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Isaiah Chapter 39 (BBE)

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Isaiah Chapter 39 - Hezekiah Shows His Treasures to Babylon
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1 At that time Merodach-baladan, the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters with an offering to Hezekiah, because he had news that Hezekiah had been ill, and was well again.

2 And Hezekiah was glad at their coming, and let them see all his store of wealth, the silver and the gold and the spices and the oil, and all the house of his arms, and everything there was in his stores: there was nothing in all his house or his kingdom which he did not let them see.

3 Then Isaiah the prophet came to King Hezekiah, and said to him, What did these men say, and where did they come from? And Hezekiah said, They came from a far country, even from Babylon.

4 And he said, What have they seen in your house? And Hezekiah said in answer, They saw everything in my house: there is nothing among my stores which I did not let them see.

5 Then said Isaiah to Hezekiah, Give ear to the word of the Lord of armies:

6 Truly, the days are coming when everything in your house, and whatever your fathers have put in store till this day, will be taken away to Babylon: all will be gone.

7 And your sons, even your offspring, will they take away to be unsexed servants in the house of the king of Babylon.

8 Then said Hezekiah to Isaiah, Good is the word of the Lord which you have said. And he said in his heart, There will be peace and quiet in my days.

Frequently Asked Questions

What's Isaiah chapter 39 about?
After his recovery, Hezekiah proudly shows Babylonian envoys all his treasures and armory (v1-2); Isaiah then warns that everything shown to them - and even some of Hezekiah's own descendants - will one day be carried off to Babylon (v5-7).
What does Hezekiah's response in verse 8, 'there shall be peace and truth in my days,' reveal?
It's a somewhat self-focused reaction to a prophecy of future disaster, a disaster later fulfilled when Babylon actually carried off the temple's treasures, as recorded in 2 Kings 25:13-15.
Why does Isaiah rebuke Hezekiah in this chapter?
Because Hezekiah revealed the full extent of his kingdom's wealth to foreign visitors from Babylon (v2, 4) - the same nation Isaiah then says will eventually plunder that wealth (v6).

Today's Verse

And Jehovah will render to every man his righteousness and his faithfulness; forasmuch as Jehovah delivered thee into my hand to-day, and I would not put forth my hand against Jehovah's anointed.

1-samuel 26:23 | ASV

Verse Of The Day

Isaiah confronts him afterward, prophesying that everything Hezekiah displayed, along with his own sons, will one day be carried off to Babylon, a warning that later plays out as told in 2 Kings 25:13-15. The book's tone shifts to comfort in Isaiah 40.