Isaiah Chapters 38-39/Commentary

Isaiah Chapters 38-39 “Two clues aid in the chronological placement of Isaiah 38. First, fifteen years were added to the life of King Hezekiah. Since that king died in 686 B.C., his miraculous healing must have taken place in 701 B.C., the very year that the Assyrians invaded Judah. Second, in 2 Kings 20 Hezekiah still had possession of his treasure (Isaiah 39). Thus the illness and recovery must have taken place prior to the Assyrian invasion when the king was forced to drain his treasury to pay tribute to Sennacherib (cf. 2 Kings 18:13-16)” (Smith p. 621).

Chapter 38 38:1 The expression “in those days”, refers to the days of the invasion of Jerusalem by Sennacherib, recorded in 2 Kings 18:13-19:36 and Isaiah chapters 36-37. At this time God sent Isaiah to Hezekiah and told him to put his house in order, which would include making a will, giving one’s last instructions, and perhaps also naming a successor. Hezekiah would have been about 39 at this time.

38:2-3 Some commentators see this as kind of a self-serving prayer, but I believe they are misguided in making this accusation. First, the Assyrian issue had not yet been resolved, because verse 6 puts deliverance from Sennacherib in the future. Hezekiah did not want to give the Assyrians the advantage and to leave his people leaderless at such a crucial time. He might have felt that his death would give Sennacherib something to boast about. Second, if putting his house in order involved naming a successor, he was in trouble because his son Manasseh was still too young to be king. Third, it was only natural that a hardworking, dedicated, and faithful king would want to continue to serve God and His people.

It is all right to pray for length of days, for God honored this prayer. In addition, Hezekiah knew he was right with God, for he had walked before God in truth with a whole heart, and had done what was right. In other terms, Hezekiah’s faith was sincere, there was no deceit in his faith, and his faith was active; he had been obedient to the Divine will expressed in the Scriptures. We run into a good number of people today who want to muddy the water and insist that everyone is 1

habitually doing something that is wrong, even the most devout Christian.

Hezekiah disagrees; he knew that he had been walking in the light (1 John 1:5ff), and he knew that his faith was genuine and that he had been obedient to God. “The king’s prayer is a model for those who are afflicted with serious illness. He first called upon Yahweh to remember how he had tried his very best to walk throughout life so as to meet with divine approval. This was not presumptuous self-righteousness. Hezekiah knew that he honestly had endeavored to serve God and do His will” (Smith p. 622).

38:4 God’s answer to Hezekiah’s prayer arrives before Isaiah can even leave the palace complex (2 Kings 20:4). The “middle court” was the second of three courtyards that surrounded the royal palace.

38:5-6 God would grant Hezekiah 15 additional years, in addition God did more than Hezekiah had even requested (Ephesians 3:20). He promised to deliver Jerusalem from the hand of the Assyrians, for the sake of His reputation both in Judah and among the heathen, and for the sake of His commitment to David.

2 Kings 20:7; Isaiah 38:21 The poultice of figs was well known in the ancient world as a means of helping a heal boils and ulcers.

“The instruction to prepare a poultice of figs to be applied to the boil or sore or infection that was life threatening does not imply that the sore was a minor illness that could be cured by a simple old remedy. This act of healing might be put in the same category as Naaman’s dipping in the Jordan for healing from his leprosy. The application of the poultice was in obedience to the instruction of the man of God who had brought two specific commands of God in the last couple of hours or so” (Vos p. 204). This also may be an example where God can providentially heal using “medical” techniques.

38:7 ( 2 Kings 20:8-11); Isaiah 38:22 : Hezekiah seems to expect that God will give him a sign that he will indeed be healed and in three days, and be once again worshipping God in the temple. “Rather than an indication of unbelief, his request should be viewed against the background of Ahaz’s refusal of a sign in Isaiah 7:12. Isaiah gladly offers Hezekiah a choice of signs” (House p. 373).

Evidently Hezekiah lay in a room on an upper story or in an elevated area approached by steps that King Ahaz had built during his reign. As the day would wear on, the shadows cast by the sun would lengthen on the steps. As a sign of God’s working, the shadow went back ten steps instead of forward.

38:9 “The parallel account in 2 Kings does not include this psalm. Verses 10-14 are retrospective, the king recalling his thoughts during his illness. A backward

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glance to our predicament before a divine intervention can be a great stimulus to praise” (Gaebelein pp. 236-237).

38:10 “In the middle of my life”: Hezekiah was in the prime of life when he received the bad news from Isaiah. This verse assumes that man could normally look forward to a certain probable life span. Literally this expression means the “noontide” (tranquility, margin) or quiet period of my days “is the time when Hezekiah should have been enjoying the prime of life and the excellency of his rule” (Hailey p. 317). “Gates of Sheol”: The idea of death having gates reminds us that one cannot escape from the realm of the dead. Remember, Hezekiah is looking at death prior to the coming of Christ. The faithful after the coming of Christ have a completely different picture (Philippians 1:21-23). Compare with Hebrews 2:15-16; 2 Timothy 1:10.

38:11 “I will not see the Lord”: Notice that Hezekiah speaks of not seeing the Lord before not seeing man. His priority is a relationship with God. “Hezekiah will not the see the Lord in the land of the living; he knows not what awaits him in the unseen world beyond death” (Hailey p. 317).

38:12 “Rather than viewing death as something ‘far better’ (Philippians 1:21,23), Hezekiah viewed only the aspect of departing from the land of the living. He spoke of it as being removed, like a shepherd’s tent; or cut off like a rug being woven is suddenly cut loose from the loom and rolled up; or as swiftly as daylight passes into the night” (Harkrider p. 87).

38:13 “I composed my soul until morning”: “Verse 13 seems to refer to a night spent in prayer only to be ended in the morning when God suddenly falls on Hezekiah like a lion” (Gaebelein p. 237). Here is the attempt to compose oneself in prayer, only to have the full realization of approaching death to enter into one’s thoughts. With no apparently hope of recovery, Hezekiah felt crushed as if a lion had pounced upon him.

38:14 “Palestine’s birds expressed the varied nature of Hezekiah’s many cries to God, now quiet, now shrill, now mournful. The reference to Hezekiah’s eyes conveys a picture of concentrated appeal to God and to Him alone” (Gaebelein p. 237).

38:15 “What shall I say?” At this point the prayer or psalm shifts, and Hezekiah speaks of his recovery. There are no words that Hezekiah can find that could express fully his gratitude. “Like one in a procession to the house of God, Hezekiah will walk humbly and solemnly all the days of his life because of the bitter memories of the sickness from which the Lord had delivered him” (Hailey p.

318). The phrase, I will wander about, means to “go softly”, that is, to live humbly. God simply gave Hezekiah fifteen additional years, how should we respond to the fact that God has given us eternal life?

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38:16 “By these things men live”: “Apparently he is thinking of experiences such as he had just passed through, the promises and providence of God at such times, and the blessings that accrue from trials. The true life of the spirit is realized through affliction and its blessings” (Hailey p. 319).

38:17 This experience gave Hezekiah a new appreciation for God’s mercy.

Notice how death is described prior to the coming of Christ as the “pit of nothingness”.

38:18-19 As a result, Hezekiah would pass on to his children this story about God’s faithfulness (Deuteronomy 6:6-7). “It is in this way that truth is transferred from generation to generation and that the righteousness whereby a nation shall be exalted prevails” (Hailey p. 320). Instead of viewing Hezekiah as one who felt that death ended man’s existence, verse 18 might be interpreted as applying to the death of one who is unforgiven. Truly, the person who dies in their sins cannot praise God and neither can they hope for God’s faithfulness or steadfast love.

38:20 His father Ahaz had closed the doors to the temple, setting up altars to false gods instead (2 Chronicles 28:24). It is Hezekiah who had reopened the temple, and had restored the proper music (2 Chronicles 29:25-28). Notice that the proper response to salvation is singing! (Revelation 5:9-10) Chapter 39

39:1 During the same period of time, a delegation came from Berodach-baladan (bih ROE dak BAL uh dan), which is a form of the name “Merodach-Baladan” (MEHR oh dack BAL ah dahn). This man was a Babylonian prince who had been trying to establish his power of Babylon during the days of the Assyrian kings Tiglath-pileser III, Sargon II, and Sennacherib and had running battles with all three of them. In 703 B.C. this prince had organized a Chaldean insurrection in Babylonia, but Sennacherib forced him out of Babylon. While Sennacherib was busy with Hezekiah, Merodach-baladan planned another rebellion in Babylon. In 700 B.C. Sennacherib was forced to launch another campaign against him, and this prince fled to Elam and finally passed off the stage of history.

Apparently, this prince wanted to establish some sort of alliance with Hezekiah.

If Hezekiah could be successful on one end of the Assyrian empire and Merodach-baladan on the other, perhaps there was some hope for both of them.

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39:2 Hezekiah rashly showed the Babylonians all his palace, treasury and armory, perhaps in the spirit of, “Here are the resources I have to add to an alliance against the Assyrians”.

39:3 The writer of Second Chronicles states that after his recovery, Hezekiah became a proud man for a while (32:25). Showing the Babylonians all his “stuff” might have been motivated by such pride. Instead of telling such men about the true God, Hezekiah might have bragged on himself and his accomplishments.

“Hezekiah was dazzled by the attention bestowed upon him by these visitors from Babylon…He may have been trying to convince these guests that he indeed would be a valuable ally” (Smith pp. 623-624). Be impressed that Hezekiah is completely truthful, he makes no attempt to hide what he had done from Isaiah.

“Hezekiah had gotten involved with a nation which ultimately would destroy Judah. All the treasures he boastfully had displayed to the ambassadors would one day be carried off as plunder to far-off Babylon…Mere human foresight would never have suspected that within a century, insignificant Babylon would have completely turned the tables on mighty Assyria” (Smith p. 624).

39:5 It seems that Hezekiah accepted the prophetic rebuke. Compare this verse with 2 Chronicles 32:26. He did not resent God’s judgment upon Judah, rather he declared that the message from God was “good”. Hezekiah appears to be grateful that such judgment will not fall in his lifetime, for he probably thought that God would have been just in bringing judgment right then and there.

39:8 The expression, “Is it not so, if there shall be peace and truth in my days”, may have been his way of saying, “Is it not right to desire peace and truth during one’s lifetime?” “While he was thankful that God would keep His promise not to surrender Judah and Jerusalem in his day, yet he realized that his own actions had put his nation and his prosperity in danger” (Gaebelein p. 276). This verse infers that it is all right to desire peace during your lifetime (1 Timothy 2:2).

“Hezekiah’s days of reform were only an island in a sea of apostasy. With his son Manasseh the tide of wickedness would rise once more and ultimately would engulf the state. The ministry of good kings served to revitalize the state periodically and to postpone the evil day” (Vos p. 206). 2. Judah had been warned concerning the future! 3. The same is true in the New Testament. From all the warnings concerning apostasy and false teachers, the church will always be an island in a sea of apostasy.

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