2 Kings 18:35
Who are they among all the gods of the countries, that have delivered their country out of mine hand, that the LORD should deliver Jerusalem out of mine hand? Who are they among all the gods of the countries, that have delivered their country out of mine hand, that the LORD should deliver Jerusalem out of mine hand?
Assyria had captured Samaria and scattered the ten tribes, and its unbroken run of victories led the surrounding nations to doubt whether Israel's God was able to protect His people. Emboldened by that reputation, Assyria then turned against Judah and took some of its fortified cities, yet withdrew for a time when troubles elsewhere in its empire demanded attention. In that setting the boast that no god of any country had rescued his land from Assyrian power became a direct challenge to the Lord's power to rescue Jerusalem. Whether the heathen gods would prevail over the God of Israel was thus left as an open question to be settled before the nations near the end of Hezekiah's reign.