When King Hezekiah heard their report, he tore his clothes and put on burlap and went into the Temple of the LORD. And he sent Eliakim the palace administrator, Shebna the court secretary, and the leading priests, all dressed in burlap, to the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz. 2 Kings 19:1-2
After Hezekiah received the letter from the messengers and read it, he went up to the LORD’s Temple and spread it out before the LORD. And Hezekiah prayed this prayer before the LORD … . 2 Kings 19;14-15a.
Words of accusation, of threat. The human instinct – my instinct – is to respond in kind only more so, to escalate, to threaten back.
Hezekiah had better instincts. To turn to the LORD. To seek wisdom. To pray.
The result was Hezekiah never had to respond. The LORD did it for him, both in words, and in actions.
This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: I have heard your prayer about King Sennacherib of Assyria. And the LORD has spoken this word against him:
“The virgin daughter of Zion despises you and laughs at you. The daughter of Jerusalem shakes her head in derision as you flee. Whom have you been defying and ridiculing? Against whom did you raise your voice? At whom did you look with such haughty eyes? It was the Holy One of Israel! …” 2 Kings 19:20b-22.
The outcome was utter deliverance. The threats were never fulfilled. The enemies were defeated. Hezekiah never had to argue, debate, threaten, posture, defend or demand.
LORD, may my first instinct always be to turn to You rather than react. May I see my source as being You rather than some vain concept of wit. May I put my trust in You, regardless of the threat or the outcome.
~~~
Another great reminder, Duane!
Well I’m not sure that he didn’t respond in action as well as pray. Jerusalem is a high place and with well-built walls, was fairly defensible. However, it’s major weakness was its water supply. Aside from his devotion to Yahweh, Hezekiah is remembered for his wise engineering prowess, both in the Deuteronomistic history and by the post-exilic Chronicler:
“As for the other events of Hezekiah’s reign, all his achievements and how he made the pool and the tunnel by which he brought water into the city, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Judah?” 2 Kings 20:20
“When Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had come and that he intended to wage war against Jerusalem, he consulted with his officials and military staff about blocking off the water from the springs outside the city, and they helped him. They gathered a large group of people who blocked all the springs and the stream that flowed through the land. ‘Why should the kings of Assyria come and find plenty of water?’ they said.” 2 Chronicles 32:2-4
Despite these infrastructure improvements, not sure I agree that the outcome was completely successful. To be sure, things went better for Hezekiah with the Assyrians than the outcome in the north, but if my memory servers me correctly, Judah still ended up in a vassalship relationship with Nineveh and had to pay tribute until Babylon progressively assumed supremacy over their northern neighbors.
So…while I concur that Hezekiah’s example of devotion and prayer is given for our emulation, I think he also exemplifies taking appropriate preparatory action using the gifts that God has given us – in his case, wisdom and presumably skilled engineering assistance. Does not St James tell us that he will demonstrate his faith with loving actions?
Jim, thanks so much for your comments, information and insights. You always have valuable additions and this is no exception. Your comment adds richly including information I did not know.
I agree that this vignette does not capture the full narrative of Hezekiah. He was complex. He mostly got it right but like all of the other characters of Scripture (save One) he had his flaws.
This post was not intended to cover the fullness of Hezekiah, but just this one instance, which pulled me up in a sharp but loving rebuke. The interesting thing is that the rebuke actually also leads not only to correction but also to peace, which is the usual result of faith and obedience.
You are of course correct that there is more to the story – and therefore more lessons to be learned – both of which I very much appreciate you highlighting.