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2 Kings 19:21

Old Testament Historical ASV (1901)

What does 2 Kings 19:21 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “This is the word that Jehovah hath spoken concerning him: The virgin daughter of Zion hath despised thee and laughed thee to scorn; the daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

This is the word that Jehovah hath spoken concerning him: The virgin daughter of Zion hath despised thee and laughed thee to scorn; the daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee.
2 Kings 19:21 — American Standard Version

Context — 2 Kings 19

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
18and have cast their gods into the fire; for they were no gods, but the work of men`s hands, wood and stone; therefore they have destroyed them.
19Now therefore, O Jehovah our God, save thou us, I beseech thee, out of his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou Jehovah art God alone.
20Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying, Thus saith Jehovah, the God of Israel, Whereas thou hast prayed to me against Sennacherib king of Assyria, I have heard [thee].
21This is the word that Jehovah hath spoken concerning him: The virgin daughter of Zion hath despised thee and laughed thee to scorn; the daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee.
22Whom hast thou defied and blasphemed? and against whom hast thou exalted thy voice and lifted up thine eyes on high? [even] against the Holy One of Israel.
23By thy messengers thou hast defied the Lord, and hast said, With the multitude of my chariots am I come up to the height of the mountains, to the innermost parts of Lebanon; and I will cut down the tall cedars thereof, and the choice fir-trees thereof; and I will enter into his farthest lodging-place, the forest of his fruitful field.
24I have digged and drunk strange waters, and with the sole of my feet will I dry up all the rivers of Egypt.
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What do historical commentaries say?

Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“Concerning him - i. e., “concerning Sennacherib.” 2 Kings 19:21-28 are addressed to the great Assyrian monarch himself, and are God’s reply to his proud boastings. The virgin, the daughter of Zion, - Rather, holy eastern city, is here distinguished from Jerusalem, the western one, and is given the remarkable epithet “virgin,” which is not applied to her sister; probably because the true Zion, the city of David, had remained inviolable from David’s time, having never been entered by an enemy. Jerusalem, on the other hand, had been taken, both by Shishak 1 Kings 14:26 and by Jehoash 2 Kings 14:13. The personification of cities as females is a common figure (compare marginal references). Hath…”
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Wesley's Explanatory Notes
John Wesley (1703–1791) · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Old Testament notes · 18th-century historical commentary
“Virgin - So he calls Zion, or Jerusalem; because she was pure in good measure from that gross idolatry wherewith other people were defiled, which is called spiritual whoredom: and to signify, that God would defend her from the rape which Sennacherib intended to commit upon her with no less care than parents do their virgin daughters from those who seek to force and deflower them. 4 Kings (2 Kings) 19:23”
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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · Modern study notes
“19:21-28 The phrase virgin daughter is often used regarding civic identity (Isa 23:12; 37:22; 47:1; Jer 18:13). Here, the metaphor implies that as a young maiden is rescued from her attacker, so God will rescue Jerusalem. The Lord’s answer was delivered as a “taunt song,” a common literary form in the ancient Near East that rejoiced over an enemy’s humiliation (cp. Isa 14:3-20).”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“The virgin: Isa 23:12, Isa 37:21, Isa 37:22-35, Isa 47:1; Jer 14:17, Jer 18:13, Jer 31:4; Lam 1:15, Lam 2:13; Amo 5:2 the daughter: Psa 9:14, Psa 137:8; Isa 1:8, Isa 23:10, Isa 47:5; Jer 46:11; Lam 2:13, Lam 4:21; Mic 4:8; Zac 9:9 shaken her head: Job 16:4; Psa 22:7, Psa 22:8; Isa 37:22; Lam 2:15; Mat 27:39 4 Kings (2 Kings) 19:22”
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Related study paths

Read 2 Kings 19 in contextBrowse Hebrew word studiesOpen this verse in the study reader

Sources and verification