16. At that time Hezekiah stripped ⌊the gold⌋ off the doors and doorposts of the Lord’s temple. (⌊Earlier⌋ Hezekiah had them covered ⌊with gold⌋.) He gave the gold to the king of Assyria.
17. Then the king of Assyria sent his commander-in-chief, his quartermaster, and his field commander with a large army from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem. They came there and stood at the channel for the Upper Pool on the road to the Laundryman’s Field.
18. When they called for King Hezekiah, Eliakim, who was in charge of the palace and was the son of Hilkiah, Shebnah the scribe, and Joah, who was the royal historian and the son of Asaph, went out to the field commander.
19. The field commander said to them, “Tell Hezekiah, ‘This is what the great king, the king of Assyria, says: What makes you so confident?
20. You give useless advice about getting ready for war. Whom, then, do you trust for support in your rebellion against me?
21. Now, look! When you trust Egypt, you’re trusting a broken stick for a staff. If you lean on it, it stabs your hand and goes through it. This is what Pharaoh (the king of Egypt) is like for everyone who trusts him.
22. Suppose you tell me, “We’re trusting the Lord our God.” He’s the god whose places of worship and altars Hezekiah got rid of. He told Judah and Jerusalem, “Worship at this altar in Jerusalem.” ’
23. “Now, make a deal with my master, the king of Assyria. I’ll give you 2,000 horses if you can put riders on them.
24. How can you defeat my master’s lowest-ranking officers when you trust Egypt for chariots and horses?
25. “Have I come to destroy this place without the Lord on my side? The Lord said to me, ‘Attack this country, and destroy it.’ ”