At that time Merodach-baladan the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent envoys with letters and a present to Hezekiah, for he heard that he had been sick and had recovered. And Hezekiah welcomed them gladly. And he showed them his treasure house, the silver, the gold, the spices, the precious oil, his whole armory, all that was found in his storehouses. There was nothing in his house or in all his realm that Hezekiah did not show them.

Isaiah 39: 1-2

Late last week we read through two instances the featured the prayerfulness of King Hezekiah, but in the passage above we find a man who let his guard down when entertaining his opposition. How did this happen?

First, notice that the representatives of the King of Babylon, flattered Hezekiah. Maybe it was an innocent statement. Maybe it was an attempt to gain access and if so, we read that the King of Judah “welcomed them gladly and then he showed them his treasure house…There was nothing in his house or in all his realm that Hezekiah did not show them.”

Once the envoy of Babylon left, Isaiah showed up to pass judgement on Hezekiah.

Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Hear the word of the LORD of hosts: Behold, the days are coming, when all that is in your house, and that which your fathers have stored up till this day, shall be carried to Babylon. Nothing shall be left, says the LORD. And some of your own sons, who will come from you, whom you will father, shall be taken away, and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.”

Isaiah 29: 5-7

If someone showed up at your home and complimented the landscaping, would you invite them in to see all that you’ve done in the house including your prized possessions? I don’t think so, but it is also likely that we can be like susceptible to pride just like Hezekiah.

Ray Stedman wrote, “What this is meant to teach us is that prosperity is a greater threat than adversity. When we are challenged, attacked and insulted, we naturally run to the Lord as our defender. Ah, but when we are offered a new position, with a higher salary, and to take it we must remove ourselves and our families from the influences that have shaped us morally and spiritually; or when our work is of such a nature that we are taken away from time we should spend seeking first God’s kingdom, it is then we are being exposed to the subtle trap of Babylon. We have all known people who have fallen into this trap, losing spiritual vitality sometimes for years because they failed to heed warnings concerning the allurements of the world.”

Pride leads us to depend on ourselves and our own judgement instead of seeking God’s wisdom in interacting with others and so the application of Hezekiah’s story for us today is one of warning.