Isaiah 36:1 says, Now it came to pass in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah, that Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the defenced cities of Judah, and took them. Matthew Henry says that in this chapter and the next three that Isaiah is more of a historian than a prophet, but that scripture history as well as biblical prophecy were given by divine inspiration. He also says that the reminder of this time in their history and the fulfillment of God’s prophesy then might serve to inspire them to believe in His prophesy now. I do know the fact that we can look back to the faithfulness of God in the past should inspire us to put our faith in His promises today. Isaiah starts with the time when Sennacherib came to fight against Judah.
Verse two adds, And the king of Assyria sent Rabshakeh from Lachish to Jerusalem unto king Hezekiah with a great army. And he stood by the conduit of the upper pool in the highway of the fuller's field. Hezekiah was reforming Judah, but Sennacherib still came to try and defeat them, and he was successful to a degree. Even if we are working to reform our relationship with God, we are not immune to attacks from the enemy, Satan, and those who follow him. We might even be more susceptible to his attacks, but he will never defeat us completely if we are a born-again child of God, even if we have strayed away from God’s will.
Verse three continues, Then came forth unto him Eliakim, Hilkiah's son, which was over the house, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah, Asaph's son, the recorder. Isaiah said that God’s priests and scribe came to speak with Rabshakeh, Sennacherib’s spokesman, who had a great army with him. We may find ourselves confronted with powerful enemies as Christians, and we should never be afraid to meet with them to discuss our faith in God.
Verse four states, And Rabshakeh said unto them, Say ye now to Hezekiah, Thus saith the great king, the king of Assyria, What confidence is this wherein thou trustest? Rabshakeh was sent to Hezekiah with a message or a question more precisely. He was to ask Hezekiah on behalf of the great king of Assyria how much confidence he had in the One that he trusted. Rabshakeh was boasting about the power of Assyria which had already taken several cities of Judah and was trying to plant doubt in the mind of Hezekiah. It is not unusual for people today to question Christians about Who they are putting their faith in when things are going badly, but we can never lose faith in Him.
Verse five adds, I say, sayest thou, (but they are but vain words) I have counsel and strength for war: now on whom dost thou trust, that thou rebellest against me? Rabshakeh said that when Hezekiah said that he had faith in God that he was speaking vain words, because God could not defeat Assyria. He implied that Hezakiah was foolish to rely on God. More and more in the world today, there are powerful countries who think that God, if He exists at all, is powerless against them. Some even deny people the right to proclaim that God exists, but as followers of Christ, we can never allow fear to keep us from putting our faith in Him.
Verse six continues, Lo, thou trustest in the staff of this broken reed, on Egypt; whereon if a man lean, it will go into his hand, and pierce it: so is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all that trust in him. Rabshakeh said Hezekiah was putting his faith in Egypt, which was like a broken reed and would be of no help to him, but Hezekiah was really putting his faith in God. The enemies of God may try to get us to believe that everyone we depend on for protection is powerless against them, but as Christians, our faith must always be in God and not other people, and God will never be defeated. Even if we were to be imprisoned, like Paul often was, or killed for our faith like many of the early disciples were, God is still forever the victor and so are we spiritually if we remain faithful to Him.
Verse seven states, But if thou say to me, We trust in the Lord our God: is it not he, whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah hath taken away, and said to Judah and to Jerusalem, Ye shall worship before this altar? Rabshakeh then said if they said they trusted in the Lord, had not Hezekiah taken away their high places and altars. These were false places of worship and altars that were not dedicated to God, so they needed to be removed so the people could return to worshipping God sincerely. There may be things in the lives of Christians today that we need to remove because they have become more important to us than God is, but as long as our faith is in God, no matter how badly life may be going, God will never fail us. Nothing or no one should ever cause us to question God’s power to save us.
Verse eight adds, Now therefore give pledges, I pray thee, to my master the king of Assyria, and I will give thee two thousand horses, if thou be able on thy part to set riders upon them. Rabshakeh then asked Hezekiah to put his faith in his master and if he did, he would give him two thousand horses, if Hezekiah could supply riders for them. We can never be tempted by promises of material wealth and power if we are going to live successful Christian lives. The people of the world will do their best to get us to doubt God and put our faith in some other source of strength, but we never can if we are going to live successful lives in God’s sight.
Verse nine continues. How then wilt thou turn away the face of one captain of the least of my master's servants, and put thy trust on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen? Rabshakeh then asked how Hezekiah could put his faith in Egypt and come up against his master. He was continuing to brag about Assyria and to put down the power of God. Some countries today love to brag about their power even as they deny the power of God, but we as followers of Christ should not be afraid of them. God is still the One with all the power.
Verse ten concludes, 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. Rabshakeh then said he was coming in the name of the Lord to destroy Judah. Matthew Henry says it is easy for those who oppose God to claim to come in His name as they work to defeat Christians. We just need to make sure that we are not in that group, claiming to serve God while all the time opposing what His word teaches.
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