In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah means the fourteenth year of Hezekiah’s reign over Judah, not when he was fourteen years old. The year is 701 B.C. Bible en français courant has “During the fourteenth year of the reign of Hezekiah.” Good News Translation is even more explicit.

Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them: Sennacherib ruled Assyria from 705 to 681 B.C. For Assyria see 7.17. Sennacherib … came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them means that Sennacherib’s army attacked those cities. Assyrian records indicate that this army landed at Tyre and made its way steadily down the Mediterranean coast, defeating one city after the other. Fortified cities have defensive walls around them and perhaps troops stationed within them (see the comments on 25.2, where a different Hebrew expression is rendered in the same way). The word all suggests that not one city escaped Sennacherib’s attack. However, since he still attacked other cities, including Jerusalem, this opening verse is a summary description rather than a report of actual fact. Not only did the Assyrian army attack these cities, it actually took them, which means it captured them and destroyed them in some cases.

For the translation of this verse consider the following examples:

• During Hezekiah’s fourteenth year as king [of Judah], Sennacherib the Assyrian king attacked all the walled cities of Judah and captured them.

• Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, attacked all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them. This happened during the fourteenth year of Hezekiah’s reign [over Judah].

Quoted with permission from Ogden, Graham S. and Sterk, Jan. A Handbook on Isaiah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2011. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .