So now, O LORD our God, save us, please, from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, O LORD, are God alone.”
Assyria's king had sent a letter mocking the God of Israel. Hezekiah brought it to the house of the Lord, and here he asks to be saved — but the reason he gives is God's name, not his own safety.
Where the Prayer Begins
Before he asks for anything, Hezekiah says who God is. One writer links that order to the way the Lord Jesus taught people to pray:
Leslie M. GrantThen Hezekiah prayed. In his prayer he did not first plead for help. Instead he gives God His place of absolute pre-eminence and dignity: "O LORD, the God of Israel, enthroned above the cherubim, you are the God, you alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; you have made heaven and earth" (v.15). Does this not remind us of what the Lord Jesus taught about how to pray? — "Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name." "Father" speaks of God's primacy. "In heaven" speaks of His supremacy. "Hallowed be your name" speaks of His dignity as apart from all others.
The Reason He Gives
Hezekiah had already been to the house of the Lord once in this crisis. His second visit had a different character:
H. L. RossierHezekiah goes up to the house of the Lord a second time. This time it is not about humbling himself, as the first visit was. This time the name of the Lord whom Hezekiah honours is under direct attack. God must take account of this letter. The king places God's cause into God's own hands. But he knows that the Lord will save His humbled people, to honour His own name.
Another writer notes how wide Hezekiah makes his reason for asking:
Leslie M. GrantHe did not limit the reason for this to Jerusalem's need for deliverance. Rather, he wanted all the kingdoms of the earth to know that God is the LORD, and He alone. Is it possible that God could ignore a plea like this? Certainly not!
Why the Other Nations Fell
Assyria really had destroyed nation after nation. Hezekiah admits it, then turns the fact into his case:
C. H. MackintoshHezekiah puts the whole matter into the Lord's hands and steps out of it himself. He does not try to make the difficulty look small. He admits that "the kings of Assyria have laid waste the nations and their lands." But why did those nations fall? Because their gods were not like the Lord. They never knew what it was to put their case into the hands of the living God who made heaven and earth. This was the secret of their overthrow. What triumphant faith! What bold, confident pleading!
Leaving God Room to Act
Hezekiah wore sackcloth instead of armour. One writer reads that as his confession that he could do nothing himself:
C. H. MackintoshThe Lord will never refuse to come into a difficulty, if only we let Him act and do not rob Him of His own glory... Others have noticed that grace enabled Hezekiah to step out of the difficulty altogether. He covered himself with sackcloth instead of putting on his armour. That very act declared that he could not cope with the king of Assyria. His posture in the house of the Lord said this — God or nothing.
The Answer That Matches the Plea
Hezekiah defended God's honour. One writer shows how God answered in kind:
H. L. RossierIf Hezekiah carries his God's interests on his heart when the enemy attacks, the Lord answers him. He will not let the world insult "the virgin daughter of Zion," since she is the bride of the Great King... So God defends the character and honour of His beloved ones, guilty but humbled, when they defend His own honour and character.
The Habit Behind the Prayer
Hezekiah took the letter and spread it out in God's presence. One writer turns that action into a pattern for everyone:
Arno Clemens GaebeleinAgain Hezekiah goes with it straight to the LORD. He read it and went up into the house of the LORD and spread it before the LORD. Think what blessing there would be in the lives of all God's people! Think what wonderful evidence of His power and His love we might have — if we took everything that happened to us straight into the presence of God and spread it out before Him!
Summary
- Spread it out. The threat came as a letter. Hezekiah did not answer the man. He took the letter to God and spread it open before Him.
- God first. Hezekiah names who God is before he asks for anything. Primacy, supremacy, dignity — then the need.
- Step aside. Sackcloth instead of armour said "God or nothing." God will enter any difficulty, as long as we let Him act and do not rob Him of His glory.
- His name, not our rescue. Hezekiah asks for more than Jerusalem's survival. He asks that all the kingdoms of the earth may know God — a plea God will not ignore.
- He honours those who honour Him. Hezekiah guarded God's honour. God answered by guarding His people's honour — the city He calls the bride of the Great King.