Read the Scripture.
The biblical text is the primary reference for the accounts discussed here. Read the complete chapters before comparing the guide's interpretation.
2 Kings 18:13-20
13 Now in the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them.
14 Hezekiah king of Judah sent to the king of Assyria at Lachish, saying, “I have offended you. Withdraw from me. That which you put on me, I will bear.” The king of Assyria appointed to Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold.
15 Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found in the LORD’s house and in the treasures of the king’s house.
16 At that time, Hezekiah cut off the gold from the doors of the LORD’s temple, and from the pillars which Hezekiah king of Judah had overlaid, and gave it to the king of Assyria.
17 The king of Assyria sent Tartan, Rabsaris, and Rabshakeh from Lachish to King Hezekiah with a great army to Jerusalem. They went up and came to Jerusalem. When they had come up, they came and stood by the conduit of the upper pool, which is in the highway of the fuller’s field.
18 When they had called to the king, Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebnah the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder came out to them.
19 Rabshakeh said to them, “Say now to Hezekiah, ‘The great king, the king of Assyria, says, “What confidence is this in which you trust?
20 You say (but they are but vain words), ‘There is counsel and strength for war.’ Now on whom do you trust, that you have rebelled against me?
World English Bible British Edition. Continue in the complete local chapter.
The invasion in Kings
2 Kings 18:13 records Sennacherib's attack on Judah's fortified cities in Hezekiah's fourteenth year. Verses 14-16 describe Hezekiah's payment of silver and gold, including gold removed from the doors and pillars of the temple. Lachish is the setting of the exchange with the Assyrian king.
The delegation to Jerusalem
2 Kings 18:17-37 introduces the Tartan, Rab-saris and Rabshakeh, together with a large army. The speech challenges trust in Egypt, Hezekiah and the LORD. Isaiah 36 contains a parallel account, while 2 Chronicles 32:1-19 places the invasion alongside Hezekiah's defensive preparations and encouragement of the people.
Read the connected chapters
This account continues into the prayer, prophetic response and deliverance in 2 Kings 19 and Isaiah 37. The archive keeps the political and religious dimensions together. Place names, the king's regnal year and the stated tribute should be cited directly to their passages before adding a modern chronology or archaeological comparison.
From fortified cities to a public challenge
The opening describes attacks on Judah's fortified cities and Hezekiah's payment, including temple wealth. The scene then moves from Lachish toward Jerusalem as the Assyrian delegation arrives with force behind its demands.
The speech challenges confidence in Egypt, Hezekiah and the LORD. Listeners on the wall are part of the encounter, so the confrontation concerns morale and allegiance as well as negotiations between officials.
Chapter 18 carries the report to Hezekiah and into the prayer and prophetic answer of chapter 19. Following those transitions explains a kingdom under pressure rather than ending the story at tribute. Isaiah and Chronicles add their own emphases within parallel presentations of the crisis.
This introduction draws on the following sources: [1][2]. Section reading trails highlight selected references where a more precise relationship has been recorded. Unmapped passages and other references remain at article level; these trails are not a sentence-by-sentence verification. Editorial guidance is identified in the text.
Sources & further reading
- 1Biblical primary source
Holy Bible: World English Bible British Edition with Deuterocanon
World English Bible translation project / eBible.org
Public-domain Bible wording; full retained text and local chapter references at /bible/. Recorded source check: 2026-10-26. - 2Edited primary inscription corpus
Royal Inscriptions of the Neo-Assyrian Period (RINAP)
University of Pennsylvania / Open Richly Annotated Cuneiform Corpus (ORACC)
Public searchable editions of royal inscriptions; cited for historical context and independent records of royal claims, not as proof of every biblical or theological interpretation. Recorded source check: 2026-10-29.
A foundation to build on
This introduction was compiled from the linked sources and has not received specialist peer review. It is intended as a route into further research. Read how corrections and reviews are handled.
Prepare a correction or contribution