to discern the meaning of the text. The aid of comparative study might sometimes be needed to help with a minor detail. For instance, when Sennacherib sends his representatives to present terms to Hezekiah after Jerusalem has been besieged by the Assyrians, the officers are referred to as Tartan, Rab-saris, and Rabshakeh. In the American Standard Version, for one, these are treated as proper names. Comparative study has been able to clarify that these are titles of important officers, thus resulting