|  Home  |  Old Testament Studies  |  Isaiah 1-39 Table of Contents  |  Previous Section  |  Next Section  |

ISAIAH 37

PARAGRAPH DIVISIONS OF MODERN TRANSLATIONS

READING CYCLE THREE (see "Bible Interpretation Seminar")

FOLLOWING THE ORIGINAL AUTHOR'S INTENT AT PARAGRAPH LEVEL

This is a study guide commentary, which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator.

Read the chapter in one sitting. Identify the subjects (reading cycle #3). Compare your subject divisions with the five translations above. Paragraphing is not inspired, but it is the key to following the original author's intent, which is the heart of interpretation. Every paragraph has one and only one subject.

CONTEXTUAL INSIGHTS

1. Isaiah 37:1-7 describes the reactions of Hezekiah to the Assyrian message in Isaiah 36.
   
   
2. It is uncertain if Isa. 37:1-7 and 14-20 are two separate reactions. It seems contextually that after Isa. 37:8-9 Sennacherib sent a second message to be delivered to Jerusalem and Isa. 37:14-20 are Hezekiah's response to this second message, which is similar to the first one.
    Possibly Hezekiah was trusting YHWH and Egypt in Isa. 37:1-7, but after Isa. 37:9 he had to trust YHWH alone (cf. Isa. 37:14-20,30).

WORD AND PHRASE STUDY

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: ISAIAH 37:1-4
¹And when King Hezekiah heard it, he tore his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth and entered the house of the Lord. ²Then he sent Eliakim who was over the household with Shebna the scribe and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz. ³They said to him, "Thus says Hezekiah, 'This day is a day of distress, rebuke and rejection; for children have come to birth, and there is no strength to deliver. ⁴Perhaps the Lord your God will hear the words of Rabshakeh, whom his master the king of Assyria has sent to reproach the living God, and will rebuke the words which the Lord your God has heard. Therefore, offer a prayer for the remnant that is left.'"

37:1 "he tore his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth" These are signs of mourning.

SPECIAL TOPIC: GRIEVING RITES

▣ "the house of the Lord" This refers to the temple in Jerusalem. Exactly what area of the temple he entered is uncertain. Only priests and Levites had access to the sacred buildings. However, there was a special area set aside for the monarch to be as close as possible and view the activities of festival rituals.

37:2 "Eliakim. . .Shebna" See note at Isa. 36:3,22.

37:3 Hezekiah vividly describes the situation (cf. 2 Kgs. 19:3).

1. NASB, NRSV ‒ "a day of distress" (BDB 865 I)
   NKJV ‒ "a day of trouble"
   NJB ‒ "a day of suffering"
   LXX ‒ "a day of affliction"
2. NASB, NKJV, NRSV, "a day of rebuke" (BDB 407)
   NJB ‒ "a day of punishment"
   LXX ‒ "a day of reproach"
3. NASB ‒ "a day of rejection" (BDB 611)
   NKJV ‒ "a day of blasphemy"
   NRSV, NJB ‒ "a day of disgrace"
    "a day of rebuke"
4. LXX, Peshitta, "a day of anger"
5. "time for birth, but no strength to deliver"

All of these phrases refer to YHWH's actions, not Assyria's. Hezekiah knew the problem was covenant disobedience and faithlessness. Assyria was not the real problem, but YHWH's instrument of judgment against a disobedient covenant people (i.e., Leviticus 26; Deuteronomy 28).

37:4 Hezekiah is hoping that as YHWH heard the blasphemy (i.e., "reproach," BDB 357, KB 355, Piel INFINITIVE CONSTRUCT, cf. Isa. 37:17,23,24) of Assyria's arrogant boast (cf. Isa. 36:15,18,20), He would defend His name (i.e., Ezek. 36:22-23).

▣ "the remnant" This term can be used in several senses depending on the context.

SPECIAL TOPIC: THE REMNANT, Three Senses

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: ISAIAH 37:5-7
⁵So the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah. ⁶Isaiah said to them, "Thus you shall say to your master, 'Thus says the Lord, "Do not be afraid because of the words that you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed Me. ⁷Behold, I will put a spirit in him so that he will hear a rumor and return to his own land. And I will make him fall by the sword in his own land."'"

37:6 Notice how Isaiah responds to the messengers of Hezekiah with the very words of YHWH (cf. Isa. 37:21)!

▣ "Do not be afraid" This statement (BDB 431, KB 432, Qal IMPERFECT used in a JUSSIVE sense) is a recurrent message from God to His leaders (cf. Isa. 7:4; 8:12; 10:24; 35:4; 40:9; 41:10,13,14; 43:1,5; 44:2; 51:7; 54:4; Gen. 15:1; 21:17; 26:24; 46:3; Exod. 20:20; Num. 14:9; Deut. 1:21,29; 3:2,22; 7:18; 20:1,3; 31:6,8; Jos. 8:1; 10:8,25; 11:6; Jdg. 6:23, etc.).

The MT has ruah (BDB 924), which, in this context, refers to an inner feeling or sense of doom and foreboding. The "great king"of Assyria (cf. Isa. 36:4) is controlled by the God of Israel!

SPECIAL TOPIC: BREATH, WIND, SPIRIT

▣ "hear a rumor and return to his own land" This is YHWH's response because Hezekiah turned to Him for help (as Ahaz did not). He will confuse the army and send them home (cf. Isa. 37:37). Some have wondered if Isa. 37:9 is not a fulfillment of this rumor, but it seems, in context, to refer to a rumor that will force him to return to Assyria and not simply meet Egypt in battle.

▣ "I will make him fall by the sword in his own land" See Isa. 37:38 for the historical fulfillment of this prophecy.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: ISAIAH 37:8-13
⁸Then Rabshakeh returned and found the king of Assyria fighting against Libnah, for he had heard that the king had left Lachish. ⁹When he heard them say concerning Tirhakah king of Cush, "He has come out to fight against you," and when he heard it he sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying, ¹⁰"Thus you shall say to Hezekiah king of Judah, 'Do not let your God in whom you trust deceive you, saying, "Jerusalem will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria." ¹¹Behold, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the lands, destroying them completely. So will you be spared? ¹²Did the gods of those nations which my fathers have destroyed deliver them, even Gozan and Haran and Rezeph and the sons of Eden who were in Telassar? ¹³Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the city of Sepharvaim, and of Hena and Ivvah?'"

37:9-11 This repeats Isa. 36:13-20.

37:9 "Tirhakah king of Cush" There have been some historical problems connected with this verse because this man, though the younger brother of the current Pharaoh of Egypt (i.e., twenty-fifth Nubian Dynasty), Shebitku, nephew of Shabaka, possibly reigned from 696/95 ‒ 685/84 B.C. (?) Tirhakah became a Pharaoh and reigned from 690 ‒ 664 B.C. He was also known as the King of Ethiopia (cf. 2 Kgs. 19:9). However, this may be a military title or an anachronism (which means that one reads a later event or person into an earlier document). Hence, in this text, Tirhakah was only Pharaoh's representative sent with the army.

SPECIAL TOPIC: KINGS OF EGYPT

37:12-13 There are several geographical locations mentioned that Assyria had previously conquered.

1. Gozan ‒ In 2 Kgs. 17:6; 18:11; 1 Chr. 5:26 this is called a river (i.e., region) of Mesopotamia where Tiglath-pileser III exiled people from the tribal areas of Reuben, Gad, and Manasseh, and later, more of the northern ten tribes by Sargon II.
2. Haran ‒ This was a city in Assyria (cf. Gen. 12:4; 24:4) that had rebelled and was destroyed by Asshur-dan III in 763 B.C.
3. Rezeph ‒ This is another significant city in Assyria, conquered by Shalmanezer III (858 ‒ 824 B.C.). It may have been conquered several times, but information is minimal.
4. Telassar ‒ This is a city or kingdom of Eden which was conquered by Tiglath-pileser III. It was close to the border of Elam.
5. Hamath ‒ This is a city in Syria on the border with Israel. Some of its citizens were exiled into Israel.
6. Arpad ‒ This is a city in northern Syria, the capital of a province or small kingdom (Bit-Agusi). It was defeated by Tiglath-pileser III in 740 B.C.
7. Lair ‒ This is a city of northern Babylon whose spelling is close to "city" (BDB 746, ריע, NJB, NET Bible).
8. Sepharvaim ‒ See note at Isa. 36:19
9. Hena ‒ This is a city possibly in upper Mesopotamia (cf. ABD, vol. 3, p. 137).
10. Ivvah ‒ This is an unknown locality. Some scholars associate #8 and #9 with the name of local gods.

The purpose of mentioning these specific cities (which Hezekiah must have known or which were on the way from Assyria to Palestine which Sennacherib conquered) was to show that no one could resist the Assyrian military!

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: ISAIAH 37:14-20
¹⁴Then Hezekiah took the letter from the hand of the messengers and read it, and he went up to the house of the Lord and spread it out before the Lord. ¹⁵Hezekiah prayed to the Lord saying, ¹⁶"O Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, who is enthroned above the cherubim, You are the God, You alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. ¹⁷Incline Your ear, O Lord, and hear; open Your eyes, O Lord, and see; and listen to all the words of Sennacherib, who sent them to reproach the living God. ¹⁸Truly, O Lord, the kings of Assyria have devastated all the countries and their lands, ¹⁹and have cast their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but the work of men's hands, wood and stone. So they have destroyed them. ²⁰Now, O Lord our God, deliver us from his hand that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You alone, Lord, are God."

37:14 This is obviously firsthand detailed historical narrative. It is very graphic and specific. Readers can see in their minds Hezekiah approaching YHWH, somewhere in the temple compound (cf. 1 Kgs. 8:33), unscrolling these Assyrian messages before Him so that He could read them. Hezekiah mentions in Isa. 37:4 that YHWH heard Rabshakeh read the message from the King of Assyria. Hezekiah now wants to remind Him of their arrogant and blasphemous character!

37:16 Notice the titles and ways Hezekiah characterizes YHWH.

1. O Lord of hosts (see SPECIAL TOPIC: LORD OF HOSTS)
2. the God (Elohim) of Israel, cf. Jos. 7:13,19,20 (see SPECIAL TOPIC: NAMES FOR DEITY, C.)
3. who is enthroned above the cherubim, cf. Exod. 25:22; 1 Sam. 4:4; 2 Sam. 6:2; 2 Kgs. 19:15; 1 Chr. 13:6; Ps. 80:1; 99:1 ( SPECIAL TOPIC: CHERUBIM)
4. You are the God (Elohim), cf. Deut. 10:17
5. You alone, this term (BDB 94) is denoting monotheism here and YHWH's choice of Israel as His instrument of redemption for all the world ( SPECIAL TOPIC: MONOTHEISM)
6. You have made heaven and earth, 42:5; 45:18; Gen. 1:1

37:17 There is a series of IMPERATIVES in Hezekiah's prayer used as reverent requests.

1. incline Your ear, BDB 639, KB 692, Hiphil IMPERATIVE, cf. Dan. 9:18
2. hear, BDB 1033, KB 1570, Qal IMPERATIVE
3. open Your eyes, BDB 824, KB 959, Qal IMPERATIVE, cf. Dan. 9:18
4. see, BDB 906, KB 1157, Qal IMPERATIVE
5. listen, same as #2

Hezekiah is using anthropomorphic language (see SPECIAL TOPIC: GOD DESCRIBED AS HUMAN) to beseech God to hear, see, and respond to the arrogant, blasphemous message of Sennacherib.

These same VERBS are used in Solomon's dedication of the temple in 1 Kgs. 8:29,52; 2 Chr. 6:39-40; 7:15.

▣ "the living God" This verse is very anthropomorphic (see SPECIAL TOPIC: THE PROBLEMS AND LIMITATIONS OF HUMAN LANGUAGE), attributing to YHWH human body parts as if He were a man. The OT presents God as an eternal, ever-present spirit. The term "living God" is a play on the name YHWH from Exod. 3:14, which means "I Am that I Am."

SPECIAL TOPIC: NAMES FOR DEITY, D.

37:18 There was surely a measure of truth in Sennacherib's claims.

37:19 The truth of Isa. 37:18 is seen to be overstated because the gods of the cities mentioned were idols, not the true and only God! Idols were made by human hands. They could not see and hear and respond (i.e., Isa. 37:17) as YHWH could, would, and will!

37:20 This verse has two VERBS.

1. deliver, BDB 446, KB 448, Hiphil IMPERATIVE, cf. Isa. 25:9; 33:22; 35:4. It is used fourteen times in chapters 40-66.
2. know, BDB 393, KB 390, Qal IMPERFECT used in a JUSSIVE sense ( SPECIAL TOPIC: KNOW)

This is a very important verse and shows the ultimate purpose of God's acts. Israel was meant to be a kingdom of priests (cf. Exod. 19:5-6). From the initial call of Abraham (cf. Gen. 12:3), God's plan was to deal with the entire world (cf. Isa. 45:8,22).

SPECIAL TOPIC: YHWH'S ETERNAL REDEMPTIVE PLAN

▣ "that You alone, Lord, are God" This is surely an affirmation of the uniqueness of Israel's God in the ancient world. He was God alone. There was no other (cf. Isa. 43:11; 45:5,18,21-22). This is the theological affirmation of monotheism!

The phrase "art God" is not in the MT, but is in the DSS, LXX, and the parallel in 2 Kgs. 19:19.

SPECIAL TOPIC: MONOTHEISM

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: ISAIAH 37:21-29
²¹Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent word to Hezekiah, saying, "Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, 'Because you have prayed to Me about Sennacherib king of Assyria,
²²this is the word that the Lord has spoken against him:
"She has despised you and mocked you,
The virgin daughter of Zion;
She has shaken her head behind you,
The daughter of Jerusalem!
²³Whom have you reproached and blasphemed?
And against whom have you raised your voice
And haughtily lifted up your eyes?
Against the Holy One of Israel!
²⁴Through your servants you have reproached the Lord,
And you have said, 'With my many chariots I came up to the heights of the mountains,
To the remotest parts of Lebanon;
And I cut down its tall cedars and its choice cypresses.
And I will go to its highest peak, its thickest forest.
²⁵I dug wells and drank waters,
And with the sole of my feet I dried up
All the rivers of Egypt.'
²⁶Have you not heard?
Long ago I did it,
From ancient times I planned it.
Now I have brought it to pass,
That you should turn fortified cities into ruinous heaps.
²⁷Therefore their inhabitants were short of strength,
They were dismayed and put to shame;
They were as the vegetation of the field and as the green herb,
As grass on the housetops is scorched before it is grown up.
²⁸But I know your sitting down
And your going out and your coming in
And your raging against Me.
²⁹Because of your raging against Me
And because your arrogance has come up to My ears,
Therefore I will put My hook in your nose
And My bridle in your lips,
And I will turn you back by the way which you came.

37:21-24 This is YHWH's response to Hezekiah's faith and the resulting message to Assyria, who went beyond YHWH's purpose (cf. Isa. 10:5) and became arrogant and blasphemous.

1. Isa. 37:22, she despised (BDB 100, KB 114, Qal PERFECT), mocked (BDB 541, KB 532, Qal PERFECT), and shook her head at (BDB 631, KB 681, Hiphil PERFECT) Judah, here called
   1. the virgin daughter of Zion
   2. the daughter of Jerusalem
2. The Peshitta, TEV, and REB see Isa. 37:22 as referring to Judah's actions toward retreating Sennacherib, but I think it refers to Assyria's arrogance against Judah that YHWH is reacting to. The question is who does "she" refer to. Sennacherib is the "him" of Isa. 37:22a, but "she" could refer to
   1. Assyria
   2. Judah
3. Isa. 37:23, she attacked Judah's God (i.e., the Holy One of Israel)
   1. reproached, BDB 357, KB 355, Piel PERFECT
   2. blasphemed, BDB 154, KB 180, Piel PERFECT
   3. raised your voice, BDB 926, KB 1202, Hiphil PERFECT
   4. haughtily lifted your eyes, BDB 669, KB 724, Qal IMPERFECT with waw, cf. Isa. 10:12
4. Isa. 37:24, lauds her activities
   1. with many chariots I came up to the heights of the mountains, to the remotest parts of Lebanon
   2. cut down its tall cedars and choicest cypresses (Isaiah used many allusions to trees)
   3. I will go to its highest peak, its thickest forest

Isaiah 37:24 is similar to the arrogance of the King of Babylon (that I think refers to Merodach-baladan, cf. Isa. 39:1), mentioned in Isa. 14:13. If so, then possibly the language here also refers to the northern mountain of the gods of Canaanite mythology, see note at Isa. 14:13-14.

37:21 "Because you have prayed to Me" Hezekiah responds in faith and trust in YHWH, so different from his father, Ahaz. This shows the theological significance of intercessory prayer. I believe that God has limited Himself to act in response to the prayers of His children. Therefore, we have not because we ask not.

SPECIAL TOPIC: INTERCESSORY PRAYER

37:22 "She has shaken her head behind you" This VERB (BDB 631, KB 681, Hiphil PERFECT) denotes a Hebrew idiom of shaking one's head as a sign of contempt (cf. 2 Kgs. 19:21; Job 16:4; Ps. 22:7; 109:25; Lam. 2:15; Matt. 27:39; Mark 15:29).

▣ "the Holy One of Israel" See SPECIAL TOPIC: THE HOLY ONE

37:25-29 At this point the focus turns from Assyria's accomplishments (although it is possible that Isa. 37:25 refers to the arrogant claims of Sennacherib, but Isa. 37:26 cannot) to YHWH's accomplishments.

1. Isa. 37:25, YHWH's control of water (i.e., life, cf. Isa. 11:15; 44:27; see SPECIAL TOPIC: WATERS)
2. Isa. 37:26-27, YHWH's ancient plans to use Assyria to punish His people (cf. Isa. 10:5). Isa. 37:27 refers to Israel and Judah's humiliation and defeat.
3. Isa. 37:28, YHWH's foreknowledge (very similar to Psalm 139)
4. Isa. 37:29, the consequences of arrogance against YHWH
   1. put a hook in your nose
   2. put a bridle in your lips (these are metaphors for exile)
   3. turn you back by the way which you came (cf. Isa. 37:37)

37:26 "Have you not heard?

Long ago I did it,

From ancient times I planned it"

This shows that God has always had a plan for dealing, not only with Assyria (10:5; Jer. 18:11; see full note at Isa. 12:5), but also with the entire world (cf. Isa. 14:24,26; 22:11; 25:1; 46:10-11; see full note at Isa. 12:5). History is not moving in a haphazard manner, but is on a teleological track to an end-time confrontation and restoration.

The word translated "long ago" (BDB 935) can refer to time or space. It also can refer to

1. long past time, here
2. future time, cf. 2 Sam. 7:19; 1 Chr. 17:17

The MT has the NOUN "field" (BDB 995), but the context and the parallel in 2 Kgs. 19:26 suggest a needed emendation.

1. field ‒ שׁדמה
2. blight ‒ שׁדפה (BDB 995)

The UBS Text Project, p. 89, suggests the VERB form of #2, which is a "C" rating (considerable doubt).

The MT is reflected by NASB. It has the NOUN "standing grain" (BDB 879, i.e., grain that matured for harvesting).

1. קמה ‒ standing grain
2. קדם ‒ east wind

The UBS Text Project, pp. 89-90, gives the "east wind" emendation a C rating (considerable doubt). The change is found in the DSS of Isaiah.

37:28 "your raging against Me" This VERB (BDB 919, KB 1182, Hithpael INFINITIVE CONSTRUCT) is repeated in Isa. 37:29. Notice the personal element!

This VERB in the Hiphil stem is often used of

1. fear and trembling (cf. Isa. 14:16; 23:11)
2. eschatological events (cf. Isa. 13:13)
3. YHWH Himself in Ezek. 16:43

37:29 "I will put My hook in your nose" This is exactly what Assyria did to others. She tried to frighten them by boasting of the cruelty that she had done to other nations. She tied the conquered people together using hooks in their noses, lips, or tongues and marched them into exile (cf. 2 Kgs. 19:28). God will now do the same thing to them.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: ISAIAH 37:30-32
³⁰"Then this shall be the sign for you: you will eat this year what grows of itself, in the second year what springs from the same, and in the third year sow, reap, plant vineyards and eat their fruit. ³¹The surviving remnant of the house of Judah will again take root downward and bear fruit upward. ³²For out of Jerusalem will go forth a remnant and out of Mount Zion survivors. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this."'

37:30 "this shall be the sign for you" This is important because Hezekiah is the Messianic representative (i.e., a Davidic king, Isa. 7:14-16) as Ahaz was (i.e., cf. Isa. 8:8c,10c). God will show him a sign (BDB 16) here and in Isa. 38:7 (as He did Ahaz in Isa. 7:14). This particular sign is related to a three-year promise of full restoration of the land of Judah. I think Isa. 37:30-32 should be a separate paragraph, as should Isa. 37:33-35 and 36-38.

Verse 30 has a series of IMPERATIVES as YHWH promises a three-year restoration (i.e., the covenant promises of Deuteronomy 27-28).

1. eat ‒ BDB 37, KB 46, Qal INFINITIVE ABSOLUTE. This form is repeated in this verse (kethib), but the MT scholars suggested a change (Qere) to a Qal IMPERATIVE, which matches the other IMPERATIVES in the verse. The difference is very close.
   1. ואכול, MT
   2. ואכלו, suggested change
2. sow ‒ BDB 281, KB 282, Qal IMPERATIVE
3. reap ‒ BDB 894, KB 1126, Qal IMPERATIVE
4. plant ‒ BDB 642, KB 694, Qal IMPERATIVE
5. eat, Qere, see note at #1, b

Just one added thought, it is possible that this promised restoration is related to the "Year of Jubilee," Lev. 25:10, see James M. Freeman, Manners and Customs of the Bible, p. 96.

SPECIAL TOPIC: FEASTS OF ISRAEL, II. C.

▣ For "sign" see SPECIAL TOPIC: SIGN (OT)

37:31 "the surviving remnant" See SPECIAL TOPIC: THE REMNANT, Three Senses.

▣ The agricultural imagery continues. Judah is described as

1. taking a strong root
2. bearing fruit

37:32 Those who survive Assyria's attack will do so, not by their own plans or provisions, but by the zeal (cf. Isa. 9:7; 59:17) of the Lord of hosts! Ahaz planned, but Hezekiah trusted!

▣ "The zeal of the Lord" This (BDB 888) refers to YHWH's special love and care for His covenant people (a faithless wife of Hosea 1-3). YHWH acts passionately for His purposes in redemption (cf. Isa. 63:15-19, which involves the children of Abraham, cf. Gen. 12:1-3). The phrase has Messianic implications in Isa. 9:7 and 59:17. Context determines whether (1) zealous or (2) jealous is the best translation. The term can have either a positive or negative connotation depending on the context. Here it is surely positive and redemptive!

SPECIAL TOPIC: JEALOUSY, ZEAL (NOUN)

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: ISAIAH 37:33-35
³³"Therefore, thus says the Lord concerning the king of Assyria, 'He will not come to this city or shoot an arrow there; and he will not come before it with a shield, or throw up a siege ramp against it. ³⁴By the way that he came, by the same he will return, and he will not come to this city,' declares the Lord. ³⁵For I will defend this city to save it for My own sake and for My servant David's sake.'"

37:33-34 This is a promise that no siege will occur against Jerusalem. At this point the Assyrian army was not before the gates of Jerusalem, but still at walled cities of the Shephelah some distance away, such as Lachish.

There are several things that YHWH will allow and not allow in relation to Assyria's attack on Jerusalem.

1. the army of Assyria shall not come to Jerusalem to besiege it
2. the army shall not shoot an arrow there
3. the army shall not come with shield
4. the army shall not throw up a siege mound
5. Assyria shall retreat the way she came

37:35 The reason given for Assyria's limitations and retreat are

1. YHWH Himself will defend (BDB 170, KB 199, Qal PERFECT with waw) the city (i.e., Holy War imagery)
2. YHWH will deliver/save it (BDB 446, KB 448, Hiphil INFINITIVE CONSTRUCT)
3. YHWH does it
   1. for Himself (i.e., His eternal redemptive plan and His personal reputation, cf. Ezek. 36:22-38)
   2. for His servant David (cf. Isa. 9:7; 11:1; 16:5; 22:9,22; 29:1; 38:5; 55:3; 2 Samuel 7; 1 Chronicles 17)

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: ISAIAH 37:36-38
³⁶Then the angel of the Lord went out and struck 185, 000 in the camp of the Assyrians; and when men arose early in the morning, behold, all of these were dead. ³⁷So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed and returned home and lived at Nineveh. ³⁸It came about as he was worshiping in the house of Nisroch his god, that Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons killed him with the sword; and they escaped into the land of Ararat. And Esarhaddon his son became king in his place.

37:36 "the angel of the Lord went out" This is similar to the personage of the death angel who represented YHWH's presence in the last plague on Egypt in Exodus 11 and 12:23,29 (also note 2 Sam. 24:16).

There is no "grim reaper." YHWH controls life and death. It is hard to separate the sovereignty of God from conditions of a fallen world. This is not the world that God intended it to be. Death is the result of human rebellion. God knows, allows, and executes His will. Secondary causes, so important to us, were not part of the ancient worldview (i.e., Matt. 6:25-27; 10:28-31), where there was no distinction between the supernatural and natural.

For full notes on "one causality" see note at Isa. 14:24-27.

SPECIAL TOPIC: THE ANGEL OF THE LORD

▣ "struck 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians" This was not before the walls of Jerusalem, but apparently some distance away at the Assyrian camp (cf. 2 Kgs. 19:35). Herodotus, an ancient historian, records this plague and implies that it was related to rodents, possibly bubonic plague. This judgment did not kill the entire army. This very event is foreshadowed in Isa. 31:8, where it is described as death by the sword of the Lord. However, here it seems to be a plague.

Remember, this is hyperbolic poetry, not historical narrative. Modern western readers are unduly affected by their own worldviews and read the Bible (an ancient eastern book) through the filter of their current understanding of history and literature, which always causes confusion and misunderstanding! See "Bible Interpretation Seminar".

37:37 "Nineveh" This was the capital of Assyria and was located on the Tigris River.

37:38 "Nisroch his god" This is an unknown name.

1. The LXX translation of this is a spelling very similar to the god of the city of Asshur, who was the head of the Assyrian pantheon.
2. It is also possible that it is a misspelling of "Nusku" (BDB 652; NET footnote), the Babylonian and Assyrian god of light and fire who was worshiped at Haran and associated with the moon god (i.e., his son).
3. E. J. Young thinks it was an intentional corruption of the name Marduk. See James M. Freeman, Manners and Customs of the Bible, p. 182.

We know from historical documentation that there is a twenty-year gap between Isa. 37:37 and 38. This prophecy was literally fulfilled in 681 B.C. when Sennacherib's two sons assassinated him and the third son took the throne.

SPECIAL TOPIC: MOON WORSHIP

▣ "Esarhaddon" This is one of the king's sons who reigned in Assyria from 681-669 B.C.

SPECIAL TOPIC: KINGS OF ASSYRIA

|  Home  |  Old Testament Studies  |  Isaiah 1-39 Table of Contents  |  Previous Section  |  Next Section  |

Copyright © 2014 Bible Lessons International