13. Where is the king of Hamath? Where is the king of Arpad? Where is the king of the city of Sepharvaim? Where are the kings of Hena or Ivvah?' "
14. When Hezekiah received the letter from the messengers, he read it. Then he went up to the Lord's temple. There he spread the letter out in front of the Lord.
15. Hezekiah prayed to the Lord. He said,
16. "Lord who rules over all, you are the God of Israel. You sit on your throne between the cherubim. You alone are God over all of the kingdoms on earth. You have made heaven and earth.
17. Listen, Lord. Hear us. Open your eyes, Lord. Look at the trouble we're in. Listen to what Sennacherib is saying. You are the living God. And he dares to make fun of you!
18. "Lord, it's true that the kings of Assyria have completely destroyed many nations and their lands.
19. They have thrown the statues of the gods of those nations into the fire. And they have destroyed them. That's because they weren't really gods at all. They were nothing but statues that were made out of wood and stone. They were made by human hands.
20. "Lord our God, save us from the powerful hand of Sennacherib. Then all of the kingdoms on earth will know that you alone are God."
21. I sent a message to Hezekiah. I said, "The Lord is the God of Israel. He says, 'You have prayed to me about Sennacherib, the king of Assyria.
22. So here is the message I have spoken against him. I am telling him, " ' "You will not win the battle over Zion. Its people hate you and make fun of you. The people of Jerusalem lift up their heads proudly as you run away.
23. Who have you laughed at? Who have you spoken evil things against? Who have you raised your voice against? Who have you looked at so proudly? You have done it against me. I am the Holy One of Israel!
24. Through your messengers you have laughed at me again and again. And you have said, 'I have many chariots. With them I have climbed to the tops of the mountains. I've climbed the highest mountains in Lebanon. I've cut down its tallest cedar trees. I've cut down the best of its pine trees. I've reached its farthest mountains. I've reached its finest forests.