Therefore, O Hezekiah, and all your people, partake of the harvest this summer, consume the provisions in the second summer, and in the third, you shall plant crops and vine. For during the two years spent in the land of the Samaritans, the Assyrian completely ravaged it. With the arrival of the third year, he fled from the forces under Rabsaces, who had been besieging Jerusalem, having suffered immense destruction. Thus, in the third year, there will be freedom, and the farmers and vine-growers will enjoy abundance if they venture to plant grapes, as true peace will provide them safety. The survival of those who endured the conflict and remained will be indicated by the imagery of trees, taking root deep in the ground and bearing fruit above. Their residence will be marked by safety and security, suggested by the notion of deep roots. The flourishing of their prosperity is reflected in the phrase that they will produce fruit at the top. The Lord of hosts will bring this about through His zeal. The Assyrian, who blasphemed against God by equating Him to false deities and boldly claimed, “God will not deliver Jerusalem out of my hand,” will witness the fulfillment of these events, stirred by the jealousy of the Almighty for His glory. If we consider the statement, “I will consume this summer, which thou hast apportioned, and in the second summer oppose Sennacherib,” we can observe that those accustomed to waging war will, when the siege weakens and the conflict drags on, revert to agriculture for sustenance. This interpretation can indeed apply to him as well.
THEOSIS