1. Sennacherib, king of Assyria from 705-681 BC, launched a military campaign against various cities in Judah, capturing many of them, after Hezekiah revolted against Assyrian control. 2. Sennacherib's general Rabshakeh threatened Jerusalem, but Hezekiah prayed to God for deliverance. 3. God delivered Jerusalem by destroying the Assyrian army, killing 185,000 soldiers in one night. However, Sennacherib claimed in his own records that Hezekiah submitted to him and paid tribute.

1. SennacheribsDefeat
Tiglath-Pileser (745-727)
Ahaz arranged for protection and became tributary to
Assyria.
Shalmaneser (727-722)
The last king of Israel Hoshea revolted against
Shalmaneser and was put under siege in 724 until…
Samara fell 722 and Israel is deported.
Sargon (722-705)
In 713 Sargon goes against Egypt the instigatorof rebellion
in the region. (Hezekiah has refused to join Egypt so was
exempted from the wrath of Sargon at this time).
Sennacherib (705-681)
Son of Sargon
Merodach-Baladan, had been driven out of Babylonin 708
by Sargon and decided to test the water with Sennacherib
and returns to Babylon 705.
Hezekiah in Jerusalem revolts at the same time against the
Assyrian control and this becomes the most famous
conflict for Sennacherib and Juda.

2. The Egyptiansconquered by Sargon in 710 also decide 705
is a good time for revolt.
One year after Sennacheribcomes to power, in 704,
Hezekiah becomes terminallyill but is miraculouslyhealed
(Isa 38).
With his new life extension of 15yrs Hezekiah seems to
lose proper estimation of God as the one to whom he
owes his every breath.
703 Merodach-Baladan(Isa 39) in need of a friendly nation
sends congratulationto Hezekiah on his recovery.
Isa 39:1-2
1 At that time Merodachbaladan, the son of
Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a
present to Hezekiah: for he had heard that he
had been sick, and was recovered.
2 And Hezekiah was glad of them, and shewed
them the house of his precious things, the silver,
and the gold, and the spices, and the precious
ointment, and all the house of his armour, and all
that was found in his treasures: there was
nothing in his house, nor in all his dominion, that
Hezekiah shewed them not.
Rather than praise God as the healer Hezekiah gives a
guided tour of his wealth. (To which Isaiah informs

3. Hezekiah that Babylonis the soon to be scourge of the
earth and know they know how to fund their exploits.
Nebuchadnezzarwill the king of Babylonwhen this takes
place.)
Isa 39:5-8
5 Then said Isaiah to Hezekiah, Hear the word of
the LORD of hosts:
6 Behold, the days come, that all that is in thine
house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in
store until this day, shall be carried to Babylon:
nothing shall be left, saith the LORD.
7 And of thy sons that shall issue from thee,
which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and
they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of
Babylon.
8 Then said Hezekiah to Isaiah, Good is the word
of the LORD which thou hast spoken. He said
moreover, For there shall be peace and truth in
my days.
702 Sennacheribdrives out Merodach-Baladan onceagain.
701 Sennacheribbegins his Syrian campaign. He captures
Phoenicia,Syria and many cities of Juda then moves south
and laid siege to Lachish. (Lachish is south of Jerusalem
and north of Egypt, this would cut off Egyptian

4. interference in his battle against Jerusalem). Lachish does
fall and Sennacherib addsto the no man’s land by also
taking Libnah.
701 When Sennacheribtakes Lachish Hezekiah decides to
pay the tribute to buy peace “in our time”. Sennacherib is
fine with taking this money, but it doesn’t change his
battle plan.
2Kgs 18:13-16
13 Now in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah
did Sennacherib king of Assyria come up against
all the fenced cities of Judah, and took them.
14 And Hezekiah king of Judah sent to the king
of Assyria to Lachish, saying, I have offended;
return from me: that which thou puttest on me
will I bear. And the king of Assyria appointed
unto Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred
talents of silver and thirty talents of gold.
15 And Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was
found in the house of the LORD, and in the
treasures of the king's house.
16 At that time did Hezekiah cut off the gold from
the doors of the temple of the LORD, and from
the pillars which Hezekiah king of Judah had
overlaid, and gave it to the king of Assyria.

5. (Shebiktu, the ruler of Northern Egypt sends for help from
Tirhakah king of Ethiopia).
Isa 37:9-10
9 And he heard say concerning Tirhakah king of
Ethiopia, He is come forth to make war with thee.
And when he heard it, he sent messengers to
Hezekiah, saying,
10 Thus shall ye speak to Hezekiah king of Judah,
saying, Let not thy God, in whom thou trustest,
deceive thee, saying, Jerusalem shall not be given
into the hand of the king of Assyria.
Sennacherib hears of Shebiktue buildingup
reinforcements and thinkingthey are coming to aid
Jerusalem he sends a military general Rabshakah to
threaten Jerusalem (Isa 37-38).
They mocked Jerusalem by saying Egypt is a vain thing to
trust for help it’s like a reed that if a man leans on will
pierce his hand. I could fight you with one hand tied
behindmy back, tell you what I’ll give you 2,000 horses if
you could even find 2,000 men to put on them and even
my worst soldierscould still wipe you off the face of the
earth.
Sennacheribsends a letter declaring the end for Hezekiah.
2Kgs 19:11-16

6. 11 Behold, thou hast heard what the kings of
Assyria have done to all lands, by destroying
them utterly: and shalt thou be delivered?
History
12 Have the gods of the nations delivered them
which my fathers have destroyed; as Gozan, and
Haran, and Rezeph, and the children of Eden
which were in Thelasar?
13 Where is the king of Hamath, and the king of
Arpad, and the king of the city of Sepharvaim, of
Hena, and Ivah? Mystery
14 And Hezekiah received the letter of the hand
of the messengers, and read it: and Hezekiah
went up into the house of the LORD, and spread
it before the LORD.
15 And Hezekiah prayed before the LORD, and
said, O LORD God of Israel, which dwellest
between the cherubims, thou art the God, even
thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; thou
hast made heaven and earth. Majesty
16 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. Mercy
Sennacherib’sArmy is Destroyed:

7. 2Kgs 19:32-36
32 Therefore thus saith the LORD concerning the
king of Assyria, He shall not come into this city,
nor shoot an arrow there, nor come before it with
shield, nor cast a bank against it.
33 By the way that he came, by the same shall he
return, and shall not come into this city, saith the
LORD.
34 For I will defend this city, to save it, for mine
own sake, and for my servant David's sake.
35 And it came to pass that night, that the angel
of the LORD went out, and smote in the camp of
the Assyrians an hundred fourscore and five
thousand: and when they arose early in the
morning, behold, they were all dead corpses.
36 So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, and
went and returned, and dwelt at Nineveh.
The false news reports:
From Sennacherib’sprism (on display at the British
Museum):
A 6-sided report of Sennacherib’swars.
“Because Hezekiah, king of Judah,would not submit to my
yoke, I came up against him and by force of arms and by
the might of my power I took 46 of his strong fenced

8. cities…I shut up Jerusalem, his capitalcity, like a bird in a
cage… Then upon Hezekiah there fell the fear of the power
of my arms, and he sent out to me the chiefs and elders…
with 30 talentsof gold and 800 talents of silver and diverse
treasures… All these things were brought to me at
Nineveh,the seat of my government”
Herodotus (484-435 BC):
A historian who received his account from the Egyptians
300 yrs after the face from Egyptian priests.
"During the night a horde of field mice gnawed quivers
and their bows and the handlesof shields, with the result
that many were killed, fleeing unarmed the next day" -
Herodotus 2.141
Jospehus (37-100 AD):
“When Senacheirimosreturned to Jerusalem from his war
with Egypt, he found there the force under Rapsakes in
danger from a plague, for God had visited a pestilential
sickness upon his army, and on the first night of the siege
one hundredand eighty-five thousand men had perished
with their commanders and officers” - Jospehus, Ja.
10.17.21