21. This is what the Lord has said against Sennacherib:‘The people of Jerusalemhate you and make fun of you.The people of Jerusalemlaugh at you as you run away.
22. You have insulted me and spoken against me;you have raised your voice against me.You have a proud look on your face,which is against me, the Holy One of Israel.
23. You have sent your messengers to insult the Lord.You have said, “With my many chariotsI have gone to the tops of the mountains,to the highest mountains of Lebanon.I have cut down its tallest cedarsand its best pine trees.I have gone to its farthest placesand to its best forests.
24. I have dug wells in foreign countriesand drunk water there.By the soles of my feet,I have dried up all the rivers of Egypt.”
25. “ ‘King of Assyria, surely you have heard.Long ago I, the Lord, planned these things.Long ago I designed them,and now I have made them happen.I allowed you to turn those strong, walled citiesinto piles of rocks.
26. The people in those cities were weak;they were frightened and put to shame.They were like grass in the field,like tender, young grass,like grass on the housetopthat is burned by the wind before it can grow.