Behold, thou hast heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands, by destroying them utterly (see the comment on 2 Kings 18:33 ). The fact was indisputable (secret. 17). The question remained—Would this triumphant career of success necessarily continue? And shalt thou be delivered? A perfect induction is impossible in practical matters. Anything short of a perfect induction is short of a proof. read more
Have the gods of the nations delivered them which my fathers have destroyed? The Assyrian kings always speak of all their predecessors as their ancestors. In point of fact, Sennacherib bad had only one "father" among the previous kings, viz. Sargon. As Gozan (see the comment on 2 Kings 17:6 ). It is uncertain at what time Gozan was finally conquered and absorbed. It was frequently overrun by the Assyrians from the reign of Tiglath-pileser I.; but it was probably not absorbed until about... read more
Where is the King of Hamath. Ilu-bid, King of Hamath, raised a rebellion against Sargon in B.C. 720, and was taken prisoner the same year and carried to Assyria. And the King of Arpad. Arpad revolted in conjunction with Hamath, and was reduced about the same time. Its "king" is not mentioned, but he probably shared the fate of Ilu-bid. And the King of the city of Sepharvaim, of Hens, and Ivah? It is probably not meant that these three cities were all of them under the dominion of one and... read more
Tirhakah king of Ethiopia - The Tehrak or Teharka of the hieroglyphics. He was the last king of the 25th or Ethiopian dynasty, which commenced with Shebek or Sabaco, and he reigned upward of 26 years. The Assyrian inscriptions show that he still ruled in Egypt as late as 667 B.C., when Esarhaddon 2 Kings 19:37 died, and his son Asshur-bani-pal succeeded him. He probably ascended the Egyptian throne about 692 B.C., having previously ruled over Ethiopia before he became king of Egypt (compare... read more
All lands - This boast is in strict accordance with the general tenor of the Assyrian inscriptions. Hyperbole is the general language of the East; but in this instance it was not so extreme as in some others. The Assyrians under Sargon and Sennacherib had enjoyed an uninterrupted series of military successes: they had succeeded in establishing their pre-eminence from the Median desert to the banks of the Nile, and from the shores of Lake Van to those of the Persian Gulf. read more
Haran - Harran, the Carrhae of the Greeks and Romans Genesis 11:31, was among the earliest conquests of the Assyrians; being subject to them from the 12th century. Its conquest would have naturally followed that of Gozan (Gauzanitis, 2 Kings 17:6), which lay between it and Assyria proper.Rezeph - Probably the Rozappa of the Assyrian inscriptions, a city in the neighborhood of Haran.The children of Eden - Or, “the Beni-Eden,” who appear from the Assyrian inscriptions to have inhabited the... read more
Compare the marginal reference 2 Kings 17:24. 2 Kings 19:12 refers to former Assyrian successes, 2 Kings 19:13 to comparatively recent ones. read more
2 Kings 19:9. He heard say of Tirhakah, king of Ethiopia, &c. Probably of Ethiopia beyond Egypt. For Josephus affirms that the Egyptians (against whom, according to Herodotus and Berosus, this Sennacherib warred) and Ethiopians were confederates in this expedition. It is most likely he was the same with the Sabaco of Herodotus. See Universal Hist., vol. 4, p. 321. He sent messengers again unto Hezekiah It is probable the king of Assyria thought by this message to terrify Hezekiah... read more
2 Kings 19:10-11. Thus shall ye speak to Hezekiah That is, these things shall ye communicate; for they did not signify them by word of mouth, but in writing. Let not thy God, in whom thou trustest, deceive thee Rab- shakeh had said to the people, Let not Hezekiah deceive you. Sennacherib writes to Hezekiah, Let not thy God deceive thee. Those who have the God of Jacob for their help, and whose hope is in the Lord their God, need not fear being deceived by him, as the heathen were by... read more
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The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Kings 19:10
Thus shall ye speak to Hezekiah King of Judah, saying. The messengers brought a "letter" ( סְפָדִים ), as we see from 2 Kings 19:14 ; but still they were to "speak to Hezekiah"— i.e. they were first to read the contents to him, and then to hand him the copy. Let not thy God in whom thou trustest deceive thee, saying, Jerusalem shall not be delivered into the hand of the King of Assyria. Sennacherib drops the fiction that he himself is sent by Jehovah to attack Judaea and destroy it... read more