1tn Heb “with their clothes torn”; the words “in grief” have been supplied in the translation to indicate that this was done as a sign of grief and mourning. 2tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2. 3tn Heb “elders of the priests” (so KJV, NAB, NASB); NCV “the older priests”; NRSV, TEV, CEV “the senior priests.” 4tn In the Hebrew text this verse begins with “they said to him” (cf. NRSV). 5tn Or “rebuke” (KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV), or “correction.” 6tn Or “contempt”; NAB, NIV, NRSV “disgrace.” 7tn Heb “when sons come to the cervical opening and there is no strength to give birth.” 8tn Heb “all the words of the chief adviser whom his master, the king of Assyria, sent to taunt the living God.” 9tn Heb “and rebuke the words which the Lord your God hears.” 10tn Heb “and lift up a prayer on behalf of the remnant that is found.” 11tn Heb “by which the servants of the king of Assyria have insulted me.” 12tn 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. 13tn Heb “cause him to fall” (so KJV, ASV, NAB), that is, “kill him.” 14tn 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.” 15tn Heb “he”; the referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity. 16tn Heb “Cush” (so NASB); NIV, NCV “the Cushite king of Egypt.” 17tn Heb “heard concerning Tirhakah king of Cush, ‘He has come out to fight with you.’” 18tn 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.” 19tn Heb “Look, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the lands, annihilating them.” 20tn Heb “and will you be rescued?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “No, of course not!” 21tn Heb “fathers” (so KJV, NAB, NASB); NIV “forefathers”; NCV “ancestors.” 22tn 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?” 23sn Lair was a city located in northeastern Babylon. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 235. 24tc 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). 25tn 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”). 26sn Cherubim (singular “cherub”) refers to the images of winged angelic creatures that were above the ark of the covenant. 27tn Or “the heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heavens” or “sky” depending on the context. 28tn Heb “Hear all the words of Sennacherib which he sent to taunt the living God.” 29tn The Hebrew text here has “all the lands,” but the parallel text in 2 Kgs 19:17 has “the nations.” 30tn Heb “and they put their gods in the fire.” 31tn Heb “so they destroyed them” (NASB similar). 32tn The parallel text in 2 Kgs 19:19 reads, “that you, Lord, are the only God.” 33tn 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.” 34tn Heb “this is the word which the Lord has spoken about him.” 35sn 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. 36sn Shaking the head was a mocking gesture of derision. 37tn Heb “and lifted your eyes on high?” Cf. NIV “lifted your eyes in pride”; NRSV “haughtily lifted your eyes.” 38sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4. 39tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay). 40tn Heb “the height of its extremity”; ASV “its farthest height.” 41tc 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. 42tn Having quoted the Assyrian king’s arrogant words in vv. 23-24, the Lord now speaks to the king. 43tn 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. 44tn Heb “formed” (so KJV, ASV). 45tn Heb “and it is to cause to crash into heaps of ruins fortified cities.” The subject of the third feminine singular verb תְהִי (t˙hi) is the implied plan, referred to in the preceding lines with third feminine singular pronominal suffixes. 46tn Heb “short of hand”; KJV, ASV “of small power”; NASB “short of strength.” 47tn 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. 48tn Heb “[they are] grass on the rooftops.” See the preceding note. 49tc 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. 50tc 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. 51tc Heb “and your complacency comes up into my ears.” The parallelism is improved if שַׁאֲנַנְךָ (sha’anankha, “your complacency”) is emended to שְׁאוֹנְךָ (sh˙’on˙kha, “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). 52sn The word-picture has a parallel in Assyrian sculpture. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 238. 53tn 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). 54tn 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. 55sn This refers to crops that grew up on their own (that is, without cultivation) from the seed planted in past years. 56tn Heb “and in the second year” (so ASV). 57tn Heb “in the third year” (so KJV, NAB). 58tn 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. 59tn Heb “The remnant of the house of Judah that is left will add roots below and produce fruit above.” 60tn 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. 61tn Heb “there” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV). In terms of English style “here” is expected in collocation with “this” in the previous line. 62tn Heb “[with] a shield” (so ASV, NASB, NRSV). 63tn Heb “for my sake and for the sake of David my servant.” 64tn Traditionally, “the angel of the Lord” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT). 65tn The word “troops” is supplied in the translation for smoothness and clarity. 66tn This refers to the Israelites and/or the rest of the Assyrian army. 67tn Heb “look, all of them were dead bodies”; NLT “they found corpses everywhere.” 68tn Heb “and Sennacherib king of Assyria departed and went and returned and lived in Nineveh.” 69sn The assassination of King Sennacherib probably took place in 681 b.c. 70tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2. 71sn No such Mesopotamian god is presently known. Perhaps the name Nisroch is a corruption of Nusku. 72sn 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.
1tn Heb “with their clothes torn”; the words “in grief” have been supplied in the translation to indicate that this was done as a sign of grief and mourning.
2tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
3tn Heb “elders of the priests” (so KJV, NAB, NASB); NCV “the older priests”; NRSV, TEV, CEV “the senior priests.”
4tn In the Hebrew text this verse begins with “they said to him” (cf. NRSV).
5tn Or “rebuke” (KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV), or “correction.”
6tn Or “contempt”; NAB, NIV, NRSV “disgrace.”
7tn Heb “when sons come to the cervical opening and there is no strength to give birth.”
8tn Heb “all the words of the chief adviser whom his master, the king of Assyria, sent to taunt the living God.”
9tn Heb “and rebuke the words which the Lord your God hears.”
10tn Heb “and lift up a prayer on behalf of the remnant that is found.”
11tn Heb “by which the servants of the king of Assyria have insulted me.”
12tn 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.
13tn Heb “cause him to fall” (so KJV, ASV, NAB), that is, “kill him.”
14tn 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.”
15tn Heb “he”; the referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
16tn Heb “Cush” (so NASB); NIV, NCV “the Cushite king of Egypt.”
17tn Heb “heard concerning Tirhakah king of Cush, ‘He has come out to fight with you.’”
18tn 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.”
19tn Heb “Look, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the lands, annihilating them.”
20tn Heb “and will you be rescued?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “No, of course not!”
21tn Heb “fathers” (so KJV, NAB, NASB); NIV “forefathers”; NCV “ancestors.”
22tn 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?”
23sn Lair was a city located in northeastern Babylon. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 235.
24tc 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).
25tn 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”).
26sn Cherubim (singular “cherub”) refers to the images of winged angelic creatures that were above the ark of the covenant.
27tn Or “the heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heavens” or “sky” depending on the context.
28tn Heb “Hear all the words of Sennacherib which he sent to taunt the living God.”
29tn The Hebrew text here has “all the lands,” but the parallel text in 2 Kgs 19:17 has “the nations.”
30tn Heb “and they put their gods in the fire.”
31tn Heb “so they destroyed them” (NASB similar).
32tn The parallel text in 2 Kgs 19:19 reads, “that you, Lord, are the only God.”
33tn 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.”
34tn Heb “this is the word which the Lord has spoken about him.”
35sn 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.
36sn Shaking the head was a mocking gesture of derision.
37tn Heb “and lifted your eyes on high?” Cf. NIV “lifted your eyes in pride”; NRSV “haughtily lifted your eyes.”
38sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
39tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).
40tn Heb “the height of its extremity”; ASV “its farthest height.”
41tc 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.
42tn Having quoted the Assyrian king’s arrogant words in vv. 23-24, the Lord now speaks to the king.
43tn 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.
44tn Heb “formed” (so KJV, ASV).
45tn Heb “and it is to cause to crash into heaps of ruins fortified cities.” The subject of the third feminine singular verb תְהִי (t˙hi) is the implied plan, referred to in the preceding lines with third feminine singular pronominal suffixes.
46tn Heb “short of hand”; KJV, ASV “of small power”; NASB “short of strength.”
47tn 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.
48tn Heb “[they are] grass on the rooftops.” See the preceding note.
49tc 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.
50tc 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.
51tc Heb “and your complacency comes up into my ears.” The parallelism is improved if שַׁאֲנַנְךָ (sha’anankha, “your complacency”) is emended to שְׁאוֹנְךָ (sh˙’on˙kha, “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).
52sn The word-picture has a parallel in Assyrian sculpture. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 238.
53tn 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).
54tn 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.
55sn This refers to crops that grew up on their own (that is, without cultivation) from the seed planted in past years.
56tn Heb “and in the second year” (so ASV).
57tn Heb “in the third year” (so KJV, NAB).
58tn 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.
59tn Heb “The remnant of the house of Judah that is left will add roots below and produce fruit above.”
60tn 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.
61tn Heb “there” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV). In terms of English style “here” is expected in collocation with “this” in the previous line.
62tn Heb “[with] a shield” (so ASV, NASB, NRSV).
63tn Heb “for my sake and for the sake of David my servant.”
64tn Traditionally, “the angel of the Lord” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).
65tn The word “troops” is supplied in the translation for smoothness and clarity.
66tn This refers to the Israelites and/or the rest of the Assyrian army.
67tn Heb “look, all of them were dead bodies”; NLT “they found corpses everywhere.”
68tn Heb “and Sennacherib king of Assyria departed and went and returned and lived in Nineveh.”
69sn The assassination of King Sennacherib probably took place in 681 b.c.
70tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
71sn No such Mesopotamian god is presently known. Perhaps the name Nisroch is a corruption of Nusku.
72sn 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.