“In that day,

The inhabitants of this coastland

Will say.

‘See!

This is what has happened

To those in whom we hoped,

To those whom we fled for help,

To be delivered from the king of Assyria.

Now we!

How shall we escape?’”

Thus all the Philistine inhabitants along the Mediterranean coast line would see what had happened at Ashdod. They had hoped that the protection of the Egyptians would have helped them. Instead, the Assyrians came and attacked them so that they all had to flee. They wondered how they would escape because they had inadequate protection from the Egyptians.