And the king of Assyria sent the Rabshakeh from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem, with a great army: Sennacherib sent his messenger, the Rabshakeh, to Hezekiah with a large army. Rabshakeh is an Assyrian title rather than a person’s name. Its specific meaning is uncertain, but some believe it means “chief cupbearer” (similarly New Jerusalem Bible; see Neh 1.11, where the Hebrew word for “cupbearer” comes from the same root as the one for Rabshakeh). Translators may transliterate the term, but it would be more meaningful to use a title such as “chief official” (Good News Translation) or “chief officer” (Revised English Bible). Since he was the Assyrian king’s representative, another possible rendering is “ambassador” (see 18.2).

When Sennacherib sent his messenger, he and his army were laying siege to the city of Lachish. This city lay to the southwest of Jerusalem in the foothills of Judah. It was an important city, first fortified during the biblical period by Rehoboam (2 Chr 11.9). Capturing this city would make it possible for an enemy to attack the cities in the mountains of Judah, including Jerusalem. Sennacherib’s own records show many details concerning the capture of Lachish.

And he stood by the conduit of the upper pool on the highway to the Fuller’s Field: The pronoun he refers to the Rabshakeh, which some languages may prefer to make explicit. Instead of stood, Good News Translation says “occupied.” New Jerusalem Bible and New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh have “took up [a] position.” For by the conduit of the upper pool on the highway to the Fuller’s Field, see the comments on 7.3, which mentions it as almost the same place where Isaiah had met King Ahaz.

Translation examples for this verse are:

• The Assyrian king sent his ambassador from the city of Lachish to King Hezekiah in Jerusalem. A large army went with him. The ambassador stood near the water channel of the upper pool, along the road to the field where clothes were washed.

• The Assyrian king sent his official, the Rabshakeh, from the city of Lachish to King Hezekiah in Jerusalem along with a large army. The Rabshakeh stood near the channel from the upper reservoir. It was on the road leading to the place where people washed their clothes.

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 .