2 Kings 20:2

New International Version (NIV)

Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord,

For Meditation

The announcement came to him. “This is what the LORD says: Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover” (2 Kings 20:1). Hezekiah was sick and at the point of death. I am sure he was praying fervently for God’s healing. However, God sent him a message through the prophet Isaiah, “Put your house in order … you are going to die … you will not recover.” But Hezekiah had been a good king. He had walked faithfully with God with wholehearted devotion. He was in the middle of a great reformation in Judah that God should appreciate and heal him to continue for His glory. Besides, God had just saved the nation from the Assyrian attack and the boastfulness of King Sennacherib (19:25-37). Judah was poised for a great revival!

1. So, why should God take Hezekiah home at such a crucial time in Judah’s history?
2. What should the faithful do at such a time?
3. How should the king respond to such a disappointing message from God that cut to the heart?
4. Should he question the goodness of God?
5. Should he say with Asaph, “In vain I have kept my heart pure and have washed my hands in innocence” (Ps. 73:13)?

No! King Hezekiah did none of that. He simply “turned his face to the wall and prayed to God” (2 Kings 20:2). Of course the agony and chill of death ran through his spine at Isaiah’s announcement; and he wanted to live. But, he was also aware of God’s sovereignty, so he yielded to it. Hezekiah did not pray for healing. He only asked God to remember him for his faithful walk and devotion to Him and for doing what was right before Him (3). The decision to take him home or not was God’s; and he did not challenge it.

Paul said it so well when he faced the prospect of death in a Roman dungeon. “For me, to live is Christ and to die is gain” (Phil. 1:21). When we face the prospect of death or any kind of danger, our best attitude is to resign our fate to God’s sovereign will. It brings the warmth and comfort of Christ close to our anxious heart, with the peace of God guarding it (4:6-7).

Our ultimate example is Jesus in Gethsemane (Lk. 22: 39-46). Our Savior yielded His human will to the sovereign will of the Father and went to the cross for our redemption. God gave Hezekiah fifteen years in answer to his prayer, but He gave the bitter cup of His wrath to Jesus to drink on the Cross. Both received the decision of God’s sovereignty.

I pray you realize this truth about God’s sovereign right in your situation, and the ultimate glory He seeks in it and be glad.

So: May God hear your cry in your supplications; and may His sovereign will rule in every anxious moment in your life for His glory in Jesus, amen!

Shalom