Someone has
said, “It sure does get a little discouraging to see how many towering biblical
characters fail to cross the finish line of faith.” Then he gives a short list.
There’s Noah. He responds to God with audacious faith. Despite decades of
harassment and abuse he builds an ark. Yet, his story ends with him lying drunk
and disgraced in his tent. Then there’s Moses. He’s the one God used to lead
His people out of slavery, the worst they’ve ever known, and yet his sin and
disobedience, prevents him from entering the Promised Land. There’s David. He’s
a man after God’s own heart, steals the wife of a man he murders and covers it
up. And though he’s forgiven, his life ends in a desperate civil war with his
own son.
And this
Sunday we have another guy to the list—Hezekiah. If you read of him only in II
Chronicles 29-31 you might think that he escapes the pattern altogether. The
chronicler only hits the “high points” of Hezekiah’s life. He chronicles only
his spiritual successes. But, thankfully the Lord doesn’t just give us this one
glimpse of Hezekiah. He gives us the rest of the story in II Kings 20.
By II Kings 20
Hezekiah has reversed all of the wicked practices of his father, King Ahaz. He
has rid the nation of all remnants of pagan worship. He’s restored the true
worship of the God of Abraham, Isaac, & Jacob. Moreover, he has witnessed
one of the greatest miracles in the Bible—the military defeat of the Assyrian
army (II Kings 19). For years Hezekiah has lived his life with his eyes
squarely set on the Lord and His commands. And yet, it doesn’t end like that.
At the
beginning of chapter 20 Hezekiah has contracted a life-threatening illness. The
prophet Isaiah, his friend, tells him to get his affairs in order because he’s
about to die. He even tells him he won’t recover. And in the face of that
devastating news, Hezekiah prays. He recounts his faithfulness to the Lord. And
before Isaiah is out of the palace, the Lord tells him to go back in and tell
Hezekiah he’ll give him 15 more years.
And
instantly you think, nothing can stop him now. These 15 years will be the best
years of his life. Not even close! Though his body recovers, his affections for
the Lord decline. His eyes turn from the Lord to himself. When the king of
Babylon hears of Hezekiah’s miraculous recovery, he sends men to congratulate
him; but instead of giving glory to God, Hezekiah shows them all the riches he’s
accumulated over his lifetime (II Kings 20:13). In other words, he takes God’s
grace and makes it a platform for pride. And it gets worse.
When the
Babylonians leave and Isaiah finds out, he comes to the king and excoriates him.
He tells him that, because of his pride, his treasure will one day be carted
off along with his sons. His family and his nation will live in exile. To which
Hezekiah replies, in essence, “Who cares, as long as things go well for me?”
(II Kings 20:19). Think of the selfish arrogance of such a response! After all
God has done for him!
The story of
Hezekiah mirrors nearly every other character in Scripture. If “ending well” is
defined as total faithfulness, just put another name on the wall of
discouragement, because Hezekiah fails “to cross the line as well of faith” too.
But that’s
not the point of the story of Hezekiah or the Scriptures. The end of King
Hezekiah’s life only points us to another King, the only King who ends as well
as He begins. Think of it. When Hezekiah faced imminent death he pleads for
healing. When Jesus faced imminent death He said, “Nevertheless, not my will,
but thy will be done.” When Hezekiah heard of the coming destruction he said, “Who
cares, as long as I’m okay.” Jesus said, “I will lay down my life, so that THEY
might live.” In his prosperity Hezekiah fixed his eyes on himself and became
proud. In His prosperity Jesus fixed His eyes on His Father and humbled
Himself. The truth is Noah, Moses, David, Hezekiah and every child of God makes
it across the finish line of faith, not by their own faithfulness, but by the
faithfulness of another—King Jesus.
We’re going
to talk about that in some detail this week as we look at another pointer to
Jesus—King Hezekiah of Judah. In a message entitled, “Missin’ or Listenin’” we
will listen in to Hezekiah’s plea and examine God’s grace. In preparation for
Sunday you may wish to consider the following:
1. C.S. Lewis
once wrote, “God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our consciousness,
but shouts in our pain.” Does this apply to Hezekiah?
2. How do you
explain the difference between Hezekiah and his father, Ahaz?
3. Why does the
chronicler say that David was his father? (II Chronicles 29:2)
4. Why does God
say the same thing in II Kings 20:5?
5. Was Isaiah
wrong in II Kings 20:1?
6. On what
grounds does God answer Hezekiah in II Kings 20:5?
7. Does
Hezekiah have a realistic view of himself in verses 2 & 3?
8. How do you
explain adding 15 years to his life?
9. How do you
explain Hezekiah’s lack of self-awareness in the face of the miraculous sign
(verses 8-11) and gift of divine grace?
10. How does
Hezekiah point us to Jesus?
