King Hezekiah of Judah

King Hezekiah (Hebrew: חזקיה; English: Hezekiah) was a monarch in the later period of Judah and one of the kings in Judah’s history who most highly esteemed God. His virtues surpassed those of any other kings before or after him. His Hebrew name means “God has strengthened.” He walked in all the ways of David, his ancestor—this is the highest praise for a king of God’s people in the Bible, and among the kings of Judah, only Hezekiah and Josiah received this commendation.

Upon ascending the throne, because Hezekiah did what was right in the eyes of the LORD God, he removed the high places, smashed the sacred stones, cut down the Asherah poles, broke into pieces the bronze snake, and invited the people of Judah and the ten northern tribes to celebrate the Passover together. Consequently, he received God’s mercy, successfully escaping the attack of the mighty Assyrian army and recovering from a deadly illness. He was eager to follow the guidance of the contemporary prophet Isaiah, which led to his great zeal for God.

Because Hezekiah actively encouraged the people to worship God again and obey His commands, he was considered a good king by the Jewish people. However, he also did one foolish thing: he allowed the envoys of the king of Babylon to tour his treasury and armory.

At that time, Hezekiah was mortally ill. Knowing he was close to death, he wept bitterly and prayed to the LORD, saying, “Please, LORD, remember how I have walked before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion and have done what is good in your eyes.” The word of the LORD then came to Isaiah, saying: “Go back and tell Hezekiah, the leader of my people, ‘This is what the LORD, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will heal you. On the third day from now you will go up to the temple of the LORD. I will add fifteen years to your life. And I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria. I will defend this city for my sake and for the sake of my servant David.'” Isaiah then said, “Prepare a poultice of figs.” They did so and applied it to the boil, and the king recovered. God not only healed Hezekiah’s illness but also added fifteen years to his life. He further promised him, “I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria. For my own sake and for the sake of my servant David, I will protect this city.”

At that time, Berodach-baladan, son of Baladan king of Babylon, heard that Hezekiah had been ill and recovered, so he sent letters and gifts to him. “Hezekiah welcomed them and showed them all that was in his storehouses—the silver, the gold, the spices, the precious oil—his entire armory and everything found in his treasuries. There was nothing in his palace or in all his kingdom that Hezekiah did not show them.” Hezekiah made a grave mistake by showing off all the contents of his treasury and armory to the visiting Babylonian envoys. We can see this from the account in 2 Chronicles. 2 Chronicles 32:24-25 states that this was due to his pride: “In those days Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. He prayed to the LORD, who answered him and gave him a miraculous sign. But Hezekiah did not respond to the kindness shown him, for his heart was proud; so wrath came on him and on Judah and Jerusalem.” 2 Chronicles 32:31 further states: “But when envoys were sent by the rulers of Babylon to ask him about the miraculous sign that had occurred in the land, God left him to test him and to know everything that was in his heart.”

“Then Isaiah the prophet came to King Hezekiah and asked him, ‘What did these men say, and where did they come from?’ Hezekiah replied, ‘They came to me from a distant land, from Babylon.’ Isaiah asked, ‘What did they see in your palace?’ Hezekiah said, ‘They saw everything in my palace; there is nothing among my treasures that I did not show them.’ Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, ‘Hear the word of the LORD: The time will surely come when everything in your palace, and all that your predecessors have stored up until this day, will be carried off to Babylon. Nothing will be left, says the LORD. And some of your descendants, your own flesh and blood who will be born to you, will be taken away, and they will become eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.'”

In 686 BC, Hezekiah died. Decades later, Isaiah’s prophecy was fulfilled: starting from 605 BC, the Judeans were taken captive by Babylon (2 Kings 24:1-2), and further exiles occurred in 597 BC (2 Kings 24:10-17) and 587/586 BC (2 Kings 25:8-17), ultimately leading to the fall of the kingdom.