spend the night at Geba." The people of Ramah are trembling; those at Gibeah of Saul have fled. Cry aloud, daughter of Gallim! Listen, Laishah! Anathoth is miserable. Madmenah has fled. The inhabitants of Gebim have sought refuge. Today he will stand at Nob, shaking his fist at the mountain of Daughter Zion, the hill of Jerusalem. Look, the Lord God of Hosts will chop off the branches with terrifying power, and the tall [trees] will be cut down, the high [trees] felled. He is clearing the thickets of the forest with an ax, and Lebanon with its majesty will fall.

The Lord of Hosts has sworn: As I have planned, so it will be; as I have purposed it, so it will happen. I will break Assyria in My land; I will tread him down on My mountain. Then his yoke will be taken from them, and his burden will be removed from their shoulders. This is the plan prepared for the whole earth, and this is the hand stretched out against all the nations. read more.
The Lord of Hosts Himself has planned it; therefore, who can stand in its way? It is His hand that is outstretched, so who can turn it back? In the year that King Ahaz died, this oracle came:

On that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria. Assyria will go to Egypt, Egypt to Assyria, and Egypt will worship with Assyria. On that day Israel will form a triple [alliance] with Egypt and Assyria-a blessing within the land. The Lord of Hosts will bless them, saying, "Blessed be Egypt My people, Assyria My handiwork, and Israel My inheritance."

Look, Yahweh comes from far away, His anger burning and heavy with smoke. His lips are full of fury, and His tongue is like a consuming fire. His breath is like an overflowing torrent that rises to the neck. [He comes] to sift the nations in a sieve of destruction and to put a bridle on the jaws of the peoples to lead [them] astray. Your singing will be like that on the night of a holy festival, And [your] heart will rejoice like one who walks [to the music] of a flute, going up to the mountain of the Lord, to the Rock of Israel. read more.
And the Lord will make the splendor of His voice heard and reveal His arm striking in angry wrath and a flame of consuming fire, in driving rain, a torrent, and hailstones. Assyria will be shattered by the voice of the Lord. He will strike with a rod. And every stroke of the appointed staff that the Lord brings down on him will be [to the sound] of tambourines and lyres; He will fight against him with brandished weapons. Indeed! Topheth has been ready for the king for a long time now. His funeral pyre is deep and wide, with plenty of fire and wood. The breath of the Lord, like a torrent of brimstone, kindles it.

Then Assyria will fall, but not by human sword; a sword will devour him, but not one made by man. He will flee from the sword, his young men will be put to forced labor. His rock will pass away because of fear, and his officers will be afraid because of the signal flag. [This is] the Lord's declaration-whose fire is in Zion and whose furnace is in Jerusalem.

Then Isaiah son of Amoz sent [a message] to Hezekiah: "The Lord, the God of Israel, says: 'Because you prayed to Me about Sennacherib king of Assyria, this is the word the Lord has spoken against him: The young woman, Daughter Zion, despises you and scorns you: Daughter Jerusalem shakes [her] head behind your back. Who is it you have mocked and blasphemed? Who have you raised [your] voice against and lifted your eyes in pride? Against the Holy One of Israel! read more.
You have mocked the Lord through your servants. You have said: With my many chariots I have gone up to the heights of the mountains, to the far recesses of Lebanon. I cut down its tallest cedars, its choice cypress trees. I came to its remotest heights, its densest forest. I dug [wells] and drank water. I dried up all the streams of Egypt with the soles of my feet. Have you not heard? I designed it long ago; I planned it in days gone by. I have now brought it to pass, and you have crushed fortified cities into piles of rubble. Their inhabitants have become powerless, dismayed, and ashamed. They are plants of the field, tender grass, grass on the rooftops, blasted by the east wind. But I know your sitting down, your going out and your coming in, and your raging against Me. Because your raging against Me and your arrogance has reached My ears, I will put My hook in your nose and My bit in your mouth; I will make you go back the way you came. " 'This will be the sign for you: This year you will eat what grows on its own, and in the second year what grows from that. But in the third year sow and reap, plant vineyards and eat their fruit. The surviving remnant of the house of Judah will again take root downward and bear fruit upward. For a remnant will go out from Jerusalem, and survivors from Mount Zion. The zeal of the Lord of Hosts will accomplish this.' " 'Therefore, this is what the Lord says about the king of Assyria: He will not enter this city or shoot an arrow there or come before it with a shield or build up an assault ramp against it. He will go back on the road that he came and he will not enter this city. [This is]*The bracketed text has been added for clarity. the Lord's declaration. I will defend this city and rescue it, because of Me and because of My servant David.' "

Indeed, I am about to summon all the clans and kingdoms of the north.”

This is the Lord’s declaration.

They will come, and each king will set up his throne
at the entrance to Jerusalem’s gates.
They will attack all her surrounding walls
and all the other cities of Judah.

Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time: "Get up! Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach the message that I tell you." So Jonah got up and went to Nineveh according to the Lord's command. Now Nineveh was an extremely large city, a three-day walk. read more.
Jonah set out on the first day of his walk in the city and proclaimed, "In 40 days Nineveh will be overthrown!"

He will also stretch out His hand against the north and destroy Assyria; He will make Nineveh a desolate ruin, dry as the desert. Herds will lie down in the middle of it, every kind of wild animal. Both the desert owl and the screech owl will roost in the capitals of its pillars. [Their] calls will sound from the window, but devastation will be on the threshold, for He will expose the cedar work. This is the self-assured city that lives in security, that thinks to herself: I am, and there is no one besides me. What a desolation she has become, a place for wild animals to lie down! Everyone who passes by her jeers and shakes his fist.

Yahweh will pass through the sea of distress
and strike the waves of the sea;
all the depths of the Nile will dry up.
The pride of Assyria will be brought down,
and the scepter of Egypt will come to an end.


Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger- the staff in their hands is My wrath. I will send him against a godless nation; I will command him [to go] against a people destined for My rage, to take spoils, to plunder, and to trample them down like clay in the streets.

It will pour into Judah,
flood over it, and sweep through,
reaching up to the neck;
and its spreading streams
will fill your entire land, Immanuel!

He raises a signal flag for the distant nations
and whistles for them from the ends of the earth.
Look—how quickly and swiftly they come!

The Lord will bring on you, your people, and the house of your father, such a time as has never been since Ephraim separated from Judah-the king of Assyria [is coming]. On that day the Lord will whistle to the fly that is at the farthest streams of the Nile and to the bee that is in the land of Assyria. All of them will come and settle in the steep ravines, in the clefts of the rocks, in all the thornbushes, and in all the water holes. read more.
On that day the Lord will use a razor hired from beyond the Euphrates River-the king of Assyria-to shave the head, the hair on the legs, and to remove the beard as well.

But when the Lord finishes all His work against Mount Zion and Jerusalem, He will say, “I will punish the king of Assyria for his arrogant acts and the proud look in his eyes.”


Then Assyria will fall, but not by human sword; a sword will devour him, but not one made by man. He will flee from the sword, his young men will be put to forced labor. His rock will pass away because of fear, and his officers will be afraid because of the signal flag. [This is] the Lord's declaration-whose fire is in Zion and whose furnace is in Jerusalem.

But when the Lord finishes all His work against Mount Zion and Jerusalem, [He will say,] "I will punish the king of Assyria for his arrogant acts and the proud look in his eyes." For he said: I have done [this] by my own strength and wisdom, for I am clever. I abolished the borders of nations and plundered their treasures; like a mighty warrior, I subjugated the inhabitants. My hand has reached out, as if into a nest, to seize the wealth of the nations. Like one gathering abandoned eggs, I gathered the whole earth. No wing fluttered; no beak opened or chirped. read more.
Does an ax exalt itself above the one who chops with it? Does a saw magnify itself above the one who saws with it? As if a staff could wave those who lift it! As if a rod could lift what isn't wood! Therefore the Lord God of Hosts will inflict an emaciating disease on the well-fed of Assyria, and He will kindle a burning fire under its glory. Israel's Light will become a fire, and its Holy One, a flame. In one day it will burn up Assyria's thorns and thistles. He will completely destroy the glory of its forests and orchards as a sickness consumes a person. The remaining trees of its forest will be so few in number that a child could count them.

The Lord of Hosts has sworn:

As I have purposed, so it will be;
as I have planned it, so it will happen.

Assyria will be shattered by the voice of the Lord. He will strike with a rod. And every stroke of the appointed staff that the Lord brings down on him will be [to the sound] of tambourines and lyres; He will fight against him with brandished weapons. Indeed! Topheth has been ready for the king for a long time now. His funeral pyre is deep and wide, with plenty of fire and wood. The breath of the Lord, like a torrent of brimstone, kindles it.


Then you engaged in prostitution with the Assyrian men because you were not satisfied. Even though you did this with them, you were still not satisfied.

“Oholah acted like a prostitute even though she was Mine. She lusted after her lovers, the Assyrians: warriors

She offered her sexual favors to them; all of them were the elite of Assyria. She defiled herself with all those she lusted after and with all their idols. She didn't give up her promiscuity that began in Egypt, when men slept with her in her youth, caressed her virgin nipples, and poured out their lust on her. Therefore, I handed her over to her lovers, the Assyrians she lusted for. read more.
They exposed her nakedness, seized her sons and daughters, and killed her with the sword. Since they executed judgment against her, she became notorious among women. "Now her sister Oholibah saw [this], but she was [even] more depraved in her lust than Oholah, and made her promiscuous acts worse than those of her sister. She lusted after the Assyrians: governors and prefects, warriors splendidly dressed, horsemen riding on steeds, all of them desirable young men. And I saw that she had defiled herself; both of them [had taken] the same path. But she increased her promiscuity when she saw male figures carved on the wall, images of the Chaldeans, engraved in vermilion wearing belts on their waists and flowing turbans on their heads; all of them looked like officers, a depiction of the Babylonians in Chaldea, the land of their birth. At the sight of them she lusted after them and sent messengers to them in Chaldea. Then the Babylonians came to her, to the bed of love, and defiled her with their lust. But after she was defiled by them, she turned away from them in disgust. When she flaunted her promiscuity and exposed her nakedness, I turned away from her in disgust just as I turned away from her sister. Yet she multiplied her acts of promiscuity, remembering the days of her youth when she acted like a prostitute in the land of Egyp and lusted after their lovers, whose sexual members were like those of donkeys and whose emission was like that of stallions. So you revisited the indecency of your youth, when the Egyptians caressed your nipples to enjoy your youthful breasts. "Therefore Oholibah, this is what the Lord God says: I am going to incite your lovers against you, those you turned away from in disgust. I will bring them against you from every side: the Babylonians and all the Chaldeans; Pekod, Shoa, and Koa; and all the Assyrians with them-desirable young men, all of them governors and prefects, officers and administrators, all of them riding on horses. They will come against you with an alliance of nations and with weapons, chariots, and wagons. They will set themselves against you on every side with shields, bucklers, and helmets. I will delegate judgment to them, and they will judge you by their own standards. When I vent My jealous rage on you, they will deal with you in wrath. They will cut off your nose and ears, and your descendants will fall by the sword. They will seize your sons and daughters, and your descendants will be consumed by fire. They will strip off your clothes and take your beautiful jewelry. So I will put an end to your indecency and sexual immorality, which began in the land of Egypt, and you will not look longingly at them or remember Egypt any more. "For this is what the Lord God says: I am going to hand you over to those you hate, to those you turned away from in disgust. They will treat you with hatred, take all you have worked for, and leave you stark naked, so that the shame of your debauchery will be exposed, both your indecency and promiscuity. These things will be done to you because you acted like a prostitute with the nations, defiling yourself with their idols. You have followed the path of your sister, so I will put her cup in your hand." This is what the Lord God says: You will drink your sister's cup, which is deep and wide. You will be an object of ridicule and scorn, for it holds [so] much. You will be filled with drunkenness and grief, with a cup of devastation and desolation, the cup of your sister Samaria. You will drink it and drain [it]; then you will gnaw its broken pieces, and tear your breasts. For I have spoken. [This is]*The bracketed text has been added for clarity. the declaration of the Lord God . Therefore, this is what the Lord God says: "Because you have forgotten Me and cast Me behind your back, you must bear the consequences of your indecency and promiscuity." Then the Lord said to me: "Son of man, will you pass judgment against Oholah and Oholibah? Then declare their abominations to them For they have committed adultery, and blood is on their hands; they have committed adultery with their idols. They have even made the children they bore to Me pass through [the fire] as food for the idols. They also did this to Me: they defiled My sanctuary on that same day and profaned My Sabbaths On the same day they slaughtered their children for their idols, they entered My sanctuary to profane it. Yes, that is what they did inside My house. "In addition, they sent for men who came from far away when a messenger was dispatched to them. And look how they came! You bathed, painted your eyes, and adorned yourself with jewelry for them. You sat on a luxurious couch with a table spread before it, on which you had set My incense and oil. The sound of a carefree crowd was there. Drunkards from the desert were brought in, along with common men. They put bracelets on the women's hands and beautiful crowns on their heads. Then I said concerning this woman worn out by adultery: Will they now have illicit sex with her, even her? Yet they had sex with her as one does with a prostitute. This is how they had sex with Oholah and Oholibah, those obscene women. But righteous men will judge them the way adulteresses and those who shed blood are judged, for they are adulteresses and blood is on their hands. "This is what the Lord God says: Summon an assembly against them and consign them to terror and plunder. The assembly will stone them and cut them down with their swords. They will kill their sons and daughters and burn their houses with fire. So I will put an end to indecency in the land, and all the women will be admonished not to imitate your indecent behavior. They will repay you for your indecency, and you will bear the consequences for your sins of idolatry. Then you will know that I am the Lord God ."


Has any of the gods of the nations ever delivered his land from the power of the king of Assyria? Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah? Have they delivered Samaria from my hand? Who among all the gods of the lands has delivered his land from my power? So how is the Lord to deliver Jerusalem?' "

Look, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the countries: they destroyed them completely. Will you be rescued? Did the gods of the nations that my predecessors destroyed rescue them-[nations such as] Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the Edenites in Telassar? Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the city of Sepharvaim, Hena, or Ivvah?' "

Isn't Calno like Carchemish? Isn't Hamath like Arpad? Isn't Samaria like Damascus? As my hand seized the idolatrous kingdoms, whose idols exceeded those of Jerusalem and Samaria, and as I did to Samaria and its idols will I not also do to Jerusalem and its idols? read more.
But when the Lord finishes all His work against Mount Zion and Jerusalem, [He will say,] "I will punish the king of Assyria for his arrogant acts and the proud look in his eyes." For he said: I have done [this] by my own strength and wisdom, for I am clever. I abolished the borders of nations and plundered their treasures; like a mighty warrior, I subjugated the inhabitants. My hand has reached out, as if into a nest, to seize the wealth of the nations. Like one gathering abandoned eggs, I gathered the whole earth. No wing fluttered; no beak opened or chirped.


for before the boy knows how to call out father or mother, the wealth of Damascus and the spoils of Samaria will be carried off to the king of Assyria.”

They will not stay in the land of the Lord.
Instead, Ephraim will return to Egypt,
and they will eat unclean food in Assyria.

The calf itself will be taken to Assyria
as an offering to the great king.
Ephraim will experience shame;
Israel will be ashamed of its counsel.

Israel will not return to the land of Egypt
and Assyria will be his king,
because they refused to repent.


In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib king of Assyria attacked all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them. So Hezekiah king of Judah sent word to the king of Assyria at Lachish, saying, "I have done wrong. Withdraw from me. Whatever you demand from me, I will pay." The king of Assyria demanded from King Hezekiah of Judah 11 tons of silver and one ton of gold. So Hezekiah gave [him] all the silver found in the Lord's temple and in the treasuries of the king's palace. read more.
At that time Hezekiah stripped [the gold from] the doors of the Lord's sanctuary and from the doorposts he had overlaid and gave it to the king of Assyria. Then the king of Assyria sent the Tartan, the Rab-saris, and the Rabshakeh, along with a massive army, from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem. They advanced and came to Jerusalem, and they took their position by the aqueduct of the upper pool, which is by the highway to the Fuller's Field. Then they called for the king, but Eliakim son of Hilkiah, who was in charge of the palace, Shebnah the court secretary, and Joah son of Asaph, the court historian, came out to them. Then the Rabshakeh said to them, "Tell Hezekiah this is what the great king, the king of Assyria, says: 'What are you relying on? You think mere words are strategy and strength for war. What are you now relying on so that you have rebelled against me? Look, you now trust in Egypt, the stalk of this splintered reed, which if a man leans on it will go into his palm and pierce it. This is how Pharaoh king of Egypt is to all who trust in him. Suppose you say to me: We trust in the Lord our God. Isn't He the One whose high places and altars Hezekiah has removed, saying to Judah and to Jerusalem: You must worship at this altar in Jerusalem?' "So now make a bargain with my master the king of Assyria. I'll give you 2,000 horses if you're able to supply riders for them! How then can you drive back a single officer among the least of my master's servants and trust in Egypt for chariots and for horsemen? Have I attacked this place to destroy it without the Lord's [approval]? The Lord said to me, 'Attack this land and destroy it.' " Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah, Shebnah, and Joah said to the Rabshakeh, "Please speak to your servants in Aramaic, since we understand [it] . Don't speak with us in Hebrew within earshot of the people on the wall." But the Rabshakeh said to them, "Has my master sent me only to your master and to you to speak these words? Hasn't [he] also [sent me] to the men who sit on the wall, [destined] with you to eat their own excrement and drink their own urine?" The Rabshakeh stood and called out loudly in Hebrew. Then he spoke: "Hear the word of the great king, the king of Assyria. This is what the king says: 'Don't let Hezekiah deceive you; he can't deliver you from my hand. Don't let Hezekiah persuade you to trust in the Lord by saying: Certainly the Lord will deliver us! This city will not be handed over to the king of Assyria.' "Don't listen to Hezekiah, for this is what the king of Assyria says: 'Make peace with me and surrender to me. Then every one of you may eat from his own vine and his own fig tree, and every one may drink water from his own cistern until I come and take you away to a land like your own land-a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive trees and honey-so that you may live and not die. But don't listen to Hezekiah when he misleads you, saying: The Lord will deliver us. Has any of the gods of the nations ever delivered his land from the power of the king of Assyria? Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah? Have they delivered Samaria from my hand? Who among all the gods of the lands has delivered his land from my power? So how is the Lord to deliver Jerusalem?' " But the people kept silent; they answered him not a word, for the king's command was, "Don't answer him." Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah, who was in charge of the palace, Shebna the court secretary, and Joah son of Asaph, the court historian, came to Hezekiah with their clothes torn and reported to him the words of the Rabshakeh.


Shalmaneser king of Assyria attacked him, and Hoshea became his vassal and paid him tribute money. But the king of Assyria discovered a conspiracy by Hoshea-he had sent envoys to So king of Egypt and had not paid tribute money to the king of Assyria as in previous years. Therefore, the king of Assyria arrested him and put him in prison. Then the king of Assyria invaded the whole land, marched up to Samaria, and besieged it for three years. read more.
In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria. He deported the Israelites to Assyria and settled them in Halah and by the Habor, Gozan's river, and in the cities of the Medes.

Then the king of Assyria brought [people] from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim and settled them in place of the Israelites in the cities of Samaria. The settlers took possession of Samaria and lived in its cities. When they first lived there, they did not fear the Lord. So the Lord sent lions among them, which killed some of them. The settlers spoke to the king of Assyria, saying, "The nations that you have deported and placed in the cities of Samaria do not know the custom of the God of the land. Therefore, He has sent lions among them, which are killing them because the people don't know the custom of the God of the land." read more.
Then the king of Assyria issued a command: "Send back one of the priests you deported. Have him go and live there so he can teach them the custom of the God of the land."

In the fourth year of King Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Israel's King Hoshea son of Elah, Shalmaneser king of Assyria marched against Samaria and besieged it. The Assyrians captured it at the end of three years. In the sixth year of Hezekiah, which was the ninth year of Israel's King Hoshea, Samaria was captured. The king of Assyria deported the Israelites to Assyria and put them in Halah and by the Habor, Gozan's river, and in the cities of the Medes, read more.
because they did not listen to the voice of the Lord their God but violated His covenant-all He had commanded Moses the servant of the Lord. They did not listen, and they did not obey.

Israel is a stray lamb, chased by lions.
The first who devoured him was the king of Assyria;
the last one who crushed his bones
was Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.


Then the king of Assyria sent the Tartan, the Rab-saris, and the Rabshakeh, along with a massive army, from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem. They advanced and came to Jerusalem, and they took their position by the aqueduct of the upper pool, which is by the highway to the Fuller's Field. Then they called for the king, but Eliakim son of Hilkiah, who was in charge of the palace, Shebnah the court secretary, and Joah son of Asaph, the court historian, came out to them. Then the Rabshakeh said to them, "Tell Hezekiah this is what the great king, the king of Assyria, says: 'What are you relying on? read more.
You think mere words are strategy and strength for war. What are you now relying on so that you have rebelled against me? Look, you now trust in Egypt, the stalk of this splintered reed, which if a man leans on it will go into his palm and pierce it. This is how Pharaoh king of Egypt is to all who trust in him. Suppose you say to me: We trust in the Lord our God. Isn't He the One whose high places and altars Hezekiah has removed, saying to Judah and to Jerusalem: You must worship at this altar in Jerusalem?' "So now make a bargain with my master the king of Assyria. I'll give you 2,000 horses if you're able to supply riders for them! How then can you drive back a single officer among the least of my master's servants and trust in Egypt for chariots and for horsemen? Have I attacked this place to destroy it without the Lord's [approval]? The Lord said to me, 'Attack this land and destroy it.' " Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah, Shebnah, and Joah said to the Rabshakeh, "Please speak to your servants in Aramaic, since we understand [it] . Don't speak with us in Hebrew within earshot of the people on the wall." But the Rabshakeh said to them, "Has my master sent me only to your master and to you to speak these words? Hasn't [he] also [sent me] to the men who sit on the wall, [destined] with you to eat their own excrement and drink their own urine?" The Rabshakeh stood and called out loudly in Hebrew. Then he spoke: "Hear the word of the great king, the king of Assyria. This is what the king says: 'Don't let Hezekiah deceive you; he can't deliver you from my hand. Don't let Hezekiah persuade you to trust in the Lord by saying: Certainly the Lord will deliver us! This city will not be handed over to the king of Assyria.' "Don't listen to Hezekiah, for this is what the king of Assyria says: 'Make peace with me and surrender to me. Then every one of you may eat from his own vine and his own fig tree, and every one may drink water from his own cistern until I come and take you away to a land like your own land-a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive trees and honey-so that you may live and not die. But don't listen to Hezekiah when he misleads you, saying: The Lord will deliver us.

"Say this to Hezekiah king of Judah: 'Don't let your God, whom you trust, deceive you by promising that Jerusalem will not be handed over to the king of Assyria. Look, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the countries: they destroyed them completely. Will you be rescued? Did the gods of the nations that my predecessors destroyed rescue them-[nations such as] Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the Edenites in Telassar? read more.
Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the city of Sepharvaim, Hena, or Ivvah?' "


Did the gods of the nations that my predecessors destroyed rescue them-[nations such as] Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the Edenites in Telassar? Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the city of Sepharvaim, Hena, or Ivvah?' " Hezekiah took the letter from the hand of the messengers, read it, then went up to the Lord's temple, and spread it out before the Lord. read more.
Then Hezekiah prayed before the Lord: "Lord God of Israel who is enthroned [above] the cherubim, You are God-You alone-of all the kingdoms of the earth. You made the heavens and the earth. Listen closely, Lord, and hear; open Your eyes, Lord, and see; hear the words that Sennacherib has sent to mock the living God. Lord, it is true that the kings of Assyria have devastated the nations and their lands. They have thrown their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but made by human hands-wood and stone. So they have destroyed them. Now, Lord our God, please save us from his hand so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You are the Lord God-You alone." Then Isaiah son of Amoz sent [a message] to Hezekiah: "The Lord, the God of Israel says: 'I have heard your prayer to Me about Sennacherib king of Assyria.' This is the word the Lord has spoken against him: The young woman, Daughter Zion, despises you and scorns you: Daughter Jerusalem shakes [her] head behind your back. Who is it you mocked and blasphemed? Against whom have you raised [your] voice and lifted your eyes in pride? Against the Holy One of Israel! You have mocked the Lord through your messengers. You have said: With my many chariots I have gone up to the heights of the mountains, to the far recesses of Lebanon. I cut down its tallest cedars, its choice cypress trees. I came to its farthest outpost, its densest forest. I dug [wells], and I drank foreign waters. I dried up all the streams of Egypt with the soles of my feet. Have you not heard? I designed it long ago; I planned it in days gone by. I have now brought it to pass, and you have crushed fortified cities into piles of rubble. Their inhabitants have become powerless, dismayed, and ashamed. They are plants of the field, tender grass, grass on the rooftops, blasted by the east wind. But I know your sitting down, your going out and your coming in, and your raging against Me. Because your raging against Me and your arrogance have reached My ears, I will put My hook in your nose and My bit in your mouth; I will make you go back the way you came. This will be the sign for you: This year you will eat what grows on its own, and in the second year what grows from that. But in the third year sow and reap, plant vineyards and eat their fruit. The surviving remnant of the house of Israel will again take root downward and bear fruit upward. For a remnant will go out from Jerusalem, and survivors from Mount Zion. The zeal of the Lord of Hosts will accomplish this. Therefore, this is what the Lord says about the king of Assyria: He will not enter this city or shoot an arrow there or come before it with a shield or build up an assault ramp against it. He will go back on the road that he came and he will not enter this city, declares the Lord. I will defend this city and rescue it for My sake and for the sake of My servant David.

Then Isaiah son of Amoz sent [a message] to Hezekiah: "The Lord, the God of Israel, says: 'Because you prayed to Me about Sennacherib king of Assyria, this is the word the Lord has spoken against him: The young woman, Daughter Zion, despises you and scorns you: Daughter Jerusalem shakes [her] head behind your back. Who is it you have mocked and blasphemed? Who have you raised [your] voice against and lifted your eyes in pride? Against the Holy One of Israel! read more.
You have mocked the Lord through your servants. You have said: With my many chariots I have gone up to the heights of the mountains, to the far recesses of Lebanon. I cut down its tallest cedars, its choice cypress trees. I came to its remotest heights, its densest forest. I dug [wells] and drank water. I dried up all the streams of Egypt with the soles of my feet. Have you not heard? I designed it long ago; I planned it in days gone by. I have now brought it to pass, and you have crushed fortified cities into piles of rubble. Their inhabitants have become powerless, dismayed, and ashamed. They are plants of the field, tender grass, grass on the rooftops, blasted by the east wind. But I know your sitting down, your going out and your coming in, and your raging against Me. Because your raging against Me and your arrogance has reached My ears, I will put My hook in your nose and My bit in your mouth; I will make you go back the way you came.


For they have gone up to Assyria
like a wild donkey going off on its own.
Ephraim has paid for love.

When Ephraim saw his sickness
and Judah his wound,
Ephraim went to Assyria
and sent a delegation to the great king.
But he cannot cure you or heal your wound.

So Ephraim has become like a silly, senseless dove;
they call to Egypt, and they go to Assyria.


Who is it you mocked and blasphemed? Against whom have you raised [your] voice and lifted your eyes in pride? Against the Holy One of Israel! You have mocked the Lord through your messengers. You have said: With my many chariots I have gone up to the heights of the mountains, to the far recesses of Lebanon. I cut down its tallest cedars, its choice cypress trees. I came to its farthest outpost, its densest forest. I dug [wells], and I drank foreign waters. I dried up all the streams of Egypt with the soles of my feet.

For he says,
“Aren’t all my commanders kings?


Now what will you gain
by traveling along the way to Egypt
to drink the waters of the Nile?
What will you gain
by traveling along the way to Assyria
to drink the waters of the Euphrates?

How unstable you are,
constantly changing your ways!
You will be put to shame by Egypt
just as you were put to shame by Assyria.


From that land he went to Assyria and built Nineveh, Rehoboth-ir, Calah,

So Sennacherib king of Assyria broke camp and left. He returned home and lived in Nineveh.


In the days of Pekah king of Israel, Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria came and captured Ijon, Abel-beth-maacah, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor, Gilead, and Galilee—all the land of Naphtali—and deported the people to Assyria.

Pul king of Assyria invaded the land, so Menahem gave Pul 75,000 pounds of silver so that Pul would support him to strengthen his grip on the kingdom.


On that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria. Assyria will go to Egypt, Egypt to Assyria, and Egypt will worship with Assyria. On that day Israel will form a triple [alliance] with Egypt and Assyria-a blessing within the land. The Lord of Hosts will bless them, saying, "Blessed be Egypt My people, Assyria My handiwork, and Israel My inheritance."

On that day people will come to you
from Assyria and the cities of Egypt,
even from Egypt to the Euphrates River
and from sea to sea
and mountain to mountain.


until I come and take you away to a land like your own land—a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive trees and honey—so that you may live and not die. But don’t listen to Hezekiah when he misleads you, saying: The Lord will deliver us.

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


Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger- the staff in their hands is My wrath. I will send him against a godless nation; I will command him [to go] against a people destined for My rage, to take spoils, to plunder, and to trample them down like clay in the streets.

On that day
the Lord will whistle to the fly
that is at the farthest streams of the Nile
and to the bee that is in the land of Assyria.


In those days Amraphel king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of Goiim

As people migrated from the east, they found a valley in the land of Shinar and settled there.


Jehoiakim was 25 years old when he became king; he reigned 11 years in Jerusalem. He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord his God. Now Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon attacked him and bound him in bronze [shackles] to take him to Babylon. Also Nebuchadnezzar took some of the utensils of the Lord's temple to Babylon and put them in his temple in Babylon. read more.
The rest of the deeds of Jehoiakim, the detestable things he did, and what was found against him, are written about in the Book of Israel's Kings. His son Jehoiachin became king in his place. Jehoiachin was 18 years old when he became king; he reigned three months and 10 days in Jerusalem. He did what was evil in the Lord's sight. In the spring Nebuchadnezzar sent [for him] and brought him to Babylon along with the valuable utensils of the Lord's temple. Then he made Jehoiachin's brother Zedekiah king over Judah and Jerusalem. Zedekiah was 21 years old when he became king; he reigned 11 years in Jerusalem. He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord his God and did not humble himself before Jeremiah the prophet at the Lord's command. He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar who had made him swear allegiance by God. He became obstinate and hardened his heart against returning to the Lord God of Israel. All the leaders of the priests and the people multiplied their unfaithful deeds, imitating all the detestable practices of the nations, and they defiled the Lord's temple that He had consecrated in Jerusalem. But the Lord God of their ancestors sent word against them by the hand of his messengers, sending them time and time again, for He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place. But they kept ridiculing God's messengers, despising His words, and scoffing at His prophets, until the Lord's wrath was so stirred up against His people that there was no remedy. So He brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who killed their choice young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary. He had no pity on young man and virgin or elderly and aged; He handed them all over to him. He took everything to Babylon-all the articles of God's temple, large and small, the treasures of the Lord's temple, and the treasures of the king and his officials. Then the Chaldeans burned God's temple. They tore down Jerusalem's wall, burned down all its palaces, and destroyed all its valuable utensils. Those who escaped from the sword he deported to Babylon, and they became servants to him and his sons until the rise of the Persian kingdom. This fulfilled the word of the Lord through Jeremiah and the land enjoyed its Sabbath rest all the days of the desolation until 70 years were fulfilled.



Then Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria came against Ahaz; he oppressed him and did not give him support. Although Ahaz plundered the Lord's temple and the palace of the king and of the rulers and gave the plunder to the king of Assyria, it did not help him.


Then Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria came against Ahaz; he oppressed him and did not give him support. Although Ahaz plundered the Lord's temple and the palace of the king and of the rulers and gave the plunder to the king of Assyria, it did not help him.


In the days of Pekah king of Israel, Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria came and captured Ijon, Abel-beth-maacah, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor, Gilead, and Galilee—all the land of Naphtali—and deported the people to Assyria.

and his son Beerah.

Beerah was a leader of the Reubenites, and Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria took him into exile.

So the God of Israel put it into the mind of Pul (that is, Tiglath-pileser) king of Assyria to take the Reubenites, Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh into exile. He took them to Halah, Habor, Hara, and Gozan’s river, where they are until today.


Pul king of Assyria invaded the land, so Menahem gave Pul 75,000 pounds of silver so that Pul would support him to strengthen his grip on the kingdom.

So the God of Israel put it into the mind of Pul (that is, Tiglath-pileser) king of Assyria to take the Reubenites, Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh into exile. He took them to Halah, Habor, Hara, and Gozan’s river, where they are until today.


Cush fathered Nimrod, who was the first powerful man on earth. He was a powerful hunter in the sight of the Lord. That is why it is said, "Like Nimrod, a powerful hunter in the sight of the Lord." His kingdom started with Babylon, Erech, Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar. read more.
From that land he went to Assyria and built Nineveh, Rehoboth-ir, Calah, and Resen, between Nineveh and the great city Calah.

They will shepherd the land of Assyria with the sword,
the land of Nimrod with a drawn blade.
So He will rescue us from Assyria
when it invades our land,
when it marches against our territory.


So He brought against them the military commanders of the king of Assyria. They captured Manasseh with hooks, bound him with bronze shackles, and took him to Babylon.


Hezekiah took the letter from the hand of the messengers, read it, then went up to the Lord's temple, and spread it out before the Lord. Then Hezekiah prayed before the Lord: "Lord God of Israel who is enthroned [above] the cherubim, You are God-You alone-of all the kingdoms of the earth. You made the heavens and the earth. Listen closely, Lord, and hear; open Your eyes, Lord, and see; hear the words that Sennacherib has sent to mock the living God. read more.
Lord, it is true that the kings of Assyria have devastated the nations and their lands. They have thrown their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but made by human hands-wood and stone. So they have destroyed them. Now, Lord our God, please save us from his hand so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You are the Lord God-You alone."


So Hezekiah king of Judah sent word to the king of Assyria at Lachish, saying, "I have done wrong. Withdraw from me. Whatever you demand from me, I will pay." The king of Assyria demanded from King Hezekiah of Judah 11 tons of silver and one ton of gold. So Hezekiah gave [him] all the silver found in the Lord's temple and in the treasuries of the king's palace. At that time Hezekiah stripped [the gold from] the doors of the Lord's sanctuary and from the doorposts he had overlaid and gave it to the king of Assyria.


Has any of the gods of the nations ever delivered his land from the power of the king of Assyria? Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah? Have they delivered Samaria from my hand? Who among all the gods of the lands has delivered his land from my power? So how is the Lord to deliver Jerusalem?' "


Haran, Canneh, Eden, the merchants of Sheba, Asshur, and Chilmad traded with you. They were your merchants in choice garments, cloaks of blue and embroidered materials, and multicolored carpets, which were bound and secured with cords in your marketplace.


Pul king of Assyria invaded the land, so Menahem gave Pul 75,000 pounds of silver so that Pul would support him to strengthen his grip on the kingdom. Then Menahem exacted 20 ounces of silver from each of the wealthy men of Israel to give to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria withdrew and did not stay there in the land.


On that day the Lord will thresh grain from the Euphrates River as far as the Wadi of Egypt, and you Israelites will be gathered one by one. On that day a great trumpet will be blown, and those lost in the land of Assyria will come, as well as those dispersed in the land of Egypt; and they will worship the Lord at Jerusalem on the holy mountain.


They will not stay in the land of the Lord.
Instead, Ephraim will return to Egypt,
and they will eat unclean food in Assyria.

Israel will not return to the land of Egypt
and Assyria will be his king,
because they refused to repent.

They will be roused like birds from Egypt
and like doves from the land of Assyria.
Then I will settle them in their homes.
This is the Lord’s declaration.


Think of Assyria, a cedar in Lebanon, with beautiful branches and shady foliage, and of lofty height. Its top was among the clouds. The waters caused it to grow; the underground springs made it tall, directing their rivers all around the place where the tree was planted and sending their channels to all the trees of the field. Therefore the cedar became greater in height than all the trees of the field. Its branches multiplied, and its boughs grew long as it spread [them] out because of the plentiful water. read more.
All the birds of the sky nested in its branches, and all the animals of the field gave birth beneath its boughs; all the great nations lived in its shade. It was beautiful in its greatness, in the length of its limbs, for its roots extended to abundant water. The cedars in God's garden could not rival it; the pine trees couldn't compare with its branches, nor could the plane trees match its boughs. No tree in the garden of God could compare with it in beauty. I made it beautiful with its many limbs, and all the trees of Eden, which were in God's garden, envied it. "Therefore this is what the Lord God says: Since it became great in height and set its top among the clouds, and it grew proud on account of its height, I determined to hand it over to a ruler of nations; he would surely deal with it. I banished it because of its wickedness. Foreigners, ruthless men from the nations, cut it down and left it lying. Its limbs fell on the mountains and in every valley; its boughs lay broken in all the earth's ravines. All the peoples of the earth left its shade and abandoned it. All the birds of the sky nested on its fallen trunk, and all the animals of the field were among its boughs. [This happened] so that no trees [planted] beside water would become great in height and set their tops among the clouds, and so that no [other] well-watered trees would reach them in height. For they have all been consigned to death, to the underworld, among the people who descend to the Pit. "This is what the Lord God says: I caused grieving on the day the cedar went down to Sheol. I closed off the underground deep because of it: I held back the rivers of the deep, and [its] abundant waters were restrained. I made Lebanon mourn on account of it, and all the trees of the field fainted because of it. I made the nations quake at the sound of its downfall, when I threw it down to Sheol [to be] with those who descend to the Pit. Then all the trees of Eden, all the well-watered trees, the choice and best of Lebanon, were comforted in the underworld. They too descended with it to Sheol, to those slain by the sword. As its alliesthey had lived in its shade among the nations.


Cush fathered Nimrod, who was the first powerful man on earth. He was a powerful hunter in the sight of the Lord. That is why it is said, "Like Nimrod, a powerful hunter in the sight of the Lord." His kingdom started with Babylon, Erech, Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar. read more.
From that land he went to Assyria and built Nineveh, Rehoboth-ir, Calah,


So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, saying, "I am your servant and your son. March up and save me from the power of the king of Aram and of the king of Israel, who are rising up against me." Ahaz also took the silver and gold found in the Lord's temple and in the treasuries of the king's palace and sent [them] to the king of Assyria as a gift.


Then the king of Assyria invaded the whole land, marched up to Samaria, and besieged it for three years. In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria. He deported the Israelites to Assyria and settled them in Halah and by the Habor, Gozan's river, and in the cities of the Medes.


From that land he went to Assyria and built Nineveh, Rehoboth-ir, Calah,

The name of the third river is the Tigris, which runs east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.


He raises a signal flag for the distant nations and whistles for them from the ends of the earth. Look-how quickly and swiftly they come! None of them grows weary or stumbles; no one slumbers or sleeps. No belt is loose, and no sandal strap broken. Their arrows are sharpened, and all their bows strung. Their horses' hooves are like flint; their [chariot] wheels are like a whirlwind. read more.
Their roaring is like a lion's; they roar like young lions; they growl and seize their prey and carry [it] off, and no one can rescue [it].


In the days of Pekah king of Israel, Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria came and captured Ijon, Abel-beth-maacah, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor, Gilead, and Galilee—all the land of Naphtali—and deported the people to Assyria.


Kain will be destroyed
when Asshur takes you captive.


Then the king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim and settled them in place of the Israelites in the cities of Samaria. The settlers took possession of Samaria and lived in its cities.


That night the angel of the Lord went out and struck down 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians. When the people got up the next morning—there were all the dead bodies!


So Sennacherib king of Assyria broke camp and left. He returned home and lived in Nineveh.


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


Pul king of Assyria invaded the land, so Menahem gave Pul 75,000 pounds of silver so that Pul would support him to strengthen his grip on the kingdom.


But the people of each nation were still making their own gods in the cities where they lived and putting them in the shrines of the high places that the people of Samaria had made.


One day, while he was worshiping in the temple of his god Nisroch, his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer struck him down with the sword and escaped to the land of Ararat. Then his son Esar-haddon became king in his place.


So the king of Assyria listened to him and marched up to Damascus and captured it. He deported its people to Kir but put Rezin to death.


But the king of Assyria discovered Hoshea’s conspiracy. He had sent envoys to So king of Egypt and had not paid tribute money to the king of Assyria as in previous years. Therefore the king of Assyria arrested him and put him in prison.


Shalmaneser king of Assyria attacked him, and Hoshea became his vassal and paid him tribute money.


But the king of Assyria discovered Hoshea’s conspiracy. He had sent envoys to So king of Egypt and had not paid tribute money to the king of Assyria as in previous years. Therefore the king of Assyria arrested him and put him in prison.


The name of the third river is the Tigris, which runs east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.


Look, the Lord has a strong and mighty one
like a devastating hail storm,
like a storm with strong flooding waters.
He will bring it across the land with His hand.


But this is not what he intends;
this is not what he plans.
It is his intent to destroy
and to cut off many nations.


Shalmaneser king of Assyria attacked him, and Hoshea became his vassal and paid him tribute money. But the king of Assyria discovered a conspiracy by Hoshea-he had sent envoys to So king of Egypt and had not paid tribute money to the king of Assyria as in previous years. Therefore, the king of Assyria arrested him and put him in prison. Then the king of Assyria invaded the whole land, marched up to Samaria, and besieged it for three years. read more.
In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria. He deported the Israelites to Assyria and settled them in Halah and by the Habor, Gozan's river, and in the cities of the Medes. [This disaster] happened because the people of Israel had sinned against the Lord their God who had brought them out of the land of Egypt from the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt and because they had worshiped other gods. They had lived according to the customs of the nations that the Lord had dispossessed before the Israelites and the customs the kings of Israel had introduced. The Israelites secretly did what was not right against the Lord their God. They built high places in all their towns from watchtower to fortified city. They set up for themselves sacred pillars and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every green tree. They burned incense on all the high places just like those nations that the Lord had driven out before them. They did evil things, provoking the Lord. They served idols, although the Lord had told them, "You must not do this." Still, the Lord warned Israel and Judah through every prophet and every seer, saying, "Turn from your evil ways and keep My commandments and statutes according to all the law I commanded your ancestors and sent to you through My servants the prophets." But they would not listen. Instead, they became obstinate like their ancestors who did not believe the Lord their God. They rejected His statutes and His covenant He had made with their ancestors and the warnings He had given them. They pursued worthless idols and became worthless themselves, following the surrounding nations the Lord had commanded them not to imitate. They abandoned all the commandments of the Lord their God. They made for themselves molded images-even two calves-and an Asherah pole. They worshiped the whole heavenly host and served Baal. They made their sons and daughters pass through the fire and practiced divination and interpreted omens. They devoted themselves to do what was evil in the Lord's sight and provoked Him. Therefore, the Lord was very angry with Israel, and He removed them from His presence. Only the tribe of Judah remained. Even Judah did not keep the commandments of the Lord their God but lived according to the customs Israel had introduced. So the Lord rejected all the descendants of Israel, afflicted them, and handed them over to plunderers until He had banished them from His presence. When the Lord tore Israel from the house of David, Israel made Jeroboam son of Nebat king. Then Jeroboam led Israel away from following the Lord and caused them to commit great sin. The Israelites persisted in all the sins that Jeroboam committed and did not turn away from them. Finally, the Lord removed Israel from His presence just as He had declared through all His servants the prophets. So Israel has been exiled to Assyria from their homeland until today.


For this is what the Lord God says:
“At first My people went down to Egypt to live there,
then Assyria oppressed them without cause.


On that day the Lord will use a razor hired from beyond the Euphrates River—the king of Assyria—to shave the head, the hair on the legs, and to remove the beard as well.


for before the boy knows how to call out father or mother, the wealth of Damascus and the spoils of Samaria will be carried off to the king of Assyria.”


There is no remedy for your injury;
your wound is severe.
All who hear the news about you
will clap their hands because of you,
for who has not experienced
your constant cruelty?


Assyria will not save us,
we will not ride on horses,
and we will no longer proclaim, ‘Our gods!’
to the work of our hands.
For the fatherless receives compassion in You.”


For they have gone up to Assyria
like a wild donkey going off on its own.
Ephraim has paid for love.


They will shepherd the land of Assyria with the sword,
the land of Nimrod with a drawn blade.
So He will rescue us from Assyria
when it invades our land,
when it marches against our territory.


Then the angel of the Lord went out and struck down 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians. When the people got up the next morning—there were all the dead bodies!


During his reign, Pharaoh Neco king of Egypt marched up to help the king of Assyria at the Euphrates River. King Josiah went to confront him, and at Megiddo when Neco saw him he killed him.


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


Haran, Canneh, Eden, the merchants of Sheba, Asshur, and Chilmad traded with you.


and the rest of the peoples whom the great and illustrious Ashurbanipal deported and settled in the cities of Samaria and the region west of the Euphrates River.


And they settled from Havilah to Shur, which is opposite Egypt as you go toward Asshur. He lived in opposition to all his brothers.


When Ephraim saw his sickness
and Judah his wound,
Ephraim went to Assyria
and sent a delegation to the great king.
But he cannot cure you or heal your wound.


We made a treaty with Egypt
and with Assyria, to get enough food.


until I come and take you away to a land like your own land—a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive trees and honey—so that you may live and not die. But don’t listen to Hezekiah when he misleads you, saying: The Lord will deliver us.


In the fourth year of King Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Israel's King Hoshea son of Elah, Shalmaneser king of Assyria marched against Samaria and besieged it. The Assyrians captured it at the end of three years. In the sixth year of Hezekiah, which was the ninth year of Israel's King Hoshea, Samaria was captured. The king of Assyria deported the Israelites to Assyria and put them in Halah and by the Habor, Gozan's river, and in the cities of the Medes, read more.
because they did not listen to the voice of the Lord their God but violated His covenant-all He had commanded Moses the servant of the Lord. They did not listen, and they did not obey. In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib king of Assyria attacked all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them. So Hezekiah king of Judah sent word to the king of Assyria at Lachish, saying, "I have done wrong. Withdraw from me. Whatever you demand from me, I will pay." The king of Assyria demanded from King Hezekiah of Judah 11 tons of silver and one ton of gold. So Hezekiah gave [him] all the silver found in the Lord's temple and in the treasuries of the king's palace. At that time Hezekiah stripped [the gold from] the doors of the Lord's sanctuary and from the doorposts he had overlaid and gave it to the king of Assyria. Then the king of Assyria sent the Tartan, the Rab-saris, and the Rabshakeh, along with a massive army, from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem. They advanced and came to Jerusalem, and they took their position by the aqueduct of the upper pool, which is by the highway to the Fuller's Field. Then they called for the king, but Eliakim son of Hilkiah, who was in charge of the palace, Shebnah the court secretary, and Joah son of Asaph, the court historian, came out to them. Then the Rabshakeh said to them, "Tell Hezekiah this is what the great king, the king of Assyria, says: 'What are you relying on? You think mere words are strategy and strength for war. What are you now relying on so that you have rebelled against me? Look, you now trust in Egypt, the stalk of this splintered reed, which if a man leans on it will go into his palm and pierce it. This is how Pharaoh king of Egypt is to all who trust in him. Suppose you say to me: We trust in the Lord our God. Isn't He the One whose high places and altars Hezekiah has removed, saying to Judah and to Jerusalem: You must worship at this altar in Jerusalem?' "So now make a bargain with my master the king of Assyria. I'll give you 2,000 horses if you're able to supply riders for them! How then can you drive back a single officer among the least of my master's servants and trust in Egypt for chariots and for horsemen? Have I attacked this place to destroy it without the Lord's [approval]? The Lord said to me, 'Attack this land and destroy it.' " Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah, Shebnah, and Joah said to the Rabshakeh, "Please speak to your servants in Aramaic, since we understand [it] . Don't speak with us in Hebrew within earshot of the people on the wall." But the Rabshakeh said to them, "Has my master sent me only to your master and to you to speak these words? Hasn't [he] also [sent me] to the men who sit on the wall, [destined] with you to eat their own excrement and drink their own urine?" The Rabshakeh stood and called out loudly in Hebrew. Then he spoke: "Hear the word of the great king, the king of Assyria. This is what the king says: 'Don't let Hezekiah deceive you; he can't deliver you from my hand. Don't let Hezekiah persuade you to trust in the Lord by saying: Certainly the Lord will deliver us! This city will not be handed over to the king of Assyria.' "Don't listen to Hezekiah, for this is what the king of Assyria says: 'Make peace with me and surrender to me. Then every one of you may eat from his own vine and his own fig tree, and every one may drink water from his own cistern until I come and take you away to a land like your own land-a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive trees and honey-so that you may live and not die. But don't listen to Hezekiah when he misleads you, saying: The Lord will deliver us. Has any of the gods of the nations ever delivered his land from the power of the king of Assyria? Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah? Have they delivered Samaria from my hand? Who among all the gods of the lands has delivered his land from my power? So how is the Lord to deliver Jerusalem?' " But the people kept silent; they answered him not a word, for the king's command was, "Don't answer him." Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah, who was in charge of the palace, Shebna the court secretary, and Joah son of Asaph, the court historian, came to Hezekiah with their clothes torn and reported to him the words of the Rabshakeh.


until I come and take you away to a land like your own land—a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive trees and honey—so that you may live and not die. But don’t listen to Hezekiah when he misleads you, saying: The Lord will deliver us.

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


References

Hastings

Easton

American

Morish

Watsons

Smith

Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers.