Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim? Have they delivered Samaria out of my hand?
English Standard Version (ESV)
The question, "Have they delivered Samaria out of my hand?" isn't just rhetorical; it carries a sting of mocking disbelief. The Assyrian commander isn't simply asking where the gods are, but implying they've proven utterly useless in protecting their people, just as he intends to prove with Jerusalem's God.
Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim? Have they delivered Samaria out of my hand?
English Standard Version (ESV)
Rabshakeh, the Assyrian commander, stands before Jerusalem, mocking their faith. He's just detailed the destruction of other nations and their gods, and now he challenges Jerusalem's king, Hezekiah, by questioning the power of these other deities to save their cities. This happens as part of the Assyrian siege, right before Rabshakeh directly insults Yahweh.
Rabshakeh, the Assyrian commander, taunts Jerusalem with the supposed impotence of their gods. But what was the reality of how these 'gods' were treated by conquering empires?
When Assyria conquered a city, they didn't just take its people and resources; they often took its gods too. These conquered deities weren't just left behind; they were paraded as trophies of Assyrian might, displayed in temples or palaces as proof that the Assyrian king's gods were superior.
Rabshakeh's rhetorical question, "Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad?" carries a heavy, unspoken implication: 'They are gone. They are defeated. They are with us, as spoils of war.' This wasn't just a spiritual taunt; it was a statement of brutal political reality. The gods of these conquered nations had failed to protect their own people, and now they served as silent witnesses to Assyria's power.
This practice aimed to demoralize the conquered and demonstrate the futility of resisting the Assyrian Empire, highlighting the Assyrian king's gods as the ultimate, invincible force.
The fall of Samaria, the capital of the northern kingdom of Israel, is a fresh wound. Rabshakeh uses it as a chilling example, but what does it truly represent?
Rabshakeh pointedly asks, "Have they delivered Samaria out of my hand?" This question wasn't just about the physical walls of the city; it was about the gods worshipped there. Samaria, the capital of the Northern Kingdom of Israel, had fallen years earlier to the Assyrians. The people had been exiled, and foreign colonists, including those from Sepharvaim, had been brought in, bringing their own gods and syncretic worship practices.
The fall of Samaria was a stark testament to the failure of Israel's own gods – including their corrupted worship of Yahweh mixed with other deities – to protect them from the Assyrian juggernaut. Rabshakeh uses this recent, devastating defeat as a direct warning to Jerusalem: 'Your God, Yahweh, is no different from the gods of these other nations. He has not delivered Samaria, and He will not deliver you.'
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This was a calculated psychological blow, designed to instill fear and hopelessness, suggesting that Yahweh was either powerless or had abandoned His people, just as the gods of Hamath, Arpad, and Sepharvaim had failed theirs.
Rabshakeh's taunt directly references the recent, devastating Assyrian conquests of other nations and their gods. This highlights his strategy: to psychologically demoralize Jerusalem by showcasing Assyria's military might and the impotence of other deities, implying Yahweh is no different.
c. 722 BC— this verse
Fall of Samaria
The northern kingdom of Israel, with its capital Samaria, falls to the Assyrian Empire under King Sargon II. This marks the end of Israel as an independent kingdom and the beginning of the 'lost ten tribes' diaspora.
c. 720 BC
Assyrian Campaigns in Syria
King Sargon II campaigns in Syria, conquering cities like Hamath and Arpad. These conquests are part of the larger Assyrian expansion and subjugation of the region.
c. 710 BC
Assyrian Conquest of Sepharvaim
Sargon II also conquers Sepharvaim, a city likely in Mesopotamia or northern Syria. Assyrians often transplanted populations and their gods after conquest.
701 BC
Sennacherib's Invasion of Judah
Sennacherib, Sargon II's successor, invades the Kingdom of Judah, besieging many cities and threatening Jerusalem. This is the likely historical setting for Isaiah's prophecies.
This passage also lists foreign gods that the Israelites foolishly turned to, highlighting the same theme of misplaced trust in idols that cannot deliver.
Jeremiah 2:10-13Jeremiah directly challenges his people for abandoning the true God for powerless idols, mirroring the taunt in Isaiah about the futility of these other gods.
Psalm 115:1-8This psalm offers a stark contrast, describing the lifelessness and inability of idols to see, hear, or act, directly refuting the idea that they could protect cities like Samaria.
2 Kings 17:24-31This passage provides the historical context, explaining how the Assyrians brought people from Sepharvaim to Samaria and how these new inhabitants continued to worship their own gods, setting the stage for the taunt in Isaiah.
Isaiah 41:21-24Isaiah himself challenges the idols to prove their power by performing great deeds, a theme echoed in the taunt about their inability to save Samaria.
cambridgeIsaiah 36:19: "Where are the gods of Hamath and Arphad? where are the gods of Sepharvaim? and have they delivered Samaria out of my hand?"
19 . On Hamath and Arphad , see ch. Isaiah 10:9 . Sepharvaim has usually been identified with Sippar to the north of Babylon. Since, however, it is always mentioned along with Hamath and Arpad, it is more probable that a city in northern Syria is meant. Some consider it to be the same as Sibraim in Ezekiel 47:16 (between Damascus and Hamath). 2 Kings 18:34 a…
jfbIsaiah 36:19: "Where are the gods of Hamath and Arphad? where are the gods of Sepharvaim? and have they delivered Samaria out of my hand?"
- Hamath … Arphad—(See on [764]Isa 10:9).Sepharvaim—literally, "the two scribes"; now Sipphara, on the east of Euphrates, above Babylon. It was a just retribution (Pr 1:31; Jer 2:19). Israel worshipped the gods of Sepharvaim, and so colonists of Sepharvaim were planted in the land of Israel (thenceforth called Samaria) by the Assyrian conqueror (2Ki 17:24;…
The question, "Have they delivered Samaria out of my hand?" isn't just rhetorical; it carries a sting of mocking disbelief. The Assyrian commander isn't simply asking where the gods are, but implying they've proven utterly useless in protecting their people, just as he intends to prove with Jerusalem's God.
Rabshakeh, the Assyrian commander, stands before Jerusalem, mocking their faith. He's just detailed the destruction of other nations and their gods, and now he challenges Jerusalem's king, Hezekiah, by questioning the power of these other deities to save their cities. This happens as part of the Assyrian siege, right before Rabshakeh directly insults Yahweh.
Rabshakeh, the Assyrian commander, stands before Jerusalem, mocking their faith. He's just detailed the destruction of other nations and their gods, and now he challenges Jerusalem's king, Hezekiah, by questioning the power of these other deities to save their cities. This happens as part of the Assyrian siege, right before Rabshakeh directly insults Yahweh.
"Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim? Have they delivered Samaria out of my hand?" — The question, "Have they delivered Samaria out of my hand?" isn't just rhetorical; it carries a sting of mocking disbelief. The Assyrian commander isn't simply asking where the gods are, but implying…
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Last reviewed October 2026