2 Kings 19:36-37

19:36 So King Sennacherib of Assyria broke camp and went on his way. He went home and stayed in Nineveh. 1  19:37 One day, 2  as he was worshiping in the temple of his god Nisroch, 3  his sons 4  Adrammelech and Sharezer struck him down with the sword. 5  They escaped to the land of Ararat; his son Esarhaddon replaced him as king.

1 tn Heb “and Sennacherib king of Assyria departed and went and returned and lived in Nineveh.”

2 sn The assassination probably took place in 681 b.c.

3 sn No such Mesopotamian god is presently known. Perhaps the name is a corruption of Nusku.

4 tc Although “his sons” is absent in the Kethib, it is supported by the Qere, along with many medieval Hebrew mss and the ancient versions. Cf. Isa 37:38.

5 sn Extra-biblical sources also mention the assassination of Sennacherib, though they refer to only one assassin. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 239-40.