Therefore, thus saith the Lord the God of hosts: O my people that dwellest in Sion, be not afraid of the Assyrian: he shall strike thee with his rod, and he shall lift up his staff over thee in the way of Egypt.
לָכֵ֗ן כֹּֽה־אָמַ֞ר אֲדֹנָ֤י יְהוִה֙ צְבָא֔וֹת אַל־תִּירָ֥א עַמִּ֛י יֹשֵׁ֥ב צִיּ֖וֹן מֵֽאַשּׁ֑וּר בַּשֵּׁ֣בֶט יַכֶּ֔כָּה וּמַטֵּ֥הוּ יִשָּֽׂא־עָלֶ֖יךָ בְּדֶ֥רֶךְ מִצְרָֽיִם׃
3 Church Fathers comment on this verse
In other words, with natural ease, I will bring upon you discipline and misfortune out of love. This reflects God's just nature, as He does not disclose how you received assistance from the Egyptians, whom you had relied on repeatedly.
The Creator of all humanity, guided by His righteous judgment and innate compassion, rescues the righteous while delivering those who transgress against Him into the grasp of their foes. He declares, "Fear not, My people from Assyria who reside in Zion. Although Rabsak came to Jerusalem, besieging it and threatening total destruction, he did not inflict any harm. Instead, he fled in disgrace when, unexpectedly, his forces were decimated overnight. Thus, he spared the inhabitants of Zion from the sword. Yet, having instilled fear through his assault and caused them great distress, he appears as if he had merely chastised them.
Consequently, He reassures them not to fear the Assyrians, for he will strike you with a rod, as if to deliver only a brief blow to instill terror, because I have allowed this to happen against you. You shall witness the way of Egypt, which will show you the folly of turning to Egypt for aid, disregarding God who is your Savior. During his reign, Hezekiah did not seek the assistance of the Egyptians when the Assyrian army besieged Jerusalem. In contrast, Hosea the son of Elah, who ruled over Israel, sought such help.
In the fourth book of Kings, it is chronicled: Ahaz succeeded his forefathers and was laid to rest alongside them in the city of David. His son Hezekiah ascended the throne. In the summer of the second decade of Ahaz, king of Judah, Hosea the son of Eli ruled for nine years over Israel from Samaria, acting wickedly in the sight of the Lord, mirroring the actions of previous kings. King Salamanassar of Assyria came against him, and Hosea became his vassal, rendering tribute. When King Assyria discovered disloyalty in Hosea, who had sent messengers to Sihor, king of Egypt, and withheld tribute that summer, he laid siege to him and imprisoned him in the temple. The king of Assyria invaded the entire land, assaulting Samaria for three years.
It is vital to recognize that Ahaz, the father of Hezekiah, hired the Egyptians’ aid with gold when the king of Damascus waged war against him, which incurred God’s wrath. Therefore, He says, I will unleash a pestilence upon you so that you may comprehend the folly of depending on Egypt; yet, soon my anger shall subside, and my fury against their counsel will cease. As I previously mentioned, they perished due to divine judgment. However, those who aimed to capture Jerusalem could not realize their ambitions, for God transformed their intentions into the exact opposite of what they sought to accomplish.
Instead of using the term “rock” as translated by Aquila from the Hebrew, Symmachus and Theodotion interpret the Hebrew word “sur oreb,” while the Septuagint conveys it as a place of sorrow, as we shall elaborate later. The inhabitant of Zion questions how it could be that, while the Assyrians have conquered all surrounding nations, you alone will escape their grasp. Listen to my words: do not be afraid, O my people, for the triumphant Assyrian will not harm you.
Although in the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, will come against all the fortified cities of Judah with the intent to capture them, sending Rabsak to lay siege to Jerusalem and instill dread among its inhabitants, you must understand that he will not strike you with the sword but rather with a rod. As he sets his sights on Taraham, the king of Ethiopia, and the Egyptians, heading toward the Red Sea to reach Egypt, he will only raise his rod against you, unable to inflict any serious harm. Shortly after, when he returns from Egypt with an immense army, planning to besiege you, I shall unleash My wrath upon him, having summoned against him the very scourge I once employed against the Midianites under Gideon, who was also known by the name Jerobaal, when the leaders of Midian, Oribe and Zib, met their end upon the flinty rock. Thus, he shall raise his staff over the Red Sea against the Ethiopians, and as he proceeds back from Egypt, the burden of his authority will be swiftly removed from you, ending your servitude to him—a yoke that will decay under the mercy of the Lord. The phrases “He shall strike you with his rod, and shall raise his staff on the way to Egypt” and “And his rod upon the sea, and shall lift it up on the path to Egypt” may also signify that he will harm many of the tribe of Judah and seize various cities close to the kingdom of Jerusalem due to their failure to trust in God, relying instead on the Egyptians. For this reason, Rabsak reproaches them, saying, “You now rely on this broken reed, Egypt, but should a man lean on it, it will pierce his hand: thus Pharaoh is the king of Egypt to all who trust in him.” The incident concerning the Midianites is recounted in Judges, where it is reflected in the psalm: “Put down their princes as Oribe and Zibah, and Zebeah and Salman.” Therefore, those who assert that this refers to the time when, according to Numbers, the Israelites defeated the Midianites from the wilderness of Sur to Mount Horeb are mistaken, as they were not on Mount Horeb at that time but were situated in the wilderness of Shittim. In a profound sense, this passage instructs the members of the Church not to fear their adversaries, ever eager to challenge and having led many souls astray through their antagonistic actions. They had gained some influence over God’s people, not by killing them but by threatening them, for they walked in the ways of Egypt instead of trusting in the Lord. However, when one turns back to God and abandons the path of Egypt, the judgment of God will act against their adversaries. Midian represents judgment, and through the spirit of His mouth and the oil of mercy, the yoke of the enemies will disintegrate.
Passages read together with this verse.
THEOSIS