Key Verse: 2 Kings 18:5, "Hezekiah trusted in the LORD, the God of Israel. There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, either before him or after him."
Israel was divided. The northern kingdom was still called Israel, and the southern kingdom was called Judah. The spiritual climate of both kingdoms was determined largely by the king in power. Some kings were good and led the people to worship the true God; other kings were evil and led the people away from God. Hezekiah was a good king.
Hezekiah ruled Judah for 29 years. He removed pagan shrines and led the people to worship God. A lot of good things were happening in Judah, but then trouble started brewing. Assyria conquered Israel, and then the king of Assyria set his sights on Judah.
The king of Assyria attempted to intimidate Hezekiah with a letter detailing his military victories. Hezekiah knew Israel had been taken into exile by Assyria, and Judah was now facing the same fate. But Hezekiah prayed God would rescue Judah from Assyria so everyone would know the Lord alone was God.
Soon, the prophet Isaiah visited Hezekiah and told him God had heard his prayer; Assyria wouldn't overtake them. God sent an angel to the Assyrian camp and killed 185,000 troops. When the Assyrians woke the next day and saw the dead bodies, they quickly returned to their homeland. And when the Assyrian king got home, his two sons killed him in the temple of his pagan god. God is always bigger than anything this world can throw at those who truly trust in him.
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