Isaiah 36:8

Now, therefore, make a bargain with my master, the king of Assyria. I will give you two thousand horses—if you can put riders on them!

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — The Assyrian commander Rabshakeh addresses the Judahite officials standing outside Jerusalem’s wall. He issues this challenge during the siege when his forces demand the city’s surrender.

The words — The verb הִתְעָרֶב (hit.'A.rev) literally means to make a wager or strike a bargain. The phrase אֲדֹנִ/י הַ/מֶּלֶךְ (a.do.N/i ha./Me.lekh) explicitly ties the offer to the master, the king of Assyria.

The thread — This pattern of military posturing and conditional demands appears in 1 Kings 20:10 and 1 Kings 20:18, where foreign rulers issue threats and capture orders. 1 Samuel 17:40 records David selecting stones from a brook but contains no boast or challenge.

Why it lands — The text requires a concrete evaluation of available resources rather than reliance on abstract claims. It forces the reader to measure stated capability against actual operational capacity.

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

וְעַתָּה֙ve./'a.Tahand/ now הִתְעָ֣רֶבhit.'A.revmake a wager נָ֔אNa'please אֶת־'et-with אֲדֹנִ֖י'a.do.N/imaster/ my הַמֶּ֣לֶךְha./Me.lekhthe/ king of אַשּׁ֑וּר'a.ShurAssyria וְאֶתְּנָ֤הve./'e.te.Nahso/ let me giveלְךָ֙le./Khato/ youאַלְפַּ֣יִם'al.Pa.yimtwo thousand סוּסִ֔יםsu.Simhorses אִם־'im-if תּוּכַ֕לtu.Khalyou will be able לָ֥תֶתLa./tetto/ putלְךָ֖le./Khafor <the>/ yourselfרֹכְבִ֥יםro.khe.Vimriders עֲלֵיהֶֽם׃'a.lei./Hemon/ them

King James Version

Now therefore give pledges, I pray thee, to my master the king of Assyria, and I will give thee two thousand horses, if thou be able on thy part to set riders upon them.

Cross-references

1 Samuel 17:40 And David took his staff in his hand, selected five smooth stones from the brook, and put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag. And with his sling in hand, he approached the Philistine.
1 Kings 20:10 Then Ben-hadad sent another message to Ahab: “May the gods deal with me, and ever so severely, if enough dust remains of Samaria for each of my men to have a handful.”
1 Kings 20:18 “If they have marched out in peace,” he said, “take them alive. Even if they have marched out for war, take them alive.”
2 Kings 14:14 He took all the gold and silver and all the articles found in the house of the LORD and in the treasuries of the royal palace, as well as some hostages. Then he returned to Samaria.
2 Kings 18:23 Now, therefore, make a bargain with my master, the king of Assyria. I will give you two thousand horses—if you can put riders on them!
Nehemiah 4:2 before his associates and the army of Samaria, saying, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Can they restore the wall by themselves? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they complete it in a day? Can they bring these burnt stones back to life from the mounds of rubble?”
Psalms 20:7 Some trust in chariots and others in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.
Psalms 123:3 Have mercy on us, O LORD, have mercy, for we have endured much contempt.
Isaiah 10:13 For he says: ‘By the strength of my hand I have done this, and by my wisdom, for I am clever. I have removed the boundaries of nations and plundered their treasures; like a mighty one I subdued their rulers.