Sanaherib Hunahuna Yerusalem
1Ɔhene Hesekia adedi mfe dunan so no, Asiriahene Sanaherib bɛtow hyɛɛ Yuda nkuropɔn a wɔabɔ ho ban no so dii so. 2Afei Asiriahene somaa nʼananmusifo fi Lakis a asraafo dɔm kɛse ka ne ho kohyiaa Ɔhene Hesekia wɔ Yerusalem. Bere a ɔsahene begyinaa nsudorobɛn bi a efi Atifi Tare de kɔ Ntamahorofo Atenae hɔ no, 3Hilkia babarima Eliakim a na ɔhwɛ ahemfi no ntotoe so; Sebna a na ɔyɛ ɔkyerɛwfo ne Asaf babarima Yoa a na ɔno nso yɛ ɔkyerɛwfo kohyiaa no.
4Na ɔsahene no ka kyerɛɛ wɔn se, “Monka nkyerɛ Hesekia se,
“ ‘Asɛm a otumfo, Asiriahene ka ni: Dɛn na wode wo ho to so a ɛma wugye wo ho di saa? 5Woka se wowɔ akodi ho nyansa ne nʼahoɔden, nanso woka nsɛm hunu. Hena na ɔtaa wʼakyi a enti wotew mʼanim atua? 6Hwɛ wʼani da Misraim so, demmire a emu abu a ɛte sɛ pema a wutweri a ɛbɛwɔ wo nsa mu apira wo no! Saa na Misraimhene Farao te ma wɔn a wɔde wɔn ho to ne so no nyinaa. 7Ebia wobɛka se, “Yɛde yɛn ho to Awurade, yɛn Nyankopɔn so!” Ɛnyɛ ɔno na ɔhene Hesekia atutu nʼabosonnan ne afɔremuka nyinaa, ahyɛ Yudafo sɛ wɔnsom wɔ afɔremuka a ɛwɔ Yerusalem ha nko ara so no?
8“ ‘Mɛka asɛm bi akyerɛ wo! Me wura Asiriahene ne wo bɛyɛ nhyehyɛe bi. Sɛ wubenya apɔnkɔsotefo mpenu, afi wo asraafo mu a, ɔbɛma wɔn apɔnkɔ mpenu ama wɔatenatena wɔn so. 9Na wʼasraafo ketewa sɛɛ yi, ɛbɛyɛ dɛn na woaso dae, sɛ wubetumi ne me wura asraafo no mu fa bi a wɔyɛ mmerɛw no mpo adi asi. Minim sɛ wode wo ho ato Misraim nteaseɛnam ne apɔnkɔsotefo mmoa so. 10Bio, wugye di sɛ, maba sɛ merebɛtow ahyɛ asase yi so asɛe no kwa a Awurade nsa nni mu? Awurade ankasa ka kyerɛɛ me se menkɔko ntia saa asase yi na mensɛe no.’ ”
11Na Eliakim, Sebna ne Yoa ka kyerɛɛ ɔsahene no se, “Yɛsrɛ mo, monka Arameike kasa nkyerɛ mo asomfo, efisɛ, yɛte ase yiye. Monnka Hebri36.11 Hebri kasa yɛɛ kasa a na wɔde di nkitaho saa bere no. Efi 5 AWK no, Hebri kasa bɛyɛɛ Yudafo kasa. na nnipa a wɔwɔ ɔfasu no so no bɛte ase.”
12Na Senaherib nanmusini no buae se, “Me wura pɛ sɛ obiara a ɔwɔ Yerusalem te saa asɛm yi, na ɛnyɛ mo nko. Ɔpɛ sɛ wɔte sɛ, sɛ moamma mo nsa so a, wobetua kuropɔn yi. Ɔkɔm ne osukɔm werɛmfo bɛde nkurɔfo no ara kosi sɛ, wobedi wɔn ara agyanan, anom wɔn dwonsɔ.”
13Afei ɔsahene no sɔre gyina kasaa wɔ Hebri mu se, “Muntie saa nkra yi a efi ɔhempɔn, Asiriahene nkyɛn no! 14Sɛnea ɔhene no se ni: Mommma Hesekia nnaadaa mo. Ɔrentumi nnye mo! 15Mommma Hesekia mfa saa asɛm a ɔkae se, ‘Awurade begye yɛn! Wɔremfa saa kurow yi mma Asiriahene’ no mma mo tirim nyɛ mo dɛ.
16“Munntie Hesekia. Nea Asiriahene ka ni: Mo ne me nyɛ asomdwoe nhyehyɛe na mommra me nkyɛn. Na afei, mɛma mo mu biara adi ɔno ankasa bobe ne borɔdɔma na woanom nsu afi ɔno ankasa abura mu, 17kosi sɛ mɛba abɛfa mo akɔ asase a ɛte sɛ mo de yi so, awi ne nsa foforo asase, aduan ne bobe mfuw asase.
18“Mommma Hesekia nka se, ‘Awurade begye yɛn,’ mfa nnaadaa mo. Ɔman bi so nyame atumi agye ne man afi Asiriahene nsam pɛn ana? 19Ɛhe na Hamat ne Arpad anyame no wɔ? Na Sefarwaim anyame no nso wɔ he? Wɔagye Samaria afi me nsam ana? 20Ɔman bɛn so nyame na watumi agye ne manfo afi me tumi ase? Na afei ɛbɛyɛ dɛn na Awurade betumi agye Yerusalem afi me nsam.”
21Na nnipa no yɛɛ komm a wɔamma mmuae biara, efisɛ na Hesekia aka akyerɛ wɔn se wɔnnkasa.
22Afei Hilkia babarima Eliakim a na ɔhwɛ ahemfi no ntotoe so, Sebna a na ɔyɛ ɔkyerɛwfo ne Asaf babarima Yoa a ɔno nso yɛ ɔkyerɛwfo kɔɔ Hesekia nkyɛn a wɔasunsuane wɔn ntade mu, kɔkaa nea ɔsahene no aka akyerɛ no no.
Sennacherib Threatens Jerusalem
1In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah’s reign, Sennacherib king of Assyria attacked all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them. 2Then the king of Assyria sent his field commander with a large army from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem. When the commander stopped at the aqueduct of the Upper Pool, on the road to the Launderer’s Field, 3Eliakim son of Hilkiah the palace administrator, Shebna the secretary, and Joah son of Asaph the recorder went out to him.
4The field commander said to them, “Tell Hezekiah:
“ ‘This is what the great king, the king of Assyria, says: On what are you basing this confidence of yours? 5You say you have counsel and might for war—but you speak only empty words. On whom are you depending, that you rebel against me? 6Look, I know you are depending on Egypt, that splintered reed of a staff, which pierces the hand of anyone who leans on it! Such is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who depend on him. 7But if you say to me, “We are depending on the Lord our God”—isn’t he the one whose high places and altars Hezekiah removed, saying to Judah and Jerusalem, “You must worship before this altar”?
8“ ‘Come now, make a bargain with my master, the king of Assyria: I will give you two thousand horses—if you can put riders on them! 9How then can you repulse one officer of the least of my master’s officials, even though you are depending on Egypt for chariots and horsemen36:9 Or charioteers? 10Furthermore, have I come to attack and destroy this land without the Lord? The Lord himself told me to march against this country and destroy it.’ ”
11Then Eliakim, Shebna and Joah said to the field commander, “Please speak to your servants in Aramaic, since we understand it. Don’t speak to us in Hebrew in the hearing of the people on the wall.”
12But the commander replied, “Was it only to your master and you that my master sent me to say these things, and not to the people sitting on the wall—who, like you, will have to eat their own excrement and drink their own urine?”
13Then the commander stood and called out in Hebrew, “Hear the words of the great king, the king of Assyria! 14This is what the king says: Do not let Hezekiah deceive you. He cannot deliver you! 15Do not let Hezekiah persuade you to trust in the Lord when he says, ‘The Lord will surely deliver us; this city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.’
16“Do not listen to Hezekiah. This is what the king of Assyria says: Make peace with me and come out to me. Then each of you will eat fruit from your own vine and fig tree and drink water from your own cistern, 17until I come and take you to a land like your own—a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards.
18“Do not let Hezekiah mislead you when he says, ‘The Lord will deliver us.’ Have the gods of any nations ever delivered their lands from the hand of the king of Assyria? 19Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim? Have they rescued Samaria from my hand? 20Who of all the gods of these countries have been able to save their lands from me? How then can the Lord deliver Jerusalem from my hand?”
21But the people remained silent and said nothing in reply, because the king had commanded, “Do not answer him.”
22Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah the palace administrator, Shebna the secretary and Joah son of Asaph the recorder went to Hezekiah, with their clothes torn, and told him what the field commander had said.
