Sennacherib Invades Judah

1 ⁱAfter these things and these acts of faithfulness, Sennacherib king of Assyria came and invaded Judah and encamped against the fortified cities, thinking to win them for himself. 2 And when Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had come and intended to fight against Jerusalem, 3 he planned with his officers and his mighty men to stop the water of the springs that were outside the city; and they helped him. 4 A great many people were gathered, and they stopped all the springs and ^jthe brook that flowed through the land, saying, “Why should the kings of Assyria come and find much water?” 5 He set to work resolutely and built up ^kall the wall that was broken down and raised towers upon it,¹ and outside it he built another wall, and he strengthened the ^lMillo in the city of David. He also made weapons and shields in abundance. 6 And he set combat commanders over the people and gathered them together to him in the square at the gate of the city and spoke ^mencouragingly to them, saying, 7 ⁿ“Be strong and courageous. ^oDo not be afraid or dismayed before the king of Assyria and all the horde that is with him, ^pfor there are more with us than with him. 8 With him is ^qan arm of flesh, ^rbut with us is the Lord our God, to help us and to fight our battles.” And the people took confidence from the words of Hezekiah king of Judah.

Sennacherib Blasphemes

9 After this, Sennacherib king of Assyria, who was besieging Lachish with all his forces, sent his servants to Jerusalem to Hezekiah king of Judah and to all the people of Judah who were in Jerusalem, saying, 10 “Thus says Sennacherib king of Assyria, ‘On what are you trusting, that you endure the siege in Jerusalem? 11 Is not Hezekiah misleading you, that he may give you over to die by famine and by thirst, when he tells you, “The Lord our God will deliver us from the hand of the king of Assyria”? 12 ^sHas not this same Hezekiah taken away his high places and his altars and commanded Judah and Jerusalem, “Before one altar you shall worship, and on it you shall burn your sacrifices”? 13 Do you not know what I and my fathers have done to all the peoples of other lands? Were the gods of the nations of those lands at all able to deliver their lands out of my hand? 14 Who among all the gods of those nations that my fathers devoted to destruction was able to deliver his people from my hand, that your God should be able to deliver you from my hand? 15 Now, therefore, do not let Hezekiah deceive you or mislead you in this fashion, and do not believe him, for no god of any nation or kingdom has been able to deliver his people from my hand or from the hand of my fathers. How much less will your God deliver you out of my hand!’”

16 And his servants said still more against the Lord God and against his servant Hezekiah. 17 And he wrote letters to cast contempt on the Lord, the God of Israel, and to speak against him, saying, “Like the gods of the nations of the lands who have not delivered their people from my hands, so the God of Hezekiah will not deliver his people from my hand.” 18 And they shouted it with a loud voice in the language of Judah to the people of Jerusalem who were on the wall, to frighten and terrify them, in order that they might take the city. 19 And they spoke of the God of Jerusalem as they spoke of the gods of the peoples of the earth, which are the work of men’s hands.

The Lord Delivers Jerusalem

20 Then Hezekiah the king and Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, prayed because of this and cried to heaven. 21 And the Lord sent an angel, who cut off all the mighty warriors and commanders and officers in the camp of the king of Assyria. So he returned with ^tshame of face to his own land. And when he came into the house of his god, some of his own sons struck him down there with the sword. 22 So the Lord saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib king of Assyria and from the hand of all his enemies, and he provided for them on every side.

Greeting

1 Paul, ^aan apostle of Christ Jesus ^bby the will of God, and Timothy ^cour brother,

2 To the ^dsaints and faithful brothers¹ in Christ at Colossae:

^eGrace to you and peace from God our Father.

Thanksgiving and Prayer

3 ^fWe always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, 4 since we heard of ^gyour faith in Christ Jesus and of ^gthe love that you have for all the saints, 5 because of ^hthe hope ⁱlaid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in ^jthe word of the truth, the gospel, 6 which has come to you, as indeed ^kin the whole world it is ^lbearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you ^mheard it and understood ⁿthe grace of God in truth, 7 just as you learned it from ^oEpaphras our beloved ^pfellow servant.² He is ^pa faithful minister of Christ on your³ behalf 8 and has made known to us your ^qlove in the Spirit.

9 And so, ^rfrom the day we heard, ^swe have not ceased to pray for you, asking that ^tyou may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all ^uspiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so as ^vto walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, ^wfully pleasing to him: ^xbearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 ^ybeing strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for ^zall endurance and patience ^awith joy; 12 ^bgiving thanks⁴ to the Father, who has qualified you⁵ to share in ^cthe inheritance of the saints in light. 13 He ^dhas delivered us from ^ethe domain of darkness and transferred us to ^fthe kingdom of ^ghis beloved Son, 14 ^hin whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

The Preeminence of Christ

15 ⁱHe is the image of ^jthe invisible God, ^kthe firstborn of all creation. 16 For by⁶ him all things were created, ^lin heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether ^mthrones or ⁿdominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created ^othrough him and for him. 17 And ^phe is before all things, and in him all things ^qhold together. 18 And ^rhe is the head of the body, the church. He is ^sthe beginning, ^tthe firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19 For ^uin him all the ^vfullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and ^wthrough him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, ^xmaking peace ^yby the blood of his cross.

21 ^zAnd you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, ^adoing evil deeds, 22 he has now reconciled ^bin his body of flesh by his death, ^cin order to present you holy and blameless and ^dabove reproach before him, 23 ^eif indeed you continue in the faith, ^fstable and steadfast, not shifting from ^gthe hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed ^hin all creation⁷ under heaven, ⁱand of which I, Paul, became a minister.