38:1 In those days Hezekiah was stricken with a terminal illness. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz visited him and told him, “This is what the Lord says, ‘Give instructions to your household, for you are about to die; you will not get well.’ ”
Chapter 38 occurred chronologically before chapters 36-37. Isaiah informed Hezekiah to get his house in order, because he was about to die. Jehovah did not have to allow Hezekiah to know this information. He did so for a divine purpose.
38:2 Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord,
King Hezekiah met this national emergency with prayer.
38:3 “Please, Lord. Remember how I have served you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion, and how I have carried out your will.” Then Hezekiah wept bitterly.
King Hezekiah was a good king who rid the land of Judah of syncretism.
38:4 The Lord told Isaiah, 38:5 “Go and tell Hezekiah: ‘This is what the Lord God of your ancestor David says: “I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. Look, I will add fifteen years to your life,
Jehovah decided to add 15 more years to Hezekiah’s life. Hezekiah was 39 years old at this time. He had no male heir. God used the name of David in his title, because he was going to allow Hezekiah to give birth to a son who would fulfill the Davidic Covenant. Jehovah’s declaration, Hezekiah’s prayer, and Jehovah’s response to prayer were all pre-ordained before the foundations of the world were created.
38:6 and rescue you and this city from the king of Assyria. I will shield this city.” ’ ”
Jehovah would rescue Jerusalem from the Assyrians.
38:7 Isaiah replied, “This is your sign from the Lord confirming that the Lord will do what he has said:
Isaiah offered a sign to Hezekiah.
38:8 Look, I will make the shadow go back ten steps on the stairs of Ahaz.” And then the shadow went back ten steps.
The evil King Ahaz refused to accept a sign. His unbelief caused the Assyrian invasion of Judah. The good King Hezekiah chose a sign. He was given the choice of moving the shadow of the sundial (or an obelisk) backwards or forward ten steps (2 Kings 20). He chose to move it backwards, because this would be more miraculous. Jehovah is omnipotent, so He was able to move the shadow of the sun on a sundial without disrupting the sun’s orbit. Only God can perform this type of miracle!
38:9 This is the prayer of King Hezekiah of Judah when he was sick and then recovered from his illness:
King Hezekiah prayed for divine healing of his sickness.
38:10 “I thought, ‘In the middle of my life I must walk through the gates of Sheol, I am deprived of the rest of my years.’
King Hezekiah wrote verses 10-14 himself. He was 39 years old at this time. He thought that he was too young to die.
38:11 “I thought, ‘I will no longer see the Lord in the land of the living, I will no longer look on humankind with the inhabitants of the world.
Hezekiah would die and go to Sheol. Sheol was the place of the dead for those living before the resurrection of Christ. The unrighteous humans would go to Hades. The righteous humans would go to Paradise (also called Abraham’s Bosom). Christ emptied the latter after his resurrection from the dead.
38:12 My dwelling place is removed and taken away from me like a shepherd’s tent. I rolled up my life like a weaver rolls cloth; from the loom he cuts me off. You turn day into night and end my life.
King Hezekiah was depressed about his coming death. He mentioned three metaphors to describe his death. First, as a tent is moved from one place to another, so does life move from one location to another. Second, just as a weaver rolls out a roll of cloth and cuts the thread, so does God roll out the life of an individual and cut off the life when it is completed. Jehovah decides when and how long a person lives and dies. Third, just as God turns day into night, so does God turn Hezekiah from living to dead.
38:13 I cry out until morning; like a lion he shatters all my bones; you turn day into night and end my life.
Hezekiah was depressed about dying. Jehovah is omnipotent. He controls time, life, and death.
38:14 Like a swallow or a thrush I chirp, I coo like a dove; my eyes grow tired from looking up to the sky. O sovereign master, I am oppressed; help me!
Hezekiah is slowly dying. He chirps like a bird. He coos like a dove. His eyes are growing tired. He asked Jehovah for help.
38:15 What can I say? He has decreed and acted. I will walk slowly all my years because I am overcome with grief.
Hezekiah is depressed about his coming death during the prime of his life.
38:16 O sovereign master, your decrees can give men life; may years of life be restored to me. Restore my health and preserve my life.’
Jehovah has the power to extend and preserve life.
38:17 “Look, the grief I experienced was for my benefit. You delivered me from the pit of oblivion. For you removed all my sins from your sight.
Jehovah allowed Hezekiah to experience the grief of his own death for a divine purpose. He may have grieved, because he had no male heir. He did grieve his coming death.
38:18 Indeed Sheol does not give you thanks; death does not praise you. Those who descend into the pit do not anticipate your faithfulness.
Sheol does not give thanks. Sheol accepts everyone without emotion or remorse.
According to the Mosaic Covenant, long life was a sign of obedience. A short life was a sign of disobedience.
38:19 The living person, the living person, he gives you thanks, as I do today. A father tells his sons about your faithfulness.
Hezekiah did not possess New Testament doctrine about death. Anyone who is living today is only living by the grace of God. No one can breathe another breath without God’s permission.
38:20 The Lord is about to deliver me, and we will celebrate with music for the rest of our lives in the Lord’s temple.”
Jehovah would answer Hezekiah’s prayer and allow him to live for 15 more years. During this 15‑year period, Manasseh will be born. Manasseh would keep the Davidic line going, but he would become one of the most evil kings of Judah.
38:21 Isaiah ordered, “Let them take a fig cake and apply it to the ulcerated sore and he will get well.”
It was not the fig cake which healed King Hezekiah. It was the God’s sovereignty. Prayer, medicine, and method were part of the healing process.
38:22 Hezekiah said, “What is the confirming sign that I will go up to the Lord’s temple?”
King Hezekiah asked Jehovah for a sign.