When King Hezekiah heard this, he tore his clothes and put on sackcloth and went into the temple of the LORD. – Isaiah 37:1

Today’s Scripture Reading (March 4, 2020): Isaiah 37

Our modern society is built on the idea that one person should not hold all of the political power of the nations. Some kings boasted that they were all-powerful, especially in the ancient world, but as societies began to become more advanced, we began to recognize that strength comes with two or more co-equal sources of power having to talk and negotiate with each other to get something done. The concept of the division of powers is worked out in several ways. Sometimes it was a sovereign and senate or parliament. It is often displayed in regional governments in which the Federal and State or Provincial governments are forced to team with each other on specific projects. But whatever the system, the division or separation of power ensures that no one person is all-powerful and can do whatever it is that they want. It can be frustrating, especially for the Sovereign, but the system works.

In Judah, this division of power was formed around the idea of secular and religious authority. The king, with his advisors, ran the earthly portion of the country. But Israel and Judah were designed from the very beginning to be a nation that has two Kings, a secular King that sat on the throne of the country, and God, represented by his priests serving in the Tabernacle and later the Temple. Both were essential to the effective running of the nation.   

And some Kings did not like separation. They felt that they should be able to go it alone; to rule the secular portion of the nation as well as the religious part. Hezekiah probably knew well the story of Uzziah, his Great Grandfather. Uzziah was King, but his pride caused him to enter into the Temple and to burn incense in front of the altar, something that only a priest was supposed to do. Uzziah was King and had come to believe that he was the ultimate authority in Judah. But Uzziah was wrong, and the Bible says that his disobedience caused him to be struck with leprosy, and for the rest of his life, the king lived alone, away from all who mattered to him.

Hezekiah is disturbed by all that is happening around him. And in his distress, he puts on the outward signs of mourning. But Hezekiah does not allow his pain to carry him away from God. He also does not allow his grief to drive him into sin the way that Uzziah’s pride had caused him to sin. In his pain, the King goes to the temple, but not into the holy place itself, a space reserved for only the priests of the nation. The King of Judah enters into the court as any worshipper would, and stands before the priests to ask for intercession. And in doing so, Hezekiah honored God and understood the reality that whenever any of us come and stand before the throne of God, we do so as equals. The most powerful King and the poorest of supplicants share the same status – they are worshippers of the living God.  

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Isaiah 38 & 39