Bible Strands
2 Kings 20:15
“What have they seen in your palace?” Isaiah asked. “They have seen everything in my palace,” answered Hezekiah. “There is nothing among my treasures that I did not show them.”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Isaiah questions Hezekiah about the Babylonian envoys' visit to the palace. Hezekiah responds that he displayed every item in his royal treasury to them.
The words — The Hebrew מָה (mah) asks "what?" regarding the envoys' inspection, while כָּל (kol) emphasizes "all" of the palace contents were revealed.
The thread — This exchange follows Hezekiah's prior act of showing his treasure house to the envoys (2 Kings 20:13) and immediately precedes Isaiah's prophecy of Babylonian captivity (2 Kings 20:16). The theme of hidden versus revealed matters echoes warnings against concealing guilt (Job 31:33; Proverbs 28:13).
Why it lands — The text records Hezekiah's complete disclosure of royal wealth to foreign diplomats. It asks the reader to examine the consequences of misplaced trust and the necessity of transparent stewardship before divine reckoning.
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 he said, What have they seen in thine house? And Hezekiah answered, All the things that are in mine house have they seen: there is nothing among my treasures that I have not shewed them.
Cross-references
- 2 Kings 20:13 And Hezekiah received the envoys and showed them all that was in his treasure house—the silver, the gold, the spices, and the precious oil, as well as his armory—all that was found in his storehouses. There was nothing in his palace or in all his dominion that Hezekiah did not show them.
- Job 31:33 if I have covered my transgressions like Adam by hiding my guilt in my heart,
- Proverbs 28:13 He who conceals his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them will find mercy.
- 1 John 1:8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
- Joshua 7:19 So Joshua said to Achan, “My son, give glory to the LORD, the God of Israel, and make a confession to Him. I urge you to tell me what you have done; do not hide it from me.”