Sunday, March 10, 2019

Hezekiah faces adversity and his trust in the Lord is tested

In the latter part of the 18th chapter from the book of 2 Kings, Hezekiah is questioned by a servant to the Assyrian king, asking why he is so confident when the might of the Assyrian military is strong?  It was suggested that they not lean on the help of Egypt, for the Egyptian Pharaoh is unreliable.

Hezekiah was mocked for his trust in the Lord, when it was Hezekiah who tore down the temples in Judah.

Then, as a last ditch effort, the servant offered 2,000 horses to ride against Assyrian, knowing that even with that much of a head start, they could not win.

The Assyrian servant told the people of Judah not to rely on Hezekiah, for he was trying to deceive them.  But the people of Judah did not answer him, for Hezekiah told them not to, for the Lord would protect them.

The insults continued in chapter 19.  Hezekiah delivered a message to Isaiah, who then informed the king not to listen to the blasphemy.  The Lord would help him.  In the end, after much back and forth with other allied nations, an angel of the Lord killed 185,000 Assyrian soldiers, driving them back to their own lands.

Then, as a final act, the Assyrian king was assassinated by two of his own sons, and another son took his place.

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