| At that time Merodach-baladan, 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. |
1 |
At that time Merodach-Baladan the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and gifts to Hezekiah, for he had heard of his illness and recovery. |
בָּעֵת הַהִוא שָׁלַח מְרֹדַךְבַּלְאֲדָן בֶּן־בַּלְאֲדָן מֶלֶךְ־בָּבֶל סְפָרִים וּמִנְחָה אֶל־חִזְקִיָּהוּ וַיִּשְׁמַע כִּי חָלָה וַיֶּחֱזָק ׃ |
| 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. |
2 |
And Hezekiah was glad of them and showed the envoysa his treasury—the silver and gold, the spices and fragrant oils, and his entire armory and all that was in his treasuries. There was nothing in his palace or in all his realm that Hezekiah did not show them. |
וַיִּשְׂמַח עֲלֵיהֶם חִזְקִיָּהוּ וַיַּרְאֵם אֶת־בֵּית נְכֹתֹה (נְכֹתוֹ) אֶת־הַכֶּסֶף וְאֶת־הַזָּהָב וְאֶת־הַבְּשָׂמִים וְאֵת הַשֶּׁמֶן הַטּוֹב וְאֵת כָּל־בֵּית כֵּלָיו וְאֵת כָּל־אֲשֶׁר נִמְצָא בְּאֹצְרֹתָיו לֹא־הָיָה דָבָר אֲשֶׁר לֹא־הֶרְאָם חִזְקִיָּהוּ בְּבֵיתוֹ וּבְכָל־מֶמְשַׁלְתּוֹ ׃ |
| Then came Isaiah the prophet unto king Hezekiah, and said unto him, What said these men? and from whence came they unto thee? And Hezekiah said, They are come from a far country unto me, even from Babylon. |
3 |
Then the prophet Isaiah came to King Hezekiah and said, What did those men say to you, and where did they come from? And Hezekiah replied, They came from a distant land; they came to me from Babylon. |
וַיָּבֹא יְשַׁעְיָהוּ הַנָּבִיא אֶל־הַמֶּלֶךְ חִזְקִיָּהוּ וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלָיו מָה אָמְרוּ הָאֲנָשִׁים הָאֵלֶּה וּמֵאַיִן יָבֹאוּ אֵלֶיךָ וַיֹּאמֶר חִזְקִיָּהוּ מֵאֶרֶץ רְחוֹקָה בָּאוּ אֵלַי מִבָּבֶל ׃ |
| Then said he, What have they seen in thine house? And Hezekiah answered, All that is in mine house have they seen: there is nothing among my treasures that I have not shewed them. |
4 |
And Isaiahb asked, What did they see in your palace? And Hezekiah said, They saw everything there is in my palace. There is nothing in my treasuries that I did not show them. |
וַיֹּאמֶר מָה רָאוּ בְּבֵיתֶךָ וַיֹּאמֶר חִזְקִיָּהוּ אֵת כָּל־אֲשֶׁר בְּבֵיתִי רָאוּ לֹא־הָיָה דָבָר אֲשֶׁר לֹא־הִרְאִיתִים בְּאוֹצְרֹתָי ׃ |
| Then said Isaiah to Hezekiah, Hear the word of the Lord of hosts: |
5 |
Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, Hear the word of Jehovah of Hosts: |
וַיֹּאמֶר יְשַׁעְיָהוּ אֶל־חִזְקִיָּהוּ שְׁמַע דְּבַר־יְהוָה צְבָאוֹת ׃ |
| 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. |
6 |
The time shall come when everything in your palace, and all that your forefathers have treasured up until now, shall be carried away to Babylon. Nothing shall be left, says Jehovah. |
הִנֵּה יָמִים בָּאִים וְנִשָּׂא כָּל־אֲשֶׁר בְּבֵיתֶךָ וַאֲשֶׁר אָצְרוּ אֲבֹתֶיךָ עַד־הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה בָּבֶל לֹא־יִוָּתֵר דָּבָר אָמַר יְהוָה ׃ |
| 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. |
7 |
And from among your own sons, your future offspring and descendants, they shall take some to serve as eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon. |
וּמִבָּנֶיךָ אֲשֶׁר יֵצְאוּ מִמְּךָ אֲשֶׁר תּוֹלִיד יִקָּחוּ וְהָיוּ סָרִיסִים בְּהֵיכַל מֶלֶךְ בָּבֶל ׃ |
| 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. |
8 |
But Hezekiah said to Isaiah, The word of Jehovah you have spoken is good. For he thought, Then there shall be peace and loyalty during my reign. |
וַיֹּאמֶר חִזְקִיָּהוּ אֶל־יְשַׁעְיָהוּ טוֹב דְּבַר־יְהוָה אֲשֶׁר דִּבַּרְתָּ וַיֹּאמֶר כִּי יִהְיֶה שָׁלוֹם וֶאֱמֶת בְּיָמָי ׃ |
Apocalyptic Commentary
Isaiah 39
Hezekiah’s recovery from a deathly illness was a wonderful portent for his people and it brought the king fame throughout the known world. It accorded with the ancient Near Eastern concept of the arrested sacrifice of the king—in which a king or his proxy was symbolically slain to appease his god and to generate blessings on behalf of his people. Still, Hezekiah appears to have yielded to a little foolish pride by gladly accepting gifts from foreigners and making them privy to his inner sanctum. Although the king was justly elated that he had passed Jehovah’s test of his loyalty, he still had things to learn.
Aware of Jehovah’s concern at Hezekiah’s imprudent act, Isaiah makes this a teaching moment for the king. Drawing on the ancient legal custom of viewing a piece of property that seals its purchase (Genesis 13:14-17; Numbers 27:12; Deuteronomy 34:1-4; Luke 14:18), Isaiah predicts the Southern Kingdom of Judah’s ultimate overthrow and dispossession by Babylon (vv 5-7) that occurred years later, in 587 B.C. Chapter 39 is thus a transitional chapter, a historical preface to the middle section of the Book of Isaiah (Isaiah 40-54) in which Jehovah’s people are depicted as dwelling in exile in Babylon.
In this encounter between Isaiah and Hezekiah, we observe the prophet’s far-reaching perspective when compared to the king’s. Isaiah is concerned with all aspects of Jehovah’s covenant people, even far into the future, while Hezekiah sees only the situation immediately at hand. He even calls Isaiah’s dire prediction “good,” implying that he and his people have passed Jehovah’s test of loyalty and others must answer for themselves. He has met his responsibility as king, establishing “peace” and “loyalty” in the land (Isaiah 9:4-7), while the cause of Judah’s exile rests with future generations.