Isaiah 37

Let us examine those remaining matters whose meaning remains hidden. They tore their garments because they heard the Rabshakeh speaking blasphemy. The king also tore his clothing because he believed that it was due to his sins and the sins of the people that the Rabshakeh came to the gate of Jerusalem and spoke such things against the Lord. Hence, the high priest, because he believed the Savior to have been blasphemed, also cut his garments. Paul and Barnabas, moreover, when the Lycaonians offered to them the worship of God, cut their clothes.

(Chapter 37, Verse 1 and following) Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah, who was in charge of the palace, and Shebna the secretary and Joah son of Asaph the recorder went to Hezekiah with their clothes torn and told him what the field commander had said. When King Hezekiah heard this, he tore his clothes and put on sackcloth and went into the temple of the Lord. He sent Eliakim the palace administrator, Shebna the secretary and the leading priests, all wearing sackcloth, to the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz. They told him, 'This is what Hezekiah says: This day is a day of distress and rebuke and disgrace, as when children come to the moment of birth and there is no strength to deliver them.' If you want to know how the Lord your God heard the words of Rabsaces, whom the king of the Assyrians, his lord, sent to blaspheme the living God and to reproach the words that the Lord your God heard, lift up a prayer for the remainder that have been found. Then the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah, and Isaiah said to them: 'Thus you shall say to your master: Thus says the Lord: Do not be afraid of the words that you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria blasphemed me.' Behold, I will give to him the spirit, and he will hear the message, and he will return to his land, and I will make him fall by the sword in his land. Leaving aside the clear things, let us discuss only those in which the hidden meaning is present. They tear their clothes because they hear Rabshekah blaspheming. The king himself tears his own clothes because he believed it to be his and the people's sins that Rabshekah has come all the way to the gate of Jerusalem and has spoken such things against the Lord. Whereupon, the high priest, because he believed that he had blasphemed the Savior, tore his garments (Matt. XXVI); and Paul and Barnabas, when the people of Lystra wanted to worship them as gods, tore their garments (Acts XIV). Therefore, he wrapped himself in sackcloth for the royal worship, and as he walked from the palace to the temple, he sent Eliakim the high priest, and Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests to Isaiah the son of Amos the prophet. In this, the humility and prudence of the king are worth considering. He himself proceeded to the Temple; the leaders of the people and the elders of the priests, not dressed in priestly garments but covered in sackcloth, sent to Isaiah son of Amos, the prophet. Concerning him, it is read in the Book of Kings: He himself was covered with a mantle, and entered the house of the Lord, Eliakim the steward of the house, and Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests sent covered in sacks to Isaiah the prophet, son of Amos (2 Kings 19:1-2). Here, because Isaiah himself was writing the history about himself, he did not call himself a Prophet, but the son of a Prophet; there, because another person was writing the history, he writes about him as a Prophet. Indeed, we read this also concerning the Evangelist Matthew, that Matthew himself said that he was a tax collector (Matt. IX); but the other Evangelists remained silent about the name tax collector, and only mentioned his apostolic dignity; and that in the ranks of the Apostles, he is second in his own account and first in the others'. And they said to him: Thus says Hezekiah, not a king, not swollen with the name of empire: The day of tribulation, and the day of corruption, and the day of blasphemy: the day of our tribulation, the day of God's correction, the day of the enemies' blasphemy. And the likeness of a woman in labor and in distress, that she has come to labor and cannot give birth, nor can she say: We have conceived, O Lord, from fear of you, and we have grieved and given birth to the spirit of salvation. It follows: As how should the Lord your God hear the words of Rabsaces (Isaiah XXVI, 18, according to the LXX). For we do not dare to say O Lord, Lord of all, when such great wrath is upon us; but we say, your Lord. And we have this confidence of vengeance: because the living God is blasphemed by the worshipper of dead idols. And they reproached with the words, which the Lord your God heard: Therefore, lift up our lying prayer: not for all the people who have already perished, but for the remnants that are besieged. And when the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah, the name of the Prophet was silent again, so that he would preserve the humility that had been started. And Isaiah anticipated them: for with the same spirit with which he knew the future, he had also heard the absent king: and he said what they should respond to their Lord, humbled in this trust of conscience. He said, 'Say to your master, who is your Lord; for my Lord says these things: Do not fear the words by which not you, but I am blasphemed. Nor do I say that I am going to do all the things that the king of the Assyrians wishes, lest it seem that I am boasting of my power; but that a spirit, not of God, but an adversary, is to be given to him. And upon hearing the message, let him return to his own land, and let him fall by the sword in it, so that both things which Hezekiah desired equally, he would hear: that he would be freed from the siege and danger, and that the angry and hostile king would die in his own land.' If someone asks why the book of Prophecies, which is written in the volumes of Kings and Chronicles, seems mixed, let them consider that the prophecy of history is linked, both concerning the liberation of the city and the destruction of Assyria, and concerning the return of the sun with ten and fifteen years elapsed, which is both prophecy and history.

In this part he shows how Ezechias fought against the blasphemies of the Assyrians with humility and prayers, and concerning this he does three things. First, he recounts how he went to the place of prayer, assuming the dress of humility: and covered himself with sackcloth: the word came to the king: and he rose up out of his throne, and cast away his robe from him, and was clothed in sackcloth, and sat in ashes (Jonah 3:6).

For the sake of royal worship, therefore, Hezekiah wrapped himself in sackcloth and, walking from his palace to the temple, sent Eliakim, the high priest, Shebna, the scribe, and senior priests to the prophet Isaiah son of Amos, an act that must be attributed to the humility and prudence of the king. He proceeded to the temple and sent leaders of the people and senior priests, not draped in priestly stoles but covered in sackcloth, to the prophet Isaiah son of Amos, concerning which we read in the book of Kings: "Himself covered in sackcloth, having entered the house of the Lord, he sent Eliakim, leader of the house, and Shebna the scribe and senior priests, covered with sackcloth, to the prophet Isaiah son of Amos." Because Isaiah was writing a history about himself here in his book, he did not call himself a prophet but the son of a prophet, whereas the passage just quoted does use the title prophet because it comes from a different author of the history. Similarly, we read from the Gospel of Matthew that Matthew called himself a publican, whereas other Evangelists refrained from calling him a publican, granting him such apostolic dignity.

Second, not presuming to pour out his prayer to God by himself, he seeks, through messengers, the intercession of the prayer of the prophet, where he recounts the sending of the messengers: and he sent Eliacim, above: should not the people seek of their God? (Isa 8:19).

"And they said to him, 'Thus says Hezekiah,' " not "thus says the king," not swelling pridefully with political power. "This is a day of tribulation, of punishment, and a day of blasphemy," of our tribulation, of God's punishment, of the enemies' blasphemy. And he drew an analogy to a woman suffering the pains of childbirth—who has come to the point of delivery but is unable to give birth—to say, "We have conceived from fear of you, Lord, and we suffered, and we gave birth to the spirit of salvation." Hezekiah continues: "Perhaps the Lord your God heard the words of the Rabshakeh." We do not dare to call the Lord of all "our Lord," whereby we would suffer such wrath, but we say "your Lord." And we have confidence in [God's] punishment because the living God is being blasphemed by the worship of idols of the dead. "And they will chastise with the words which the Lord your God heard. Lift up a prayer, therefore, not for all the people who have already perished, but for the remnant who are besieged."

The messengers explain the tribulation—and it ought to be read thus: and they came (Isa 37:5), and they said to him—this day is a day of tribulation, which we suffer in outer persecutions, and of distress, as to sorrows of heart, of divine rebuke, and of blasphemy, of enemies; the children are come, that is, the concepts of counselors, and there is not strength to bring forth, to execute them; or: we suffer so like women in labor: that day is a day of wrath, a day of tribulation and distress (Zeph 1:15).

They offer their petition—that it might be thus ordained: wherefore lift up your prayer; it may be: pray you for us to the Lord your God for all this remnant (Jer 42:2).

Prayer is lifted up, through eminence of contemplation: I have lifted up my eyes to the mountains (Ps 120[121]:1); through fervor of affection: let us lift up our hearts with our hands to the Lord in the heavens (Lam 3:41); through tears of compunction: every night I will lift up (Ps 6:7[6]); lift up weeping (Joel 1:5); through zeal for good works: the lifting up of my hands (Ps 140[141]:2).

"When the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah." … Again he does not use the title of prophet, maintaining the humility with which he began. And Isaiah anticipated them, for he had heard of their departure from the king by the same Spirit from which he also learned of future events. Then he tells them what they ought to reply to their master, humbled in fidelity of conscience: "Say to your master, who is your master, that my Lord says this: 'Do not be afraid of the words with which not you but I am blasphemed. I will not foretell everything that I am about to do to the king of Assyria, lest I appear to be throwing my weight around, but the spirit which will be given to them is that of the adversary, not of God.' "

Third, he sets out the response of the prophet: and Isaiah said to them; in which he excludes the king's fear: be not afraid: be not afraid at their presence (Jer 1:8).

And he foretells the death of king Sennacherib: behold, I will send a spirit upon him. He that shall kill by the sword must be killed by the sword (Rev 13:10).

Anyone who seeks to know why the history contained in the books of Kings and Chronicles appears to be confused in the book of the prophet should consider that prophecy may be mixed with history in the latter.… The liberation of the city and the downfall of Assyria and the reversion of the sun for ten hours and the fifteen years' prolongation … belong both to prophecy and to history.

(Verse 8 and following) But when Rabshakeh returned, he found the king of Assyria fighting against Libnah, for he had heard that the king had left Lachish. And he heard that Tirhakah, the king of Ethiopia, had come out to fight against him. When he heard this, he sent messengers to Hezekiah saying: 'Thus you shall speak to Hezekiah, king of Judah, saying: Do not let your God deceive you, in whom you trust, saying: Jerusalem will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.' Behold, you have heard about all that the kings of Assyria have done to all the lands they have devastated, and can you be delivered? Have the gods of the nations delivered those whom my fathers have destroyed: Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the sons of Eden who were in Telassar? Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the city of Sepharvaim, or of Hena, or of Ivvah? These words were written in the Book of Kings and Chronicles, that the commander Rabshekah had left the siege of Jerusalem according to the will of the Lord, and went to his master, who he had learned was besieging Lachish, having either abandoned or captured it, to attack Libnah. He also, upon hearing that Tarachamregem, the king of the Ethiopians, was preparing to make war against him, went out to meet him, and yet sent messengers to Hezekiah and letters, in order to frighten those whom he had not yet conquered by force. And just as he had said to the people, 'Do not let Hezekiah deceive you' (2 Kings 18:29), he speaks the same blasphemy to the king, saying, 'Do not let your God deceive you' (2 Kings 19:10). And he gives examples from the past, how their gods were unable to deliver other lands from their hands, and therefore Jerusalem will not be able to be delivered either. In his enumeration of the other nations, Ana () and Ava () are mentioned, which the Seventy mixed, saying, anavegava, and they called it a conjunction, that is, vau, between the two nations Ana and Ava, in the Hebrew language, so that to those unaware it seems one nation or city. We pass over what is clear, so that we may dwell on uncertainties. Herodotus relates that Sennacherib, the king of the Assyrians, fought against the Egyptians and besieged Pelusium. And when the mounds for capturing the city had been built, Taracham, the king of the Ethiopians, came to their aid, and in one night, near Jerusalem, 185,000 of the Assyrian army perished from plague. This is reported by Herodotus and most fully by Berosus, a writer of Chaldean history, whose credibility must be sought from his own books.

Here he sets out the return of Rabsaces to Sennacherib. And the meaning of this is evident.

Here he recounts how he offended Israel by threatening them through letters; and concerning this, he does three things. First, he sets out his proud threat: and he heard say about Tharaca, who came to the aid of the Egyptians; and when he heard it, he ran to meet him on the way, leaving Judea; and before he withdrew, he wrote these words. Afterwards, when he came and besieged Pelusium in Egypt, when the king of Ethiopia came, he refused to fight with him, saying mockingly that he was a priest of Pluto, on account of his blackness; or because mice chewed up the strings of their bows and left his army unarmed, above: as my hand has found the kingdoms of the idol (Isa 10:10).

The Rabshakeh, according to the will of the Lord, abandoned his blockade of Jerusalem and directed himself to his master, whom he knew to be heading to fight Libnah, having either deserted or captured Lachish. Sennacherib himself, hearing that Tirhakah the king of Ethiopia was waging war against him, went out to confront him but nonetheless also sent a messenger with letters to Hezekiah to frighten those men who had not yet begun. And just as he had said to the people, "Do not let Hezekiah seduce you," so now he speaks the same blasphemy to the king, saying, "Do not let God deceive you." He made an example of the elders: because the gods of other lands were unable to deliver them from his hands, neither will Jerusalem be liberated. But in enumerating the other nations, he includes Hena and Ivvah, whom the Septuagint confused by saying Anavegava, using the Hebrew language to place the conjunction vaw between the two nations Hena and Ivvah, that it might appear to the ignorant to be one nation or city.

We are hastening past the obvious, that we would remain with doubts. But Herodotus writes (as does the most prolific Berosus, historian of the Chaldeans, whose faith can be derived from their own books) that Sennacherib the king of the Assyrians fought against the Egyptians and besieged Pelusium. And with mounds already amassed in the city for conquest Tirhakah the king of Ethiopia came to their assistance, and in one night 185 thousand soldiers of Assyria fell to disease near Jerusalem.

Against the blasphemies of King Sennacherib, Hezekiah's customary armory failed. So he goes back to the temple and opens his letter before the Lord. Previously he was silent, for he did not dare to open his mouth in the temple for fear of the Lord, nor to pour out extemporaneous prayers to God. Now, however, because he has already heard Isaiah saying, "Do not be afraid of the words which you hear, with which the sons of the king of the Assyrians have blasphemed me," and so on, he beseeches the Lord boldly and claims that the Lord alone is the living God, through whom we understand idols to be images of the dead.… That these idols weakened their makers is proven by many histories that record that the kings of Persia came to Greece, and subverted and ruined the temple of the Greeks. It also postulates vengeance, that through this opportunity all kingdoms would recognize that there is only one God, who is able to deliver his own from peril.

(Verses 14ff.) And Hezekiah took the letters from the hand of the messengers, and he read them, and he went up to the house of the Lord, and he spread them out before the Lord. And Hezekiah prayed before the Lord, saying: Lord, God of hosts, God of Israel, who resides above the cherubim, you are the only God of all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. Incline your ear, Lord, and hear; open your eyes, Lord, and see. And hear all the words of Sennacherib, which he sent to blaspheme the living God. Truly, O Lord, the kings of Assyria have made the lands and regions of the desert; and they have given their gods to the fire: for they were not gods, but the work of the hands of men, wood and stones; and they have destroyed them. And now, O Lord our God, save us from his hand: and let all the kingdoms of the earth know that You alone are God. Against the blasphemies of King Sennacherib, Ezechias took up his arms. And he goes again to the Temple, and spreads his letters before the Lord. Before, he had remained silent, for he did not dare to open his mouth in the Temple, terrified by the fear of the Lord, nor to offer free prayers to God. But now, because he had already heard Isaiah saying, 'Do not be afraid of the words that you have heard, with which the boys of the king of Assyria blasphemed me,' and so on, he boldly prays to the Lord and asserts that God alone is the living one, whom we understand to be idols, the images of the dead. And he brings forth this point: Truly, O Lord, the kings of Assyria have deserted the lands and regions of their gods and have given their gods to the fire. For they were not gods, but the works of human hands, wood and stone. And they shattered them, as proven in many histories, which write that the kings of Persia came to Greece and destroyed and plundered the temples of the Greeks. And he demands revenge, so that by this occasion, all kingdoms might know that God alone is able to free his own from danger.

Second, he sets out the prayer of Ezechias, placing before it the reception of the letter.

In this prayer, he confesses the power of God through the subjection of the angels: Lord God of hosts: is there any numbering of his soldiers? (Job 25:3); through the worship of the Jews: God of Israel who sits upon the cherubims, because the propitiatory, which was like the seat of God, and which also gave answers, was upon the wings of cherubim: you that sit upon the cherubims (Ps 79:2–3[80:1–2]).

But since the tabernacle was arranged according to the pattern of the heavenly church, as can be seen from Exodus 25, it seems that he is wrongly said to sit upon the cherubim; rather he should be said to sit upon the thrones.

And to this it is to be said that he sits upon the cherubim, that is, over them, because he sits upon the seraphim, who are beyond them. Or, according to Gregory and Dionysius, nothing is possessed there individually, but what belongs to the lower is also eminently attributed to the higher: thus what is proper to the thrones, the cherubim have even more eminently. Or it is to be said that he sits upon the thrones as upon the seat of judgment, and upon the cherubim as upon the chair of a teacher, for "cherubim" is translated "pouring of wisdom": and therefore it was fittingly said that answers were given from there.

He also shows the power of God through the disposition of kingdoms: you alone are the God of all the kingdoms of the earth: till he knew that the most High ruled in the kingdom of men (Dan 5:21); and he proves God's power through the production of creatures: you have made heaven and earth: who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all things that are in them (Ps 145[146]:6).

And he accuses Sennacherib of blasphemy: incline, O Lord, your ear: O Lord God of heaven and earth, behold their pride (Jdt 6:15).

He proves with this the foolishness of his blasphemy: for of a truth, O Lord: the idols of the Gentiles are silver and gold, the works of the hands of men (Ps 113:12[115:4]).

Third, he asks also in this prayer for the mercy of salvation: and now, O Lord: that all nations may acknowledge that you are God, and there is no other besides you (Jdt 9:19).

Because Hezekiah prayed to the Lord so boldly and did not send for Isaiah, as he had done previously, the prophet did not visit him in person but sent messengers who spoke to him the words of God: "This is the sentence of the Lord on Sennacherib, against whom you prayed: the virgin of Zion and daughter of Jerusalem"—who is called virgin and daughter because, with all the other nations worshiping the idols of dead men, she alone preserved the purity of the religion of God and the worship of one divinity—"has mocked and despised you. And lest she provoke you to greater blasphemy, she did not respond in your presence, but wagged her head behind you, immune from vengeance, secure from punishment. She also said this: 'It is not against me that you have rebelled but against the Lord. Nor did you do it yourself, but through your servants, that the arrogance of your blasphemy might be greater. For you said that with the multitude of your chariots you would ascend the heights of the mountains and the yokes of Lebanon, and that you would fell the highest of its cedars and firs.' " We should read this metaphorically as concerning all the Gentiles and their princes, or as concerning Jerusalem, which Lebanon represents, such that we would refer her cedars and firs to the rulers and aristocrats but the height of her summit and the forest of her Carmel to the temple. For he had said above: "Have you not heard what the kings of Assyria did to all the earth, destroying it? Therefore, neither can you be liberated." And because he adds: "I dug a well and drank water and dried up with my footsteps all the rivers of Egypt," it can be understood in accordance with history that all the streams ran dry before the multitude of the army, thus making it necessary to dig wells. This means that by means of his army he destroyed all the peoples, who are sometimes known under the name of "waters," as only the Seventy translated: "And I made a bridge and I turned the desert into waters and all the congregations of the waters." None of the nations were impassable to themselves, of course, but he trampled with his foot on all the waters of the people.

(v. 21 seqq.) However, Isaiah (also known as Josiah), the son of Amos, sent to Hezekiah saying: Thus says the Lord God of Israel: concerning what you asked me about Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, this is the word that the Lord spoke about him: He has despised you and mocked you, O virgin daughter of Zion. After you, the daughter of Jerusalem has shaken her head. Whom did you reproach and blaspheme? Against whom did you raise your voice and lift your eyes in pride, to the Holy One of Israel? You reproached the Lord in the hand of your servants and said: In the multitude of my chariots I have ascended (Al. I will ascend) the height of the mountains, the peaks of Lebanon, and I will cut down its lofty cedars, and its chosen fir trees, and I will enter the height of its summit, the Carmel of its cliff. I dug and drank water, and I dried up with the sole of my foot all the rivers of the banks. Because Hezekiah prayed to the Lord so boldly, and did not send to Isaiah, as he had sent before, the Prophet himself does not go to him, but sends messengers to him, who would say to him in the words of God: concerning Sennacherib, against whom you pray, this is the Lord's sentence: The virgin of Zion and the daughter of Jerusalem (who is called virgin and daughter because, while all the nations worship the idols of dead men, she alone preserves the purity of the religion of God and the worship of the one divinity) has derided you and despised you; and in order not to incite greater blasphemy against you, she did not respond immediately, but after you departed, she moved her head, certain of vengeance and secure in punishment. And she spoke these words: You have not sinned against me, but against the Lord; and it is not for your own sake, but for the sake of your servants, that the pride of the blasphemer becomes greater. For you have said that you would ascend to the heights of the mountains and the peaks of Mount Lebanon in your chariots, and cut down its tall cedars and its firs. This we can take either metaphorically of all nations and their rulers, or of Jerusalem, which is interpreted as Lebanon, so that its cedars and firs refer to the powerful and the nobles; but the height of its summit and the leap of Carmel refer to the Temple. For he had said above: Have you not heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the lands that they have destroyed? Therefore, you will not be able to be saved. And what he infers: I dug and drank water, and I dried up with the sole of my foot all the streams of the ramparts, according to the story, this can be understood that, due to the multitude of the army, he has dried up all the rivers so that he is compelled to dig wells for himself. According to the translation: he has devastated all the peoples who are sometimes described by the names of waters with his own army. For whom alone they translated the Seventy, and I made the bridge (i.e. the powerful one, or the power), and I made the waters deserted, and all the congregation of waters: so that no nation might have any unpassable way for itself, but that it might trample the waters underfoot above all the peoples.

Third, the prophet promises through messengers that the prayer of the king will be heard: and Isaiah the son of Amos sent to Ezechias; and concerning this he does two things: first, he promises the destruction of their enemies; second, the liberation of the city: wherefore thus says the Lord (Isa 37:33). Concerning the first, he does three things: first, he threatens him with the ruin of destruction; second, he sets out the sign: but to you this shall be a sign (Isa 37:30); third, he shows the fruit of the destruction: and that which shall be saved (Isa 37:31). Concerning the first, he does two things.

First, he threatens the punishment of confusion for his contempt for the Jews: the virgin the daughter of Zion has despised you, when she refused to respond to you; will wag the head, in the future, when you flee with a few men, the others having been killed, above: you that despise, shall not yourself also be despised? (Isa 33:1). The just shall see, and shall rejoice, and the innocent shall laugh them to scorn (Job 22:19).

Second, he threatens the punishment of destruction for the fault which he committed against God; and concerning this, he does three things: first, he sets out the fault; second, he adds to this divine power, where it says, have you not heard what I have done to him of old? (Isa 37:26); third, he infers the punishment, where it says, therefore I will put a ring in your nose (Isa 37:29). Concerning the first, he accuses him of two sins. First, of blasphemy: whom have you reproached? (these are the words of Ezechias to Sennacherib), as if to say: not me, but God, below: upon whom have you jested? (Isa 57:4).

Second, he accuses him of pride, which he drew from the greatness of his deeds: and you have said: with the multitude of my chariots, as though by my own power and not by God's, the top of Libanus, the summits of the mountains, that is, of the powerful: our mighty hand, and not the Lord, has done all these things (Deut 32:27); from the greatness of his intentions: and I will cut down its tall cedars, the powerful among the Jews, and will enter to the top of its height, the house of the Lord, to the forest, the people: open your gates, O Libanus, and let fire devour your cedars (Zech 11:1).

From the multitude of his warriors: I have dug, as if to say: I have such a large army that the water that I find is not enough, unless I dig wells; or, metaphorically: I dried up the consolations of all nations: like a garden of pleasure before it, and behind it a desolate wilderness (Joel 2:3).

This is directed from the person of God against the words of Assyria, to whose blasphemy the Lord responds thus: "Do you not know that you did this with my permission? Do you not know that I predict the future and command that certain things be done through you? Hence, what I decreed long ago is being fulfilled at this time: that the hills (that is, princes who fight among themselves) and the fortified cities will be shaken and eradicated, and will perish when I withdraw my hand and offer them none of the assistance to which they have grown accustomed. They were also compared not to olive groves and vineyards and fruitful trees but to straw and turf, to roof grass, all of which impede fruitfulness and wither before they reach maturity. In this way I have also foreknown your sitting down and your going out and your coming in, and I predicted through the prophets the insanity with which you would rage against me. Through these I knew long ago that you would say, 'I will ascend to heaven; I will set my throne above the stars of heaven, and I will be like the Most High.' Thus, your anger and your pride have reached my ears, and I will bear you no longer, that you may understand that you are not capable by your own strength but by my will. For the impious Gentiles and the unfruitful trees deserved to be cut down and felled through you, as though you were my axe and saw. Hence, I put a ring or a bit in your nostrils to restrain your verbal blasphemy, that you would dare to speak such things no more. I will also place a bridle on your lips to tame your ferocity and to lead you back to Egypt." Scripture employs the same imagery in the Psalms against the impious: "Constrain their jaws with a bit and bridle, that they not approach you."

(Verse 26 and following) Have you not heard what I did to him in the past? From ancient times I formed it, and now I have brought it forth, and it has become a ruin of the hills that fight against me, and of fortified cities. The inhabitants of those cities were brought low, they trembled and were confused. They became like the grass of the field, and the green herb, and the roof grass that withered before it could mature. I have seen your dwelling place, your going out and your coming in, and your rage against me, when you raged against me. Your pride reaches my ears, so I will put a hoop in your nostrils and a bit in your lips, and I will bring you back on the path from which you came. These words are to be understood from the perspective of God in response to the blasphemy of the Assyrians: Do you not know that what you have done, you have done by my will, and that I have foretold these things, and commanded you to do them through you? Therefore, what I decreed long ago has been fulfilled in its time, that the hills, that is, the rulers who were previously fighting among themselves, and the heavily fortified cities, by my strengthening of my hand and without providing assistance as usual, would be uprooted and tremble and perish, and instead of olives and vineyards, and fruitful trees, there would be grass and weeds, and plants that are beaten down by hay and wither before reaching maturity. Therefore, I have known both your sitting down and your going out and your coming in beforehand, and the madness with which you were about to rage against me, as prophesied by the prophets. I spoke through them, knowing that you alone would declare, 'I will ascend into heaven, I will set my throne above the stars of heaven, and I will be like the Most High.' Therefore, your fury and your pride have reached my ears, and I will no longer bear you so that you may understand that you were able to act not by your own power, but by my will. For impious nations and unfruitful trees were deserving that they be cut down and fall by you, like my axe and saw. Therefore, I will place a circle or a bridle in your nostrils, so that I may restrain blasphemy from your mouth, and you may not dare to speak such things again; and I will apply a bridle to your lips, which will tame your ferocity and bring you back to the Assyrians. With this translation, the Scripture also uses it in the Psalms against the wicked: Put a bridle and a halter on their jaws, who do not come near you (Ps. 31:12).

Here he adds divine power, speaking in the person of God himself. And first, as to eternal preordination: what I have done, what I have intended to do concerning exaltation and destruction, of old, from eternity, from the days of old I have formed it, the evil of punishment, which is carried out through him, I foresaw and preordained: for all things were known to the Lord our God, before they were created (Sir 23:20).

Second, as to the temporal execution of his eternal intention: and now I have brought it to effect. Hills, princes, fighting together, fighting each other. Short of hand, that is, my hand is drawn back from their aid; or their hand was diminished from their own aid; and like the grass of the housetops: let them be as grass upon the tops of houses (Ps 128[129]:6).

Third, as to the knowledge of all his deeds: your dwelling, that is, the seat of the king, your coming in, to the land of the Jews: for his eyes are upon the ways of men, and he considers all their steps (Job 34:21).

Here he infers the punishment: a ring in your nose, like an ox, a bit between your lips, like a horse, that is, the power of my divinity in curbing you: he has opened his quiver, and has afflicted me, and has put a bridle into my mouth (Job 30:11).

There is a bit of human discretion: if any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man. He is able also with a bridle to lead about the whole body (Jas 3:2); of divine government, below: for my praise I will bridle you (Isa 48:9); of diabolical deception, above: the bridle of error (Isa 30:28); of temporal affliction: he has opened his quiver, and has afflicted me, and has put a bridle into my mouth (Job 30:11); of eternal damnation: with bit and bridle bind fast their jaws (Ps 31[32]:9).

(Vers. 30 seqq.) But this will be a sign for you: Eat in this year what grows of itself, and in the second year what springs from that; then in the third year sow, reap, plant vineyards, and eat their fruit. The remaining survivors of the house of Judah shall take root downward and bear fruit upward; for out of Jerusalem shall come a remnant, and out of Mount Zion a band of survivors. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this. All these things the Prophet speaks through messengers to Hezekiah, what Sennacherib said, what the Lord answered him: now he speaks to him directly, so that he may not doubt the things that were said to come. And for this reason, especially, the words of the prophets had credibility among the people: because they not only remembered things that would happen many centuries in the future, but also things that would happen immediately, and would be fulfilled after a short period of time: and that within two years, the Assyrian king would perish and security would be restored to the city of Jerusalem. This will be, he says, a sign of what I predict will happen, that in this year you will eat what grows naturally. Or according to the Seventy, those things which you harvest first. But in the second year, according to Symmachus, eat from the fruits: or according to the same people, those things which have sprouted from the past crops and fallen to the ground as seed. But in the third year, after the Assyrians have been driven away and the siege has been lifted, sow, reap, and plant vineyards, and eat the fruits of them. Indeed, the remaining fragments of this small city, which are now being surrounded by hostile armies, do not believe that they will escape. They will receive such an abundance and happiness of all things that they will be filled, like a tree firmly rooted in a high mountain, with the thickest of fruits. For the remnants will come forth from Jerusalem and from Mount Zion, and they will fill the land of Judaea, not by their own merit, but by the mercy of God, indeed by the zeal that He has shown towards His wicked people.

Here he sets out the sign. For the army of the Assyrians came when the harvest was imminent, and thus the Jews were not able to collect the fruit, and the Assyrians remained in the land until after the time of sowing, so they were also not able to sow. Thus therefore it is said to them that in the remaining part of the year, while Sennacherib was going to Egypt, they should eat the things that spring of themselves, namely from the grain trampled by the hooves of the horses and chariots; or, as in 2 Kings 19:29, whatever you might have found in your barns before it was gathered for the siege; or, according to the Septuagint, what you had sown, that is, what remained trampled in the fields. And in the second year, while he remained in Egypt (for he stayed there through the year), because you will gather nothing when you have sown nothing, eat fruits, or things that spring of themselves, as in 2 Kings 19:29, and in this second year Assyria will be destroyed; and thus, in the third year, you will be able to sow and gather freely. Or, according to Andrew, this is counsel, and to you this shall be a sign refers to the preceding.

Here he sets out the fruit of the destruction of their enemies, setting out a similitude of a tree, which bears much fruit if it sends out roots in the earth: and he shall be as a tree that is planted by the waters, that spreads out its roots towards moisture (Jer 17:8).

He sets out the explanation of the similitude: for out of Jerusalem, below: I will give salvation in Zion (Isa 46:12); and he assigns the reason: the zeal of the Lord of hosts shall do this, above (Isa 9:7) has the same thing.

(Verse 33, 34.) Therefore, thus says the Lord about the king of Assyria: He shall not enter this city, nor shoot an arrow there, nor come before it with a shield, nor build siege works against it. By the way that he came, by the same he shall return, and he shall not enter this city, says the Lord. I will defend this city and save it for my own sake and for the sake of my servant David. It turns back to its purpose and dispels present fear after the hope of future things. For there was not so much joy upon the things which she had promised would come after a long time, as there was care for the impending. But what she says about Assyria returning and not lifting up a shield against Jerusalem, not shooting arrows, nor that the city should be fortified with walls and a rampart, and that the enemy would return by the way he had come, and that the city should be freed from the present siege, and finally she brings forth: for my sake and for the sake of my servant David, this signifies that they are preserved not by their own merit, but by the clemency of God, indeed by the memory of their father David. In which both his own negligence and that person's trustworthiness and justice are admonished, because God loves justice to such an extent that he protects even the descendants of holy men, not by their own merit, but by the virtue of their ancestors.

Here he promises liberation: he shall not come into this city, as he intended, above: take counsel together, and it shall be defeated: speak a word, and it shall not be done (Isa 8:10).

And he assigns the reason: and I will protect this city for my own sake, below: for my own sake will I do it (Isa 48:11), and for the sake of David: for your servant David's sake (Ps 131[132]:10).

(Vrs. 36 seqq.) However, the Angel of God went out and struck down in the Assyrian camp 185,000 men; and when they arose in the morning, behold, all the dead bodies. Then Sennacherib king of Assyria departed and returned to Nineveh, and he lived there. And it came about as he was worshiping in the temple of Nesrach 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. One hundred and eighty-five thousand brave men are killed by one Angel in one night, and the cruel death of the slain runs rampant without wounds, by the will of God, separating the souls from their bodies. On this, it is written in the Chronicles: And the Lord sent an Angel, who struck down every strong man, warrior, and prince of the army of the king of Assyria: and he returned with disgrace to his own land (2 Chronicles 32:24). He was saved for this reason, so that he would know the power of God and silence the blasphemous mouths: and he became a witness of that majesty, which he had recently condemned. And what he experienced: And they rose in the morning, whether Israelites or the rest of his armies, let us accept: although it is written in the Book of Kings, that when the king himself rose in the morning, he saw all the bodies of the dead (3 Kings 19). Pharaoh also suffered ten plagues in Egypt, so that he might perish in the end: which this person is also going to suffer. For when he returned to the city of Nineveh, the capital of his kingdom, and worshipped in the temple of his god Nesrach, as if he had achieved victory over his enemies, and walked triumphantly and joyfully in the shrine of his false deity, the despiser of the true God is killed in the temple of the false god. It was not the sword that was the weapon of the Angels, which was common to many, but the parricide of his sons. When they fled to the land of Ararat, which is known as Armenia, Asaraddon succeeded his father, whom the Scripture testifies sent inhabitants to Samaria so that the land would not remain uncultivated. But the region of Ararat in Armenia is a plain through which the Araxes River flows, of incredible fertility, near the foothills of the Taurus mountain, which extends all the way there. Therefore, the Ark in which Noah was saved with his children, when the Flood ceased, was not taken to the mountains of Armenia in general, which are called Ararat, but to the highest peaks of the Taurus mountain, which tower over the plains of Ararat.

A brother asked Antony, "What shall I do for my sins?" He replied, "He who desires to be freed from his sins will be freed from them by tears and weeping. He who wishes to be strengthened in virtues will be strengthened by weeping and tears. The very praise of the Psalms is mourning. Remember the example of Hezekiah, king of Judah, as it is written in the prophet Isaiah, who by weeping not only recovered his health but won an increase of life for fifteen years." By the outpouring of his tears, the strength of the Lord brought to death the advancing army of the enemy, even 185,000.

Here he sets out the punishment which Sennacherib sustained from God. First, as to the slaughter of his army: and slew, above: at the voice of the angel the people fled (Isa 33:3).

Second, as to the confusion and flight of those who were left: and they arose in the morning, above: there shall be trouble: the morning shall come, and he shall not be (Isa 17:14).

Third, as to the slaying of Sennacherib himself: and it came to pass, as he was worshipping . . . that Adramelech and Sarasar, his firstborn sons, who were envious of their younger brother, who was born of another mother, and whom they wished to supplant. And thus the just shall escape out of distress (Prov 12:13).