Isaiah 36- 39 abbreviates Hezekiah's leadership as King of Judah. Those few chapters also teach us three types of prayer from Hezekiah. In Luke 18:1, Jesus "told them (disciples) a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart." Hezekiah exemplifies how to do this. Sadly, he will teach us what neglecting prayer may reveal.
In Isaiah 36-37, Judah is antagonized by Sennacherib, king of Assyria. He sent the Rabshakeh, the "chief of the princes/cup-bearers." The attack was successful against some of Judah's fortified cities, allowing for bold threats from the Rabshakeh. These threats consisted of questioning where Judah put their trust, whether in Egypt, where Rabshakeh says that country will stab you in the back. "Behold, you are trusting in Egypt, that broken reed of a staff, which will pierce the hand of any man who leans on it." And if they are putting their hope in God, they needed to know, "is it without the LORD that I have come up against this land to destroy it?' The LORD said to me, 'Go up against this land and destroy it.'" He questioned the people for trusting in Hezekiah, "beware lest Hezekiah mislead you by saying, 'The LORD will deliver us.'" These words would dispel any and all hope Judah might have had if they had not trusted Hezekiah. They obeyed him, "they were silent and answered him (Rabshakeh) not a word, for the king's (Hezekiah) command was, 'Do not answer him.'" It would take prayer to revive their hope.
Hezekiah will teach us about a sacrifice of prayer on behalf of his people and God's kingdom, Judah. In Isaiah 37:1-4 Hezekiah understood these threats as a moment of "distress, of rebuke, and of disgrace..." He understood that hope was fleeting for his people. The first thing he did was presented a posture of humility and repentance. Second, he went to the place of God's presence. Third, he sent for a word from the LORD through the prophet Isaiah. His hope was in the character of God to judge the wickedness of the Rabshakeh who dared to speak on behalf of God, wickedly, in chapter 36. "Therefore, lift up your prayer for the remnant that is left." Hezekiah had a great responsibility, caring for the people he ruled over. Before putting together a battle plan, he put together a prayer plan. He offered the sacrifices of prayer to God, seeking direction, hope, and deliverance. To be clear, more specifically, his prayer was for the remnant. They are spoken of throughout the Old Testament. These were men and women who had not turned their backs on God. Even when Israel had sinned against God with their idol worship, and Judah followed in kind, the remnant worshiped the Lord their God, and Him only did they serve.
James 5:16 "Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working."
God responds to Hezekiah's sacrifice of prayer. God responds to humility. Humility puts us in a position to understand our own sinfulness and then ask God for help according to His will and our need. It is not self-centered. It is not self-absorbed. It turns desperation into meekness and presents as an offering to God through the sacrifice of prayer. It may sound like, "not my will, but Yours be done," Luke 22:42. Hezekiah says, "it may be that the LORD your God will hear the words of Rabshakeh." He understood that God's answers will be good. He knew God would answer. In the same way, Jesus knew God would answer his prayer from Luke 22, and however, that answer came, it would be good. Offering a sacrifice of prayer seeks God's help on others and even our own behalf, with the condition that we trust God to do what brings Him glory ultimately, which will always work for our good. Reading through 37:5-7, God responds to Hezekiah, sending a message of hope, "Do not be afraid..." He goes on to share His plan for the fall of Rabshakeh and all his bloviating.
Hezekiah continues to offer a sacrifice of prayer, 37:20 "So now, O LORD our God, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you alone are the LORD." God did not simply answer, but He let Hezekiah know it was "because you have prayed to me..." James 4:2 says, "you have not because you ask not." We can conclude God would have done what He was going to do without Hezekiah interceding. Is that what the Bible teaches? God tells Hezekiah that his prayer had great power to move Him. We cannot take for granted how God uses our prayers to work alongside His activities in the lives of those we love and our own lives. Do not be the Christian who says, "Well, God's going to do what He's going to do whether I pray or not." Remember, God told Hezekiah, "Because you have prayed..."
In Isaiah 38, we see Hezekiah's prayer of supplication. Supplication is a "religious" term simply to say, Hezekiah, ask of God, or requests of God. The first thing we learn about Hezekiah in the opening words of this chapter is, "Hezekiah became sick and was at the point of death." God showed amazing grace to him, by sending the prophet to inform him that he needed to get his house in order.
1 Peter 5:7 "Cast all your cares on Him, because He cares for you."
As soon as Hezekiah heard these words, he wept bitterly. I will step out of the topic of prayer for just a moment. Those who know this story understands that Hezekiah will be given 15 more years, during which he will have a son who will later become one of the most wicked kings of Judah. I wanted to address that because it may explain why Hezekiah was so disappointed that he would die. To weep bitterly is to display strong emotions, possibly anger or disappointment. Let's lean toward disappointment and not anger, as what moved Hezekiah. We will adopt that frame of thought because Hezekiah would have died without an heir. Though hindsight says the heir to come would be full of evil, Hezekiah would not know that. His care would have been for the kingdom God setting David's house over. Without an heir, perhaps a servant would rule over the kingdom, and that was not God's covenant with David. Second Samuel 7:16 "your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever." Hezekiah's prayers were not with wrong motives. He presented his care before the Lord by placing his case in the throne room. This time Hezekiah did not send someone to the prophet to seek God, "Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the LORD, 'Please, O LORD, remember how I have walked before you in faithfulness and with a whole heart, and have done what is good in your sight." He cast his own care before the LORD. The LORD responded and remembered not only these things about Hezekiah, but I believe He remembered His own covenant with David.
The words of God are so beautiful, "I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears." When sincere supplications are made before the LORD, He hears. When we make our request known "in everything by prayer... with thanksgiving," Philippians 4:5-7, God hears. God not only hears, God answers. Each person's answer will differ, but there will be an answer.
The Scripture directs Jesus' disciples to pray in many different passages in Scripture. When our supplications and requests are sincere and not with evil motives, they are heard and responded to by God. For Hezekiah, God not only added to his life 15 years but would use him to defend Judah from the king of Assyria. This is a key point. God will never answer us for us to simply make our lives better on earth. He answers to accomplish a mission for His glory. He is not looking to answer "that you may spend what you get on your pleasures," James 4:3.
We see more of a sloven prayer in the latter years of Hezekiah's life. By now, you may recognize I love alliteration, so I'm going with the word sloven, "a person who speaks in a negligent manner." This is the meaning in dictionary.com. Reading through Kings and Chronicles, we will recognize how many God-honoring kings ended their lives, neglecting their walks with God as they got older. This is the case with Hezekiah as we read Isaiah 39. Envoys from Babylon come to Judah, and "Hezkiah welcomed them gladly. And he showed them his treasure house... There was nothing that Hezekiah did not show them." Isaiah came and rebuked the king "all that is in your house, and that which your fathers have stored up... shall be carried to Babylon. Nothing shall be left," says the LORD." Now that is a serious consequence. After the previous chapters' prayers, we should expect a prayer of sorrow or repentance. The consequences do not end there. God continues through Isaiah to describe what will happen for Hezkiah's actions, probably militating from pride. Proverbs 16:18 "Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall." We will see this fall impacting generations to come, "some of your own sons, who will come from you, whom you will father, shall be taken away, and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon."
We continue to read, and surely Hezekiah tears his clothes in repentance, right?
We finish the passage and will certainly read that Hezekiah turns his face to the wall, as before?
I would love to encourage us that either of those things is done by Hezekiah after hearing of such a future for his children. The future we can read about in 2 Kings, 2 Chronicles, Jeremiah, and other of the prophets. We will not read of any sacrifices of prayer or supplications placed before the throne room of God offered by Hezekiah. My heart grieves as I communicate this. The discipline of prayer must be protected. It is not guaranteed to continue in our lives unless we stay diligent.
Instead, we will see the negligence of a lack of prayer from Hezekiah in this case. These are his words, "The word of the LORD that you have spoken is good." Good? Perhaps if you pray, Hezekiah God's heart will be moved. Sadly Hezekiah's selfish heart was revealed, "There will be peace and security in my days." This breaks my heart and warns me as it should you too. "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness." 2 Timothy 3:16.
Hezekiah's life offers us all the benefits of being cautious about caring for our prayer lives. It can be so easy to pray when we feel like it. We are not called to pray only when moved to, but unceasingly. Prayer is a discipline that is cultivated with intention. It can be easy to let life move us to apathy because we may not see the answers we seek. Life may get busy, and prayer goes by the wayside. You may even have had a vigorous prayer life when you were younger, and as you've become older, you have allowed life to bring in an attitude of cynicism, and prayer may seem useless. Maybe you think, "my prayers have not changed anything."
We pray because of obedience to God.
We pray because Jesus taught us how to so we can speak to The Father.
We pray because our prayers move God to action.
We pray to communicate with God.
We pray to cast our cares on God.
We pray because our flesh is weak, and our spirit needs the revitalization of prayer.
Remember these words spoken to Hezekiah, "Because you prayed..." and "I have heard your prayers; I have seen your tears." After all the time Hezekiah spent with God in prayer for his people and himself, where God was moved to action, should teach us just as much as when he neglected prayer and selfishly thought, "I'm ok, so it's all good." That is my paraphrase of Hezekiah's words in Isaiah 39:8.
Develop a sacrificial prayer life, offering supplications to the LORD, for He cares for you. Resolve not to throughout sloven and careless words to God that reveal a heart of pride or apathy. Lethargy neglects the needs of others and even your own. Learn from all that Hezekiah's prayer life teaches. More importantly, remember how God responded to prayer, "Because you have prayed..." So pray and then pray some more. You cannot pray enough, but you can pray too little.
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