Babylon in Isaiah 39

Isaiah 39

1 At that time Merodachbaladan, the son of

Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a

present to Hezekiah: for he had heard

that he had been sick, and was recovered.

2 And Hezekiah was glad of them, and shewed them

the house of his precious things, the silver, and

the gold, and the spices, and the

precious ointment, and all the house of his

armor, and all that was found in his treasures:

there was nothing in his house, nor in all his

dominion, that Hezekiah shewed them not.

3 Then came Isaiah the prophet unto king

Hezekiah, and said unto him, What said these men?

and from whence came they unto thee?

And Hezekiah said, They are come from a far

country unto me, even from Babylon.

4 Then said he, What have they seen in thine

house? And Hezekiah answered, All that is in mine

house have they seen: there is nothing among my

treasures that I have not shewed them.

5 Then said Isaiah to Hezekiah, Hear the word of

the LORD of hosts:

6 Behold, the days come, that all that is in

thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid

up in store until this day, shall be carried to

Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith the LORD.

7 And of thy sons that shall issue from thee,

which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and

they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the

king of Babylon.

8 Then said Hezekiah to Isaiah, Good is the word

of the LORD which thou hast spoken. He said

moreover, For there shall be peace and truth in

my days.


This is the next mention of Babylon in the book

of Isaiah. It's a sad chapter. Here's

Walvoord's comments:


'Hezekiah showed envoys from Babylon all of his

treasures (vv. 1-2). Isaiah chided him for this

(vv. 3-4). Isaiah predicted to Hezekiah that all

of his treasures would be carried off to Babylon,

including some of his descendants, but that it

would not occur in his lifetime (vv. 5-8).

Though it was not recorded by Isaiah, in the

fifteen years which G-d gave him, Manassah was

born, one of the most wicked kings of the kingdom

of Judah. Humanly speaking, it would have been

far better for Hezekiah to have died before the

fifteen added years.' p.108 Walvoord.


In the Nelson's Study Notes, there is the comment

that the event recorded in Isaiah 38:8 '...would

have held special interest for the

astronomy-minded Babylonians...' as a possible

explanation for this visit to Hezekiah. Yet, in

the passage it states that it was the miraculous

recovery of his health that seemed to have taken

the interest of the Babylonians. No doubt, then

as now, there was an interest in medical

practices involving life extension. They wanted

to know what miracle cure was involved in

Hezekiah's recovery, and it may be that the

Babylonians were somehow involved in the

mysterious illness that Hezekiah contracted.

Surely, it was more than a prayer on his behalf

by some no-account prophet/'watchman'. And what

secret weapon was it that he used against the

Assyrians? (Isaiah 37:36) There was good reason for the

Babylonians to have a look around Hezekiah's

Jerusalem.


The way I see it, this is an obscure passage, and

drawing any specific conclusions from these

events is going to be subject to question. But

there is something to take away from Hezekiah's

behavior and the pronouncement by Isaiah. Isaiah

is the 'watchman' after all, and Babylon still

represents the kingdom of man.


From the perspective of history, we can see what

Hezekiah didn't see. In a nutshell, it's always

hazardous to your eternal well-being to get too

comfortable with the world and the kingdom of

man. After the hugh relief of seeing the

Assyrians retreat from the seige of Jerusalem,

(another analogy to the kingdom conflict)

Hezekiah is given another fifteen years upon

recovery from his terminal illness. He has to be

feeling invincible at that point. In this world,

that's the most hazardous condition that a man

can find himself in. Anyone who's been there,

can tell you that the feeling of invincibility is

the most seductive of all. And that a

'correction' is in the next episode of life.

Well, Hezekiah got his 'correction'. How many

times I've heard about it straight from the

horse's mouth or read of the phenomenon. Success

is a much more onerous burden that failure.

Success, and the perception of invincibility, leads

to all kind of careless and complacent behaviors.

Hezekiah got his in spades. Not only was it the

precursor of the fall of Jerusalem to Babylon,

though many years later, but it turned out that

he gave birth to one of the most wicked rulers in

the history of Israel during that fifteen year

timespan -- Manassah. If that is the product of

'success', may the blessing of being a failure, in

the estimation of this world, rest upon us all.

In the end, at the final judgement, there is

going to be the great reversal that Jesus spoke

of when he said that the first will be last and

the last will be first. The perception and

seduction of worldly 'success' and the

carelessness that it spawns, will vanish in the

world of the eternal. Here's how Jesus said it:


Luke 12:33 Sell your possessions and give to the

poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not

wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be

exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth

destroys.

34 For where your treasure is, there your heart

will be also.


This observation by Jesus says alot about the

misadventures of king Hezekiah. His heart was

captured by the treasure that he could see rather

than those in the kingdom of heaven. It's a good

illustration of the seductive power of the

kingdom of man and the better promise of an

eternal hope of genuine riches. To me, it's one

of the easiest no-brainer's, yet from the point

of emotional seduction, one of the toughest. Ah,

we're prone to wanting it all, NOW. But like I

began this post, we find that, even IF we are

seduced by the perception of invincibility, we

can never quite get there from here. Poor

Hezekiah didn't make it, and neither has anyone

else. He just traded future well-being for

immediate gratification. v.8 '...For there shall

be peace and truth in my days.'



There's alot more that can be discussed in this

context, as to the illusions that are entertained

by the kingdom of man. It's all about the

seduction and destruction of the souls of men.

The only thing of lasting value is what scripture

calls the 'soul' of man -- the eternal element.

What appears most appealing and entertaining in

the portrayal of art and literature and

entertainment are the most debased aspects of

human behavior, and what is most admirable and

virtuous appears to be the least appealing and

least satisfying. Yet, in reality (the fifth

dimension), it is exactly the opposite. Who are

you going to believe, the kingdom of man or the

kingdom of heaven? Like I said, it's a

no-brainer.