An Elder Speaks

Hezekiah’s Healing and Poem of Thanksgiving
Ronald Thompkins
February 8, 2004

Isaiah 38:9  The writing of Hezekiah king of Judah, when he had been sick, and was recovered of his sickness.

10  I said, In the noontide of my days I shall go into the gates of Sheol: I am deprived of the residue of my years.

11  I said, I shall not see Jehovah, even Jehovah in the land of the living: I shall behold man no more with the inhabitants of the world.

12  My dwelling is removed, and is carried away from me as a shepherd's tent: I have rolled up, like a weaver, my life; he will cut me off from the loom: From day even to night wilt thou make an end of me.

13  I quieted myself until morning; as a lion, so he breaketh all my bones: From day even to night wilt thou make an end of me.

14  Like a swallow or a crane, so did I chatter; I did moan as a dove; mine eyes fail with looking upward: O Lord, I am oppressed, be thou my surety.

15  What shall I say? he hath both spoken unto me, and himself hath done it: I shall go softly all my years because of the bitterness of my soul.

16  O Lord, by these things men live; And wholly therein is the life of my spirit: Wherefore recover thou me, and make me to live.

17  Behold, it was for my peace that I had great bitterness: But thou hast in love to my soul delivered it from the pit of corruption; For thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back.

The above poem was composed by King Hezekiah as a psalm of thanksgiving. In earlier verses, he had become very ill and near death. In this state God told him he was going to die. This caused him to pray to God. In verse 3 of Chapter 38, he said he had “ walked before You in truth and with a loyal heart, and have done what is good in Your sight”. In response to Hezekiah’s prayer God added 15 years to his life. An addition bonus God shared with Hezekiah was going to deliver the people from the Assyrians. This was an incident in biblical history that was verified by a miracle, the sun dial was adjusted “ten degrees backwards”(verse 8).

Of special significance was Hezekiah’s faithfulness to God, which was compared to David. Only Asa and Josiah had received the same commendation. One area of weakness for Hezekiah was that he was still trusting in man rather than God.. After God responded to his prayers and not only healed him, but extended his life; he turned back to God, completely.

In the passages above, we see where a faithful servant of God expressed sorrow and dismay during the time between God’s announcement of the pending fatal illness and God’s promise of restoration. Hezekiah’s lamentation in verses 10-13 reflects on the frailty of humans and brevity of life. Realities of life made even more vivid by God’s decision.

In our lives what a reminder to us that in our frail and short time here on this earth, we should be ever holding to God’s hand. Like Hezekiah God gives us opportunities to turn from our sins, and turn back to him. God, unlike us, has the ability to “cast all my (our) sins behind Your back” (verse 17). When God forgives, He forgets. Dramatically in this verse he puts the sins behind Him, i.e., never to see them again.

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