Isaiah — Chapter 36
Synopsis Capitis
Synopsis: Historical narrative (chs.36-39 largely parallel 2 Kings 18-20) — Sennacherib's invasion and Rabshakeh's blasphemous speech before Jerusalem's walls. Lapide reads Sennacherib and Rabshakeh as types of Antichrist and his herald, who will similarly blaspheme God and defy the Church at the end of time. Hezekiah's response (prayer and trust in God) is the model of faith under persecution. The chapter demonstrates that prophetic word and historical narrative are complementary: Isaiah is both prophet and historian.
Verse 1
And it came to pass in the fourteenth year of king Ezechias, that Sennacherib king of the Assyrians came up against all the fortified cities of Juda, and took them. Historical fulfillment of Isaiah's prophecy: Sennacherib's invasion in year 14 of Ezechias. The cities fell but Jerusalem was preserved — as Isaiah had foretold. Lapide confirms the chronology from 4 Kgs.18.
Verse 4
And Rabsaces said to them: Say ye to Ezechias: Thus saith the great king, the king of the Assyrians: What is this confidence, wherein thou trustest? Rabsaces' speech: a masterpiece of psychological warfare — undermining trust in Egypt (the 'bruised reed'), then attacking trust in God (claiming Ezechias had angered God by removing the high places), then appealing directly to the people over the king's head.
Verse 10
Numquid sine Domino ascendi ad terram hanc ut delerem eam? Dominus dixit ad me: Ascende
Did I come up against this land without the Lord? The Lord said to me: Go up against this land and destroy it. Rabshakeh's blasphemous claim that God Himself commanded the Assyrian invasion — a calculated lie, but containing the ironic truth that God was using Assyria as His rod (ch.10). Lapide: the devil and tyrants often claim divine authorization for their persecution of God's people; the faithful must not be shaken by such claims but look to God's word through legitimate authorities. Hezekiah's response (spreading the letter before God, ch.37) is the model.
Verse 18
Beware lest Ezechias seduce you, saying: The Lord will deliver us. Have the gods of any nations delivered their land from the hand of the king of Assyria? Rabsaces' blasphemy: comparing the God of Israel to the defeated gods of the nations. Lapide: this is the classical argument of the atheist and the tyrant — God is powerless before secular power. The answer comes in ch.37: God alone is God of all kingdoms.