On What Are You Basing This Confidence of Yours? (part two)

[This is a continuation from the previous post, rooted in Isaiah 36 & 37. As a reminder, I will begin this with the first three points from the previous post.]

1. The field commander questions Hezekiah's and Israel's faith in God.
2. The field commander points out the impracticality of faith in God.
3. The field commander makes statements designed to introduce doubts about God's faithfulness.
4. The field commander tried to incite fear in the hearts and minds of the people. Check out this interchange between him and Hezekiah's officials.

Then Eliakim, Shebna and Joah said to the field commander, "Please speak to your servants in Aramaic, since we understand it. Don't speak to us in Hebrew in the hearing of the people on the wall." ¹²But the commander replied, "Was it only to your master and you that my master sent me to say these things, and not to the men sitting on the wall—who, like you, will have to eat their own filth and drink their own urine?" ¹³Then the commander stood and called out in Hebrew, "Hear the words of the great king, the king of Assyria! ¹⁴This is what the king says: Do not let Hezekiah deceive you. He cannot deliver you! ¹⁵Do not let Hezekiah persuade you to trust in the LORD when he says, 'The LORD will surely deliver us; this city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.' ¹⁶Do not listen to Hezekiah. This is what the king of Assyria says: Make peace with me and come out to me. Then every one of you will eat from his own vine and fig tree and drink water from his own cistern, ¹⁷until I come and take you to a land like your own—a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards.'"

Notice that this particular attack on faith does 3 things. First, it attempts to strike fear at what will happen to them. This reminds me of politicians who are constantly trying to tell us that if the other side wins we will have have mud coming out our water facets and our children will starve to death at school, and retired people will stop getting their social security. Of course, neither party will let any of these things happen. But, in this case, the fear is more realistic. From an earthly standpoint, Sennacherib can and will do this very thing; he has done it to others quite successfully. So this is no idle threat or fictitious fear mongering. From a secular point of view, it made perfect sense. Of course, if we add the truth of God to the equation, it doesn't make any sense.

Second, this attack posits the possibility that Hezekiah is the one who is doing the deceiving. It suggests that to believe in God as Hezekiah has asked them to is to believe in something “made up” or imaginary. Sounds a lot like attacks on faith that can occur to each of us. Our society at large is quite fine with religion. But don't take that religion into a sphere where it really matters. Once again I am reminded of politicians who will talk all about how religious they are, but attack the other guy if he actually allows religion to affect a policy, or a stance on any given issue. This field commander was quite alright with the people worshiping God; but don't believe Hezekiah's declaration that God will deliver you.

Third, this attack offers false hope. If you turn from faith and trust in Sennacherib, you will have prosperity and hope. As if Sennacherib is their promised deliverer. No longer a need to trust in this God you cannot see.

Now we turn to the response of faith. We first see the faith of the people who were there by something quite simple.

But the people remained silent and said nothing in reply, because the king had commanded, "Do not answer him." (Isaiah 36:21)

This was a simple act of obedience. Faith can be seen, not in our proud proclamations, but in our simple acts of obedience. They didn't start making bold declarations of how they would be victorious. They simply did not answer because the king had commanded them not to answer. It might well be that they were quite afraid; they probably were. It might well be that questions were swirling about their heads; they probably were. But, they knew to do one thing: “Do not answer him.” “I can do that. I might not be able to remain confident; I might be trembling on the inside; but I can remain quiet.” Often faith is expressed in simple steps of obedience; doing what we know we are called to do. It might be not turning on the TV, when you know that you need to have time with the Lord. (Rather than turning it on and then trying to battle the temptation to watch too much or the wrong things.) It might be, not going to the convenience store when you know that you have a hard time resisting going to the magazine section. It can come in a number of ways. But it is often a simple act of obedience we are called to make.

The second response of faith is seen in Hezekiah's reaction.

When King Hezekiah heard this, he tore his clothes and put on sackcloth and went into the temple of the LORD. (Isaiah 37:1)

Hezekiah didn't panic, he turned to the Lord. And he was serious about calling on God. In fact, in vs. 2-4, he sends his officials to Isaiah and asks Isaiah to pray also. Isaiah sent back a word from the Lord that indeed the Lord would deliver them by causing the enemy to retreat, which they did. Later, when Sennacherib was again delayed by the Egyptian army he sent a letter to Hezekiah telling him not to deceive himself thinking they were safe now. He promised to return and conquer them soon.

Hezekiah received the letter from the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the temple of the LORD and spread it out before the LORD. ¹⁵And Hezekiah prayed to the LORD: ¹⁶"O LORD Almighty, God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. ¹⁷Give ear, O LORD, and hear; open your eyes, O LORD, and see; listen to all the words Sennacherib has sent to insult the living God. ¹⁸It is true, O LORD, that the Assyrian kings have laid waste all these peoples and their lands. ¹⁹They have thrown their gods into the fire and destroyed them, for they were not gods but only wood and stone, fashioned by human hands. ²⁰Now, O LORD our God, deliver us from his hand, so that all kingdoms on earth may know that you alone, O LORD, are God."

Hezekiah turns to God once again. He spreads out this letter before the Lord. He acknowledges the truths which it contains. He compares the gods of the nations which Sennacherib had taken over with the Living God. He asks God to deliver them from his hand. Our prayer life reveals where our confidence is. On whom are you depending?

“On whom are you basing this confidence of yours?” That was Sennacherib's first question. Hezekiah and the people answered with their actions; actions which revealed trust in God.