Thomas Aquinas Commentary Isaiah 37:1-38

"And it came to pass, when king Hezekiah heard it, that he rent his clothes, and covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of Jehovah. And he sent Eliakim, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, unto Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz. And they said unto him, Thus saith Hezekiah, This day is a day of trouble, and of rebuke, and of contumely; for the children are come to the birth, and there is not strength to bring forth. It may be Jehovah thy God will hear the words of Rabshakeh, whom the king of Assyria his master hath sent to defy the living God, and will rebuke the words which Jehovah thy God hath heard: wherefore lift up thy prayer for the remnant that is left. So the servants of king Hezekiah came to Isaiah. And Isaiah said unto them, Thus shall ye say to your master, Thus saith Jehovah, Be not afraid of the words that thou hast heard, wherewith the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me. Behold, I will put a spirit in him, and he shall hear tidings, and shall return unto his own land; and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land. So Rabshakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah; for he had heard that he was departed from Lachish. And he heard say concerning Tirhakah king of Ethiopia, He is come out to fight against thee. And when he heard it, he sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying, Thus shall ye speak to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying, Let not thy God in whom thou trustest deceive thee, saying, Jerusalem shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria. Behold, thou hast heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands, by destroying them utterly: and shalt thou be delivered? Have the gods of the nations delivered them, which my fathers have destroyed, Gozan, and Haran, and Rezeph, and the children of Eden that were in Telassar? Where is the king of Hamath, and the king of Arpad, and the king of the city of Sepharvaim, of Hena, and Ivvah? And Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and read it; and Hezekiah went up unto the house of Jehovah, and spread it before Jehovah. And Hezekiah prayed unto Jehovah, saying, O Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel, that sittest [above] the cherubim, thou art the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; thou hast made heaven and earth. Incline thine ear, O Jehovah, and hear; open thine eyes, O Jehovah, and see; and hear all the words of Sennacherib, who hath sent to defy the living God. Of a truth, Jehovah, the kings of Assyria have laid waste all the countries, and their land, and have cast their gods into the fire: for they were no gods, but the work of men`s hands, wood and stone; therefore they have destroyed them. Now therefore, O Jehovah our God, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou art Jehovah, even thou only. Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent unto Hezekiah, saying, Thus saith Jehovah, the God of Israel, Whereas thou hast prayed to me against Sennacherib king of Assyria, this is the word which Jehovah hath spoken concerning him: The virgin daughter of Zion hath despised thee and laughed thee to scorn; the daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee. Whom hast thou defied and blasphemed? and against whom hast thou exalted thy voice and lifted up thine eyes on high? [even] against the Holy One of Israel. By thy servants hast thou defied the Lord, and hast said, With the multitude of my chariots am I come up to the height of the mountains, to the innermost parts of Lebanon; and I will cut down the tall cedars thereof, and the choice fir-trees thereof; and I will enter into its farthest height, the forest of its fruitful field; I have digged and drunk water, and with the sole of my feet will I dry up all the rivers of Egypt. Hast thou not heard how I have done it long ago, and formed it of ancient times? now have I brought it to pass, that it should be thine to lay waste fortified cities into ruinous heaps. Therefore their inhabitants were of small power, they were dismayed and confounded; they were as the grass of the field, and as the green herb, as the grass on the housetops, and as a field [of grain] before it is grown up. But I know thy sitting down, and thy going out, and thy coming in, and thy raging against me. Because of thy raging against me, and because thine arrogancy is come up into mine ears, therefore will I put my hook in thy nose, and my bridle in thy lips, and I will turn thee back by the way by which thou camest. And this shall be the sign unto thee: ye shall eat this year that which groweth of itself, and in the second year that which springeth of the same; and in the third year sow ye, and reap, and plant vineyards, and eat the fruit thereof. And the remnant that is escaped of the house of Judah shall again take root downward, and bear fruit upward. For out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and out of mount Zion they that shall escape. The zeal of Jehovah of hosts will perform this. Therefore thus saith Jehovah concerning the king of Assyria, He shall not come unto this city, nor shoot an arrow there, neither shall he come before it with shield, nor cast up a mound against it. By the way that he came, by the same shall he return, and he shall not come unto this city, saith Jehovah. For I will defend this city to save it, for mine own sake, and for my servant David`s sake. And the angel of Jehovah went forth, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians a hundred and fourscore and five thousand; and when men arose early in the morning, behold, these were all dead bodies. So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, and went and returned, and dwelt at Nineveh. And it came to pass, as he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god, that Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons smote him with the sword; and they escaped into the land of Ararat. And Esar-haddon his son reigned in his stead." — Isaiah 37:1-38 (ASV)

1. And it came to pass, when King Hezekiah had heard it. In this part, the author shows how Hezekiah fought against the blasphemies of the Assyrians with humility and prayer. In this regard, he does three things.

   First, he describes how Hezekiah went to the place of prayer, putting on humble clothing: and covered himself with sackcloth. As it is written, the word came to the king: and he rose up from his throne, and cast his robe from him, and was clothed with sackcloth, and sat in ashes (Jonah 3:6).

   Second, not presuming to pour out his prayer to God by himself, he seeks the intercession of the prophet's prayer through messengers. Here the text describes the sending of the messengers: and he sent Eliakim. As it says above, Should not a people seek their God? (Isaiah 8:19).

   The messengers explain the tribulation. It should be read this way: when they came... and they said to him—this day is a day of tribulation, which we suffer in external persecutions; and of distress, regarding the sorrows of our hearts; of divine rebuke, and of blasphemy from our enemies. The children are come to the birth—that is, the plans of the counselors—and there is not strength to bring forth, that is, to carry them out. Alternatively, it means we suffer like women in labor: that day is a day of wrath, a day of tribulation and distress (Zephaniah 1:15). They offer their petition, which should be arranged this way: Therefore lift up your prayer... It may be... as in, pray for us to the LORD your God for all this remnant (Jeremiah 42:2).

   Third, he presents the prophet's response: and Isaiah said to them. In it, he dispels the king’s fear: be not afraid, as in be not afraid of their presence (Jeremiah 1:8). And he foretells the death of King Sennacherib: Behold, I will send a spirit upon him. As it is written, He that shall kill by the sword must be killed by the sword (Revelation 13:10).

2. And the Rabshakeh returned. Here the author describes the return of the Rabshakeh to Sennacherib. Its meaning is clear.

3. And he heard say about Tirhakah. Here the text describes how Sennacherib threatened Israel with letters. In this regard, he does three things.

   First, he presents his proud threat: and he heard say about Tirhakah, who came to the aid of the Egyptians. And when he heard it, he rushed to meet him, leaving Judah. Before he departed, he wrote these words. Afterward, when he came and besieged Pelusium in Egypt, and the king of Ethiopia arrived, Sennacherib refused to fight him. He mockingly said Tirhakah was a priest of Pluto on account of his black skin. Alternatively, it was because mice chewed through the strings of their bows and left his army unarmed. As it says above: as my hand has found the kingdoms of the idol (Isaiah 10:10).

4. Second, he presents the prayer of Hezekiah, prefacing it with the reception of the letter. In this prayer, Hezekiah confesses the power of God by the subjection of the angels: LORD God of hosts, as in is there any numbering of his soldiers? (Job 25:3). He also confesses it through the worship of the Jews: God of Israel who sits upon the cherubim, because the mercy seat, which was like the throne of God and which also gave answers, was above the wings of the cherubim: you that sit upon the cherubim (Psalms 80:1–2).

5. However, since the tabernacle was arranged according to the pattern of the heavenly church (as seen in Exodus 25), it seems incorrect to say that God sits on the cherubim; rather, He should be said to sit on the thrones.

   To this, it should be said that He sits on the cherubim (that is, over them) because He sits on the seraphim, who are beyond them. Alternatively, according to Gregory and Dionysius,Gregory, In Evang. II hom. 34 n. 14 (PL 76, 1255B–C); Dionysius, De cael. hier. 11.2 (PG 3, 285A; Dion. 932). nothing is possessed individually in the angelic hierarchy. Instead, what belongs to a lower order is also attributed in a more eminent way to a higher one. Thus, what is proper to the thrones, the cherubim possess even more eminently. Or, it can be said that He sits on the thrones as on a seat of judgment, and on the cherubim as in a teacher's chair, for "cherubim" is translated as an "outpouring of wisdom." It was therefore fitting that divine answers were given from there.

6. He also shows the power of God through the ordering of kingdoms: you alone are the God of all the kingdoms of the earth, as in till he knew that the most High ruled in the kingdom of men (Daniel 5:21). He proves God’s power through the creation of all things: you have made heaven and earth, as in who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all things that are in them (Psalms 146:6). And he accuses Sennacherib of blasphemy: Incline, O LORD, your ear, as in O Lord God of heaven and earth, behold their pride . With this, he proves the foolishness of his blasphemy: For in truth, O LORD... as in The idols of the Gentiles are silver and gold, the works of the hands of men (Psalms 115:4). Third, in this prayer, he also asks for the mercy of salvation: and now, O LORD... as in that all nations may acknowledge that you are God, and there is no other besides you .

7. Third, the prophet promises through messengers that the king's prayer will be heard: and Isaiah the son of Amos sent to Hezekiah. Regarding this, he does two things:

   1. He promises the destruction of their enemies.
   2. He promises the liberation of the city: Therefore thus says the LORD (Isaiah 37:33).

   Concerning the first point, he does three things:

   1. He threatens him with the ruin of destruction.
   2. He presents the sign: But to you this shall be a sign (Isaiah 37:30).
   3. He shows the fruit of this destruction: and that which shall be saved (Isaiah 37:31).

   Concerning the first of these, he does two things. First, he threatens the punishment of confusion for his contempt for the Jews: The virgin the daughter of Zion has despised you, when she refused to respond to you. She will wag her head in the future when you flee with a few men, the rest having been killed. As it says above: you that despise, shall not you yourself also be despised? (Isaiah 33:1). And, The just shall see, and shall rejoice, and the innocent shall laugh them to scorn (Job 22:19).

   Second, he threatens the punishment of destruction for the fault which he committed against God. Regarding this, he does three things:

   1. He sets out the fault.
   2. He adds to this the divine power, where it says, Have you not heard what I have done to him of old? (Isaiah 37:26).
   3. He infers the punishment, where it says, Therefore I will put a ring in your nose (Isaiah 37:29).

8. Regarding the first point, he accuses him of two sins.

   First, of blasphemy: Whom have you reproached? (These are the words of Hezekiah to Sennacherib), as if to say, "It is not me you have reproached, but God." As it says below: Upon whom have you jested? (Isaiah 57:4).

   Second, he accuses him of pride, which he drew from the greatness of his deeds: And you have said: With the multitude of my chariots, as if by my own power and not by God's. He speaks of the top of Lebanon, the summits of the mountains, that is, of the powerful, as in our mighty hand, and not the LORD, has done all these things (Deuteronomy 32:27). He also drew pride from the greatness of his intentions: And I will cut down its tall cedars, the powerful men among the Jews, and will enter to the top of its height, the house of the LORD, to the forest, the people. As it is written, Open your gates, O Lebanon, and let fire devour your cedars (Zechariah 11:1). Finally, he drew pride from the multitude of his warriors: I have dug, as if to say, "My army is so large that the water I find is not enough, and I must dig new wells." Or, metaphorically: "I dried up the consolations of all nations," as in like a garden of pleasure before it, and behind it a desolate wilderness (Joel 2:3).

9. Have you not heard. Here the author adds a description of divine power, speaking in the person of God Himself.

   First, regarding eternal preordination: what I have done... of old, that is, what I have intended to do concerning exaltation and destruction, from eternity. From the days of old I have formed it—that is, the evil of punishment, which is carried out through him, I foresaw and preordained. For all things were known to the Lord our God, before they were created .

   Second, regarding the temporal execution of His eternal intention: and now I have brought it to effect. The text speaks of hills fighting together, which refers to princes fighting each other. Short of hand means that My hand is drawn back from aiding them, or that their own hand was diminished from helping themselves. And like the grass of the housetops, as in let them be as grass upon the tops of houses (Psalms 129:6).

   Third, regarding God's knowledge of all his deeds: your dwelling, that is, the king's seat, and your coming in, to the land of the Jews. For his eyes are upon the ways of men, and he considers all their steps (Job 34:21).

10. I will put a ring in your nose. Here the author infers the punishment: a ring in your nose, like an ox,Bubalo. and a bit between your lips, like a horse. That is, the power of My divinity will curb you: he has opened his quiver, and has afflicted me, and has put a bridle into my mouth (Job 30:11).

11. But to you this shall be a sign. Here the author presents the sign. The army of the Assyrians arrived when the harvest was imminent, so the people of Judah were unable to gather their crops. The Assyrians then remained in the land until after the time of sowing, so the people were also unable to plant. Therefore, it is said to them that for the remainder of that year, while Sennacherib was away in Egypt, they should eat the things that spring of themselves—that is, from the grain trampled by the hooves of horses and chariots. An alternative reading, as in 2 Kings 19:29, is that they should eat whatever they had found in their barns before it was stored up for the siege. A third option, according to the Septuagint, is to eat what you had sown—that is, what remained trampled in the fields.

    And in the second year, while he remained in Egypt (for he stayed there through the year), because you will gather nothing when you have sown nothing, you are to eat fruits, or things that spring of themselves, as in 2 Kings 19:29. In this second year Assyria will be destroyed, and thus, in the third year, you will be able to sow and gather freely. Finally, according to Andrew,Andrew of St. Victor (ms. f. 89ra). this is counsel, and the phrase to you this shall be a sign refers to what was said previously.

12. Shall take root. Here the author presents the fruit of the enemies' destruction, doing so in three ways.

    1. First, by presenting the simile of a tree, which bears much fruit if it sends out roots in the earth: and he shall be as a tree that is planted by the waters, that spreads out its roots towards moisture (Jeremiah 17:8).
    2. Second, he explains the simile: For out of Jerusalem... as it says below, I will give salvation in Zion (Isaiah 46:12).
    3. Third, he assigns the reason: The zeal of the LORD of hosts shall do this, which is the same as in Isaiah 9:7.

13. Therefore thus says the LORD. Here the prophet promises liberation: He shall not come into this city, as he intended. As it says above: Take counsel together, and it shall be defeated: speak a word, and it shall not be done (Isaiah 8:10). And he assigns the reason: And I will protect this city for my own sake, as it says below, for my own sake will I do it (Isaiah 48:11), and for the sake of David, as in for your servant David’s sake (Psalms 132:10).

14. And the angel of the LORD went out. Here the text describes the punishment Sennacherib received from God.

    1. Regarding the slaughter of his army: and slew, as it says above, at the voice of the angel the people fled (Isaiah 33:3).
    2. Regarding the confusion and flight of those who remained: and they arose in the morning, as it says above, there shall be trouble: the morning shall come, and he shall not be (Isaiah 17:14).
    3. Regarding the slaying of Sennacherib himself: And it came to pass, as he was worshipping... that Adrammelech and Sharezer, his firstborn sons, killed him. They were envious of their younger brother (born of another mother) and wished to supplant him. And thus, the just shall escape out of distress (Proverbs 12:13).

Prayer is lifted up :

• through eminence of contemplation: I have lifted up my eyes to the mountains (Psalms 121:1);
• through fervor of affection: Let us lift up our hearts with our hands to the Lord in the heavens (Lamentations 3:41);
• through tears of compunction: every night I will lift upLevabo. Vg.: lavabo. DR: “I will wash.” (Psalms 6:6); lift up weeping (Joel 1:5);
• through zeal for good works: the lifting up of my hands (Psalms 141:2).

There is a bit :

• of human discretion: If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man. He is able also with a bridle to lead about the whole body (James 3:2);
• of divine government, as below: for my praise I will bridle you (Isaiah 48:9);
• of diabolical deception, as above: the bridle of error (Isaiah 30:28);
• of temporal affliction: he has opened his quiver, and has afflicted me, and has put a bridle into my mouth (Job 30:11);
• of eternal damnation: with bit and bridle bind fast their jaws (Psalms 32:9).