2 Samuel 8:1-18
Konteks8:1 Later David defeated the Philistines and subdued them. David took Metheg Ammah 1 from the Philistines. 2 8:2 He defeated the Moabites. He made them lie on the ground and then used a rope to measure them off. He put two-thirds of them to death and spared the other third. 3 The Moabites became David’s subjects and brought tribute. 4 8:3 David defeated King Hadadezer son of Rehob of Zobah when he came to reestablish 5 his authority 6 over the Euphrates 7 River. 8:4 David seized from him 1,700 charioteers 8 and 20,000 infantrymen. David cut the hamstrings of all but a hundred of the chariot horses. 9 8:5 The Arameans of Damascus came to help King Hadadezer of Zobah, but David killed 22,000 of the Arameans. 8:6 David placed garrisons in the territory of the Arameans of Damascus; the Arameans became David’s subjects and brought tribute. The Lord protected 10 David wherever he campaigned. 11 8:7 David took the golden shields that belonged to Hadadezer’s servants and brought them to Jerusalem. 12 8:8 From Tebah 13 and Berothai, Hadadezer’s cities, King David took a great deal of bronze.
8:9 When King Toi 14 of Hamath heard that David had defeated the entire army of Hadadezer, 8:10 he 15 sent his son Joram 16 to King David to extend his best wishes 17 and to pronounce a blessing on him for his victory over Hadadezer, for Toi had been at war with Hadadezer. 18 He brought with him various items made of silver, gold, and bronze. 19 8:11 King David dedicated these things to the Lord, 20 along with the dedicated silver and gold that he had taken from 21 all the nations that he had subdued, 8:12 including 22 Aram, 23 Moab, the Ammonites, the Philistines, and Amelek. This also included some of the plunder taken from 24 King Hadadezer son of Rehob of Zobah.
8:13 David became famous 25 when he returned from defeating the Arameans 26 in the Valley of Salt, he defeated 27 18,000 in all. 8:14 He placed garrisons throughout Edom, 28 and all the Edomites became David’s subjects. The Lord protected David wherever he campaigned. 8:15 David reigned over all Israel; he guaranteed justice for all his people. 29
8:16 Joab son of Zeruiah was general in command of 30 the army; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was secretary; 8:17 Zadok son of Ahitub and Ahimelech son of Abiathar 31 were priests; Seraiah was scribe; 8:18 Benaiah son of Jehoida supervised 32 the Kerithites and Pelethites; and David’s sons were priests. 33
2 Samuel 10:1-19
Konteks10:1 Later the king of the Ammonites died and his son Hanun succeeded him. 34 10:2 David said, “I will express my loyalty 35 to Hanun son of Nahash just as his father was loyal 36 to me.” So David sent his servants with a message expressing sympathy over his father’s death. 37 When David’s servants entered the land of the Ammonites, 10:3 the Ammonite officials said to their lord Hanun, “Do you really think David is trying to honor your father by sending these messengers to express his sympathy? 38 No, David has sent his servants to you to get information about the city and spy on it so they can overthrow it!” 39
10:4 So Hanun seized David’s servants and shaved off half of each one’s beard. He cut the lower part of their robes off so that their buttocks were exposed, 40 and then sent them away. 10:5 Messengers 41 told David what had happened, 42 so he summoned them, for the men were thoroughly humiliated. The king said, “Stay in Jericho 43 until your beards have grown again; then you may come back.”
10:6 When the Ammonites realized that David was disgusted with them, 44 they 45 sent and hired 20,000 foot soldiers from Aram Beth Rehob and Aram Zobah, 46 in addition to 1,000 men from the king of Maacah and 12,000 men from Ish-tob. 47
10:7 When David heard the news, he sent Joab and the entire army to meet them. 48 10:8 The Ammonites marched out and were deployed for battle at the entrance of the city gate, while the men from Aram Zobah, Rehob, Ish-tob, and Maacah were by themselves in the field.
10:9 When Joab saw that the battle would be fought on two fronts, he chose some of Israel’s best men and deployed them against the Arameans. 49 10:10 He put his brother Abishai in charge of the rest of the army 50 and they were deployed 51 against the Ammonites. 10:11 Joab 52 said, “If the Arameans start to overpower me, 53 you come to my rescue. If the Ammonites start to overpower you, 54 I will come to your rescue. 10:12 Be strong! Let’s fight bravely for the sake of our people and the cities of our God! The Lord will do what he decides is best!” 55
10:13 So Joab and his men 56 marched out to do battle with the Arameans, and they fled before him. 10:14 When the Ammonites saw the Arameans flee, they fled before his brother Abishai and went into the city. Joab withdrew from fighting the Ammonites and returned to 57 Jerusalem. 58
10:15 When the Arameans realized that they had been defeated by Israel, they consolidated their forces. 59 10:16 Then Hadadezer sent for Arameans from 60 beyond the Euphrates River, 61 and they came to Helam. Shobach, the general in command of Hadadezer’s army, led them. 62
10:17 When David was informed, he gathered all Israel, crossed the Jordan River, 63 and came to Helam. The Arameans deployed their forces against David and fought with him. 10:18 The Arameans fled before Israel. David killed 700 Aramean charioteers and 40,000 foot soldiers. 64 He also struck down Shobach, the general in command of the army, who died there. 10:19 When all the kings who were subject to Hadadezer 65 saw they were defeated by Israel, they made peace with Israel and became subjects of Israel. 66 The Arameans were no longer willing to help the Ammonites.
2 Samuel 10:2
Konteks10:2 David said, “I will express my loyalty 67 to Hanun son of Nahash just as his father was loyal 68 to me.” So David sent his servants with a message expressing sympathy over his father’s death. 69 When David’s servants entered the land of the Ammonites,
2 Samuel 14:1-15
Konteks14:1 Now Joab son of Zeruiah realized that the king longed to see 70 Absalom. 14:2 So Joab sent to Tekoa and brought from there a wise woman. He told her, “Pretend to be in mourning 71 and put on garments for mourning. Don’t anoint yourself with oil. Instead, act like a woman who has been mourning for the dead for some time. 72 14:3 Go to the king and speak to him in the following fashion.” Then Joab told her what to say. 73
14:4 So the Tekoan woman went 74 to the king. She bowed down with her face to the ground in deference to him and said, “Please help me, 75 O king!” 14:5 The king replied to her, “What do you want?” 76 She answered, “I am a widow; my husband is dead. 14:6 Your servant 77 has two sons. When the two of them got into a fight in the field, there was no one present who could intervene. One of them struck the other and killed him. 14:7 Now the entire family has risen up against your servant, saying, ‘Turn over the one who struck down his brother, so that we can execute him and avenge the death 78 of his brother whom he killed. In so doing we will also destroy the heir.’ They want to extinguish my remaining coal, 79 leaving no one on the face of the earth to carry on the name of my husband.”
14:8 Then the king told the woman, “Go to your home. I will give instructions concerning your situation.” 80 14:9 The Tekoan woman said to the king, “My lord the king, let any blame fall on me and on the house of my father. But let the king and his throne be innocent!”
14:10 The king said, “Bring to me whoever speaks to you, and he won’t bother you again!” 14:11 She replied, “In that case, 81 let the king invoke the name of 82 the Lord your God so that the avenger of blood may not kill! Then they will not destroy my son!” He replied, “As surely as the Lord lives, not a single hair of your son’s head 83 will fall to the ground.”
14:12 Then the woman said, “Please permit your servant to speak to my lord the king about another matter.” He replied, “Tell me.” 14:13 The woman said, “Why have you devised something like this against God’s people? When the king speaks in this fashion, he makes himself guilty, for the king has not brought back the one he has banished. 14:14 Certainly we must die, and are like water spilled on the ground that cannot be gathered up again. But God does not take away life; instead he devises ways for the banished to be restored. 84 14:15 I have now come to speak with my lord the king about this matter, because the people have made me fearful. 85 But your servant said, ‘I will speak to the king! Perhaps the king will do what his female servant 86 asks.
2 Samuel 20:1
Konteks20:1 Now a wicked man 87 named Sheba son of Bicri, a Benjaminite, 88 happened to be there. He blew the trumpet 89 and said,
“We have no share in David;
we have no inheritance in this son of Jesse!
Every man go home, 90 O Israel!”
Yesaya 37:1-38
Konteks37:1 When King Hezekiah heard this, 91 he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth, and went to the Lord’s temple. 37:2 Eliakim the palace supervisor, Shebna the scribe, and the leading priests, 92 clothed in sackcloth, sent this message to the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz: 37:3 “This is what Hezekiah says: 93 ‘This is a day of distress, insults, 94 and humiliation, 95 as when a baby is ready to leave the birth canal, but the mother lacks the strength to push it through. 96 37:4 Perhaps the Lord your God will hear all these things the chief adviser has spoken on behalf of his master, the king of Assyria, who sent him to taunt the living God. 97 When the Lord your God hears, perhaps he will punish him for the things he has said. 98 So pray for this remnant that remains.’” 99
37:5 When King Hezekiah’s servants came to Isaiah, 37:6 Isaiah said to them, “Tell your master this: ‘This is what the Lord says: “Don’t be afraid because of the things you have heard – these insults the king of Assyria’s servants have hurled against me. 100 37:7 Look, I will take control of his mind; 101 he will receive a report and return to his own land. I will cut him down 102 with a sword in his own land.”’”
37:8 When the chief adviser heard the king of Assyria had departed from Lachish, he left and went to Libnah, where the king was campaigning. 103 37:9 The king 104 heard that King Tirhakah of Ethiopia 105 was marching out to fight him. 106 He again sent 107 messengers to Hezekiah, ordering them: 37:10 “Tell King Hezekiah of Judah this: ‘Don’t let your God in whom you trust mislead you when he says, “Jerusalem will not be handed over to the king of Assyria.” 37:11 Certainly you have heard how the kings of Assyria have annihilated all lands. 108 Do you really think you will be rescued? 109 37:12 Were the nations whom my predecessors 110 destroyed – the nations of Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the people of Eden in Telassar – rescued by their gods? 111 37:13 Where are the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, and the kings of Lair, 112 Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah?’”
37:14 Hezekiah took the letter 113 from the messengers and read it. 114 Then Hezekiah went up to the Lord’s temple and spread it out before the Lord. 37:15 Hezekiah prayed before the Lord: 37:16 “O Lord who commands armies, O God of Israel, who is enthroned on the cherubim! 115 You alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You made the sky 116 and the earth. 37:17 Pay attention, Lord, and hear! Open your eyes, Lord, and observe! Listen to this entire message Sennacherib sent and how he taunts the living God! 117 37:18 It is true, Lord, that the kings of Assyria have destroyed all the nations 118 and their lands. 37:19 They have burned the gods of the nations, 119 for they are not really gods, but only the product of human hands manufactured from wood and stone. That is why the Assyrians could destroy them. 120 37:20 Now, O Lord our God, rescue us from his power, so all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you alone are the Lord.” 121
37:21 Isaiah son of Amoz sent this message to Hezekiah: “This is what the Lord God of Israel says: ‘Because you prayed to me concerning King Sennacherib of Assyria, 122 37:22 this is what the Lord says about him: 123
“The virgin daughter Zion 124
despises you – she makes fun of you;
daughter Jerusalem
shakes her head after you. 125
37:23 Whom have you taunted and hurled insults at?
At whom have you shouted
and looked so arrogantly? 126
At the Holy One of Israel! 127
37:24 Through your messengers you taunted the sovereign master, 128
‘With my many chariots I climbed up
the high mountains,
the slopes of Lebanon.
I cut down its tall cedars
and its best evergreens.
I invaded its most remote regions, 129
its thickest woods.
37:25 I dug wells
and drank water. 130
With the soles of my feet I dried up
all the rivers of Egypt.’
37:26 131 Certainly you must have heard! 132
Long ago I worked it out,
in ancient times I planned 133 it,
and now I am bringing it to pass.
The plan is this:
Fortified cities will crash
into heaps of ruins. 134
37:27 Their residents are powerless; 135
they are terrified and ashamed.
They are as short-lived as plants in the field
or green vegetation. 136
They are as short-lived as grass on the rooftops 137
when it is scorched by the east wind. 138
37:28 I know where you live
and everything you do
and how you rage against me. 139
37:29 Because you rage against me
and the uproar you create has reached my ears, 140
I will put my hook in your nose, 141
and my bridle between your lips,
and I will lead you back
the way you came.”
37:30 142 “This will be your reminder that I have spoken the truth: 143 This year you will eat what grows wild, 144 and next year 145 what grows on its own. But the year after that 146 you will plant seed and harvest crops; you will plant vines and consume their produce. 147 37:31 Those who remain in Judah will take root in the ground and bear fruit. 148
37:32 “For a remnant will leave Jerusalem;
survivors will come out of Mount Zion.
The intense devotion of the Lord who commands armies 149 will accomplish this.
37:33 So this is what the Lord says about the king of Assyria:
‘He will not enter this city,
nor will he shoot an arrow here. 150
He will not attack it with his shielded warriors, 151
nor will he build siege works against it.
37:34 He will go back the way he came –
he will not enter this city,’ says the Lord.
37:35 I will shield this city and rescue it for the sake of my reputation and because of my promise to David my servant.”’” 152
37:36 The Lord’s messenger 153 went out and killed 185,000 troops 154 in the Assyrian camp. When they 155 got up early the next morning, there were all the corpses! 156 37:37 So King Sennacherib of Assyria broke camp and went on his way. He went home and stayed in Nineveh. 157 37:38 One day, 158 as he was worshiping 159 in the temple of his god Nisroch, 160 his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer struck him down with the sword. 161 They ran away to the land of Ararat; his son Esarhaddon replaced him as king.
[8:1] 1 tn Heb “the bridle of one cubit.” Many English versions treat this as a place name because the parallel text in 1 Chr 18:1 reads “Gath” (which is used by NLT here). It is possible that “the bridle of one cubit” is to be understood as “the token of surrender,” referring to the Philistine’s defeat rather than a specific place (cf. TEV, CEV).
[8:1] 2 tn Heb “from the hand [i.e., control] of the Philistines.”
[8:2] 3 tn Heb “and he measured [with] two [lengths] of rope to put to death and [with] the fullness of the rope to keep alive.”
[8:2] 4 tn Heb “and the Moabites were servants of David, carriers of tribute.”
[8:3] 5 tc The LXX has ἐπιστῆσαι (episthsai, “cause to stand”). See the parallel text in 1 Chr 18:3.
[8:3] 7 tn The MT does not have the name “Euphrates” in the text. It is supplied in the margin (Qere) as one of ten places where the Masoretes believed that something was “to be read although it was not written” in the text as they had received it. The ancient versions (LXX, Syriac Peshitta, Vulgate) include the word. See also the parallel text in 1 Chr 18:3.
[8:4] 8 tc The LXX has “one thousand chariots and seven thousand charioteers,” a reading adopted in the text of the NIV. See the parallel text in 1 Chr 18:4.
[8:4] 9 tn Heb “and David cut the hamstrings of all the chariot horses, and he left from them a hundred chariot horses.”
[8:6] 11 tn Or “wherever he went.”
[8:7] 12 tc The LXX includes seventeen words (in Greek) at the end of v. 7 that are not found in the MT. The LXX addition is as follows: “And Sousakim king of Egypt took them when he came up to Jerusalem in the days of Rehoboam the son of Solomon.” This Greek reading now finds Hebrew support in 4QSama. For a reconstruction of this poorly preserved Qumran text see E. C. Ulrich, Jr., The Qumran Text of Samuel and Josephus (HSM), 45-48.
[8:7] map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[8:8] 13 tn Heb “Betah” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV), but the name should probably be corrected to “Tebah.” See the parallel text in 1 Chr 18:8.
[8:9] 14 tn The name is spelled “Tou” in the parallel text in 1 Chr 18:9. NIV adopts the spelling “Tou” here.
[8:10] 15 tn Heb “Toi.” The proper name has been replaced by the pronoun in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[8:10] 16 tn The name appears as “Hadoram” in the parallel text in 1 Chr 18:10.
[8:10] 17 tn Heb “to ask concerning him for peace.”
[8:10] 18 tn Heb “and to bless him because he fought with Hadadezer and defeated him, for Hadadezer was a man of battles with Toi.”
[8:10] 19 tn Heb “and in his hand were items of silver and items of gold and items of bronze.”
[8:11] 20 tn Heb “also them King David made holy to the
[8:11] 21 tn Heb “with the silver and the gold that he had dedicated from.”
[8:12] 23 tc The present translation follows the MT; a few Hebrew
[8:12] 24 tn Heb “and from the plunder of.”
[8:13] 25 tn Heb “made a name.”
[8:13] 26 tn So NASB, NCV; NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT “Edomites” (see the note on “Aram” in v. 12).
[8:13] 27 tn The words “he defeated” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[8:14] 28 tc The MT is repetitious here: “He placed in Edom garrisons; in all Edom he placed garrisons.” The Vulgate lacks “in all Edom”; most of the Greek tradition (with the exception of the Lucianic recension and the recension of Origen) and the Syriac Peshitta lack “he placed garrisons.” The MT reading appears here to be the result of a conflation of variant readings.
[8:15] 29 tn Heb “and David was doing what is just and fair for all his people.”
[8:17] 31 tc Here Ahimelech is called “the son of Abiathar,” but NCV, CEV, and REB reverse this to conform with 1 Sam 22:20. Most recent English versions (e.g., NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT) retain the order found in the MT.
[8:18] 32 tc The translation follows the Syriac Peshitta, Targum, and Vulgate in reading “over,” rather than the simple conjunction that appears in MT. See also the parallel passage in 1 Chr 18:17.
[8:18] 33 sn That David’s sons could have been priests, in light of the fact that they were not of the priestly lineage, is strange. One must assume either (1) that the word “priest” (כֹּהֵן, kohen) during this period of time could be used in a broader sense of “chief ruler” (KJV); “chief minister” (ASV, NASB), or “royal adviser” (NIV), perhaps based on the parallel passage in 1 Chr 18:17 which has “the king’s leading officials”, or (2) that in David’s day members of the king’s family could function as a special category of “priests” (cf. NLT “priestly leaders”). The latter option seems to be the more straightforward way of understanding the word in 2 Sam 8:18.
[10:1] 34 tn Heb “reigned in his place.”
[10:2] 35 tn Heb “do loyalty.”
[10:2] 36 tn Heb “did loyalty.”
[10:2] 37 tn Heb “and David sent to console him by the hand of his servants concerning his father.”
[10:3] 38 tn Heb “Is David honoring your father in your eyes when he sends to you ones consoling?”
[10:3] 39 tn Heb “Is it not to explore the city and to spy on it and to overthrow it [that] David has sent his servants to you?”
[10:4] 40 tn Heb “and he cut their robes in the middle unto their buttocks.”
[10:5] 41 tn Heb “they”; the referent (the messengers) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[10:5] 42 tn The words “what had happened” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[10:5] 43 map For location see Map5 B2; Map6 E1; Map7 E1; Map8 E3; Map10 A2; Map11 A1.
[10:6] 44 tn Heb “that they were a stench [i.e., disgusting] with David.”
[10:6] 45 tn Heb “the Ammonites.”
[10:6] 46 tn Or “Arameans of Beth Rehob and Arameans of Zobah.”
[10:6] 47 tn Or perhaps “the men of Tob.” The ancient versions (the LXX, the Syriac Peshitta, and Vulgate) understand the name to be “Ish-tob.” It is possible that “Ish” is dittographic and that we should read simply “Tob,” a reading adopted by a number of recent English versions.
[10:7] 48 tn The words “the news” and “to meet them” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons and for clarification.
[10:9] 49 tn Heb “and Joab saw that the face of the battle was to him before and behind and he chose from all the best in Israel and arranged to meet Aram.”
[10:10] 51 tn Heb “he arranged.”
[10:11] 52 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Joab) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[10:11] 53 tn Heb “if Aram is stronger than me.”
[10:11] 54 tn Heb “if the sons of Ammon are stronger than you.”
[10:12] 55 tn Heb “and the
[10:13] 56 tn Heb “and the army which was with him.”
[10:14] 57 tn Heb “and Joab returned from against the sons of Ammon and entered.”
[10:14] 58 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[10:15] 59 tn Heb “were gathered together.”
[10:16] 60 tn Heb “and Hadadezer sent and brought out Aram which is.”
[10:16] 61 tn Heb “from beyond the River.” The name “Euphrates” has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
[10:16] 62 tn Heb “was before them.”
[10:17] 63 tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
[10:18] 64 tn Heb “horsemen” (so KJV, NASB, NCV, NRSV, NLT) but the Lucianic recension of the LXX reads “foot soldiers,” as does the parallel text in 1 Chr 19:18. Cf. NAB, NIV.
[10:19] 65 tn Heb “the servants of Hadadezer.”
[10:19] 66 tn Heb “and they served them.”
[10:2] 67 tn Heb “do loyalty.”
[10:2] 68 tn Heb “did loyalty.”
[10:2] 69 tn Heb “and David sent to console him by the hand of his servants concerning his father.”
[14:1] 70 tn Heb “the heart of the king was upon.” The Syriac Peshitta adds the verb ’ethre’i (“was reconciled”).
[14:2] 71 tn The Hebrew Hitpael verbal form here indicates pretended rather than genuine action.
[14:2] 72 tn Heb “these many days.”
[14:3] 73 tn Heb “put the words in her mouth” (so NASB, NIV).
[14:4] 74 tc The translation follows many medieval Hebrew
[14:4] 75 tn The word “me” is left to be inferred in the Hebrew text; it is present in the Syriac Peshitta and Vulgate.
[14:5] 76 tn Heb “What to you?”
[14:6] 77 tn Here and elsewhere (vv. 7, 12, 15a, 17, 19) the woman uses a term which suggests a lower level female servant. She uses the term to express her humility before the king. However, she uses a different term in vv. 15b-16. See the note at v. 15 for a discussion of the rhetorical purpose of this switch in terminology.
[14:7] 78 tn Heb “in exchange for the life.” The Hebrew preposition בְּ (bÿ, “in”) here is the so-called bet pretii, or bet (בְּ) of price, defining the value attached to someone or something.
[14:7] 79 sn My remaining coal is here metaphorical language, describing the one remaining son as her only source of lingering hope for continuing the family line.
[14:8] 80 tn Heb “concerning you.”
[14:11] 81 tn The words “in that case” are not in the Hebrew text, but may be inferred from the context. They are supplied in the translation for the sake of clarification.
[14:11] 82 tn Heb “let the king remember.”
[14:11] 83 tn Heb “of your son.”
[14:14] 84 tn Heb “he devises plans for the one banished from him not to be banished.”
[14:15] 85 tc The LXX (ὄψεταί με, opsetai me) has misunderstood the Hebrew יֵרְאֻנִי (yerÿ’uni, Piel perfect, “they have made me fearful”), taking the verb to be a form of the verb רָאָה (ra’ah, “to see”) rather than the verb יָרֵא (yare’, “to fear”). The fact that the Greek translators were working with an unvocalized Hebrew text (i.e., consonants only) made them very susceptible to this type of error.
[14:15] 86 tn Here and in v. 16 the woman refers to herself as the king’s אָמָה (’amah), a term that refers to a higher level female servant toward whom the master might have some obligation. Like the other term, this word expresses her humility, but it also suggests that the king might have some obligation to treat her in accordance with the principles of justice.
[20:1] 87 tn Heb “a man of worthlessness.”
[20:1] 88 tn The expression used here יְמִינִי (yÿmini) is a short form of the more common “Benjamin.” It appears elsewhere in 1 Sam 9:4 and Esth 2:5. Cf. 1 Sam 9:1.
[20:1] 89 tn Heb “the shophar” (the ram’s horn trumpet). So also v. 22.
[20:1] 90 tc The MT reads לְאֹהָלָיו (lÿ’ohalav, “to his tents”). For a similar idiom, see 19:9. An ancient scribal tradition understands the reading to be לְאלֹהָיו (le’lohav, “to his gods”). The word is a tiqqun sopherim, and the scribes indicate that they changed the word from “gods” to “tents” so as to soften its theological implications. In a consonantal Hebrew text the change involved only the metathesis of two letters.
[37:1] 91 tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
[37:2] 92 tn Heb “elders of the priests” (so KJV, NAB, NASB); NCV “the older priests”; NRSV, TEV, CEV “the senior priests.”
[37:3] 93 tn In the Hebrew text this verse begins with “they said to him” (cf. NRSV).
[37:3] 94 tn Or “rebuke” (KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV), or “correction.”
[37:3] 95 tn Or “contempt”; NAB, NIV, NRSV “disgrace.”
[37:3] 96 tn Heb “when sons come to the cervical opening and there is no strength to give birth.”
[37:4] 97 tn Heb “all the words of the chief adviser whom his master, the king of Assyria, sent to taunt the living God.”
[37:4] 98 tn Heb “and rebuke the words which the Lord your God hears.”
[37:4] 99 tn Heb “and lift up a prayer on behalf of the remnant that is found.”
[37:6] 100 tn Heb “by which the servants of the king of Assyria have insulted me.”
[37:7] 101 tn Heb “I will put in him a spirit.” The precise sense of רוּחַ (ruakh, “spirit”) is uncertain in this context. It may refer to a spiritual being who will take control of his mind (see 1 Kgs 22:19), or it could refer to a disposition of concern and fear. In either case the Lord’s sovereignty over the king is apparent.
[37:7] 102 tn Heb “cause him to fall” (so KJV, ASV, NAB), that is, “kill him.”
[37:8] 103 tn Heb “and the chief adviser returned and he found the king of Assyria fighting against Libnah, for he heard that he had departed from Lachish.”
[37:9] 104 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[37:9] 105 tn Heb “Cush” (so NASB); NIV, NCV “the Cushite king of Egypt.”
[37:9] 106 tn Heb “heard concerning Tirhakah king of Cush, ‘He has come out to fight with you.’”
[37:9] 107 tn The Hebrew text has, “and he heard and he sent,” but the parallel in 2 Kgs 19:9 has וַיָּשָׁב וַיִּשְׁלַח (vayyashav vayyishlakh, “and he returned and he sent”), i.e., “he again sent.”
[37:11] 108 tn Heb “Look, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the lands, annihilating them.”
[37:11] 109 tn Heb “and will you be rescued?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “No, of course not!”
[37:12] 110 tn Heb “fathers” (so KJV, NAB, NASB); NIV “forefathers”; NCV “ancestors.”
[37:12] 111 tn Heb “Did the gods of the nations whom my fathers destroyed rescue them – Gozan and Haran, and Rezeph and the sons of Eden who are in Telassar?”
[37:13] 112 sn Lair was a city located in northeastern Babylon. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 235.
[37:14] 113 tc The Hebrew text has the plural, “letters.” The final mem (ם) may be dittographic (note the initial mem on the form that immediately follows). Some Greek and Aramaic witnesses have the singular. If so, one still has to deal with the yod that is part of the plural ending. J. N. Oswalt refers to various commentators who have suggested ways to understand the plural form (Isaiah [NICOT], 1:652).
[37:14] 114 tn In the parallel text in 2 Kgs 19:14 the verb has the plural suffix, “them,” but this probably reflects a later harmonization to the preceding textual corruption (of “letter” to “letters”).
[37:16] 115 sn Cherubim (singular “cherub”) refers to the images of winged angelic creatures that were above the ark of the covenant.
[37:16] 116 tn Or “the heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heavens” or “sky” depending on the context.
[37:17] 117 tn Heb “Hear all the words of Sennacherib which he sent to taunt the living God.”
[37:18] 118 tn The Hebrew text here has “all the lands,” but the parallel text in 2 Kgs 19:17 has “the nations.”
[37:19] 119 tn Heb “and they put their gods in the fire.”
[37:19] 120 tn Heb “so they destroyed them” (NASB similar).
[37:20] 121 tn The parallel text in 2 Kgs 19:19 reads, “that you, Lord, are the only God.”
[37:21] 122 tn The parallel text in 2 Kgs 19:20 reads, “That which you prayed to me concerning Sennacherib king of Assyria I have heard.” The verb “I have heard” does not appear in Isa 37:21, where אֲשֶׁר (’asher) probably has a causal sense: “because.”
[37:22] 123 tn Heb “this is the word which the Lord has spoken about him.”
[37:22] 124 sn Zion (Jerusalem) is pictured here as a young, vulnerable daughter whose purity is being threatened by the would-be Assyrian rapist. The personification hints at the reality which the young girls of the city would face if the Assyrians conquer it.
[37:22] 125 sn Shaking the head was a mocking gesture of derision.
[37:23] 126 tn Heb “and lifted your eyes on high?” Cf. NIV “lifted your eyes in pride”; NRSV “haughtily lifted your eyes.”
[37:23] 127 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
[37:24] 128 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).
[37:24] 129 tn Heb “the height of its extremity”; ASV “its farthest height.”
[37:25] 130 tc The Hebrew text has simply, “I dug and drank water.” But the parallel text in 2 Kgs 19:24 has “foreign waters.” זָרִים (zarim, “foreign”) may have accidentally dropped out of the Isaianic text by homoioteleuton (cf. NCV, NIV, NLT). Note that the preceding word, מַיִם (mayim, “water) also ends in mem (ם). The Qumran scroll 1QIsaa has “foreign waters” for this line. However, in several other passages the 1QIsaa scroll harmonizes with 2 Kgs 19 against the MT (Isa 36:5; 37:9, 20). Since the addition of “foreign” to this text in Isaiah by a later scribe would be more likely than its deletion, the MT reading should be accepted.
[37:26] 131 tn Having quoted the Assyrian king’s arrogant words in vv. 23-24, the Lord now speaks to the king.
[37:26] 132 tn Heb “Have you not heard?” The rhetorical question expresses the Lord’s amazement that anyone might be ignorant of what he is about to say.
[37:26] 133 tn Heb “formed” (so KJV, ASV).
[37:26] 134 tn Heb “and it is to cause to crash into heaps of ruins fortified cities.” The subject of the third feminine singular verb תְהִי (tÿhi) is the implied plan, referred to in the preceding lines with third feminine singular pronominal suffixes.
[37:27] 135 tn Heb “short of hand”; KJV, ASV “of small power”; NASB “short of strength.”
[37:27] 136 tn Heb “they are plants in the field and green vegetation.” The metaphor emphasizes how short-lived these seemingly powerful cities really were. See Ps 90:5-6; Isa 40:6-8, 24.
[37:27] 137 tn Heb “[they are] grass on the rooftops.” See the preceding note.
[37:27] 138 tc The Hebrew text has “scorched before the standing grain” (perhaps meaning “before it reaches maturity”), but it is preferable to emend קָמָה (qamah, “standing grain”) to קָדִים (qadim, “east wind”) with the support of 1Q Isaa; cf. J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:657, n. 8.
[37:28] 139 tc Heb “your going out and your coming in and how you have raged against me.” Several scholars have suggested that this line is probably dittographic (note the beginning of the next line). However, most English translations include the statement in question at the end of v. 28 and the beginning of v. 29. Interestingly, the LXX does not have this clause at the end of v. 28 and the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa does not have it at the beginning of v. 29. In light of this ambiguous manuscript evidence, it appears best to retain the clause in both verses.
[37:29] 140 tc Heb “and your complacency comes up into my ears.” The parallelism is improved if שַׁאֲנַנְךָ (sha’anankha, “your complacency”) is emended to שְׁאוֹנְךָ (shÿ’onÿkha, “your uproar”). See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 237-38. However, the LXX seems to support the MT and Sennacherib’s cavalier dismissal of Yahweh depicts an arrogant complacency (J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah [NICOT], 1:658, n. 10).
[37:29] 141 sn The word-picture has a parallel in Assyrian sculpture. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 238.
[37:30] 142 tn At this point the word concerning the king of Assyria (vv. 22-29) ends and the Lord again addresses Hezekiah and the people directly (see v. 21).
[37:30] 143 tn Heb “and this is your sign.” In this case the אוֹת (’ot, “sign”) is a future reminder of God’s intervention designated before the actual intervention takes place. For similar “signs” see Exod 3:12 and Isa 7:14-25.
[37:30] 144 sn This refers to crops that grew up on their own (that is, without cultivation) from the seed planted in past years.
[37:30] 145 tn Heb “and in the second year” (so ASV).
[37:30] 146 tn Heb “in the third year” (so KJV, NAB).
[37:30] 147 tn The four plural imperatival verb forms in v. 30b are used rhetorically. The Lord commands the people to plant, harvest, etc. to emphasize the certainty of restored peace and prosperity.
[37:31] 148 tn Heb “The remnant of the house of Judah that is left will add roots below and produce fruit above.”
[37:32] 149 tn Heb “the zeal of the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts].” In this context the Lord’s “zeal” refers to his intense devotion to and love for his people which prompts him to protect and restore them.
[37:33] 150 tn Heb “there” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV). In terms of English style “here” is expected in collocation with “this” in the previous line.
[37:33] 151 tn Heb “[with] a shield” (so ASV, NASB, NRSV).
[37:35] 152 tn Heb “for my sake and for the sake of David my servant.”
[37:36] 153 tn Traditionally, “the angel of the Lord” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).
[37:36] 154 tn The word “troops” is supplied in the translation for smoothness and clarity.
[37:36] 155 tn This refers to the Israelites and/or the rest of the Assyrian army.
[37:36] 156 tn Heb “look, all of them were dead bodies”; NLT “they found corpses everywhere.”
[37:37] 157 tn Heb “and Sennacherib king of Assyria departed and went and returned and lived in Nineveh.”
[37:38] 158 sn The assassination of King Sennacherib probably took place in 681
[37:38] 159 tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
[37:38] 160 sn No such Mesopotamian god is presently known. Perhaps the name Nisroch is a corruption of Nusku.
[37:38] 161 sn Extra-biblical sources also mention the assassination of Sennacherib, though they refer to only one assassin. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 239-40.
