Messengers from Babylon^(A)

39 At that time Merodach-Baladan son of Baladan was king of Babylon [^Cruled 722–710 and 703–702 bc]. He sent ·letters [greetings] and a gift to Hezekiah, because he had heard that Hezekiah had been sick and was now well. ² Hezekiah was pleased and showed the messengers what was in his storehouses: the silver, gold, spices, ·expensive perfumes [precious oils], his ·swords and shields [armory], and all his ·wealth [treasures]. He showed them everything in his ·palace [^Lhouse] and in his kingdom.

³ Then Isaiah the prophet went to King Hezekiah and asked him, “What did these men say? Where did they come from?”

Hezekiah said, “They came from a faraway country—from Babylon.”

⁴ So Isaiah asked him, “What did they see in your ·palace [^Lhouse]?”

Hezekiah said, “They saw everything in my ·palace [^Lhouse]. I showed them all my ·wealth [^Ltreasuries; store houses].”

⁵ Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah: “Listen to the words of the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; ^Tof hosts]: ⁶ ‘·In the future to you [The time/day is coming when] everything in your palace and everything your ·ancestors [fathers] have stored up until this day will be ·taken away [carried off] to Babylon. Nothing will be left,’ says the Lord. ⁷ Some of your own ·children [sons], those ·who will be born to you [you will father], will be taken away, and they will become ·servants [eunuchs] in the palace of the king of Babylon.”

⁸ Hezekiah told Isaiah, “These words from the Lord are good.” He said this because he thought, “There will be peace and security in my lifetime.”

Messengers from Babylon^(A)

¹² At that time Merodach-baladan son of Baladan was king of Babylon. He sent ·letters [greetings] and a gift to Hezekiah, because he had heard that Hezekiah ·was [had been] sick. ¹³ Hezekiah ·listened to [received] the messengers, ·so [and] he showed them what was in his storehouses: the silver, gold, spices, ·expensive perfumes [precious oils], his ·swords and shields [armory], and all his ·wealth [treasures]. He showed them everything in his ·palace [^Lhouse] and his kingdom.

¹⁴ Then Isaiah the prophet went to King Hezekiah and asked him, “What did these men say? Where did they come from?”

Hezekiah said, “They came from a faraway country—from Babylon.”

¹⁵ So Isaiah asked him, “What did they see in your ·palace [^Lhouse]?”

Hezekiah said, “They saw everything in my ·palace [^Lhouse]. I showed them all my ·wealth [^Ltreasuries; store houses].”

¹⁶ Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Listen to the words of the Lord: ¹⁷ ‘·In the future to you [The time/day is coming when] everything in your ·palace [^Lhouse] and everything your ·ancestors [fathers] have stored up until this day will be ·taken away [carried off] to Babylon. Nothing will be left,’ says the Lord. ¹⁸ ‘Some of your own ·children [sons], those ·who will be born to you [you will father], will be taken away. And they will become ·servants [eunuchs] in the palace of the king of Babylon.’”

¹⁹ Hezekiah told Isaiah, “These words from the Lord that you have spoken are good.” He said this because he thought, “Why not? There will be peace and security in my lifetime.”

²⁰ Everything else Hezekiah did—all his ·victories [achievements; power], his work on the pool, his work on the tunnel to bring water into the city—·is [^Lis it not…?] written in the book of the ·history [chronicles; annals; 1:18] of the kings of Judah. ²¹ Then Hezekiah ·died [^Llay down/^Tslept with his fathers/ancestors], and his son Manasseh became king in his place.

³¹ But one time the ·leaders [officials] of Babylon sent messengers to Hezekiah, asking him about a ·strange [miraculous] sign that had happened in the land [2 Kin. 20:12–19; Is. 39:1–8]. When they came, God left Hezekiah ·alone [to himself] to test him so he could know everything that was in Hezekiah’s heart.

Hezekiah Dies^(A)

³² Hezekiah’s ·love for God [acts of devotion] and the ·other things [rest of the events/acts] he did as king are written in the vision of the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz. This is in the ·book [scroll] of the kings of Judah and Israel. ³³ Hezekiah ·died [^Llay down/^Tslept with his fathers/ancestors] and was buried on a hill, where the ·graves [tombs] of David’s ·ancestors [descendants] are. All the people of Judah and Jerusalem honored Hezekiah when he died, and his son Manasseh became king in his place.