“When King Sennacherib heard it,
He sent messengers
To King Hezekiah.
‘Thus shall you speak
To King Hezekiah of Judah.
Do not let your God,
On whom you rely,
Deceive you
By promising
That Jerusalem will not be given
Into the hand of the king of Assyria.
See!
You have heard
What the kings of Assyria
Have done to all lands,
Destroying them utterly.
Shall you be delivered?
Have the gods of the other nations delivered them?
My predecessors destroyed these nations,
Gozan,
Haran,
Rezeph,
Also the people of Eden
Who were in Telassar.
Where is the king of Hamath?
Where is the king of Arpad?
Where is the king of the city of Sepharvaim?
Where is the king of Hena?
Where is the king of Ivvah?’”
Once again, this is almost word for word from 2 Kings, chapter 19, almost repeating the speech of Rabshakeh in the preceding chapter. These messengers of King Sennacherib of Assyria were to present almost the same message. Do not rely on your God. See what has happened to those places that relied on their gods, since the various kings of Assyria have destroyed them. How have their gods defended them? He repeated what had happened to the kings of Hamath, Arpad, Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah. Most of these towns were in Babylon or Syria. He also added the cities of Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and Eden. Gozan was where the northern Israelites were sent in their captivity. Haran was in Mesopotamia, a town where Abraham had stopped. Rezeph was near Hamath. Eden in Telassar probably refers to some place in Mesopotamia, thus giving further credence to Mesopotamia as the original place of the Garden of Eden. At least at this time, nearly 2700 years ago, this place was called Eden, which might have also influenced the biblical writers.
Eugene Finnegan Bible Project 