Section 6

Faced with the Rabshakeh’s taunts and the imminent threat of destruction, Hezekiah did not despair. In a profound act of humility and faith, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth, and went to the Temple to pray. He also sent messengers to the prophet Isaiah, seeking a word from the Lord.

Isaiah sent back a message of unwavering assurance, promising that God would defend the city and that Sennacherib would not even shoot an arrow into it. When Sennacherib sent a final, blasphemous letter, Hezekiah took it, spread it out before the Lord in the Temple, and prayed a powerful prayer, asking God to deliver Jerusalem not for their own sake, but to demonstrate His sovereignty over all the kingdoms of the earth.

That very night, according to the biblical account, a divine intervention of miraculous proportions occurred. "The angel of the Lord went out and put to death a hundred and eighty-five thousand in the Assyrian camp. When the people got up the next morning—there were all the dead bodies!" (2 Kings 19:35). Devastated by this catastrophic loss, Sennacherib broke off the siege and returned to his capital, Nineveh. He was later assassinated by his own sons, fulfilling Isaiah's prophecy.