1. In the fourteenth year that Hezekiah was king of Judah, Sennacherib, the emperor of Assyria, attacked the fortified cities of Judah and captured them.
2. Then he ordered his chief official to go from Lachish to Jerusalem with a large military force to demand that King Hezekiah should surrender. The official occupied the road where the clothmakers work, by the ditch that brings water from the upper pond.
3. Three Judeans came out to meet him: the official in charge of the palace, Eliakim son of Hilkiah; the court secretary, Shebna; and the official in charge of the records, Joah son of Asaph.
4. The Assyrian official told them that the emperor wanted to know what made King Hezekiah so confident.
5. He demanded, “Do you think that words can take the place of military skill and might? Who do you think will help you rebel against Assyria?