Yahweh says: “Blow the trumpet in Jerusalem, and sound the alarm throughout the land of Judah! Cry out! Shout it out, and say, ‘Gather together and let us run into the fortified cities!’
Yahweh spoke to me when Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, was at war against Jerusalem and the cities of Judah. He had all his army with him, including soldiers from all the kingdoms of his empire.
The cities of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem will go and cry to the gods to whom they burn incense, but those false gods certainly will not be able to save them when calamity comes.
Why are we just sitting here? Let’s band together and go inside our walled cities and await our death, since Yahweh our God has condemned us to die. He has given us our bitter poison to drink, for we have sinned against him.
The five Amorite kings joined forces—the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, and Eglon. Their combined armies surrounded Gibeon and attacked it.
After defeating Lachish, Sennacherib sent his chief commander with his massive army from there to King Hezekiah in Jerusalem. He took up a position on the road to the Washerman’s Field, at the end of the aqueduct where it empties into the upper pool.