Isaiah 36 captures a story of King Hezekiah and the attempt by Sennacherib, the king of Assyria to humiliate him and his people. The king from Assyria sent some of his men to warn Hezekiah and the people that they were coming to town to wipe them out. At first glance it looks pretty true. They are superior and Hezekiah and the boys really can’t match up. They stand outside the city and speak loudly as to discourage all the people. They warn and threaten and make predictions of what will happen. They even try to say that it is God’s idea (which is not exactly the truth). The reality is they are trying to win the war by words and discouragement, rather than having to fight at all. Our enemy, the devil, tries the same with us. His tactics are to discourage us, tell us what God says doesn’t really matter, separate us from the body and get us isolated so we have to stand alone. But his desire is the same as the King of Assyria was for these folks – to kill, steal and destroy.
We can learn from the response of the three leaders who Hezekiah sent to meet with the enemy. After listening to the threats, they heard the offer which sounded rather appealing: “Make peace with me. Come and join me. Everyone will end up with a good life, with plenty of land and water, and eventually something far better. I’ll turn you loose in wide open spaces, with more than enough fertile and productive land for everyone”. Satan works the same way on us today. Promise us the world if we give up life. But how did these three respond? Pay close attention: “They said nothing, for the king had already commanded, “Don’t answer him.”” They did not fall for the trap – they listened and went back to the king with the information. We don’t have to respond when the enemy attacks. We just need to carry it to God. The battle is His, today and for Hezekiah.
Posted by asorensen 
