Old Testament · Divided Kingdom
Hezekiah
“Hezekiah prayed to the Lord: 'Lord, the God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth.'”2 Kings 19:15
Biography
Hezekiah was one of Judah's most faithful kings. He removed the high places, destroyed the bronze serpent Moses had made when it became an idol, and broke the power of Assyrian oppression through prayer. When Sennacherib's army surrounded Jerusalem, he spread the threatening letter before God and prayed. God sent an angel who struck down 185,000 Assyrian soldiers overnight. When told he would die from illness, he prayed fervently and God granted him 15 more years.
Spiritual Lesson
Hezekiah models what to do when you receive a threatening letter — spread it before the Lord. His prayer life was direct and personal: he brought his actual crisis to God and trusted God to answer. He also teaches that honest intercession for life is heard by God. His later pride warns that no period of faithfulness exempts us from the ongoing need for humility.