I love how the title of this section in the New Living Translation tells us that Hezekiah is seeking the Lord. That alone is a message we can cling to for ourselves today. Remember we don’t need to be in dire need of rescue to seek the Lord. He is waiting to hear from us every day. But in this reading, Hezekiah’s predicament seemed to be dire. He felt threatened.
The bully king of Assyria had gotten into Hezekiah’s head. All reason and trust in God seemed to have fled from Hezekiah, and he felt desperate. Have you ever felt like everything was crashing in on you, being overwhelmed by your circumstances? Perhaps someone has tried to undermine your faith. I’m pretty sure Hezekiah was questioning his own belief system while feeling the responsibility for his people.
When someone wore sackcloth in those days, it was an indication of mourning, hopelessness, and grief. Feeling like that is certainly not what any of us aspire to. Thankfully, Hezekiah sought out the LORD. He didn’t just wallow in his fear but sought an answer from God.
He was “stuck in the weeds.” What I mean by that is he allowed the potential problems he was facing to cripple him from seeing God’s truth. He was a faithful king, wasn’t he? He should have known that the lies the Assyrian king was spewing were indeed lies. King Sennacherib clearly had no idea of God’s power, lumping him together with all the false gods of the people.
Thankfully, Hezekiah cried out to the LORD and sent for Isaiah’s counsel. That was a very smart move. It’s always good for us to turn to trusted Christian friends when we are feeling lost or confused (stuck in those weeds).
Oftentimes when we find ourselves in the “weeds” we don’t have the ability to realize we are there, much less to see the other side. It’s like being in a dark tunnel, not even knowing if there is a light at the other end. When we feel ourselves starting to lose hope, doubt our faith, or forget about God, we need to catch ourselves and do a reset.
Hezekiah was looking for his own reset. Isaiah’s message from God should have given him hope and cleansed Hezekiah of his doubts. “This is what the Lord says: ‘Do not be disturbed by this blasphemous speech against me from the Assyrian king’s messengers. Listen! I myself will move against him, and the king will receive a message that he is needed at home. So he will return to his land, where I will have him killed with a sword.’”
Now we’ll have to wait until God’s promise is fulfilled. It seems Hezekiah hadn’t heard Isaiah’s message at the time he received yet another message from King Sennacherib denouncing the LORD’s power. Again, Hezekiah cried out to God. His prayer gave honor to God’s majesty and asked for deliverance. We’ll see in the next few readings how God responds.
Let’s pray …
Lord, forgive me for those times when I have been stuck in the weeds, fearful or doubtful of my future. You are powerful beyond my comprehension, and I thank you that you are in control of my life. I feel so honored to be loved and cared for by you. May I always listen for your voice to keep me free from worry or despair. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
