As I mentioned in a recent visit, after the decision was made by the Assyrians to retreat from Jerusalem temporarily, the commander of the army sent a threatening letter to Hezekiah warning him that they would return and wipe them out if they didn’t surrender.
When Hezekiah read this letter “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). I like this picture. Nothing elaborate. He simply asked God to read the letter as well. He wanted the two of them to be on the same page.
Now, obviously, God didn’t need to read the letter to know what was in it, nor did he need to have Hezekiah explain it to Him. Hezekiah wanted God to know he had the evidence to convict the Assyrians of insulting the living God.
But before he makes that point he begins his prayer with adoration and praise. Listen: “O Lord Almighty, God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth” (verse 15).
This is a flashback to what Isaiah described in chapter 6. The focus of Hezekiah’s praise is God’s person, position and power. He is the God of Israel. He is enthroned in heaven and Sovereign over the kingdoms of earth. He is almighty as seen in creating heaven and earth. His praise was an expression of faith in God.
It also set the stage for pressing his case – the Assyrian king’s insult of the living God. He wanted God to vindicate His honor.
Do you ever pray this way?
