So the God of Israel stirred up ¹  King Pul of Assyria (that is, King Tiglath-pileser of Assyria), ²  and he carried away the Reubenites, Gadites, and half-tribe of Manasseh and took them to Halah, Habor, Hara, and the river of Gozan, where they remain to this very day.

Ahaz sent messengers to King Tiglath-pileser of Assyria, saying, “I am your servant and your dependent. ¹  March up and rescue me from the power ²  of the king of Syria and the king of Israel, who have attacked ³  me.”

Then Ahaz took the silver and gold that were ¹  in the Lord’s temple and in the treasuries of the royal palace and sent it as tribute ²  to the king of Assyria.

When King Ahaz went to meet with King Tiglath-pileser of Assyria in Damascus, he saw the altar there. ¹  King Ahaz sent to Uriah the priest a drawing of the altar and a blueprint for its design. ² 

Finally ¹  the Lord rejected Israel ²  just as he had warned he would do ³  through all his servants the prophets. Israel was deported from its land to Assyria and remains there to this very day.

The king of Assyria brought foreigners ¹  from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim and settled them in the cities of Samaria ²  in place of the Israelites. They took possession of Samaria and lived in its cities.

So the king of Assyria ordered, “Take back one of the priests whom you ¹  deported from there. He must settle there and teach them the requirements of the God of the land.” ² 

In the fourth year of King Hezekiah’s reign (it was the seventh year of the reign of Israel’s King Hoshea, son of Elah), King Shalmaneser of Assyria marched ¹  up against Samaria ²  and besieged it.

At that time King Hezekiah of Judah stripped the metal overlays from the doors of the Lord’s temple and from the posts which he had plated ¹  and gave them to the king of Assyria.

Don’t let Hezekiah talk you into trusting in the Lord when he says, “The Lord will certainly rescue us; this city will not be handed over to the king of Assyria.”

Isaiah said to them, “Tell your master this: ‘This is what the Lord says: “Don’t be afraid because of the things you have heard – these insults the king of Assyria’s servants have hurled against me. ¹ 

“Tell King Hezekiah of Judah this: ‘Don’t let your God in whom you trust mislead you when he says, “Jerusalem will not be handed over ¹  to the king of Assyria.”

I will add fifteen years to your life and rescue you and this city from the king of Assyria. I will shield this city for the sake of my reputation and because of my promise to David my servant.”’” ¹ 

During Josiah’s reign Pharaoh Necho king of Egypt marched toward ¹  the Euphrates River to help the king of Assyria. King Josiah marched out to fight him, but Necho ²  killed him at Megiddo ³  when he saw him.

A large number of people gathered together and stopped up all the springs and the stream that flowed through the district. ¹  They reasoned, ²  “Why should the kings of Assyria come and find plenty of water?”

Afterward King Sennacherib of Assyria, while attacking Lachish with all his military might, sent his messengers ¹  to Jerusalem. The message was for King Hezekiah of Judah and all the people of ²  Judah who were in Jerusalem. It read:

Hezekiah says, “The Lord our God will rescue us from the power ¹  of the king of Assyria.” But he is misleading you and you will die of hunger and thirst! ² 

The Lord delivered Hezekiah and the residents of Jerusalem from the power of King Sennacherib of Assyria and from all the other nations. ¹  He made them secure on every side. ² 

So the Lord brought against them the commanders of the army of the king of Assyria. They seized Manasseh, put hooks in his nose, ¹  bound him with bronze chains, and carried him away to Babylon.

At that time ¹  the sovereign master will use a razor hired from the banks of the Euphrates River, ²  the king of Assyria, to shave the head and the pubic hair; ³  it will also shave off the beard.