Often the best counsel is to not reply

Isaiah 36: page two

Often the best counsel is to not reply, not to let your lips wiggle or your tongue move.  Now this is what was happening in the life of the nation of Judah; the king of Assyria has come against the fortified cities of Judah and taken them, and now he has sent the Rabshakeh from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem with a great army. 

So Hezekiah sent out his “A Team” to negotiate, they were Eliakim and Joab. “And the 

Rabshakeh said to them, “Say to Hezekiah, ‘Thus says the great king, the king of Assyria: 

On what do you rest this trust of yours? Do you think that mere words are strategy and power 

for war? In whom do you now trust, that you have rebelled against me? Behold, you are 

trusting in Egypt, that broken reed of a staff, which will pierce the hand of any man who leans 

on it. Such is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust in him. But if you say to me, “We trust in 

the LORD our God,” is it not he whose high places and altars Hezekiah has removed, 

saying to Judah and to Jerusalem, “You shall worship before this altar”? Come now, make 

a wager with my master the king of Assyria: I will give you two thousand horses, if you are 

able on your part to set riders on them. How then can you repulse a single captain among 

the least of my master's servants, when you trust in Egypt for chariots and for horsemen? 

Moreover, is it without the LORD that I have come up against this land to destroy it? The 

LORD said to me, Go up against this land and destroy it.’”  (Isaiah 36:4-10 ESV)

What would you do if everyone on the wall of Jerusalem were hearing what this adversary 

is telling you?  You might ask, can we be a little quieter, or do as they did, will you speak in 

Aramaic, for we understand it.  In fact, they went so far as to say “Do not speak to us in the 

language of Judah within the hearing of the people who are on the wall.”  Now that was a 

very poor move on their part, it was like pouring gasoline on a fire.  You know what 

Rabshakeh did, much like what maybe you would have done, he began to tell the people 

not to trust in their King, and he also told them the bad that was going to happen to them, but 

if they gave up the king of Assyria would take care of them.  Then he told them to beware of 

Hezekiah if he said; “The Lord will deliver us.”  Listen to what else he said to the people:  

“Beware lest Hezekiah mislead you by saying, “The LORD will deliver us.” Has any of the 

gods of the nations delivered his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria? Where are the 

gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim? Have they delivered 

Samaria out of my hand? Who among all the gods of these lands have delivered their lands 

out of my hand, that the LORD should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand?’”  

(Isaiah 36:18-20 ESV)

 Negotiation was not taking place and the people on the wall and the king’s ambassadors 

were silent and answered not a word, for the king’s command was, “Do not answer him.”

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice