Isaiah 36:12
ESV
But the Rabshakeh said, "Has my master sent me to speak these words to your master and to you, and not to the men sitting on the wall, who are doomed with you to eat their own dung and drink their own urine?"
NIV
But the commander replied, "Was it only to your master and you that my master sent me to say these things, and not to the people sitting on the wall—who, like you, will have to eat their own excrement and drink their own urine?"
NASB
But Rabshakeh said, 'Has my master sent me only to your master and to you to speak these words, and not to the men who sit on the wall, doomed to eat their own dung and drink their own urine with you?'
CSB
But the royal spokesman replied, "Has my master sent me to speak these words to your master and to you, and not to the men who are sitting on the wall, who are destined with you to eat their own excrement and drink their own urine?"
NLT
But Sennacherib’s chief of staff replied, 'Do you think my master sent this message only to you and your master? He wants all the people to hear it, for when we put this city under siege, they will suffer along with you. They will be so hungry and thirsty that they will eat their own dung and drink their own urine.'
KJV
But Rabshakeh said, Hath my master sent me to thy master and to thee to speak these words? hath he not sent me to the men that sit upon the wall, that they may eat their own dung, and drink their own piss with you?
NKJV
But the Rabshakeh said, “Has my master sent me to your master and to you to speak these words, and not to the men who sit on the wall, who will eat and drink their own waste with you?”
What does Isaiah 36:12 mean?
The servant of King Sennacherib (Isaiah 36:1–3) is referred to as Rabshaqeh and is a true master of psychological warfare. His mockery and taunts are delivered with precision to demoralize Hezekiah's envoys. He provokes them to lose any shred of hope that Jerusalem could survive an Assyrian siege and attack of the city. He already knows their failed strategies (Isaiah 36:6). He has researched his enemy (Isaiah 36:7). And, apparently, he has been speaking the local language so that everyone in Jerusalem can quickly hear about his threats (Isaiah 36:11).When Hezekiah's men ask the Rabshakeh to speak in Aramaic so that the Jerusalemites on the wall nearby won't understand, the Assyrian virtually laughs in their faces. He once asks a rhetorical question: "do you think I came here to talk to diplomats, or to the entire city?"
Ancient sieges were terrible affairs. Those trapped inside a city soon faced shortages of food and water. Disease and desperation would soon set in. A city that would not surrender would eventually be so weak that enemies could simply walk in. The Assyrian commander hints at those terrors by speaking of Jerusalem consuming its own wastes. This would be on top of Assyria's chosen reputation as cruel, vicious warmongers fond of gory displays of dominance.
Nations don't become powerful by being careless. Assyria has the numbers to easily overwhelm Jerusalem. They have the time to set up a long siege. But they'd rather end this as cheaply and quickly as possible. The taunting messenger hopes the people will pressure Hezekiah to surrender and avoid a worse fate.
