2 Kings 20: For the sake of my servant David

Verses 5-6: "Go back and tell Hezekiah, the ruler of my people, 'This is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will heal you. On the third day from now you will go up to the temple of the Lord. I will add fifteen years to your life. And I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria. I will defend this city for my sake and for the sake of my servant David.'"

◇ King Hezekiah wept bitterly and prayed against the wall. The vast army of Assyria had been defeated and retreated, and now Hezekiah was faced with another cause for bitter weeping and prayer: he was suffering from a fatal illness.

Hezekiah reminded God of his faithful and wholehearted service, pleading for his life as he wept and prayed against the wall.

To pray against the wall means that he was not looking to the world but solely to God. He depended not on the world but only on God. Hezekiah prayed to God with sincerity and desperation.

God responded that He had heard his prayer and seen his tears, and that Hezekiah would recover within three days and go up to the temple.

Indeed, as Martin Luther said, prayer is the almighty queen. God does not ignore those who pray fervently and weep bitterly. A desperate prayer is the key that moves the heart of God. The cries of the Israelites enslaved in Egypt moved God to give them freedom and a land. The repentant prayers of the king and people of Nineveh turned away the disaster that was coming upon them. The disaster that was to come upon Ahab was also delayed. God listens to sincere and desperate prayers.

Verse 6 contains a particularly enviable promise: God extends Hezekiah's life by fifteen years, saying, "I will defend this city for my sake and for the sake of my servant David" (6). God says He will protect the city because of David. 

I hope to become such a person. Because of me, may God protect our families, our churches, our country, and this world. May I become someone whom God treasures.

♧ Oh God, our Father, let us pray prayers that are true and desperate, which you hear. Instead of being like Jeroboam son of Nebat, who led the people of Israel into sin, help us to be like David, who led by your protection. Holy Spirit, guide us in the way of truth!