Have you ever experienced “déjà vu?” It’s that sensation you have already lived through or experienced something before. It’s been a long time for me. It can be a little eerie. I remember reading through the Bible in a year some years ago. When I came to today’s passage, I had that feeling. It was like I had read it before. I had. If you were thinking the same thing, you can look back to 2 Kings 18 and read about Hezekiah there. Almost word for word we see these same words.
So what is history doing in the middle of a prophetic book? I don’t know. If nothing else, it gives us a bit of perspective for the time that Isaiah was living in. Hezekiah is the one who was in charge when Assyria came knocking on Jerusalem’s door. We know that Jerusalem didn’t fall to the Assyrians, but many of the surrounding towns did. We read, “In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah’s reign, King Sennacherib of Assyria came to attack the fortified towns of Judah and conquered them.”
That’s how 2 Kings 18:13 begins as well. If you read the companion passage, you’ll see that 2 Kings includes something here that Isaiah left out. The part about all the treasures that King Hezekiah gave as a way of saving the people. We don’t see that here in Isaiah. I’m not even going to speculate why, but it does show that an earthly king, even one who “did what was pleasing” to the Lord, will try to “buy” his way out of a situation.
It did seem a little odd to go from the oracles and the prophetic style we’ve been reflecting on to a historical style of writing. I had to remember that I wasn’t reading prophecy anymore but actually seeing the prophecy come to life. This chapter, as well as 37-39 will take us behind the scenes a bit into the world Isaiah was living in as he was receiving these messages from God.
So what spoke to you today? I loved the question posed by the Assyrian king through his officials. “What are you trusting in that makes you so confident?” Even before they had an answer, they went on to point out all the weaknesses to solutions for safety they assumed King Hezekiah would be relying on. That included their warped version of relying on God. They saw the destruction of idols and shrines as an “insult” to God. Certainly, we know better! They were distractions keeping the people from the one TRUE God.
After trying to bargain and distract, I loved what they said next. “The Lord himself told us, ‘Attack this land and destroy it!’” Why do I love that? Because it is exactly what Isaiah had been prophesying to the people. God was going to orchestrate the demise of the land by the Assyrians. Yet, Jerusalem was not going to fall at their hands. It is confirmation for Isaiah, and that’s a beautiful thing.
Three times the Assyrian officials taunted Hezekiah’s leaders and the people with something like, “Don’t let Hezekiah mislead you by saying, ‘The Lord will rescue us!’” I can imagine how hard it was to hear those words over and over. We are often in positions where we are tempted to be led astray by some authority that tries to undermine our faithfulness. What did Hezekiah’s men do? They kept their mouths shut as they had been instructed. Yet when they returned to the safety of the palace, they “tore their clothes in despair, and they went in to see the king and told him what the Assyrian chief of staff had said.”
What a great example of control. We are often not as good at keeping our cool when we are challenged about our faith. It never helps to be on the defensive. Yet we can have the same confidence that Hezekiah had here. We have the same God fighting our battles, watching out for us, shining a light into the darkness so we can see the truth.
No matter how bad it gets, God’s got this! How would you answer the question, “What are you trusting in that makes you so confident?”
Let’s pray … Lord, I trust in you with all my heart. I know that there is no way I can fight all the battles that are raging around me without you. I can boldly state my alliance with you knowing that you are there beside me. I am feeling a little lost right now God, and I trust you are ahead of me clearing my path. Help me to see the direction I should go. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
