And they said unto him, Thus saith Hezekiah, This day is a day of trouble, and of rebuke, and blasphemy; for the children are come to the birth, and there is not strength to bring forth.
Parallel translations
- WEB They said to him, “Thus says Hezekiah, ‘Today is a day of trouble, of rebuke, and of rejection; for the children have come to the point of birth, and there is no strength to deliver them.
- BSB to tell him, “This is what Hezekiah says: Today is a day of distress, rebuke, and disgrace; for children have come to the point of birth, but there is no strength to deliver them.
- NKJV And they said to him, “Thus says Hezekiah: ‘This day is a day of trouble, and rebuke, and blasphemy; for the children have come to birth, but there is no strength to bring them forth.
- NASB And they said to him, “This is what Hezekiah says: ‘This day is a day of distress, rebuke, and humiliation; for children have come to the point of birth, and there is no strength to deliver them.
- NLT They told him, “This is what King Hezekiah says: Today is a day of trouble, insults, and disgrace. It is like when a child is ready to be born, but the mother has no strength to deliver the baby.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Hezekiah describes the day as one of trouble, rebuke, and rejection, like a birth without strength to deliver. He confesses utter helplessness before God.
Overview
Through his messengers, Hezekiah likens the crisis to a labor that has reached its critical point but lacks the strength to bring forth life. The vivid image conveys total inability to save themselves. This honest confession of weakness is the posture in which God delights to show his power. It anticipates the gospel truth that God's strength is made perfect in our weakness.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Isa 66:9Shall I bring to the birth, and not cause to bring forth? saith the LORD: shall I cause to bring forth, and shut the womb? saith thy God.
- Jer 30:5–7For thus saith the LORD; We have heard a voice of trembling, of fear, and not of peace.
- Isa 26:17–18Like as a woman with child, that draweth near the time of her delivery, is in pain, and crieth out in her pangs; so have we been in thy sight, O LORD.
- Heb 3:15–16While it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation.
- Hos 13:13The sorrows of a travailing woman shall come upon him: he is an unwise son; for he should not stay long in the place of the breaking forth of children.
- Ps 39:11When thou with rebukes dost correct man for iniquity, thou makest his beauty to consume away like a moth: surely every man is vanity. Selah.
- Hos 5:15I will go and return to my place, till they acknowledge their offence, and seek my face: in their affliction they will seek me early.
- Ps 95:8Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness:
- Ps 123:3–4Have mercy upon us, O LORD, have mercy upon us: for we are exceedingly filled with contempt.
- 2 Kgs 18:29Thus saith the king, Let not Hezekiah deceive you: for he shall not be able to deliver you out of his hand:
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Christ at the center
Amid the long decline toward exile, the promise to David's house refuses to die; the flickering lamp kept burning anticipates the coming King who will not fail or be cut off.
How 2 Kings 19:3 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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