Last week the Holy Spirit showed me directly to read II Chronicles chapter 32. I had no idea what this chapter meant. But as I started reading it, I saw a very strong relationship with the previous article I had just written “Facing trials”

Here is the revelation based on II Chronicles’ chapter 32. Let us start by reading the chapter from versus 1 through 22.

New International Version (NIV)
32 After all that Hezekiah had so faithfully done, Sennacherib king of Assyria came and invaded Judah. He laid siege to the fortified cities, thinking to conquer them for himself. 2 When Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had come and that he intended to wage war against Jerusalem, 3 he consulted with his officials and military staff about blocking off the water from the springs outside the city, and they helped him. 4 They gathered a large group of people who blocked all the springs and the stream that flowed through the land. “Why should the kings[a] of Assyria come and find plenty of water?” they said. 5 Then he worked hard repairing all the broken sections of the wall and building towers on it. He built another wall outside that one and reinforced the terraces[b] of the City of David. He also made large numbers of weapons and shields.
6 He appointed military officers over the people and assembled them before him in the square at the city gate and encouraged them with these words: 7 “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged because of the king of Assyria and the vast army with him, for there is a greater power with us than with him. 8 With him is only the arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles.” And the people gained confidence from what Hezekiah the king of Judah said.
9 Later, when Sennacherib king of Assyria and all his forces were laying siege to Lachish, he sent his officers to Jerusalem with this message for Hezekiah king of Judah and for all the people of Judah who were there:
10 “This is what Sennacherib king of Assyria says: On what are you basing your confidence, that you remain in Jerusalem under siege? 11 When Hezekiah says, ‘The Lord our God will save us from the hand of the king of Assyria,’ he is misleading you, to let you die of hunger and thirst. 12 Did not Hezekiah himself remove this god’s high places and altars, saying to Judah and Jerusalem, ‘You must worship before one altar and burn sacrifices on it’?
13 “Do you not know what I and my predecessors have done to all the peoples of the other lands? Were the gods of those nations ever able to deliver their land from my hand? 14 Who of all the gods of these nations that my predecessors destroyed has been able to save his people from me? How then can your god deliver you from my hand? 15 Now do not let Hezekiah deceive you and mislead you like this. Do not believe him, for no god of any nation or kingdom has been able to deliver his people from my hand or the hand of my predecessors. How much less will your god deliver you from my hand!”
16 Sennacherib’s officers spoke further against the Lord God and against his servant Hezekiah. 17 The king also wrote letters ridiculing the Lord, the God of Israel, and saying this against him: “Just as the gods of the peoples of the other lands did not rescue their people from my hand, so the god of Hezekiah will not rescue his people from my hand.” 18 Then they called out in Hebrew to the people of Jerusalem who were on the wall, to terrify them and make them afraid in order to capture the city. 19 They spoke about the God of Jerusalem as they did about the gods of the other peoples of the world—the work of human hands.
20 King Hezekiah and the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz cried out in prayer to heaven about this. 21 And the Lord sent an angel, who annihilated all the fighting men and the commanders and officers in the camp of the Assyrian king. So he withdrew to his own land in disgrace. And when he went into the temple of his god, some of his sons, his own flesh and blood, cut him down with the sword.
22 So the Lord saved Hezekiah and the people of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib king of Assyria and from the hand of all others. He took care of them[c] on every side. 23 Many brought offerings to Jerusalem for the Lord and valuable gifts for Hezekiah king of Judah. From then on he was highly regarded by all the nations.

1) It happens to those who are faithful!

The chapter starts off with “After all that Hezekiah had so faithfully done” when we read the previous three chapters, you will notice that prior to Hezekiah’s time, there as so much evil with the previous ruler King Ahaz (chapter 28).

He did so much evil like human sacrifices and detestable practices against God. When Hezekiah was appointed in chapter 29 he does amazing things for the Lord. He builds the temples back, he puts all the people right, he walked in the ways of the Lord and you can read about it in Chapters 29-31, yet “After all that Hezekiah had so faithfully done”

What we see here, trials come to people who follow God earnestly. We may think we do everything right, we don’t lead evil lives and day and night we strive to please God and do what is right in His eyes, yet why is all this happening me? We will see the answers shortly

2) It is a siege not an invasion

“Sennacherib king of Assyria came and invaded Judah. He laid siege to the fortified cities, thinking to conquer them for himself.”

All our trials are like a sea of waves which is meant not to drown us but to purify us

Isaiah 43:2
New International Version (NIV)
2 When you pass through the waters,
    I will be with you;
and when you pass through the rivers,
    they will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire,
    you will not be burned;
    the flames will not set you ablaze.

One wonderful servant of the Lord told me Satan is a bully a bluff, he will come and create a big scene but he has not right to touch us, we can only touch ourselves. He can stand at the fence and shout and threaten but he has not right to come into our property

Our trials are a siege, the enemy will come and camp around you and you may feel choked, even your closest of friends may fall (like the city of Judah here) your mind may get disturbed, your thoughts may be come blur, you may get scared, but these are all feelings which we ourselves permit when we see the siege.

Fear not, it is only a siege not a takeover, a siege has no power, the siege has no control WITHIN your own life, your work or business or your health or your family.

3) Consult with the Jesus through the Holy Spirit

2 When Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had come and that he intended to wage war against Jerusalem, 3 he consulted with his officials and military staff

The first thing a trial brings out in us is that we seek God; King Hezekiah consulted with his official and military staff. Likewise we also have to consult Jesus through the Holy Spirit.

Jesus set an example for us, when he went through the most difficult period of his life he went away alone and prayed in private

Matthew 26
36 Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” 37 He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. 38 Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”
39 Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”
40 Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Couldn’t you men keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter. 41 “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
42 He went away a second time and prayed, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.”
43 When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. 44 So he left them and went away once more and prayed the third time, saying the same thing.

I have seen people getting panicked seeing the siege and running like crazy or quickly making terrible decisions without consulting. King Hezekiah saw the siege and he immediately consulted the right people. Whenever a trouble or trial hits you like a siege don’t panic but immediately go away in private and seek the consultant of Jesus through prayer

4) Three results of a trial

There are three things which resulted through this siege

…about blocking off the water from the springs outside the city, and they helped him. 4 They gathered a large group of people who blocked all the springs and the stream that flowed through the land. “Why should the kings[a] of Assyria come and find plenty of water?” they said.

5 Then he worked hard repairing all the broken sections of the wall and building towers on it. He built another wall outside that one and reinforced the terraces[b] of the City of David.

He also made large numbers of weapons and shields.

i) Blocked the springs of water from wasting

I was praying hard about this point and God showed me. Sometime there is a lot of waste in our lives. Bible says “and everything that does not come from faith is sin.” Romans 14:22

In everything we have to keep God in front and sometimes certain activities, or people or circumstances can waste our time. Things which God has not appointed or anointed us to do, but things which take away our time from God should be destroyed and cut off.

In this chapter as we see that any water which went waste from the children of Israelites as it flowed out of the city turned out into a blessing for the enemy. King Hezekiah saw this and he cut off the waste. Even in our lives we have to examine every area, anything which wastes or destroyed our time is a gain to our enemy the Satan.

ii) Repairing the broken walls

Wall is like a fortress and our fortress is Jesus, sometimes over time we slowly tend to drift away from Jesus’s presence and cracks starts to appear in our walls. Trials help mend these cracks. During a siege or trial we seek him much more and walk with him very closely, he whispers things to us and we are ready to listen with all ears. Subtly these situations mend our broken relationships with Jesus.

Psalms 18:2
The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;
    my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,
Jeremiah 15:20
20 I will make you a wall to this people,
    a fortified wall of bronze;
they will fight against you
    but will not overcome you,
for I am with you
    to rescue and save you,”
declares the LORD.

iii) Production of weapons for defense

Solider of Christ has to have a set of weapons in place, these have to be sometimes produced, prepared, polished and refined.

You can read this article here [link] which explain the types of weapons in details, a siege or trial helps us to produce these weapons

Ephesians 6:10-18
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.

5) Great is the one within that outside

6 He appointed military officers over the people and assembled them before him in the square at the city gate and encouraged them with these words: 7 “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged because of the king of Assyria and the vast army with him, for there is a greater power with us than with him. 8 With him is only the arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles.” And the people gained confidence from what Hezekiah the king of Judah said.

Rule number ONE during a siege; Greater is the God who is within the city with us that the one outside threatening us. This is a simple rule, does not matter how large is the siege or how powerful the army may seem to be. Your problems can be the biggest in the world for you. But Jesus who lives within you is greater

 1 John 4:4
4 You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.

King Hezekiah knew this and he encouraged himself and is people. How are you facing your trial today? do you know this TRUTH and are you encouraging yourself and those around you who matter? The truth has a single view; there are no multiple ways to look at it. We know this word as a truth which is in 1 John 4:4, let us believe in that, no matter what your circumstances are, no matter how large or long the siege is, no matter how large army giving you the siege is, Jesus my savior is larger than everything. Amen.

6) A siege is like dark cloud without a storm

10 “This is what Sennacherib king of Assyria says: On what are you basing your confidence, that you remain in Jerusalem under siege? 11 When Hezekiah says, ‘The Lord our God will save us from the hand of the king of Assyria,’ he is misleading you, to let you die of hunger and thirst. 12 Did not Hezekiah himself remove this god’s high places and altars, saying to Judah and Jerusalem, ‘You must worship before one altar and burn sacrifices on it’?
13 “Do you not know what I and my predecessors have done to all the peoples of the other lands? Were the gods of those nations ever able to deliver their land from my hand? 14 Who of all the gods of these nations that my predecessors destroyed has been able to save his people from me? How then can your god deliver you from my hand? 15 Now do not let Hezekiah deceive you and mislead you like this. Do not believe him, for no god of any nation or kingdom has been able to deliver his people from my hand or the hand of my predecessors. How much less will your god deliver you from my hand!”
16 Sennacherib’s officers spoke further against the Lord God and against his servant Hezekiah. 17 The king also wrote letters ridiculing the Lord, the God of Israel, and saying this against him: “Just as the gods of the peoples of the other lands did not rescue their people from my hand, so the god of Hezekiah will not rescue his people from my hand.” 18 Then they called out in Hebrew to the people of Jerusalem who were on the wall, to terrify them and make them afraid in order to capture the city. 19 They spoke about the God of Jerusalem as they did about the gods of the other peoples of the world—the work of human hands.

Satan tactics is to scare to not touch; he has no authority to touch. He can get you to touch yourself with his bluff but he cannot touch you.

Here we can see the enemy creating all kinds of bluff from outside the wall. He wanted to destroy the confidence in the children of Israelites. He could not come in, if he could have, he already would have. Instead he stands outside and passes words to try and create fear confusion and mental defeat.

We must learn to ignore such threats in life. When we hit a trial it may seem like the entire world is collapsing around us and we may get panicked. But fear not, be calm God is in control.

Exodus 14:13
13 Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. 14 The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.”

If you can live and breathe and if you are reading this article God has not given up and nor should you. Whatever the circumstances, it is a bluff! The situation will pass away and the enemy will be defeated.

These sieges help us also to learn how to ignore words of threat and focus on our God and trust in him, we should not panic as God has a beautiful plan for us.

An interesting note here “Then they called out in Hebrew to the people of Jerusalem”. The enemy is very good at using your own loved ones or your own family or your closest friends to instill fear in you. Here they used their own local language in an attempt to scare them; likewise the enemy may use your own comforts zones to create a fear in you during a siege.

7) The battle is the Lords

20 King Hezekiah and the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz cried out in prayer to heaven about this. 21 And the Lord sent an angel, who annihilated all the fighting men and the commanders and officers in the camp of the Assyrian king. So he withdrew to his own land in disgrace. And when he went into the temple of his god, some of his sons, his own flesh and blood, cut him down with the sword.

Whatever trial you are facing, God is going to give your victory! You don’t need to lift a finger

Romans 8:26
26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.

The Holy Spirit will intercede for you and do the prayer, you just be filled in the spirit and pray

Here we see that King Hezekiah did all three things, like closing the water, repairing the walls and producing weapons. However ultimately it will was God who sent an Angel to destroy the enemy. The King or his people did not even need to come out; they did not shoot a single arrow.
When I read this verse I think that there must have been a terrible plague or sickness which struck the enemies camp and all would have died and whoever was left must have dragged them back. The enemy lost everything he had including his own life. What a shame he was killed by his owns sons

I think we learn some beautiful seven points of here on the purpose and destiny of a trial which affects God’s children

Amen