Isaiah 38:4

Hezekiah’s Illness and Recovery · Isaiah 38:1–8

Read Isaiah 38

Translations

Modern

And the word of the LORD came to Isaiah, saying,

Traditional

Then came the word of the Lord to Isaiah, saying,

Literal

And the word of YHWH came to Isaiah, saying,

Latin

Et factum est verbum Domini ad Isaiam, dicens:

Original

Hebrew

English

And the word of the LORD came to Isaiah, saying,

Notes

Isaiah 38:1–9

The story of Hezekiah’s healing connects two events. It links the extension of Hezekiah’s life with Jerusalem’s rescue from the Assyrians.

These events happened before Jerusalem was saved. However, the book places them in this order because of their theme, not their time sequence. One main theme is the power of prayer (see Isaiah 37:14–20; 38:2–3). The Lord truly listens.

Hezekiah learned to trust God. His father, Ahaz, had refused to trust the Lord. Because Hezekiah trusted God, Judah and Jerusalem were spared complete destruction by the Assyrians.

Still, Hezekiah was not the promised Messiah, the Son of David (Isaiah 7:14; 9:1–7; 11:1–16; 16:5; 32:1; 33:17–22). He was a faithful king, but he was also human and would die. His failures and his sickness (chapters 38–39) prepare the reader for the coming of the true Messiah described in chapters 40–66.

Theme notes and profiles

Hezekiah Isaiah Salvation in Isaiah