Isaiah 36:10 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Moreover, is it without the Lord that I have come up against this land to destroy it? The Lord said to me, "Go up against this land and destroy it."’"

NIV: Furthermore, have I come to attack and destroy this land without the Lord? The Lord himself told me to march against this country and destroy it.’ "

NASB: And have I now come up without the Lord’s approval against this land to destroy it? The Lord said to me, 'Go up against this land and destroy it.'?’?'

CSB: Have I attacked this land to destroy it without the Lord’s approval? The Lord said to me, ‘Attack this land and destroy it.’"

NLT: What’s more, do you think we have invaded your land without the Lord’s direction? The Lord himself told us, ‘Attack this land and destroy it!’'

KJV: And am I now come up without the Lord against this land to destroy it? the Lord said unto me, Go up against this land, and destroy it.

NKJV: Have I now come up without the Lord against this land to destroy it? The Lord said to me, ‘Go up against this land, and destroy it.’ ”

Sennacherib, King of Assyria, has sent an advisor, called Rabshaqeh, to meet with officials of Judah to taunt them before demanding surrender. The spokesman mocked Hezekiah's choice to trust unreliable Egypt for protection (Isaiah 30:1–3). He sneered at any thought that the Lord God of Israel could be trusted to defeat the Assyrian army. He has even offered to give 2,000 war horses to Judah if they can produce enough men to ride them, knowing they cannot.

Now the Assyrain claims that Israel's Lord—the God of Judah—sent him to destroy Judah and Jerusalem. In other words, he claims that their deity is on his side. Sennacherib wants Jerusalem to lose all hope in the Lord to save them from the Assyrians.

Sennacherib's claim is not true, at least in the sense that he does not really believe what he says. It's doubtful that Sennacherib, the Rabshakeh, or any other Assyrian believed in Israel's Lord, at all. However, there was some truth in the claim. Isaiah himself wrote this about an earlier Assyrian king's attack against the ten tribes of Israel:

"Against a godless nation I send him, and against the people of my wrath I command him, to take spoil and seize plunder, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets. But he does not so intend, and his heart does not so think" (Isaiah 10:6–7).

Also, through Isaiah, God had warned that the foolish alliance with Egypt would result in destruction. Yet Isaiah also prophesied that God would spare Jerusalem (Isaiah 30:19). Sennacherib and his minions go too far in claiming to be the Lord's tool to destroy the remnant of the Lord's people sheltered in the city.

Isaiah 36:4–10 is the Assyrian king's message to Jerusalem, delivered by a royal commander or "Rabshakeh." The spokesman mocks Israel for trying to ally with Egypt, who is now defeated. He sneers at the idea of Israel's God having power. He even dares to give Israel 2,000 war horses if they have men to ride them, which they do not. The Assyrian even claims that it was Israel's God who sent him there in the first place.

Sennacherib and the Assyrian army conquer all of Judah except for Jerusalem. There, a remnant of the people waits inside the walls. Sennacherib sends a messenger to meet with Hezekiah's officials. The messenger taunts Hezekiah, mocking their attempts at alliances as well as their faith in God. This commander, also called "the Rabshakeh" calls out in the local Hebrew language so everyone will understand. He offers life and prosperity to those who surrender now. In his opinion, none of the gods of any of the nations the Assyrians have defeated were able to stop them. So why will the Lord God of Israel be any different?

Isaiah 36 shifts from poetic prophecies to the historical account of an Assyrian army's threats against Judah. Sennacherib's army conquers everything in Judah other except for Jerusalem. An Assyrian messenger taunts the people and tells them that no gods have stopped Assyria yet, so they shouldn't trust in Judah's God, either. Diplomats return to King Hezekiah in Jerusalem with this news. Hezekiah will seek help from Isaiah, pray to God, and receive a spectacular miraculous rescue (Isaiah 37).

Isaiah is among the most important prophetic books in the entire Bible. The first segment details God's impending judgment against ancient peoples for sin and idolatry (Isaiah 1—35). The second part of Isaiah briefly explains a failed assault on Jerusalem during the rule of Hezekiah (Isaiah 36—39). The final chapters predict Israel's rescue from Babylonian captivity (Isaiah 40—48), the promised Messiah (Isaiah 49—57), and the final glory of Jerusalem and God's people (Isaiah 58—66).