2 Chronicles 32:1–23
32 After these things and these acts of faithfulness, Sennacherib king of Assyria came and invaded Judah and encamped against the fortified cities, thinking to win them for himself. 2 32:2And when Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had come and intended to fight against Jerusalem, 3 32:3he planned with his officers and his mighty men to stop the water of the springs that were outside the city; and they helped him. 4 32:4A great many people were gathered, and they stopped all the springs and the brook that flowed through the land, saying, “Why should the kings of Assyria come and find much water?” 5 32:5He set to work resolutely and built up all the wall that was broken down and raised towers upon it, 1 and outside it he built another wall, and he strengthened the Millo in the city of David. He also made weapons and shields in abundance. 6 32:6And he set combat commanders over the people and gathered them together to him in the square at the gate of the city and spoke encouragingly to them, saying, 7 32:7“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or dismayed before the king of Assyria and all the horde that is with him, for there are more with us than with him. 8 32:8With him is an arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God, to help us and to fight our battles.” And the people took confidence from the words of Hezekiah king of Judah.
9 32:9After this, Sennacherib king of Assyria, who was besieging Lachish with all his forces, sent his servants to Jerusalem to Hezekiah king of Judah and to all the people of Judah who were in Jerusalem, saying, 10 32:10“Thus says Sennacherib king of Assyria, ‘On what are you trusting, that you endure the siege in Jerusalem? 11 32:11Is not Hezekiah misleading you, that he may give you over to die by famine and by thirst, when he tells you, “The Lord our God will deliver us from the hand of the king of Assyria”? 12 32:12Has not this same Hezekiah taken away his high places and his altars and commanded Judah and Jerusalem, “Before one altar you shall worship, and on it you shall burn your sacrifices”? 13 32:13Do you not know what I and my fathers have done to all the peoples of other lands? Were the gods of the nations of those lands at all able to deliver their lands out of my hand? 14 32:14Who among all the gods of those nations that my fathers devoted to destruction was able to deliver his people from my hand, that your God should be able to deliver you from my hand? 15 32:15Now, therefore, do not let Hezekiah deceive you or mislead you in this fashion, and do not believe him, for no god of any nation or kingdom has been able to deliver his people from my hand or from the hand of my fathers. How much less will your God deliver you out of my hand!’”
16 32:16And his servants said still more against the Lord God and against his servant Hezekiah. 17 32:17And he wrote letters to cast contempt on the Lord, the God of Israel, and to speak against him, saying, “Like the gods of the nations of the lands who have not delivered their people from my hands, so the God of Hezekiah will not deliver his people from my hand.” 18 32:18And they shouted it with a loud voice in the language of Judah to the people of Jerusalem who were on the wall, to frighten and terrify them, in order that they might take the city. 19 32:19And they spoke of the God of Jerusalem as they spoke of the gods of the peoples of the earth, which are the work of men’s hands.
20 32:20Then Hezekiah the king and Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, prayed because of this and cried to heaven. 21 32:21And the Lord sent an angel, who cut off all the mighty warriors and commanders and officers in the camp of the king of Assyria. So he returned with shame of face to his own land. And when he came into the house of his god, some of his own sons struck him down there with the sword. 22 32:22So the Lord saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib king of Assyria and from the hand of all his enemies, and he provided for them on every side. 23 32:23And many brought gifts to the Lord to Jerusalem and precious things to Hezekiah king of Judah, so that he was exalted in the sight of all nations from that time onward.
1 Vulgate; Hebrew and raised upon the towers
Section Overview
Following his “acts of faithfulness” (as in 2 Chronicles 29–31; cf. 31:20), Hezekiah saw the death of the Assyrian emperor Sargon II (721–705 BC) as an opportunity to rebel, but in 701 Sargon’s successor, Sennacherib, moved against Judah (32:1; 2 Kings 18:7, 13). Preparation for the Assyrian attack included some defensive works, but priority was given to the proper worship of God (2 Chron. 32:2–8). Hezekiah’s response to the threats of Sennacherib’s taunting messengers (vv. 9–20) led dramatically to deliverance (v. 21). The resulting gifts for both the Lord and Hezekiah recall the fame of Solomon (vv. 22–23; cf. 9:23–24).
The Chronicler’s account is based on 2 Kings 18:13–19:37; the storyline is the same, but rewriting involved large omissions and some additions. The following table shows broad comparison; a more detailed synopsis would reveal some words and phrases from the omitted sections (e.g., Hezekiah’s words in 2 Chron. 32:7 reflect Isaiah’s words to Hezekiah in 2 Kings 19:6, and 2 Chron. 32:19 refers back to 2 Kings 19:18).1 Differences in details between Kings and Chronicles result from the Chronicler’s using information from Kings and Isaiah to highlight his own message of Hezekiah’s leadership in preparation and reliance on God, and also the results (table 3.19).2
Throughout 2 Kings 18–19 (cf. Isaiah 36–37) the prophet Isaiah has major involvement, his messages giving encouragement during Sennacherib’s threat and being crucial in two other events during Hezekiah’s reign that the Chronicler notes in 2 Chronicles 32:24 and 31 (2 Kings 20:1–11, 12–19). In Chronicles, however, Isaiah appears only in 2 Chronicles 32:20, as Hezekiah’s companion in prayer without any explicit message, and in the formulaic source citation in verse 32. As in chapters 29–31, a royal speech encourages the people (32:6–8; cf. the Solomon narrative, in which royal rather than prophetic speeches are likewise to the fore). Building on his lengthy account of Hezekiah’s “acts of faithfulness,” the Chronicler focuses on Hezekiah’s fearless leadership and God’s deliverance.3
TABLE 3.19: Comparison of 2 Chronicles 32:1–23 and 2 Kings
| 2 Chronicles | 2 Kings | |
|---|---|---|
| Sennacherib’s invasion | 32:1 | 18:13 |
| Hezekiah enhances Jerusalem’s defenses | 32:2–8 | — |
| Tribute sent to Sennacherib at Lachish | — | 18:14–16 |
| Sennacherib sends messengers to Jerusalem | 32:9–12 | 18:17–22 |
| The messengers appeal to the people against Hezekiah | — | 18:23–32 |
| The messengers continue to blaspheme against the Lord | 32:13–19 | 18:33–37 |
| Hezekiah receives Isaiah’s encouragement and Sennacherib makes plans | — | 19:1–13 |
| Hezekiah and Isaiah pray | 32:20 | 19:14–34 |
| The Lord delivers Jerusalem | 32:21 | 19:35–37 |
| Gifts for Jerusalem and fame for Hezekiah | 32:22–23 | — |
Section Outline
- IV.A. Reforms, Passover, and Answered Prayer under Hezekiah (29:1–32:33) . . .
- 4. Hezekiah Responds to Sennacherib’s Attack (32:1–23)
Response
As elsewhere in Scripture, Hezekiah and the people’s preparations tell of human activity, using the physical resources and human abilities and understandings given by God, but, importantly, they do not rely on them for security. To fail to act can be a denial of gifts given, while Deuteronomy warns against forgetting the God who has given and is sovereign in the life of his people and the world (Deut. 8:11–20). Many proverbs commend the rightness of human planning that listens to counsel within the context of humble submission to God and his purposes (Prov. 15:22; 16:1–3, 9; 19:21; 20:18; 21:5; cf. Luke 12:16–21; James 4:13–17). For Hezekiah, worship came first, the context of all human activity. “Seek first the kingdom of God” (Matt. 6:33) is a matter not just of “first” in time but of “first” in life.
Sennacherib’s arrogance is derided as a reliance for success on “an arm of flesh,” and other nations relied on gods that were “the work of men’s hands.” While people may look to physical objects to provide some protection (idols, statues, charms, etc.), also common is reliance on other manmade structures for peace, prosperity, success, or security (e.g., economic or political systems, military power, education, wealth). Significantly, Jesus contrasted “God” and “money” (Matt. 6:24), and his words often challenge attitudes and behavior (e.g., Mark 6:7–11; 12:38–44; Luke 16:13–15; 18:18–30; Acts 2:44–45). The question arises: where is our confidence for the future? What has priority in decisions and actions?
1 Wido van Peursen and Eep Talstra, “Computer-Assisted Analysis of Parallel Texts in the Bible: The Case of 2 Kings xviii-xix and Its Parallels in Isaiah and Chronicles,” VT 57/1 (2007): 45–72 (esp. pp. 70–71).
2 Paul S. Evans, “Historia or Exegesis? Assessing the Chronicler’s Hezekiah-Sennacherib Narrative,” in Chronicling the Chronicler, 103–120.
3 John W. Olley, “Isaiah,” in DOTHB, 509–514.
4 Sennacherib’s account is known in seven ancient exemplars, the earliest (the 689 BC Oriental Institute Prism of Sennacherib) from only twelve years after the invasion; “Sennacherib’s Siege of Jerusalem,” trans. Mordechai Cogan (COS 2.119B:302–303).
5 Hershel Shanks, “Will King Hezekiah Be Dislodged from His Tunnel?” BAR 39/5 (2013): 52–61, 73; Mary Katherine Yem Hing Hom, “Where Art Thou, O Hezekiah’s Tunnel? A Biblical Scholar Considers the Archaeological and Biblical Evidence concerning the Waterworks in 2 Chronicles 32:3–4, 30 and 2 Kings 20:20,” JBL 135/3 (2016): 493–503.
6 “Jerusalem Archaeological Sites: The Broad Wall,” Jewish Virtual Library, American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise, accessed June 7, 2017, http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/the-broad-wall. On “Millo,” cf. comment on 1 Chronicles 11:4–9.
7 Cf. note 449.
8 Boda, 1–2 Chronicles, 401.
9 The parallel is even closer if the unusual MT waynahalem, “and he provided for them, guided them,” is emended to wayyanakh lahem, “and he gave them rest,” as is suggested by LXX (and Vulgate) and similar statements in 14:7; 15:15; 20:30; 1 Chronicles 22:9, 18 (followed by some English translations).