2 Kings 19:8
in 2 Kings 19When the Rabshakeh heard that the king of Assyria had left Lachish, he withdrew and found the king fighting against Libnah.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
So Rabshakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah; for he had heard that he was departed from Lachish.
KJV
So Rab–shakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah: for he had heard that he was departed from Lachish.
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This verse in 2 Kings 19
Commentary
6 notes on this verseLibnah - Lachish - These two places were not very distant from each other; they were in the mountains of Judah, southward of Jerusalem.
This site's exposition
warring against Libnah
on 2 Kings 19:8-9
Rabshakeh's return finds the king already pulled off Lachish and warring at Libnah, the first half of Isaiah's rumour already moving before the oracle is even given in full. Tirhakah king of Ethiopia is the second half, a Cushite-backed Egyptian force Sennacherib must now answer, and Assyrian records name a campaign against Egypt at Eltekeh in this same period. Sennacherib sends messengers a second time rather than an army, and the letter that follows repeats his speech in writing.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Hezekiah thereupon, by a very solemn prayer, recommended his case to God, the righteous Judge, and begged help from him,
However, he was now alarmed with the rumour that the king of the Cushites, who bordered upon the Arabians, was coming out against him with a great army,
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
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;
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
On Lachish and Libnah, see Jos 10:3, note; Jos 10:29, note. The phrase, “he was departed from Lachish” is suggestive of successful resistance.
The words behind it
15 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיָּ֙שָׁב֙ | vaiyashov | and he returned | H7725 → | 1056 times |
| רַב־ | rav- | [the] chief | H7262 → | 32 times |
| שָׁקֵ֔ה | shakeh | commander | H7262 → | 32 times |
| וַיִּמְצָא֙ | vaiyimtza' | and he found | H4672 → | 455 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| מֶ֣לֶךְ | melekh | [the] king of | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| אַשּׁ֔וּר | ʾashur | Assyria | H804 → | 151 times |
| נִלְחָ֖ם | nilcham | fighting | H3898 → | 177 times |
| עַל־ | ʾal- | on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| לִבְנָ֑ה | livnah | Libnah | H3841 → | 18 times |
| כִּ֣י | ki | if | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| שָׁמַ֔ע | shama' | he had heard | H8085 → | 1159 times |
| כִּ֥י | ki | that | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| נָסַ֖ע | nasa' | he had departed | H5265 → | 146 times |
| מִלָּכִֽישׁ׃ | milakhish | from Lachish | H3923 → | 24 times |
וַיָּ֙שָׁב֙and he returned
vaiyashovH7725 →1056 times
רַב־[the] chief
rav-H7262 →32 times
שָׁקֵ֔הcommander
shakehH7262 →32 times
וַיִּמְצָא֙and he found
vaiyimtza'H4672 →455 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
מֶ֣לֶךְ[the] king of
melekhH4428 →2525 times
אַשּׁ֔וּרAssyria
ʾashurH804 →151 times
נִלְחָ֖םfighting
nilchamH3898 →177 times
עַל־on
ʾal-H5921 →5755 times
לִבְנָ֑הLibnah
livnahH3841 →18 times
כִּ֣יif
kiH3588 →4482 times
שָׁמַ֔עhe had heard
shama'H8085 →1159 times
כִּ֥יthat
kiH3588 →4482 times
נָסַ֖עhe had departed
nasa'H5265 →146 times
מִלָּכִֽישׁ׃from Lachish
milakhishH3923 →24 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Joshua 15:39Lachish, Bozkath, Eglon,
it leads to
- Joshua 10:3
Therefore Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem sent word to Hoham king of Hebron, Piram king of Jarmuth, Japhia king of Lachish, and Debir king of Eglon, saying,
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 2 Kings 22:1
Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem thirty-one years. His mother’s name was Jedidah daughter of Adaiah; she was from Bozkath.
- Joshua 10:3
Through
Joshua 10:29Then Joshua and all Israel with him moved on from Makkedah to Libnah and fought against Libnah.
it leads to
- Joshua 21:13
So to the descendants of Aaron the priest they gave these cities, together with their pasturelands: Hebron, a city of refuge for the manslayer, Libnah,
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Joshua 15:42
Libnah, Ether, Ashan,
- Joshua 21:13
Through
Micah 1:13Harness your chariot horses, O dweller of Lachish. You were the beginning of sin to the Daughter of Zion, for the transgressions of Israel were found in you.
it leads to
- 2 Kings 18:17
Nevertheless, the king of Assyria sent the Tartan, the Rabsaris, and the Rabshakeh, along with a great army, from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem. They advanced up to Jerusalem and stationed themselves by…
- 2 Chronicles 32:9
Later, as Sennacherib king of Assyria and all his forces besieged Lachish, he sent his servants to Jerusalem with a message for King Hezekiah of Judah and all the people of Judah who were…
- 2 Kings 18:17
Through
2 Kings 18:14So Hezekiah king of Judah sent word to the king of Assyria at Lachish, saying, “I have done wrong; withdraw from me, and I will pay whatever you demand from me.” And the king…
it leads to
- 2 Kings 18:7
And the LORD was with Hezekiah, and he prospered wherever he went. He rebelled against the king of Assyria and refused to serve him.
- 2 Kings 18:7
Through
2 Kings 8:22So to this day Edom has been in rebellion against the hand of Judah. Likewise, Libnah rebelled at the same time.
it leads to
- Genesis 27:40
You shall live by the sword and serve your brother. But when you rebel, you will tear his yoke from your neck.”
- Genesis 27:40
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About 2 Kings

Who and where
2 names in this verse with a page on the site.
- PlaceUpper MesopotamiaAssyriaMesopotamian empire whose capital Nineveh repented at Jonah's preaching and fell to Nahum's burden in 612 BC; the rod of God's ang…
- PlaceShephelahLachishJudah's second city, besieged by Sennacherib in 701 BC, its siege carved on the walls of his palace at Nineveh and confirmed in th…
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Alfred Edersheim, Bible History: Old Testament; F. W. Farrar, The Second Book of Kings (Expositor's Bible); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.
