Roger Lewis - The Crisis of Hezekiah - Class 5 - The Angel and The Envoys

Automatically transcribed. Accuracy is good but not perfect, and words are sometimes wrong. Trust the audio over the text.

1. 0:06

   Before we begin our third class, we got a couple additional items to bring to your attention. It’s being asked that the children in the pre-K class that they would meet at 2:00 PM this afternoon here at Fabiani to go over the song that they are singing tonight at the children’s program and they do not have to stay for the entire rehearsal.

2. 0:38

   And secondly, there was a glasses case found in one of the rows. There’ll be a small finder’s fee that I will gladly donate to the scholarship fund.

3. 0:56

   Brothers and sisters were ready for our third class. Our speaker is brother Rodger Lewis. The thing for the theme for Brother Rodgers classes this week is the crisis of Hezekiah. Today’s class is entitled The Angel and the Envoys for the Rogers.

4. 1:44

   Well, thank you, brother chairman, and good morning, my dear brothers and sisters in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Crisis of Hezekiah. So in our last study, you might remember how wonderfully Hezekiah was going to renew his commitment to God when he had been sick and was now recovered. He wasn’t able to choose his trials, but he was able to permit those experiences to shape him for the better, and he chose to respond in that way so that his service might be improved. And you’ll recall that when God blessed him with the promise of a fresh start to in effect repeat his reign, he made pledge that he would use that 15 years and throw himself into the work of the truth with even greater vigor than he’d shown before and with a special focus, you’ll remember, towards the guardianship of the truth for the generation that he was guiding.

5. 2:43

   So in the book of Psalms and in the book of Proverbs, we’re going to see his hand and his mark upon those writings. And As for the rest of the Old Testament Scriptures, you’ll remember that there is a mark or a seal from the king to authenticate the books of the Bible that had been written up to the time of his reign. In other words, he made good on his promise and in doing so, he proved his thankfulness by the spirit of faithful service. He really did redeem that time.

6. 3:15

   And it must have been very soon after his recovery that the startling events occurred that led to the overthrow of the Assyrian host and the eventual demise of Sennacherib himself. And that brings us back. Well, it brings us on to our study for today, as our brother chairman has announced, because here we have now the matter of the Angel and the envoys or the ambassadors that were going to come from Babylon.

7. 3:43

   Now if you come back to Isaiah 37, then in verse 36 there were 3 verses at the end of that chapter that we deliberately omitted, not because we didn’t want to deal with them, but because chronologically we’ve already discovered that they do come. Now at this moment of time after the sickness and recovery of the king.

8. 4:04

   Because you’ll remember that chapter 38 and verse eight said verse six said rather that consequent upon the healing of the king that God would deliver the city out of the hand of the Assyrians. So it hadn’t happened at the time of Hezekiah sickness. Not until after his recovery does the overthrow occur. So even though it’s written at the end of 37, now is the moment for us to look at that overthrow. And we we’re told there in Isaiah 37 verse 36, the Angel of Yahweh went forth and smote in the camp of the Assyrians. Do you know that word went forth does really mean that it means in the Hebrew to go out.

9. 4:42

   But don’t you think the implication of that phrase is that if he went out, that the Angel must have already been with them in the city? In fact, don’t we have evidence of an Angel that was already there who trod up and down the staircase in the royal palace court? Oh yes, there was an Angel in Jerusalem at that time, and he went out because he’d been with them all along.

10. 5:05

    But the companion passages give us 2 further vital clues about the circumstances in which the Angel of Yahweh did go forth to battle. We shan’t turn either of them up, but let me just draw your attention to them. In the second of Chronicles, chapter 32, verses 20 and 21, it says, And for this cause Hezekiah the king, and the prophet Isaiah the son of Amos, prayed and cried to heaven, and Yahweh sent an Angel. Ah, so the Angel went out in response to the prayer of Hezekiah and the prayer of Isaiah, his friend and his confidant.

11. 5:45

    And the second of Kings 19 verse 35 adds another interesting detail that Isaiah doesn’t record when it says in Second Kings 19 verse 35, it came to pass that night the Angel of Yahweh went out. The Angel went out at night time. He went in the evening. And I think that that timing was highly suggestive.

12. 6:10

    So hold your hands in his car. He’s a car. You can’t really do that. Hold your hands. Hold your hands in Isaiah 37 and come back, if you would, to Exodus chapter 12, because you’ll remember that Exodus 12 is the story of the Passover and the Passover occurred why at night time. And this is what it says in Exodus chapter 12 and recounting the circumstances of that first Passover drama, it says in Exodus 12, verse 22, it says you shall take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in blood that’s in the basin. Strike the lentil and the two side posts with the blood that’s in the basin, and none of you shall go out at the door of his house until the morning.

13. 6:57

    So they were ordered to remain inside their houses until the morning, shut inside the doors which were marked by the blood of the Passover limb, while the Angel of death patrolled outside. But that language is going to be evoked by Isaiah in describing the impending destruction that was coming from the Assyrians. This is how Isaiah records it.

14. 7:21

    See if you can sense the echo of Passover times. So Isaiah 26, verse 20 says, Come my people into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee. Hide thyself for a little moment until the indignity nation be overpassed. Doesn’t that sound like the night? That night the avenging Angel came through and the Israelites were to stay inside safely under the lentils with the Passover blood.

15. 7:47

    And that’s how Isaiah speaks to the nation in preparing for the coming of the destruction of Sennacherib and his host. And while we’re in Exodus, you notice what it says in verse 23, next verse, next verse 4, it says Yahweh will pass through to smite the Egyptians, and when he sees the blood upon the Linton on the two side posts, Yahweh will pass over the door and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite them. So what we’re told is that the name bearing angels swept through the land of Egypt to smite the Egyptians with terrible and fatal precision, but not to touch those of the camp of Israel.

16. 8:30

    And that’s exactly what’s going to happen in in Hezekiah’s time because Isaiah 3736 says and the Angel of Yahweh went forth and smote in the camp of the Assyrians. The calamity came upon the Assyrian host, but no Israelites house in Jerusalem was touched on that night. Brothers, sisters, just the camp of the Assyrians outside.

17. 8:52

    And when it says, looking again here in Exodus chapter 12 and verse 27, it says that when your children ask what’s all this about and what does this mean? Verse 27 you shall say it is the sacrifice of Yahweh’s Passover Pisa, when He passed over Pakar over the House of the children of Israel in Egypt, the day when He passed over the house, sparing his own, but smiting the enemy. But you know that that drama of passing over was going to be seen in the overthrow of the Assyrian host right outside the gates of Jerusalem, because this is how Isaiah again would describe it.

18. 9:30

    He says in Isaiah 31 verses 5 and 8, Yahweh of hosts will defend Jerusalem, and passing over, He will preserve it, and the Assyrian shall fall with the sword. And that word passing over is the same word for passing over in Exodus chapter 12 verse 27. Oh yes, I think there’s memories of the night of Exodus 12 that are linked and connected to the story of the Assyrian overthrow. And when, when did this remarkable event occur? In Exodus 12?

19. 10:02

    Verse 29 came to pass, that at midnight Yahweh smote all the first born verse verse 30, Pharaoh rose up in the night. Verse 42. It is a night to be much observed unto Yahweh. Oh yes, the whole event took place in the night time by the sisters. And that peculiar feature of the battle of the Angel of death in Exodus is going to be be repeated in the story of the overthrow of the Assyrian, because in Isaiah 30 verse 29 it says, And ye shall have a song as in the night, when a holy solemnity is kept. For through the voice of Yahweh shall the Assyrian be thrown down.

20. 10:42

    You know, brothers and sisters, there was only one holy solemnity that Israel ever kept, only one feast that was held at night time, and that was the feast of Passover. So I think what we’re being told really in the circumstances of Isaiah 37 here, when the Angel went forth to Smite in the camp of the Assyrians, is that this was another moment of Passover deliverance, which occurs in the time and in the life of good king Hezekiah of Judah, a massive, overwhelming, catastrophic overthrow of the enemy and one violent cataclysm.

21. 11:20

    So coming back to the Isaiah record, it says this at the end of that 36th verse, Isaiah 37 and verse 36, the smote in the camp, 104 score and 5000. And when they arose early in the morning, they were all dead. In fact, they were corpses. And so complete was the victory, you see that not a single Assyrian was alive. And that’s an echo itself, I think, of Exodus 12, Exodus 12, verse 30 says.

22. 11:51

    And there was a great cry in Egypt for there was not a house where there was not one dead. And now in the time of Hezekiah, there wasn’t one person who was not dead in the Assyrian house. There wasn’t even a living body out there. The whole of the Assyrian camp had a deathly stillness all over it, because the Angel had spread his blast upon them, and they were all dead, truly dead. So verse 37 says, so Sennacherib king of Assyria, departed and went and returned and dwelt at Nineveh. And those verbs indicate just how complete his removal was. He departed, he went, he returned, he dwelt. And I think the implication of that last word was that his appetite to fight against Hezekiah and against the Holy One of Israel was gone.

23. 12:41

    He would never ever be seen in the land of Israel again. And verse 38 says that just as Isaiah had promised earlier, he shall hear a rumor and return to his own land, and I’ll cause him to fall by the sword. Well, here it happens. Verse 38 came to pass as he was worshipping in the House of Nisraq as God, that Adrenalik and Teresa his son, smote him with the sword, and they escaped into the land of Armenia.

24. 13:07

    And Esau had, and his son reigned in his stead. It took 20 years, by the way, 20 years from the overthrow here in Jerusalem to the moment when Sennacherib finally died.

25. 13:23

    But Isaiah’s words were fulfilled, and the man was slain by the sword in his own land, and as it turned out, by his own sons. Now what do you think the first implication was of the story, the amazing story of Sennacherib’s defeat in the vanquishing of his army? Well, it must have sent shock waves right through the whole of the Middle East. And we know that because of of these words and chronicles, which again we shan’t turn up, but just listen to them. Thus Yahweh saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib the king of Assyria, and from the hand of all other, and guided them on every side. And many brought gifts unto Yahweh to Jerusalem, and presents to Hezekiah king of Judah, so that he was magnified in the sight of all nations from henceforth. And had the story of Hezekiah stopped at that point, it would have been an amazing end to an astonishing journey from tragedy to triumph, from despair to delight. But Isaiah’s record of the crisis of Hezekiah also includes Isaiah 39.

26. 14:42

    And in those very blessings that were brought to Hezekiah would be found the seeds of another child in his life, which would test his character and perhaps reveal more deeply than any other circumstance the true heart and mind of this one who prospered in all his works. So it’s a strange thing, you see. But Isaiah 39 in the Isaiah record, the chronicle of his life, is going to finish with this episode, the Ambassadors of Babylon.

27. 15:11

    And it seems at first reading that his story will end in failure and disgrace, a matter of shame. A shame that so fine a king should conclude his reign on such a disappointing note comes as a shock to read the account. We’re left feeling dismayed that so good a man could behave so unwisely. But, you know, brothers and sisters, perhaps his behavior wasn’t too different to what ours might have been under similar circumstances.

28. 15:39

    And as it turned out, there was an unexpected blessing in the way that his story would end. And what that blessing might have been is the basis for our study this morning.

29. 15:55

    So Isaiah 39, this one says thus, at that time, Meredek Biladin, the son of Aladdin, king of Babylon, sent letters. Now Babylon actually lay inside the Assyrian Empire, of course, at this time, but the Assyrian overlord Sargon and Sennacherib, they were seen by the Babylonians as usurpers. But Meredek Biladin, or as he was called Marduk Epla Adini the second, was a true born descendant of the royal family of Babylon. He was popular amongst his own people. He’d been a thorn in the side of the Assyrians for several years, and he was recognized as the king of Babylon on at least multiple occasions.

30. 16:38

    He was named incidentally, after Meredek, one of the gods of Babylonia. Jeremiah 50 verse 2 says Babylon has taken bell is confounded. Meradec is broken in pieces, and the name of the king was a reminder that the rival religion and temple of Jerusalem of of Babylon from ancient times was still in fact in existence. Well, this is the man who at that time sends letters in the present, and that little phrase at that time links the events of chapter 39 with the recovery of his Akai in chapter 38 and the overthrow of Sennacherib in chapter 37. It’s all about the same moment of time by the sisters because Meredeck Belladin would not have sent to present until he’d heard of the news of Sennacherib’s ignominious defeat at Jerusalem. And he’s Akai couldn’t have received the present until after he was recovered from his illness. So chapter 39 is probably very early on in the 15 years of additional life that was given to him in the Providence of God early on enough incidentally, for it to be before he had fathered Manasseh, his son, as we shall see by and by. So the king of Babylon sent letters and a present. He sent it to Hezekiah because he he heard that he’d been sick and was recovered.

31. 17:59

    Well, it seemed natural enough a thing to to do, don’t you think, for one king to send another king of present to celebrate his recovery from a a serious illness? And if it had been only there, there would have been no difficulty in Hezekiah accepting the gift, just as he had from many other parts. After all, that’s what Chronicle said. Many brought gifts unto Yahweh and presents to Hezekiah king of Judah.

32. 18:26

    But there was something more to this matter than letters and presents. The Septuagint version reads as follows. Meradec Baladdin sent letters and ambassadors and gifts. The Revised Standard Version says he sent invoys with letters and a present. Now we know they must have been ambassadors because you see verse 2, Hezekiah was glad of them.

33. 18:59

    And verse 3, as I said, what said these men? Verse 4, what have they seen in thy house? So there were clearly ambassadors on this occasion, but they’re also referred to in a companion passage that sheds lights on the motives of Hezekiah, perhaps at the time. Because if you come back to the Second of Chronicles chapter 32, the companion account in Chronicles adds a different reason for why the ambassadors came.

34. 19:28

    The book of Isaiah suggests they came to congratulate the king on his recovery. But Chronicles gives another reason. And that reason is given to us in the Second of Chronicles chapter 32 and verse 31, when it says, Howbeit, in the matter of the ambassadors of the Princess of Babylon, who sent unto him unto Hezekiah to inquire of the wonder that was done in the land.

35. 19:55

    The wonder that was done in the land. Now that word wonder in verse 31 is the same word translated sign in verse 24. In those days Hezekiah was sick to death and prayed unto Yahweh, and he spake on him and gave him a sign. Now what sign was that? Well, that sign was the sign of the shadow on the sundial of Ahaz, which would move backwards by 10°.

36. 20:25

    That’s an astronomical marvel. And that must have impressed the Babylonians, because the Babylonians were masters of astronomy, and they must have been astonished to hear the story of a shadow that went up the staircase when it should have been coming down, because the news had been spread abroad of this miracle. But you notice something that they hadn’t seen the phenomena in Babylon.

37. 20:46

    It doesn’t say they saw it in Babylon. In fact, it says they came to inquire of the sign that was done where? Just in edits. Just in the land was only seen in Israel. In fact, it wasn’t just seen in Israel. It was only seen in Jerusalem. It wasn’t just seen in Jerusalem. It was only seen in the royal palace. It wasn’t just seen in the royal palace. It was just only seen on the staircase. It’s the only place where the sign was seen, and only those who were there at that moment would have seen that sign. They didn’t see it in Babylon.

38. 21:16

    They’d heard about it, but they’d never seen it. They came to inquire of the wonder that was done in the land. It wasn’t a global astronomical phenomenon. It wasn’t the movement of the sun or the planets or the moon. It was, as we believe, the Shekinah glory of the Angel. But it was the news that came nevertheless to the ambassadors of Babel that they came to inquire about. And do you notice the ominous words that continue in that verse when it says that when they did come, that, as it turned out, God had left him, had left his a car to try him, that he might know all that was in his heart. And we’re not told in what way Yahweh left his a car. But the episode became a test to his character because it had been very obvious in his previous trials that Yahweh had always been with them.

39. 22:07

    But now at least there was evidently no message from Isaiah on behalf of God. The real question, you know, brothers and sisters, the question was what was the real business of the ambassadors? Oh, yes, they came to acquire of the one they’ve done on the land. But what did the mysterious letters contain which they brought from the Babylonian monarch?

40. 22:34

    There was more than just royal greetings here. These documents probably included a proposed Treaty of peace and cooperation. And for this reason, because these two kings had been the most effective in all the Middle East at resisting the advances of the Assyrians, Hezekiah felt honored that the king of Babylon would propose such an alliance.

41. 22:59

    And I’ll show you why I think Hezekiah might have thought that, even though it was a wrong thought to have, as we know. But you see, Sennacherib had been defeated, and he’d gone home for the present. But who was to know when he might return with an army twice the size to finish what he’d begun? And if Hezekiah knew that he only had 15 years left, then he knew that even if he had a son immediately, that that son would be far, far too young to cope with such a threat. When he, Hezekiah, died, there wasn’t enough time, so perhaps the opportunity to secure some degree of support against so powerful an enemy to give his son the chance to at least grow to adulthood.

42. 23:39

    He viewed the possibility of an alliance for military and Economic Cooperation with favour. Maybe this is a good idea. Maybe this is the answer of God that these ambassadors have come. So coming back to Isaiah’s account there to Isaiah 39 and verse 2. This is what the record tells us about the coming of these ambassadors.

43. 24:01

    Isaiah 39 and verse 2 says and and his Akaya was glad of them. The parallel passage and 2nd Kings 20 verse 13 says Hezekiah hearkened unto them, but Isaiah is stronger. Isaiah says he was glad of them and the word means to rejoice. Now, if he was simply pleased with their gift, well, that’s one thing. But to for him to rejoice, to the to, to to be so glad as to rejoice and to promptly show him everything they hear, everything he had, is well, that was an unusual reaction for the ambassadors that came.

44. 24:38

    But if the thing that made his akaya glad was the prospect of an alliance, then it explains both the depth of his reaction and the decision that he made to open up the treasures of his Kingdom for inspection. Because I think that’s what he’s really doing here. In verse 2 it says Hezekiah was glad of them and showed them the House of his precious things, the silver and the gold and the spices and the precious ointment and all the House of his armor and all that was found in his treasures. There was nothing in his house nor in all his dominion that Hezekiah showed them not you see, I don’t think he simply said, oh, come and have a look at all my things. I don’t think he’s a guy would have done that. Actually, I think that what he did was it wasn’t so much a vain show of wealth for wealth’s sake as formal evidence that Judah was a worthy partner to enter into alliance with Bebalem. So he gave demonstration that he had both the economic prosperity, the House of his precious things, and military capability, the House of his armor, to fulfill his responsibilities under such a treaty. I have the wherewithal, he says, to be a useful partner in such a transaction.

45. 25:52

    But he’d made the mistake, hadn’t he, brothers and sisters, of imagining that all these things belonged to him. And so verse 2, read that way, highlights that thinking. Hezekiah was glad of them, and showed them the House of his precious things, the silver and the gold and the spices and the precious ointment, and all the House of his armor, and all that was found in his treasures. There was nothing in his house, nor in all his dominion that Hezekiah showed them not.

46. 26:20

    He thought it was all his brothers, sisters flushed with the glory of his success, seduced by the flattery of the ambassadors, he forgot, at least for the moment, that both he and all that he had belonged unto Yahweh.

47. 26:33

    He wouldn’t be the first brother or sister, would he? It was fallen in such a matter. But you see, here’s a car was a man of prayer. He prayed in Isaiah 37, verse 1. He prayed in Isaiah 37, verse 15. He prayed again in Isaiah 38, verse 2, but but this time there’s no prayer. He didn’t ask counsel of God before entering into this undertaking, and it was a bad mistake. Whatever good intentions he might have had, his behaviour on this occasion was a manifestation of personal pride. He thought that all these things lay within his own power to arrange.

48. 27:17

    His heart was lifted up by the evident admiration of the king of Babylon. And momentarily his spiritual perspective was effective. Well, he was going to be held to account and held to account probably in the best possible way by the best possible man, because it says in verse 3. Then came Isaiah the prophet under King Hezekiah and said, what said these men? And from whence came they?

49. 27:42

    Now Isaiah had always been Hezekiah’s good friend and mentor, but this time Isaiah came to rebuke the king and to warn him of the consequences of his actions. And do you notice that he asked 2 very specific questions. What did these men talk about and where did these men come from? Now, if you, if you were his a car and you’re already starting to think, MMM, maybe I wonder whether I should have. And then you get these two questions. What did these men talk about and where did they come from? Which of those two questions do you think you’d prefer to to speak about first?

50. 28:19

    So he completely bypasses question #1 because he’s not particularly happy to talk about what they talked about. So he focuses on the second. He should have been happy to share their speech if they don’t even talk about presence and sundials. But the ambassadors had been discussing other things and he was reluctant to divulge that.

51. 28:39

    And I think as soon as Isaiah asked the question, here’s a car, I felt those first stirrings of a guilty conscience. And he sought to deflect the tension away from what that conversation had been about. So he focuses on the second question. He said, oh, where they come from? Well, he says verse three. He says, they come from a far country unto me, from Babylon. See that little word unto me?

52. 28:59

    Maybe that gives us the clue as to how important Hezekiah had been made to feel by the obsequious behavior of the ambassadors. Imagine how good it felt for the little Kingdom of Judah to be singled out for praise by the rising power of Babylon. One couldn’t help but be gratified by such attention. They came unto me, says, But his choice of words gave the story away really, because the exact phrase Hezekiah used, they come from a far country in the Hebrews, Eretz Lahoka from a country far.

53. 29:40

    But that that expression and the very first time it was used in the Bible held a warning which Hezekiah had ignored. Because the first time that their expression, Eretz Lahoka is found, it comes in the book of Joshua. And as soon as I mention the book of Joshua, I hope your minds are spinning because yes, you’re right.

54. 30:04

    It’s not just the book of Joshua, but it’s Joshua Chapter 9, when a certain group of people come stumbling into the encampment of Israel with old cloves and moldy bread and rotten shoes. And this is what they say, Joshua Chapter 9, verse six. They went to Joshua unto the camp at Gilgon. They said unto him, and to the men of Israel, We become from the edits Lahalka, a far country. Now therefore make a league with us. Verse 8 And they said to Joshua, We’re thy servants. And Joshua said unto them, Who are ye, and from whence come ye? And they said, Oh, we’re come from the edits, Lahalka, from a very country.

55. 30:43

    Thy servants are come because of the name of Yahweh, thy God. For we’ve heard the fame of him and all that he did in Egypt and all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites. So our elders, verse 11 told us to come and see you. We’re your servants. Therefore now make a league with us. And verse 14 says, And the men, that is, the men of Israel, took of their bittles, and asked not counsel at the mouth of Yahweh. And Joshua made peace with them, and made a league with them to let them live in.

56. 31:12

    The Princess of the congregation swore unto them. Isn’t that the very circumstances of Isaiah 39, brothers and sisters? Because this is the very reason why the ambassadors of Babylon had come. We’re come from a far country. Because we’ve heard of the fame of your God. We’ve heard of the shadow on the sundial. We’ve heard how He’s helped to defeat a mighty king. Therefore now make a league with us. And here’s a car.

57. 31:36

    Like Joshua of old had failed to inquire of Yahweh before agreeing to a Treaty of friendship and peace with Babylon. It was a mistake, and a grievous one at that. This faithful king who’d been so staunch in resisting Assyria, so resolute in refusing Egypt, how could he possibly contemplate an alliance with Babylon?

58. 32:03

    And by the time Isaiah even asked the question, we know that Hezekiah knew because that’s the sort of man he was. So verse 4 then said he that is Isaiah. What have they seen in vine house and I think he’s a car now is already stood to an awareness of his folly. So when Isaiah asked this next question, he answered immediately and he did it with total honesty and candor.

59. 32:35

    He knew where this was heading. He knew there was no point continuing to dispute with Yahweh’s prophet. And so he confessed, all without reservation. So Hezekiah answered, All that is in mine house. Have they seen? There is nothing among my treasures that I’ve not showed them. And so here then already was the first intimation of Hezekiah’s true spirit when faced with the reality of what he’d done.

60. 33:00

    He didn’t prevaricate. He didn’t dispute, He didn’t contend. He didn’t deny. He told the truth. It’s intrinsic, brothers and sisters, to our human nature to deny. We talk about the Garden of Eden, we talk about man’s bias towards sin, but we’re not just biased towards sin. And brothers and sisters, the story of the fig leaves in the garden tells us that we have a bias towards the concealment of sin, a bias towards the denial of sin.

61. 33:25

    We find it very difficult to admit to sin. But here’s a kind did straight away, just like that, without hesitation, and as He did, the implications of what He had done must have begun to dawn upon Him. I have shown the inner workings of Yahweh’s Kingdom and even the mysteries of Yahweh’s worship to the enemies of the truth.

62. 33:50

    The spices in the ointments of verse 2 may have been a reference to the holy special incense and the holy anointing oil of the temple service, but those items and their ingredients were secrets which should have been known only to the priestly family. What was he thinking of revealing all this to the ungodly ambassadors of Babylon?

63. 34:15

    Just as well that Isaiah turned up, don’t you think? And Isaiah turned up because of who Isaiah was. You see, because right through the story, Isaiah has been, has he not the spokesman for God himself? It’s interesting just to notice the the, the context of of how Isaiah appears because notice these words in the dialogue of the crisis of Hezekiah in these Isaiah chapters.

64. 34:42

    Isaiah 37 verse 6, Isaiah said thus saith Yahweh. He’s God’s spokesman. Isaiah 37 verse 2021, Isaiah said thus saith Yahweh. Isaiah 38 verses four and five go and say thus saith Yahweh. And here now in chapter 39, Isaiah said to his guy, hear the word of Yahweh. He’s God’s spokesman. He’s always been God’s spokesman. That’s Isaiah’s role in the story. But do you notice that each time he turns up, he uses the divine name in different ways?

65. 35:14

    Because you see, in the first occasion he says thus saith Yahweh, and in the second episode he says thus saith Yahweh, Elohim of Israel, and then the third Yahweh, the God of David thy father, and now Yahweh survey off. So there’s a richness about Isaiah’s work as the spokesman for heaven. And on this occasion the message comes from Yahweh survey off God in militant manifestation, The God who had defeated the Assyrians, the God whose hosts were more powerful than anything that Babylon could offer, that God Yahweh survey off, saith unto thee, hear the word, says the prophet Isaiah. And so he says in Isaiah 39, verse 6, Behold, the days come, that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store unto this day shall be carried to Babylon. Nothing shall be left, saith Yahweh. And the very phrases that Isaiah uses, he’s turned Hezekiah’s words back on him, you see, in the matter of his judgment, because the phrase all that is in thy house, the six comes from Hezekiah’s own words in verse 4, all that is in mine house. And Isaiah’s expression in verse six that says there’s, that says there is nothing that will not be, nothing that should be left, says Isaiah Verse 6 is taken from Hezekiah’s words in verse 4.

66. 36:47

    There’s nothing that I’ve not shown them that. What had he shown them? All the House of his precious things, all that was in his treasures. And what Isaiah prophesied came to pass by the way, because the second of Chronicles 36 and verses 18 and 19 says the king of the call. These took all the vessels of the House of God, great and small, and the treasures of the House of Yahweh, and the treasures of the king, and all these he brought to Babylon. And so the historian tells us that what Isaiah prophesied came indeed to path.

67. 37:20

    And what a paradox it was, because the very proofs that Hezekiah gave to convince the king, the king of Babylon, that they should cooperate became the ultimate reason for Babylon’s plunder of Jerusalem. When they came down to capture, they took those treasures which the ambassador’s had seen so far from protecting his Kingdom. Hezekiah’s action could have led to its downfall, and in a sense, did so.

68. 37:50

    There’s a lesson here, isn’t there? And the lesson is this, that when we’ve not thought through the implications of our decisions properly, they can have negative repercussions in the future. When the decisions we make are not based on clear scriptural teaching, but upon human thinking they can have, well, they can be unexpected and unintended consequences.

69. 38:16

    And what can happen is that our actions, instead of helping to protect the truth, might actually begin to weaken it. So here’s a car. I didn’t intend to harm the Kingdom, but in his actions he ultimately did. And not only would the riches of the realm be lost, but the brightest hopes of the royal line itself.

70. 38:39

    Because verse 7 says, and of thy sons that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt forget, shall they take away, and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon. You see, what the king had done couldn’t be left unchallenged. This judgment came upon the King’s own family because Hezekiah otherwise would have been held up as an example of rapport with the Spirit of Babylon.

71. 39:04

    God could not allow that. But look at the response of Hezekiah when this matter of judgment is pronounced against him by Isaiah in the words of verse 8. Then said Hezekiah to Isaiah, good is the word of Yahweh which thou hast spoken. So the first thing that Hezekiah acknowledged that which thou hast spoken.

72. 39:24

    You see, there was no doubt in Hezekiah’s mind that Isaiah was Yahweh’s messenger. He didn’t spoon his comments. He didn’t reject his warning. Proverbs 27, verse 6 faithful of the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of the enemy are deceitful. But how could Hezekiah describe a word that pronounced judgement on his household?

73. 39:52

    How can he call that good? Well, because faced with the reality of his pride, what Hezekiah immediately sought to do was to vindicate God and not justify himself. And those words summarize a principle that lies at the heart of God manifestation as the central doctrine of the truth. Because, well, this is what Psalm 25 verse 8 says.

74. 40:14

    Good and upright is Yahweh. Therefore He will teach sinners in the way Matthew 19 verse 17 Christ said, Why call this Thou me good? There is none good but one, and that is God. If they would enter into life, keep the commandments. So the maxim that God is good and Yahweh is right is a declaration that Yahweh’s supreme and not man. And that’s the very first thing that Hezekiah sought to acknowledge.

75. 40:43

    The word of Yahweh is always good. So that’s the first thing he says. I acknowledge the supremacy and the righteousness of God. That comes first, says Hezekiah. I accept that. I bow before that as a matter of divine principle in my life. And then it says He said, Moreover, for there shall be peace and truth in my days. Now you see that little expression, he said. Moreover, those words suggest a break between his first comment, Good is the word of Yahweh.

76. 41:13

    And now his second comment. There shall be peace and truth in my days. So his first concern was to vindicate the righteousness of God. Then a pause to reflect and consider before making this second comment. So what then then did this second statement really mean? For there shall be peace and truth in my days. Well, one translation has Then Hezekiah said to Isaiah, This message you’ve given me from Yahweh is good. For the king was thinking, well, at least there’ll be peace and security during my lifetime.

77. 41:51

    So the implication would be, well, pity about those after me, but at least I’ll be all right. An attitude of utter selfishness and indifference to the plight of others who might follow. But in the light of his confession that Yahweh is good, could that be possibly the meaning of Hezekiah’s words? A man who were told trusted God like none other before or after him. Now what he really meant was that in the time that remained to him in God’s good grace, that his focus would now be on what was best for the nation as he had already there. The father to the children shall make know thy truth. And we have scriptural testimony that that was exactly the spirit of his a car.

78. 42:39

    You see, it isn’t just Isaiah who’d prophesied here about going into Babylon. Isaiah prophesized that the royal family will go into Babylon, Isaiah 39 verses 6:00 and 7:00. But Micah prophesied in Micah 4, verse 10 that the nation would be exiled into Babylon. And when Micah gave his promise, because he’s a contemporary prophet with Isaiah, we know what Hezekiah’s response was to Micah’s promise that the nation will be exiled to Babylon.

79. 43:07

    Because if you come to Jeremiah 26, we’re told, we’re told that when Micah uttered his words against the nation, this is what King Hezekiah said at that very moment of time. It’s an indication and index to the character of the man with whom we have to do in this story. Zion for your sake shall be plowed as a field, Micah had said, and this is what it says in Jeremiah 26 and verse 17.

80. 43:33

    Then rose up certain of the elders of the land, and spake to all the assembly of the people, saying, Mike of the Morris site prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah, and spake to all the people of Judah, saying, Thus saith Yahweh of hosts, Zion shall be plowed like a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps in the mountains of the of the houses, the high places of a forest. Did Hezekiah, king of Judah, and all Judah put him at all to death?

81. 43:59

    Did not he, Hezekiah, fear Yahweh, and besought Yahweh, and Yahweh repented him of the evil which he pronounced against them? So notice those the connections of the of the singular and the plural. The obvious implication of Jeremiah’s words was that the humility of the king who besought Yahweh rescued the nation from their doom. He besought they were saved.

82. 44:26

    Did you notice that and see what the margin says? The margin says in Jeremiah 26 and verse 18, verse 19. See Second Chronicles chapter 32, verse 26. To which, brothers and sisters, we shall now to, because in the Second of Chronicles chapter 32, we have the divine comment on this matter and how Hezekiah did react, how he didn’t respond.

83. 44:50

    And he did so in a manner that was utterly consistent with his true character, even when under crisis. So this is what it says concerning this same episode in the Second Chronicles 32 record. It says, verse 26, notwithstanding after his mistake, verse 25 after his error, notwithstanding verse 26, he humbled himself for the pride of his heart, both he and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the wrath of Yahweh came not upon them in the days of Hezekiah. So he was the test.

84. 45:33

    And Hezekiah, despite his momentary lapse, now reveals again the Spirit in his life that so delighted his God. And it’s the lesson by the sisters from our study today about what to do and how to respond when in times of crisis. And the lesson is, well, we all you know it. It’s the practice of it that’s difficult, not the knowing of it. Learning to show humility, to confess fault. Now just have a look at these wonderful examples in the Second of Chronicles, chapter 12 and verse 12. When Ribo humbled himself, the wrath of Yahweh turned from him that he would not destroy him altogether. Humility brought that.

85. 46:21

    And in the first of Kings 21 verses 28 and 29, it says, the word of Yahweh came and said, Seest thou how Ahab humbleth himself before me? I will not bring the evil in his days. And now here’s a car in the second of Chronicles 32 and verse 26. Notwithstanding Hezekiah humbled himself for the pride of his heart, so that the wrath of Yahweh came not upon them.

86. 46:45

    The wrath of Yahweh came not upon them. And Second Chronicles 33 verses 12 to 13. He Manasseh humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers, and he wasn’t treated of him, and heard his supplications. So I think that here’s the meaning of Hezekiah’s words, quoting from the King’s version. Is it not good if peace and truth be in my days?

87. 47:11

    So far from those words being an indication of His indifference to the nation’s future, it was His his expression of hope that He had been granted time to bring His people to the same spirit of humility which He Himself had already shown, And His labours were blessed with success. Because verse 26 says the wrath did not come.

88. 47:31

    When in His days there shall be peace and truth in my days. And He averted the wrath in His days. So here then were two opposite attributes played out in the life of the king. His pride brought the nation into danger, but thankfully his his humility saved the nation from disaster. Now we can see the story of Hezekiah and agree with the lesson.

89. 48:04

    But learning how to apply it is not always so easy. You see, human pride can be manifested in many ways, but one of its worst aspects is an unwillingness to receive rebuke and inability to admit fault, a reluctance to accept counsel. Faced with such a threat, the thinking of the flesh tends to react adversely. It engages in self justification. It indulges in self-righteous indignation. It casts aspersions on the other party, revealing a spirit that’s clearly resentful of anyone who might have the temerity just to suggest that they’re wrong.

90. 48:48

    Prides about self, brothers and sisters, and we ought not to imagine that this is a problem uniquely faced by others but not ourselves. We all suffer from a condition first seen in the Garden of Eden, when one man and one woman were both unwilling to admit fault and both too quick to blame someone else. It’s ever been so.

91. 49:11

    So if pride is about the aggrandisement of man, then what do you think humility is? Well, I think the world would probably teach that humility is the opposite of pride. Must be about the abasement of man.

92. 49:29

    But the scriptural passages that we’ve examined, which suggests that if pride is seen in the exaltation of man, humility is seen in the exaltation of God. Biblical humility relates to the man or the woman who’s so centered on God and His purpose that, when faced with the evidence that they have let the truth down, will prefer to surrender to the vindication of God rather than to the justification of self.

93. 50:00

    Pride is intrinsic to the thinking of the flesh. Humility stands related to the thinking of the Spirit. And because it does, whereas pride comes naturally, humility must be learned. That humility is an attribute that Yahweh delights in and we all need more of that spirit of humility in an age which is filled with self focused, self-centered, self absorbed, self opinionated, self justifying humanism. That’s Micah 6 verse 8 isn’t it?

94. 50:42

    What doth Yahweh, thy God, requireth thee but to do justly, to love mercy and to humble thyself, to walk with thy God Now how encouraging that Hezekiah is example even in this moment of his momentary lapse when he lost perspective but then regained it. How wonderful at that crucial moment he shows that spirit of humility that in the end saved his nation, saved his people and those 15 years of added time, his wise use of them prospered the nation so that the broth was averted in his day. Let’s be thankful for that spirit and that lesson by the sisters out of the life of King Hezekiah, as it says in one of our hymns.

95. 51:30

    O God, unseen yet ever near, we come to seek Thy face, our hearts made wiser by thy fear, and humbler by Thy grace. On behalf of all of us, we would like to thank our brethren for their administrations on our behalf this morning. And while we stand, let us close our session and give thanks for our meal, our greats, and our eternal.

96. 52:33

    Our loving Lord God, our Heavenly Father, we thank you for the blessing of the morning pages of Scripture opened in the lives of those that are written therein.

97. 52:52

    We’re thankful for the lessons, for the Enlightenment, and for the encouragement and the strength that Your Word provides. We continue our Thanksgiving for the food that has been prepared for us and the wonderful opportunity to share these good things together in the spirit of fellowship and friendship. Praise you for your goodness. Thank you for all things. In the name of our exalted Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Amen.