2 October 2011

Psalm 118; 2 Kings 20:1-21; Acts 12:1-17; Luke 7:11-17

Hezekiah was a godly king and a godly man. When Isaiah gave him word that he would not recover the first thing Hezekiah did was to pray. In turning his face to the wall, he has turned form the messenger of God to God Himself. His prayer is speedily answered and a dramatic sign is given to confirm the word, rolling back time! Hezekiah’s concern is that his reforms have only begun and if he died they may not have taken hold of the people who would go back to the old way of many gods in the land. After his recovery, the Babylonian king sent messengers to congratulate him on the recovery and to offer gifts. It is most likely that the purpose was primarily political in securing an ally against the Assyrians. Hezekiah was flattered at the attention of the Babylonian king, a major power player in the region and took the opportunity to impress the messengers by showing them the riches of the temple, not his own, but God’s. Isaiah now prophesies concerning this folly that the Babylonians will ultimately remember these things and conquer to make them their own.

The compassion of Jesus extends to the widow of Nain who had only this child to sustain her and provide for her. Certainly we can see resemblances to the stories of Elijah and Elisha with regards to raising the sons of widows to life again. Recall that the people are looking for the return of Elijah in accord with the prophecy of Malachi. Elijah is to precede the Messiah. Jesus tells His disciples later that Elijah has already come in the person of John the Baptist. When the crowd sees this miracle, they come to the conclusion that a new prophet has arisen. Could this be Elijah? In the person of Jesus they believe that God has visited His people and so He has, not in the guise of a prophet, but in person.

Persecution of the church begins. Herod desired to curry favor with the Jews and was also interested in keeping the peace in Jerusalem, always a problem for the Romans. A religious controversy was brewing and Herod believed the best solution was to quell this nascent movement immediately, he apparently lacked a Gamaliel to give wise counsel. His actions could have potentially stopped the movement in its tracks in killing the leader of the church and then arresting Peter as well. The Lord, however, is sovereign and sent an angel to release Peter from the civil authorities at this time. No one, not even Peter, could believe this was all real. Do we trust the Lord to do such things in our distress? It doesn’t always happen but occasionally, if we pay attention, we will see amazing things. The Lord delights to set free the captives who will serve Him in their freedom.