Jo’s Place

Sennacherib tries to convince the people of Jerusalem to surrender  The emissaries of Hezekiah,    Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah, Shebna, and Joah, said to the Assyrian chief of staff,  “Please speak to us in Aramaic, for we understand it well.  Don’t speak in Hebrew, for the people, on the wall, will hear.”  But, Sennacherib’s chief of staff replied,  “Do you think, that my master sent this message, only to you and your master?  He wants all the people, to hear it, …for when we put this city under siege, they will suffer, along with you.  They will be so hungry and thirsty, that they will eat their own dung, and drink their own urine.”  Then, the chief of staff stood and shouted, in Hebrew, to the people on the wall,  “Listen to this message, from the great king of Assyria!  This is what the king says:  Don’t let Hezekiah deceive you.  He will never be able, to rescue you, from my power.  Don’t let him fool you, i...

Assyria Invades Judah In the fourteenth year, of King Hezekiah’s reign, King Sennacherib, of Assyria, came, to attack, the fortified towns, of Judah …and conquered them.  King Hezekiah sent this message, to the king, of Assyria, at Lachish:  “I have done wrong.  I will pay, whatever tribute money you demand, if you will only withdraw.”  The king, of Assyria, then demanded a settlement, of more than eleven tons, of silver, and one ton, of gold.  To gather this amount, King Hezekiah used all the silver stored, in the Temple, of the Lord, and in the palace treasury.  Hezekiah even stripped the gold, from the doors, of the Lord’s Temple, and from the doorposts, that he had overlaid with gold, and he gave it  all , to the Assyrian king.  Nevertheless, the king, of Assyria, sent his commander-in-chief, his field commander, and his chief of staff, from Lachish, with a huge army, to confront King Hezekiah, in Jerusalem.  The Assyrians took up a posit...

Hezekiah Rules in Judah Hezekiah, son of Ahaz, began to rule, over Judah, in the third year, of King Hoshea’s reign, in Israel.  He was twenty-five years old, when he became king, and he reigned, in Jerusalem, twenty-nine years.  His mother was Abijah, the daughter, of Zechariah.  Hezekiah did what was pleasing, in the Lord’s sight, just as his ancestor, David, had done.  He removed the pagan shrines, smashed the sacred pillars, and cut down the Asherah poles.  He broke up the bronze serpent, that Moses had made, …because the people, of Israel, had been offering sacrifices, to it ( instead of to the Lord ).  The bronze serpent was called Nehushtan.  Hezekiah trusted, in the Lord, the God of Israel.  There was no one like Him, among all the kings, of Judah, either before or after his time.  He remained faithful, to the Lord, in everything, …and he carefully obeyed  all the commands the Lord had given Moses.  So, the Lord was with him...

The new residents of Samaria worship other gods. So, it was, that the new residents, of Samaria, worshiped the Lord, the God of Israel, but they also appointed, …from among themselves, …all sorts of people, as priests, to offer sacrifices, at their own places of worship, …to their own gods.  And though they worshiped the Lord, they continued to follow their own gods, …according to the religious customs, of the nations, from which they came.  And this is still going on today.  They continue to follow their former practices …instead of truly worshiping the Lord, and obeying the decrees, regulations, instructions, and commands, that He gave the descendants, of Jacob, whose name He changed, to Israel.  For the Lord had made a covenant, with the descendants, of Jacob …and commanded them:  “Do not worship any other gods, or bow before them, or serve them, or offer sacrifices to them.  But, worship only the Lord, who brought you out of Egypt, with great strength, ...