Sunday Morning Service (II Kings 20)

II Kings 20

“Kings And The Pride Of Life” • 10.8.17 • Calvary Christian Fellowship, Sunday Morning Service

Intro

- The city of Jerusalem has been miraculously relieved once again. Assyria has been expelled and life is slowly returning to normal.

- Now that the action is over, the author takes some time to explain what had transpired in the royal palace. The first half of our text takes place prior to Assyria's first appearance in Judah

- The final portion will relate to what happened after Judah's deliverance. In this chapter, you and I will see the contrast between a desperate King and a delivered King. Verse 1.

Text

• II Kings 20:1-3 : "In those days Hezekiah was sick and near death. And Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, went to him and said to him, 'Thus says the Lord: ‘Set your house in order, for you shall die, and not live.’ Then he turned his face toward the wall, and prayed to the Lord, saying, 'Remember now, O Lord, I pray, how I have walked before You in truth and with a loyal heart, and have done what was good in Your sight.' And Hezekiah wept bitterly." : Hezekiah had taken ill and over time, it went from bad to worse. Soon, the King was at death's door.

- He's has the most resource, he's quite close to the Lord, but there was nothing anyone could do for him. Isaiah came to visit and confirmed that he would "die and not live."

- Before we move on, it's not likely, especially given what we are about to see, that Hezekiah expected this kind of message from the prophet. It's direct and it's decidely not good.

- I've never been on the receiving end of such a message, but I can imagine my heart dropping and my face draining of color. How would you feel? What would be your response?

- Hezekiah hears the prophet's prognosis and turns away toward the wall. He's not pouting, nor is he angry with Isaiah. He turns toward the wall to begin a conversation with the Lord.

- When you and I are facing our greatest trials, it is our great privilege to come into the very throne of grace to find our help! We are wired to turn to Him in that moment.

- When the King's words are spoken, they sound a bit out of place to us. We read this and think that he is bragging. Actually, he is giving a fairly accurate assessment of his own record.

- He's not claiming perfection. He's stating that he had lived according to the covenant that God had made with His people Israel.

- "I've been faithful to you Lord! My heart has been completely yours. I've done what was good in your sight." Hezekiah is not ready to die. He wants to live and not die!

- Part of his angst could be related to the fact that Josephus mentions his lack of children.

- As a King of Judah, a descendant of King David and a predecessor to the Messiah, there is certainly still work to do!

- As he continues to think about his situation, he just breaks down, weeping uncontrollably. Only a few minutes have passed. We catch Isaiah out in the foyer. Verse 4.

• II Kings 20:4-6 : "And it happened, before Isaiah had gone out into the middle court, that the word of the Lord came to him, saying, 'Return and tell Hezekiah the leader of My people, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: 'I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; surely I will heal you. On the third day you shall go up to the house of the Lord. And I will add to your days fifteen years. I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria; and I will defend this city for My own sake, and for the sake of My servant David.'"

- I'm pretty sure that this was a rare occurrence for Isaiah. He had to come back to Hezekiah to reverse his previous message! "Aw c'mon Lord! I was just there!"

- Delivering news of death isn't any fun for anyone! I'm sure that Isaiah was happy to return to Hezekiah's chamber with this word from the Lord! Consider this message.

- God says, "I have heard your prayer." Hezekiah had just offered it! God hears the prayers of His people! It's not a worthless exercise. It is an open invitation to fellowship with God Almighty!

- God had seen Hezekiah's tears. He knows His people's pain. He sees our struggles. He takes notice. In Hezekiah's case, God was going to choose to physically heal him.

- There are times today when God makes the same decision. Isaiah tells him that he'll be back in the house of the Lord in three days.

- However long Hezekiah had been sick, being near the Lord in His Temple, had been the King's greatest loss. This is incredibly interesting.

- Hezekiah has access to a Prophet. He has his times of intense prayer. But the true person of God longs to be in the presence of God when the people of God are present as well!

- There is something that happens corporately, publically that cannot be replicated individually, privately! God's response to Hezekiah indicates that he longed to be in God's presence.

- Truly, that is an indicator of one's maturity in Christ. The greater the maturity, the more steady the commitment to God's presence and Word. At this point, one might have been happy to stop.

- God will heal and Hezekiah will be able to resume his regular routines. This is when God drops a special note in his box. "You have 15 years!"

- What would you do if you knew you had 15 years of life left? I'm not sure I'd like to know!

- As we progress through Hezekiah's life, we might see evidence that this was part of a test.

- In any event, verse 6 is the indicator of when this took place. These are the same words that God used before taking action against Assyria.

- He is not acting on Hezekiah's part per se, but for the honor of His own Name and His promise to David. Verse 7.

• II Kings 20:7-11 : "Then Isaiah said, 'Take a lump of figs.' So they took and laid it on the boil, and he recovered. And Hezekiah said to Isaiah, 'What is the sign that the Lord will heal me, and that I shall go up to the house of the Lord the third day?' Then Isaiah said, 'This is the sign to you from the Lord, that the Lord will do the thing which He has spoken: shall the shadow go forward ten degrees or go backward ten degrees?' And Hezekiah answered, 'It is an easy thing for the shadow to go down ten degrees; no, but let the shadow go backward ten degrees.' So Isaiah the prophet cried out to the Lord, and He brought the shadow ten degrees backward, by which it had gone down on the sundial of Ahaz." : Isaiah says, "God's gonna heal you!" then yells, "Someone get me some figs!"

- Our homeopathic friends are currently beaming with pride! "See, even God endorses natural methods!" Yes, Jesus Himself once even used mud!

- Isaiah asks for a fig poultice to be made, which when heated, would cause the blood flow to increase in a given area, thus speeding the healing necessary.

- God's heals instantaneously, through the practice of medicine and through the process of time. He's not confined to any one method.

- Hezekiah recovered from the pain of the boil but still wanted a sign of his complete recovery.

- From where they were sitting, the sundial of Ahaz was visible. Some believe it be a large outdoor edifice shaped like a staircase. Isaiah asks Hezekiah if he'd like to see it's shadow move.

- "Pick a direction and the Lord will move it ten degrees." Hezekiah won't be satisfied to see it move in the normal direction. That's where it would be going anyway. "Let's have it go backward!"

- Isaiah prayed and that's what took place. What a gracious God to meet Hezekiah in that way! That's the story, but how did this happen? There are a few very interesting theories available.

- One suggests that a large celestial body passed by our planet, causing it's rotation to reverse. I read of another account in which Chinese astronomers witnessed a double sunset!

- The Bible tells us that the shadow receded. Could it be that God merely allowed a tiny bit of His own Shekinah glory to shine over the stair case?

- The point is that while there may be a natural explanation, it is a "super"natural God that we believe in!

- When you are dealing with miraculous intervention, a belief that begins with Genesis 1:1, all that needs to be said is that God did this! Hezekiah didn't even ask! He just poured out his praise!

- Isaiah 38:10-20 gives an account of Hezekiah's response. Listen to verses 17-20.

• Isaiah 38:17-20 : "Indeed it was for my own peace that I had great bitterness; But You have lovingly delivered my soul from the pit of corruption, for You have cast all my sins behind Your back. For Sheol cannot thank You, death cannot praise You; those who go down to the pit cannot hope for Your truth. The living, the living man, he shall praise You, As I do this day; The father shall make known Your truth to the children. The Lord was ready to save me; Therefore we will sing my songs with stringed instruments all the days of our life, in the house of the Lord.'" : What fitting praise! What wonderful words! "You have cast all my sins behind your back!" How true for Hezekiah! How much more true for those of us in Christ!

- God healed Hezekiah and revealed a sign to him, which issued in praise, but the effect upon him seems to have been temporary.

• II Chronicles 32:25 (NLT) : "But Hezekiah did not respond appropriately to the kindness shown him, and he became proud. So the Lord’s anger came against him and against Judah and Jerusalem." : Hezekiah did not respond appropriately. Yes, he said the right words. He believed them when he said them.

- However, after the fact, he began to see things differently and the conditions were such that the temptation was rather high.

- He was highly favored of God and he was greatly enriched by men after God dealt with Assyria via "Project Angel One!"

- II Chronicles 32:23 speaks of men bringing great gifts to him so that he was exalted in the sight of the nations. Verses 27 through 29 detail the riches that were at his disposal.

- This is the backdrop to what we are about to see next: Judah has been delivered, Hezekiah has been healed, the nations are singing the King's praises and some visitors arrive. Verse 12.

• II Kings 20:12: "At that time Berodach-Baladan the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present to Hezekiah, for he heard that Hezekiah had been sick." : The name of the King of Babylon is Merodach-Baladin. At this time, he has returned to the throne of Babylon after years of exile due to Assyria's dominance over Babylon.

- The geo-political tide is beginning to turn and Babylon will be the apex predator. At this moment though, they are searching for ways to turn the tide.

- There are obvious gestures of good will, but there is a greater hint at a desired alliance between the two countries who have a vested interest in Assyria's fall.

- Why would Babylon be so interested? Given what you know how could they not be!? The author of II Chronicles explains.

• II Chronicles 32:31 : "However, regarding the ambassadors of the princes of Babylon, whom they sent to him to inquire about the wonder that was done in the land, God withdrew from him, in order to test him, that He might know all that was in his heart." : For all that Babylon knew, Judah had defeated an army of 185,000 Assyrian men! They wanted to know how this had taken place and used Hezekiah's recent illness as pretext!

- At the same time, God used this occasion to test Hezekiah's heart. He stepped back from him momentarily to reveal all that was in his heart.

- Think about that statement: God left him for a second to see what the King would do! That's incredible! Hezekiah revealed quite a bit! Verse 13.

• II Kings 20:13: "And Hezekiah was attentive to them, and showed them all the house of his treasures—the silver and gold, the spices and precious ointment, and all his armory—all that was found among his treasures. There was nothing in his house or in all his dominion that Hezekiah did not show them." : Hezekiah welcomed his Babylonian guests and gave them a personal tour of the Palace complex.

- The fact that he was personally attentive to them speaks to the King's great desire to impress. He wasn't discreet. He wasn't guarded in any way. He should have been.

- The force of the text indicates that he was the initiator. He kept opening new rooms and telling them, "Oh wait, you've got to see this!" They were only as interested as he was to continue!

- The occasion is there, but if the question pertains to how Judah overcame Assyria, the answer from Hezekiah is related to his wealth. This becomes a bit more clear in verse 14.

• II Kings 20:14,15 : "Then Isaiah the prophet went to King Hezekiah, and said to him, 'What did these men say, and from where did they come to you?' So Hezekiah said, 'They came from a far country, from Babylon.' And he said, 'What have they seen in your house?' So Hezekiah answered, 'They have seen all that is in my house; there is nothing among my treasures that I have not shown them.'" :

- Isaiah is curious about what had gone on between the King and the foreign envoy. Hezekiah's answer indicates that he felt no threat.

- "They came from a far country, from Babylon." They're not from around here. They are not big enough yet to be much of a threat. Isaiah continues his query. "What did they see?"

- At this point, I imagine the prophet wanting to hear what we would have all wished to hear. "They saw the Temple and the presence of God which resides over Judah!"

- How refreshing would it have been to hear that they heard a true report of Hezekiah's prayer and God's great angelic deliverance that could only have come by His mercy!

- Instead, they saw all that was in "my house." They saw "my treasures." The King's heart is completely puffed up in pride!

- People are looking for the reason why your marriage is a success. They want to know why you are such a joy to work with on Monday mornings.

- They want to know why you aren't caught up in the office gossip and why you never order drinks, cuss or cut out early from work!

- When they ask, are you ready to answer, "I live this way because of my love for Jesus Christ, whose Spirit empowers me to act in the way that you see me?"

- Please don't let your answer betray that you think it's all because of you! Don't point to your disciplined sleep schedule or vitamin intake! Show them the true treasure! Isaiah is disappointed too.

• II Kings 20:16-18 : "Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, 'Hear the word of the Lord: ‘Behold, the days are coming when all that is in your house, and what your fathers have accumulated until this day, shall be carried to Babylon; nothing shall be left,’ says the Lord. ‘And they shall take away some of your sons who will descend from you, whom you will beget; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.’" : "Hear the word of the Lord!" Here comes the rebuke.

- What a jarring prophecy to hear!? Babylon, represented by the "friends" that have just left, will one day be responsible for sacking the city of Jerusalem!

- Everything that they had been shown would eventually be in their possession! Everything that belonged to Hezekiah in Jerusalem would be stored in Babylon!

- You and I are only pages away from the account of Babylon's full strength. At this moment, they are still fighting for survival against the Assyrians.

- They are about a century away from rising to the peak of their power. To hear that they would be the ones that would overtake Judah, was at this time, unthinkable! Yet it was true.

- And here was the worst of the news. Hezekiah's pride would issue in a loss of materials, which is often the case. Worse yet, was the loss of people!

- His pride would cost Judah some of his own descendants, that he would beget! Remember the comments of Josephus? According to him, Hezekiah had been childless.

- The historian comments that he was childless at the time of his illness. Now, he has fifteen years left and he gambled part of it away for the sake of his pride!

- His own precious descendants, the ones that carried on the promise of God's Messiah, were going to be taken into captivity! What was Hezekiah's response? Verse 19.

• II Kings 20:19 : "So Hezekiah said to Isaiah, 'The word of the Lord which you have spoken is good!' For he said, 'Will there not be peace and truth at least in my days?'" : Hezekiah's attitude is puzzling. The word of the Lord is good. What does he mean? Does this intone an agreement? Does this refer to his surrender to God's will in it?

- Either way, it doesn't really set well with me, given the fact that he prayed with great fervor when his Kingdom and his own life were at stake!

- He had gone before the Lord with all of his heart to keep the Assyrians from their invasion. His prayer was a model prayer for us.

- When he was told that he was going to "die and not live," he faced the wall and went into the proverbial throne of grace! Here he is simply resigned to the facts of Babylon's invasion.

- He's not particularly moved by what will happen to God's city. He's just content with the fact that it won't take place during his reign.

- "My pride is killing my children's chances at having the full experience of a godly life. Well, at least I'm good!" Keep his attitude in mind when you think about his son next week. Verse 20.

• II Kings 20:20,21 : "Now the rest of the acts of Hezekiah—all his might, and how he made a pool and a tunnel and brought water into the city—are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? So Hezekiah rested with his fathers. Then Manasseh his son reigned in his place." : We don't have the book that's mentioned here, but Hezekiah's tunnel is a feat of engineering legend.

- Two teams began digging at opposite ends of solid bedrock. One team began at the Gihon spring where the water originated outside the city, the other at what is known as the pool of Siloam.

- Both teams began to dig what would become a 1,814 ft tunnel between the two points.

- Experts suggest that they used soundings to continually mark their way.

- Without modern machinery or technology, the two teams met in the middle, where you can to this day see the markings contrast each other on the wall.

- This is how the end of his story went? If what can be said about you is limited to the work you did and the stuff you had, it will be sad!

- Wouldn't you have wished to hear this instead: Hezekiah spent every last bit of his resource into the spiritual education of his nation and his son.

- Wouldn't you like to hear that Hezekiah wrote sweeping reforms against idolatry and introduced further reasons to celebrate God's deliverance from the Assyrians?

- What if he had authored a book telling of the good that God had done for him, the mercy that he was shown, when he was helpless in his health and overwhelmed by his enemies?

- That would have been a great epithet. Instead, we have a disappointing end to an otherwise great King and a far more disappointing descendant in his son Manasseh, who we'll meet next week.

Conclusion
- Hezekiah began this chapter in a sick bed, unwilling to accept Isaiah's prophecy. He turned toward the wall and petitioned the throne.

- At the end, in his greatest time of prosperity, he accepts Isaiah's prophecy without so much as a prayer for his descendants!

- You and I are not promised an amount of years. We have this life to live before God and to help establish a foundation for our kids to live on spiritually.

- Which part of Hezekiah's life best describes you? Are you unwilling to yield? Are you pressing forward, delighting in God's presence? Or are you just hoping that things will be good in your day?

- I pray that this challenges you, especially you who have greater promises and a greater person who is owed God's favor, Jesus Christ.

- Because of His faithfulness, God promises that He will never leave or forsake us. How will we respond? Will we pray like a desperate King or a delivered King? I pray it will be the former.