1 a This historie is rehearsed, because it is as a seale & confirmation of the doctrine afore, bothe for the threatnings & promises: to wit, that God wolde suffer his Church to be afflicted, but at length wolde send deliuerance.
1 b When he had abolished supersticion, & idolatrie, & restored religion, yet God wolde exercise his Church to trye their faith and science.
1 ! Saneherib sendeth Rabshakeh to besege Jerusalem.
3 d This declareth that there were fewe godlie to be founde in the kings house, when he was driuen to send this wicked man in suche a weightie matter.
5 f He speaketh this in the persone of Hezekiah, falsely charging him, that he put his trust in his wit and eloquence, where as his onelie confidence was in the Lord.
6 g Satan labored to pul the godlie King from one vaine confidence to another: to wit, from trust in the Egyptians, whose power was weake & wold deceiue them: to yelde him self to the Assyrians and so not to hope for any helpe of God.
9 h He reprocheth to Hezekiah his smale power, which is not able to resist one of Saneheribs least captaines.
10 i Thus the wicked to deceiue vs wil pretend the Name of the Lord: but we must trye the spirits, whether thei be of God or no.
11 k Thei were afraid, lest by his wordes, he shuld haue stirred the people against the King, and also pretended to growe to some appointement with him.
16 l The Ebrewe word signifieth blessing: whereby this wicked captain wolde haue psuaded the people, that their condition shulde be better vnder Saneherib then vnder Hezekiah.
19 m That is, of Antiochia in Syria, of the which these two other cities also were: whereby we se how euery towne had his peculiar idole and how the wicked make God an idole because they do not vnderstand that God maketh them his sourge & punisheth cities for sinne.