NISROCH nĭz’ rŏk (נִסְרֹ֣כְ). An Assyrian deity worshiped at Nineveh. After Sennacherib, the Assyrian king, returned from his loss near Jerusalem, he was murdered by his two sons Adrammelech and Sharezer while he was worshiping in the house of Nisroch, his god (Isa 37:36-38). Sennacherib was apparently “smashed with statues of protective deities” (ANET², p. 288) as well as being “slain with the sword” (2 Kings 19:37).

Since the name Nisroch is completely unknown in the source material for Mesopotamian religion, a textual corruption is assumed. This textual problem is also reflected in the variants of the Gr. VSS. Although many ingenious suggestions have been presented, the term remains uncertain.