Roger Lewis – The Crisis of Hezekiah – Class 1 – The Challenge and The Sackcloth

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Welcome back brothers and
sisters.

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We are ready to begin our third
class.

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Our speaker is Brother Roger
Lewis.

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The theme for Brother Lewis’s
class this week is the Crisis of

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Hezekiah.
Today’s class is entitled The

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Challenge and the Sackcloth.
Brother Roger.

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Right.
Well, I’m not sure whether we’re

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supposed to have my icons down
below, but we’ll assume that

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they’re permitted and and we’ll
continue on that basis.

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So let me just click on to the
where we should be going for

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today.
Technology,

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right?
I think we’re going to need some

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more help because I can’t.
I can’t.

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Move forward with no.
That’s only either.

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I mean what?
OK there, you can just leave it

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like that.
It’s still not.

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Bingo.
It is always nice to have a

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brother like this one at every
Bible school.

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So this morning then, brothers
and sisters, study is on the

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subject of the challenge and the
sackcloth.

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And that challenge is already
upon me because I’m aware that

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the clock is ticking down to the
lunch break.

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So it it really is going to take
us into Isaiah chapter 36,

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because it’s going to be an
examination of the challenge of

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Reb Shaker and how Hezekiah
responded to that challenge.

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But before we come to that, I
wonder if you would turn with me

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to the Second of Chronicles
chapter 32, because they’re in

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the Second Chronicles 32.
We have a useful introduction to

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what we’ll consider later on in
the prophecy of Isaiah.

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And I just want to draw your
attention to one matter in this

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passage.
You might remember we referred

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to this in our introductory
comments last night.

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Second Chronicles 32, verse one
says, after these things and the

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establishment thereof,
Sennacherib, king of Assyria,

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came and entered into Judrin and
camps, encamped against the

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fence cities, and thought to win
them for himself.

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And when Hezekiah saw that
Sennacherib was come and that he

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was purposed to fight against
Jerusalem, he took counsel with

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his Princess, and.
And the verses that follow tell

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us what the things did, what the
things were that Hezekiah did to

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prepare for the evident invasion
now that was clearly so imminent

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from Sennacherib and from the
Assyrians.

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And he did three things.
He.

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First of all.
Guaranteed the water supply into

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Jerusalem by blocking up the
spring gion.

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He fortified the city as best as
he could and he re equipped and

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reorganized the army so that
they would be ready to fight

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whatever battle of resistance
they could.

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But the most important thing
that Hezekiah did is recorded

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for us in the second of
Chronicles chapter 32 and

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reading from verse 5, verse 6,
where it says he sent captains

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of war over the people and
gathered them together to him in

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the street of the gate of the
city, and spake comfortably to

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them.
The margin says spake to their

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heart.
And these were the words that he

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spake.
Be strong and courageous.

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Be not afraid nor dismayed for
the king of Assyria, nor.

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For all the multitude.
That is with Him, for there be

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more with us than with him, with
Him as an arm of flesh.

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But with us is Yahweh our God to
help us and to fight our

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battles.
And the people rested themselves

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upon the words of Hezekiah.
So here’s the thing you see is

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that beyond all his practical
preparations, Hezekiah’s real

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focus was on encouraging the
people to put their trust

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unreservedly in God and in His
mighty power to save.

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But the wonderful thing about
these two verses is that

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everything that Hezekiah spoke
in order to speak to the heart

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of his people rang with the
power of Scripture.

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He was a master not just of
encouraging his people, but of

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doing so by the triumphant words
of Scripture themselves.

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Now just have a look at this
because it’s helpful in terms of

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maybe some cross references in
your margin.

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So when he said be strong and
courageous, those words were the

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words spoken by Moses to Israel
in Deuteronomy chapter 31 when

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they were facing the nations of
Canaan.

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And when he said, be not afraid
nor dismayed, those were the

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words that Jehaziel spoke to
Jehoshaphat in the Second of

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Chronicles chapter 20 and verse
15, when facing the multitudes

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of Ammon, when he said they’d be
more with us than with him.

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You might remember that those
were the words actually spoken

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by Elijah to his servant in the
Second of Kings 6 and verse 16,

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then facing the host of the
Syrians.

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And when he said, with us is
Yahweh our God to help us and to

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fight our battles.
Those were the words spoken by

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Moses to Israel.
And Deuteronomy 20, verses 3:00

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to 4:00 when facing the enemy.
So you see, this is how the king

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spake to the heart of the
nation.

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But this is he took them back to
the Bible, took them back to

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Scripture, took them back to the
passages and events of old, to

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marvelous examples of victories
in earlier times.

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And what he was really saying,
don’t you think, King Hezekiah,

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was he saying, look, our God has
done this before, Our God can do

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this again.
But he didn’t use his words.

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He used the words of Scripture
to inspire them.

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And the record says, isn’t it
lovely at the end of verse 8?

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And the people rested themselves
upon the words of Hezekiah,

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Madden says.
They leaned.

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Have you ever leaned upon a
word, brothers and sisters?

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Rested upon a word, the right
word at the right time.

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So helpful.
And maybe there’s a lesson here.

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You see that in times of
national crisis, people

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desperately need strong
spiritual guidance.

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And where there is sound
leadership, people feel the

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reassurance of knowing what to
do.

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But when it’s not there, where
clear direction is lacking,

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people feel confused.
They’re left feeling divided.

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And Hezekiah had that skill,
that special skill of inspiring

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the nation to have confidence in
God because they saw that same

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unwavering trust in his own life
and everything that he spoke to

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them when he spoke to their
heart.

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So with that background, then
let’s come to the book of Isaiah

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now, to those dramatic chapters
that we’re going to consider God

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willing and our studies
together, beginning with Isaiah

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36.
And it’s in Isaiah 36 that we

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take up the record, as we’re
told there in verse one, these

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words.
Now it came to pass in the 14th

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year of King Hezekiah that
Sennacherib, king of Assyria,

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came up against all the defence
cities of Judah and took them.

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In fact, interestingly enough,
in his own record of the attack,

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which is on the Taylor prism,
it’s one of those clay cuneiform

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clay prisms on which the
exploits of Sennacherib are

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recorded.
And on that.

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Taylor Prisms Sennacherib says
this, but As for Hezekiah the

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Jew, 46 of his strong walled
towns and innumerable smaller

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villages in their neighborhood,
I besieged and conquered.

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In fact, the Assyrians took
200,000 people of Judah into

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captivity. 200,000 This was a
crisis.

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An absolute crisis in the life
of Hezekiah, and also for the

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nation of Judah.
And so the record tells us in

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verse 2, the king of Assyria
sent Reb Shaker from Assyria

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from from Lakers, which is where
Seneca was to Jerusalem under

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King Hezekiah with a great army.
And he stood by the conduit of

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the upper pool in the highway of
the Fuller’s field, and then

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came forth unto him, says verse
3, Eliakim Hilkiah’s son, which

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was over the house, and Schebner
described in Jawah Asaph’s son,

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the recorder.
Now it’s always interesting,

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incidentally, when you’ve got
parallel versions of a king or

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of any man’s life or woman’s
life, it’s always helpful to

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consult the other virgins.
Now we, we, we shall turn it up.

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But in the second of Kings,
chapter 18, verse 18, which is

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the parallel accountant kings,
it says this.

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And when they?
Which is Rab Shaker and his

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cohorts had called to the king,
there came out to them Alaikum

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and Shebna and Java.
So you see, what Kings tells us,

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which, which Isaiah doesn’t, is
that Rab Shaker sought an

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audience with Hezekiah in
person, but Hezekiah refused.

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He would not go out to meet Reb
Shaker, he would not allow Reb

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Shaker into the city, and so
instead he sent deputies to

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depute on his behalf.
Reb Shaker never did meet the

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King.
He departed from Jerusalem

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without ever seeing him.
And now his speech is about to

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begin, and we can imagine he was
probably extremely annoyed that

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his Akai had refused to meet
him.

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Now, Isaiah 36 is one of those
chapters, like many a chapter

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brothers and sisters, where in
its fullness and its length and

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extent, it just looks
overwhelmingly big to try and

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break up and dissect.
So it’s always helpful to have a

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breakup, isn’t it?
And I think that the breakup to

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Rev Shaker’s speech helps us
immensely to suddenly master

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Isaiah 36 by breaking it into
its subcomponent part.

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So here’s the speech of Reb
Shaker and is when you see it,

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brothers and sisters, it all
becomes, I think, really

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thoroughly clear.
So we’ve got really what we

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might describe in the first
instance as the speech to the

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king from verses 4 to 10.
And we know.

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That because in verse 4, we see
these words say ye now to

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Hezekiah.
So even though Hezekiah is not

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there, he’s inside the city and
his three deputies are outside

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listening to Reb Shaker.
These words were intended for

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the king himself.
It’s Reb Shaker’s speech to the

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king.
And we know that because do you

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notice the word thou in the
section verse 4?

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What confidence is this?
We’re in thou trustest verse 5.

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Dost thou trust that thou
rebellest against me?

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Verse 6 Thou trustest in the
staff verse verse 7.

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If thou say to me.
And all the way.

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Through those verses, verses 4
to 10, the word thou in the

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Hebrews, in the masculine
singular, it’s an address to one

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man.
This is Rab Shaker’s speech to

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the King himself and.
Then in the middle we’re going

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to have an exchange with the
deputies where the three men in

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in in in turn will seek to say
something to AB Sheka, and he

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will reply to them.
And then we’ve got the second

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speech, which is now from verses
13 to 20, and we might describe

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as the speech to the people.
It’s a separate speech, it’s a

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second speech.
And when it says therefore hear

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ye the word verse 13 of the
great king, the king of Assyria.

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Now the word ye refers to the
people on the wall that were the

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subjects of the second address
that Reb Shekhar would utter to

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them.
And we know that that’s the case

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because now if you notice,
you’ll find that not the word

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thou is used, but the word you.
Verse 14.

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Don’t let Hezekiah deceive you.
He shall not be able to deliver

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you, neither let Hezekiah make
you trust until verse 79 come

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and take you away.
And the word you all the way

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through that section is in the
masculine plural.

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This is a speech to many.
It’s a speech to the people.

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So we’ve got the speech to the
king, and then we’ve got the

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speech to the people.
And you know I.

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Think there’s a keyword in each
of those speeches?

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If you just.
Glance down verses 4 to 10 and

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run your eyes across it just
swiftly and see if a a word

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jumps off the page, because it
should do.

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There’s a keyword, and that
keyword is trust buttock.

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To flee for refuge or to trust.
It’s found in in verse 4 twice,

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verse 5, verse 6 twice, verse 7,
verse 9, I found seven times.

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It’s the keyword trust.
And that’s his speech to the

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king.
Don’t don’t you continue to

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trust in your God.
That’s what rap Shaker was going

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to attack as far as the king is
concerned.

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But in the second speech,
there’s a different word.

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Now can anyone spot that reading
from verses 13 to 20, just

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scanning through, yes, you’re
absolutely right.

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It’s the word deliver, not Sao
to snatch away or to rescue.

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00:15:07,400 –> 00:15:10,560
It’s in verse 141518 twice, 1920
twice.

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00:15:10,720 –> 00:15:14,680
Why 7 times?
So there’s a keyword in each of

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00:15:14,680 –> 00:15:18,840
these speeches and it relates to
the key of what Rap Shaker is

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00:15:18,920 –> 00:15:22,120
going to endeavour to deal with
in the context of that speech.

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00:15:22,280 –> 00:15:24,200
Now isn’t that interesting?
Now that as soon as we have a

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00:15:24,200 –> 00:15:27,560
break up to the speech, suddenly
eyes are 36, becomes manageable,

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00:15:28,040 –> 00:15:31,120
becomes intelligible.
Now we see the direction in

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00:15:31,120 –> 00:15:33,920
which this chapter is heading
and we can make sense of what

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00:15:34,040 –> 00:15:37,440
Reb Shaker is now about to cover
in his discourses.

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00:15:39,280 –> 00:15:42,320
Now, for those that are
continuing to write, I extend my

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00:15:42,320 –> 00:15:47,160
heartfelt apologies because I’m
going to abruptly terminate that

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00:15:47,560 –> 00:15:51,160
that opportunity because I’m
going to come back now because

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00:15:51,160 –> 00:15:54,680
of the compression of time to
that first speech, because

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00:15:54,800 –> 00:15:58,280
within each of these speeches, I
think there’s two sections as

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00:15:58,280 –> 00:16:01,080
well.
So if we come back now to this

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00:16:01,080 –> 00:16:04,600
first speech to the king, I
think there are two parts to the

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00:16:04,600 –> 00:16:07,760
speech, and the first part is
verses 4:00 to 7:00.

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00:16:08,400 –> 00:16:11,160
And what Red Shaker is
endeavoring to do here is to

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00:16:11,160 –> 00:16:16,840
create uncertainty through the
shock of insider intelligence.

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00:16:19,640 –> 00:16:24,480
He’s going to actually really
shock the king that he knows so

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00:16:24,480 –> 00:16:26,320
much about the inner workings of
Judah.

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00:16:26,320 –> 00:16:30,360
It was a classic technique to
break confidence.

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00:16:31,080 –> 00:16:34,000
And then from verses 8 to 10,
he’s going to undermine

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00:16:34,000 –> 00:16:38,880
confidence through the anxiety
of psychological warfare or he

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00:16:38,880 –> 00:16:41,760
was a master, this man, and
we’re going to see just how

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00:16:41,760 –> 00:16:44,840
coming and how devious he was as
the story unfolds.

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00:16:45,000 –> 00:16:46,480
So let’s come to the speech,
shall we?

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00:16:46,480 –> 00:16:50,720
Then reading from Isaiah 36 and
verse 4, where the record says,

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00:16:51,000 –> 00:16:54,240
and Reb Shaker said unto them,
say ye now to his a car.

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00:16:54,240 –> 00:16:57,680
Thus saith the great king, the
king of Assyria, What confidence

245
00:16:57,680 –> 00:16:59,840
is this?
Where in thou trustest?

246
00:17:00,080 –> 00:17:04,280
Now, in the Hebrew, that word
confidence, bittacon, is a

247
00:17:04,280 –> 00:17:09,200
cognate form of the word trust
botach at the end of the verse.

248
00:17:09,280 –> 00:17:11,920
So it’s actually one of the
seven times that that word is

249
00:17:11,920 –> 00:17:13,880
used.
So in effect, what Reb Shaker

250
00:17:13,880 –> 00:17:18,720
really said was what trust is
this wherein thou trustest?

251
00:17:18,960 –> 00:17:21,760
Now that’s the keyword in Reb
Shaker’s speech to the king.

252
00:17:23,440 –> 00:17:28,079
But you see, what that tells us
is that Reb Shaker obviously

253
00:17:28,079 –> 00:17:30,840
knew.
Already knew that the

254
00:17:31,040 –> 00:17:35,720
outstanding characteristic of
his Akar was his extraordinary

255
00:17:35,720 –> 00:17:39,400
trust in Yahweh, his God.
Now Judah knew the faithful

256
00:17:39,400 –> 00:17:43,000
spirit of their king, but how
could the spokesman from Assyria

257
00:17:43,000 –> 00:17:46,920
possibly know that that was the
situation as far as his Akar was

258
00:17:46,920 –> 00:17:48,040
concerned.
And yet he did.

259
00:17:48,080 –> 00:17:49,840
Somehow Rab Shaker did.
He knew that.

260
00:17:49,840 –> 00:17:52,520
He knew that trust was the vital
quality of the king and he was

261
00:17:52,520 –> 00:17:55,040
going to seek to undermine that.
And he was going to focus on

262
00:17:55,160 –> 00:17:58,480
attacking that trust in any way
he could to sow doubt in

263
00:17:58,480 –> 00:18:02,440
Hezekiah’s mind.
So this is what he says in verse

264
00:18:02,440 –> 00:18:06,200
five.
He said, I say, say us they are,

265
00:18:06,560 –> 00:18:11,240
but they are but vain words.
I I Hezekiah, have counsel and

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00:18:11,240 –> 00:18:14,840
strength for war.
And so Reb Shaker’s assessment

267
00:18:14,840 –> 00:18:18,640
was that Hezekiah’s claim of
counsel to form plans and power

268
00:18:18,640 –> 00:18:20,880
to execute them were just empty
words.

269
00:18:21,000 –> 00:18:23,000
They’re just empty words, says
Reb Shaker.

270
00:18:23,000 –> 00:18:26,320
Ah, but notice the very fact
that Reb Shaker mentioned this,

271
00:18:26,520 –> 00:18:31,040
I think was an indication that
he was fully aware of Hezekiah’s

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00:18:31,040 –> 00:18:33,680
speech to the people that we’ve
just come across in Chronicles.

273
00:18:33,680 –> 00:18:35,560
Because remember what it said,
Don’t turn it up.

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00:18:35,560 –> 00:18:38,960
But they said this his a car
spoke to the people saying be

275
00:18:38,960 –> 00:18:41,840
not afraid nor dismayed.
There be more with us than with.

276
00:18:41,840 –> 00:18:49,000
Him and the people rested
themselves upon the words of his

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00:18:49,000 –> 00:18:55,680
a car and Rab Shaker says you
have vain words.

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00:18:56,400 –> 00:19:00,560
He knew all about what was
happening inside Jerusalem, did

279
00:19:00,560 –> 00:19:03,200
this man.
Including the King’s inspiring

280
00:19:03,200 –> 00:19:05,480
speech to his people.
Only the inhabitants of the city

281
00:19:05,480 –> 00:19:07,760
had heard that speech and Reb
shaken you all about it.

282
00:19:08,840 –> 00:19:12,440
Can you imagine how that must
have shot the deputies as Reb

283
00:19:12,440 –> 00:19:16,040
Shaker made these comments and
displayed that inside knowledge

284
00:19:16,040 –> 00:19:18,560
and awareness of what was
happening in the little Kingdom

285
00:19:18,560 –> 00:19:21,320
of Judah.
And so he says verse 5, on whom

286
00:19:21,320 –> 00:19:24,120
dost thou trust that they are
rebellious against me?

287
00:19:24,440 –> 00:19:26,000
And I think that Reb Shaker was
saying.

288
00:19:27,040 –> 00:19:29,440
Your words have nothing to
substantiate them.

289
00:19:29,560 –> 00:19:32,480
Oh, here’s a car, unless there’s
something secret going on in the

290
00:19:32,480 –> 00:19:35,400
background and I think I know
what you’re up to.

291
00:19:35,600 –> 00:19:38,200
He says, I’m on to you.
He says, says Rab Shaker, I know

292
00:19:38,200 –> 00:19:40,440
exactly what you’re up to.
And this is what he says in the

293
00:19:40,440 –> 00:19:44,120
next verse, verse 6 low.
He says, I know thou trustest in

294
00:19:44,120 –> 00:19:47,880
the staff of this broken Reed on
Egypt, where on if a man lean,

295
00:19:47,880 –> 00:19:49,560
it will go into his hand and
Pierce it.

296
00:19:49,680 –> 00:19:52,400
So is Pharaoh king of Egypt to
all that trust in him?

297
00:19:52,800 –> 00:19:56,920
Now, that was a really telling
blow, that comment from Reb

298
00:19:56,920 –> 00:20:02,160
Shaker, because you see, there
had been a delegation to Egypt,

299
00:20:03,160 –> 00:20:06,480
but we don’t believe that it was
at the instigation of King

300
00:20:06,480 –> 00:20:09,840
Hezekiah that if you just come
back to Isaiah 30.

301
00:20:10,480 –> 00:20:13,920
The prophet had already warned
the nation against going to

302
00:20:13,920 –> 00:20:17,320
Egypt, and I believe that
Hezekiah absolutely believed in

303
00:20:17,320 –> 00:20:19,440
Isaiah’s advice.
I don’t think this was

304
00:20:19,520 –> 00:20:23,320
Hezekiah’s initiation, this
delegation that went to Egypt.

305
00:20:23,840 –> 00:20:29,000
Isaiah 30 says verse one.
Woe to the rebellious children,

306
00:20:29,000 –> 00:20:32,680
saith Yahweh, that take counsel
but not of me and that cover

307
00:20:32,680 –> 00:20:36,120
with a covering but not of my
spirit, that they may add sin to

308
00:20:36,120 –> 00:20:39,120
sin that walk to go down into
Egypt and have not asked at my

309
00:20:39,120 –> 00:20:41,800
mouth to strengthen themselves
in the strength of Pharaoh and

310
00:20:41,800 –> 00:20:44,040
to trust in the shadow of Egypt.
You shouldn’t do that.

311
00:20:44,040 –> 00:20:46,120
He says there’s no help from
that quarter.

312
00:20:46,120 –> 00:20:50,000
And again, chapter 31, verse
one, woe to them that go down to

313
00:20:50,000 –> 00:20:53,320
Egypt for help and stay on
horses and trust in Chariots

314
00:20:53,320 –> 00:20:55,760
because they’re many and then
horsemen because they’re very

315
00:20:55,760 –> 00:20:59,880
strong, but they look not unto
the holy one of Israel, neither

316
00:20:59,880 –> 00:21:03,280
seek Yahweh.
That was Isaiah’s counsel, and I

317
00:21:03,280 –> 00:21:04,920
believe that Hezekiah supported
it.

318
00:21:06,000 –> 00:21:10,440
He knew that Isaiah was
absolutely giving the advice of

319
00:21:10,440 –> 00:21:14,640
God himself, but against that
advice a delegation had gone

320
00:21:14,640 –> 00:21:18,280
down bearing gifts and seeking
help of the Egyptians.

321
00:21:18,400 –> 00:21:22,200
So says Isaiah 30 verses 4:00 to
7:00, but I do not believe it

322
00:21:22,200 –> 00:21:25,640
was led by his Akai.
I believe it was led by other

323
00:21:25,640 –> 00:21:28,560
members of his cabinet who took
advantage of the moment when the

324
00:21:28,560 –> 00:21:32,400
king could not prevent them, as
a later study will show.

325
00:21:32,640 –> 00:21:36,560
But the real issue of Isaiah 36
and verse six, brothers and

326
00:21:36,560 –> 00:21:39,560
sisters, is this, that that trip
to Egypt was supposed to be top

327
00:21:39,560 –> 00:21:43,840
secret, but Rap shaken you all
about it.

328
00:21:45,320 –> 00:21:48,280
You see, it was obvious that he
had inside sources of

329
00:21:48,280 –> 00:21:52,160
information which must have been
deeply unsettling to the king

330
00:21:52,280 –> 00:21:55,000
and to his deputies.
What more do the Assyrians know?

331
00:21:55,600 –> 00:21:58,280
Well, as it turned out, quite a
bit, because in verse seven he

332
00:21:58,280 –> 00:22:02,400
says, if they all say to me, we
trust in Yahweh, our God, is it

333
00:22:02,400 –> 00:22:06,120
not he whose high places and
whose altars Hezekiah has taken

334
00:22:06,120 –> 00:22:09,040
away and said to Judah and to
Jerusalem, ye shall worship

335
00:22:09,040 –> 00:22:12,080
before this altar.
Now that’s interesting, because

336
00:22:12,160 –> 00:22:14,680
Reb Sheikhar’s information was
correct.

337
00:22:15,840 –> 00:22:20,760
But his conclusions were wrong,
because we were told in

338
00:22:20,760 –> 00:22:24,280
Hezekiah’s reformation in a
passage earlier in Chronicles.

339
00:22:24,280 –> 00:22:27,840
These words says in Second
Chronicles 31, verse one.

340
00:22:27,840 –> 00:22:32,040
Now when all this was finished,
all Israel went out to the

341
00:22:32,040 –> 00:22:35,440
cities of Judah and break the
images and pieces and cut down

342
00:22:35,440 –> 00:22:40,160
the Groves and threw down the
high places and the altars.

343
00:22:40,400 –> 00:22:44,320
Notice those expressions here in
in Isa threw down the high

344
00:22:44,320 –> 00:22:47,920
places and altars out of Judah
until they had utterly destroyed

345
00:22:47,920 –> 00:22:50,720
them all.
So the whole nation had

346
00:22:50,720 –> 00:22:54,440
participated in their debt that
the high places and the altars

347
00:22:54,440 –> 00:22:57,280
that they destroyed, verse
seven, were not the high places

348
00:22:57,280 –> 00:23:00,280
to Yahweh.
They were high places to Pagan

349
00:23:00,280 –> 00:23:04,040
gods, and the nation had
supported their king in that

350
00:23:04,040 –> 00:23:07,360
work of destruction.
And all the all Israel, all

351
00:23:07,360 –> 00:23:10,880
Judah knew that the one altar
where they should be offering

352
00:23:10,880 –> 00:23:13,360
their offerings to God was at
the temple in Jerusalem, the

353
00:23:13,360 –> 00:23:16,120
only place where God commanded
them to bring their offerings.

354
00:23:16,440 –> 00:23:19,760
So Hezekiah’s thought, verse 7
here, that Yahweh had been

355
00:23:19,760 –> 00:23:23,400
angered by a king who’d taken
away his own altars was false.

356
00:23:24,360 –> 00:23:28,160
But again, the fact remained
that reb shaken you all about

357
00:23:28,160 –> 00:23:31,520
Hezekiah’s reformation and what
he’d done in the Kingdom of

358
00:23:31,520 –> 00:23:34,440
Judah.
It must have been very

359
00:23:34,440 –> 00:23:38,120
disturbing.
That a man from foreign lands

360
00:23:38,840 –> 00:23:45,960
knew so much about the inner
workings of Judah’s Kingdom, and

361
00:23:45,960 –> 00:23:49,760
now having unsettled them in
such a way, he moved to the next

362
00:23:49,760 –> 00:23:56,840
stage of his work of coercion by
means of seeking to increase

363
00:23:56,840 –> 00:24:00,000
their anxiety through
psychological warfare.

364
00:24:00,200 –> 00:24:02,480
So he says, verse 8.
Now, therefore he says, give

365
00:24:02,480 –> 00:24:05,400
pledges, I pray thee, to my
master the king of Assyria, and

366
00:24:05,400 –> 00:24:08,360
I will give thee 2000 horses if
they’ll be able on my part to

367
00:24:08,360 –> 00:24:12,680
see it, riders upon them.
The revised margin says, now

368
00:24:12,680 –> 00:24:15,480
therefore make a wager with my
master.

369
00:24:15,640 –> 00:24:18,440
And so the boast of the verse
was, he said, look, he said,

370
00:24:18,440 –> 00:24:21,680
I’ll provide 2000 horses.
Do you really think that you can

371
00:24:21,680 –> 00:24:24,320
find 2000 riders?
He would even know how to ride.

372
00:24:24,320 –> 00:24:26,680
Them.
And of course, the fact was his

373
00:24:26,680 –> 00:24:32,280
Akai probably couldn’t, and Rap
Shaker knew it, so his wager was

374
00:24:32,280 –> 00:24:37,960
really a sarcastic comment on
just how pitifully small Judah’s

375
00:24:37,960 –> 00:24:42,680
fighting resources were compared
to the immensity of the Assyrian

376
00:24:42,680 –> 00:24:44,200
host.
Which you might remember in

377
00:24:44,200 –> 00:24:47,400
verse 2 has been described
already as a great army.

378
00:24:48,200 –> 00:24:51,960
So how damaging this must have
been to the morale of his Akar

379
00:24:52,120 –> 00:24:55,000
and his men.
How disheartening to be reminded

380
00:24:55,240 –> 00:24:58,840
that the odds against them in
this battle were absolutely

381
00:24:59,040 –> 00:25:03,040
overwhelming.
You see, Reb Shaker was a master

382
00:25:03,280 –> 00:25:07,200
at undermining confidence by
sowing seeds of doubt.

383
00:25:08,280 –> 00:25:11,840
And so he says, verse 9.
How then wilt thou turn away the

384
00:25:11,840 –> 00:25:15,680
face of 1 captain of the least
of my master’s servants, and put

385
00:25:15,680 –> 00:25:19,400
thy trust in Egypt?
The new King James Version says

386
00:25:19,680 –> 00:25:22,240
how then will you repel 1
captain of the least?

387
00:25:22,440 –> 00:25:26,520
Or another translation?
Slightly more, slightly more,

388
00:25:26,640 –> 00:25:30,440
what’s the word dynamic?
Equivalent says how could you

389
00:25:30,440 –> 00:25:32,960
defeat even our lowest ranking
officer?

390
00:25:33,160 –> 00:25:36,840
So Reb Shaker was highly
disparaging of their complete

391
00:25:36,840 –> 00:25:40,120
inability to seriously stand
against the might of Assyria.

392
00:25:41,560 –> 00:25:45,800
But there was one more thing he
had to say, and perhaps the most

393
00:25:45,800 –> 00:25:49,600
telling blow of all, because he
says this in verse 10.

394
00:25:50,320 –> 00:25:55,440
And am I now come up without
Yahweh against this land to

395
00:25:55,440 –> 00:26:01,240
destroy it?
Yahweh said unto me, Go up

396
00:26:01,240 –> 00:26:04,200
against this land and destroy
it.

397
00:26:04,880 –> 00:26:07,080
Now it was an unbelievable
claim, when you think about it,

398
00:26:07,080 –> 00:26:10,120
to suggest that Sennacherib had
come against Judah at the

399
00:26:10,120 –> 00:26:12,520
express instruction of Yahweh
himself.

400
00:26:14,880 –> 00:26:18,680
Except it was true.
Because Isaiah the prophet had

401
00:26:18,680 –> 00:26:24,960
already said these words, Oh
Assyrian, the rod of mine anger,

402
00:26:25,680 –> 00:26:29,160
and the staff in their hand is
mine indignation.

403
00:26:29,320 –> 00:26:32,760
I will send him against an
hypocritical nation, and against

404
00:26:32,760 –> 00:26:36,240
the people of my wrath.
Will I give him a charge to take

405
00:26:36,240 –> 00:26:38,760
the spoil, and to take the prey,
and to tread them down like the

406
00:26:38,760 –> 00:26:42,000
mire of the streets?
Isaiah chapter 10, verses 5 and

407
00:26:42,000 –> 00:26:42,720
6.
So.

408
00:26:42,720 –> 00:26:45,560
So Nekrab was coming to execute
God’s judgments.

409
00:26:45,720 –> 00:26:47,480
How could Hezekiah argue about
that?

410
00:26:47,960 –> 00:26:51,520
How could he respond?
And how did Reb Shaken know

411
00:26:51,520 –> 00:26:56,520
about Isaiah’s prophecy?
By the time his speech to the

412
00:26:56,520 –> 00:27:02,560
king was ended, it was very
clear that the enemy without was

413
00:27:02,560 –> 00:27:06,960
being aided and abetted by the
enemy within.

414
00:27:09,200 –> 00:27:12,960
There were spies in the camp of
Judah, and the threat of that

415
00:27:12,960 –> 00:27:15,120
must have been very disturbing
indeed.

416
00:27:15,120 –> 00:27:18,720
Reb Shaker’s disclosure and his
dialogue were absolutely

417
00:27:18,800 –> 00:27:22,320
shattering in their effect.
Well, that leads to the

418
00:27:22,320 –> 00:27:25,720
interchange which now occurred
between Reb Shaker and the three

419
00:27:25,720 –> 00:27:30,040
deputies of his a car.
So it’s this middle section here

420
00:27:30,040 –> 00:27:32,760
if we just come back.
So now we’ve got the exchange

421
00:27:32,920 –> 00:27:35,800
verses 11 and 12 and and what
Rev Shaker was going to

422
00:27:35,800 –> 00:27:40,200
endeavour to do in this exchange
was to instigate fear through

423
00:27:40,200 –> 00:27:46,600
the terror of coarse reality.
So what happens is that Alaikum

424
00:27:46,600 –> 00:27:50,360
and Shevner and Java verse 11
said unto him, Speak, I pray

425
00:27:50,360 –> 00:27:52,440
thee unto thy servants in the
Syrian language.

426
00:27:52,720 –> 00:27:53,920
But we understand.
It.

427
00:27:54,320 –> 00:27:57,680
And speak not to us in the Jews
language that are in the ears in

428
00:27:57,680 –> 00:27:59,160
of the people that are on the
wall.

429
00:27:59,640 –> 00:28:02,040
Now you might remember later on
in this chapter, although we

430
00:28:02,040 –> 00:28:04,960
didn’t read it, but verse 21,
the King’s instruction was don’t

431
00:28:04,960 –> 00:28:07,280
say a word.
Don’t you say a word to Rab

432
00:28:07,280 –> 00:28:09,960
Shaker.
Well, the three deputies made

433
00:28:09,960 –> 00:28:15,120
the mistake of doing so because
that was so they recognized that

434
00:28:15,120 –> 00:28:16,640
this man was undermining the
nation.

435
00:28:16,640 –> 00:28:18,960
It was absolutely damaging their
face.

436
00:28:19,440 –> 00:28:21,840
And so they said they were so
concerned about the negative

437
00:28:21,840 –> 00:28:24,000
impact of his speech that they
did the thing the king said not

438
00:28:24,000 –> 00:28:25,280
to.
They spoke a word.

439
00:28:25,640 –> 00:28:27,680
And they pleaded.
With him to speak in a different

440
00:28:27,680 –> 00:28:30,200
tongue and it was the worst
thing they could have done

441
00:28:30,200 –> 00:28:33,520
because Reb Shaker spotted
skilled at showing it’s it’s

442
00:28:33,520 –> 00:28:37,280
spot at seeing signs of anxiety
and fear immediately swung

443
00:28:37,280 –> 00:28:39,280
round.
So it took so he could make sure

444
00:28:39,280 –> 00:28:42,320
that all the onlookers on the
wall could hear every word which

445
00:28:42,320 –> 00:28:48,000
followed bad mistake.
And these were the words that he

446
00:28:48,040 –> 00:28:52,560
then addressed, verse 12, in
response to the request of the

447
00:28:52,560 –> 00:28:54,760
deputies.
Now this is one of these verses,

448
00:28:54,760 –> 00:28:58,040
brothers and sisters, we need to
read with care, because we need

449
00:28:58,040 –> 00:29:02,400
to understand through the
vulgarity of the language what

450
00:29:02,400 –> 00:29:06,960
the meaning really was.
And so he said, verse 12 Rab

451
00:29:06,960 –> 00:29:12,080
Shaker said, Hath my Master sent
me to thy master, and to thee to

452
00:29:12,080 –> 00:29:15,120
speak these words?
No, no, he says, Hath he not

453
00:29:15,120 –> 00:29:17,640
sent me to the men that sit on
the wall, that they may eat

454
00:29:17,640 –> 00:29:20,440
their own dung and drink their
own urine with you?

455
00:29:20,440 –> 00:29:23,440
And in effect, what he was
really saying was, don’t worry

456
00:29:23,440 –> 00:29:26,120
about not wanting to share the
news with these other people on

457
00:29:26,120 –> 00:29:29,240
the wall.
When the siege comes and we’ve

458
00:29:29,240 –> 00:29:31,840
got you all trapped inside,
you’ll all share together.

459
00:29:32,120 –> 00:29:34,680
And they might as well know now
what they’re going to be sharing

460
00:29:34,680 –> 00:29:37,200
with you, because it won’t
matter what language I say it

461
00:29:37,200 –> 00:29:40,200
in.
You’ll share in the horror of

462
00:29:40,200 –> 00:29:43,600
being so desperate for
nourishment in the siege that

463
00:29:43,600 –> 00:29:46,320
you’ll eat and drink that which
comes of yourself in order to

464
00:29:46,320 –> 00:29:49,600
try and survive.
So you might as well know now

465
00:29:49,600 –> 00:29:51,000
what you’re all going to.
Share, he says.

466
00:29:52,920 –> 00:29:58,960
His words were brutal and
vulgar, but perfectly designed

467
00:29:58,960 –> 00:30:01,880
to terrify people into
submission, don’t you think?

468
00:30:03,640 –> 00:30:08,160
The horrors of a siege to come.
And then came the speech to the

469
00:30:08,160 –> 00:30:13,120
people, and that’s from verses
13 to 20.

470
00:30:14,000 –> 00:30:16,720
And just as there were two
sections in the speech to the

471
00:30:16,720 –> 00:30:20,520
king, I think there are two
parts of Reb Shaker’s speech to

472
00:30:20,520 –> 00:30:24,400
the people.
So this is how it looks from

473
00:30:24,400 –> 00:30:28,960
verses 13 to 17.
He sought to induce surrender

474
00:30:29,320 –> 00:30:31,600
through the cunning of
benevolent blandishment.

475
00:30:31,600 –> 00:30:34,880
So it’ll all be right, he says.
I can offer you good things,

476
00:30:35,200 –> 00:30:37,680
just.
Come along with me, Cooperate.

477
00:30:37,960 –> 00:30:42,280
All you need to do is cooperate.
And then finally, from verses 18

478
00:30:42,280 –> 00:30:45,720
to 20, he sought to destroy
trust through the power of

479
00:30:45,720 –> 00:30:47,920
irrefutable evidence.
You really think that your God

480
00:30:47,920 –> 00:30:50,080
can deliver you?
I’ll give you the utter proof

481
00:30:50,080 –> 00:30:54,120
that it’s completely impossible
for him to do so.

482
00:30:55,880 –> 00:30:59,800
So here it is, the speech.
Now to the people themselves,

483
00:31:00,640 –> 00:31:04,920
verse 13.
He he cried with a loud voice in

484
00:31:04,920 –> 00:31:09,160
the Jews language so he could
speak fluent Hebrew, you see.

485
00:31:09,360 –> 00:31:12,280
And so he did, straight back to
the men on the wall, and he was

486
00:31:12,280 –> 00:31:17,600
at pains to convince them to
abandon their loyalty to his a

487
00:31:17,600 –> 00:31:21,440
car to break the moral hold that
their king had upon them for

488
00:31:21,440 –> 00:31:25,200
good in trusting in Yahweh.
It was a deliberate attempt to

489
00:31:25,200 –> 00:31:28,800
divide them from their king, and
to undermine their confidence in

490
00:31:28,800 –> 00:31:30,480
him.
See this verse 14.

491
00:31:30,760 –> 00:31:35,320
Let not Hezekiah deceive you,
verse 15.

492
00:31:35,680 –> 00:31:39,040
Neither let Hezekiah make you
trust in Yahweh.

493
00:31:39,200 –> 00:31:42,520
Verse 16.
Hearken not to Hezekiah, verse

494
00:31:42,520 –> 00:31:43,600
18.
But where?

495
00:31:43,600 –> 00:31:47,400
Lest Hezekiah entice you.
See, Reb Shaker was endeavoring

496
00:31:47,400 –> 00:31:49,560
to divide the people from their
king.

497
00:31:50,040 –> 00:31:53,040
And just as there was a keyword
in his early address to the to

498
00:31:53,040 –> 00:31:55,920
the to, to the king himself
about the matter of trust, so

499
00:31:55,920 –> 00:31:58,680
now the keyword, as we’ve
noticed in the second speech, is

500
00:31:58,680 –> 00:32:00,960
the question of deliverance.
Because that was the issue at

501
00:32:00,960 –> 00:32:02,200
stake.
You see, now that he’s talking

502
00:32:02,200 –> 00:32:06,000
to the people, was Yahweh their
God powerful enough to deliver

503
00:32:06,000 –> 00:32:09,320
them from this crisis?
And was Hezekiah their king,

504
00:32:09,480 –> 00:32:11,320
right.
And asking them to commit to

505
00:32:11,320 –> 00:32:13,920
such implicit trust in their
God.

506
00:32:15,240 –> 00:32:16,680
Well, Reb Shaker would come to
that.

507
00:32:16,680 –> 00:32:19,720
But before he did, he tried an
alternative approach which was

508
00:32:19,720 –> 00:32:23,120
designed to induce their
surrender by the promise of

509
00:32:23,280 –> 00:32:26,840
well, peace and plenty, if they
were just prepared to cooperate.

510
00:32:28,040 –> 00:32:32,040
So he says verse 16, he said,
how can not to Hezekiah?

511
00:32:32,040 –> 00:32:33,600
He said thus saith the king of
Assyria.

512
00:32:33,680 –> 00:32:38,640
Make an agreement with me, He.
Says by a present and come out

513
00:32:38,640 –> 00:32:40,520
to me.
Now that word agreement, you

514
00:32:40,520 –> 00:32:42,280
might notice, is not in the
original.

515
00:32:42,560 –> 00:32:44,800
And the word.
Present usually means a

516
00:32:44,800 –> 00:32:47,480
blessing.
So the Septuagint says, if you

517
00:32:47,480 –> 00:32:50,040
would be blessed, come forth
unto me.

518
00:32:50,240 –> 00:32:53,520
The revised version says, make
your peace with me and come out

519
00:32:53,520 –> 00:32:55,480
to me.
And it’s that second phrase that

520
00:32:55,480 –> 00:32:58,240
I think tells us the story of
what Rap Shaker was really

521
00:32:58,240 –> 00:33:00,440
asking.
Come.

522
00:33:00,560 –> 00:33:02,200
Out.
To me, he says.

523
00:33:02,200 –> 00:33:03,720
But what does that really mean?
Come out?

524
00:33:03,720 –> 00:33:07,320
To me it means to go out and
surrender.

525
00:33:08,600 –> 00:33:11,960
It means to walk outside, to
give themselves up and to

526
00:33:11,960 –> 00:33:14,200
concede defeat.
And that little phrase come out

527
00:33:14,200 –> 00:33:16,840
as used that way in other Bible
passages.

528
00:33:16,960 –> 00:33:21,360
First of Samuel 11 verse 3
Second of Kings 24 verse 12

529
00:33:21,520 –> 00:33:24,400
Jeremiah 21 verse 9 come out
meant.

530
00:33:24,760 –> 00:33:26,920
To give up.
To surrender?

531
00:33:26,920 –> 00:33:28,440
Absolutely.
So what?

532
00:33:28,480 –> 00:33:32,800
What Reb Shaker was asking for
was their total capitulation to

533
00:33:32,800 –> 00:33:37,000
Sennacherib in exchange for the
guarantee that their lives would

534
00:33:37,000 –> 00:33:39,680
be safe.
With the promise of some return

535
00:33:39,680 –> 00:33:42,200
to normality and he made it
sound so good.

536
00:33:42,360 –> 00:33:46,360
Verse 16 he says, look, he says
EE every one of his vine, and

537
00:33:46,360 –> 00:33:48,840
every one of his fig tree, and
drink every one of the waters of

538
00:33:48,840 –> 00:33:50,000
his own system.
But.

539
00:33:51,480 –> 00:33:53,120
Where do those words?
Come from.

540
00:33:53,360 –> 00:33:56,760
Did you catch the echo?
That’s Micah chapter 4, verse 4,

541
00:33:56,760 –> 00:33:58,240
isn’t it?
They shall sit every man under

542
00:33:58,240 –> 00:34:00,800
his thine and under his fig
tree, and none shall make them

543
00:34:00,800 –> 00:34:01,480
afraid.
Why?

544
00:34:01,560 –> 00:34:04,160
Perhaps Shaker made it sound
almost biblical, what he was

545
00:34:04,160 –> 00:34:06,960
offering, but not only could he
quote the prophecy of Isaiah

546
00:34:07,080 –> 00:34:09,320
chapter 10, but he knew about
Micah chapter 4.

547
00:34:09,400 –> 00:34:12,080
He could quote Hebrew prophets
back to Hebrew people.

548
00:34:12,159 –> 00:34:17,480
Did this man?
So verse 17 says, Until I come

549
00:34:17,480 –> 00:34:21,000
and take you away to a land like
your own, a land of corn and

550
00:34:21,000 –> 00:34:22,679
wine, a land of bread and
vineyards.

551
00:34:22,679 –> 00:34:26,040
It all was presented as a
wonderful alternative, the

552
00:34:26,040 –> 00:34:30,320
alluring prospect of peaceful
resettlement in another land

553
00:34:30,440 –> 00:34:34,040
that was rich and fertile, no
threat to war, no constraint to

554
00:34:34,040 –> 00:34:37,760
freedom.
But behind his promises.

555
00:34:38,880 –> 00:34:42,719
They alert a much more sinister
objective because the reality

556
00:34:42,719 –> 00:34:45,800
was that Reb Shaker was only
promising really a temporary

557
00:34:45,800 –> 00:34:49,000
respite until the Assyrians
returned to complete their

558
00:34:49,000 –> 00:34:53,320
control.
And when they did, Judah would

559
00:34:53,320 –> 00:34:56,520
be taken away.
They would be subject to

560
00:34:56,520 –> 00:34:59,160
enforced deportation to a
foreign land.

561
00:34:59,680 –> 00:35:01,560
They would lose their national
identity.

562
00:35:01,560 –> 00:35:03,880
They would be separated from the
land of their fathers.

563
00:35:04,000 –> 00:35:07,520
So when he said a land like your
own land, he said, But even if

564
00:35:07,520 –> 00:35:10,120
that land did have corn and wine
and oil and honey, the

565
00:35:10,120 –> 00:35:13,880
difference was that land would
be given to them by Sennacherib.

566
00:35:14,960 –> 00:35:17,720
So he would be their sovereign
Lord and they know their

567
00:35:17,720 –> 00:35:21,840
continued allegiance to him.
They wouldn’t be anymore living

568
00:35:21,840 –> 00:35:25,520
as Yahweh’s people in Yahweh’s
land, serving Yahweh as their

569
00:35:25,520 –> 00:35:28,440
God.
They would serve Sennacherib.

570
00:35:29,760 –> 00:35:34,800
The price of freedom was
surrender, with all its

571
00:35:34,800 –> 00:35:38,920
consequences, but for those on
that.

572
00:35:38,920 –> 00:35:40,360
Day.
In that city, on the wall,

573
00:35:40,360 –> 00:35:44,280
facing the threat of brutal,
savage, merciless annihilation,

574
00:35:44,360 –> 00:35:47,360
and whose hearts were not stayed
upon their God, even that

575
00:35:47,360 –> 00:35:49,880
prospect might have seemed
attractive.

576
00:35:52,720 –> 00:35:55,680
And so, having carefully placed
that possibility before them,

577
00:35:55,840 –> 00:35:58,440
reb shaken now came back to the
question of whether deliverance

578
00:35:58,440 –> 00:36:02,080
through their king or by their
God was even possible at all.

579
00:36:02,280 –> 00:36:06,760
And so he says this in verse 18.
But where lest Hezekiah persuade

580
00:36:06,760 –> 00:36:09,480
you, saying Yahweh will deliver
us.

581
00:36:10,040 –> 00:36:12,280
That word persuade,
incidentally, is used elsewhere,

582
00:36:12,400 –> 00:36:16,360
meaning to entice or to incite.
So I think what Reb Shaker was

583
00:36:16,360 –> 00:36:19,720
claiming is that what Hezekiah
was doing and putting the nation

584
00:36:19,720 –> 00:36:23,600
to asking the nation to trust in
God was to entice them in in the

585
00:36:23,600 –> 00:36:27,160
sense of leading them astray.
Don’t let him mislead you was

586
00:36:27,160 –> 00:36:31,680
what Reb Shaker was saying.
And then he says, why verse 19

587
00:36:31,680 –> 00:36:34,160
or the end of verse 18?
Hath any of the gods of the

588
00:36:34,160 –> 00:36:37,400
nations delivered his hand out
of the delivered his land out of

589
00:36:37,400 –> 00:36:40,640
the hand of the king of Assyria?
Where were the gods of Hamas and

590
00:36:40,640 –> 00:36:41,320
Arf?
Ed?

591
00:36:41,760 –> 00:36:44,800
We’re the gods of Sephabaeum.
And have they delivered Samaria

592
00:36:44,800 –> 00:36:47,920
out of my hand?
Now there was a telling blow.

593
00:36:48,040 –> 00:36:49,960
Verse 19.
More than you realize, but the

594
00:36:49,960 –> 00:36:52,640
sisters, because it’s one thing
to say, where are the gods of

595
00:36:52,640 –> 00:36:55,240
Hamath and Arthed, and where are
the gods of Sephabaeum?

596
00:36:55,480 –> 00:36:58,000
None of those nations were
delivered out of the hand of the

597
00:36:58,000 –> 00:37:01,000
Assyrians by their gods.
But who was the God of Samaria?

598
00:37:05,040 –> 00:37:07,520
Now the God of Samaria was
Yahweh.

599
00:37:10,840 –> 00:37:14,360
Who already had been unable to
deliver the northern Kingdom

600
00:37:14,440 –> 00:37:21,640
apparently out of this hand of
king of king king Senekarib.

601
00:37:23,000 –> 00:37:25,640
Now the fact is that Yahweh had
permitted Israel to be carried

602
00:37:25,640 –> 00:37:28,880
away into captivity, but Reb
Shakers in Prince was that even

603
00:37:28,880 –> 00:37:32,400
the God of Samaria had been had
been powerless to resist the

604
00:37:32,400 –> 00:37:36,200
Assyrian might imagine what the
people of the wall felt about

605
00:37:36,200 –> 00:37:39,080
that.
So he says verse 20.

606
00:37:39,320 –> 00:37:42,640
Who are they among all the gods
of these lands that have

607
00:37:42,640 –> 00:37:46,760
delivered their land out of my
hand that Yahweh should deliver

608
00:37:46,760 –> 00:37:50,920
Jerusalem out of my hand.
So if not one of these gods has

609
00:37:50,920 –> 00:37:52,440
been able to deliver their
people.

610
00:37:52,440 –> 00:37:55,000
Why would you believe that
Yahweh can do what no one else

611
00:37:55,000 –> 00:37:57,520
can do?
So here’s the final thrust of

612
00:37:57,520 –> 00:37:59,760
Reb Shaker.
But this really is where he made

613
00:37:59,760 –> 00:38:02,040
his fatal mistake.
Because you see, he’d done his

614
00:38:02,040 –> 00:38:06,880
best to cast doubts on his
acquire, but now, at the very

615
00:38:06,880 –> 00:38:10,160
end of his message, he
blasphemed the name and the

616
00:38:10,160 –> 00:38:13,480
character of Yahweh himself.
And it was that thought that

617
00:38:13,480 –> 00:38:17,200
would finally spell the doom of
Rap Shaker’s mission.

618
00:38:18,640 –> 00:38:24,080
He was a skilled man, this one.
His challenge had been a

619
00:38:24,080 –> 00:38:29,560
masterpiece of coercion and a
master class in the power of

620
00:38:29,560 –> 00:38:35,600
hostile propaganda.
But now his speech was ended and

621
00:38:35,600 –> 00:38:37,360
he awaited the reply of the
deputies.

622
00:38:39,120 –> 00:38:44,520
Verse 21 says that they held
their peace and answered them

623
00:38:44,520 –> 00:38:47,440
not a word.
For the King’s commandment was

624
00:38:47,440 –> 00:38:49,280
saying, answer him, not.
See.

625
00:38:49,280 –> 00:38:52,040
In most places where Reb Shaker
had been sent, his verbal

626
00:38:52,040 –> 00:38:55,160
onslaughts had been enough all
by themselves to break morale,

627
00:38:55,240 –> 00:38:58,080
to engender fear, and even to
induce surrender.

628
00:38:58,240 –> 00:39:01,080
But this time, despite the fact
that he was an expert in

629
00:39:01,080 –> 00:39:03,440
provoking a response, this time
was very different.

630
00:39:03,480 –> 00:39:07,080
There was no reply at all.
None of the three spokesman

631
00:39:07,080 –> 00:39:09,880
standing before him on behalf of
the King had anything to say.

632
00:39:10,000 –> 00:39:11,080
And here’s the interesting
thing.

633
00:39:11,080 –> 00:39:13,240
Not a single person on that wall
spoke a word.

634
00:39:13,400 –> 00:39:16,720
It shows you, don’t you think?
How powerful was the King’s

635
00:39:16,720 –> 00:39:20,280
leadership of Judah at this
moment when they all obeyed him?

636
00:39:20,280 –> 00:39:24,840
To a man, not a single person
broke rank, and the reason was

637
00:39:24,960 –> 00:39:29,640
that Hezekiah uniquely had that
ability to inspire them to trust

638
00:39:29,640 –> 00:39:32,280
in God like no other king had.
Ever been able to do?

639
00:39:32,440 –> 00:39:34,800
And so the messengers of the
king simply turned around and

640
00:39:34,800 –> 00:39:36,680
went back into the city without
comment.

641
00:39:38,720 –> 00:39:41,960
Amazing.
You know, brothers and sisters,

642
00:39:41,960 –> 00:39:48,440
there’s a lesson here is that in
times of crisis, there can be

643
00:39:48,440 –> 00:39:52,760
great strength in learning to
keep silence.

644
00:39:56,520 –> 00:40:00,440
Psalm 39 verses 1 and 2 says,
I’ll keep my mouth with a bridle

645
00:40:00,440 –> 00:40:03,080
while the wicked is before me.
I was done with silence.

646
00:40:04,160 –> 00:40:07,720
Proverbs 10 verse 19 says in the
multitude of words they wanteth

647
00:40:07,720 –> 00:40:11,200
not sin, but he that refraineth
his lips is wise.

648
00:40:12,320 –> 00:40:15,440
Proverbs 17 verse 28 says Even a
fool, when he holdeth his

649
00:40:15,440 –> 00:40:18,920
pieces, counted wise, and he
that shuteth his lips, is

650
00:40:18,920 –> 00:40:24,040
esteemed a man of understanding.
Ecclesiastes 3 verses one to

651
00:40:24,040 –> 00:40:27,840
seven, one and seven says there
is a time to every purpose under

652
00:40:27,840 –> 00:40:31,120
heaven, a time to rend and a
time to sow, a time to keep

653
00:40:31,120 –> 00:40:35,040
silence and a time to speak.
And you see, the thing about

654
00:40:35,040 –> 00:40:40,320
silence, brothers and sisters,
is that sometimes in moments of

655
00:40:40,320 –> 00:40:46,520
real crisis, it could be based
that silence.

656
00:40:46,520 –> 00:40:49,280
Is at least.
Our first response?

657
00:40:51,360 –> 00:40:57,000
So Rev Shaker received no supply
to energize his next attack, no

658
00:40:57,000 –> 00:41:00,480
feedback to help in deciding his
next approach, no response to

659
00:41:00,480 –> 00:41:02,800
give any clue as to whether his
speech had worked or not.

660
00:41:02,960 –> 00:41:05,280
He didn’t know whether the
people have been swayed towards

661
00:41:05,280 –> 00:41:08,960
capitulation or whether they’d
remained resolution their

662
00:41:08,960 –> 00:41:11,640
determination to stand against
Synecra.

663
00:41:12,040 –> 00:41:15,680
So perhaps there was some wisdom
in his Akai silence.

664
00:41:16,360 –> 00:41:18,960
He wouldn’t, he wouldn’t
communicate with him and his

665
00:41:18,960 –> 00:41:22,760
commandment not to answer him
left Reb Shaker at the end at a

666
00:41:22,760 –> 00:41:24,040
complete disadvantage.
He.

667
00:41:25,000 –> 00:41:27,840
Had to leave.
Baffled by the experience, but

668
00:41:27,840 –> 00:41:29,800
there was no doubt that the
delegation of the king was

669
00:41:29,800 –> 00:41:31,240
shaken by the words they’d
heard.

670
00:41:31,240 –> 00:41:34,920
Because you see what verse 22
says then came alike in the son

671
00:41:34,920 –> 00:41:38,440
of Hill Kai that was over the
household, and Shebner the

672
00:41:38,440 –> 00:41:41,200
scribe and Joe are the son of
Asaph the recorder to Hezekiah

673
00:41:41,280 –> 00:41:44,120
with their clothes rent, and
told him the words of Reb

674
00:41:44,120 –> 00:41:46,720
Shaker.
And neither they nor the king

675
00:41:46,720 –> 00:41:49,800
were under any illusion as to
the crisis which they faced.

676
00:41:50,000 –> 00:41:55,200
The very survival of the nation
was under threat, and humanly

677
00:41:55,200 –> 00:41:58,920
speaking, the possibility of
escape from that threat seemed

678
00:41:59,400 –> 00:42:02,960
impossible.
So this is what the king did,

679
00:42:03,240 –> 00:42:05,760
Isaiah 37 verse one.
It came to pass when King

680
00:42:05,760 –> 00:42:09,040
Hezekiah heard it that he rent
his clothes and covered himself

681
00:42:09,040 –> 00:42:11,640
with sackcloth and went into the
House of Yahweh.

682
00:42:12,280 –> 00:42:14,600
Now you’ll know, brothers and
sisters, that sackcloth means

683
00:42:14,600 –> 00:42:17,560
many things in Scripture, but
just notice this in terms of

684
00:42:17,640 –> 00:42:22,000
what it is associated with.
In Esther 4, verse 1, sackcloth

685
00:42:22,000 –> 00:42:24,840
and ashes are associated with
bitter crying.

686
00:42:26,640 –> 00:42:30,280
In Isaiah 58, verse 5, sackcloth
and ashes are associated with

687
00:42:30,400 –> 00:42:35,320
the afflicting of our soul.
In Jeremiah 6, verse 26,

688
00:42:35,320 –> 00:42:37,960
sackcloth and ashes are
associated with mourning and

689
00:42:37,960 –> 00:42:41,280
bitter lamentation.
And in Daniel 9, verse 3,

690
00:42:41,280 –> 00:42:44,640
sackcloth and ashes are
associated with prayers and

691
00:42:44,640 –> 00:42:46,920
supplications.
And I think all of these things

692
00:42:46,920 –> 00:42:49,920
were involved in the spirit of
what Hezekiah sought to do at

693
00:42:49,920 –> 00:42:52,880
this particular moment of time.
Now stop and think about this

694
00:42:52,880 –> 00:42:55,920
for a moment.
Here’s a car.

695
00:42:56,160 –> 00:43:02,240
Hadn’t asked for this crisis.
He hadn’t done anything worthy

696
00:43:02,240 –> 00:43:04,360
of this invasion.
It wasn’t his fault.

697
00:43:05,760 –> 00:43:08,360
But do you notice, brothers and
sisters, that in the context of

698
00:43:08,360 –> 00:43:13,920
what he does, he didn’t assume
any personal righteousness

699
00:43:13,920 –> 00:43:17,640
before his God.
Instead, he humbled himself and

700
00:43:17,640 –> 00:43:19,760
did what he always did in times
of trouble.

701
00:43:19,840 –> 00:43:21,320
He came before his God in
prayer.

702
00:43:22,560 –> 00:43:26,440
And in that action, he took time
to reflect upon the crisis that

703
00:43:26,440 –> 00:43:28,760
lay before him.
He didn’t assume any matter of

704
00:43:28,760 –> 00:43:32,080
right before his God.
He put sackcloth on immediately.

705
00:43:34,560 –> 00:43:39,000
So here’s the question.
What do we do and how do we

706
00:43:39,000 –> 00:43:46,360
react when facing a crisis that
feels so overwhelming that it

707
00:43:46,360 –> 00:43:51,600
looks like there’s no way out?
And perhaps our first lesson

708
00:43:51,640 –> 00:43:55,720
from this matter of crises in
life and how to face them,

709
00:43:55,800 –> 00:43:59,080
perhaps our first lesson is to
be found in the King’s response

710
00:43:59,080 –> 00:44:00,280
here.
Because I don’t think it was

711
00:44:00,280 –> 00:44:02,760
just a matter of silence.
You see, I think there was

712
00:44:02,760 –> 00:44:05,160
something more to what Hezekiah
was doing here.

713
00:44:05,360 –> 00:44:08,040
And I think this is our first
lesson, brothers and sisters, in

714
00:44:08,040 –> 00:44:11,920
terms of what to do when crisis
comes upon us.

715
00:44:14,000 –> 00:44:22,520
And it’s this we need to take
time for careful assessment.

716
00:44:25,600 –> 00:44:28,480
Doesn’t matter what the crisis
is, we need to take time to

717
00:44:28,480 –> 00:44:30,520
think it through.
Just have a look at these

718
00:44:30,520 –> 00:44:33,720
passages.
Proverbs 14, verse 29.

719
00:44:33,720 –> 00:44:36,400
He that’s slow to anger is of
great understanding, but he

720
00:44:36,400 –> 00:44:40,040
that’s hasty, hasty of spirit
exalt of folly.

721
00:44:40,640 –> 00:44:44,080
Or again in Proverbs 19 verse 2,
the soul that be without

722
00:44:44,080 –> 00:44:46,920
knowledge, it’s not good, and he
that hasteth with his feet

723
00:44:46,920 –> 00:44:50,160
sinneth.
Or Proverbs 29 verse 20, See us

724
00:44:50,160 –> 00:44:52,720
there a man that is hasty in his
words.

725
00:44:52,840 –> 00:44:55,000
There’s more hope of a fool than
of him.

726
00:44:55,520 –> 00:44:58,720
Or again in the Ecclesiastes 5
verse 2, Be not rest with thy

727
00:44:58,720 –> 00:45:01,640
mouth.
Let not thine heart be hasty to

728
00:45:01,640 –> 00:45:04,000
utter anything before God, that
thy words be few.

729
00:45:04,000 –> 00:45:07,200
And all these passages and these
words, brothers and sisters, all

730
00:45:07,200 –> 00:45:11,720
suggest an impetuosity of spirit
that’s too quick, too anxious,

731
00:45:11,880 –> 00:45:20,200
too rushed.
In times of crisis, there’s a

732
00:45:20,200 –> 00:45:27,040
need to take a pause before we
do anything, because the stress

733
00:45:27,120 –> 00:45:31,320
of a crisis can so easily lead
to making hasty judgements or

734
00:45:31,320 –> 00:45:35,960
rash decisions.
When our defences are down and

735
00:45:36,000 –> 00:45:41,240
our emotions run high, it’s easy
to jump to conclusions before

736
00:45:41,240 –> 00:45:45,160
collecting all the facts, or to
react unwisely before assessing

737
00:45:45,160 –> 00:45:47,920
all the consequences.
There’s great wisdom in having a

738
00:45:47,920 –> 00:45:55,960
pause time, time to assess.
Do you know that Someone once

739
00:45:55,960 –> 00:45:58,960
said, I think it was incorrectly
attributed to Einstein, but I

740
00:45:58,960 –> 00:46:01,200
don’t think it was he.
But someone once said these

741
00:46:01,200 –> 00:46:05,440
words, if I had an hour to solve
a problem, I would spend 55

742
00:46:05,440 –> 00:46:08,880
minutes defining the problem and
then 5 minutes and seeking to

743
00:46:08,880 –> 00:46:12,800
solve it.
And I think what that statement

744
00:46:12,800 –> 00:46:15,720
illustrates, you see, is it’s
possible for us to think in our

745
00:46:15,720 –> 00:46:17,720
haste that we’ve solved the
problem.

746
00:46:19,960 –> 00:46:22,120
I need to find that we’ve
addressed the symptoms of the

747
00:46:22,120 –> 00:46:26,920
problem, but we haven’t
understood the problem at all.

748
00:46:29,680 –> 00:46:31,160
I think a lot of crises are like
that.

749
00:46:33,480 –> 00:46:35,120
We need time to even know what
the problem is.

750
00:46:35,120 –> 00:46:39,240
And there’s another very good
reason why we need to take our

751
00:46:39,240 –> 00:46:43,400
time, because part of working
through any issue properly

752
00:46:43,400 –> 00:46:46,640
requires us to bring the
Scriptures to be upon that

753
00:46:46,640 –> 00:46:49,120
issue.
What Bible principles, what

754
00:46:49,120 –> 00:46:53,040
Bible passages stand related to
this problem and how best might

755
00:46:53,040 –> 00:46:54,880
we deal with it?
What are the change

756
00:46:54,880 –> 00:46:58,280
circumstances which this crisis
could lead me into?

757
00:46:58,600 –> 00:47:02,000
Or what is the altered condition
which this crisis has already

758
00:47:02,000 –> 00:47:04,160
produced?
And now what is the best

759
00:47:04,160 –> 00:47:08,520
scriptural council that might
guide me in the steps I now need

760
00:47:08,520 –> 00:47:12,880
to take?
Taking time for careful

761
00:47:12,880 –> 00:47:16,040
assessment, and especially in
times of crisis.

762
00:47:16,160 –> 00:47:21,640
I think it’s a divine principle.
It will help us to face the

763
00:47:21,640 –> 00:47:24,280
issues of life with better
understanding.

764
00:47:25,040 –> 00:47:30,920
We need a thorough knowledge of
what the problem really is and a

765
00:47:30,920 –> 00:47:35,600
much more carefully nuanced
basis on how best to respond in

766
00:47:35,600 –> 00:47:39,960
a matter and in a manner which
most of all, will seek to honour

767
00:47:39,960 –> 00:47:44,120
our God.
If we can take counsel from his

768
00:47:44,120 –> 00:47:47,560
a car in this matter, we’ll be
all the better for it.

769
00:47:47,560 –> 00:47:54,600
Brothers and sisters, as one of
our hymns said, the hosts of God

770
00:47:55,240 –> 00:48:01,480
in camp around the dwellings of
the just deliverance he affords

771
00:48:01,480 –> 00:48:08,120
to all who on his sucker trust
fear him, he cites.

772
00:48:09,240 –> 00:48:12,400
And you will then have nothing
else to fear.

773
00:48:13,600 –> 00:48:21,440
Make you his service, Your
delight, your wants shall be his

774
00:48:21,440 –> 00:48:21,920
care.