God had promised the Israelites that He would provide for them as they were in the path of the advancing Assyrian army. This daily devotional looks at how He fulfilled that promise.
Nuggets
- God is always with us as He never leaves us.
- God wants our confession.
- God wants us to get to the point that we totally depend on Him.
- Sometimes, God responds right away; sometimes, He makes us wait.
- The remnant escaped.
Devotions in the Isaiah’s Message from Sovereign God series
The last time we left Isaiah and the Israelites, they were fixing to get overrun by the Assyrians – or so they thought. God promised that He would provide for them.
God keeps His promises. He delivered the Israelites from the Assyrian army. Let’s see how.
Let's Put It into Context
“So the servants of King Hezekiah went to Isaiah, who said to them, ‘Tell your master, ‘The Lord says this: Don’t be afraid because of the words you have heard, with which the king of Assyria’s attendants have blasphemed me. I am about to put a spirit in him and he will hear a rumor and return to his own land, where I will cause him to fall by the sword’” (Isa. 37: 5-7 CSB)
“… So when [Sennacherib] heard this, he sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying, ‘Say this to King Hezekiah of Judah: “Don’t let your God, on whom you rely, deceive you by promising that Jerusalem won’t be handed over to the king of Assyria. Look, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the countries: they completely destroyed them. Will you be rescued? Did the gods of the nations that my predecessors destroyed rescue them — Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the Edenites in Telassar? Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the city of Sepharvaim, Hena, or Ivvah?’” (Isa. 37: 9-13 CSB)
Okay, Hezekiah did right. He went to Isaiah to get a message from God.
But Hezekiah also got a message from Sennacherib — a totally different message. Problem was, Sennacherib’s message was really a message from Satan.
It is a standard Satan message — we can’t depend on God to do what He says He will do.
Ooo, baby. If that would happen, we would really be in a pickle.
Sennacherib was correct. All of those other people groups and cities had fallen to the Assyrian army.
There was one big difference. Those who fell did not have Sovereign God fighting for them.
What Was Hezekiah’s Prayer?
“Hezekiah took the letter from the messengers’ hands, read it, then went up to the Lord’s temple and spread it out before the Lord. Then Hezekiah prayed to the Lord: Lord of Armies, God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you are God — you alone — of all the kingdoms of the earth. You made the heavens and the earth. Listen closely, Lord, and hear; open your eyes, Lord, and see. Hear all the words that Sennacherib has sent to mock the living God. Lord, it is true that the kings of Assyria have devastated all these countries and their lands. They have thrown their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but made from wood and stone by human hands. So they have destroyed them. Now, Lord our God, save us from his power so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, Lord, are God — you alone” (Isa. 37: 14-20 CSB)
Hezekiah was a man of faith. Pentecost even described him as righteous.
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Oh, no. Hezekiah wasn’t perfect — none of us are. But he prayed to the Sovereign Lord.
This time, Hezekiah didn’t stay home and pray. He went to God. “Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place” (II Chron. 7: 15 NIV).
What does this tell us? Hezekiah took time out of his busy day to go to God. He thought the situation warranted him going to God’s house to bring his petition.
Sure, God is always with us. He never leaves us.
But don’t we take that for granted sometimes? We expect God to be over our left shoulders, watching over us — even if we aren’t looking back.
Hezekiah said he wasn’t going to do that. He was going to go to God. He was going to God in faith, asking for discernment. Discernment means we can evaluate the situation and recognize right from wrong.
“Lord of Armies …” (Isa. 37: 16 CSB). Hezekiah knew that God would fight for His people, so that was the name of God he used.
Hezekiah was not only acknowledging God’s superiority, but he was also putting Him on His throne. It is from this place God rules the entire universe.
Did you see that Hezekiah took the letter with him? Yes, God would have known the contents of the letter if he would have left it at home.
God will take our thoughts and our feelings that we bring to Him. When we have undisputed evidence, we should bring that, too.
Pentecost felt this was leaving the planning too God as to how it would be addressed. Usually, we have our plan of attack all ready to and ask God to bless it. That isn’t relying on Him.
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Hezekiah correctly read the situation and realized Israel was in trouble. He correctly went to God for His deliverance.
Verse 17 might lead us to believe that, even though God is with us, He isn’t paying attention. Nothing could be further from the truth.
This is showing us the attitude with which we need to approach God. Pentecost wrote, “True prayer has always reference to the glory of God, however much our own personal desires and needs may be involved in the things asked for.” We are told to ask God for what He is already planning to provide.
Resource
God wants our confession. He wants us to be really clear about the situations we are facing. He doesn’t want us to be delusional.
God wants us to get to the point that we totally depend on Him. Hezekiah acknowledged that, for two centuries, the Assyrians had a really good track record.
Now, however, they were coming up against the Sovereign God. They didn’t stand a chance if God would fight for His people.
“Now, Lord our God, save us from his power so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, Lord, are God — you alone” (Isa. 37: 14-20 CSB). That is a simple, straightforward prayer. Hezekiah wanted God’s power to be known by all.
Knowing God means we don’t want to keep Him for ourselves. We want others to experience the blessings of salvation. Salvation is deliverance from evil and the consequences of sins to replace them with good and eternal life.
What Was God’s Answer to Hezekiah’s Prayer?
“But I know your sitting down, your going out and your coming in, and your raging against me” (Isa. 37: 28 CSB)
God responded to Hezekiah’s prayer through Isaiah. We don’t know how long it took to get the answer. Sometimes, God responds right away. Sometimes, He makes us wait.
Through Isaiah, God told Hezekiah that He was going to answer his prayer.
“I designed it long ago; I planned it in days gone by. I have now brought it to pass, and you have crushed fortified cities into piles of rubble” (Isa. 37: 26 CSB).
Nothing was happening outside of God’s plan. God chose His people. He also allowed the Assyrians victories.
No, just because they didn’t claim Him as Sovereign God didn’t mean He wasn’t in control of their future. God has ultimate control.
God knows everything about everyone of His creations— regardless if we are His children or just made in His image.
Glossary
God is in control. Sennacherib could boast all he wanted. He was going to find out reality.
How Did God Provide for Israel?
“‘This will be the sign for you: This year you will eat what grows on its own, and in the second year what grows from that. But in the third year sow and reap, plant vineyards and eat their fruit. The surviving remnant of the house of Judah will again take root downward and bear fruit upward. For a remnant will go out from Jerusalem, and survivors from Mount Zion. The zeal of the Lord of Armies will accomplish this.’ ‘Therefore, this is what the Lord says about the king of Assyria: He will not enter this city, shoot an arrow here, come before it with a shield, or build up a siege ramp against it. He will go back the way he came, and he will not enter this city. This is the Lord’s declaration. I will defend this city and rescue it for my sake and for the sake of my servant David’” (Isa. 37: 30-35 CSB)
Isaiah came back to talking about the remnant. A remnant of believers is the those who remained faithful to God even when the nation of Israel did not. It describes the identity of the church.
Irons stressed that the remnant escaped. Did that mean they did not deal with any of the issues the nation was experiencing, like possibly lack of water and food or terror of an advancing or besieging army?
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No, the remnant would have still felt the effects of the punishment the nation was experiencing. They, however, did not lose their lives.
Verse 31 talks about being rooted. We’ve talked about being rooted and grounded before. Navigating the Sanctification Road is the process of becoming rooted and grounded.
Glossary
The root is the foundation of the plant that we normally do not see. Our faith must have an element of being hidden. Irons wrote, “If you have no more religion than what is seen, it is not worth your possessing. The real Christian has a hidden life.”
Yes, others must see our testimony being lived out. We also need our private time with Sovereign God.
Gods has a remnant for a reason. McAfee put it this way: “Rooting for the sake of fruiting …”
Resource
˘We are to acknowledge God’s protection in our lives by telling others what He has done for us. We need to be vocal about His providing for us.
Look at how God provided for Jerusalem in verses 33 and 34.
- Not enter this city (Isa. 37: 33)
- No arrows (Isa. 37: 33)
- No shields (Isa. 37: 33)
- No siege ramp against it (Isa. 37: 33)
- Go back the way he came (Isa. 37: 34)
- Not enter this city (Isa. 37: 34)
I guess Hezekiah had to hear not enter the city twice. It sandwiches everything else.
Making the Connections
If we look at the Old Testament, we see many instances where Israel needed God’s provision. God gave it every time.
Oh, yes. Israel may have been carried off into exile. However, God always provided and maintained the remnant.
God controls yesterday, today, and tomorrow for all of His creation. We can count on Him.
We need faith.
How Do We Apply This?
Hezekiah didn’t get it right all of the time (II Kgs. 18: 14). When he didn’t k he repented. Repentance is acknowledging our separation from God, expressing sorrow for breaking God’s laws and commandments by making the commitment to changing ourselves through obedience so that we no longer do the wrong things.
We need to repent, too.
The army of Judah knew they were no match for the Assyrian army. What they did now was that God was stronger than the Assyrian army.
We can rely on God, too.
Hezekiah had faith that he could go to God and ask Him for deliverance. He had access to God.
We have faith and access, too.
In God, we have all that we need.
Father. Thank You for providing for us. Even when you are correcting us, You provide. May we be like Hezekiah and keep our trust in You. Amen.
What do you think?
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