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CHAPTER 13 - HEZEKIAH, (THIRTEENTH) KING OF JUDAH
Date of Hezekiah's Sickness - Announcement of his Death -- The Prayer of Hezekiah -
The Divine Answer - Meaning and Lessons of it. - The Embassy of Merodach-baladan
and its Object - Reception of the Envoys by Hezekiah - The Prophet and the King -
Prophecy of Babylon. (2 KINGS 20; ISAIAH. 38; 39)
THE narrative of Hezekiah's sickness and of the embassy of Merodach-baladan, which in
an abbreviated form is also given in the Book of Isaiah (38:1-8, 21, 22; 39) must, on
literary grounds and from its position in this history, be regarded as an appendix
similar to that added to the account of David's reign in the closing chapters of the Second
Book of Samuel.
- The abbreviation is in the narrative of Hezekiah's sickness and healing. On the other
hand, the hymn of praise, Isaiah 38:9-20, is not inserted in 2 Kings, where, indeed, such a
hymn would seem out of place.
** This appears from the whole cast of the narrative - even from the general and
indeterminate note of time in the opening words: "In those days."
*** Comp. Vol. 5 of this Bible-History.
Whether or not it was taken from a special and distinct record, or else inserted in this
place in order not to break the continuity of a narrative which had a spiritual meaning and
object of its own, it is certain that the events which it records could not have been
posterior to the final departure of Sennacherib from the soil of Palestine.*
- It is true that Josephus places it after that event (Ant. 10. 2, 1), but his testimony is here
manifestly not of any authority.
After that there could not have been occasion for such anxiety in reference to the king of
Assyria as to be met by the Divine promise in 2 Kings 20:6; nor could Hezekiah have
shown such treasures to the ambassadors of Merodach-baladan, since he had previously
stripped himself of them to Sennacherib* (2 Kings 18:14- 16), nor yet from what we
know of the history of Merodach-baladan could he then have sent such an embassy with
the manifest purpose of an alliance against Assyria, nor, finally, would Hezekiah then
have encouraged such overtures.
- This, however, does not seem a very strong argument in view of the recuperative power
apparent on previous occasions.
(^)