2 Kings 19:6-7 (NKJV): And Isaiah said to them, “Thus you
shall say to your master, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Do not be afraid of
the words which you have heard, with which the
servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed Me. Surely I will
send a spirit upon him, and he shall hear a rumor and return to his own
land; and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own
land.”’”
Notice the words ‘I will cause him to fall’ here? It
is the Lord who does the work to root out or to pull down,
and to build or to plant (see also Jeremiah 1:10).
Man does his part, but God does all the rest. Man lays hands, but God
heals. Moses raised up the rod, but God opened the Red Sea. Likewise, Hezekiah
came to God, but God did it by bringing deliverance to
his nation.
Even now, God is raising up the Hezekiahs of today, a people
who know how to look to Him and trust Him in spite of the threats or lies thrown
by the enemy. By the way, the name 'Hezekiah' in Hebrew means 'strengthened
of Yahweh' or 'Yahweh has strengthened'. You too, people of
God, receive the strength of the Lord, no matter what
challenge you may be facing at the moment. Just as happened to Hezekiah those
days, He can also deliver you this day!
Let's look at the background of Hezekiah now. 2 Kings 18:1 says,
'Now it came to pass in the third year of Hoshea the son of Elah, king of
Israel, that Hezekiah the son of Ahaz, king of Judah,
began to reign'. 2 Kings 18:3 then says, 'And he did what was
right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father David had
done'. 2 Kings 18:5 continues, 'He trusted in the Lord
God of Israel, so that after him was none like him among all the kings
of Judah, nor who were before him. For he held fast to the Lord and
did not depart from following Him...'
Let's move on to 2 Kings 18:13 now. It says, 'And in
the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib king of
Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them'. The Bible also says Sennacherib even boasted against the Lord (see 2 Kings 18:19-20), and then ridiculed Hezekiah (see 2 Kings 18:28-30).
Note: 'Sennacherib' here speaks of 'the enemy, or the forces of darkness
that comes against you'.
So, how did Hezekiah respond to Sennacherib's
threats, lies, and ridicule?
2 Kings 19:1-2 has this to say, 'And so it was, when Hezekiah heard
all these words of Sennacherib, he tore his clothes, covered himself with
sackcloth, and went into the house of the Lord (speaks
of 'going into God's presence'). Then he sent Eliakim, who was over the
household, Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, to Isaiah
the prophet, the son of Amoz'.
Note: 'Isaiah' here is a 'picture' of 'Jesus Himself'. The name
'Isaiah' in Hebrew is 'Yesha Yah', which means 'Yahweh is salvation' or
'Yah has saved'.
And that's when Isaiah answered in 2 Kings 19:6-7, ‘Thus says the
Lord: “Do not be afraid of the words which
you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria
have blasphemed Me. Surely I will send a spirit upon him, and he
shall hear a rumor and return to his own land; and I will
cause him to fall by the sword in his own land."'
You know what? All these words spoken by Isaiah eventually
came to pass, and the Lord indeed triumphed over
all the words and works of Sennacherib (see 2 Kings 19:20-37).
People of God, likewise, how do you respond to the enemy's threats,
lies, and ridicule today? And what do you do when the enemy even blasphemes
(i.e. rejects) God's vision (God's spoken words) for your life
and your ministry?
Just as in the days of Hezekiah, you too need not take things into your
own hands. Instead, go into His presence in worship and prayer, as Hezekiah did. The truth is Jesus already has the answer for you.
He is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8), and He is
still the same God who caused the enemy to 'return to his own land
and fall by the sword in his own land'!
So, fear not. He will do it for you as you begin looking to Him and all that He has already done for you on the cross. In other words, He has already won the victory for you. Believing, you'll receive.
So, fear not. He will do it for you as you begin looking to Him and all that He has already done for you on the cross. In other words, He has already won the victory for you. Believing, you'll receive.
And the same Isaiah who spoke 2 Kings 19:6-7 is also
the one who declared: 'No weapon formed against you shall prosper' (Isaiah
54:17), and 'When the enemy comes in, like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord will
lift up a standard against him' (Isaiah 59:19). Declare these verses for your life as well. In Jesus' name. Amen!
