A God for Hopeless Circumstances - Isaiah 37

Copyright May 1, 2022 by Rev. Bruce Goettsche

Throughout the course of your life, you are going to face some circumstances that seem insurmountable. It may be a family tragedy, a personal trial, a relationship issue, or a legal mess. These times can build over time (like an addiction or financial burdens) or happen in an instant like a car accident, a medical diagnosis, or an attack from someone unexpected.

The nation of Israel (called Judah at this point in its history) has been facing one of those insurmountable trials. This morning we will look at the second half of the story in Isaiah 37 to see how King Hezekiah responded and what happened. What we learn will be helpful for our lives.

The people in Jerusalem were under siege from the Assyrian army (essentially a blockade designed to starve the people). They were the powerhouse in the world at the time. The Assyrians were running over the nations and deporting a number of the citizens while importing some of the Assyrians as a way of eliminating the distinctiveness of the people. These were not nice folks.

In the chapter 36 the Assyrians tried to intimidate the people of Israel. They wanted them to give up without a fight because the Assyrians were busy with numerous wars and did not want to invest the time.

We saw last week that the tactics employed by the Assyrians are the same tactics that Satan and the world use on us. The particulars may be different, but the tactics are the same.

1. Cast Doubt on the Word of God

2. Make us Feel Unworthy

3. Try to Intimidate us

4. Confuse the Facts

5. Use Negative Peer Pressure

6. Promise immediate relief

7. Get us to focus on the possibility of failure

Let’s learn from how Hezekiah handled things.

He Refused to Get Into a Shouting Match

At the end of chapter 36 in verse 21 we read, “But the people were silent and did not utter a word because Hezekiah had commanded them, “Do not answer him.” This is wise counsel! Getting into a shouting match with someone will only raise the temperature and lower your IQ. Most of us know from experience that when we snap back at someone who snapped at us it never results in resolution, only in deeper division. When we react rather than respond, we get ourselves in trouble. So, the first wise response was to not respond. We must make sure we hear and understand what is being said before we respond. And then we should do so quietly. Speaking quietly lowers the temperature and encourages others to listen.

Hezekiah Immediately Sought Divine Assistance

Second, notice that Hezekiah turned to the Lord.

When King Hezekiah heard their report, he tore his clothes and put on burlap and went into the Temple of the Lord. (v. 1)

King Hezekiah heard the threats from the Assyrian King and put on clothes that indicated mourning and repentance. His first instinct was to go to the temple of the Lord. He didn’t meet with his military strategists, He didn’t send a sly reply to Assyria, he didn’t try to do anything in his own strength. He turned immediately to the Lord. Hezekiah realized that his fight was not with the Assyrian soldiers. His fight was with the Lord.

We need to develop this same instinct! We talked in Isaiah 30 of how God waits for us. He does not force us to draw from His strength. He waits until we seek Him. Imagine how much different our lives might be if we would turn to Him FIRST rather than toss and turn in bed or spend days distracted by the anxiety of our problems. He invites us to come and find rest, but for some reason, we have concluded that won’t work. The old hymn is right: “O what peace we often forfeit, o what needless pain we bear, all because we do not carry everything to God in prayer.”

After turning to prayer in the temple, Hezekiah sent a message to Isaiah. In other words, he sought spiritual counsel. Isaiah assured him that God would defend his people and then God told him exactly what He was going to do. In those tough times of life, it is good to seek the counsel of wise and godly people.

Hezekiah was reassured. It is possible that Hezekiah sent a note to Sennacherib saying he would take his chances on trusting God. This may have been what provoked a second letter to the King from the Assyrian leader. Once again Hezekiah showed us where his strength was found.

14 After Hezekiah received the letter from the messengers and read it, he went up to the Lord’s Temple and spread it out before the Lord. 15 And Hezekiah prayed this prayer before the Lord: 16 “O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, God of Israel, you are enthroned between the mighty cherubim! You alone are God of all the kingdoms of the earth. You alone created the heavens and the earth. 17 Bend down, O Lord, and listen! Open your eyes, O Lord, and see! Listen to Sennacherib’s words of defiance against the living God.

Sennacherib seems to have understood with Hezekiah the real issue was this: are you willing to stake your life on God’s truthfulness? This is really the key question, isn’t it? We talk about trusting God, but seldom have we had to trust Him in big ways. If we do not trust Him in times of crisis, we don’t really trust Him at all. We pay lip service to faith. If we carry this a little further, we need to realize that the times when we are most helpless; the times when our backs are against the wall; those times when we are most frustrated by the injustice of our circumstances; these are the very times we get to show the depth of our faith. The times of crisis are not curses, but opportunities . . . they are an opportunity to reveal trust.

Hezekiah Took Time to Separate Truth from Error

While Hezekiah was speaking to the Lord, he was able to begin to think about the things Sennacherib said. It is amazing how some quiet time with the Lord will help us think more clearly.

18 “It is true, Lord, that the kings of Assyria have destroyed all these nations. 19 And they have thrown the gods of these nations into the fire and burned them. But of course, the Assyrians could destroy them! They were not gods at all—only idols of wood and stone shaped by human hands. 20 Now, O Lord our God, rescue us from his power; then all the kingdoms of the earth will know that you alone, O Lord, are God.

Hezekiah began to see through the intimidating words that had been spoken. He says, “Yes, they destroyed many nations and their gods. But, their gods were idols! They had no power or authority. Their gods were a pile of scraps. Pretend gods can only give pretend protection.” Hezekiah knew his God was indeed real and powerful.

This is the same thing we need to do when faced with charges from others. Someone may say, “miracles can’t happen” but as you think about it you realize that is not a conclusion based on examining claims of miracles, it is a presupposition that excludes the possibility of miracles from the beginning. Someone else may say, “Jesus couldn’t have risen from the dead.” But these people haven’t examined the evidence. As actually examine the evidence for the resurrection you will conclude, based on evidence, that Jesus did rise from the dead.

Like Sennacherib, people can make all kinds of claims. They will say things like:

· “You cannot be saved because of the failures you’ve made in the past”. But if you think about this you realize that we are not saved because we don’t make mistakes and never sin! We are saved because Jesus died to pay for those sins.

· “Everyone knows what you believe isn’t true.” As we said last week, truth is not determined by a plurality of votes. Truth is stationary. We believe what is unchanging not what changes with the winds of public opinion.

· “The Christian faith is non-scientific.” This is a mixture of terms. Biblical belief is not anti-science . . . it is anti-naturalism! Naturalism starts with a presupposition that there can be nothing supernatural. As Rick likes to explain it, it is like asking what is 2+2 (declaring that you can’t answer 4 because 4 is unscientific). Science learns from observation and testing; naturalists simply dismiss what does not fit their worldview.

· “There is no such thing as life beyond the grave.” The resurrection and testimony of Jesus would say otherwise.

· “You have to go to a particular church or have a specific experience if you are to be saved.” Any church that requires your membership in it before you can be saved is a false religion and that church is probably one you should NOT join if you hope to be saved!

The point is we must not be intimidated by what others say before we have the chance to consider what they have said. It is always acceptable to say, “You’ve given me a lot to think about.” Let the person know you are eager to have further conversations. Then actually think about their objections and charges. You will be surprised how clear things will become.

Hezekiah Let God Work

Hezekiah’s wisdom is shown finally by the fact that He waited for God to work. He didn’t get impatient. There’s a lesson for us! We say a prayer and expect an immediate lightning bolt with our answer. God responds to our prayers but circumstances must be worked out.

God sent Isaiah a message to deliver to Hezekiah. It was a message directed to Sennacherib in Isaiah 37:23-24. Perhaps it was read to the King, perhaps it was not. In it, God says a couple of things. First, He said,

“Whom have you been defying and ridiculing?

Against whom did you raise your voice?

At whom did you look with such haughty eyes?

It was the Holy One of Israel!

24 By your messengers you have defied the Lord.

In essence, the Lord says to the King, you better know with whom you are picking a fight. He affirms His Power and Might. The Lord announced that He is not like the other gods they have fought against. He is the God over ALL creation.

It is important for us to remember that the Lord is mighty and over all other powers. There is NOTHING outside of His reach and power. There is NEVER a time when we can accurately say, “there is nothing God can do to help us.” He is always sufficient.

Second, God affirmed His Sovereignty.

“But have you not heard?

I decided this long ago.

Long ago I planned it,

and now I am making it happen.

I planned for you to crush fortified cities

into heaps of rubble. (26)

Assyria was not really moving forward in its own strength. They were not moving independently of God! He was working through them to accomplish His own purposes. Assyria was God’s agent applying His judgment.

I don’t believe there are coincidences in life. God works through the circumstances around us. The smallest things may be God’s way to correct, lead, or position us for His purpose for our lives. We must not get overly hung up on the things that are happening around us. It is better to trust the Lord is working in ways we don’t see yet. When circumstances seem dark that is a good time to look within as we look to the Lord.

Finally, The Lord, in a sense, stands right in front of Sennacherib’s face and says,

But I know you well—

where you stay

and when you come and go.

I know the way you have raged against me.

29 And because of your raging against me

and your arrogance, which I have heard for myself,

I will put my hook in your nose

and my bit in your mouth.

I will make you return

by the same road on which you came.”

In other words, “Listen big shot! You are going to be the one led away from this battle! You have made big boasts and you will leave here with your tail between your legs.

I am sure Hezekiah loved hearing these things. The Lord, in His kindness gave Hezekiah a sign,

This year you will eat only what grows up by itself,

and next year you will eat what springs up from that.

But in the third year you will plant crops and harvest them;

you will tend vineyards and eat their fruit. (37:30-32)

One commentator explains what is being said,

There would be no regular harvest for the first year, because Sennacherib had already destroyed it; the people would only be able to eat what grew by itself. Neither would there be a regular harvest the second year, because Sennacherib’s troops would still be in Judah at the time the crops should have been planted. In the third year, however, the people should sow and reap; that year they could expect a good harvest, because the Assyrians would have long been gone. As the people ate of the third harvest, they would know that it was the Lord who had chastened them and then delivered them.[1]

God’s Words Fulfilled

God declared: The Assyrians won’t shoot as much as an arrow. They will never get to the attack because God is going to protect the city! Our text states what happens almost with a sense of afterthought.

36 That night the angel of the Lordwent out to the Assyrian camp and killed 185,000 Assyrian soldiers. When the surviving Assyrians woke up the next morning, they found corpses everywhere. 37 Then King Sennacherib of Assyria broke camp and returned to his own land. He went home to his capital of Nineveh and stayed there.

38 One day while he was worshiping in the temple of his god Nisroch, his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer killed him with their swords. They then escaped to the land of Ararat, and another son, Esarhaddon, became the next king of Assyria. (36-38)

Isaiah states all this in a matter-of-fact way. 185,000 Assyrians killed without a battle! The army is routed before the war even starts! It is so matter-of-fact as if Isaiah said, “of course God did what He said He would do!” God is faithful it we will but trust Him.

Conclusions

Let’s draw some quick conclusions. First, consider the grief we would be spared if we would trust God from the start. The Bible is filled with promises to us. If we would simply take God at His Word and trust him rather than trying to make things happen our way, we could avoid a great deal of heartache and uncertainty. If we would hold fast to His truth rather than bowing to the fads and nonsense of the world around us, much of our heartache would disappear.

Second, We must learn to make Prayer our first resort rather than our last resort. We all know we are supposed to pray. Unfortunately, we tend to view it as a task to be accomplished instead of a privilege to enjoy. It’s kind of like the difference between, “I guess I should talk to my spouse” as opposed to, “I can’t wait to tell my spouse.” The challenge is to learn to walk with God in prayer so that conversation is as natural with Him as with our best friend.

Finally, we must stop to think before we act. Hezekiah did it right. He prayed and then really thought about what the emperor was saying. As he did so, he realized many of the claims were ridiculous and could easily be tossed aside. We live in a world where people react too quickly to many things. God does not need us to defend Him. We don’t have to rally to His defense. In fact, we don’t have to rally to our defense either. He says He will vindicate us! He wants to help make wise choices rather than quick choices. To do this we have to stop and think. Judah took a long time to finally trust God. Let’s pray we learn from Judah and trust Him from the beginning.

[1] Thomas Hale, The Applied Old Testament Commentary (Colorado Springs, CO; Ontario, Canada; East Sussex, England: David C. Cook, 2007), 687.