In those days Hezekiah became sick and was at the point of death.
Isaiah 38:1
“Those days” is a reference to a time when God’s people were under attack. The king of Assyria had invaded the Promised Land. He began in the north, where 10 tribes had broken away from the line of David. The northern kingdom was overwhelmed, and its people were scattered.
This is a story about an unexpected change in the life of King Hezekiah. He was a direct descendent of David and he ruled in the south. And when the northern kingdom collapsed, the King of Assyria moved against the south, and demanded the king’s surrender. Hezekiah took the letter into the temple and spread it out before the Lord. This is how he prayed:
“O LORD, our God, save us, please… that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, O LORD, are God alone” (2 Kings 19:19).
God answered Hezekiah’s prayer, and you can read the story of how the Lord delivered His people from the power of the Assyrian army in 2 Kings 19. It’s a great story, but then we read in 2 Kings 20, and here in Isaiah 38, that “in those days” Hezekiah became sick. The great king whose prayer was heard, was suddenly staring death in the face. God had delivered him from one crisis and now he was facing another!
Think about a time you were delivered from one crisis only to face another. How did you respond?
