Hezekiah – Part 12
Set Thy House in Order
The king by judgment establisheth the land: but he that receiveth gifts overthroweth it. (Proverbs 29:4)
In those days Hezekiah was sick to the death, and prayed unto the LORD: and he spake unto him, and he gave him a sign. (2 Chronicles 32:24)
But Hezekiah rendered not again according to the benefit done unto him; for his heart was lifted up: therefore there was wrath upon him, and upon Judah and Jerusalem. (2 Chronicles 32:25)
Notwithstanding Hezekiah humbled himself for the pride of his heart, both he and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the wrath of the LORD came not upon them in the days of Hezekiah. (2 Chronicles 32:26)
And Hezekiah had exceeding much riches and honour: and he made himself treasuries for silver, and for gold, and for precious stones, and for spices, and for shields, and for all manner of pleasant jewels; (2 Chronicles 32:27)
Storehouses also for the increase of corn, and wine, and oil; and stalls for all manner of beasts, and cotes for flocks. (2 Chronicles 32:28)
Moreover he provided him cities, and possessions of flocks and herds in abundance: for God had given him substance very much. (2 Chronicles 32:29)
This same Hezekiah also stopped the upper watercourse of Gihon, and brought it straight down to the west side of the city of David. And Hezekiah prospered in all his works. (2 Chronicles 32:30)
Howbeit in the business of the ambassadors of the princes of Babylon, who sent unto him to enquire of the wonder that was done in the land, God left him, to try him, that he might know all that was in his heart. (2 Chronicles 32:31)
Now the rest of the acts of Hezekiah, and his goodness, behold, they are written in the vision of Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, and in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel. (2 Chronicles 32:32)
And Hezekiah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the chiefest of the sepulchres of the sons of David: and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem did him honour at his death. And Manasseh his son reigned in his stead. (2 Chronicles 32:33)
Our lives are made from many chapters, some good, some bad. We live our lives on the premise that all is in our control; yet, as a whole, man is out of control. A decision made in a capitol city can determine the lives of thousands. The decision of one man can turn entire nations upside down. Man in his desire to show himself in complete control only witnesses that he is totally out of control through his sin. I’m sure that God has a will and purpose for every man, for it is He, and He alone, who determines the destiny of all. One must live in the path of His will, or against that path; even those who love Him dearly, often find themselves at times not walking with God, but on a separate path from the Almighty God. In His grace and in His love, He however, does not cast off those who belong to Him. One must first be born of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord, to walk that path of God’s will according to His Word. One often must make difficult decisions and painful choices, and in those decisions sometimes be misunderstood by both the world, and even by those of like faith.
Hezekiah had many turns in his lifetime; yet, God chose his life as an example for us to learn valuable lessons. We are about to approach a time of indecision, a time of fear, a time of pride, and a time of complacency. All the steps we take are not the same, sometimes they are small, sometimes they are large, and the steps that I may take are only for me and not for another. There were many prophets in Israel in the days of Elijah; yet, it was Elijah who was singled out for God’s display; likewise, Hezekiah’s life is an allegory for us to examine the good parts, and those parts that were not pleasing to God. Up to this point of time his life was glorious; the only exception was when he attempted to appease the king of Assyria with gold and silver. Hezekiah had to learn a valuable lesson, he had to come to the end of himself so that he might see God’s glory, and that it would be God, and only God who would and could deliver him. In like manner, we are not to trust in the arm of the flesh, for the flesh will deceive us in all sorts of ways. Hezekiah was deceived when he thought that it was in his own power to ward off the king of Assyria; his power failed, and he cast himself upon the mercy of the Almighty God. God was his only hope, and the only hope for his people. But after all this, as days went by, his heart was lifted up, and God had to chasten him.
And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: (Hebrews 12:5)
For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. (Hebrews 12:6)
If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? (Hebrews 12:7)
In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came unto him, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Set thine house in order: for thou shalt die, and not live. (Isaiah 38:1)
Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and prayed unto the LORD (Isaiah 38:2),
And said, Remember now, O LORD, I beseech thee, how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept sore.(Isaiah 38:3)
The God of heaven sent His prophet to His king, with these words, Thus saith the LORD, Set thine house in order: for thou shalt die, and not live. Where does the heart and mind go from this point? It is as if the prophet had let all the life out of Hezekiah. How could these things be? ‘I have walked before God, I have done His will, I have seen His answer to heavenly prayer, the defeat of Sennacherib, the glorious Passover, the restoration of the house of God, all these things were done in my lifetime, and who is going to rule when I am gone.’ The king turned his face to the wall, could this also be not wanting to hear what the Lord had to say? He wept much, have you ever been there? You feel that your insides are going to come out of your chest, your mind is burning in grief, the world . . . your world is coming to an end. The king reminds Jehovah that he had walked in truth and with a perfect heart, and he had done that which is good in the sight of God; and yet, he had to be reminded that he was but flesh, and that he was coming to his end. We are all but flesh, and the flesh must die, the result of Adam’s sin is death . . . and so death has passed upon all men, for all have sinned.
Hezekiah had run a good course, and yet his time had come. Why at this particular time? Was not all going well in his kingdom? Could he not be a further blessing to his people? Turn with me to Isaiah 57:1, The righteous perisheth, and no man layeth it to heart: and merciful men are taken away, none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come. We sometimes wonder why one of the Lord’s servants is taken in death, maybe in his youth, or in the middle of a work for the Lord, or a godly family member is taken unexpectedly, or a friend, or a companion that has honored the Lord all their lives; and then there is this verse in Isaiah that the good Lord will take the righteous out of the way because of the evil to come. Could this be the reason that the Lord wanted to take Hezekiah home? Is not the wisdom of God far greater than ours? Does He not see the end from the beginning, and the beginning from the end? Hezekiah cried unto the Lord, and the Lord gave him 15 more years.
In those 15 years the most ungodly king in the history of Israel was born. By using the word ‘Israel’ I refer to both the 10 tribes of the north (Israel), and the 2 tribes of Judah (Judah). His name was Manasseh, the son of Hezekiah. Read the account of the life of Manasseh and see the outcome of his sin against God. Surely at the commandment of the LORD came this upon Judah, to remove them out of his sight, for the sins of Manasseh, according to all that he did; (2 Kings 24:3) And also for the innocent blood that he shed: for he filled Jerusalem with innocent blood; which the LORD would not pardon. (2 Kings 24:4)
The result of Hezekiah’s 15 years brought forth Manasseh, the result of Manasseh’s sin brought forth Nebuchadnezzar from Babylon. He destroyed Jerusalem, and destroyed the temple of the Lord, the temple was laid waste and all the treasure of the Lord’s house was taken, and all the treasure of the kings house was taken, all the people were put into subjection to the king of Babylon, and a great number of people were carried away to Babylon. Among these captives was Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah: as well as Ezekiel, all for the sins of Manasseh.
In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah came Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon unto Jerusalem, and besieged it. (Daniel 1:1)
And the king spake unto Ashpenaz the master of his eunuchs, that he should bring certain of the children of Israel, and of the king’s seed, and of the princes; (Daniel 1:3)
Now among these were of the children of Judah, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah: (Daniel 1:6)
Unto whom the prince of the eunuchs gave names: for he gave unto Daniel [the name] of Belteshazzar; and to Hananiah, of Shadrach; and to Mishael, of Meshach; and to Azariah, of Abednego. (Daniel 1:7)
And all the vessels of the house of God, great and small, and the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king, and of his princes; all these he brought to Babylon. (2 Chronicles 36:18)
And they burnt the house of God, and brake down the wall of Jerusalem, and burnt all the palaces thereof with fire, and destroyed all the goodly vessels thereof. (2 Chronicles 36:19)
And them that had escaped from the sword carried he away to Babylon; where they were servants to him and his sons until the reign of the kingdom of Persia:(2 Chronicles 36:20)
To fulfil the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her sabbaths: for as long as she lay desolate she kept sabbath, to fulfil threescore and ten years. (2 Chronicles 36:21)
Manasseh was born in those 15 years that God gave to Hezekiah; but that’s not all, after Hezekiah was healed, his heart was lifted up, and Jehovah had to bring wrath upon him and upon Judah; therefore, Hezekiah humbled himself and the hand of God’s judgment was stayed. (2 Chronicles 32:25)
In those days Hezekiah was sick to the death, and prayed unto the LORD: and he spake unto him, and he gave him a sign. (2 Chronicles 32:24)
But Hezekiah rendered not again according to the benefit done unto him; for his heart was lifted up: therefore there was wrath upon him, and upon Judah and Jerusalem. (2 Chronicles 32:25)
Notwithstanding Hezekiah humbled himself for the pride of his heart, both he and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the wrath of the LORD came not upon them in the days of Hezekiah.(2 Chronicles 32:26)
The toll of these 15 years became greater, for the king of Babylon sent spies from Babylon to search out Jerusalem and the kingdom of Hezekiah. They used the excuse that they had heard that Hezekiah had been sick, surely they had seen the wonder in the sky of the sun going back as was measured on the sun dial of Ahaz, a total of 10 degrees.
And Hezekiah said unto Isaiah, What shall be the sign that the LORD will heal me, and that I shall go up into the house of the LORD the third day? (2 Kings 20:8)
And Isaiah said, This sign shalt thou have of the LORD, that the LORD will do the thing that he hath spoken: shall the shadow go forward ten degrees, or go back ten degrees? (2 Kings 20:9)
And Hezekiah answered, It is a light thing for the shadow to go down ten degrees: nay, but let the shadow return backward ten degrees. (2 Kings 20:10)
And Isaiah the prophet cried unto the LORD: and he brought the shadow ten degrees backward, by which it had gone down in the dial of Ahaz. (2 Kings 20:11) Also read Isaiah 38.
This was the wonder seen in the sky all over the world, and it was the second time that God stayed the sun. The first mention was in the days of Joshua.
Then spake Joshua to the LORD in the day when the LORD delivered up the Amorites before the children of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel, Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon; and thou, Moon, in the valley of Ajalon. (Joshua 10:12)
And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, until the people had avenged themselves upon their enemies. Is not this written in the book of Jasher? So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and hasted not to go down about a whole day. (Joshua 10:13)
And there was no day like that before it or after it, that the LORD hearkened unto the voice of a man: for the LORD fought for Israel. (Joshua 10:14)
In the days of Joshua God had hearkened unto the voice of a man, and held the sun and the moon in the heavens. In the days of Hezekiah, once again, God gave a sign unto a man, and the sun went backwards in the heavens above. God stopped the order of His creation for Israel in the days of Joshua, and for Israel in the days of Hezekiah. The spies came unto the king, and Hezekiah showed them all that was in the Lord’s house. He showed them all the treasury of his own house of both the silver and the gold.
At that time Merodachbaladan, the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present to Hezekiah: for he had heard that he had been sick, and was recovered. (Isaiah 39:1)
And Hezekiah was glad of them, and shewed them the house of his precious things, the silver, and the gold, and the spices, and the precious ointment, and all the house of his armour, and all that was found in his treasures: there was nothing in his house, nor in all his dominion, that Hezekiah shewed them not. (Isaiah 39:2)
Then came Isaiah the prophet unto king Hezekiah, and said unto him, What said these men? and from whence came they unto thee? And Hezekiah said, They are come from a far country unto me, even from Babylon. (Isaiah 39:3)
Then said he, What have they seen in thine house? And Hezekiah answered, All that is in mine house have they seen: there is nothing among my treasures that I have not shewed them. (Isaiah 39:4)
Then said Isaiah to Hezekiah, Hear the word of the LORD of hosts: . (Isaiah 39:5)
Behold, the days come, that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store until this day, shall be carried to Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith the LORD. (Isaiah 39:6)
And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon. (Isaiah 39:7)
Then said Hezekiah to Isaiah, Good is the word of the LORD which thou hast spoken. He said moreover, For there shall be peace and truth in my days. (Isaiah 39:8)
According to Isaiah 39, Hezekiah gave them all the information that they needed for a future invasion. He might as well have given them a complete list of his kingdom. This displeased the Lord, and once again, He sent Isaiah to rebuke king Hezekiah. Isaiah asked Hezekiah, What have they seen in thine house? Hezekiah replied, All that is in mine house have they seen: there is nothing among my treasures that I have not shewed them. Isaiah told Hezekiah that everything he had showed them, they would come and take all, nothing would be left.
And Isaiah said unto Hezekiah, Hear the word of the LORD. (2 Kings 20:16)
Behold, the days come, that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store unto this day, shall be carried into Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith the LORD. (2 Kings 20:17)
And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon. (2 Kings 20:18)
Then said Hezekiah unto Isaiah, Good is the word of the LORD which thou hast spoken. And he said, Is it not good, if peace and truth be in my days? (2 Kings 20:19)
The 15 years that Hezekiah was given brought heart ache for the king and for his people. His son Manasseh had the longest reign of all the kings of Judah. Fifty-five years (55) and in those years, he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord. During this dark time, God did not hold back His witnesses, for He sent His prophets unto them, and they would not repent.
And the LORD spake by his servants the prophets, saying, (2 Kings 21:10)
Because Manasseh king of Judah hath done these abominations, and hath done wickedly above all that the Amorites did, which were before him, and hath made Judah also to sin with his idols: (2 Kings 21:11)
Therefore thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Behold, I am bringing such evil upon Jerusalem and Judah, that whosoever heareth of it, both his ears shall tingle. (2 Kings 21:12)
The lessons we learn from Hezekiah’s 15 years are many. We should be careful what we ask for because trouble can come from an unknowing request that our prayer should not be according to our desires, but according to the will of God. Prayer should not come from a selfish heart. If we pray with a selfish heart, we can expect a lesson from the Lord for He will chasten His children. The result of the request of Hezekiah’s prayer is still being felt in Israel, and throughout the whole world by the Jewish people. As they were scattered in the days of their captivity, they had not all returned to the land which God had promised them. Manasseh was born, and the judgment of God fell on Jerusalem. The people were carried away, and have not returned in the fullness of God’s glory. This will come when the Lord Jesus gathers all Israel together in His millennial kingdom; but till then, Israel is still suffering the sins of Manasseh. Then there is this . . . be careful what you show the world. The world has a way of taking that which does not belong to them. Whether it be tangible goods, or spiritual liberties of the children of God, the greed and corruption of man both politically and religiously are beyond measure. I have seen the sin of greed and corruption take widow’s houses and shoes from orphans, all in the name of the Lord. As a prophet once said, ‘the Lord look on it, and require it.’ And Hezekiah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the chiefest of the sepulchres of the sons of David: and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem did him honour at his death. And Manasseh his son reigned in his stead. (2 Chronicles 32:33) This last verse of chapter 32 speaks volumes. We are given a eulogy for Hezekiah, he slept with his fathers, and he was buried in the chiefest of the sepulchres, he was placed among the sons of David, which included all the godly kings that had gone before him. All Jerusalem, and Judah gave him honor at his death. If we could only stop there, now the cry . . . and Manasseh his son reigned in his stead.
Many years ago, maybe thirty, I did a series on unanswered prayer in the Scriptures, you might think that God answers all, but He does not answer at the will of man. It is according to His own will and His own purpose. Even the Lord Jesus prayer in Gethsemane, And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt. (Matthew 26:39) The cross was the answer to that prayer, and what a wonderful answer for us, for we are bought with a price, the precious blood of Christ. In summarizing, we must learn this lesson from the prayer of Hezekiah that when we pray it should be according to God’s will, and in godly fear. Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared; (Hebrews 5:7) For if we pray for our desires, and for our wants, we can put in motion things that we would not want to see. In Hezekiah’s prayer he put in motion things that are still transpiring today, approximately 2,728 years later.
There are valuable lessons to be gleaned in all the prayers of Hezekiah, through this study we are reminded that Hezekiah’s prayers along with those of the people of Jerusalem ascended up to heaven, even His holy dwelling place. We are reminded of Hezekiah’s prayer for the people, his prayer for deliverance from Sennacherib, all these prayers brought godly results; however, the last recorded prayer was self motivated, and brought havoc into his kingdom and throughout the remaining history of Israel.
I will look through my files and see if I can find the series on unanswered prayers in scripture, hopefully, we can post them in the future. Till then, God bless and Amen.
© Copyright 2015, Michael Haigh
Article may be used, but not for gain. Freely ye have received, freely give.
All Scripture references are from the Authorized King James Bible. (KJV)