1
2Ki 19:1-5.
英文原文
2Ki 19:1-5.
HEZEKIAH IN DEEP AFFLICTION.
1-3. when king Hezekiah heard it, he rent his clothes--The rending of his clothes was a mode of expressing horror at the daring blasphemy--the assumption of sackcloth a sign of his mental distress--his entrance into the temple to pray the refuge of a pious man in affliction--and the forwarding an account of the Assyrian's speech to Isaiah was to obtain the prophet's counsel and comfort. The expression in which the message was conveyed described, by a strong figure, the desperate condition of the kingdom, together with their own inability to help themselves; and it intimated also a hope, that the blasphemous defiance of Jehovah's power by the impious Assyrian might lead to some direct interposition for the vindication of His honor and supremacy to all heathen gods.
4
無標題
4. 活神——「活神」一詞意義極為深遠，須與家宰所誇口那些不能抵擋他主人得勝兵刃的無知覺偶像神明對照來看。
英文原文
4. the living God--"The living God" is a most significant expression taken in connection with the senseless deities that Rab-shakeh boasted were unable to resist his master's victorious arms.
6
2Ki 19:6, 7.
王下 19:6、7.
以賽亞安慰希西家
6. 以賽亞說……不要懼怕——先知的回答令人極其振奮，因為它開出了即將從侵略者手中得拯救的盼望。風聲、謠言、與刀劍的傾覆，包含了一個簡短的預言，不久便在三方面全都應驗——即促使他倉皇撤退的警報、臨到其軍隊的毀滅、以及突然終結其一生的暴斃。
英文原文
2Ki 19:6, 7.
COMFORTED BY ISAIAH.
6. Isaiah said . . . Be not afraid--The prophet's answer was most cheering, as it held out the prospect of a speedy deliverance from the invader. The blast, the rumor, the fall by the sword, contained a brief prediction that was soon fulfilled in all the three particulars--namely, the alarm that hastened his retreat, the destruction that overtook his army, and the violent death that suddenly ended his career.
8
2Ki 19:8-13.
王下 19:8-13.
西拿基立致信希西家褻瀆神
8. 拉伯沙基……發現亞述王正在攻打立拿——拉吉是否已經攻下，經文並未說明。但西拿基立已將攻城槌轉向鄰近的立拿堡壘
(書 10:29；
參
書 10:31；15:42)，
家宰在那裏報告他所奉差使命的執行結果。
英文原文
2Ki 19:8-13.
SENNACHERIB SENDS A BLASPHEMOUS LETTER TO HEZEKIAH.
8. So Rab-shakeh . . . found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah--Whether Lachish had fallen or not, is not said. But Sennacherib had transferred his battering-rams against the apparently neighboring fortress of Libnah
(Jos 10:29;
compare
Jos 10:31; 15:42),
where the chief-cup-bearer reported the execution of his mission.
9
無標題
9-13. 他聽見人論古實王特哈加的話說……看哪，他出來要與你爭戰，云云——這就是以賽亞所指的「風聲」
[王下 19:7]。
特哈加統治上埃及，而梭（或沙巴科）治理下埃及。他是一位強大的君王，另一位西索伊斯；他與沙巴科都留下了許多彰顯其偉大的紀念物。特哈加接收戰俘的名字與形象，至今仍可見於埃及麥迪涅阿布神廟中。這就是拉伯沙基所譏誚為「壓傷的葦杖」
(王下 18:21)
的那所盼望的援助。他對希西家與埃及結盟的憤怒，或想更能應付這從南方而來的攻擊，使他聽見特哈加進軍的風聲之後，便差一封威嚇的信給希西家，為要迫使猶大王立即獻城投降。這封信措辭與拉伯沙基的話同樣傲慢專橫，褻瀆之處更甚，並列舉了更多被征服之地，意圖使希西家恐懼，讓他看出一切抵抗都是徹底無望的。
英文原文
9-13. when he heard say of Tirhakah . . ., Behold, he is come out to fight against thee, &c.--This was the "rumor" to which Isaiah referred
[2Ki 19:7].
Tirhakah reigned in Upper Egypt, while So (or Sabaco) ruled in Lower Egypt. He was a powerful monarch, another Sesostris, and both he and Sabaco have left many monuments of their greatness. The name and figure of Tirhakah receiving war captives, are still seen in the Egyptian temple of Medinet Abou. This was the expected succor which was sneered at by Rab-shakeh as "a bruised reed"
(2Ki 18:21).
Rage against Hezekiah for allying himself with Egypt, or the hope of being better able to meet this attack from the south, induced him, after hearing the rumor of Tirhakah's advance, to send a menacing letter to Hezekiah, in order that he might force the king of Judah to an immediate surrender of his capital. This letter, couched in the same vaunting and imperious style as the speech of Rab-shakeh, exceeded it in blasphemy, and contained a larger enumeration of conquered places, with the view of terrifying Hezekiah and showing him the utter hopelessness of all attempts at resistance.
14
2Ki 19:14-34.
王下 19:14-34.
希西家的禱告
14-19. 希西家從使者手裏接過書信來……就進了耶和華的殿——希西家讀完之後，便急忙進聖殿，以孩子般單純的信心把信攤開在耶和華面前——因其中含有深深影響神尊嚴的譏誚，便懇求從這位公然挑戰神與人的狂妄之徒手中得拯救。這禱告的敬虔精神，對神在祂威嚴的豐滿中的認識——與亞述人以為祂的能力只限於一地的想像形成鮮明對比；他承認敵人對列國所取得的勝利；承認他們木頭偶像的被毀——按亞述人的習俗，這些偶像被投入火中——因它們的守護神明根本不是神；以及他懇求神介入的目的——使天下萬國都知道耶和華是獨一的神——這是一位蒙揀選之民敬虔神權君王當有的姿態。
英文原文
2Ki 19:14-34.
HEZEKIAH'S PRAYER.
14-19. Hezekiah received the letter . . . and went up into the house of the Lord--Hezekiah, after reading it, hastened into the temple, spread it in the childlike confidence of faith before the Lord, as containing taunts deeply affecting the divine honor, and implored deliverance from this proud defier of God and man. The devout spirit of this prayer, the recognition of the Divine Being in the plenitude of His majesty--so strikingly contrasted with the fancy of the Assyrians as to His merely local power; his acknowledgment of the conquests obtained over other lands; and of the destruction of their wooden idols which, according to the Assyrian practice, were committed to the flames--because their tutelary deities were no gods; and the object for which he supplicated the divine interposition--that all the kingdoms of the earth might know that the Lord was the only God--this was an attitude worthy to be assumed by a pious theocratic king of the chosen people.
20
無標題
20. 以賽亞……差人去——以賽亞既得了啟示，便向王宣告他的禱告已蒙垂聽。這先知的信息由三部分組成：第一，向西拿基立發出呼喊
(王下 19:21-28)， 詩歌的格調極高，生動地描繪了那位亞述暴君浮誇的虛榮、狂妄的自稱與放肆的不敬。第二，對希西家說話
(王下 19:29-31)， 給他一個應許拯救的兆頭——即兩年之內，敵人的存在會妨礙農耕的進行；但到了第三年，百姓便可恢復耕種田地葡萄園，並照常收割。第三，宣告西拿基立入侵的結局
(王下 19:32-34)。
英文原文
20. Then Isaiah . . . sent--A revelation having been made to Isaiah, the prophet announced to the king that his prayer was heard. The prophetic message consisted of three different portions:--First, Sennacherib is apostrophized
(2Ki 19:21-28)
in a highly poetical strain, admirably descriptive of the turgid vanity, haughty pretensions, and presumptuous impiety of the Assyrian despot. Secondly, Hezekiah is addressed
(2Ki 19:29-31),
and a sign is given him of the promised deliverance--namely, that for two years the presence of the enemy would interrupt the peaceful pursuits of husbandry, but in the third year the people would be in circumstances to till their fields and vineyards and reap the fruits as formerly. Thirdly, the issue of Sennacherib's invasion is announced
(2Ki 19:32-34).
33
無標題
33. 必不得來到這城——也不得靠近到可以射出一箭，即使從最能將拋射物投到最遠的器械也不可；也不得用柵欄、擋板（圍城時保護兵士的掩蓋物）在城前佔據任何地方；也不得堆築土壘（土墩），高過城牆，從而可以俯視並控制城內。這些都是古時兵法中主要的攻城方式，西拿基立一概不蒙允許採用。雖然拉伯沙基所率的軍隊向耶路撒冷進發，並在不遠處紮營企圖封鎖，他們卻遲遲未發起圍攻，大概在等王攻下拉吉與立拿之後率領其分遣隊前來，好以亞述全部聯合兵力圍困首都。這位入侵者決心征服猶大與鄰近各國
(賽 10:7)， 若無神的介入，耶路撒冷斷無得救之理。或可設想，這位席捲巴勒斯坦、擄走以色列各支派的強大君王，必會在雕刻的石板上、或奉獻的公牛像上，留下其功業的紀念。《西拿基立年譜》中載有關於這次出征的一份冗長而詳盡的記述，最近已被譯成英文；羅林森上校在其評註中說，亞述版的記載印證了聖經記述中最重要的一些特徵。雙方對此次戰役的記述，整體而言確實彼此有了引人矚目的對照說明 [Outlines of Assyrian History]。
英文原文
33. shall not come into this city--nor approach near enough to shoot an arrow, not even from the most powerful engine which throws missiles to the greatest distance, nor shall he occupy any part of the ground before the city by a fence, a mantelet, or covering for men employed in a siege, nor cast (raise) a bank (mound) of earth, overtopping the city walls, whence he may see and command the interior of the city. None of these, which were the principal modes of attack followed in ancient military art, should Sennacherib be permitted to adopt. Though the army under Rab-shakeh marched towards Jerusalem and encamped at a little distance with a view to blockade it, they delayed laying siege to it, probably waiting till the king, having taken Lachish and Libnah, should bring up his detachment, that with all the combined forces of Assyria they might invest the capital. So determined was this invader to conquer Judah and the neighboring countries
(Isa 10:7),
that nothing but a divine interposition could have saved Jerusalem. It might be supposed that the powerful monarch who overran Palestine and carried away the tribes of Israel, would leave memorials of his deeds on sculptured slabs, or votive bulls. A long and minute account of this expedition is contained in the Annals of Sennacherib, a translation of which has recently been made into English, and, in his remarks upon it, COLONEL RAWLINSON says the Assyrian version confirms the most important features of the Scripture account. The Jewish and Assyrian narratives of the campaign are, indeed, on the whole, strikingly illustrative of each other [Outlines of Assyrian History].
35
2Ki 19:35, 36.
王下 19:35、36.
天使殲滅亞述軍
35. 清早……他們都是死屍——保衛耶路撒冷的是全能者神蹟性的介入。至於殲滅亞述軍所用的次要工具，最可能是炎熱的南風——西孟風——正如直至今日仍常整隊將商旅吞沒毀滅的那種。這推測有
2Ki 19:7
和耶 51:1 為佐證。 毀滅是在夜間發生；將士既全無戒備，便疏於防範；紀律鬆弛；營中守衛不警醒，或者他們自己首先被除滅；那些睡覺的人沒有裹緊，便大量吸入了毒氣。倘若這是一個放縱歡樂的夜晚（在營中並不罕見），他們的歡樂（也許是為勝利），或照 JOSEPHUS 所說「他們攻城的第一個夜晚」，因著其影響，便成了促成他們滅亡的一個原因 [CALMET, Fragments]。
英文原文
2Ki 19:35, 36.
AN ANGEL DESTROYS THE ASSYRIANS.
35. in the morning . . . they were all dead corpses--It was the miraculous interposition of the Almighty that defended Jerusalem. As to the secondary agent employed in the destruction of the Assyrian army, it is most probable that it was effected by a hot south wind, the simoon, such as to this day often envelops and destroys whole caravans. This conjecture is supported by
2Ki 19:7 and Jer 51:1.
The destruction was during the night; the officers and soldiers, being in full security, were negligent; their discipline was relaxed; the camp guards were not alert, or perhaps they themselves were the first taken off, and those who slept, not wrapped up, imbibed the poison plentifully. If this had been an evening of dissolute mirth (no uncommon thing in a camp), their joy (perhaps for a victory), or "the first night of their attacking the city," says JOSEPHUS, became, by its effects, one means of their destruction [CALMET, Fragments].
36
無標題
36. 亞述王西拿基立……拔營回去——沿著他來時的原路
(王下 19:33)。
該路線有詳細描述
(賽 10:28-32)。
貝魯特附近的早期戰車古道，位於黎巴嫩山的岩石邊緣，緊鄰古呂庫斯河（納爾卡勒布）。在石灰岩垂直的岩面上，不同高度都可見到帶有亞述銘文的石板；經過辨識，發現其中含有西拿基立的名字。如此，藉著這些碑文的保存，亞述侵略者的怒氣反倒成了對耶和華的讚美。
住在尼尼微——這記述意味著相當長的一段時間；他的年譜將其歷史至少延續到耶路撒冷那次慘敗之後五年。找不到任何關於他這場浩劫的記錄，因為亞述人的慣例只記勝利。浮雕所呈現的，只是光明的一面。
英文原文
36. So Sennacherib king of Assyria . . . went and returned--the same way as he came
(2Ki 19:33).
The route is described
(Isa 10:28-32).
The early chariot track near Beyrout is on the rocky edge of Lebanon, which is skirted by the ancient Lycus (Nahr-el Kelb). On the perpendicular face of the limestone rock, at different heights, are seen slabs with Assyrian inscriptions, which having been deciphered, are found to contain the name of Sennacherib. Thus, by the preservation of these tablets, the wrath of the Assyrian invaders is made to praise the Lord.
dwelt at Nineveh--This statement implies a considerable period of time, and his Annals carry on his history at least five years after his disastrous campaign at Jerusalem. No record of his catastrophe can be found, as the Assyrian practice was to record victories alone. The sculptures give only the sunny side of the picture.
37
2Ki 19:37.
王下 19:37.
西拿基立被殺
37. 他在他的神尼斯洛的廟中叩拜的時候——尼斯洛即亞撒拉，或作亞述，是亞述眾神之首；其形象並非鷲頭人像（現已確定那是祭司），而是一位在圓圈中的有翼形象，是亞述的守護神。碑刻上描繪王站在或跪在這形象之下，舉手作禱告或敬拜的姿勢。
他的兒子們用刀殺了他——西拿基立的性情因屢遭挫折而愈發暴戾，對臣民與奴隸表現出最野蠻的殘酷和難以忍受的專橫，終於被他的兩個兒子所弒；據說他原想把這兩個兒子獻為祭，以安撫眾神、求得回賜繁榮。弒君者逃往亞美尼亞之後，第三子以撒哈頓登上寶座。
英文原文
2Ki 19:37.
SENNACHERIB SLAIN.
37. as he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch--Assarae, or Asshur, the head of the Assyrian Pantheon, represented not as a vulture-headed figure (that is now ascertained to be a priest), but as a winged figure in a circle, which was the guardian deity of Assyria. The king is represented on the monuments standing or kneeling beneath this figure, his hand raised in sign of prayer or adoration.
his sons smote him with the sword--Sennacherib's temper, exasperated probably by his reverses, displayed itself in the most savage cruelty and intolerable tyranny over his subjects and slaves, till at length he was assassinated by his two sons, whom, it is said, he intended to sacrifice to pacify the gods and dispose them to grant him a return of prosperity. The parricides taking flight into Armenia, a third son, Esar-haddon, ascended the throne.
2Ki 19:1-5.
希西家 深陷 苦難
1-3. 希西家王聽見,就撕裂衣服——撕裂衣服是表明對那膽大包天的褻瀆之言感到震驚的方式;披上麻衣是他內心愁苦的表徵;進入聖殿祈禱,是敬虔人在苦難中的避難所;將亞述人的話轉告以賽亞,則是為求得先知的指教與安慰。託付信息時所用的措辭,以強烈的修辭手法描述了國勢的危殆,以及他們自救無力;同時也暗示了一個盼望:那不敬虔的亞述人既公然藐視耶和華的大能,或許會導致神直接介入,以捍衛祂自己的尊榮,並向一切外邦的神顯明祂至高無上的地位。