2 RoisChapitre 20

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In those days Hezekiah fell mortally ill. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz came to him and said, "This is what the LORD says: Put your house in order, for you are going to die; you will not recover."

Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the LORD:

"Please, LORD, remember how I have walked before you faithfully and with a whole heart, and have done what is good in your eyes." And Hezekiah wept bitterly.

Isaiah had not yet gone out of the middle court when the word of the LORD came to him:

"Go back and say to Hezekiah, the leader of my people: This is what the LORD, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears. I am going to heal you; on the third day you will go up to the house of the LORD.

I will add fifteen years to your life, and I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria. I will defend this city for my own sake and for the sake of my servant David."

Then Isaiah said, "Bring a cake of figs." They brought it and applied it to the boil, and he recovered.

Hezekiah had asked Isaiah, "What will be the sign that the LORD will heal me and that I will go up to the house of the LORD on the third day?"

Isaiah answered, "This is the sign for you from the LORD that the LORD will do what he has promised: shall the shadow go forward ten steps, or shall it go back ten steps?"

Hezekiah said, "It is a small thing for the shadow to move forward ten steps. No, let it go back ten steps."

Then the prophet Isaiah called out to the LORD, and he made the shadow go back the ten steps it had gone down on the stairway of Ahaz.

At that time Berodach-baladan son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a gift to Hezekiah, for he had heard that Hezekiah had been ill.

Hezekiah listened to them and showed them his entire treasury—the silver, the gold, the spices, the fine oil, his armory, and everything found among his treasures. There was nothing in his palace or in all his realm that he did not show them.

Then the prophet Isaiah came to King Hezekiah and asked him, "What did those men say, and where did they come from?" "They came from a distant land," Hezekiah said, "from Babylon."

"What did they see in your palace?" the prophet asked. "They saw everything in my palace," Hezekiah said. "There is nothing among my treasures that I did not show them."

Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, "Hear the word of the LORD:

The days are coming when everything in your palace, and all that your fathers have stored up until this day, will be carried off to Babylon. Nothing will be left, says the LORD.

And some of your own sons, who will come from you, whom you yourself will father, will be taken away to serve as eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.

Hezekiah answered, "The word of the LORD that you have spoken is good." For he thought, "Will there not be peace and security in my lifetime?"

The rest of the acts of Hezekiah, all his achievements, and how he made the pool and the conduit and brought water into the city, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?

Hezekiah rested with his fathers, and his son Manasseh succeeded him as king.

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Résumé2

Chapitre 20

Main Theme: God's gracious healing of Hezekiah and the warning about Babylon's future dominance.

Content: King Hezekiah becomes mortally ill, but after earnest prayer, God hears him and grants him 15 additional years of life. As a sign of his healing, God causes the shadow to move backward ten steps on Ahaz's stairway. Later, Hezekiah foolishly shows all his treasures to Babylonian envoys, and Isaiah prophesies that everything will be carried off to Babylon and that descendants will become eunuchs there. Hezekiah accepts the judgment, grateful for peace during his lifetime.

Key Words/Images:

Fig cake on the boil: Isaiah prescribes a simple medical treatment as an instrument of God's healing.
The shadow moving backward: A miraculous sign where the shadow moves ten steps backward confirms God's promise of healing.
The treasury: Hezekiah's proud display of wealth becomes the occasion for prophecy about future exile.
"It is good that the Lord has spoken": Hezekiah's acceptance of judgment shows submission, but also relief that punishment is delayed.

Contexte historique

Historical and Cultural Context for 2 Kings 20

People

Hezekiah (Hebrew: חִזְקִיָּהוּ, "Yahweh is my strength") is presented in this chapter as terminally ill but granted fifteen additional years of life through prayer and God's intervention. The chapter portrays him both in vulnerable prayer turned toward the wall (vv. 2–3) and in questionable diplomatic conduct when he shows all his treasures to Babylonian envoys (v. 13).

Isaiah, son of Amoz (יְשַׁעְיָהוּ בֶן־אָמוֹץ) appears as a prophet with a dual role: first as the messenger of the death sentence (v. 1), then as the bearer of healing and the promise of fifteen additional years (vv. 5–6). He prescribes a fig poultice (v. 7), calls upon God for the sign involving the shadow (v. 11), and later confronts Hezekiah regarding his careless display of treasures to the Babylonians, delivering a prophecy about the coming exile (vv. 14–18).

Berodach-Baladan (Hebrew: בְּרֹאדַךְ בַּלְאֲדָן, also known as Merodach-Baladan in Isaiah 39:1) was the son of Baladan and king of Babylon. His envoys came with letters and gifts to Hezekiah (v. 12), officially because he had heard about the king's illness, but likely also to explore possibilities for an anti-Assyrian alliance.

Manasseh is briefly mentioned in v. 21 as Hezekiah's son and successor on the throne.

Places

Hezekiah's pool and conduit (הַבְּרֵכָה וְהַתְּעָלָה) are mentioned in verse 20 as part of Hezekiah's achievements. This refers to the water supply project that brought water into the city, known as the Siloam Tunnel.

The house of the Lord (בֵּית יְהוָה) is mentioned as the place where Hezekiah was to go up on the third day after his healing (vv. 5, 8), marking the restoration of his health.

Events and Customs

The fig poultice (דְּבֶלֶת תְּאֵנִים) applied to Hezekiah's boil (שְׁחִין) represents ancient medical practice in the Middle East. Dried figs were used as an anti-inflammatory remedy. The combination of a prophetic word and a natural remedy shows that divine healing and medical treatment were not viewed as opposites.

Diplomatic gifts and envoys from Babylon to Hezekiah reflect the great-power politics of the time. Hezekiah's display of all his treasures (v. 13) was likely intended as a demonstration of resources for a potential uprising against Assyria. Isaiah interprets this as a lack of trust in God and prophesies that everything will be carried off to Babylon (v. 17).

Key Terms

The fifteen additional years (חֲמֵשׁ עֶשְׂרֵה שָׁנָה) that God promised Hezekiah (v. 6) are a central theme in the chapter. Along with this promise comes assurance of protection from the king of Assyria and defense of Jerusalem "for my own sake and for the sake of my servant David" (לְמַעֲנִי וּלְמַעַן דָּוִד עַבְדִּי).

The steps of Ahaz (מַעֲלוֹת אָחָז) in verse 11 likely refer to a sundial or stair-like structure that used the movement of shadows to measure time. Hezekiah was given the choice whether the shadow should move forward or backward ten steps, and he chose the more difficult option (backward, v. 10). This supernatural sign confirmed God's promise of healing.

The treasury (בֵּית נְכֹתֹה, v. 13) is a rare Hebrew expression. Hezekiah showed the Babylonians everything he owned—silver, gold, balsam, fine oil, the armory, and all his storehouses. Nothing was withheld.

Eunuchs (סָרִיסִים) in verse 18 are often translated as "court officials" or "eunuchs." The term could refer both to castrated servants and to high-ranking court officials in general. The prophecy that Hezekiah's descendants would become eunuchs in the palace of Babylon was fulfilled with the exile in 586 BC.

Hezekiah's response (v. 19) to the judgment—"Good is the word of the Lord"—has been interpreted differently. Some see it as pious acceptance of God's will, while others view it as relieved selfishness that the judgment would not fall during his own lifetime.

Personnages8

David1 Baladan1 Isaiah8 Amoz1 Merodach-Baladan1 Ahaz (son of Jotham)1 Hezekiah9 Manasse (Joseph's son)1

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Mots-clés8

Hezekiah — King of Judah who prayed to God for healing and protection against the Assyrians.
Sickness — An illness or condition that negatively affects the body, in this case Hezekiah's fatal disease.
Prophet — A person who receives and delivers messages from God, in this case Isaiah.
Isaiah — The prophet who brought God's message and promise of healing to Hezekiah.
Healing — The process of becoming well or restoring health; here it refers to Hezekiah's recovery.
Sign — An event or action that confirms a divine message, in this case the shadow moving backward on the steps.
Assyrians — An ancient empire and people who threatened Judah but were defeated by God after Hezekiah's prayer.
Prayer — Communication with God where one asks for help, guidance, or gives thanks for blessings.