The Way
A Letter Spread Out in the Temple
Laying it all out before God
Story
Hezekiah tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and went into the temple. Then he sent his officials and the senior priests to the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz with this message: “Today is a day of distress and disgrace. It is as if a child has come to the moment of birth, and there is no strength to deliver it.” Isaiah answered, “This is what the Lord says: Do not be afraid of the words you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have insulted me.”
Soon afterward a letter came from the king of Assyria. The letter said, “Don't let the god you trust in deceive you.” Hezekiah took the letter up to the temple and spread it out just as it was before the Lord. Hezekiah prayed, “Lord, enthroned above the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. The gods they burned were only wood and stone, shaped by human hands. Now save us.”
Isaiah sent word to Hezekiah: “This is what the Lord says: I have heard your prayer. The king of Assyria will not enter this city or shoot a single arrow here; he will go back the way he came. I will defend this city for my own sake and for the sake of my servant David.” A song in praise of Zion sings it this way: as we have heard, so now we have seen; God will make this city stand firm forever.
Walk this scene on the map →Words of God and the Prophets
The king of Assyria will not enter this city or shoot a single arrow here. I will defend this city and save it, for my own sake and for the sake of my servant David.
This is what the Lord says: Do not be afraid of the words you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have insulted me.
Lord, God of Israel, enthroned above the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. Now save us, so that all the world may know that you alone are God.
The sayings are fresh renderings of the original meaning in today's language. Text: 2 Kgs 19:1–34
Background
The cherubim were two winged figures spread over the lid of the ark of the covenant, and they were seen as the throne of the invisible God. Isaiah 36–37 tells the same story almost word for word.
Pause and Reflect
What worry do I need to spread out before God right now and leave with him?