Hezekiah’s Sickness and the Shadow

King Hezekiah, delivered in this surprising way from the dread he had been in, offered thank offerings to God with all his people, because nothing but God’s help had destroyed some of their enemies and made the rest so afraid of suffering the same fate that they left Jerusalem. Yet while he was very zealous and diligent in the worship of God, he soon afterward fell into a severe illness, so that the physicians despaired of him, and he himself expected no good outcome, and neither did his friends. Besides the illness itself, there was a very grievous circumstance that troubled the king: the thought that he was childless and was about to die, leaving his house and his kingdom without a successor of his own body. So he was troubled at the thought of his condition and lamented it, and he begged God to lengthen his life a little while, until he had some children, and not to let him leave this life before he had become a father. [a]

God had mercy on him and accepted his plea, because his distress at his expected death was not because he would soon leave the advantages he enjoyed as king, nor was it on that account that he prayed for a longer life, but in order to have sons who might receive the kingdom after him. God sent Isaiah the prophet and commanded him to tell Hezekiah that after three days he would be rid of his illness, that he would outlive it by fifteen years, and that he would have children as well. When the prophet said this, as God had commanded him, Hezekiah could hardly believe it, both because the illness he was suffering was very severe and because of the surprising nature of what he was told. So he asked Isaiah to give him some sign or wonder, so that he might believe what he said and be sure that he came from God; for things that are beyond expectation and greater than our hopes are made believable by acts of the same kind. When Isaiah asked him what sign he wanted shown, he asked him to make the shadow of the sun, which had already gone down ten steps in his house, return to the same place and be as it was before. When the prophet prayed to God to show the king this sign, Hezekiah saw what he wanted to see. He was freed from his illness at once, and went up to the temple, where he worshiped God and made vows to him.

It was at this time that the dominion of the Assyrians was overthrown by the Medes; but of these things I will write elsewhere. The king of Babylon, whose name was Merodach-baladan, sent ambassadors to Hezekiah with gifts, asking him to be his ally and friend. Hezekiah received the ambassadors gladly, gave them a feast, and showed them his treasures, his armory, and the rest of the wealth he possessed in precious stones and gold. Then he gave them gifts to carry to Merodach-baladan and sent them back to him. At this the prophet Isaiah came to him and asked where those ambassadors had come from. He replied that they came from Babylon, from the king, and that he had shown them everything he had, so that from the sight of his riches and his forces they might judge how well supplied he was and be able to tell the king about it. But the prophet answered, “Know that after a little while these riches of yours will be carried away to Babylon, and your descendants will be made eunuchs there and lose their manhood, and be servants to the king of Babylon; for God has foretold that these things will come to pass.” Hezekiah was troubled at these words, and said that he himself did not want his nation to fall into such calamities; yet since it is not possible to change what God has determined, he prayed that there might be peace while he lived. Berosus also mentions this Merodach-baladan, king of Babylon. [e]

As for this prophet Isaiah, he was by the admission of all a divine and wonderful man in speaking the truth. Confident that he had never said anything false, he wrote down all his prophecies and left them behind in books, so that later generations might judge their fulfillment by the events. Nor did this prophet do so alone; the others, twelve in number, did the same. And every ill that befalls us comes to pass according to their prophecies; but of each of these we will speak later.