Hezekiah Prays against Assyrias Blasphemy
Crisis drives the faithful to proclaim God’s unrivaled sovereignty.
Isaiah 37:8-20 (BSB)
8 When the Rabshakeh heard that the king of Assyria had left Lachish, he withdrew and found the king fighting against Libnah.
9 Now Sennacherib had been warned about Tirhakah king of Cush: “He has set out to fight against you.” On hearing this, Sennacherib sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying,
10 “Give this message to Hezekiah king of Judah: ‘Do not let your God, in whom you trust, deceive you by saying that Jerusalem will not be delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria.
11 Surely you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the other countries, devoting them to destruction. Will you then be spared?
12 Did the gods of the nations destroyed by my fathers rescue those nations—the gods of Gozan, Haran, and Rezeph, and of the people of Eden in Telassar?
13 Where are the kings of Hamath, Arpad, Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah?’”
14 So Hezekiah received the letter from the messengers, read it, and went up to the house of the LORD and spread it out before the LORD.
15 And Hezekiah prayed to the LORD:
16 “O LORD of Hosts, God of Israel, enthroned above the cherubim, You alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You made the heavens and the earth.
17 Incline Your ear, O LORD, and hear; open Your eyes, O LORD, and see. Listen to all the words that Sennacherib has sent to defy the living God.
18 Truly, O LORD, the kings of Assyria have laid waste all these countries and their lands.
19 They have cast their gods into the fire and destroyed them, for they were not gods, but only wood and stone—the work of human hands.
20 And now, O LORD our God, save us from his hand, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You alone, O LORD, are God.”
What is the big idea of Isaiah 37:8-20?
Crisis drives the faithful to proclaim God’s unrivaled sovereignty.
How does Isaiah 37:8-20 point to Christ?
Isaiah 37:8-20 reveals that the living God alone rules all kingdoms and hears the prayers of his people. The gospel declares that through Christ the Father is known as the one true God who saves for his glory among the nations.
Authorial Intent
To record renewed Assyrian threats and to display Hezekiah’s prayerful appeal grounded in God’s unique sovereignty.
Chapter: Isaiah 37
Hezekiah’s Prayer and the LORD’s Deliverance from Assyria
When Assyria blasphemes the living God and threatens Zion, Hezekiah brings the matter before the LORD, and the LORD vindicates His name, defends His city, preserves His remnant, and judges the proud enemy by His own power.