2 Kings 20

Hezekiahs Life Extended

1 In those days Hezekiah was sick and near death. And Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, went to him and said to him, Thus says the Lord: Set your house in order, for you shall die, and not live. In those days Hezekiah was sick and near death. And Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, went to him and said to him, Thus says the Lord: Set your house in order, for you shall die, and not live.2 Then he turned his face toward the wall, and prayed to the Lord, saying,3 Remember now, O Lord, I pray, how I have walked before You in truth and with a loyal heart, and have done what was good in Your sight. And Hezekiah wept bitterly.4 And it happened, before Isaiah had gone out into the middle court, that the word of the Lord came to him, saying,5 Return and tell Hezekiah the leader of My people, Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; surely I will heal you. On the third day you shall go up to the house of the Lord.6 And I will add to your days fifteen years. I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria; and I will defend this city for My own sake, and for the sake of My servant David.7 Then Isaiah said, Take a lump of figs. So they took and laid it on the boil, and he recovered.8 And Hezekiah said to Isaiah, What is the sign that the Lord will heal me, and that I shall go up to the house of the Lord the third day?9 Then Isaiah said, This is the sign to you from the Lord, that the Lord will do the thing which He has spoken: shall the shadow go forward ten degrees or go backward ten degrees?10 And Hezekiah answered, It is an easy thing for the shadow to go down ten degrees; no, but let the shadow go backward ten degrees.11 So Isaiah the prophet cried out to the Lord, and He brought the shadow ten degrees backward, by which it had gone down on the sundial of Ahaz.

The Babylonian Envoys

12 At that time Berodach-Baladan the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present to Hezekiah, for he heard that Hezekiah had been sick.13 And Hezekiah was attentive to them, and showed them all the house of his treasuresthe silver and gold, the spices and precious ointment, and all his armoryall that was found among his treasures. There was nothing in his house or in all his dominion that Hezekiah did not show them.14 Then Isaiah the prophet went to King Hezekiah, and said to him, What did these men say, and from where did they come to you? So Hezekiah said, They came from a far country, from Babylon.15 And he said, What have they seen in your house? So Hezekiah answered, They have seen all that is in my house; there is nothing among my treasures that I have not shown them.16 Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, Hear the word of the Lord:17 Behold, the days are coming when all that is in your house, and what your fathers have accumulated until this day, shall be carried to Babylon; nothing shall be left, says the Lord.18 And they shall take away some of your sons who will descend from you, whom you will beget; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.19 So Hezekiah said to Isaiah, The word of the Lord which you have spoken is good! For he said, Will there not be peace and truth at least in my days?

Death of Hezekiah

20 Now the rest of the acts of Hezekiahall his might, and how he made a pool and a tunnel and brought water into the city are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?21 So Hezekiah rested with his fathers. Then Manasseh his son reigned in his place.

2 KINGS 20

Hezekiah Gets Sick //and Almost Dies

(2 Chronicles 32.24-26; Isaiah 38.1-8,21, 22)

1 About this time, Hezekiah got sick and was almost dead. Isaiah the prophet went in and told him, “The [Lord] says you won't ever get well. You are going to die, so you had better start doing what needs to be done.”
2 Hezekiah turned toward the wall and prayed,

3 “Don't forget that I have been faithful to you, [Lord]. I have obeyed you with all my heart, and I do whatever you say is right.” After this, he cried bitterly.
4 Before Isaiah got to the middle court of the palace,

5 the [Lord] sent him back to Hezekiah with this message:
Hezekiah, you are the ruler of my people, and I am the [Lord] God, who was worshiped by your ancestor David. I heard you pray, and I saw you cry. I will heal you, so that three days from now you will be able to worship in my temple.

6 I will let you live 15 years more, while I protect you and your city from the king of Assyria. I will defend this city as an honor to me and to my servant David.

7 Then Isaiah said to the king's servants, “Bring some mashed figs and place them on the king's open sore. He will then get well.”

8 Hezekiah asked Isaiah, “Can you prove that the [Lord] will heal me, so that I can worship in his temple in three days?”

9 Isaiah replied, “The [Lord] will prove to you that he will keep his promise. Will the shadow made by the setting sun on the stairway go forward ten steps or back ten steps?”t

10 “It's normal for the sun to go forward,” Hezekiah answered. “But how can it go back?”

11 Isaiah prayed, and the [Lord] made the shadow go back ten steps on the stairway built for King Ahaz.t

The [Lord] //Is Still with Hezekiah

(Isaiah 39.1-8)

13 Hezekiah welcomedt the messengers and showed them all the silver, the gold, the spices, and the fine oils that were in his storehouse. He even showed them where he kept his weapons. Nothing in his palace or in his entire kingdom was kept hidden from them.

14 Isaiah asked Hezekiah, “Where did these men come from? What did they want?”
“They came all the way from Babylonia,” Hezekiah answered.

15 “What did you show them?” Isaiah asked.
Hezekiah answered, “I showed them everything in my kingdom.”

16 Then Isaiah told Hezekiah:
I have a message for you from the [Lord]. 17 t One day everything you and your ancestors have stored up will be taken to Babylonia. The [Lord] has promised that nothing will be left.

18 t Some of your own sons will be taken to Babylonia, where they will be disgraced and made to serve in the king's palace.

19 Hezekiah thought, “At least our nation will be at peace for a while.” So he told Isaiah, “The message you brought me from the [Lord] is good.”

Hezekiah Dies

(2 Chronicles 32.32,33)