John Calvin Commentary Isaiah 36:10

"And am I now come up without Jehovah against this land to destroy it? Jehovah said unto me, Go up against this land, and destroy it." — Isaiah 36:10 (ASV)

And now have I come up without Jehovah? He now attacks Hezekiah in another manner, by telling him that it will serve no purpose to assemble his forces and to make other warlike preparations. For he alleges that Hezekiah is not dealing or contending with a mortal man, but with God himself, at whose suggestion, and not at his own, he came here to destroy the country; and therefore, those who oppose him will fight against God, and consequently all their efforts will be fruitless.

From this we ought to learn that however earnestly we may be devoted to godliness, and however faithfully we may labor to advance the kingdom of Christ, still we must not expect to be free from every annoyance, but should instead be prepared for enduring very heavy afflictions. The Lord does not always recompense our piety with earthly rewards; and indeed it would be an exceedingly unsuitable recompense if we were to possess abundant wealth, enjoy outward peace, and have everything proceed according to our wishes. For the world considers even wicked men to be happy on the basis that they do not endure bad health or adversity, are free from the pressure of poverty, and have nothing to disturb them. In this respect, our condition would not differ at all from that of the reprobate.

This example of Hezekiah, who labored with all his might to restore religion and the true worship of God, and yet endured calamities so heavy and violent that he was not far from despair, ought to be constantly before our eyes. This is so that when we think we have discharged our duty, we may nevertheless be prepared to endure conflicts and troubles of every kind, and may not be disturbed if enemies gain an advantage at the initial attack, as if they would swallow us up all at once.

Those proud and haughty minds will quickly fall when the first ardor has boiled over and spent its foam, and their eagerness and pride will speedily disappear. Rabshakeh boasted of the greatness and power of his king in order to terrify Hezekiah. This is how wicked men act toward us.

By threatening words they attack us, and by various terrors they test our patience; or rather, through their agency Satan labors, whom we plainly see speaking by the mouth of Rabshakeh. Indeed, Satan assumes the character of God himself and is transformed into an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14). Thus also the Spirit of God himself declares that the strength of man is frail and fading, and that everyone who leans on it seeks his own destruction (Jeremiah 17:5). Rabshakeh says the same thing and speaks as if he were discharging the prophetic office by the command of God.

Therefore, we ought to distinguish wisely when God speaks and when, on the other hand, his name is falsely assumed by men, for Satan resorts to various artifices to make himself appear to be like God. All these reproaches were unjustly, as we have said, brought by Rabshakeh against Hezekiah, who did not place his hope in his own strength and did not boast through reliance on the Egyptians. But godly men, even when they do well, must be exposed to false reports.

By these stratagems Satan attacks our faith and unjustly slanders us among men. This temptation is highly dangerous, for we desire that our integrity should be well known; and when we are well-disposed, we resent it if other men put a different interpretation on our conduct. Thus Satan endeavors by slander to overturn all that has been done out of a good conscience, or accuses us of something for which we are not at all responsible, or loads us with unfounded slanders, or invents things that never entered our minds. But an upright conscience ought to be like a brazen wall to us, so that, imitating the example of Hezekiah, we may stand unshaken against such accusations and slanders.

Regarding the last clause, in which Rabshakeh reproaches him with having overturned the worship of God, everyone must plainly see how slanderous that charge is, for Hezekiah had taken away false gods and superstitious worship, which God abhors (2 Kings 18:4). But we need not wonder that wicked men cannot distinguish between the true God and the false, between superstition and religion.

And the same thing is practiced among us every day. For the Papists, who are delighted with nothing but their own superstitions, accuse us of having taken away innumerable human inventions and complain that we have impaired and almost abolished the worship of God. They also taunt us in the same manner as that Rabshakeh: “Would God assist those who have taken away his worship, profaned the holy temples, and everything that was established in that beautiful order?”

The reason is that in Popery everything had a dazzling appearance and drew the admiration of men, while we retain no ceremonies but those which are plain and simple, and free from all pageantry. Therefore, they think that we have taken away the worship of God, which they estimate by outward appearances. If any adverse event befalls us, they exclaim that it is richly deserved, that all the blame attaches to us, that the whole world is punished for our ungodliness; and if we ourselves suffer any calamity, they taunt us still more.

Yet with resolute faith we must stand firm against such ungodly speeches by showing that what they call the worship of God is not his worship, but that we have taken away—and have justly taken away—mere trifles, and that all human contrivances do not belong to the worship of God but are delusions of Satan, and that nothing is more destructive.

Therefore, we must stand firm with unshaken faith against reproaches of every kind by which Satan endeavors to discredit the practice of godliness. At first sight, it appears shameful that Hezekiah overthrew many altars and left but one, and that he profaned many temples so that one might remain (2 Kings 18:4).

But Hezekiah was fully acquitted by this single defense: that he undertook nothing except by the word of God. Therefore, he was satisfied with a single altar because God had forbidden him to erect more, and he had thrown down all images because they had been unlawfully set up in opposition to the instructions of the Law (Exodus 20:4).

We have the same dispute with the Papists today because they blame us for no other reason than that we have set aside a huge mass of ceremonies and retain only what God has commanded. In such cases, however, we must not argue about what pleases men, but what is approved by God.