Isaiah 38
38
1In those days Hezekiah became sick and was at the point of death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came to him, and said to him, “Thus says the Lord: Set your house in order; for you shall die, you shall not recover.” 2Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall, and prayed to the Lord, 3and said, “Remember now, O Lord, I beseech thee, how I have walked before thee in faithfulness and with a whole heart, and have done what is good in thy sight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly. 4Then the word of the Lord came to Isaiah: 5“Go and say to Hezekiah, Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; behold, I will add fifteen years to your life. 6I will deliver you and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria, and defend this city.
7“This is the sign to you from the Lord, that the Lord will do this thing that he has promised: 8Behold, I will make the shadow cast by the declining sun on the dial of Ahaz turn back ten steps.” So the sun turned back on the dial the ten steps by which it had declined.#38.8 The Hebrew of this verse is obscure
9A writing of Hezekiah king of Judah, after he had been sick and had recovered from his sickness:
10I said, In the noontide of my days
I must depart;
I am consigned to the gates of Sheol
for the rest of my years.
11I said, I shall not see the Lord
in the land of the living;
I shall look upon man no more
among the inhabitants of the world.
12My dwelling is plucked up and removed from me
like a shepherd's tent;
like a weaver I have rolled up my life;
he cuts me off from the loom;
from day to night thou dost bring me to an end;#38.12 Heb uncertain
13I cry for help#38.13 Cn: Heb obscure until morning;
like a lion he breaks all my bones;
from day to night thou dost bring me to an end.#38.13 Heb uncertain
14Like a swallow or a crane#38.14 Heb uncertain I clamor,
I moan like a dove.
My eyes are weary with looking upward.
O Lord, I am oppressed; be thou my security!
15But what can I say? For he has spoken to me,
and he himself has done it.
All my sleep has fled#38.15 Cn Compare Syr: Heb I will walk slowly all my years
because of the bitterness of my soul.
16O Lord, by these things men live,
and in all these is the life of my spirit.#38.16 Heb uncertain
Oh, restore me to health and make me live!
17Lo, it was for my welfare
that I had great bitterness;
but thou hast held back#38.17 Cn Compare Gk Vg: Heb loved my life
from the pit of destruction,
for thou hast cast all my sins
behind thy back.
18For Sheol cannot thank thee,
death cannot praise thee;
those who go down to the pit cannot hope
for thy faithfulness.
19The living, the living, he thanks thee,
as I do this day;
the father makes known to the children
thy faithfulness.
20The Lord will save me,
and we will sing to stringed instruments#38.20 Heb my stringed instruments
all the days of our life,
at the house of the Lord.
21Now Isaiah had said, “Let them take a cake of figs, and apply it to the boil, that he may recover.” 22Hezekiah also had said, “What is the sign that I shall go up to the house of the Lord?”
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Isaiah 38: RSV
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Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America
Isaiah 38
38
Hezekiah’s Illness and Recovery
(2 Kings 20:1–11; 2 Chronicles 32:24–31)
1In those days Hezekiah became mortally ill. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz came to him and said, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Put your house in order, for you are about to die; you will not recover.’”
2Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, 3saying, “Please, O Lord, remember how I have walked before You faithfully and with wholehearted devotion; I have done what was good in Your sight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.
4And the word of the Lord came to Isaiah, saying, 5“Go and tell Hezekiah that this is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: ‘I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. Behold, I will add fifteen years to your life. 6And I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria. I will defend this city.#38:6 MT and LXX; DSS includes for My sake and for the sake of My servant David; see 2 Kings 20:6. 7This will be a sign to you from the Lord that He will do what He has promised: 8I will make the sun’s shadow that falls on the stairway of Ahaz go back ten steps.’”
So the sunlight went back the ten steps it had descended.
Hezekiah’s Song of Thanksgiving
9This is a writing by Hezekiah king of Judah after his illness and recovery:
10I said, “In the prime #38:10 Or In the quiet or In the middle of my life
I must go through the gates of Sheol
and be deprived of the remainder of my years.”
11I said, “I will never again see the Lord,
even the Lord, in the land of the living;
I will no longer look on mankind
with those who dwell in this world.
12My dwelling has been picked up and removed from me
like a shepherd’s tent.
I have rolled up my life like a weaver;
He cuts me off from the loom;
from day until night You make an end of me.
13I composed myself #38:13 Or I cried out; see Targum Yonaton. until the morning.
Like a lion He breaks all my bones;
from day until night You make an end of me.
14I chirp like a swallow or crane;
I moan like a dove.
My eyes grow weak as I look upward.
O Lord, I am oppressed; be my security.”
15What can I say?
He has spoken to me, and He Himself has done this.
I will walk slowly all my years
because of the anguish of my soul.
16O Lord, by such things men live,
and in all of them my spirit finds life.
You have restored me to health
and have let me live.
17Surely for my own welfare
I had such great anguish;
but Your love has delivered me from the pit of oblivion,
for You have cast all my sins behind Your back.
18For Sheol cannot thank You;
Death cannot praise You.
Those who descend to the Pit
cannot hope for Your faithfulness.
19The living, only the living, can thank You,
as I do today;
fathers will tell their children
about Your faithfulness.
20The Lord will save me;
we will play songs on stringed instruments
all the days of our lives
in the house of the Lord.
21Now Isaiah had said, “Prepare a lump of pressed figs and apply it to the boil, and he will recover.”
22And Hezekiah had asked, “What will be the sign that I will go up to the house of the Lord?”
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The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible, BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee. This text of God's Word has been dedicated to the public domain.