July 10, 2024 — Hezekiah & The Lengthening Shadow

Some think the 15 Songs of Degrees (with 10 anonymous) were compiled to commemorate this event.

The Lord’s poetry was also prophecy, and came true in a remarkable way. “The angel of the Lord went out, and killed in the camp of the Assyrians one hundred and eighty-five thousand” (2 Ki 19:35). When the Jews arose in the morning, they discovered, as Byron wrote, “And the might of the Gentile, unsmote by the sword, Hath melted like snow in the glance of the Lord!” Sennacherib returned home in disgrace, where he was killed by his own sons in the temple of his useless god. But God’s people die, too. “In those days Hezekiah was sick and near death” (20:1). Isaiah visited, and told him it was time to prepare for his last journey. “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” (vv 2-3). Of course, none of us knows how we will face death until we do. And while we may consider this cowardly, the Lord sent Isaiah back into the palace to inform the king, “Thus says the Lord,…‘I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; surely I will heal you’” (v 5). The Lord gave him an additional 15 years. Now God doesn’t need means, but sometimes He uses them, and a fig poultice seemed to be just the thing (v 7)! This lengthened lifespan was confirmed when the Lord brought “the shadow ten degrees backward…on the sundial of Ahaz” (v 11). So what would you do with 15 extra years? Hezekiah gave a walking tour of his treasures to the Babylonians, so they had an inventory of what to pillage on a return visit (v 17). He also had a very bad boy born to him named Manasseh! Hmm, maybe we should let the Lord decide when it’s time to head Home.

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