Verses 11-13
11-13. Then said Elliakim… Shebna… Joah The alarm of Hezekiah’s officers is now aroused, and they are thrown off their guard. It is singular that they had not seen the trick before. They could understand Aramaic, the language of Rabshakeh, which the hearers on the wall could not. Possibly this dialect was the court language, as the surrounding civil relations required a common language for diplomatic intercourse.
Hath my master sent me to thy master The suspected intent is now avowed, and Rabshakeh demonstrates his sole interest with the people by straightening up and speaking louder, after having pictured to them the disgusting results of a prospective siege and famine. The repeated use of the king’s name the great king, the king of Assyria shows to the people his own ambassadorship, and they realize a direct authority in his words. But Hezekiah is contemptuously never mentioned as king. The aim is to inspire in the people a like contempt. In the person of Rabshakeh “the great king” speaks now.
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