Log inSign up

2 Kings 18 · a question people ask

Rabshakeh says, "The LORD said to me, ‘Go up against this land, and destroy it.’" (18:25). Was he telling the truth?

In the text

2 Kings 18 gives his words and doesn't say. He asks, "Have I now come up without the LORD against this place to destroy it?" (18:25), and answers, "The LORD said to me, ‘Go up against this land, and destroy it.’" (18:25). The chapter adds nothing. In the next chapter the LORD speaks through Isaiah, and two things are said there. "Don’t be afraid of the words that you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me" (19:6). And to the king of Assyria: "Haven’t you heard how I have done it long ago, and formed it of ancient times? Now I have brought it to pass, that it should be yours to lay waste fortified cities into ruinous heaps" (19:25). Those verses are set beside 18:25 here, and nothing is added to join them.

The verses

“Have I now come up without the LORD against this place to destroy it? The LORD said to me, ‘Go up against this land, and destroy it.’”’””
2 Kings 18:25 · World English Bible
“Isaiah said to them, “Tell your master this: ‘The LORD says, “Don’t be afraid of the words that you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me.”
2 Kings 19:6 · World English Bible
“Haven’t you heard how I have done it long ago, and formed it of ancient times? Now I have brought it to pass, that it should be yours to lay waste fortified cities into ruinous heaps.”
2 Kings 19:25 · World English Bible

From Favor's study of 2 Kings 18

2 Kings 18: What confidence is this?

2 Kings 18 turns on one word: the book says Hezekiah "trusted in the LORD" (18:5), and Rabshakeh throws the same Hebrew verb back seven times. The king who broke the bronze serpent Moses had made (18:4) paid Assyria with the silver of the LORD's house (18:15), and his people met the mockery with silence, because he had said, "Don’t answer him" (18:36).

In Favor, questions like this come up right where they arise as you read, with the Hebrew and Greek behind the words and how the chapter leads to Jesus.

Start your free week2 Kings 18 Bible study

First week free, then $10 a month per person

More questions about 2 Kings 18

All questions about 2 Kings →

The best way to learn the Bible

Favor opens up every chapter as you read.

Favor is a Bible study app for your phone or computer. It takes you through the Bible one chapter at a time, a few minutes a day, and shows you what's really there: the words behind the words, the moments most people miss, and how the whole story fits together. For you. For everyone.

  • Every chapter explains itself

    As you read, short notes open up what's really going on, the details most readers walk past, and the honest questions people ask.

  • The Hebrew and Greek behind it

    Tap a highlighted word to see the original, how to say it, and what it means, checked against the original-language texts.

  • Every page leads to Jesus

    Watch promises made in Genesis kept in Jesus. Each line lights up on your map as you read.

  • Better together

    Read on your own, or start a Bible study with friends, family or your church. Answers stay sealed until you meet, then appear together.

  1. 1

    Start your free week

    Sign up in a minute with your email.

  2. 2

    Read a few minutes a day

    Each chapter opens itself up as you go. Tap what you're curious about.

  3. 3

    Bring your people, if you like

    Send one link. Everyone reads the same chapter, then meets to talk.

Start your free week

First week free, then $10 a month per person

Questions like this, in every chapter

The best way to learn the Bible. For you. For everyone.

There's a seat for you at the table.

Start your free week

First week free, then $10 a month per person · Log in

Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain. Every answer cites the verses it rests on. What we believe · All Bible questions