Okay, now this evening we're
going to look at 2 Kings 19, and I'm taking the title for
the message from the words found in verse 3. Look at verse 3 carefully. 2 Kings 19 verse 3. And they said unto him, Thus
saith Hezekiah, that is, speaking to Isaiah, And these are the
words of Hezekiah sent to Isaiah, this day is a day of trouble. You see that? This day is a day
of trouble. I'm taking that title for the
message and considering that Hezekiah was a blessed man of
God. He was a prosperous king in Judah. Like David, he was a man after
God's own heart. Hezekiah could say, the Lord
is my shepherd, I shall not want. He was a blessed man. We've read
in several places where God made him to prosper in all that he
did. God made him to prosper. He was
a blessed man, a prosperous king, a believer. He believed the Lord
God was his God. But like us, he was not exempt
from trouble. He was not exempt from heartache. He was not exempt from sickness
and death. We're going to see next week
in 2 Kings 20, Hezekiah was sick unto death and he prayed unto
the Lord and the Lord gave him 15 more years. But he was a blessed man, he
was a believer, but yet he had trouble, didn't he? He had trouble. You know anything about that?
All of us experience heartache and trouble and sickness, haven't
we? That's the way of the flesh. That which is born of the flesh,
that's all it is, is flesh. Man that is born of woman is
few days and full of trouble. Man is born under trouble as
the sparks fly upward. That's the way the sparks go.
Man is born under trouble. A man that's born of woman is
few days and full of trouble. God has only one Son without
sin, thank God. The Lord Jesus Christ is our
great High Priest, holy, unblameable, unreprovable, had no sin, did
no sinning, knew no sin. God has only one Son without
sin, but none without sorrow, none without trouble. Our Lord
says in Psalm 22, trouble is near. And then Isaiah 53, the Lord
Jesus Christ is called a man of sorrows acquainted with grief. Now, here's what I want us to
consider. What is our hope and comfort
in a day of trouble? Trouble's coming. What is our
comfort and hope in a day of trouble? We know that trouble
and trials will come. We know that saving faith will
be tried with what Peter calls precious trials that reveal whether
our faith is true and genuine. We read in Hebrews 12, whom the
Lord loveth, he scourgeth every son, and he chastise every son
whom he receives. Trials are called precious. They're
good for us. They're good for us. They wean
us from the flesh. They help us not to trust the
arm of the flesh, but to look unto our great God. What and
who is our hope in a day of trouble? Our Lord said this in John 16. These things have I spoken unto
you that in me you might have peace. In this world you shall
have tribulation, trouble, but be of good cheer. I have overcome. We have the victory through our
Lord Jesus Christ. We are more than conquerors through
Him that loved us. Be of good cheer, I have overcome. In this world you shall have
tribulation. And the Apostle Paul assures
us, As the Lord speaks to him about those trials and troubles
that he had in his flesh, the Lord assured the Apostle Paul,
he said, my grace is sufficient for you. Sufficient for you. We all know, believers do, that
Christ is our hope. Christ is our comfort in the
day of trouble in a day of trial. Christ is all of our salvation.
He's a God of hope, the God of comfort, and He's a God of all
grace. We look to Him in a day of trouble,
don't we? Trial and heartache. It's coming. It's here. Today
is the day. But think about this, too. This
is the day the Lord hath made. That day of hezekiah's trouble,
that didn't come by accident. That came by the Lord's purpose. The Lord's purpose. Now, I want
to consider what Hezekiah did and follow his good example in
the day of his trouble. Casting all your care upon him
for he care for you. Notice what it says in verse
1. And it came to pass, and it came to pass when King Hezekiah
heard it, that is all the terrible words of Rapshaki that he spoke
to Judah concerning their destruction, concerning their captivity. He
rent his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth, and went into
the house of the Lord. You remember what David said,
I was glad when they said unto me, let us go into the house
of the Lord. He went to the house of the Lord.
At first Hezekiah consulted with his generals, with his men, his
army, and prepared himself to fight the fight. But then he
got right back to seeking the favor, the good favor, the blessed
favor of the Lord. He went to the house of the Lord.
Hezekiah sent his servants to Isaiah to tell him that they
were in trouble. And they did. They went and told
Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amos. You see verse 2? 2 Kings
19. They went to the prophet of God
to declare all their heartache and all their trouble of the
Lord. What a blessing to know that
when troubles come our way, that our prophet And our priest and
our king bids us to come to him for help. He said, come unto
me. Come unto me all you laboring,
heavy laden. I'll give you rest. And then he says, come boldly
to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, find grace
to help in time of need. Naaman 1 verse 7 says this, The
Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble. and he knoweth
them that trust in him. David said in another psalm,
trust the Lord at all times, you people. Pour out your heart
before him. God is a refuge for us. Now, verse 5, 6, and 7 of 2 Kings
19, we have the sure words of Isaiah's prophecy concerning
Hezekiah and his trouble. And Isaiah said unto them, thus
shall you say to your master, thus sayeth the Lord. Be not
afraid of the words which I was heard, with which the servants of the
king of Assyria have blasphemed me, God said, their rebellions
against me. Behold, I will send a blast upon
him, and he shall hear a rumor and shall return to his own land
and I'll cause him to fall by the sword in his own house."
His own sons murdered him. God said it would
happen and it did happen. Now Isaiah says two things here. Judah shall be delivered and
then it says secondly, Sennacherib The enemy will be destroyed.
Is not this the same message of the gospel of the Lord Jesus
Christ? Judah shall be saved with an
everlasting salvation. Call his name Jesus. He shall
save his people from their sin. saved with an everlasting salvation,
and then all of our enemies shall be destroyed." Sin, he put it
away. The law of God, he honored it.
Death, he conquered it. He ascended to glory as the forerunner
and occupied heaven for us. Thanks be to God who has given
us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. He spoiled principalities
and powers. He made a show of them openly,
triumphing over them Himself. We are more than conquerors through
Him that loved us. Verse 8 down to verse 13, Sennacherib
make some very proud, boastful words. Look at verse 10. Thus
shall you speak to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying, Let not thy
God in whom you trust deceive you, saying, Jerusalem shall
be delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria." Don't be
deceived. Don't be deceived. Remember what
Hezekiah said over here in 2 Chronicles 32, 8. With him is the arm of
the flesh, but with us is the arm of the Lord. our God to help
us to fight our battles. And the people rested, laying
themselves upon the words of Hezekiah the king of Judah. Now,
how could he speak with such certainty? He trusted the Lord. He believed the word of the Lord. Hezekiah told the people that
the Lord will fight our battles. With Sennacherib, all he has
is flesh. Flesh. I love what David said
to Goliath. You come out to me with sword
and shield. I come to you in the name of
the Lord our God." No match is there. All you have is flesh. With Him is the arm of the flesh.
There is more with us than with Him. Remember the words of Elisha
to his young servant back in 2 Kings 16. You remember when
they were on the run, Elisha was on the run. from the king
who threatened their life, and they were surrounded there in
Dothan. And the servant said to Elisha, what are we going
to do? And Elisha said, there's more
with us than with them. What? No way. And then the Lord
opened His eyes, and He saw the mountains round about with those
fiery angels ready to execute judgment upon those. You see,
there's always more with us than with them. Because with God,
all things are going to be possible. With God, nothing is too hard. Now, in verse 14 down through
verse 19, when Hezekiah read the letter from Sennacherib,
he took the whole matter in prayer and spread it out before the
Lord. When Sennacherib boasts of all
the countries that he has conquered and sent it to Hezekiah in a
letter, verse 14. Hezekiah received the letter
at the hand of the messenger and read it. And Hezekiah went
up to the house of the Lord, and I love this right here, he
spread it before the Lord. He spread out the matter before
the Lord. And Hezekiah prayed before the
Lord and said, O Lord God of Israel, dwell us between the
cherubims upon the mercy seat. Thou art God, even Thou alone,
of all the kingdoms of the earth. He's king everywhere. He's the
king of all the earth. And You've made heaven and earth.
You're the Creator. Lord, bow down Thine ear and
hear, open Lord Thine eyes and see and hear the words of Sennacherib
which He hath sent to reproach the living God of a truth. Lord,
the kings of Assyrians have destroyed the nations and their lands.
They have cast their gods into the fire, verse 18. But they
were no gods. They were work of men's hands,
idols, wood, stone. Therefore, they've destroyed
them, verse 19. Now, therefore, O Lord God, our
God, I beseech thee, save us. out of his hand, that all the
kings of the earth may know that thou art the Lord God, even thou
only." Snack and rib. When he sent that threatening
letter, Hezekiah took the whole matter and spread it out before
the Lord. May God give us grace and wisdom
to do exactly the same thing. When we're confronted with heartache,
trouble, trials, Take our burdens to the Lord and leave them there. Spread the matter out before
the Lord. He knows the matter anyway. But
he said, let your requests be made known unto God. And I quote
that verse, I quoted it earlier, casting all your care upon Him.
1 Peter 5, 7. That's what the Lord said. Cast
all your care upon Him. He cares for you. But this is
a remarkable prayer. He prays for deliverance and
help, that the Lord may be honored and glorified. Verse 19, Now
therefore, O Lord our God, I beseech Thee, save us out of the hand,
that all the kings of the earth may know that You are God. You
see, he's asking for the Lord to be honored, for the Lord to
be glorified in their deliverance. That is a good and valid reason
to ask for deliverance and salvation, that Christ may be glorified,
that Christ may be honored. You see, that's the whole purpose
of God saving sinners, isn't it? To the praise of the glory
of His grace. wherein He hath made us accepted
in the Beloved, that everyone may know that Thou art God alone,
even Thou only?" I thought about this. What poor soul can go with
these pleas to the throne of mercy, at the mercy seat, and
go away vain? Go away in vain. Everyone who
came to the Lord asking for mercy, seeking mercy, found mercy. Lord,
be merciful to me, the sinner. And the Lord said he went down
to his house justified. Blind Bartimaeus begged for mercy.
The Lord healed him. The leper said, Lord, if you
will, you can make me clean. The Lord said, I will. Be thou
clean. Notice, if you will. The Lord
said, I will. Now, I want to spend a few minutes
here on verse 20 down through verse 34, and then the rest of
the story we'll see what happened to Sennacherib. Here's the Lord's
answer delivered by Isaiah. The Lord does hear the prayer
of His people, and He does send the good news. Verse 19, Then
Isaiah the son of Amos sent to Hezekiah, saying, Thus said the
Lord God of Israel, That which thou hast prayed to me against
Sennacherib king of Assyria, I have heard it. That ought to
encourage us to pray unto the Lord. He hears our prayers. Notice something else that I
notice a couple of times here. In verse 22, "...whom thou hast
reproached and blasphemed." This is the Word of the Lord, verse
21. This is the Word that the Lord has spoken concerning him.
The virgin daughter of Zion, that's his people, hath despised
the enemy, laughed him to score. The daughter of Jerusalem hath
shaken her head at thee, whom thou hast reproached and blasphemed,
and against whom thou hast exalted thy voice, and lifted up thine
eyes." Now watch it. Sennacherib directed his railing
against Hezekiah and the people of God. But God considered that
a direct Rebellion against the Holy One of Israel. Look what
it says there. You blasphemed me, God said,
even against the Holy One of Israel. He says that again in
verse 27, I know thy abode. God says to Sennacherib, thy
going out, thy coming in, and thy rage is against me. You see, sin is against God.
Because thy rage against me and thy tumult has come up into my
ears, therefore I'll put a hook in your nose and bridle in thy
lips, and I'll turn you back by the way which you came." The
Lord considers the attack against His people to be against Him. Remember the Lord said, Touch
not mine anointed, and do my prophets no harm. Remember what
the Lord said to Saul of Tarsus who persecuted the church of
the Lord Jesus Christ? He said, why are you persecuting
me? You see, when you persecute the
Lord's people, you persecute His body. Believers are the body
of Christ. The second thing, the proud boast
of Sennacherib were nothing but the accomplishments of God. Look
at verse 25. Everything that Sennacherib bragged
about, all the victories that he had, all the kingdoms that
he had conquered, hast thou not heard long ago how I have done
it? And of ancient times that I have
formed it, now have I brought it to pass that thou shouldest
be to lay waste, fent cities, and ruin us heaps? Therefore,
the inhabitants were of small power. They were dismayed and
confounded. They were as grass of the field,
as green herbs, as the grass on the housetops. And the corn
blasted before it grows up. The Lord is telling Sennacherib,
the only reason that you're successful is because I used you to accomplish
my purpose. The Lord said that he was just
using Sennacherib to accomplish his purpose. You see, the Lord
even uses the wickedness of men to accomplish his own purpose. You remember Isaiah 46? He said,
I've spoken it, I'll bring it to pass, I've purposed it, I
will do it. Even calling a ravenous bird
from the east, the man that would execute my counsel from afar,
Sennacherib was doing exactly what God determined for Him to
do. The Lord said He was just using
him for His own purpose. The proud may boast, but God
does depose and dispose of them in His due time. The Lord said,
their foot will slide in due time. Another place in the Psalms
He said, God has set them in slippery Now I want you to turn
and read this with me. I quoted a part of this. Turn
to Psalm 2. Psalm 2. You remember the kings
of the earth raged against God? In Psalm 2. Why do the heathen
rage? Psalm 2, And the people imagine
vain things. The kings of the earth set themselves,
and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against
His Christ, saying, Let us break their bands asunder, cast away
their cords from us. He that sitteth in heaven shall
laugh. The Lord shall have them in derision. The prime example of that, you
know, is in the crucifixion of our Lord. In Acts chapter 4,
Herod, Pontius Pilate, the Jews and the Gentiles were all gathered
together for to do, you remember, the rest of it, whatsoever thy
hand and thy counsel determined before to be done. The proud may boast But God will
have His way. The third thing I want us to
know is this. The Lord knew every move that
Sennacherib made. Look at verse 27. Verse 28. I know your abode. I know where you sit down. I know where you're going out.
I know when you're coming in. I know your rage is against me.
because thy rage against me and thy tumult has come up into my
ears. Therefore I put a hook in your
nose, and my bridle, my hook, in your lips, and I'll turn you
back by the way which you came." That's complete control of God
over every wicked man. The Lord knew every move Sennacherib
had made. The all-knowing eye, the all-seeing
eye of God was a spy upon him, and God was set to control him. You remember Psalm 76, Surely
the wrath of man shall praise thee, and the remainder of wrath
shalt thou restrain." I love this statement here. He says,
I will put my hook in your nose and I will put my bridle in your
lips. I will restrain you, use you,
manage you, turn you, destroy you to accomplish my purpose. Whatsoever the Lord pleased,
that's what he did, heaven, earth, sea, and all deep places. Shall
not the judge of all the earth do right? God used this man like
he used Pharaoh of old. Raised him up, hardened his heart,
and then killed him in the Red Sea. The fourth thing I want us to
see in verse 29, Salvation and joy to Hezekiah
and Judah. The Lord is going to feed His
people. He will provide in unusual ways. The Lord will provide. The Assyrian army devoured the
crops, but God said, I'm going to still feed you. You see that? This is a sign unto you. You
shall eat this year such things as you didn't even grow. You
didn't even plant any seeds, yet I'm going to give you a harvest.
And in the second year of that same spring, and in the second
year which springeth of the same, and in the third year sow ye,
reap, and plant vineyards, and eat the fruits thereof." God
said, I'm going to feed you. I'm going to provide for you,
not by your work, but by His grace. And we know that salvation
is of the Lord. The siege caused a famine. But
the Lord brought plenty, didn't He? By His grace. He said, you're
not even going to have to plant. I'm going to do the planting
for you. The fifth thing is this, verse 30. A remnant shall be
saved. A remnant that is escaped out
of the house of Judas shall yet again take root downward, rooted
and grounded in Christ, and bear fruit, Upward here it is God
glorified that you bear much fruit remember John 15 The remnant
shall be saved and shall bear fruit to God We read in Romans
11 even so at this present time. There's a remnant according to
the election of grace and If by grace and it's no more of
work, otherwise grace is no more works But if it be of work, then
it's no more grace. Otherwise work is no more work.
I Such is the prosperity of our soul by the Lord's grace, being
rooted and grounded in Christ." Ephesians 3, that Christ may
dwell in your hearts by faith, being rooted and grounded in
His love. And being fruitful, being fruitful
by His grace. Bearing fruit upward. The fruit
of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, meekness,
temperance. Now how is all this going to
come to pass? Verse 31, For out of Jerusalem shall go forth a
remnant, and they that escape out of Mount Zion, or the escaping,
the zeal of the Lord of Hosts, shall do this. Now, hold your
place here and find Isaiah 9. The zeal of the Lord of hosts
shall do this. Isaiah 9, verse 6. And this is a prophecy concerning
the Lord Jesus Christ. The zeal of the Lord of hosts
shall do this. Shall accomplish salvation for
His people. Isaiah 9, 6. For unto us a child
is born, a son is given, The government shall be upon his
shoulders. His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor of
the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end.
Upon the throne of David, upon his kingdom, to order it, to
establish it with judgment and justice from henceforth even
forever, the zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform it." Who's
going to do it? His zeal. His faithfulness. You see, it's going to happen
by the will of the Lord and by the performance of the Lord.
Salvation is by His performance, His faithfulness, not ours. Isaiah
54, 17 says, No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper. The pleasure of the Lord shall
prosper in His hand. Remember? Verse 34, 2 Kings 19, 34. For I will defend this city.
You reckon it's got a good defense? I will defend this city and save
it. Look at verse 32, Therefore thus
saith the Lord concerning the king of Assyria, He shall not
come into this city, He shall not shoot an arrow there. He shall not come before it with
a shield or bank against it. By the way that he came, the
same shall return and shall not come into this city. Thus saith
the Lord, I am going to defend it." I will defend this city
to save it for my own sake and for David's sake. The Lord will do this for His
own honor, won't He? He will protect His bride He
calls her the virgin of the daughter of Zion. And that's the church. He loved the church and gave
Himself for it. The Lord will protect His people. The Lord will do it for His own
truth and for the greater David's sake. The last part of verse
34, for My servant David's sake. Now whenever you see that, what
do you think of? You think of God has loved us
and given Himself for us. We're to love one another, forgive
one another, even as God for Christ's sake has forgiven us.
And this always refers to the sure mercies of David in Christ
Jesus. And because of those covenant
mercies, that covenant language, I will be their God and they
shall be my people. All our deliverance and salvation
and redemption is for one reason. One reason. For Christ's sake. That's it. For the Lord Jesus
Christ's sake. Now, as Paul Harvey used to say,
here's the rest of the story. Now what's going to happen to
Sennacherib? Remember what God said to Isaiah? He's going to
die by the hand of his own family. And here's the rest of the story.
The Lord destroys the army. It came to pass that night that
the angel of the Lord went out, smote in the camp of the Syrians
185,000 soldiers, and when they arose early in the morning, They were all dead. When Israel
got up that morning and got up on the walled city and looked
out into that plain, all they could see, as far as they could
see, was just dead bodies. I can just imagine Sennacherib
standing out there and looking around. The Lord killed all of
them with him. And then he got skedaddled home.
So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed and went and returned
and dwelt in Nineveh. And it came to pass, as he was
worshipping in the house of Nisroch, his god, he's probably thanking
his god for sparing his life, that Adrammelech and Sherezer,
his sons, smote him with a sword and they escaped into the land
of Armenia. And Esarhaddon, his son, reigned
in his stead." Just as the Lord said it would come to pass, not
one arrow went over the wall. Not one soldier attacked that
wall. And the Lord sent the angel of
the Lord. Now, it may be the Lord Jesus
Christ Himself. It doesn't say an angel. It says, the angel of the Lord,
the messenger of the covenant. Let us never despair. The Lord's
purpose will be done, is being done, and cannot fail. Now in the day of trouble, trouble's
coming. Trouble's coming. In the day
of trouble, look to the Lord, our God, for strength. He cannot fail. His grace is
sufficient.