TORAH
FIVE BOOKS OF MOSES
NEVI'IM
PROPHETS
KETUVIM
WRITINGS
Chapter 37
Translation and Transliteration of
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1When King Chizkiyahu heard this, he rent his clothes and covered himself with sackcloth and went into the House of Hashem.
אוַיְהִי כִּשְׁמֹעַ הַמֶּלֶךְ חִזְקִיָּהוּ וַיִּקְרַע אֶת־בְּגָדָיו וַיִּתְכַּס בַּשָּׂק וַיָּבֹא בֵּית יְהֹוָה׃
2He also sent Eliakim, who was in charge of the palace, Shebna, the scribe, and the senior Kohanim, covered with sackcloth, to the Navi Yeshayahu son of Amotz.
בוַיִּשְׁלַח אֶת־אֶלְיָקִים אֲשֶׁר־עַל־הַבַּיִת וְאֵת שֶׁבְנָא הַסּוֹפֵר וְאֵת זִקְנֵי הַכֹּהֲנִים מִתְכַּסִּים בַּשַּׂקִּים אֶל־יְשַׁעְיָהוּ בֶן־אָמוֹץ הַנָּבִיא׃
3They said to him, “Thus said Chizkiyahu: This day is a day of distress, of chastisement, and of disgrace. The babes have reached the birthstool, but the strength to give birth is lacking.
גוַיֹּאמְרוּ אֵלָיו כֹּה אָמַר חִזְקִיָּהוּ יוֹם־צָרָה וְתוֹכֵחָה וּנְאָצָה הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה כִּי בָאוּ בָנִים עַד־מַשְׁבֵּר וְכֹחַ אַיִן לְלֵדָה׃
4Perhaps Hashem your God will take note of the words of the Rabshakeh, whom his master the king of Assyria has sent to blaspheme the living Hashem, and will mete out judgment for the words that Hashem your God has heard—if you will offer up prayer for the surviving remnant.”
דאוּלַי יִשְׁמַע יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ אֵת דִּבְרֵי רַב־שָׁקֵה אֲשֶׁר שְׁלָחוֹ מֶלֶךְ־אַשּׁוּר אֲדֹנָיו לְחָרֵף אֱלֹהִים חַי וְהוֹכִיחַ בַּדְּבָרִים אֲשֶׁר שָׁמַע יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ וְנָשָׂאתָ תְפִלָּה בְּעַד הַשְּׁאֵרִית הַנִּמְצָאָה׃
5When King Chizkiyahu's ministers came to Yeshayahu,
הוַיָּבֹאוּ עַבְדֵי הַמֶּלֶךְ חִזְקִיָּהוּ אֶל־יְשַׁעְיָהוּ׃
6Yeshayahu said to them, “Tell your master as follows: Thus said Hashem: Do not be frightened by the words of blasphemy against Me that you have heard from the minions of the king of Assyria.
ווַיֹּאמֶר אֲלֵיהֶם יְשַׁעְיָהוּ כֹּה תֹאמְרוּן אֶל־אֲדֹנֵיכֶם כֹּה אָמַר יְהֹוָה אַל־תִּירָא מִפְּנֵי הַדְּבָרִים אֲשֶׁר שָׁמַעְתָּ אֲשֶׁר גִּדְּפוּ נַעֲרֵי מֶלֶךְ־אַשּׁוּר אוֹתִי׃
7I will delude him: He will hear a rumor and return to his land, and I will make him fall by the sword in his land.”
זהִנְנִי נוֹתֵן בּוֹ רוּחַ וְשָׁמַע שְׁמוּעָה וְשָׁב אֶל־אַרְצוֹ וְהִפַּלְתִּיו בַּחֶרֶב בְּאַרְצוֹ׃
8The Rabshakeh, meanwhile, heard that [the King] had left Lachish; he turned back and found the king of Assyria attacking Libnah.
חוַיָּשָׁב רַב־שָׁקֵה וַיִּמְצָא אֶת־מֶלֶךְ אַשּׁוּר נִלְחָם עַל־לִבְנָה כִּי שָׁמַע כִּי נָסַע מִלָּכִישׁ׃
9But [the king of Assyria] learned that King Tirhakah of Nubia had come out to fight him; and when he heard it, he sent messengers to Chizkiyahu, saying,
טוַיִּשְׁמַע עַל־תִּרְהָקָה מֶלֶךְ־כּוּשׁ לֵאמֹר יָצָא לְהִלָּחֵם אִתָּךְ וַיִּשְׁמַע וַיִּשְׁלַח מַלְאָכִים אֶל־חִזְקִיָּהוּ לֵאמֹר׃
10“Tell this to King Chizkiyahu of Yehuda: Do not let your God, on whom you are relying, mislead you into thinking that Yerushalayim will not be delivered into the hands of the king of Assyria.
יכֹּה תֹאמְרוּן אֶל־חִזְקִיָּהוּ מֶלֶךְ־יְהוּדָה לֵאמֹר אַל־יַשִּׁאֲךָ אֱלֹהֶיךָ אֲשֶׁר אַתָּה בּוֹטֵחַ בּוֹ לֵאמֹר לֹא תִנָּתֵן יְרוּשָׁלַ ִם בְּיַד מֶלֶךְ אַשּׁוּר׃
11You yourself have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the lands, how they have annihilated them; and can you escape?
יאהִנֵּה אַתָּה שָׁמַעְתָּ אֲשֶׁר עָשׂוּ מַלְכֵי אַשּׁוּר לְכָל־הָאֲרָצוֹת לְהַחֲרִימָם וְאַתָּה תִּנָּצֵל׃
12Were the nations that my predecessors destroyed—Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the Bethedenites in Telassar—saved by their gods?
יבהַהִצִּילוּ אוֹתָם אֱלֹהֵי הַגּוֹיִם אֲשֶׁר הִשְׁחִיתוּ אֲבוֹתַי אֶת־גּוֹזָן וְאֶת־חָרָן וְרֶצֶף וּבְנֵי־עֶדֶן אֲשֶׁר בִּתְלַשָּׂר׃
13Where is the king of Hamath? and the king of Arpad? and the kings of Lair, Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah?”
יגאַיֵּה מֶלֶךְ־חֲמָת וּמֶלֶךְ אַרְפָּד וּמֶלֶךְ לָעִיר סְפַרְוָיִם הֵנַע וְעִוָּה׃
14Chizkiyahu received the letter from the messengers and read it. Chizkiyahu then went up to the House of Hashem and spread it out before Hashem.
ידוַיִּקַּח חִזְקִיָּהוּ אֶת־הַסְּפָרִים מִיַּד הַמַּלְאָכִים וַיִּקְרָאֵהוּ וַיַּעַל בֵּית יְהֹוָה וַיִּפְרְשֵׂהוּ חִזְקִיָּהוּ לִפְנֵי יְהֹוָה׃
15And Chizkiyahu prayed to Hashem:
טווַיִּתְפַּלֵּל חִזְקִיָּהוּ אֶל־יְהֹוָה לֵאמֹר׃
16“O LORD of Hosts, enthroned on the Keruvim! You alone are God of all the kingdoms of the earth. You made the heavens and the earth.
טזיְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל יֹשֵׁב הַכְּרֻבִים אַתָּה־הוּא הָאֱלֹהִים לְבַדְּךָ לְכֹל מַמְלְכוֹת הָאָרֶץ אַתָּה עָשִׂיתָ אֶת־הַשָּׁמַיִם וְאֶת־הָאָרֶץ׃
17Hashem, incline Your ear and hear, open Your eye and see. Hear all the words that Sennacherib has sent to blaspheme the living Hashem!
יזהַטֵּה יְהֹוָה אָזְנְךָ וּשְׁמָע פְּקַח יְהֹוָה עֵינֶךָ וּרְאֵה וּשְׁמַע אֵת כָּל־דִּבְרֵי סַנְחֵרִיב אֲשֶׁר שָׁלַח לְחָרֵף אֱלֹהִים חָי׃
18True, Hashem, the kings of Assyria have annihilated all the nations and their lands
יחאָמְנָם יְהֹוָה הֶחֱרִיבוּ מַלְכֵי אַשּׁוּר אֶת־כָּל־הָאֲרָצוֹת וְאֶת־אַרְצָם׃
19and have committed their gods to the flames and have destroyed them; for they are not gods, but man's handwork of wood and stone.
יטוְנָתֹן אֶת־אֱלֹהֵיהֶם בָּאֵשׁ כִּי לֹא אֱלֹהִים הֵמָּה כִּי אִם־מַעֲשֵׂה יְדֵי־אָדָם עֵץ וָאֶבֶן וַיְאַבְּדוּם׃
20But now, Hashem our God, deliver us from his hands, and let all the kingdoms of the earth know that You, Hashem, alone [are Hashem].”
v'-a-TAH a-do-NAI e-lo-HAY-nu ho-shee-AY-nu mi-ya-DO v'-yay-d'-U kol mam-l'-KHOT ha-A-retz kee a-TAH a-do-NAI l'-va-DE-kha
כוְעַתָּה יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ הוֹשִׁיעֵנוּ מִיָדוֹ וְיֵדְעוּ כָּל־מַמְלְכוֹת הָאָרֶץ כִּי־אַתָּה יְהֹוָה לְבַדֶּךָ׃
37:20 Let all the kingdoms of the earth know that You, Hashem, alone
In his prayer at Yerushalayim’s most dire hour, Chizkiyahu reveals himself to be a true eved Hashem (עבד השם), ‘servant of God.’ He prays not for the sake of his own honor, nor even for his country or his people, whose fate is bound up with his own, but for Hashem’s glory in front of the world at large. This is similar to Moshe’s song, sung after the Jews crossed the Sea of Reeds, joyfully declaring, “The peoples hear, they tremble; agony grips the dwellers in Philistia. Now are the clans of Edom dismayed; the tribes of Moab—trembling grips them… Hashem will reign for ever and ever!” (Exodus 15:14-15, 18). David expressed this best – “May they know that Your name, Yours alone, is Hashem, supreme over all the earth” (Psalm 83:19). A true servant of God and leader of Israel recognizes that his ultimate purpose in this world is to spread knowledge of Hashem and His glory throughout the world.
21Then Yeshayahu son of Amotz sent this message to Chizkiyahu: “Thus said Hashem, the God of Yisrael, to whom you have prayed, concerning King Sennacherib of Assyria
כאוַיִּשְׁלַח יְשַׁעְיָהוּ בֶן־אָמוֹץ אֶל־חִזְקִיָּהוּ לֵאמֹר כֹּה־אָמַר יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אֲשֶׁר הִתְפַּלַּלְתָּ אֵלַי אֶל־סַנְחֵרִיב מֶלֶךְ אַשּׁוּר׃
22this is the word that Hashem has spoken concerning him: Fair Maiden Tzion despises you, She mocks at you; Fair Yerushalayim shakes Her head at you.
כבזֶה הַדָּבָר אֲשֶׁר־דִּבֶּר יְהֹוָה עָלָיו בָּזָה לְךָ לָעֲגָה לְךָ בְּתוּלַת בַּת־צִיּוֹן אַחֲרֶיךָ רֹאשׁ הֵנִיעָה בַּת יְרוּשָׁלָ ִם׃
23Whom have you blasphemed and reviled? Against whom made loud your voice And haughtily raised your eyes? Against the Holy One of Yisrael!
כגאֶת־מִי חֵרַפְתָּ וְגִדַּפְתָּ וְעַל־מִי הֲרִימוֹתָה קּוֹל וַתִּשָּׂא מָרוֹם עֵינֶיךָ אֶל־קְדוֹשׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל׃
24Through your servants you have blasphemed my Lord. Because you thought, ‘Thanks to my vast chariotry, It is I who have climbed the highest mountains, To the remotest parts of the Lebanon, And have cut down its loftiest cedars, Its choicest cypresses, And have reached its highest peak, Its densest forest.
כדבְּיַד עֲבָדֶיךָ חֵרַפְתָּ אֲדֹנָי וַתֹּאמֶר בְּרֹב רִכְבִּי אֲנִי עָלִיתִי מְרוֹם הָרִים יַרְכְּתֵי לְבָנוֹן וְאֶכְרֹת קוֹמַת אֲרָזָיו מִבְחַר בְּרֹשָׁיו וְאָבוֹא מְרוֹם קִצּוֹ יַעַר כַּרְמִלּוֹ׃
25It is I who have drawn And drunk water. I have dried up with the soles of my feet All the streams of Egypt.'
כהאֲנִי קַרְתִּי וְשָׁתִיתִי מָיִם וְאַחְרִב בְּכַף־פְּעָמַי כֹּל יְאֹרֵי מָצוֹר׃
26Have you not heard? Of old I planned that very thing, I designed it long ago, And now have fulfilled it. And it has come to pass, Laying fortified towns waste in desolate heaps.
כוהֲלוֹא־שָׁמַעְתָּ לְמֵרָחוֹק אוֹתָהּ עָשִׂיתִי מִימֵי קֶדֶם וִיצַרְתִּיהָ עַתָּה הֲבֵאתִיהָ וּתְהִי לְהַשְׁאוֹת גַּלִּים נִצִּים עָרִים בְּצֻרוֹת׃
27Their inhabitants are helpless, Dismayed and shamed. They were but grass of the field And green herbage, Grass of the roofs that is blasted Before the east wind.
כזוְיֹשְׁבֵיהֶן קִצְרֵי־יָד חַתּוּ וָבֹשׁוּ הָיוּ עֵשֶׂב שָׂדֶה וִירַק דֶּשֶׁא חֲצִיר גַּגּוֹת וּשְׁדֵמָה לִפְנֵי קָמָה׃
28I know your stayings And your goings and comings, And how you have raged against Me,
כחוְשִׁבְתְּךָ וְצֵאתְךָ וּבוֹאֲךָ יָדָעְתִּי וְאֵת הִתְרַגֶּזְךָ אֵלָי׃
29Because you have raged against Me, And your tumult has reached My ears, I will place My hook in your nose And My bit between your jaws; And I will make you go back by the road By which you came.
כטיַעַן הִתְרַגֶּזְךָ אֵלַי וְשַׁאֲנַנְךָ עָלָה בְאָזְנָי וְשַׂמְתִּי חַחִי בְּאַפֶּךָ וּמִתְגִּי בִּשְׂפָתֶיךָ וַהֲשִׁיבֹתִיךָ בַּדֶּרֶךְ אֲשֶׁר־בָּאתָ בָּהּ׃
30“And this is the sign for you: This year you eat what grows of itself, and the next year what springs from that, and in the third year sow and reap and plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
לוְזֶה־לְּךָ הָאוֹת אָכוֹל הַשָּׁנָה סָפִיחַ וּבַשָּׁנָה הַשֵּׁנִית שָׁחִיס וּבַשָּׁנָה הַשְּׁלִישִׁית זִרְעוּ וְקִצְרוּ וְנִטְעוּ כְרָמִים ואכול [וְאִכְלוּ] פִרְיָם׃
31And the survivors of the House of Yehuda that have escaped shall renew its trunk below and produce boughs above.
לאוְיָסְפָה פְּלֵיטַת בֵּית־יְהוּדָה הַנִּשְׁאָרָה שֹׁרֶשׁ לְמָטָּה וְעָשָׂה פְרִי לְמָעְלָה׃
32For a remnant shall come forth from Yerushalayim, Survivors from Mount Tzion. The zeal of the lord of Hosts Shall bring this to pass.
לבכִּי מִירוּשָׁלַ ִם תֵּצֵא שְׁאֵרִית וּפְלֵיטָה מֵהַר צִיּוֹן קִנְאַת יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת תַּעֲשֶׂה־זֹּאת׃
33“Assuredly, thus said Hashem concerning the king of Assyria: He shall not enter this city; He shall not shoot an arrow at it, Or advance upon it with a shield, Or pile up a siegemound against it.
לגלָכֵן כֹּה־אָמַר יְהֹוָה אֶל־מֶלֶךְ אַשּׁוּר לֹא יָבוֹא אֶל־הָעִיר הַזֹּאת וְלֹא־יוֹרֶה שָׁם חֵץ וְלֹא־יְקַדְּמֶנָּה מָגֵן וְלֹא־יִשְׁפֹּךְ עֳלֶיהָ סֹלְלָה׃
34He shall go back By the way he came, He shall not enter this city —declares Hashem;
לדבַּדֶּרֶךְ אֲשֶׁר־בָּא בָּהּ יָשׁוּב וְאֶל־הָעִיר הַזֹּאת לֹא יָבוֹא נְאֻם־יְהֹוָה׃
35I will protect and save this city for My sake And for the sake of My servant David.”
להוְגַנּוֹתִי עַל־הָעִיר הַזֹּאת לְהוֹשִׁיעָהּ לְמַעֲנִי וּלְמַעַן דָּוִד עַבְדִּי׃
36[That night] an angel of Hashem went out and struck down one hundred and eighty-five thousand in the Assyrian camp, and the following morning they were all dead corpses.
לווַיֵּצֵא מַלְאַךְ יְהֹוָה וַיַּכֶּה בְּמַחֲנֵה אַשּׁוּר מֵאָה וּשְׁמֹנִים וַחֲמִשָּׁה אָלֶף וַיַּשְׁכִּימוּ בַבֹּקֶר וְהִנֵּה כֻלָּם פְּגָרִים מֵתִים׃
37So King Sennacherib of Assyria broke camp and retreated, and stayed in Nineveh.
לזוַיִּסַּע וַיֵּלֶךְ וַיָּשָׁב סַנְחֵרִיב מֶלֶךְ־אַשּׁוּר וַיֵּשֶׁב בְּנִינְוֵה׃
38While he was worshiping in the temple of his god Nisroch, he was struck down with the sword by his sons Adrammelech and Sarezer. They fled to the land of Ararat, and his son Esarhaddon succeeded him as king.
לחוַיְהִי הוּא מִשְׁתַּחֲוֶה בֵּית נִסְרֹךְ אֱלֹהָיו וְאַדְרַמֶּלֶךְ וְשַׂרְאֶצֶר בָּנָיו הִכֻּהוּ בַחֶרֶב וְהֵמָּה נִמְלְטוּ אֶרֶץ אֲרָרָט וַיִּמְלֹךְ אֵסַר־חַדֹּן בְּנוֹ תַּחְתָּיו׃
