We now enter the great episode of Sancheiriv besieging Jerusalem - the very episode at the end of which 185,000 army commanders fall as dead corpses. The chapter opens with the description of Sancheiriv's march against the fortified cities of Yehudah, and from here on we will follow the explanations of the Malbim along the order of the pesukim.
אַחֲרֵי הַדְּבָרִים וְהָאֱמֶת הָאֵלֶּה בָּא סַנְחֵרִיב מֶלֶךְ אַשּׁוּר וַיָּבֹא בִיהוּדָה וַיִּחַן עַל הֶעָרִים הַבְּצֻרוֹת וַיֹּאמֶר לְבִקְעָם אֵלָיו׃ - After these deeds and this faithfulness, Sancheiriv king of Ashur came; he entered Yehudah and encamped against the fortified cities, planning to breach them for himself.
What is the meaning of the verse, "After these deeds and this faithfulness"? Radak explains: after Chizkiyahu and Yehudah returned to the service of Hashem in truth, Sancheiriv came against them. Seemingly, this does not seem right - if they truly repented, why did Sancheiriv come against them? Radak answers: even though Chizkiyahu's heart was whole, evil things still remained in Yehudah and not everyone's heart was whole with Hashem, as we see that Yeshayahu the prophet rebuked them extensively in his prophecies.
Yet the Malbim explains just the opposite. Up to this point we have seen no flaw - on the contrary, we have seen great virtues: the entire nation coming forward, donating, and supporting the kohanim and the Torah scholars. Therefore, "After these deeds and this faithfulness" comes to dispel any thought that Sancheiriv came upon him due to some sin for which Hashem wished to punish him. "Truth" (emet) means something genuine and enduring; hence the meaning is: after all his service which was done in truth and with a whole heart, without hypocrisy, and without turning aside from his good path - only after this did Hashem bring Sancheiriv.
If so, why did he come? The Malbim explains that there is no need to attribute this to sin. This was orchestrated through divine providence so that a miracle would be performed through him and Sancheiriv would fall on the mountains of Zion. As Chazal teach: The Holy One, blessed be He, sought to make Chizkiyahu Mashiach and Sancheiriv Gog and Magog. That is to say, there was an immense opportunity here to bring Mashiach, and this was the purpose for which the Holy One, blessed be He, brought Sancheiriv. It was a reward, not a punishment. Sancheiriv's arrival was meant to magnify the name of Israel and the name of their king, and all of this was brought about by these deeds and this faithfulness. Contrary to Radak's view: not as a consequence of sin, but as a consequence of their righteousness, the Holy One, blessed be He, wished to grant them a reward - that the name of Israel be magnified among the nations and everyone would witness the miracles and wonders Hashem performed for them. And had they been worthy enough, Mashiach would have arrived right then.
The commentary attributed to Rashi explains that levik'am has the sense of breaching them, similar to the grammatical form in "for their selling the righteous for silver" - meaning he wanted to breach them open to himself. And as it is written, "Let us go up... and breach it" and "the city was breached" - the meaning is to breach the city wall, penetrate inside, and conquer it.
We studied this entire matter at length in II Kings chapter 18, and as is our custom in Divrei HaYamim, we do not repeat everything at length, but rather focus on what is newly added here. There it is written that Sancheiriv marched against all the fortified cities of Yehudah and seized them, and it is mentioned that Chizkiyahu sent him three hundred talents of silver. Afterward, the king of Ashur sent Ravshakeh. This presents a difficulty: he had already received the money, which was essentially hush money, a form of bribe aimed at getting him to back off and leave them alone - so why did he send someone to threaten them?
Ezra comes here to explain what compelled Chizkiyahu to send the money and what changed Sancheiriv's mind. Chizkiyahu humbled himself before him because he saw that Sancheiriv was bent on war, while he himself had not prepared and had no ready army. Therefore, he wanted to buy time to gain counsel and strength for battle. And how does one buy time? By paying money, so that Sancheiriv would think Chizkiyahu was submitting to him and accepting his sovereignty. This was always the accepted practice: paying tribute to a conquering king signified, "Why should you conquer me? I will be your vassal and pay you taxes." Thus, he appeased him with a tribute so that he would withdraw from against him.
However, after Sancheriv ceased fighting against him, Chizkiyahu began preparing for war - as we will see immediately in the verses - and this became known to the king of Assyria, who understood that Chizkiyahu was preparing to rebel against him. That is to say, Sancheriv realized that Chizkiyahu had not given the tribute money as an admission of subjugation, but merely to buy time and arm himself. Consequently, he sent Ravshakeh and marched up to besiege Jerusalem.
וַיַּרְא יְחִזְקִיָּהוּ כִּי בָא סַנְחֵרִיב וּפָנָיו לַמִּלְחָמָה עַל יְרוּשָׁלָ͏ִם׃ וַיִּוָּעַץ עִם שָׂרָיו וְגִבֹּרָיו לִסְתּוֹם אֶת מֵימֵי הָעֲיָנוֹת אֲשֶׁר מִחוּץ לָעִיר וַיַּעְזְרוּהוּ׃ - And Chizkiyahu saw that Sancheriv had come, with his face set toward war against Jerusalem. And he took counsel with his officers and his mighty men to stop up the waters of the springs that were outside the city, and they helped him.
Initially, Chizkiyahu gave tribute to the king of Assyria so that he would leave him alone; now, he consults with his ministers on how to cast off the yoke of the king of Assyria, so that he would no longer have to pay taxes to him. The counsel was to stop up the water of the springs. The springs flowed outside the city walls, which would have allowed the enemy to besiege the city while possessing an ample water supply. Once the springs were stopped up, they would no longer be able to sustain a siege.
וַיִּקָּבְצוּ עַם רָב וַיִּסְתְּמוּ אֶת כׇּל הַמַּעְיָנוֹת וְאֶת הַנַּחַל הַשּׁוֹטֵף בְּתוֹךְ הָאָרֶץ לֵאמֹר לָמָּה יָבוֹאוּ מַלְכֵי אַשּׁוּר וּמָצְאוּ מַיִם רַבִּים׃ - And a great multitude gathered and stopped up all the springs and the brook that flowed through the midst of the land, saying: 'Why should the kings of Assyria come and find abundant water?'
It appears that the task required intense effort and many people; therefore, "a great multitude gathered" to stop up all the springs. "And the brook that flowed through the midst of the land" - this refers to the Gichon spring, which was full and flowing swiftly, and they stopped it up as well. And the rationale was: Why should the kings of Assyria come to besiege the city here and find aid and sustenance in abundant water?
וַיִּתְחַזַּק וַיִּבֶן אֶת כׇּל הַחוֹמָה הַפְּרוּצָה וַיַּעַל עַל הַמִּגְדָּלוֹת וְלַחוּצָה הַחוֹמָה אַחֶרֶת וַיְחַזֵּק אֶת הַמִּלּוֹא עִיר דָּוִיד וַיַּעׂשׂ שֶׁלַח לָרֹב וּמָגִנִּים׃ - And he took courage and rebuilt all the breached wall, raising it up to the towers, and built another wall on the outside, and reinforced the Millo of the City of David, and made weapons in abundance, and shields.
The Malbim explains: "The breached wall" refers to the wall on the northern side of Jerusalem, where Yoash had breached it from the Gate of Ephraim to the Corner Gate, as we saw earlier. There, Chizkiyahu built a double wall and erected towers within it; this is the meaning of "raising it up to the towers, and on the outside" - that beyond them he raised up the other wall, which is referred to in Nechemiah as "the Broad Wall." He also reinforced the Millo, which was a prepared gathering place for the people as we saw earlier, and strengthened that place. Furthermore, he prepared "shelach" (weapons) and shields; and the Malbim explains that a shelach differs from a sword, as the shelach has a sharp point and stabs like a spear - thus, the shelach functions both as a spear and as a sword.
וַיִּתֵּן שָׂרֵי מִלְחָמוֹת עַל הָעָם וַיִּקְבְּצֵם אֵלָיו אֶל רְחוֹב שַׁעַר הָעִיר וַיְדַבֵּר עַל לְבָבָם לֵאמֹר׃ חִזְקוּ וְאִמְצוּ אַל תִּירְאוּ וְאַל תֵּחַתּוּ מִפְּנֵי מֶלֶךְ אַשּׁוּר וּמִלִּפְנֵי כׇּל הֶהָמוֹן אֲשֶׁר עִמּוֹ כִּי עִמָּנוּ רַב מֵעִמּוֹ׃ - And he appointed battle commanders over the people, and gathered them to himself in the plaza at the city gate, and spoke to their hearts, saying: 'Be strong and courageous; do not be afraid or dismayed before the king of Assyria or before the entire multitude that is with him, for there are more with us than with him.'
Chizkiyahu appoints commanders of war to prepare the people for battle and delivers words of encouragement and inspiration to them. What is the difference between "chizku" ("be strong") and "imtzu" ("be courageous")? The Malbim explained this several times, as we saw, for example, in Sefer Yehoshua: the initial arousal of strength and valor is called hitchazkut - gaining power, becoming strong. And "imtzu" means to hold one's ground, to persevere and remain steadfast - namely, the endurance of that strength. First comes the initial strengthening, and following it one must remain resolute, which requires courage of the heart. Therefore: "Be strong and courageous."
"For there is more with us than with him" - the arm that is with us is greater than the arm that is with him. And what is the arm that is with us? The Holy One, blessed is He, is with us, and He fights our battles, while we do not need to fight at all; thus, there is far greater power with us than with him.
עִמּוֹ זְרוֹעַ בָּשָׂר וְעִמָּנוּ יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ לְעׇזְרֵנוּ וּלְהִלָּחֵם מִלְחֲמֹתֵנוּ וַיִּסָּמְכוּ הָעָם עַל דִּבְרֵי יְחִזְקִיָּהוּ מֶלֶךְ יְהוּדָה׃ - "With him is an arm of flesh, but with us is Hashem our God to help us and to fight our battles." And the people relied upon the words of Chizkiyahu, king of Judah.
Here he explains his words: "With him is an arm of flesh" - I am not belittling him; he has strength, he has an arm of flesh; but can an arm of flesh be compared in any way to Hashem our God? "And with us is Hashem our God to help us and to fight our battles." And the people leaned upon and trusted the words that Chizkiyahu spoke to them.
אַחַר זֶה שָׁלַח סַנְחֵרִיב מֶלֶךְ אַשּׁוּר עֲבָדָיו יְרוּשָׁלַיְמָה וְהוּא עַל לָכִישׁ וְכׇל מֶמְשַׁלְתּוֹ עִמּוֹ עַל יְחִזְקִיָּהוּ מֶלֶךְ יְהוּדָה וְעַל כׇּל יְהוּדָה אֲשֶׁר בִּירוּשָׁלַ͏ִם לֵאמֹר׃ - After this, Sennacherib king of Assyria sent his servants to Jerusalem, while he was besieging Lachish with all his forces, against Chizkiyahu king of Judah and against all Judah who were in Jerusalem, saying:
Sennacherib sends his servants to Jerusalem while he himself is fighting at Lachish, thereby sending a warning to Jerusalem. The Malbim explains: when Sennacherib learned that Chizkiyahu was making preparations for rebellion - and there were insiders who gave him intelligence, as we will see later that there were people of our own who made contact with him - they told him: take into account that he is stopping up the waters of the Gichon, he is preparing the people for battle, and he has no intention of paying you what he pledged. These reports angered Sennacherib, and therefore he sent his servants to Jerusalem to issue a warning.
כֹּה אָמַר סַנְחֵרִיב מֶלֶךְ אַשּׁוּר עַל מָה אַתֶּם בֹּטְחִים וְיֹשְׁבִים בְּמָצוֹר בִּירוּשָׁלָ͏ִם׃ הֲלֹא יְחִזְקִיָּהוּ מַסִּית אֶתְכֶם לָתֵת אֶתְכֶם לָמוּת בְּרָעָב וּבְצָמָא לֵאמֹר יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ יַצִּילֵנוּ מִכַּף מֶלֶךְ אַשּׁוּר׃ - "Thus said Sennacherib king of Assyria: On what are you relying, that you remain under siege in Jerusalem? Is not Chizkiyahu inciting you, in order to hand you over to die of famine and thirst, saying, 'Hashem our God will rescue us from the grasp of the king of Assyria'?"
הֲלֹא הוּא יְחִזְקִיָּהוּ הֵסִיר אֶת בָּמֹתָיו וְאֶת מִזְבְּחֹתָיו וַיֹּאמֶר לִיהוּדָה וְלִירוּשָׁלַ͏ִם לֵאמֹר לִפְנֵי מִזְבֵּחַ אֶחָד תִּשְׁתַּחֲווּ וְעָלָיו תַּקְטִירוּ׃ - "Has not this same Chizkiyahu removed His high places and His altars, and commanded Judah and Jerusalem, saying: 'Before one altar shall you prostrate yourselves, and upon it shall you burn incense'?"
הֲלֹא תֵדְעוּ מֶה עָשִׂיתִי אֲנִי וַאֲבוֹתַי לְכֹל עַמֵּי הָאֲרָצוֹת הֲיָכוֹל יָכְלוּ אֱלֹהֵי גּוֹיֵ הָאֲרָצוֹת לְהַצִּיל אֶת אַרְצָם מִיָּדִי׃ מִי בְּכׇל אֱלֹהֵי הַגּוֹיִם הָאֵלֶּה אֲשֶׁר הֶחֱרִימוּ אֲבוֹתַי אֲשֶׁר יָכוֹל לְהַצִּיל אֶת עַמּוֹ מִיָּדִי כִּי יוּכַל אֱלֹהֵיכֶם לְהַצִּיל אֶתְכֶם מִיָּדִי׃ - "Do you not know what I and my fathers have done to all the peoples of the lands? Were the gods of the nations of the lands in any way able to rescue their land from my hand? Who among all the gods of these nations that my fathers annihilated was able to rescue his people from my hand, that your God should be able to rescue you from my hand?"
וְעַתָּה אַל יַשִּׁיא אֶתְכֶם חִזְקִיָּהוּ וְאַל יַסִּית אֶתְכֶם כָּזֹאת וְאַל תַּאֲמִינוּ לוֹ כִּי לֹא יוּכַל כׇּל אֱלוֹהַּ כׇּל גּוֹי וּמַמְלָכָה לְהַצִּיל עַמּוֹ מִיָּדִי וּמִיַּד אֲבוֹתָי אַף כִּי אֱלֹהֵיכֶם לֹא יַצִּילוּ אֶתְכֶם מִיָּדִי׃ - "So now, do not let Chizkiyahu deceive you, nor let him incite you like this, and do not believe him! For no god of any nation or kingdom was able to rescue his people from my hand or from the hand of my fathers; how much less will your God rescue you from my hand!"
וְעוֹד דִּבְּרוּ עֲבָדָיו עַל יְהֹוָה הָאֱלֹהִים וְעַל יְחִזְקִיָּהוּ עַבְדּוֹ׃ - And his servants spoke further against Hashem God, and against Chizkiyahu His servant.