Isaiah 36 describes the Assyrian army’s threat against Jerusalem, delivered through a royal officer who mocks King Hezekiah’s trust in the LORD. These questions suit a small group, a Sunday class, or personal study, and they move from what the chapter says, to what it means, to how it should shape daily faith.
Isaiah 36 at a Glance
The chapter opens in the fourteenth year of Hezekiah, when Sennacherib has already taken the fortified cities of Judah. His representative Rabshakeh stands at the Jerusalem water channel and sends for Hezekiah’s officials, Eliakim, Shebna and Joah. He speaks in Hebrew so the people on the wall can hear, arguing that Egypt is a broken reed, that Hezekiah’s reforms have offended God, and that no god has saved a nation from Assyria.
The officials ask him to speak Aramaic, but he refuses and keeps up the taunts. The people stay silent as the king has commanded, and the officials return to Hezekiah with torn clothes, carrying the words of the threat.
Observation Questions
Use these questions first, before anyone offers an interpretation. Ask the group to point to the text and read the relevant lines aloud, so that everyone works from what the passage actually records.
Isaiah 36:4-5
4 Rabshakeh said to them, “Now tell Hezekiah, ‘Thus says the great king, the king of Assyria, “What confidence is this in which you trust? 5 I say that your counsel and strength for the war are only vain words. Now in whom do you trust, that you have rebelled against me?
(WEB)
Read this section to hear Rabshakeh’s opening challenge in full, so the group can see the claim that Hezekiah’s confidence is empty. It sets up the rest of the chapter and gives the room a clear sense of what is being argued.
Isaiah 36:6
Behold, you trust in the staff of this bruised reed, even in Egypt, which if a man leans on it, it will go into his hand and pierce it. So is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust in him.
(WEB)
This verse contains the image of the bruised reed, which is the chapter’s most vivid picture of an unreliable alliance. Reading it aloud lets the group hear how sharply the image lands on anyone who depends on a weak support.
Isaiah 36:7
But if you tell me, ‘We trust in the LORD our God,’ isn’t that he whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah has taken away, and has said to Judah and to Jerusalem, ‘You shall worship before this altar?’”
(WEB)
Here Rabshakeh recasts Hezekiah’s reforms as an offense against God, which is a key misreading the group should hear clearly. Reading it aloud helps them notice how the enemy’s words mix truth and distortion.
Isaiah 36:13-15
13 Then Rabshakeh stood, and called out with a loud voice in the Jews’ language, and said, “Hear the words of the great king, the king of Assyria! 14 Thus says the king, ‘Don’t let Hezekiah deceive you; for he will not be able to deliver you. 15 Don’t let Hezekiah make you trust in the LORD, saying, “The LORD will surely deliver us. This city won’t be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.”’
(WEB)
These verses show Rabshakeh shouting to the people on the wall, which is the emotional center of the threat. Read them to help the group feel the pressure of the moment and understand why silence was a deliberate choice.
Isaiah 36:18-20
18 Beware lest Hezekiah persuade you, saying, “The LORD will deliver us.” Have any of the gods of the nations delivered their lands from the hand of the king of Assyria? 19 Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim? Have they delivered Samaria from my hand? 20 Who are they among all the gods of these countries that have delivered their country out of my hand, that the LORD should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand?’”
(WEB)
This passage contains the direct challenge that the LORD cannot save Jerusalem as other gods failed to save their nations. Reading it aloud allows the group to hear the final accusation that the rest of the chapter answers.
Memory Verse for Isaiah 36
Isaiah 36:21
But they remained silent, and said nothing in reply, for the king’s commandment was, “Don’t answer him.”
(WEB)
The verse records the people’s silence in response to the king’s command, a short and quiet moment in the chapter. Memorizing it reminds the group that restraint in the face of a loud threat can be a faithful response.
A Closing Prayer for the Group
Father, we come to you as people who often feel the pressure of loud voices telling us where our security lies. Thank you that you are not a god who can be dismissed like the gods of other nations. Help us to recognize the empty promises around us and to rest in your faithfulness instead. Give us courage to bring our hard reports to you in prayer, and give us wisdom to know when silence is the faithful answer. Keep our trust in you steady this week, and strengthen the people in this room to speak truth to one another. Amen.
