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Negotiating from Fear
Isaiah 37:8-13
| "8 So Rabshakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah: for he had heard that he was departed from Lachish. 9 And he heard say concerning Tirhakah king of Ethiopia, He is come forth to make war with thee. And when he heard it, he sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying, 10 Thus shall ye speak to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying, Let not thy God, in whom thou trustest, deceive thee, saying, Jerusalem shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria. 11 Behold, thou hast heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands by destroying them utterly; and shalt thou be delivered? 12 Have the gods of the nations delivered them which my fathers have destroyed, as Gozan, and Haran, and Rezeph, and the children of Eden which were in Telassar? 13 Where is the king of Hamath, and the king of Arphad, and the king of the city of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivah?" |
While Hezekiah consulted Isaiah to get instructions from God, the Rabshakeh returned to find that his god, King Sennacherib, was having many problems. Sennacherib had moved his army from Lachish to Libnah. We do not know why he made this move, but there is no historical record that he had taken the city of Lachish. It is likely that Lachish was putting up more resistance than Sennacherib had anticipated, so he moved north to Libnah, which did not appear to be as well defended and was closer to Jerusalem.
In addition, Sennacherib had received word that Tirhakah, the king of Ethiopia, was preparing to attack him. "This king, who, by Eusebius and by most ancient writers, is called Tarakos, was a celebrated conqueror, and had subdued Egypt to himself. He reigned over Egypt eighteen years. When Sennacherib marched into Egypt, Sevechus or Sethon was on the throne. Sennacherib having laid siege to Pelusium, Tirhakah came to the aid of the city, and, in consequence of his aid, Sennacherib was compelled to raise the siege and returned to Palestine, and laid siege to Lachish." (Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible) Now, Tirhakah was reportedly coming after Sennacherib, and Sennacherib was scared.
In order to have sufficient forces to face Tirhakah, Sennacherib needed to make quick work of his siege at Jerusalem. So, the message that he sent to Hezekiah was not sent from a position of strength. It was sent out of weakness and fear, which is so often the case when God's enemies threaten His people.
The Rabshakeh had failed to shake the faith of the people in Jerusalem when he told them that Hezekiah was deceiving them about God's ability to protect their city. Now, Sennacherib went a step farther. He challenged King Hezekiah's faith by telling him that God was a deceiver and a liar. This blasphemy far exceeded what the people had heard from the Rabshakeh and is a sign of just how desperate Sennacherib was.
Sennacherib's argument used the same faulty logic as the Rabshakeh had used, i.e. that no god had protected any city from the Assyrian kings. The cities that he mentioned were all located in Mesopotamia. He did not mention Pelusium in Egypt.
The devil likes to attack our faith, but he is a liar and a murderer and the father of evil (John 8:22). He has no power against people of faith, because Christ has already defeated him. Like Sennacherib, however, the devil uses our perception of the circumstances surrounding us to scare us into surrendering to him.
"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." (Hebrews 11:1) It is not what we see that should affect the decisions that we make. Surrendering to Sennacherib would not have saved the city of Jerusalem.
"For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it." (Romans 8:24-25)
"While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal." (2 Corinthians 4:18) Satan is the god of this world, of temporal things that will quickly pass away. Our faith must be placed in the unseen things of God, which endure for eternity.
It appears that Hezekiah's reputation of being a man of great faith had reached the ears of Sennacherib. Now, he was being called upon to demonstrate that faith under very difficult circumstances. Thousands of lives depended on his decision. What would you have done?
Before The Throne:
Pray for increased faith. Ask God to help you see beyond the temporal things that tempt you and want to influence your decisions. Ask for a vision of things not seen and of the promises of eternity. Ask God to give you the ability to resist the offers of the devil and to make wise decisions. Pray for the leaders in your government to have the faith of Hezekiah.
For Further Study:
(v.8) * Rabshakeh. 2Ki 19:8,9; Nu 33:20,21; * Libnah. Jos 10:29,31-34; 21:13; 2Ki 8:22; 2Ch 21:10; * Lachish. Jos 12:11; 15:39:
(v.9) * he heard. 1Sa 23:27,28;
(v.10) * Let not. Isa 36:4,15,20; 2Ki 18:5; 19:10-13; 2Ch 32:7,8,15-19; Ps 22:8; Mt 27:43;
(v.11) Isa 18,19; 10:7-14; 14:17; 36:18-20; 2Ki 17:4-6; 18:33-35;
(v.12) * the gods. Isa 36:20; 46:5-7; * Gozan. 2Ki 17:6; 18:11; 19:12; * Haran. Ge 11:31; 12:14; 28:10; 29:4; Ac 7:2; * Eden. Ge 2:8; Eze 27:23; 28:13; Am 1:5; * Telassar. 2Ki 19:12;
(v.13) * Hamath. Isa 10:9; 36:19; Jer 49:23; * Hena. 2Ki 17:24,30,31; * Ava, Avites. 2Ki 18:34; 19:13;
For Further Study is an edited excerpt from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.
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