Assyria's Assault on Jerusalem

2 Kings 18-21 provides views of two very different Judean kings: Hezekiah and his son Manasseh. Hezekiah receives praise for his adherence to the Mosaic Covenant. Manasseh is condemned as Judah's worst king.

Hezekiah receives praise for abolishing the "high places," hilltop shrines where Yahweh was worshiped, strongly enforcing the centralization of worship in Jerusalem. Hezekiah also destroyed the bronze serpent (called Nehushtan) that Moses had fashioned in the desert to cure people bitten by poisonous snakes (Numbers 21:9). As a symbol of healing, the bronze image had become an object of worship. No icon or relic could be permitted to take away from the worship of Yahweh alone.

Hezekiah rebelled against the Assyrian Empire. He refused to pay Assyria tribute any longer. In 701 B.C.E., the Assyrians made their violent response

to King Hezekiah's move toward autonomy. Sweeping down from the north, Sennacherib cut off Judah's communication with Egypt and lay siege to Jerusalem

Hezekiah at first followed Isaiah’s advice not to surrender. However, the Assyrian capture and demolition of all forty-six fortified towns in Judah, left Jerusalem a solitary oasis in a desert of total devastation. The king was then forced to capitulate. Sennacherib spared Jerusalem, but Hezekiah was compelled to pay a staggeringly high price for his resistance:

a. Three hundred talents of silver -- this is about eleven tons.

b. Thirty talents of gold -- this is about one ton.

Jerusalem's Deliverance

Jerusalem's unexpected escape from the Assyrian threat contributed to a popular idea that Jerusalem would never fall into enemy hands. The logic behind this belief was:

1. the Temple was the LORD’S dwelling place.

2. the LORD would never permit his dwelling to be destroyed.

3. the Temple was located in Jerusalem and the LORD lived in the Temple, therefore, Jerusalem would never be destroyed.

The conclusion that Jerusalem was safe from all attack seemed to be supported by Isaiah¿s words, spoken during the days of Sennacherib's invasions, to the effect that Jerusalem was protected by the LORD (Isa. 37:33-35; 2 Kings 19:32-34). The prophet Jeremiah later vigorously attacked this idea (Jer. 7, 26).

2 Kings chapter 20 relates an incident that evidently took place before Sennacherib's invasion, when Hezekiah still possessed great wealth. Apparently trying to recruit Babylon as an ally against Assyria, Hezekiah foolishly takes the Babylonian ambassador on a tour of his richly furnished palace and overflowing treasury. He displayed all of Judah's resources to the Babylonian official. Isaiah was appalled at the king's action. He prophesies that the country's entire treasure will be taken away to Babylon. This is a direct reference to Nebuchadnezzar's sacking of Jerusalem more than a century later.