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T the same time that the Assyrians were threatening
Jerusalem from outside the walls, King Hezekiah also came down with a life
threatening disease. In mercy, God sent Isaiah to the king to inform him of the
gravity of his ailment (Isaiah 38:1). And, Hezekiah took this news particularly
hard. Some saints take the news of their impending death with amazing stoicism
and peaceful acceptance. I've seen saints resign themselves quickly and almost
eagerly to what they perceived as their inevitably soon departure. But, this
was not Hezekiah's reaction. He withdrew himself and began to pray. He pled his
case before the Lord with grave arguments and many tears. And, God agreed to
heal him and to preserve his life 15 more years.
Whether the extension on the king's life was for the best or
not, we will examine in Isaiah 39. Obviously, Hezekiah thought it was. Who
wouldn't, if given 15 more years to live after facing a lethal infection? Now, Hezekiah
had written a wonderful prayer during the time of his illness and recovery
(Isaiah 38:9-19). In that prayer he graduated from his initial arguments based
upon his good life (Isaiah 38:3) to a more noble and humble attitude. He
implored God for mercy, and he spoke of his desire to have more time in order
to serve God and to praise Him continually. He expressed concern about the
generations that would be coming up after his. He was interested in living
longer in order to invest in the next generation by teaching them truth.
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