What Did Sennacherib Hear?

In response to Hezekiah's query, Isaiah promises that the Lord will "put a spirit" in the Assyrian king and that Sennacherib will "hear a rumor and return to his own land" (2 Kings 19:7). The following verse tells us that Sennacherib had gone from Lachish to Libnah, perhaps upon hearing the report that Tirkakah of Ethiopia was coming out to meet him along the Mediterranean coast (v. 9). But this does not lead Sennacherib to withdraw; instead, he sends the Rabshakeh back to Jerusalem with a threatening letter for Hezekiah.

So, when and how was Isaiah's prophecy fulfilled?

A note on the translation of 19:7: The word translated as "rumor" is a noun form of the verb SHEMA, "to hear." Thus, the word simply means "something heard," and can refer to good news (1 Sam 2:24), rumors (Dan 11:44), even revelation (Is 28:9). It doesn't necessarily refer to something that is uncertain or "merely" rumored. The prophecy is simply that Sennacherib will hear a report that will send him back to Nineveh.

Further, it's important to realize that Sennacherib never personally led the army besieging Jerusalem. Instead, he sends "Tartan and Rab-saris and Rabshakeh from Lachish to King Hezekiah with a large army to Jerusalem" (18:17). When he moves from Lachish to Libnah, he sends the Rabshakeh back to Jerusalem without coming personally.

This means that the besieging army of Assyrians is in a different location from the king of Assyria throughout the story. When the angel of Yahweh kills 185,000 men of the "large army" of the Assyrians (19:35), Sennacherib would not hear about it immediately. I submit that the report he heard was the report of the destruction of the Assyrian army besieging Jerusalem (much as the Canaanites "heard" what had happened in Egypt and trembled).

What about the "spirit" that Isaiah promises? This might refer to a being that leads Sennacherib to panic and return home, but RUACH can also refer to the human spirit and its various dispositions and moods. For the Lord to give Sennacherib a "spirit" may simply mean that the Lord turns his courage to fear. And this happens when the news of Jerusalem's deliverance comes, when Sennacherib hears about the enacted Shema - the report that Yahweh is One, alone God of heaven and earth (19:19).

posted by Peter J. Leithart on Saturday, May 06, 2006 at 12:19 PM

Permission is given to use material on this site, provided the source is cited, blog entries are republished in full, and the author is notified in advance.