Bible Reference: 2 Chronicles 28 / Isaiah 36 + 37 – Hezekiah’s Prayer
Hezekiah went through a lot. He had an adversary who was prideful and had bully tendencies–Sennacherib, the king of Assyria. He not only spoke badly about Hezekiah as a leader, he sent a harshly-worded letter about Hezekiah to be read aloud before the people Hezekiah had the responsibility of leading. There was disrespect being served on multiple levels. He said things that could take down the most confident of leaders.
Sennacherib spoke poorly about Hezekiah’s character and leadership principles to create doubt.
“When Hezekiah says, ‘The Lord our God will save us from the hand of the king of Assyria,’ he is misleading you, to let you die of hunger and thirst. Did not Hezekiah himself remove this god’s high places and altars, saying to Judah and Jerusalem, ‘You must worship before one altar and burn sacrifices on it’?” 2 Chronicles 32:11-12
“Now do not let Hezekiah deceive you and mislead you like this. Do not believe him, for no god of any nation or kingdom has been able to deliver his people from my hand or the hand of my predecessors. How much less will your god deliver you from my hand!” 2 Chronicles 32:15
He tried to lure Hezekiah’s people to his team.
“Do not listen to Hezekiah. This is what the king of Assyria says: Make peace with me and come out to me. Then each of you will eat fruit from your own vine and fig tree and drink water from your own cistern, until I come and take you to a land like your own—a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards.” Isaiah 36:16-17
His adversary attempted to create confusion.
“Furthermore, have I come to attack and destroy this land without the Lord? The Lord himself told me to march against this country and destroy it.’” Isaiah 36:10
Hezekiah could have fought this battle on his own, but he did something a million times better: He took it to God for support. He knew he couldn’t do it alone. He prayed to God, and there are 3 key elements of that prayer that we can learn from on how to pray with intention–a prayer that appeals to God.
“Hezekiah received the letter from the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the temple of the Lord and spread it out before the Lord. And Hezekiah prayed to the Lord:…” Isaiah 37:14-15
“Give ear, Lord, and hear; open your eyes, Lord, and see; listen to all the words Sennacherib has sent to ridicule the living God.” Isaiah 37:17
- He encouraged God.
Tell God how great he is–how powerful he is. It’s not that he doesn’t know this already but:
#1 He likes it when we egg him on, encouraging him to step into the situation. It shows him your faith–and faith pleases him. [Hebrews 11:6]
#2 It reminds ourselves that there’s nothing bigger than God and there’s nothing too hard for him to handle on our behalf.
“Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth.” Isaiah 37:16
- Tell him the reality and make a case.
Talk about the details of the situation. Maybe the odds aren’t in your favor. Maybe the competitor is more equipped. Maybe the other person has more credentials. But look for a glimmer of hope and make a case. Think of the counterpoint–a rebuttal for God to consider.
“It is true, Lord, that the Assyrian kings have laid waste all these peoples and their lands. They have thrown their gods into the fire and destroyed them, for they were not gods but only wood and stone, fashioned by human hands.” Isaiah 37:18-19
- Put your request before him and have the right motive.
Simply ask God what you’d like the outcome of the situation to be. Also talk about why you want what you’re requesting. Hezekiah not only presented his request but made it a point to mention the motive of his petition. It was about honoring God. If you do a study on what pleases God, you’ll for sure find out that when we pursue things to honor God’s name, He is highly encouraged. Godly motives matter to God. [James 4:3]
“Now, Lord our God, deliver us from his hand, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, Lord, are the only God.” Isaiah 37:20
Prayer is a powerful practice to help overcome external adversaries and inner adversaries (our own negative talk), training the mind not to allow what you hear (or think) to take you down. Process it with God through intentional prayer like Hezekiah.
Rise and Shine Bright.