Reference: Rabshakeh
Easton
chief of the princes, the name given to the chief cup-bearer or the vizier of the Assyrian court; one of Sennacherib's messengers to Hezekiah. See the speech he delivered, in the Hebrew language, in the hearing of all the people, as he stood near the wall on the north side of the city (2Ki 18:17-37). He and the other envoys returned to their master and reported that Hezekiah and his people were obdurate, and would not submit.
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And the king of Assyria sent Tartan and Rab-saris and Rabshakeh from Lachish to king Hezekiah with a great army to Jerusalem. And they went up and came to Jerusalem. And when they came up, they came and stood by the conduit of the And when they had called to the king, there came out to them Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebnah the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder. read more. And Rabshakeh said to them, Say ye now to Hezekiah, Thus says the great king, the king of Assyria, What confidence is this in which thou trust? Thou say (but they are but vain words), [There is] counsel and strength for the war. Now on whom do thou trust that thou have rebelled against me? Now, behold, thou trust upon the staff of this bruised reed, even upon Egypt, on which if a man leans it will go into his hand, and pierce it. So is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust on him. But if ye say to me, We trust in LORD our God, is that not he whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah has taken away, and has said to Judah and to Jerusalem, Ye shall worship before this altar in Jerusalem? 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. How then can 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? Have I now come up without LORD against this place to destroy it? LORD said to me, Go up against this land, and destroy it. Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, and Shebnah, and Joah, said to Rabshakeh, Speak, I pray thee, to thy servants in the Syrian language, for we understand it. And do not speak with us in the Jews' language, in the ears of the people But Rabshakeh said to them, Has my master sent me to thy master, and to thee, to speak these words? [Has he] not [sent me] to the men who sit on the wall, to eat their own dung, and to drink their own urine with you? Then Rabshakeh stood, and cried with a loud voice in the Jews' language, and spoke, saying, Hear ye the word of the great king, the king of Assyria. Thus says the king, Let not Hezekiah deceive you, for he will not be able to deliver you out of his hand. Neither let Hezekiah make you trust in LORD, saying, LORD will surely deliver us, and this city shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria. Do not hearken to Hezekiah. For thus says the king of Assyria, Make your peace with me, and come out to me. And eat ye every man of his vine, and every man of his fig tree, and drink ye every man the waters of 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 of honey, that ye may live, and not die. And do not hearken to Hezekiah when he per Have any of the gods of the nations ever delivered his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria? Where are the gods of Hamath, and of Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim, of Hena, and Ivvah? Have they delivered Samaria out of my hand? Who are they among all the gods of the countries that have delivered their country out of my hand, that LORD should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand? But the people were silent, and did not answer him a word, for the king's commandment was, saying, Do not answer him. Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder, came to Hezekiah with their clothes torn, and told him the words of Rabshakeh.
Fausets
i.e. "chief cupbearer" (2 Kings 18-19; Isaiah 36-37). Sent by Sennacherib with Tartan who probably had chief command (first in 2Ki 18:17; Isa 20:1) of an army to induce Jerusalem by threats and promises to surrender. Spokesman for Tartan and Rabsaris. Possibly a Jewish deserter and apostate. This is favored by his familiarity with the Hebrew language, in which he addresses fluently (to the annoyance of Hezekiah's officers sent to meet him) the Jews on the wall, and with Isaiah's prophecy (Isa 8:7-8; 10:5-6): "am I now come up without the Lord to destroy it? The Lord said, Go up against this land" (2Ki 18:25). Isaiah (Isa 33:14) alludes to traitors, "sinners in Zion," "hypocrites."
Rabshakeh was a zealous pleader for his master, reckless of truth, glossing over the real miseries of deportation by Assyria (Isa 36:16-17), pretending to have Jehovah on his side, yet classing Jehovah with the idols of other lands overthrown by Assyria (Isa 36:18-20, liars need to have good memories), trying to rob the godly of their one only but sure trust in trouble, misrepresenting Hezekiah's faithful act in removing forbidden high places to Jehovah, as though he thereby had dishonored and so forfeited the favor of Jehovah (Isa 36:7), boasting of Assyria's might, as if, because Judah could not supply 2,000 riders if even Assyria supplied the horses, it were impossible the Jews could repel one of the least of Assyria's captains (Isa 36:8-9); in filthy and blasphemous language he threatens to reduce them to eat their own excrement in the extremity of famine (Isa 36:12; 2Ch 32:11): a sample of the true nature of the pagan attack on Jerusalem, at once arrogant, blasphemous, and reckless of all decency.
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And the king of Assyria sent Tartan and Rab-saris and Rabshakeh from Lachish to king Hezekiah with a great army to Jerusalem. And they went up and came to Jerusalem. And when they came up, they came and stood by the conduit of the
Have I now come up without LORD against this place to destroy it? LORD said to me, Go up against this land, and destroy it.
now therefore, behold, LORD brings up upon them the waters of the River, strong and many, [even] the king of Assyria and all his glory. And it shall come up over all its channels, and go over all its banks, and it shall sweep onward into Judah. It shall overflow and pass through; it shall reach even to the neck. And the stretching out of its wings shall fill the breadth of thy land, O Immanuel.
Ho, Assyrian, the rod of my anger, the staff in whose hand is my indignation! I will send him against a profane nation, and against the people of my wrath. I will give him a charge, to take the spoil, and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets.
In the year that Tartan came to Ashdod, when Sargon the king of Assyria sent him, and he fought against Ashdod and took it,
The sinners in Zion are afraid. Trembling has seized the profane. Who among us can dwell with the devouring fire? Who among us can dwell with everlasting burnings?
But if thou say to me, We trust in LORD our God. Is that not he whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah has taken away, and has said to Judah and to Jerusalem, Ye shall worship before this altar? 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. read more. How then can 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?
But Rabshakeh said, Has my master sent me to thy master, and to thee, to speak these words, [and] not to the men who sit upon the wall, to eat their own dung, and to drink their own urine with you?
Hearken not to Hezekiah. For thus says the king of Assyria, Make your peace with me, and come out to me, and eat ye everyone of his vine, and everyone of his fig tree, and drink ye everyone the waters of 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. read more. Beware lest Hezekiah persuade you, saying, LORD will deliver us. Has any of the gods of the nations delivered his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria? Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim? And have they delivered Samaria out of my hand? Who are they among all the gods of these countries that have delivered their country out of my hand, that LORD should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand?
Morish
Rab'-shakeh
This is a title, signifying 'chief cup-bearer,' borne by an officer who was sent by Sennacherib with the Tartan (general) and a Rab-saris to Jerusalem. He was the chief spokesman; and from the fact of his being able to speak in the Jews' language, he is supposed to have been either a proselyte or an apostate Jew. If so he may possibly have been acquainted with Isa 10:5-6, for he says, "Am I now come up without the Lord against this place to destroy it? The Lord said to me, Go up against this land and destroy it." 2Ki 18:17-37. On the other hand, he profanely classes the God of Israel with all the gods that could not protect their worshippers from his master. 2Ki 19:4,8; Isa 36:2-22; 37:4-8.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
And the king of Assyria sent Tartan and Rab-saris and Rabshakeh from Lachish to king Hezekiah with a great army to Jerusalem. And they went up and came to Jerusalem. And when they came up, they came and stood by the conduit of the And when they had called to the king, there came out to them Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebnah the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder. read more. And Rabshakeh said to them, Say ye now to Hezekiah, Thus says the great king, the king of Assyria, What confidence is this in which thou trust? Thou say (but they are but vain words), [There is] counsel and strength for the war. Now on whom do thou trust that thou have rebelled against me? Now, behold, thou trust upon the staff of this bruised reed, even upon Egypt, on which if a man leans it will go into his hand, and pierce it. So is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust on him. But if ye say to me, We trust in LORD our God, is that not he whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah has taken away, and has said to Judah and to Jerusalem, Ye shall worship before this altar in Jerusalem? 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. How then can 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? Have I now come up without LORD against this place to destroy it? LORD said to me, Go up against this land, and destroy it. Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, and Shebnah, and Joah, said to Rabshakeh, Speak, I pray thee, to thy servants in the Syrian language, for we understand it. And do not speak with us in the Jews' language, in the ears of the people But Rabshakeh said to them, Has my master sent me to thy master, and to thee, to speak these words? [Has he] not [sent me] to the men who sit on the wall, to eat their own dung, and to drink their own urine with you? Then Rabshakeh stood, and cried with a loud voice in the Jews' language, and spoke, saying, Hear ye the word of the great king, the king of Assyria. Thus says the king, Let not Hezekiah deceive you, for he will not be able to deliver you out of his hand. Neither let Hezekiah make you trust in LORD, saying, LORD will surely deliver us, and this city shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria. Do not hearken to Hezekiah. For thus says the king of Assyria, Make your peace with me, and come out to me. And eat ye every man of his vine, and every man of his fig tree, and drink ye every man the waters of 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 of honey, that ye may live, and not die. And do not hearken to Hezekiah when he per Have any of the gods of the nations ever delivered his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria? Where are the gods of Hamath, and of Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim, of Hena, and Ivvah? Have they delivered Samaria out of my hand? Who are they among all the gods of the countries that have delivered their country out of my hand, that LORD should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand? But the people were silent, and did not answer him a word, for the king's commandment was, saying, Do not answer him. Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder, came to Hezekiah with their clothes torn, and told him the words of Rabshakeh.
It may be that LORD thy God will hear all the words of Rabshakeh whom the king of Assyria his master has sent to defy the living God, and will rebuke the words which LORD thy God has heard. Therefore lift up thy prayer for the remn
So Rabshakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah, for he had heard that he was departed from Lachish.
Ho, Assyrian, the rod of my anger, the staff in whose hand is my indignation! I will send him against a profane nation, and against the people of my wrath. I will give him a charge, to take the spoil, and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets.
And the king of Assyria sent Rabshakeh from Lachish to Jerusalem to king Hezekiah with a great army. And he stood by the conduit of the upper pool in the highway of the fuller's field. Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah came forth to him, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah, the son of Asaph, the recorder. read more. And Rabshakeh said to them, Say ye now to Hezekiah, Thus says the great king, the king of Assyria: What confidence is this in which thou trust? I say, [thy] counsel and strength for the war are but vain words. Now on whom do thou trust that thou have rebelled against me? Behold, thou trust upon the staff of this bruised reed, even upon Egypt, on which if a man leans, it will go into his hand, and pierce it. So is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust on him. But if thou say to me, We trust in LORD our God. Is that not he whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah has taken away, and has said to Judah and to Jerusalem, Ye shall worship before this altar? 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. How then can 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? And have I now come up without LORD against this land to destroy it? LORD said to me, Go up against this land, and destroy it. Then Eliakim and Shebna and Joah said to Rabshakeh, Speak, I pray thee, to 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 who are on the wall. But Rabshakeh said, Has my master sent me to thy master, and to thee, to speak these words, [and] not to the men who sit upon the wall, to eat their own dung, and to drink their own urine with you? 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. Thus says the king, Let not Hezekiah deceive you, for he will not be able to deliver you. Neither let Hezekiah make you trust in LORD, saying, LORD will surely deliver us. This city shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria. Hearken not to Hezekiah. For thus says the king of Assyria, Make your peace with me, and come out to me, and eat ye everyone of his vine, and everyone of his fig tree, and drink ye everyone the waters of 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. Beware lest Hezekiah persuade you, saying, LORD will deliver us. Has any of the gods of the nations delivered his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria? Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim? And have they delivered Samaria out of my hand? Who are they among all the gods of these countries that have delivered their country out of my hand, that LORD should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand? But they held their peace, and answered him not a word. For the king's commandment was, saying, Answer him not. Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah came, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah, the son of Asaph, the recorder, to Hezekiah with their clothes torn, and told him the words of Rabshakeh.
It may be LORD thy God will hear the words of Rabshakeh, whom the king of Assyria his master has sent to defy the living God, and will rebuke the words which LORD thy God has heard. Therefore lift up thy prayer for the remnant that So the servants of king Hezekiah came to Isaiah. read more. And Isaiah said to them, Thus shall ye say to your master, Thus says LORD: Be not afraid of the words that thou have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me. Behold, I will put a spirit in him, and he shall hear news, and shall return to his own land. And I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land. So Rabshakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah, for he had heard that he was departed from Lachish.
Smith
Rab'shakeh
(chief cupbearer),
1/type/acv'>18/1/type/acv'>1/type/acv'>2Ki 1/type/acv'>18:1/type/acv'>1,1/type/acv'>1,1/type/acv'>1; 1/type/acv'>1/type/acv'>Isa 36:1/type/acv'>1,1/type/acv'>1,1/type/acv'>1
... one of the officers of the king of Assyria sent against Jerusalem in the reign of Hezekiah. [HEZEKIAH] (B.C. 713.) The English version takes Rabshakeh as the name of a person; but it is more probably the name of the office which he held at the court, that of chief cupbearer.
See Hezekiah
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Now it came to pass in the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, that Hezekiah the son of Ahaz king of Judah began to reign.
Now it came to pass in the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, that Hezekiah the son of Ahaz king of Judah began to reign.
Now it came to pass in the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, that Hezekiah the son of Ahaz king of Judah began to reign.
Now it came to pass in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah, that Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah, and took them.
Now it came to pass in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah, that Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah, and took them.
Watsons
RABSHAKEH, a chief butler, or cupbearer. This is a term of dignity, and not a proper name. Rabshakeh was sent by Sennacherib, king of Assyria, to summon Hezekiah to surrender Jerusalem, 2Ki 18:17-18; 19:4; Isa 36.
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And the king of Assyria sent Tartan and Rab-saris and Rabshakeh from Lachish to king Hezekiah with a great army to Jerusalem. And they went up and came to Jerusalem. And when they came up, they came and stood by the conduit of the And when they had called to the king, there came out to them Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebnah the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder.
It may be that LORD thy God will hear all the words of Rabshakeh whom the king of Assyria his master has sent to defy the living God, and will rebuke the words which LORD thy God has heard. Therefore lift up thy prayer for the remn