Isaiah 37:17 “Listen to all the words Sennacherib has sent to insult the living God.”
Years ago while on a business trip, I found myself with an open evening in London just before Christmas. The British Museum had extended their visiting hours that day, so I ventured outside into crowds of shoppers and revelers on a long walk to see the museum’s world-famous artifacts. After visiting several exhibits, I entered a lonely gallery that immediately captivated my imagination, so much so that I spent the rest of my time there until the museum closed.
I had walked into the Nineveh room. Lining the walls were intricately carved stone panels depicting Assyria’s brutal victory over the city of Lachish in the kingdom of Judah. I stared at the lifelike reliefs of horsemen and archers engaged in battle, a battering ram and siege ramp, bodies spiked on poles, and victorious soldiers returning to Sennacherib, king of Assyria, with what looked like dangling clusters of human heads. This past January on a trip to Israel, I stood on the ruins of Lachish. Nothing remains but a grassy hill, the outlines of a few broken walls, and the Assyrian siege ramp, now 2700 years old.
What does this have to do with propaganda? In Isaiah 36, this same Sennacherib, fresh from his victory over Lachish, sent a commander to Jerusalem to intimidate Judah’s righteous king, Hezekiah, into surrendering. Using messaging no different than modern propaganda, he:
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- Cast doubt on the strategy and military strength of Hezekiah’s highly-prepared army.
- Claimed the very opposite of the truth – that Hezekiah’s removal of idolatrous high places was in defiance of Yahweh.
- Asserted that Yahweh was actually on the side of Assyria, not Judah.
- Accused Hezekiah of deceiving his people because he wanted them to trust Yahweh for deliverance.
- Equated Yahweh with the worthless gods of nations Assyria had already conquered.
- Offered false promises of peace and plenty if only Jerusalem would capitulate.
When Hezekiah’s officials asked the commander to speak in Aramaic instead of Hebrew, the Assyrian replied “Was it only to your master and you that my master sent me to say these things, and not to the people sitting on the wall—who, like you, will have to eat their own excrement and drink their own urine?” (36:12). These were not idle threats. Assyria, the most powerful nation on earth at that time, was infamous for its cruelty toward enemies. And it had just defeated Lachish, only 35 miles to the southwest.
What does this have to do with you? We live in a time of political and media manipulation on the order of Soviet-level propaganda. The difference is that truth is not entirely sealed off – at least not yet. We still have freedom of speech. But how much easier and less troublesome it can seem if we just surrender to the lies and distortions that constantly bombard us. Many individuals, churches, institutions, and corporations are doing it every day.
The key to battling propaganda is to know theology (who God is and what he does) and to know facts about a situation. Consider King Hezekiah: Upon receiving a written message reiterating the spoken threats, Hezekiah spread out Sennacherib’s letter before the Lord. He prayed with humility, asking for God’s intervention. That is what you and I must do. Never take anything from politicians or the media at face value. Read social media posts with healthy skepticism. Check the facts yourself (and avoid the fact checker websites which have proven to be riddled with bias). Look around you and judge what you see for yourself. Compare your observations with the shaming and incessant threats of faraway pundits and “experts.” Read and study the Bible every day to learn about God and his ways. Put God’s Word into practice and grow in wisdom. Above all, pray.
How did things turn out for King Hezekiah and Jerusalem? You’ll just have to read Isaiah 37 to find out!
Lord Almighty, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. Give ear, Lord, and hear; open your eyes, Lord, and see; listen to all the words that ridicule you, the living God. It is true, Lord, that powerful people are laying waste to this land. Now, Lord our God, deliver us, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, Lord, are the only God.
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This week: Take the time to read Isaiah 36 and 37 straight through. This piece of history is so important that the Bible recounts it in two additional places in the Old Testament: 2 Kings 18-19 and 2 Chronicles 32.