Rashi on Tanakh2 Kings 19

[And] debate. That the wicked are debating¹Alternatively, ותוכחה means “disgrace.—Targum Or “reproof.”—Radak and showing evidence to [support] their words, claiming, “We have the power and the strength.”²Alternatively the phrase refers to God and means, “may He rebuke for the words, etc.”

Children. Yisroel.

As far as the birthstool. As far as a distress similar to a woman sitting on the birthstool, but not having strength to give birth.

And he brought proof with the words. Aprover, in O.F., He showed evidence to [support] his statement,³Below, v. 9. [namely,] that he prospered wherever he went.

And he will hear a rumor. And he will withdraw from you and return to his land. He will not [return] because of the rumor, but after a while he will return to his land in disgrace, and I will cause him to fall there by the sword. Now what was the rumor? ”And he heard about Tirhaikoh.”⁴Yeshayohu 45:14. He heard that Tirhaikoh had gone out to wage war against him, so, he left Yerusholayim and went to Cush, and waged war with Tirhaikoh, and Egypt, who were with him. He defeated him and took their most coveted treasures, and came to Yerusholayim, where he fell. In reference to this, Yeshayohu stated, ”The toil of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush, etc., will become yours, etc.”⁵See commentary above, 18:34.

He again sent messengers. To notify him that he was not returning to his land, rather he was waging war with Cush, and then to return here.

Eden. The name of a province.

He exiled and twisted. The king of Ashur exiled and twisted them.⁶Alternatively, this refers to Eretz Yisroel.—Radak

Indeed. It is true that the kings of Ashur destroyed the peoples and put their deities in fire.

The highest mountains. [This refers to] the Temple Mount.⁷The sacrifices that are offered in the Beis Hamikdosh atoned for the sins and “whitened” them. The verse in Yeshayohu 1:18 states, “If your sins will be like scarlet, they will become as white [=ילבינו] as snow.” See Maseches Gittin 56b and Rashi there.

To the end of the Levanon. [This refers to] the Beis Hamikdosh which whitens [=מלבן] sins.⁸Alternatively “its tallest cedar [trees]” refers to the great leaders and nobles among the Bnei Yisroel.—Radak See Rashi in Bamidbar 13:20.

And I will cut down its tallest cedar [trees]. I will not return until I have destroyed it.⁹”Its remotest lodge,” refers to the Beis Hamikdosh which is the lodging place of the Shechinah.—Radak

Remotest. Its end.¹⁰I.e., his army is so vast that they drink up all the water available, he therefore had to dig and search for other water sources.—Radak

Its fruitful forest. The fullness of its land and the beauty of its splendor.

I dug and drank strange water. I.e., I started all my deeds and completed [them], as one who digs a hole and finds flowing water and drinks it. Flowing water he calls “זרים [=strange],” because until now no one knew of them.

And I dry up with the soles of my feet. If I besiege a city that depends upon its rivers, I bring many troops upon it who dry up its rivers with their drinking and the drinking of their cattle¹¹His soldiers were so numerous that as they crossed a river they carried away so much water on their feet that the river bed was left dry by the time they all crossed it. See Maseches Sanhedrin 95b. and by the treading of their feet.¹²Yeshayohu 10:5.

And I dry up. This is in the present tense [because] this is always my way.

Have you not heard from afar. Why do you glorify and aggrandize yourself with this? This is not yours, for you have heard from afar through the prophets, that I decreed upon the nations to bring you upon them, as the matter that is stated, ”Ho, Ashur, the staff of My wrath.”¹³Yeshayohu 30:33.

In days of yore. Since the world was created, it entered My thought, as it is stated, ”For [Gehinnom] is arranged from days of yore; that too was prepared for the king.”¹⁴Yeshayohu 31:9. This refers to Sancheiriv, who was burned in the fire of Gehinnom, as it is stated, ”The word of Adonoy, Who has fire in Tzion.”¹⁵קצרי יד is an expression meaning “lack of power,” as in Bamidbar 11:23, “Is the power of AD limited [= תקצר’ ה היד].”

Now I have brought it about. And this is the power that is in your hand.

And it shall be. The coming of My decree shall be to make desolate fortified cities into blossoming hills, into piles of earth upon which vegetables grow, for you destroy them because of My decree.

To make desolate. An expression of desolation, forsaken.

Their inhabitants were short of strength. Those whom I weakened before you,¹⁶I.e., it is a Divine gift for which Sancheiriv could claim no credit. and the might is not yours.¹⁷The nations that Sancheiriv conquered had already been condemned to punishment and destruction. You are not mighty, rather they are weak.¹⁸In Tehilim 129:6 the verse states” … like the grass on rooftops which even before it is plucked, withers.”

Like grass of the rooftops. Which dries quickly.¹⁹Alternatively, grass is unable to move and defend itself from being cut.—Ralbag

And wind blast before [becoming] standing grain. Like blasted stalks of grain, before they hardened to become standing grain.

Your sitting and your going out and your coming in. [Targum] Yonoson rendered, ”And your sitting in counsel, and your going out to wage war, and your coming to the land of Yisroel, is revealed to Me;” it emanated from Me.

And your raging against Me. And that ultimately you will become arrogant and aroused against Me with anger and tumult, estorimir, in O.F..

And your tumult. [Means] the same as ושאונך [=your tumult].²⁰Alternatively, “your tranquility,” i.e., their rage was on account of their tranquility.—Radak

My ring. A kind of ring by which they pull an animal whose behavior is bad,²¹Alternatively, חח is a fish hook which pierces the fish when it is pulled out of the water.—Radak as we learned, ”And all animals that are usually pulled with a ring may go out [on Shabbos] with a ring.”²²Maseches Shabbos 51b.

And my bit. [Targum] Yonoson rendered זמם, which is made of iron, and which is inserted into the nostrils of a female camel,²³Alternatively, מתג is the bit placed in the animal's mouth by which to lead it.—Radak and she is pulled with it, because her behavior is bad. This is what we learned, ”And the female camel [may go out on Shabbos] with a nose ring.”²⁴Maseches Shabbos 51b.

And this shall be the sign for you. The prophet said to Chizkiyohu, ”And this prophecy which I said to you that Sancheiriv will fall here, will be a sign for you²⁵Alternatively, the sign for the fulfillment of the prophecy is that Sancheiriv will return to his land, mentioned in v. 7 above. The fulfillment of this prophecy serves as a sign that the remainder of the prophecy will likewise be fulfilled.—Radak also for the approaching days, for you are afraid of dying from hunger, because Sancheiriv destroyed the land and chopped down the trees.”

This year you will eat what grows by itself. This year plants will grow for you, and you will be sustained by them.

What grows from the tree stumps. The chopped off trees that will sprout, and when you see My word fulfilled concerning the fall of the armies, it will be a sign for you that this promise, too, will be fulfilled.

The zeal of Adonoy of Hosts. That He will be zealous for His honor and for His Name, not that you have any merit,²⁶For even the merit of the Patriarchs had been used up, according to Rashi in Yeshayohu 37:32. for Achaz your father committed many wicked deeds.

He will not advance upon it. He will not set a shield before it.²⁷The first soldiers attacking a city were the shield bearers.—Radak

A ramp. A heap of earth to raise a mount upon which to stand to wage war against the city, and because one presses it down and beats it with sticks and sledge hammers, so that it becomes trodden and pressed down with strength, it is called סוללה, an expression of, “Beat down [=סולו], beat down [=סולו] the highway.”²⁸Yeshayohu 62:10. See also II Shmuel 20:15.

And it was that night. When Sancheiriv returned from [battling] with Cush, and he came as far as Nov, which was near Yerusholayim.²⁹Although his astrologers told him that he would be successful in conquering Yerusholayim if he were to attack it on that very day, Sancheiriv in his arrogance decided to camp overnight in Nov and wait for the following day. This ultimately led to his downfall. See Maseches Sanhedrin 95a. Dovid who was Chizkiyohu's ancestor, incurred guilt by causing the deaths of the kohanim of Nov, and it was therefore decreed that his descendants would be liable for punishment for many years. This was the last day of the decree, as stated in Yeshayohu 10:32, “Yet today he will stand in Nov.”

One hundred eighty-five thousand. All of them were heads of companies.³⁰Sancheiriv's camp was enormous. Each of these 185,000 officers was in charge of 2,000 men. See Rashi above, in 18:24.

And dwelt in Nineveh. It was the capital of Ashur.

In the temple of Nisroch his god. A board from Noach's ark.³¹נסרת is a contraction of נסר מתיבתו של נח. ³²Sancheiriv believed it was the deity which saved Noach from the Flood, so it will save him also. See Maseches Sanhedrin 96a.

Slew him with a sword. They heard him that he said he would slaughter them³³Sancheiriv asked his wise men what was the merit that the Bnei Yisroel had that God fights their battles. They replied that their forefather Avrohom brought his son for a burnt offering. So he decided that he too will offer his two sons. When his sons heard this, they killed him.—Radak before him if they would spare him, so that they would not kill him---the princes of the kingdom, whose sons perished on account of him.