2 Kings 19:20

2 Kings 19:20 says, Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, That which thou hast prayed to me against Sennacherib king of Assyria I have heard.  Isaiah sent word to Hezekiah that he had prayed to God about Sennacherib, and God had given him an answer.  We can be sure that if we pray to God sincerely that He will hear us and answer, even though we may not like His answer and refuse to believe that He has answered us.  Verse twenty-one adds, This is the word that the Lord hath spoken concerning him; The virgin the daughter of Zion hath despised thee, and laughed thee to scorn; the daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee.  Isaiah then gave Hezekiah God's answer saying that Sennacherib had despised the people.  I believe this could have applied to the people of Judah as well, though.  We cannot be a Christian and despise the commandments of God and live a successful Christian life.  Verse twenty-two continues, Whom hast thou reproached and blasphemed? and against whom hast thou exalted thy voice, and lifted up thine eyes on high? even against the Holy One of Israel.  Isaiah continued by saying that God had said Sennacherib reproached and blasphemed God by acting out of his own self-pride.  People of the world today are still often full of self-pride and put themselves above God.  Verse twenty-three states, By thy messengers thou hast reproached the Lord, and hast said, With the multitude of my chariots I am come up to the height of the mountains, to the sides of Lebanon, and will cut down the tall cedar trees thereof, and the choice fir trees thereof: and I will enter into the lodgings of his borders, and into the forest of his Carmel.  Isaiah then told Hezekiah that God knew of the actions of Sennacherib in thinking he was more powerful than God.  As followers of Christ, we are often told by people of the world that we are foolish to believe in God, while those in power in the world put their faith in things of this world instead.  It doesn't matter how big an army may be or how powerful their weapons may be, those who deny God will never win in the end.  Verse twenty-four adds, I have digged and drunk strange waters, and with the sole of my feet I have dried up rivers of besieged places.  Sennacherib had boasted of his power over those that opposed him, and he seemed to think he had that same power over God.  People of the world still like to boast of their powerful weapons and large armies, but God is still in charge and thy will one day see this, if not in this life, then in the one to come. Verse twenty-five continues, Hast thou not heard long ago how I have done it, and of ancient times that I have formed it? now have I brought it to pass, that thou shouldest be to lay waste fenced cities into ruinous heaps.  God then reminded Hezekiah of what God had done in the past, and there was therefore no reason to believe that Sennacherib was more powerful than Him.  As Christians, when we look back at the power of God, we should first acknowledge that through Jesus Christ, He proved Himself more powerful than anything, even death itself.  So, if we have put our faith in Jesus Christ, we should never be worried even about anything, even death itself.   Verse twenty-six concludes, Therefore their inhabitants were of small power, they were dismayed and confounded; they were as the grass of the field, and as the green herb, as the grass on the house tops, and as corn blasted before it be grown up.  Isaiah said God had been the one Who allowed Sennacherib to have the success that he had, but now he was boasting that he was more powerful than God.  As Christians, if we experience victory over sin in our lives, we must always give God the glory and not become full of self-pride. Matthew Henry says that some of this was not in the letter that Sennacherib sent to Hezekiah, but that God knew of it by other means.  God does nt need us to tell Him what is going on in our lives or the world, but I believe He expects us to share our cares and concerns with Him.