Isaiah 38

Isaiah 38 recounts King Hezekiah’s illness, prayer, and miraculous recovery. After being told by Isaiah that he would die, Hezekiah turned to God in prayer, and God granted him an additional fifteen years of life. The chapter includes Hezekiah’s reflections on his near-death experience and God’s mercy in healing him. This passage demonstrates God's power to heal and the importance of sincere prayer.

Isaiah 38:1 (NKJV)
1 In those days Hezekiah was sick and near death. And Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, went to him and said to him, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Set your house in order, for you shall die and not live.’”

Hezekiah’s illness was severe, and God sent Isaiah with a message that he would not recover. This direct warning gave Hezekiah the opportunity to prepare himself and his kingdom for his death, highlighting the importance of being spiritually and practically ready for the end of life.

Isaiah 38:2-3 (NKJV)
2 Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and prayed to the Lord,
3 and said, “Remember now, O Lord, I pray, how I have walked before You in truth and with a loyal heart, and have done what is good in Your sight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.

Hezekiah’s response to the news of his impending death was immediate prayer. He pleaded with God, reminding Him of his faithfulness and good works. His heartfelt prayer and tears reflect the deep sorrow and desperation he felt, showing his dependence on God's mercy.

Isaiah 38:4-5 (NKJV)
4 And the word of the Lord came to Isaiah, saying,
5 “Go and tell Hezekiah, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: “I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; surely I will add to your days fifteen years.

God responded to Hezekiah's prayer through Isaiah, granting him an additional fifteen years of life. This response shows God’s compassion and willingness to extend mercy to those who earnestly seek Him. Hezekiah’s sincere plea moved God to intervene.

Isaiah 38:6-8 (NKJV)
6 I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria, and I will defend this city.”
7 And this is the sign to you from the Lord, that the Lord will do this thing which He has spoken:
8 Behold, I will bring the shadow on the sundial, which has gone down with the sun on the sundial of Ahaz, ten degrees backward.’” So the sun returned ten degrees on the dial by which it had gone down.

Along with the promise of extended life, God reassured Hezekiah that He would protect Jerusalem from the Assyrians. As a sign of His faithfulness, God miraculously made the shadow on the sundial move backward. This supernatural event confirmed that God's word could be trusted.

Isaiah 38:9-10 (NKJV)
9 This is the writing of Hezekiah king of Judah, when he had been sick and had recovered from his sickness:
10 I said, “In the prime of my life I shall go to the gates of Sheol; I am deprived of the remainder of my years.”

Hezekiah wrote a reflection on his experience after recovering. He expressed his despair at facing death in the prime of his life, feeling that his time had been cut short. His words reveal the anguish he felt in contemplating an untimely death.

Isaiah 38:11-13 (NKJV)
11 I said, “I shall not see YAH, The Lord in the land of the living; I shall observe man no more among the inhabitants of the world.
12 My life span is gone, Taken from me like a shepherd’s tent; I have cut off my life like a weaver. He cuts me off from the loom; From day until night You make an end of me.
13 I have considered until morning—Like a lion, so He breaks all my bones; From day until night You make an end of me.”

Hezekiah reflects on how he felt cut off from life, no longer able to experience God’s presence in the world. He compares his life to a tent being taken down and a weaver’s work cut off prematurely. His suffering felt relentless, as though God was finishing his life from day to night.

Isaiah 38:14-15 (NKJV)
14 Like a crane or a swallow, so I chattered; I mourned like a dove; My eyes fail from looking upward. O Lord, I am oppressed; Undertake for me!
15 “What shall I say? He has both spoken to me, And He Himself has done it. I shall walk carefully all my years In the bitterness of my soul.

Hezekiah describes his helplessness in the face of illness, comparing himself to birds that make desperate noises. His prayer becomes a cry for God’s intervention. He acknowledges that God controls his fate and resolves to live with caution, deeply affected by the bitterness of his experience.

Isaiah 38:16-17 (NKJV)
16 O Lord, by these things men live, And in all these things is the life of my spirit; So You will restore me and make me live.
17 Indeed it was for my own peace That I had great bitterness; But You have lovingly delivered my soul from the pit of corruption, For You have cast all my sins behind Your back.

Hezekiah recognizes that life itself is sustained by God's will. He sees his suffering as a means to ultimate peace, acknowledging that God's intervention has saved him from death. He also reflects on God’s grace in forgiving his sins, offering him a second chance at life.

Isaiah 38:18-19 (NKJV)
18 For Sheol cannot thank You, Death cannot praise You; Those who go down to the pit cannot hope for Your truth.
19 The living, the living man, he shall praise You, As I do this day; The father shall make known Your truth to the children.

Hezekiah contemplates the futility of death in terms of praising God. He recognizes that only the living can offer praise and make God’s truth known to future generations. His gratitude for life leads him to worship and to pass on God’s goodness to others.

Isaiah 38:20 (NKJV)
20 “The Lord was ready to save me; Therefore we will sing my songs with stringed instruments All the days of our life, in the house of the Lord.”

Hezekiah concludes with a joyful acknowledgment of God's salvation. He commits to worship through music, expressing his gratitude and devotion to God for the remainder of his life. This verse emphasizes his renewed dedication to praise God continually in the temple.

Isaiah 38:21-22 (NKJV)
21 Now Isaiah had said, “Let them take a lump of figs, and apply it as a poultice on the boil, and he shall recover.”
22 And Hezekiah had said, “What is the sign that I shall go up to the house of the Lord?”

Isaiah instructed that a poultice of figs be applied to Hezekiah’s boil as a means of healing. This practical remedy was combined with God’s miraculous intervention. Hezekiah had also asked for a sign confirming that he would recover and be able to worship in the temple once again.