Reader’s Guide: “The Word for Today” Friday, December 7, 2012 Read – 2 Kings 19 & 20 Hezekiah’s response to the impending destruction of Jerusalem and thus the Southern Kingdom is striking. Instead of relying on his own insight and power or reaching out for other allies, Hezekiah turns to God’s prophet, Isaiah. This is the first time in a really long time that a king has relied on God. That is the main point of the story of Hezekiah and it is what sets him apart as one of the best kings of Judah. His story is a story of trust in God – and trust in God’s word delivered by God’s prophet, Isaiah. Isaiah’s word to Hezekiah is to not be afraid. God has heard Hezekiah’s cry and God will answer. And God does. Against all odds the Assyrians are turned away and Jerusalem is spared. God intervened – the narrator tells us an angel of the lord struck down a large part of the Assyrian army and Sennacharib has no choice but to go back home. He is quickly killed by his own sons and the threat to Judah ends. This story is reminiscent of a similar story we heard when the Assyrians were besieging Samaria but are turned away when God causes them to hear the coming of many chariots. As we read the story we often notice these patterns developing. It is worth noting that the Assyrians were known as one of the fiercest enemies of God’s people. They were hated and despised by the people of Israel and Judah because of their brutality. While the book was most likely not written at that time, the book of Jonah is set right in the midst of this brutal animosity. What makes the book of Jonah so striking is that Jonah is called by God to preach repentance to this hated enemy. Jonah does not want to do that and flees. And even when Jonah is successful following God’s second call to go to Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, the book of Jonah ends with Jonah pouting about God’s mercy. The point of the book of Jonah is abundantly clear – God is a merciful God! We have now been able to fit five prophets into the unfolding saga of God’s people – Amos, Hosea, Isaiah, Micah, and Jonah. While the book of Jonah was likely written considerably later in the time following the return from exile, as noted above, the setting is from the time of the Assyrians. One more prophet connected to Assyria will emerge much later in the story at the time of the fall of Nineveh in 612 BC. His name is Nahum and we will mention him when we get to that part of the story. Hearing these prophets in the context of the broader history is important. Such an interaction is helpful both in understanding the prophets and in understanding the history. Back to the story of Hezekiah. The final stories of Hezekiah unfortunately put a damper on the enthusiasm we might have felt regarding this king. The first story is about Hezekiah’s illness. The time had come for Hezekiah to die – but, like most of us, he wants to live. So Hezekiah pleads with God for more time. He gets what he desired. Is this another of those stories where God grants what human beings want even though God knows it is not the best? Is this another story of God changing his mind? More time does not work in Hezekiah’s favor, or in the favor of Judah. It is during this extended period that Hezekiah welcomes visitors from Babylon and shows them his entire kingdom with all its wealth. In time to come the Babylonians will come and conquer Judah and carry all that wealth off to Babylon. Would all of that have happened if Hezekiah had not lived? Probably, but the story does give us pause to ponder. The final act of Hezekiah is to provide a constant water supply for Jerusalem that will enable Jerusalem to withstand the siege of enemies. That water shaft can still be seen by visitors to Jerusalem today. In the final analysis Hezekiah was a great king! He was a breath of fresh air in what is otherwise a dismal story. Unfortunately Hezekiah was succeeded by his son Manasseh who proved to be one of the very worst kings of Judah.