2 Kings 19:33-37

19:33 He will go back the way he came.

He will not enter this city,” says the Lord.

19:34 I will shield this city and rescue it for the sake of my reputation and because of my promise to David my servant.’” ¹ 

19:35 That very night the Lord’s messenger went out and killed 185,000 men in the Assyrian camp. When they ²  got up early the next morning, there were all the corpses. ³  19:36 So King Sennacherib of Assyria broke camp and went on his way. He went home and stayed in Nineveh. ⁴  19:37 One day, ⁵  as he was worshiping in the temple of his god Nisroch, ⁶  his sons ⁷  Adrammelech and Sharezer struck him down with the sword. ⁸  They escaped to the land of Ararat; his son Esarhaddon replaced him as king.

[19:34]  ¹ tn Heb “for my sake and for the sake of David my servant.”

[19:35]  ² tn This refers to the Israelites and/or the rest of the Assyrian army.

[19:35]  ³ tn Heb “look, all of them were dead bodies.”

[19:36]  ⁴ tn Heb “and Sennacherib king of Assyria departed and went and returned and lived in Nineveh.”

[19:37]  ⁵ sn The assassination probably took place in 681 b.c.

[19:37]  ⁶ sn No such Mesopotamian god is presently known. Perhaps the name is a corruption of Nusku.

[19:37]  ⁷ 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.

[19:37]  ⁸ 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.