Bible Stories for Adults

Hezekiah

2 Kings 18-20

Next Week - Jeremiah's Call and Ministry (Jeremiah)
Bible Words to Remember:
They will call on My name, and I will answer them. Zechariah 13:9

How faithful was the northern kingdom of Israel and its kings?
2 Kings 17:21-22 = People and kings persisted in the sins of Jeroboam
How did God respond to this faithlessness of His people?
2 Kings 17:23 = Exiled the people to Assyria and eliminated the nation
How did God respond to this faithlessness of His kings?
1 Kings 21:21-22 = Stopped evil dynasties and called other kings

How faithful were the people of the southern kingdom of Judah?
2 Chronicles 11:13-14, 16-17 = They began very faithful; Included faithful from Israel
Did Judah and its kings remain faithful?
2 Chronicles 12:1-2 = Abandoned the Lord when his position was established, punished
Did Judah return to faithfulness after Rehoboam was punished?
1 Kings 15:1, 3 = No, his son, Abijah, walked in the sins of his father
Why did God allow this one dynasty to remain throughout the life of the nation of Judah?
1 Kings 15:4-5 = Because of David's faithfulness and God's promise to him

Were all of Judah's kings unfaithful?
1 Kings 22:41, 43 = Next kings, Asa & Jehoshaphat, enacted reforms & were faithful
Why were the next three rulers of Judah considered evil? = Jehoram, Ahaziah, Athaliah
2 Chronicles 21:5-6 = Walked in ways of Israel since Jehoram married Ahab's daughter
How was this reign of evil ended by a seven year old? = Athaliah killed
2 Chronicles 22:11-12; 23:11, 21 = Joash hidden in temple until priest anointed him at 7

How faithful was this new king? = Judah reformed during Jehoiada, temple repaired
2 Chronicles 24:2, 17-19 = Faithful until Jehoiada died, then turned from the Lord
How did Joash respond when Jehoiada's son tried to turn him back to the Lord?
2 Chronicles 24:22 = Had him stoned for speaking against the king
How did God respond to Joash's rejection of Him and His servant?
2 Chronicles 24:24-25 = Judah & Jerusalem conquered by Syria, Joash assassinated

How faithful was Joash's son Amaziah? = Canaanites had built high places to worship their gods
2 Kings 14:1, 3-4 = Did right in the eyes of the Lord as Joash, not as good as David
Did God's blessing of victory over Edom (Seir) further build Amaziah's faith?
2 Chronicles 25:14-15 = No, he kept & worshipped Edomite gods
How did God punish Amaziah for rejecting Him?
2 Chronicles 25:20, 22, 27 = Routed by Israel; Amaziah went in hiding, then was killed

How faithful was Amaziah's son Uzziah (also called Azariah) = Right in the eyes of the Lord
2 Chronicles 26:1, 4-5 = As long as he sought the Lord, God gave him success
How did God reward Uzziah's faithfulness?
2 Chronicles 26:7-8, 10, 15 = God gave him victory, peace, prosperity, fame and power
Did Uzziah lose faith over time as his predecessors had? = God called priests, Uzziah not invited
2 Chronicles 26:16 = Yes, he became proud; entered temple although restricted to priests
How did God punish Uzziah for defying His regulations regarding the temple?
2 Chronicles 26:19, 21 = Inflicted with leprosy for rest of his life, lived in quarantine

How faithful was Uzziah's son Jotham?
2 Chronicles 27:2-3 = Right in the eyes of the Lord; people worshipped at high places
How did God bless Jotham for his faithfulness?
2 Chronicles 27:5 = Made Ammonites subject to Judah

How faithful was Jotham's son Ahaz? = Even sacrificed his sons to the Baals
2 Chronicles 28:1-4 = Turned to heavy Baal worship - worse than Ahab in Israel
How did God punish Ahaz for this evil?
2 Chronicles 28:5, 8 = Defeated by Syria (Aram) and Israel - people taken prisoner
Did Ahaz turn to God for protection from Syria and Israel?
2 Chronicles 28:16, 20 = No, he turned to Assyria who brought more trouble than help
Did Ahaz come to his senses and turn to the Lord in his trouble?
2 Chronicles 28:22-25 = Turned even further away; worshipped Syrian gods, closed temple

How did God respond at this time to the continued evil and rejection by His nation of Israel?
2 Kings 17:22-23 = Sent Assyria to conquer & deport the people of Israel
Since Judah had occasionally returned to faithfulness, did God give them even another chance?
Isaiah 1:1-2, 18-20 = He tried to bring them back again by sending Isaiah

Was the next king, Hezekiah, as evil and faithless as his father Ahaz?
2 Chronicles 29:1-2 = No, he was faithful, even like his father David
How did he match up to the other good kings of Judah?
2 Kings 18:5-7 = None like him before or after; The Lord was with him, successful
What is the first thing Hezekiah did as king that showed his faithfulness?
2 Chronicles 29:3-5 = Reopened, repaired & purified the temple, Consecrated priests
What did Hezekiah do as soon as he was told that the temple was ready (took 16 days)?
2 Chronicles 29:20-21, 27-29 = Rededicated the temple with sacrifices and great worship

What did Hezekiah decide to do since it was too late to celebrate Passover (14th day of 1st month)?
2 Chronicles 30:2-3 = Hold it a month late - better late than never to worship God
How did he show his desire for all of God's chosen people to return to the Lord?
2 Chronicles 30:1 = Invited ALL Israelites - sent a proclamation as far as Dan (v5)
Note: By delaying Passover a month, he'd fit Israel's schedule as set by Jeroboam
How did Hezekiah handle the problem that Israel had forgotten over 200 yrs how to be purified?
2 Chronicles 30:18-20 = He prayed that God would accept them anyway; He did
How did everyone feel about this renewed Passover festival?
2 Chronicles 30:26-27 = There was great joy, God heard them
Did this great joy die down the day after the festival?
2 Chronicles 31:1 = No, they went throughout Judah and destroyed pagan worship places

What happened in the northern nation of Israel a few years later?
2 Kings 18:9-12 = Assyria conquered, exiled and eliminated Israel
Did God protect Judah from any threat by Assyria because of Hezekiah's faithfulness?
2 Chronicles 32:1 = No, God doesn't promise His faithful will be free of problems (Job)
How did Hezekiah encourage the people in Jerusalem?
2 Chronicles 32:6-8 = Agreed that the sides weren't even, but because God was on theirs
What does this mean for our everyday lives?
Romans 8:31 = If God is for us, who can be against us?

How did the Assyrians try to get the Jews to turn on Hezekiah? = Pagan high places used for years
2 Chronicles 32:10-12 = Hezekiah is lying; He even destroyed your god's high places
Why should the Jews trust the Assyrians instead of Hezekiah?
2 Chronicles 32:13-15 = The Assyrians' power and victories show your god can't help
How did the people respond and how did Hezekiah respond?
2 Kings 18:36; 19:1 = People didn't respond; Hezekiah humbled himself before the Lord
What else did Hezekiah do that showed his faithfulness?
2 Chronicles 32:20 (see 2 Kings 19) = Joined Isaiah in deep prayer to God
How did God respond to Hezekiah's prayer? = Salvation only from God, not by Hezekiah's doing
2 Chronicles 32:21-23 (2 Kings 19:35-37) = He sent an angel who defeated the Assyrians

When is the next time we see Isaiah and Hezekiah together?
2 Kings 20:1 = Isaiah tells Hezekiah he is going to die from an illness he has
How does Hezekiah respond to this news that he has a terminal illness?
2 Kings 20:2-3 = He turns to God in prayer for mercy
How did God respond to Hezekiah's prayer?
2 Kings 20:4-7 = He blessed him with another 15 years of life
How else did God bless Hezekiah at this time?
2 Kings 20:8-11 = Gave him a miraculous sign of a shadow going backwards

Why did God send a high-powered entourage from Babylon to visit Hezekiah?
2 Chronicles 32:31 = To test his faith
How did Hezekiah respond to this test?
2 Kings 20:12-13 = He showed off all of his wealth - His pride got to him
What kind of wealth did Hezekiah show off?
2 Chronicles 32:27-29 = Great riches - silver, gold, jewels, spices, weapons, storehouses...
How did God respond to Hezekiah letting his pride get away with him?
2 Kings 20:14-18 = Isaiah said it would all eventually be taken by Babylon
How did Hezekiah feel about this punishment for just giving a tour to guests?
2 Kings 20:19 = He acknowledged his sin and accepted the punishment

How did the people respond to Hezekiah's death?
2 Chronicles 32:32-33 = The people of Jerusalem honored him when he died