Isaiah 36:20
in Isaiah 36Who among all the gods of these lands has delivered his land from my hand? How then can the LORD deliver Jerusalem from my hand?”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Who are they among all the gods of these countries, that have delivered their country out of my hand, that Jehovah should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand?
KJV
Who are they among all the gods of these lands, that have delivered their land out of my hand, that the Lord should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand?
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This verse in Isaiah 36
Commentary
7 notes on this verseWho are they amongst all the gods of these lands, that have delivered their land out of my hand?.... Not one of them, it is suggested; wherefore then should it be thought practicable, that the Lord should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand? thus blasphemously setting the Lord God of Israel upon a level with the fictitious gods of the Gentiles; though these could not, the Lord could, being the Lord God Almighty. If Rabshakeh was an apostate Jew, he must have known better; but the malice of such is usually the greatest.
This site's exposition
Do not let Hezekiah mislead you
on Isaiah 36:18-20
Rabshakeh lists the gods of Hamath, Arpad, and Sepharvaim and asks, Have they delivered Samaria from my hand? He then places the LORD in the same list, How then can the LORD deliver Jerusalem from my hand? The argument treats the God of Israel as one more defeated idol.
This site's exposition
How then can the LORD deliver Jerusalem
The Rabshakeh had claimed at verse 10 that the LORD sent him, and now he says the LORD cannot save. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown observe that liars need good memories. Hezekiah carries this taunt to the LORD in the next chapter.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Verse 20) Who among all the gods of these lands has delivered their land from my hand, that the Lord should deliver Jerusalem from my hand? But, he said, if we easily overcame ten tribes with such great gods presiding over them, how much more easily will we conquer you, or rather Jerusalem alone, with one God as our ruler?
The Medieval Church1 voice
Then Rabsaces stood, and cried out with a loud voice in the Jews' language. Here his address to the people is set out. And first, his foolish words are set out, in which he frightens them with threats: he shall not be able to deliver …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
The history related here, and in the three following chapters, is, almost in the same words contained 2 Kings 18, 19, 20. It is inserted here, to explain and confirm some of the foregoing predictions.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
Here he contradicts his own assertion (Isa 36:10), that he had "come up against the land with the Lord." Liars need good memories. He classes Jehovah with the idols of the other lands; nay, thinks Him inferior in proportion as Judah, under His tutelage, was less than the lands under the tutelage of the idols.
The words behind it
16 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| מִ֗י | mi | who? | H4310 → | 423 times |
| בְּכָל־ | bekhol | among all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| אֱלֹהֵ֤י | ʾelohei | [the] gods of | H430 → | 2601 times |
| הָֽאֲרָצוֹת֙ | haaratzot | the lands | H776 → | 2504 times |
| הָאֵ֔לֶּה | haeleh | <the> these | H428 → | 746 times |
| אֲשֶׁר־ | ʾasher- | [are those] which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| הִצִּ֥ילוּ | hitzilu | they have delivered | H5337 → | 212 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| אַרְצָ֖ם | ʾartzam | land their | H776 → | 2504 times |
| מִיָּדִ֑י | miyadi | from hand my | H3027 → | 1618 times |
| כִּֽי־ | ki- | that | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| יַצִּ֧יל | yatzil | he will deliver | H5337 → | 212 times |
| יְהוָ֛ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| יְרוּשָׁלִַ֖ם | yerushalim | Jerusalem | H3389 → | 643 times |
| מִיָּדִֽי׃ | miyadi | from hand my | H3027 → | 1618 times |
מִ֗יwho?
miH4310 →423 times
בְּכָל־among all
bekholH3605 →5413 times
אֱלֹהֵ֤י[the] gods of
ʾeloheiH430 →2601 times
הָֽאֲרָצוֹת֙the lands
haaratzotH776 →2504 times
הָאֵ֔לֶּה<the> these
haelehH428 →746 times
אֲשֶׁר־[are those] which
ʾasher-H834 →5497 times
הִצִּ֥ילוּthey have delivered
hitziluH5337 →212 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
אַרְצָ֖םland their
ʾartzamH776 →2504 times
מִיָּדִ֑יfrom hand my
miyadiH3027 →1618 times
כִּֽי־that
ki-H3588 →4482 times
יַצִּ֧ילhe will deliver
yatzilH5337 →212 times
יְהוָ֛הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
יְרוּשָׁלִַ֖םJerusalem
yerushalimH3389 →643 times
מִיָּדִֽי׃from hand my
miyadiH3027 →1618 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
Exodus 5:2But Pharaoh replied, “Who is the LORD that I should obey His voice and let Israel go? I do not know the LORD, and I will not let Israel go.”
it leads to
- 2 Kings 18:35
Who among all the gods of these lands has delivered his land from my hand? How then can the LORD deliver Jerusalem from my hand?”
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Exodus 3:19
But I know that the king of Egypt will not allow you to go unless a mighty hand compels him.
- 2 Kings 18:35
Through
Psalms 50:21You have done these things, and I kept silent; you thought I was just like you. But now I rebuke you and accuse you to your face.
it leads to
- Romans 2:4–5
Or do you disregard the riches of His kindness, tolerance, and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness leads you to repentance?
- Proverbs 29:1
A man who remains stiff-necked after much reproof will suddenly be shattered beyond recovery.
- Isaiah 57:11
Whom have you dreaded and feared, so that you lied and failed to remember Me or take this to heart? Is it not because I have long been silent that you do not fear…
- Psalms 94:7–11
They say, “The LORD does not see; the God of Jacob pays no heed.”
- Ecclesiastes 12:14
For God will bring every deed into judgment, along with every hidden thing, whether good or evil.
- Romans 2:4–5
Through
Daniel 3:15Now, if you are ready, as soon as you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes, and all kinds of music, you must fall down and worship the statue I…
it leads to
- Acts 5:29
But Peter and the other apostles replied, “We must obey God rather than men.
- Acts 5:29
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About Isaiah
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes on the Book of Isaiah; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Commentary on Isaiah; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Isaiah.