How long have you been a Christian? Not how long you’ve been in a church, but how long have you been walking with God and trusted in His work alone to save you from sin? How long has it been that you’ve turned away from looking at your own righteousness and only looked to His?
How long do you think Hezekiah was a Christian before this incident? As we look at Hezekiah’s life, we see a clear pattern of a man who walked with the Lord, a genuinely good king. But this section of our text shows how it ended. It should give us some pause and think about where we are in our walk with Jesus — how far we’ve come and how we want it to end.
(A) Setting the Stage
Before we look at today’s passage, let us recap all that we’ve learnt about the man Hezekiah. His life and work was also written in 2 Chronicles. 2 Chronicles 30-31 tell us all the acts of faithfulness Hezekiah did. He believed that God has spoken and saw how their lives now did not align. He was, therefore, a good king. Yet, in 2 Chronicles 32:1, we read of how faithful Hezekiah is tested by war. He prepared for war but also prepared their hearts for battle (c.f. 2 Chron 32:5-8). He did not make just practical preparations, but also did a spiritual one. He was a reformed minded spiritual leader, and also called the people to trust in God in light of the upcoming invasion.
In 2 Chronicles 32:16-19, we learn that Sennacherib crystallises all of his taunts in a letter and sends it to Hezekiah. This is a challenge straight in God’s face. Remember that challenging Judah wasn’t just a power play. Rather, he was threatening the stability and longevity of the David dynasty. God had planned to pour out His glory through the Davidic king. Thus, Sennacherib’s aggression was a challenge to that. But God gave them peace, not by their own achievements, but by His finished work (c.f. 2 Chron 32:20-22).
After these things, Hezekiah fell sick to the point of death (c.f. 2 Chron 32:24-26) . But there was an intervention from God to address not just his health, but also his faith. God gave Him a sign! This is a reminder for us to be careful when we speak of signs and wonders. They are purposeful acts of God to reveal and to point to. To understand a sign properly, we need to look at what the sign is pointing to! The goal is not to give Hezekiah a good life, but to give him more confidence in God.
So, what's the overall state of Hezekiah’s life? He faced crisis, and also experienced God’s deliverance. He was faithful and experienced both growth and also personal suffering. He lived an action-packed life with low peaks and high valleys. With this as a backdrop, let us take a look at what happened at the close of his life.
(B) Diagnostic #1: What events define your life? (Isa 39:1)
At what time do the events of Isaiah 39:1 occur? These events occured after Hezekiah’s miraculous healing. Envoys from Babylon visited and we are told that they came because they heard that Hezekiah was sick and is now well. We do not know the full extent of what they heard but they came with letters and a present for Hezekiah. These were probably not courtesy gifts, but came bearing these gifts for a specific reason. Could it be for an alliance? Remember that they heard of Hezekiah’s near death experience. They were probably interested to understand the source of Judah’s power.
How did Hezekiah respond? Hezekiah welcomed them gladly (Isa 39:2). His actions are not in line with his character before. It is likely that having just come back from the dead, he was complacent. He was probably so defined by this miraculous recovery. 2 Chronicles 32:31 helps us to understand that these envoys did not come with good will, and this was a test for Hezekiah.
Have we too, prayed for rescue and when God does that, we live on a high and stopped thinking or praying? If Hezekiah had remembered a bit more about who God is, what God had done and also his own responsibility as shepherd of Israel, he would have been a better king. But because he saw himself as a man who has just been rescued and escaped death, he was not thinking clearly.
(C) Diagnostic #2: How do you relate to the world around you? (Isa 39:2-4)
We are told that Hezekiah welcomed these visitors gladly, and showed them all in his treasure house and storehouses. He did not withhold anything from them (Isa 39:2). What is going on here? Hezekiah is showing off. He began by showing them his treasure house, then the silver, gold, spices, precious oil and then the armoury followed by what was in his storehouses. Isaiah goes on to tell us that “there was nothing in his house or in all his realm that Hezekiah did not show them”. He has flaunted his wealth to his foreign visitors. It tells us that the heart is deceitful. One minute, he was on his deathbed and God had given a sign in order to strengthen his faith. The next, he is so full of life and not discerning.
These verses also have a warning for us. Proverbs 26:28 and Proverbs 29:5 provide wise counsel for us and warns us to be careful when people praise you. Praise comes together with some demand of something from you. Be careful also how you use praise. Do you use praise just to get something from someone? Words spoken positively in encouragement, blessing and thanksgiving should be spoken in truthfulness and not in flattery! Flattery works when we believe it. Vanity also blinds us.
Isaiah the prophet came to Hezekiah and he is trying to stage an encounter with Hezekiah. He uses these questions to help Hezekiah see the obvious thing — that it was a stupid move (Isa 39:3a). Hezekiah answered innocently that they came from a far country (as if that is a reason). Isaiah goes on to ask what they have seen (Isa 39:4a) and Hezekiah said, everything (Isa 39:4b).
What degree of self-infatuation would Hezekiah be in the grip of that he is unable to see the problem? Are we also like him, where sin and vanity blinds us from seeing what it is plain to everyone else? 1 Peter 5:6-11 calls us to humble ourselves under the hand of God and cast our anxieties on Him because He cares. He also calls us to be soberminded for the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion. This is the problem of sin. It blinds us and we need to be watchful.
(D) Diagnostic #3: What legacy will you leave behind? (Isa 39:5-8)
In Isaiah 39:5-7, it might seem that Isaiah was being paranoid and a kill joy. Hezekiah wanted to celebrate his accomplishments and was seeking to live his life. But Isaiah came and said all these things.
But as we were reminded in the first study of the series, Hezekiah was living with an Assyrian threat. People who are fighting a war are vigilant and do not put their guard down. They also know what resources they have for battle. On the other hand, folks that are living for the moment live quite differently. If we wait for the praise of the Praiseworthy, and not from man, we are humbling ourselves (c.f. 1 Pet 5:6). Only God’s praise — the well done good and faithful servant — is worth it. Therefore, we are cold to be soberminded and not be confused in our thinking. Remember that our adversary, the lion is prowling!
Our problem is that we don’t believe we are at war. How do you relate to the world around you? Is it a question of how much sin you can tolerate, or how you can balance all the commitments in life? Or are you the person who recognises that we are at war, and seek to pursue holiness and a closer relationship with God? Do you seek a closer relationship with God and to be able to dwell in His life, seeking to remove all distractions? How do we live as if Jesus really died for us? The man who died for us asks for everything.
Friends, friendship with the world is enmity with God. Do you believe you are at war?
Isaiah responds by giving a word of the Lord and this is a devastating word (Isa 39:8). Firstly, they will lose everything and secondly, his line will too. These are not just heavy words, but are words that are meant to provoke. THe house that he was showing off? Nothing will be left in it. The way it’s written (Isa 39:6) is meant to parallel Hezekiah’s actions. It was not just about losing wealth but also disgracing ancestors. His unborn children will also be taken from him and their line will be ended completely. His folly and pride will lead to the end of the Davidic dynasty. The Bible tells us that 7 generations later, Hezekiah’s grandson is taken to Babylon (c.f. 2 Ki 25 and Dan 1).
What do you expect his response to be at the end of this? Hezekiah says that there will be peace and security in his day (Isa 39:8). How terrible it is that this man who has done so much and seen so much of God’s goodness is content to have a good life. He is glad that he has lived a full life.
Isn’t this relatable? But we are not to emulate him! In fact, we are to say, “have mercy”! Isaiah 39 ends on this terrible note, and is meant for us to ask, how can this be and how will God’s promises be fulfilled? This is why Isaiah 40 opens with such grand words, the words of Handel’s Messiah.
We mustn’t be like Hezekiah. And we must ask, what will it look like? If your life is about chasing that Singaporean dream to get married, have kids, have a good job and to die at peace, having served God in our churches etc, then we are like Hezekiah. Isaiah 39 rebukes us if we do not live life with an eye toward eternity. Have you led someone to Christ? Have you lived for more than just your 70 years? Do you have an ambition for the church beyond your life, and have an ambition for the gospel to reach the next generation?
(Eph 5:15-21) Do we plan to use our time on this earth for His agenda? This is what it means to store up treasures not on earth, but in heaven! Our joys, hopes and satisfaction is not found in the peace and security of our days. It comes with knowing that our life is secure in His hands!
What events define your life? Is it just the good things — the high points and miracle healings? How do you relate to the world? What legacy are you going to leave behind? Where is your energy and heart space going towards?
These are things worth thinking about and it will be good for us to also use these diagnostic questions in our own life too. It will be foolish of us to ignore what God has left for us in His Word!. What is God calling you to pay attention to today?