April 18, 2020: Day 77 – II Kings 19

Remember when we said that Judah was faithful in their king Hezekiah?  Well, this chapter introduces us to another person who is a bit of a legend in his own right.  We find the prophet Isaiah, yes the same prophet Isaiah that we have in our Scripture, who is in the court of Hezekiah.  Hezekiah, understandably, is wanting to know what the future is going to be like with the Assyrian army camped outside the gates of Jerusalem.  In the first set of verses we find Isaiah reassuring Hezekiah that the Lord will prevail and Jerusalem will not fall.

A note comes in the mail and it is again the king of Assyrian mocking Hezekiah and his people and reminding them of the power of Assyria and the history of the conquests of the nation of Assyria.  He also reminds Hezekiah what happened to the kings that went against him, nothing good.  So, Hezekiah once again is afraid and is unsure of what to do because of this new threat which probably feels to him like the last one before the Assyrian army would begin its siege.

It is very telling when we see what the king does next.  He goes into the temple, into the house of the Lord, and prays to God for guidance and direction.  We find him praying to God in a humble and honest way.  He considers the threat of the king of Assyria as a threat against God.  God responds and says that Jerusalem will not be overtaken, and in fact the king of Assyria himself will die in due time.  

What happens next can only be described as a miracle at the hands of God.  What we read in vs.35 is that an angel of the Lord appears and just begins to land haymakers and kills in a single evening 185,000 enemy soldiers.  Not bad for a single evening.  The king of Assyria leaves the battlefield outside of Jerusalem and finds himself at home, where he is promptly killed by his kids.  Good times.