Isaiah 37:8

So Rabshakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah: for he had heard that he was departed from Lachish. SO RABSHAKEK RETURNED - to the camp of his master. LIBNAH - meaning whiteness, the Blanchegarde of the Crusaders (Stanley) Eusebius and Jerome place it more south, in the district of Eleutheropolis, ten miles northwest of Lachish, which Sennacherib had captured (note, ). Libnah was in Judah, and given to the priests (; )....

8._And Rabshakeh having returned. _He now declares how Rabshakeh, without doing anything, returned to his king, not to the same place where he had left him; for he understood that he had raised the siege of Lachish, and had departed into Egypt for the purpose of attacking Libnah. Some think that this city is Pelusium, others choose rather to assign it to Judea. It is, indeed, probable that, in consequence of a report that reached him about the approach of enemies, he moved his camp towards Egypt, that by meeting them he might prevent them from advancing. Though God restrained the violence of the tyrant by a new war, in order to give some relief to the Jews, yet he did not wish to conquer the tyrant by the hand of man, but only to shew openly and, as it were, to display on a theater his unconquerable pride; because, even when he was in great danger, he did not cease to vomit out the same...

Verse Isaiah 37:8. _RABSHAKEH RETURNED_] From Isaiah 36:2, we learn that the king of Assyria had sent Rabshakeh from Lachish to Jerusalem; now it is likely that Rabshakeh had besieged that place, and that the king of Assyria had taken his station before this city, and despatched Rabshakeh against Jerusalem. But, as in the verse above it is said, "he had departed from Lachish," probably he had been obliged to raise the siege, and sat down before _Libnah_, which promised an easier conquest....

SO RABSHAKEH RETURNED - Returned from Jerusalem to the camp of his master. He had received no answer to his insulting message Isaiah 36:21; he saw there was no prospect that the city would surrender; and he therefore returned again to the camp. AND FOUND THE KING OF ASSYRIA WARRING AGAINST LIBNAH - He had departed from Lachish. Why he had done this is unknown. It is possible that he had taken it, though this is not recorded anywhere in history. Or it is possible that he had found it impracticable to subdue it as speedily as he had desired; and had withdrawn from it for the purpose of subduing other places that would offer a more feeble resistance. Libnah was a city in the south of Judah Joshua 15:42, given to the priests, and declared

EXPOSITION This chapter is the sequel of the preceding, and is so closely connected with it that the two really constitute but one narrative. Isaiah 37:22 of Isaiah 36:1. is more closely connected with Isaiah 37:1, than with the position of the narrative to which it is attached. ISAIAH 37:1 WHEN KING HEZEKIAH HEARD IT; rather, _heard them_;_ i.e._ the "words of Rabshakeh," which his officials reported to him. HE RENT HIS CLOTHES. He did as they had done (Isaiah 36:22

SO RABSHAKEH RETURNED,.... To the king of Assyria his master, to give him an account how things went at Jerusalem, and that he could get no direct answer from the king of Judah, and to consult with him what was proper to be done in the present situation of things; leaving the army before Jerusalem, under the command of the other two generals. For that he should take the army with him does not seem reasonable, when Hezekiah and his people were in such a panic on account of it; besides, the king of Assyria's letters to Hezekiah clearly suppose the army to be still at Jerusalem, or his menacing letters would have signified nothing; and after this the destruction of the Assyrian army before Jerusalem is related: AND FOUND THE KING OF ASSYRIA WARRING AGAINST LIBNAH; a city in the tribe of Judah, Joshua 10:29, and lay nearer to Jerusalem than Lachish, where Rabshakeh left him; s

CHAPTER 37 Hezekiah in the House of the Lord and Sennacherib's Second Attempt 1. _Hezekiah's humiliation and Isaiah sent for (Isaiah 37:1)_ 2. _The message from the prophet (Isaiah 37:6)_ 3. _Rabshakeh's letter (Isaiah 37:8)_ 4. _Hezekiah's prayer (Isaiah 37:14)_ 5. _The prayer answered (Isaiah 37:21)_ 6. _The army of Sennacherib judged (Isaiah 37:36)_ 7. The judgment upon Sennacherib ...

ISAIAH 36-39. This section has been extracted from 2 Kings 18:13 to 2 Kings 20:19, and the Song of Hezekiah has been added. For an exposition see the notes on 2 K.; here we have simply to deal with the Song of Hezekiah. ISAIAH 38:10. THANKSGIVING FOR DELIVERANCE FROM IMMINENT DEATH. This is now generally regarded as a post-exilic psalm. Its absence in the parallel narratine in Kings is significant. Apparently it was inserted here by an editor who thought it suitable to Hezekiah's circumstances. If, as seems likely, it has been influenced by the Book of Job, it must be post-exilic. The title cannot, any more than the Psalm titles, weigh against internal evidence. Hezekiah's writing after his recov

WAS DEPARTED FROM LACHISH: having raised the siege. See note on 2 Kings 18:17; 2 Kings 19:8....

_Libnah_ another of the "defenced cities" of Judah (Joshua 10:29). Its situation is not known....