So the servants of King Hezekiah went to Isaiah, So the servants of King HezekiahThis phrase introduces the key figures in this narrative: the servants of King Hezekiah. The Hebrew word for "servants" is "עֲבָדִים" (avadim), which can also mean "slaves" or "attendants." In the context of ancient Israel, these were trusted officials or messengers who carried out the king's commands. Hezekiah, the king of Judah, was a righteous ruler who sought to follow the ways of the Lord, as seen in 2 Kings 18:3-6. His reliance on his servants to communicate with the prophet Isaiah demonstrates his humility and recognition of the need for divine guidance in times of crisis. went to Isaiah
The action of going to Isaiah signifies a deliberate and purposeful movement towards seeking divine counsel. Isaiah, whose name in Hebrew is "יְשַׁעְיָהוּ" (Yeshayahu), meaning "Yahweh is salvation," was a major prophet during the reign of Hezekiah. His role as a prophet was to be the mouthpiece of God, delivering messages of both judgment and hope. The historical context here is crucial: Judah was under threat from the Assyrian empire, and Hezekiah's decision to send his servants to Isaiah reflects his faith in God's power to deliver His people. This act of seeking out Isaiah underscores the importance of turning to God and His prophets for wisdom and guidance, especially in times of national distress. It serves as an inspirational reminder for believers to seek God's direction through prayer and His Word when faced with challenges. Persons / Places / Events 1. King HezekiahThe king of Judah during a time of great threat from the Assyrian Empire. He is known for his faithfulness to God and his efforts to reform the religious practices of Judah. 2. IsaiahA major prophet in the Old Testament, Isaiah served as a spiritual advisor to King Hezekiah. He is known for his prophecies concerning both immediate events and the coming of the Messiah. 3. Servants of King HezekiahThese are the messengers sent by Hezekiah to seek counsel from the prophet Isaiah during a crisis. 4. Assyrian ThreatThe context of this verse is the impending invasion by the Assyrian army, led by King Sennacherib, which posed a significant threat to Jerusalem and Judah. 5. JerusalemThe capital city of Judah, which was under threat from the Assyrian forces. It is a central location in the account of 2 Kings. Teaching Points Seeking Godly CounselHezekiah's decision to send his servants to Isaiah highlights the importance of seeking godly counsel in times of crisis. In our lives, we should prioritize seeking wisdom from those who are spiritually mature and grounded in Scripture. Faith in ActionHezekiah's actions demonstrate faith in action. He did not rely solely on his own understanding or military might but turned to God through His prophet. This teaches us to trust in God's guidance and intervention in our challenges. The Role of ProphetsIsaiah's role as a prophet underscores the importance of listening to God's messengers. Today, we have the complete Word of God in the Bible, and we should be attentive to its teachings and guidance. God's SovereigntyThe context of this verse reminds us of God's sovereignty over nations and events. Despite the overwhelming threat, God was in control, and Hezekiah's faith was not misplaced. We can trust in God's ultimate authority over our circumstances. Bible Study Questions 1. How does Hezekiah's response to the Assyrian threat challenge us to respond to crises in our own lives? 2. In what ways can we seek godly counsel today, and who are the "Isaiahs" in our lives? 3. How does the account of Hezekiah and Isaiah encourage us to trust in God's sovereignty, even when situations seem dire? 4. What parallels can we draw between Hezekiah's faith and the teachings of Jesus in the New Testament about faith and reliance on God? 5. How can we apply the lessons from Hezekiah's interaction with Isaiah to our prayer life and decision-making processes? Connections to Other Scriptures 2 Kings 18Provides the background of the Assyrian threat and Hezekiah's initial response, setting the stage for the events of chapter 19. Isaiah 37A parallel account of the same events, offering additional insights into the interactions between Hezekiah and Isaiah. Psalm 46Often associated with this period, it reflects themes of God's protection and deliverance in times of trouble. 2 Chronicles 32Offers another perspective on Hezekiah's reign and the Assyrian threat, emphasizing God's deliverance. People Adrammelech, Amoz, Assyrians, David, Eliakim, Esarhaddon, Haran, Hezekiah, Isaiah, Rabshakeh, Sennacherib, Sharezer, Shebna, TirhakahPlaces Ararat, Arpad, Assyria, Cush, Egypt, Gozan, Hamath, Haran, Hena, Ivvah, Jerusalem, Lachish, Lebanon, Libnah, Mount Zion, Nineveh, Rezeph, Sepharvaim, Telassar, Tigris-Euphrates Region, ZionTopics Hezekiah, Hezeki'ah, Isaiah, Officials, ServantsDictionary of Bible Themes 2 Kings 19:4 1080 God, living
7145 remnant
8817 ridicule, objects of 2 Kings 19:3-4 4921 day Library 'He Uttered his Voice, the Earth Melted'
'Then Isaiah the son of Amos sent to Hezekiah, saying, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, That which thou hast prayed to Me against Sennacherib king of Assyria I have heard. 21. This is the word that the Lord hath spoken concerning him; The virgin, the daughter of Zion, hath despised thee, and laughed thee to scorn; the daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee. 22. Whom hast thou reproached and blasphemed? and against whom hast thou exalted thy voice, and lifted up thine eyes on high? even …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy ScriptureThe Invasion of the Assyrians
(Thirteenth Sunday after Trinity, Morning.) 2 Kings xix. 15-19. And Hezekiah prayed before the Lord, and said, O Lord God of Israel, which dwellest between the cherubims, thou art the Lord, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; thou hast made heaven and earth. Lord, bow down thine ear, and hear: open, Lord, thine eyes, and see: and hear the words of Sennacherib, which hath sent him to reproach the living God. Of a truth, Lord, the kings of Assyria have destroyed the nations and their …
Charles Kingsley—Town and Country Sermons Whether Charity Requires that we Should Love Our Enemies?
Objection 1: It would seem that charity does not require us to love our enemies. For Augustine says (Enchiridion lxxiii) that "this great good," namely, the love of our enemies, is "not so universal in its application, as the object of our petition when we say: Forgive us our trespasses." Now no one is forgiven sin without he have charity, because, according to Prov. 10:12, "charity covereth all sins." Therefore charity does not require that we should love our enemies. Objection 2: Further, charity …
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica The Sinner Arraigned and Convicted.
1. Conviction of guilt necessary.--2. A charge of rebellion against God advanced.--3. Where it is shown--that all men are born under God's law.--4. That no man hath perfectly kept it.--5. An appeal to the reader's conscience on this head, that he hath not.--6. That to have broken it, is an evil inexpressibly great.--7. Illustrated by a more particular view of the aggravations of this guilt, arising--from knowledge.--8. From divine favors received.--9. From convictions of conscience overborne.--10. …
Philip Doddridge—The Rise and Progress of Religion in the Soul The Power of Assyria at Its Zenith; Esarhaddon and Assur-Bani-Pal
The Medes and Cimmerians: Lydia--The conquest of Egypt, of Arabia, and of Elam. As we have already seen, Sennacherib reigned for eight years after his triumph; eight years of tranquillity at home, and of peace with all his neighbours abroad. If we examine the contemporary monuments or the documents of a later period, and attempt to glean from them some details concerning the close of his career, we find that there is a complete absence of any record of national movement on the part of either Elam, …
G. Maspero—History Of Egypt, Chaldaea, Syria, Babylonia, and Assyria, V 8 The Golden Eagle is Cut to Pieces. Herod's Barbarity when He was Ready to Die. He Attempts to Kill Himself. He Commands Antipater to be Slain.
1. Now Herod's distemper became more and more severe to him, and this because these his disorders fell upon him in his old age, and when he was in a melancholy condition; for he was already seventy years of age, and had been brought by the calamities that happened to him about his children, whereby he had no pleasure in life, even when he was in health; the grief also that Antipater was still alive aggravated his disease, whom he resolved to put to death now not at random, but as soon as he should …
Flavius Josephus—The Wars of the Jews or History of the Destruction of Jerusalem A Discourse of the House and Forest of Lebanon
OF THE HOUSE OF THE FOREST OF LEBANON. ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. That part of Palestine in which the celebrated mountains of Lebanon are situated, is the border country adjoining Syria, having Sidon for its seaport, and Land, nearly adjoining the city of Damascus, on the north. This metropolitan city of Syria, and capital of the kingdom of Damascus, was strongly fortified; and during the border conflicts it served as a cover to the Assyrian army. Bunyan, with great reason, supposes that, to keep …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3 It is Strange that These Delightful Promises Affect us Coldly...
It is strange that these delightful promises affect us coldly, or scarcely at all, so that the generality of men prefer to wander up and down, forsaking the fountain of living waters, and hewing out to themselves broken cisterns, rather than embrace the divine liberality voluntarily offered to them (Jer. 2:13). "The name of the Lord," says Solomon, "is a strong tower; the righteous runneth into it, and is safe." (Pr. 18:10) Joel, after predicting the fearful disaster which was at hand, subjoins the …
John Calvin—Of Prayer--A Perpetual Exercise of Faith Scriptural Types.
1. The material world is full of analogies adapted to the illustration of spiritual things. No teacher ever drew from this inexhaustible storehouse such a rich variety of examples as our Saviour. His disciples are the salt of the earth, the light of the world, and a city set on a hill. From the ravens which God feeds and the lilies which God clothes, he teaches the unreasonableness of worldly anxiety. The kingdom of heaven is like seed sown in different soils, like a field of wheat and tares …
E. P. Barrows—Companion to the Bible Letter xxviii (Circa A. D. 1130) to the Abbots Assembled at Soissons
To the Abbots Assembled at Soissons [45] Bernard urges the abbots zealously to perform the duty for which they had met. He recommends to them a great desire of spiritual progress, and begs them not to be delayed in their work if lukewarm and lax persons should perhaps murmur. To the Reverend Abbots met in the name of the Lord in Chapter at Soissons, brother Bernard, Abbot of Clairvaux, the servant of their Holiness, health and prayer that they may see, establish, and observe the things which are …
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux—Some Letters of Saint Bernard, Abbot of Clairvaux A Living Book
[Illustration: (drop cap T) Symbol of "Asshur", the principal Assyrian idol.] There is only one Book that never grows old. For thousands of years men have been writing books. Most books are forgotten soon after they are written; a few of the best and wisest are remembered for a time. But all at last grow old; new discoveries are made; new ideas arise; the old books are out of date; their usefulness is at an end. Students are the only people who still care to read them. The nations to which the …
Mildred Duff—The Bible in its Making The First Commandment
Thou shalt have no other gods before me.' Exod 20: 3. Why is the commandment in the second person singular, Thou? Why does not God say, You shall have no other gods? Because the commandment concerns every one, and God would have each one take it as spoken to him by name. Though we are forward to take privileges to ourselves, yet we are apt to shift off duties from ourselves to others; therefore the commandment is in the second person, Thou and Thou, that every one may know that it is spoken to him, …
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments The Prophet Amos.
GENERAL PRELIMINARY REMARKS. It will not be necessary to extend our preliminary remarks on the prophet Amos, since on the main point--viz., the circumstances under which he appeared as a prophet--the introduction to the prophecies of Hosea may be regarded as having been written for those of Amos also. For, according to the inscription, they belong to the same period at which Hosea's prophetic ministry began, viz., the latter part of the reign of Jeroboam II., and after Uzziah had ascended the …
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament Kings
The book[1] of Kings is strikingly unlike any modern historical narrative. Its comparative brevity, its curious perspective, and-with some brilliant exceptions--its relative monotony, are obvious to the most cursory perusal, and to understand these things is, in large measure, to understand the book. It covers a period of no less than four centuries. Beginning with the death of David and the accession of Solomon (1 Kings i., ii.) it traverses his reign with considerable fulness (1 Kings iii.-xi.), …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links 2 Kings 19:5 NIV2 Kings 19:5 NLT2 Kings 19:5 ESV2 Kings 19:5 NASB2 Kings 19:5 KJV
2 Kings 19:5 Commentaries
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