2 Kings 20:19 19 “The word of the Lord you have spoken is good,” Hezekiah replied. For he thought, “Will there not be peace and security in my lifetime?”
Sometimes we are able to hide our selfishness from others, and perhaps even from ourselves. Many people are very adept at the skills of manipulation and coercion with those closest to them. The guilt gets thrown about as though it were a blessing instead of a curse. Some cultures are much better at the guilt thing than others!
But one thing that is hard to miss is selfishness. It can manifest in so many creative ways, but selfishness is selfishness. And none of us likes being around a selfish person. We all want some equity when it comes to sacrifice. We all spot the person who always comes out on top at the expense of others.
Selfishness is not confined to any one social class or ethnic group. It comes in all flavors and colors.
King Hezekiah was a very good king. He had ruled with Judah with justice and righteousness. He was among the best kings the Jews had in their history. Not THE best, but among the best.
As an example of his godly leadership the Assyrian army had tried to invade and capture Jerusalem, the capital city of both Judah and the Jewish people. The Temple of the LORD was there. It was the seat of political power. And the Assyrian army was threatening it with destruction.
So what did King Hezekiah do? He didn’t give Egypt a call and buy help. He didn’t seek out any other political or military alliances in an effort to defend Jerusalem. So what did he do?
Hezekiah went to prayer. His character was to trust in the LORD. And even in this moment of severe hardship and deprivation, Hezekiah trusted in the LORD. And his prayers were answered. The Assyrian army withdrew and Jerusalem was spared. Victory in the Name of the LORD!
Around the same time Hezekiah became physically ill to the point of death. And what did he do? He prayed. And the LORD spared his life and added fifteen more years to his life. But those fifteen years came at a cost. The successor kingdom to Assyria was Babylon. And that successor kingdom was going to do what Assyria couldn’t do. Jerusalem would fall to their aggression. Hezekiah’s own relatives would be taken into captivity. Devastation would be part of his legacy.
And what did Hezekiah do? He didn’t pray! That’s right. He acted out of character and we don’t know why.
Hezekiah’s response to the LORD’s word concerning the future cost of his life being spared and the capture and destruction of Jerusalem was selfishness. “Will there not be peace and security in my lifetime?” All he seems to care about is his own peace and security. He has lost the ability to care about others, even his own descendants.
I pray we never get to the point of this level of selfishness. I would love for us to eliminate selfishness from our own personal interaction vocabulary. Instead, I would love to see self-sacrifice along with mercy and grace.
We have the perfect example in Jesus’ death and resurrection. There was no selfishness there!
The Arnold Journey 