that were expressed by name, to give portions to all the males among the priests, and to all that were reckoned by genealogy among the Levites. 20And thus did Hezekiah throughout all Judah; and he wrought that which was good and right and [1]faithful before the LORD his God. 21And in every work that he began in the service of the house of God, and in the law, and in the commandments, to seek his God, he did it with all his heart, and prospered.
32After these things, and this faithfulness, Sennacherib king of Assyria came, and entered into Judah, and encamped against the fenced cities, and thought [2]to win them for himself. 2And when Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib
Assyrian king (ibid. xviii. 13—16). Sennacherib having discovered the weakness of Judah, next demanded an unconditional surrender, intending to transport the Jews to another country (ibid. 31, 32). This demand Hezekiah resisted, being strengthened thereto by Isaiah. The Chronicler does not refer to the earlier invasion or to the tribute—such a humiliation of the pious and devoted king being in his belief unthinkable. That any invasion should have taken place "after these things and this faithfulness" was sufficiently astonishing, until the issue showed that the anxiety and distress were only for the greater glory of Israel's God and for the further proof of Hezekiah's trust in Him.
1. After these things, and this faithfulness] The phrase is a hendiadys and stands for, "After these faithful dealings."
Sennacherib] This king (Sanḥērib in Hebrew, Sin-aḥi-irib [-irba] in Assyrian, the Σαναχάριβος of Herod. II. 141) reigned 705—681 B.C. He was the son of Sargon (Is. xx. 1), father of Esar-haddon (2 Kin. xix. 37; Ezra iv. 3), and grandfather of Asshur-bani-pal, the well-known Σαρδανάπαλλος of Herod. II. 150, who is commonly identified with Osnappar (cp. Ezra iv. 10). Under this dynasty Assyria reached the height of its power. The empire included Babylonia (which, however, was frequently in revolt), Assyria proper, Syria as far north as Cilicia (inclusive), and (under Esar-haddon and Asshur-bani-pal) Egypt. After Asshur-bani-pal's death (about 626 B.C.) the Assyrian power was speedily destroyed. The form Sennacherib is derived from the LXX. through the Vulgate.
to win them] Lit. to make breaches in them. According to 2 Kin. xviii. 13 Sennacherib took these cites; and the Assyrian account on the "Prism Inscription" of Sennacherib which is preserved in the British Museum states that they were forty-six in number (cp. Driver in Hogarth, Authority and Archaeology, pp. 104—107; or Handcock, Latest Light on Bible Lands, pp. 153 ff.).
