Hezekiah became king when he was twenty-five years old, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Abijah the daughter of Zechariah. And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father David had done. 2 Chronicles 29:1–2 NKJV
King Hezekiah’s reign is a real contrast from the reign of his father. His father, Ahaz made molded images for the Baals and encouraged moral decline in Judah, being unfaithful to the Lord. He had gathered and cut in pieces the articles of the house of God and shut its doors, making altars for idol worship everywhere.
In 2 Kings 18, we learn that when Hezekiah became king he did right in the sight of the Lord, removing the idols and images. He trusted in the Lord, holding fast to the Lord and did not depart from following Him, keeping His commandments. The result was that the Lord was with him and prospered him. Outside of King David and King Solomon, there is no other king who is given more attention in Scripture. Eleven chapters are devoted to covering his life: three in 2 Kings (18–20) that give us the personal conditions that are needed for revival, and four chapters in 2 Chronicles (29–32) that inform us of the collective conditions that are needed for revival. Isaiah gives us four more chapters (36–39) on his life that show us how he relied on his God during a time of crisis.
Hezekiah lived with a sense of God’s presence in his life even though he lived in difficult days! We too live in difficult days, but Paul would charge us “before the Lord … Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:14–15). He would remind us to live with a sense of the Lord’s presence in our lives, standing for His glory even if we stand alone, knowing that the Lord will stand with us to give us the strength we need (4:17).