The son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent envoys… to Hezekiah for he heard that he had been sick… And Hezekiah… showed them his treasure house.
Isaiah 39:1-2
Babylon was the rising superpower of the day, and Hezekiah wanted to impress the envoys. He couldn’t resist showing off his treasure.
The envoys tell their crown prince, “There is serious money in Jerusalem.” And the crown prince says, “One day that treasure will be ours.”
Isaiah the prophet warns Hezekiah, “The days are coming, when all that is in your house… shall be carried to Babylon. Nothing shall be left, says the LORD” (39:5-6). Good people can make disastrous decisions. And Hezekiah’s folly sowed the seed of his kingdom’s destruction.
When Hezekiah heard this, he spoke one of the saddest statements in the Bible. Isaiah had also told the king that his sons would be taken away (39:7), which meant that the plundering would be in the future. And Hezekiah knew that he would only live another fifteen years.
“Then Hezekiah said to Isaiah, ‘The word of the LORD… is good.’ For he thought, ‘There will be peace and security in my days’” (39:8). That is sheer selfishness! “Who cares what happens to the next generation? Judgment is coming, and I don’t care as long as I am not caught up in it.”
God has told us that a day of judgement is coming on the world. And it is easy to think, “That’s all right as long as it doesn’t come near me. The world can end up in hell as long as we don’t go with them.”
What Hezekiah said and what Hezekiah did were very different. He said to God, “If you give my life back, I will walk humbly all my days.” But what he did was all about exalting himself.
Where would you place yourself on a scale of (1) humbly thinking of others, to (5) living for yourself?
