The Sun Backed Up

Hezekiah had set out to serve God, and God had blessed him.  When the Assyrians threatened, he had trusted God and seen the Assyrians wiped out.  This was not the end of his problems however.  II Kings 20:1 describes another challenge to his faith.  “In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And the prophet Isaiah the son of Amoz came to him, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Set thine house in order; for thou shalt die, and not live.” 

After all his efforts to please God, it Had to be a shock to be told that he was just going to die.   Worse yet, the message came directly from God through his prophet so there was no possibility the doctor was mistaken.   II Kings 20:2-3 describes Hezekiah’s response.  “Then he turned his face to the wall, and prayed unto the LORD, saying, I beseech thee, O LORD, remember now how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept sore.”  Hezekiah asked God to take into account how he had served him for all those years, weeping that his life was to end so soon. 

“And it came to pass, afore Isaiah was gone out into the middle court, that the word of the LORD came to him, saying, Turn again, and tell Hezekiah the captain of my people, Thus saith the LORD, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will heal thee: on the third day thou shalt go up unto the house of the LORD.  And I will add unto thy days fifteen years; and I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria; and I will defend this city for mine own sake, and for my servant David's sake.” (II Kings 20:4-6)

Many times we feel that God is going to do what he has planned and that our prayers will not have much influence,  but James 5:16 tells us, “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”  While it is true that our prayers will not change his overall plan, God will frequently adjust the details to fit the desires of his children.   When Hezekiah prayed, God changed his plan, promising Hezekiah fifteen more years of life. 

“And Isaiah said, Take a lump of figs. And they took and laid it on the boil, and he recovered.

And Hezekiah said unto Isaiah, What shall be the sign that the LORD will heal me, and that I shall go up into the house of the LORD the third day?

And Isaiah said, This sign shalt thou have of the LORD, that the LORD will do the thing that he hath spoken: shall the shadow go forward ten degrees, or go back ten degrees? Hezekiah answered, It is a light thing for the shadow to go down ten degrees: nay, but let the shadow return backward ten degrees.

And Isaiah the prophet cried unto the LORD: and he brought the shadow ten degrees backward, by which it had gone down in the dial of Ahaz.” (II Kings 20:7-11)

As proof that Hezekiah would live fifteen more years, God caused the sun to go backward by forty minutes on the sundial of Ahaz, making the day an extra forty minutes longer because Hezekiah asked him to.  Imagine the consternation this would cause astronomers and timekeepers everywhere.  It was something that had never happened before, yet God caused it to show Hezekiah he was answering his prayers.   

We may not know the impact our prayers had until we get to heaven.