Monday - 2nd Kings 20 - Hezekiah's Extension

This is one of the more famous stories from the period of the divided kingdom of Israel. The last (and only other) time that God shifted the puzzle pieces of the universe for one of His children was when He stopped the rotation of the earth for Joshua. This time He went one step further and reversed the rotation of the earth just long enough to turn back Hezekiah's sundial an hour or so. He did this as a sign to Hezekiah that his prayer had been heard and that he would recover from his then terminal illness.

Admittedly, it is amazing that God reversed time temporarily just to assure King Hezekiah that his prayers had been heard. But it is also interesting that "spiritual" Hezekiah was SO intensely bent on his physical survival. Thanks to Hezekiah's faith, God's power and Isaiah's prescription for figs... Hezekiah was indeed healed and went on to live for 15 more years. Sadly though, there are fates worse than death.

IMMEDIATELY on the heels of the story of the extension of Hezekiah's life, we read of a very sad downturn in his formerly stellar reputation. He had been delivered from the Assyrians, but he willingly and ignorantly allowed Babylonians to see every piece of his wealth. This mistake was a costly and selfish one. Perhaps Hezekiah's former appointment with death was intended to preclude the very misstep which Hezekiah took after his preservation was realized.