Bible Strands
2 Chronicles 32:21
and the LORD sent an angel who annihilated every mighty man of valor and every leader and commander in the camp of the king of Assyria. So he withdrew to his own land in disgrace. And when he entered the temple of his god, some of his own sons struck him down with the sword.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The Chronicler records this event immediately after King Hezekiah and the prophet Isaiah cry out to heaven for deliverance from the Assyrian siege. The narrative shifts from corporate prayer to the specific historical outcome for King Sennacherib and his forces.
The words — The text highlights מַלְאָךְ (mal'akh), meaning "angel" or "messenger," and וַ/יַּכְחֵד (va/yakhched), meaning "he annihilated" or "destroyed." These terms specify the divine agent and the total, irreversible nature of the judgment executed within the Assyrian camp.
The thread — The same intervention appears in Isaiah 37:36, which records the angel striking down 185,000 Assyrian soldiers, and echoes the motif of fallen warriors in Psalms 76:5. The narrative framework also parallels the angelic threat and subsequent restraint seen in 2 Samuel 24:16.
Why it lands — The text states that God’s direct action dismantles military power and political authority, forcing a humiliating retreat and internal betrayal. It asks the reader to recognize that deliverance from overwhelming force depends entirely on divine intervention, not human strategy.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And the Lord sent an angel, which cut off all the mighty men of valour, and the leaders and captains in the camp of the king of Assyria. So he returned with shame of face to his own land. And when he was come into the house of his god, they that came forth of his own bowels slew him there with the sword.
Cross-references
- Psalms 76:5 The valiant lie plundered; they sleep their last sleep. No men of might could lift a hand.
- Isaiah 37:36 Then the angel of the LORD went out and struck down 185,000 men in the camp of the Assyrians. When the people got up the next morning, there were all the dead bodies!
- 2 Samuel 24:16 But when the angel stretched out his hand to destroy Jerusalem, the LORD relented from the calamity and said to the angel who was destroying the people, “Enough! Withdraw your hand now!” At that time the angel of the LORD was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.
- 2 Kings 19:20 Then Isaiah son of Amoz sent a message to Hezekiah: “This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: I have heard your prayer concerning Sennacherib king of Assyria.
- 2 Kings 19:35 And that very night the angel of the LORD went out and struck down 185,000 men in the camp of the Assyrians. When the people got up the next morning, there were all the dead bodies!
- Job 9:4 God is wise in heart and mighty in strength. Who has resisted Him and prospered?
- Psalms 18:50 Great salvation He brings to His king. He shows loving devotion to His anointed, to David and his descendants forever.
- Psalms 76:7 You alone are to be feared. When You are angry, who can stand before You?
- Psalms 76:12 He breaks the spirits of princes; He is feared by the kings of the earth.
- Psalms 132:18 I will clothe his enemies with shame, but the crown upon him will gleam.”