Seeking God's Deliverance

Introduction

A. Ever had the feeling the walls were falling in on top of you? Maybe the stress of living just crowds out the feelings of peace. Maybe the pressure from work, home, and relationships makes you feel at times that everything is happening at once and you can’t really get a handle on anything. It is during these times that we look for options. We consider ways to cut back or reduce stress. Sometimes we make a wise choice. Sometimes we just keep pressing hoping that time alone will relieve the overwhelming feelings we have.

B. These feelings can come at any age. School applies it own pressure. Teachers seem to make big assignments all at the same time. Work projects always are supposed to be done yesterday. Constantly under the pressure to perform and perform well. It can all be overwhelming. Ever been to the point that it seemed as if there were few if any choices available? Ever felt like whatever choice you made would be a “no win” situation? ILL. “Choices — Mt. Everest”

C. Tonight we are going to look at Hezekiah, king of Judah. We’ll notice that his choices were limited and that what he finally chose to do was to give it all to God. We’ll also learn that as Christians the choices which are available to us affect our view of reality. In other words, our walk with God allows us to look at this life differently.

The Story

A. The story found in 2 Kings 18—19 concerning Hezekiah, king of Judah, and Sennacherib, king of Assyria, is verified from extrabiblical sources. Archaeology is a wonderful tool and science to help us verify certain aspects of scripture. Inscriptions from Assyria benefit us so that we can know from extra biblical sources about Sennacherib’s attack on Jerusalem. These inscriptions come from the Taylor Prism seen now in the British Museum. Also two stone bulls which guarded the entrance to the palace in Nineveh speaks of Sennacherib’s defeat of Judah during the reign of Hezekiah.

B. Sennacherib has come down from Assyria and is attacking all the cities of Judah. He has with little problem overwhelmed each one. He comes to Jerusalem and demands its immediate surrender. In 18:17ff, there is a conversation between the representatives of Sennacherib and the officials of Judah. The demands of Sennacherib are given. Hezekiah is derided for even trying to take a stand against the Assyrian army. Even God is ridiculed. All other foreign cities had tried to use their gods to withstand the Assyrian onslaught, but their gods had failed to protect them. God will not be able to protect Jerusalem.

C. No response is given to Sennacherib’s men. The message is brought to Hezekiah and in 19:1 we see his reaction. Hezekiah goes into mourning. He tells the people to pray. Notice there is no attempt to do more of what they have been doing. He tells the people to pray. And in answer to the people’s prayer, Sennacherib is temporarily diverted by the Egyptian army. But he returns from Lachish to again taunt Hezekiah and God. This second letter receives special treatment.

D. Hezekiah goes to the temple and literally lays the letter from Sennacherib on the altar. His prayer is simple yet profound. “You are God of all. You see what Sennacherib is doing and saying about you. You know how powerful he is. We are not able to stand against him. If we are to be delivered, it will be by your hand and not by our military might. He has overthrown other gods and is promising to overthrow you. Let your uniqueness be known in the world.” 19:35 tells us that God causes 185,000 men in the Assyrian army to be killed. Not one arrow is shot. Not one attempt is made to enter Jerusalem. Sennacherib is overthrown without Judah’s attempt to defeat him. God won.

E. One of the criticisms against the Bible is that the stories are fanciful at best. The stories are designed to make God look good but the truth is that they are just fictional stories. Granted they are old stories, but they are merely fairy tales. Archaeology has done much to help us in this regard. However, the Taylor Prism while giving great details about the siege against Hezekiah, has some unusual features.

i.  Rebels such as Hezekiah had to be punished. That was the purpose of the Assyrian king's campaign. However, there is nothing on the prism about Hezekiah's defeat, capture, or punishment; whereas, other cities and rulers are listed in such fashion. Sennacherib speaks of trapping Hezekiah like a bird in a cage and of setting a string of watchtowers around Jerusalem so that no one could escape. But there is no mention of capturing Hezekiah or punishing him or of killing him.

ii. Second, other than the watchtowers around Jerusalem there is no mention of attacking the city. When describing the other Judean cities which he attacked, Sennacherib has written that he used earth ramps, battering rams, infantry assault, tunneling, breaching, and scaling. None of these words are used to describe the siege against Jerusalem.

iii. Third, in other parts of the prism, Sennacherib is said to have deposed of a rebel king and set up a puppet king, but nothing is said about Hezekiah. There is no note of triumph on the prism concerning Jerusalem except to say that Hezekiah paid tribute to him. In carved reliefs from the palace at Nineveh, the scenes depict the surrender and capture of Lachish not of Jerusalem. This seems strange since Jerusalem the capital city would have been far more prominent unless of course Sennacherib did not capture Jerusalem. The Taylor Prism verifies that the story in 2 Kings 18—19 is true and factual.

Lessons

A. What lessons are we to understand from this text? First, this text shows us the importance of prayer. What does Hezekiah do with the letter from Sennacherib? He lays it upon the altar. He knows he doesn’t have the solution. He knows that God’s reputation is at stake. He knows that only God can protect him. This is not to suggest that God is at our mercy when we pray. Notice that in Hezekiah’s prayer he acknowledges the sovereignty of God. He testifies to God’s greatness through creation. He acknowledges that God is different from other gods. He asks that God’s greatness be seen among the nations of the earth. While he asks for deliverance, he doesn’t demand it. But his request is so that God’s reputation will remain intact. Turn back to 2 Kings 18:5. Hezekiah trusted in the Lord. There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah. Prayer does very little without faith in God. The prayer of Hezekiah reminds us of the importance of laying everything before God and the request is so that God is praised and exalted. This kind of prayer comes from faith.

B. Second, there are two views of reality. The first view is shown in 18:27—33. This is the world’s view. God is ineffective. God is powerless. You are stupid for trusting in God or listening to those who do trust him. The other view takes place between Hezekiah, Isaiah, and God. It is a conversation that is not world by the first and wouldn’t not be appreciated if it were heard. But it is this view which proves to be the true reality.

i.  The view from Assyria is the view of the world. It is the view of power. It is the view which says all other possible realities are worthless. It is persuasive, intimidating, and discouraging. The view from behind the wall is that God sets the agenda. Truth is seen in terms of what God has done in the past. There are two truths found in the view behind the wall.

ii. First, the view from behind the wall affects what one does in the world. Second, the words from the world are not accepted at face value. So what does this mean?

iii. It means first that we look at the world differently because our view of reality is not based on what we see but on the one who has acted on our behalf in the past. While we do not deny the power of this world, neither do we believe that God is too weak to deal with it.

iv. Second, it means that our view of reality results in our acting in ways which seem out of touch with this world's reality. We pray first when others act. We point to a world beyond us when others hold onto what this world has to offer. We know that the arrogance of this world, pales in comparison with the might and power of God. May God help us to be people whose view comes from behind the wall rather than from the world. Prayer.

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