The Chosen Key Word in this Chapter is “Armour” it comes from the Hebrew Word “neshek” which means “armor, weapons.”
Hezekiah’s proud display to Babylonian envoys sets up a sobering prophecy about future exile. Welcome to Bible Life Basics Chapter Reviews, I am Chris and this is Isaiah 39.
Isaiah records that at that time Merodachbaladan, son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present to Hezekiah, since he had heard that he had been sick, and was recovered, Hezekiah being glad of them, and showing them the house of his precious things, the silver, and the gold, and the spices, and the precious ointment, and all the house of his “armour,” “neshek” in Hebrew, and all that was found in his treasures, there being nothing in his house, nor in all his dominion, that Hezekiah did not show them.
Isaiah the prophet comes to King Hezekiah, asking what these men said, and from where they came to him, Hezekiah answering they came from a far country, from Babylon, Isaiah asking what they saw in his house, Hezekiah answering that all that is in his house they have seen, there being nothing among his treasures that he has not shown them.
Isaiah delivers a sobering prophecy, “Behold, the days come, that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store until this day, shall be carried to Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith the LORD. And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon,” Hezekiah responding that the word of the Lord which Isaiah has spoken is good, thinking to himself that there shall be peace and truth in his own days, this troubling chapter foreshadowing the coming Babylonian exile that would eventually befall Judah generations later.
Hezekiah’s proud, unnecessary display of his treasures to foreign envoys reveals how quickly genuine humility can slip into self-important vanity, even for someone who had so recently prayed with such genuine dependence during his illness. His troubling response to Isaiah’s sobering prophecy, content simply that peace would last during his own lifetime, offers a sobering warning against the temptation to prioritize immediate personal comfort over genuine concern for future generations.
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