Isaiah 37 Darby Translation
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
1 And it came to pass when king Hezekiah heard [it], that he rent his garments, and covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of Jehovah.
1 When King Hezekiah heard it, he tore his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth, and went into Yahweh’s house.
2 And he sent Eliakim, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to the prophet Isaiah the son of Amoz.
2 He sent Eliakim, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz.
3 And they said to him, Thus says Hezekiah: This day is a day of trouble, and of rebuke, and of reviling; for the children are come to the birth, and there is not strength to bring forth.
3 They said to him, “Hezekiah says, ‘Today is a day of trouble, and of rebuke, and of rejection; for the children have come to the birth, and there is no strength to give birth.
4 It may be Jehovah thy God will hear the words of Rab-shakeh, whom the king of Assyria his master has sent to reproach the living God, and will rebuke the words which Jehovah thy God hath heard. Therefore lift up a prayer for the remnant that is left.
4 It may be Yahweh your 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 Yahweh your God has heard. Therefore lift up your prayer for the remnant that is left.’”
5 And the servants of king Hezekiah came to Isaiah.
5 So the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah.
6 And Isaiah said to them, Thus shall ye say to your master, Thus saith Jehovah: Be not afraid of the words that thou hast heard, wherewith the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me.
6 Isaiah said to them, “Tell your master, ‘Yahweh says, “Don’t be afraid of the words that you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me.
7 Behold, I will put a spirit into him, and he shall hear tidings, and shall return to his own land; and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.
7 Behold, I will put a spirit in him and he will hear news, and will return to his own land. I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.”’”
8 And Rab-shakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah; for he had heard that he had departed from Lachish.
8 So Rabshakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah, for he heard that he had departed from Lachish.
9 And he heard say of Tirhakah king of Ethiopia, He has come forth to make war with thee. And when he heard [it], he sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying,
9 He heard news concerning Tirhakah king of Ethiopia, “He has come out to fight against you.” When he heard it, he sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying,
10 Thus shall ye speak to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying: Let not thy God, upon whom thou reliest, deceive thee, saying, Jerusalem shall not be delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria.
10 “Thus you shall speak to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying, ‘Don’t let your God in whom you trust deceive you, saying, “Jerusalem won’t be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.”
11 Behold, thou hast heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all countries, destroying them utterly; and shalt thou be delivered?
11 Behold, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands, by destroying them utterly. Shall you be delivered?
12 Have the gods of the nations which my fathers have destroyed delivered them, Gozan, and Haran, and Rezeph, and the children of Eden that were in Thelassar?
12 Have the gods of the nations delivered them, which my fathers have destroyed, Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the children of Eden who were in Telassar?
13 Where is the king of Hamath, and the king of Arpad, and the king of the city of Sepharvaim, of Hena, and Ivvah?
13 Where is the king of Hamath, and the king of Arpad, and the king of the city of Sepharvaim, of Hena, and Ivvah?’”
14 And Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and read it; and Hezekiah went up into the house of Jehovah, and spread it before Jehovah.
14 Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers and read it. Then Hezekiah went up to Yahweh’s house, and spread it before Yahweh.
15 And Hezekiah prayed to Jehovah, saying,
15 Hezekiah prayed to Yahweh, saying,
16 Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel, who sittest [between] the cherubim, thou, the Same, thou alone art the God of all the kingdoms of the earth: thou hast made the heavens and the earth.
16 “Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel, who is enthroned among the cherubim, you are the God, even you alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth.
17 Incline thine ear, O Jehovah, and hear; open, Jehovah, thine eyes, and see; and hear all the words of Sennacherib, who hath sent to reproach the living God.
17 Turn your ear, Yahweh, and hear. Open your eyes, Yahweh, and behold. Hear all of the words of Sennacherib, who has sent to defy the living God.
18 Of a truth, Jehovah, the kings of Assyria have laid waste all the lands, and their countries,
18 Truly, Yahweh, the kings of Assyria have destroyed all the countries and their land,
19 and have cast their gods into the fire; for they were no gods, but the work of men's hands, wood and stone; and they have destroyed them.
19 and have cast their gods into the fire; for they were no gods, but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone; therefore they have destroyed them.
20 And now, Jehovah our God, save us out of his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou art Jehovah, thou only.
20 Now therefore, Yahweh our God, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you are Yahweh, even you only.”
21 And Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying, Thus saith Jehovah the God of Israel, Whereas thou hast prayed to me concerning Sennacherib king of Assyria,
21 Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying, “Yahweh, the God of Israel says, ‘Because you have prayed to me against Sennacherib king of Assyria,
22 this is the word which Jehovah hath spoken against him: The virgin-daughter of Zion despiseth thee, laugheth thee to scorn; the daughter of Jerusalem shaketh her head at thee.
22 this is the word which Yahweh has spoken concerning him: The virgin daughter of Zion has despised you and ridiculed you. The daughter of Jerusalem has shaken her head at you.
23 Whom hast thou reproached and blasphemed? and against whom hast thou exalted the voice? Against the Holy One of Israel hast thou lifted up thine eyes on high.
23 Whom have you defied and blasphemed? Against whom have you exalted your voice and lifted up your eyes on high? Against the Holy One of Israel.
24 By thy servants thou hast reproached the Lord, and hast said, With the multitude of my chariots am I come up to the height of the mountains, to the recesses of Lebanon; and I will cut down its tall cedars, the choice of its cypresses; and I will enter into its furthest height, [into] the forest of its fruitful field.
24 By your servants, you have defied the Lord, and have said, “With the multitude of my chariots I have come up to the height of the mountains, to the innermost parts of Lebanon. I will cut down its tall cedars and its choice cypress trees. I will enter into its farthest height, the forest of its fruitful field.
25 I have digged and drunk water; and with the sole of my feet have I dried up all the streams of Matsor.
25 I have dug and drunk water, and with the sole of my feet I will dry up all the rivers of Egypt.”
26 Hast thou not heard that long ago I did it, and that from ancient days I formed it? Now have I brought it to pass, that thou shouldest lay waste fortified cities [into] ruinous heaps.
26 “‘Have you not heard how I have done it long ago, and formed it in ancient times? Now I have brought it to pass, that it should be yours to destroy fortified cities, turning them into ruinous heaps.
27 And their inhabitants were powerless, they were dismayed and put to shame; they were [as] the grass of the field and the green herb, [as] the grass on the housetops, and grain blighted before it be grown up.
27 Therefore their inhabitants had little power. They were dismayed and confounded. They were like the grass of the field, and like the green herb, like the grass on the housetops, and like a field before its crop has grown.
28 But I know thine abode, and thy going out, and thy coming in, and thy raging against me.
28 But I know your sitting down, your going out, your coming in, and your raging against me.
29 Because thy raging against me and thine arrogance is come up into mine ears, I will put my ring in thy nose, and my bridle in thy lips, and I will make thee go back by the way by which thou camest.
29 Because of your raging against me, and because your arrogance has come up into 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 by which you came.
30 And this [shall be] the sign unto thee: there shall be eaten this year such as groweth of itself; and in the second year that which springeth of the same; but in the third year sow ye, and reap, and plant vineyards and eat the fruit thereof.
30 “‘This shall be the sign to you: You will eat this year that which grows of itself, and in the second year that which springs from it; and in the third year sow and reap and plant vineyards, and eat their fruit.
31 And the remnant that is escaped of the house of Judah shall again take root downward, and bear fruit upward;
31 The remnant that is escaped of the house of Judah will again take root downward, and bear fruit upward.
32 for out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and out of mount Zion they that escape: the zeal of Jehovah of hosts shall do this.
32 For out of Jerusalem a remnant will go out, and survivors will escape from Mount Zion. The zeal of Yahweh of Armies will perform this.’
33 Therefore thus saith Jehovah concerning the king of Assyria: He shall not come into this city, nor shoot an arrow there, nor come before it with shield, nor cast a bank against it.
33 “Therefore Yahweh says concerning the king of Assyria, ‘He will not come to this city, nor shoot an arrow there, neither will he come before it with shield, nor cast up a mound against it.
34 By the way that he came, by the same shall he return, and shall not come into this city, saith Jehovah.
34 He will return the way that he came, and he won’t come to this city,’ says Yahweh.
35 And I will defend this city, to save it, for mine own sake, and for my servant David's sake.
35 ‘For I will defend this city to save it, for my own sake, and for my servant David’s sake.’”
36 And an angel of Jehovah went forth, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians a hundred and eighty-five thousand. And when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead bodies.
36 Then Yahweh’s angel went out and struck one hundred and eighty-five thousand men in the camp of the Assyrians. When men arose early in the morning, behold, these were all dead bodies.
37 And Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, and went and returned, and abode at Nineveh.
37 So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, went away, returned to Nineveh, and stayed there.
38 And it came to pass, as he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god, that Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons smote him with the sword; and they escaped into the land of Ararat. And Esarhaddon his son reigned in his stead.
38 As he was worshiping in the house of Nisroch his god, Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons struck him with the sword; and they escaped into the land of Ararat. Esar Haddon his son reigned in his place.
People & places in this chapter
From this site's family tree and Bible maps, only where those guides cite this chapter.
People
Adrammelech
A son of Sennacherib who with his brother Sharezer put their father to the sword in the temple of Nisroch and escaped to the land of Ararat.
Cited in the guide: 2 Kings 19:37; Isaiah 37:38
Esar-haddon
Sennacherib's son, who reigned in his father's place after Adrammelech and Sharezer killed him.
Cited in the guide: 2 Kings 19:37; Ezra 4:2; Isaiah 37:38
Hezekiah
A great reformer who trusted God and saw Jerusalem delivered from Assyria.
Cited in the guide: 2 Kings 18-20; 2 Chron. 29-32; Isa. 36-39; Matt. 1:9-10
Tirhakah
King of Cush about whom Sennacherib was warned that he had set out to fight him.
Cited in the guide: 2 Kings 19:9; Isaiah 37:9
Cross references (37)
Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.
- 1 2 Kings 19:1–37; 2 Kings 22:11; Isaiah 36:22–37:38; Ezra 9:5; Job 1:20–21
- 2 Isaiah 1:1; Joel 1:13; 2 Chronicles 20:20; 2 Kings 19:2; 2 Kings 18:18
- 3 Isaiah 66:9; Hosea 13:13; 2 Kings 19:3; Psalm 50:15; Isaiah 26:17–18
- 4 Isaiah 36:20; Isaiah 1:9; Psalm 106:23; Isaiah 10:22; Isaiah 8:7–8
- 6 Isaiah 7:4; Isaiah 35:4; Mark 5:36; 2 Chronicles 20:15–20; Isaiah 41:10–14
- 7 2 Chronicles 32:21; Isaiah 31:8–9; Job 15:21; Isaiah 17:13–14; 2 Kings 7:6
- 8 Joshua 10:29; Joshua 21:13; 2 Kings 8:22; Joshua 10:31–34; Joshua 15:39
- 9 Isaiah 18:1; 1 Samuel 23:27–28; Isaiah 20:5; Isaiah 37:7
- 10 Isaiah 36:15; 2 Kings 18:5; Psalm 22:8; 2 Chronicles 32:7–8; Matthew 27:43
- 11 Isaiah 36:18–20; 2 Kings 17:4–6; Isaiah 10:7–14; Isaiah 37:18–19; Isaiah 14:17
- 12 Genesis 11:31; 2 Kings 17:6; 2 Kings 18:11; Acts 7:2; 2 Kings 19:12
- 13 Jeremiah 49:23; Isaiah 10:9; 2 Kings 18:34; 2 Kings 17:24; 2 Kings 17:30–31
- 14 Psalm 123:1–4; 2 Kings 19:14; Psalm 62:1–3; Isaiah 37:1; Psalm 74:10
- 15 2 Chronicles 14:11; Daniel 9:3–4; 1 Samuel 7:8–9; 2 Chronicles 20:6–12; 2 Kings 19:15–19
- 16 Psalm 99:1; Exodus 25:22; Psalm 86:10; Isaiah 44:24; 1 Samuel 4:4
- 17 2 Chronicles 6:40; Psalm 17:6; 1 Peter 3:12; Psalm 74:22; Psalm 10:14–15
- 18 Nahum 2:11–12; 2 Kings 15:29; 2 Kings 17:6; 2 Kings 17:24; 1 Chronicles 5:26
- 19 Psalm 115:4–8; Isaiah 40:19–21; Isaiah 10:9–11; Hosea 8:6; Exodus 32:20
- 20 Psalm 46:10; 1 Kings 18:36–37; Psalm 83:17–18; Isaiah 42:8; Malachi 1:11
- 21 Isaiah 65:24; Psalm 91:15; Isaiah 38:3–6; 2 Kings 19:20–21; Daniel 9:20–23
- 22 Job 16:4; Isaiah 1:8; Lamentations 2:13; Psalm 9:14; Zechariah 2:10
- 23 Ezekiel 39:7; Daniel 5:20–23; Daniel 7:25; Ezekiel 28:9; 2 Thessalonians 2:4
- 24 Isaiah 14:8; Isaiah 10:18; Isaiah 36:9; Daniel 4:30; Daniel 4:8–14
- 25 1 Kings 20:10; Deuteronomy 11:10; Isaiah 36:12; 2 Kings 19:23–24
- 26 Acts 4:27–28; Acts 2:23; Isaiah 46:10–11; 1 Peter 2:8; Isaiah 10:15
- 27 Psalm 129:6; Psalm 127:1–2; Jeremiah 37:10; Psalm 90:5–6; Isaiah 19:16
- 28 Revelation 2:13; Psalm 139:1–11; Jeremiah 23:23–24; Proverbs 5:21; Proverbs 15:3
- 29 Isaiah 10:12; Isaiah 37:34; Ezekiel 38:4; Isaiah 30:28; Ezekiel 29:4
- 30 2 Kings 19:29; Leviticus 25:4–5; Isaiah 7:14; 2 Kings 20:9; 1 Kings 13:3–5
- 31 Isaiah 27:6; 2 Kings 19:30–31; Psalm 80:9; Isaiah 1:9; Romans 11:5
- 32 Isaiah 9:7; 2 Kings 19:31; Joel 2:18; Zechariah 1:14; Isaiah 59:17
- 33 Isaiah 8:7–10; Ezekiel 21:22; Isaiah 10:32–34; 2 Kings 19:32–35; Isaiah 33:20
- 34 Isaiah 37:29; Proverbs 21:30
- 35 2 Kings 20:6; Isaiah 31:5; Isaiah 38:6; Isaiah 43:25; Jeremiah 23:5–6
- 36 Isaiah 10:12; 2 Kings 19:35; 1 Thessalonians 5:2–3; Isaiah 31:8; 2 Samuel 24:16
- 37 Jonah 3:3; Jonah 1:2; Nahum 1:1; Jonah 4:11; Genesis 10:11–12
- 38 Genesis 8:4; Jeremiah 51:27; Ezra 4:2; 2 Chronicles 32:21; 2 Kings 19:36–37
Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences
What the Fathers said
Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).
How these were chosen
“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).
"I will defend this city for my servant David's sake." And besides, on account of His favor towards him, He suffered not Solomon to fall from the kingdom, great as the sin was which he had committed.
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 10 (1888)