Daily Devotional

“Now it came to pass in the third year of Hoshea the son of Elah, king of Israel, that Hezekiah the son of Ahaz, king of Judah, began to reign” (2 Kings 18:1). 

It can be incredibly difficult going against popular opinion to uphold what is right and good. The British politician William Wilberforce spent most of his adult life struggling in Parliament to secure an end to slavery. He faced fierce opposition but persisted for decades until, just a few days before he died, his goal was achieved. 

King Hezekiah had that same kind of persistence, though God gave him the authority and power to achieve his righteous goals more rapidly. 

Although his father Ahaz had ruled recklessly—promoting idolatry and persuading people who were true to God to start worshiping heathen gods—somehow Hezekiah developed an entirely different perspective. Instead of carrying on with his father’s apostasy and reaping the terrible consequences, the young monarch determined that he would do every- thing in his power to turn Judah back to the Lord. 

Hezekiah understood from the messages the prophets had been giving that he would have to move decidedly and swiftly to save his country from certain destruction. And he didn’t waste any time in doing it. 

As soon as he took the throne, he began calling meetings with his top officials and the Levite priests and made concrete plans to take back the country for God. It was a huge task, as idol worship was commonplace and God’s temple and its services had been neglected. There must have been great resistance at first; in order to achieve his goals Hezekiah had to go head to head against rebellious popular culture and opinion. But he never hesitated. 

Hezekiah was successful because he humbly put God and His commandments above all else. When you think about it, true success will come to anyone who chooses to do the same. 

Merciful God, through Your grace and power help me to uphold Your loving commandments in my life.