I failed the test

Hezekiah was one of the last good kings of Judah. His reign is recorded in 2 Chronicles 29-32 and 2 Kings 19-20.

He led a restoration of the temple, which led to a revival. The feasts were celebrated. Idols were destroyed. Priests were reinstated.

When Sennacherib came to Jerusalem with his mighty Assyrian army which had defeated every nation in its path, Hezekiah laid the threats before the LORD. God delivered them.

When Hezekiah fell ill, the prophet Isaiah told him it was because he had become proud. When the king humbled himself, God healed him.

In both of those crises, God sent a messenger. Hezekiah repented and called upon God. God delivered.

But there's an interesting verse in 2 Chronicles 32:31.

"And so in the matter of the envoys of the princes of Babylon, who had been sent to him to inquire about the sign that had been done in the land, God left him to himself, in order to test him and to know all that was in his heart."

The author of 2 Chronicles doesn't tell any more about this event. 2 Kings 20:12-19 record the history. Envoys were sent from Babylon because they had heard of Hezekiah's sickness and recovery.

No prophet showed up to warn him. No indication that any of his advisers tried to stop him.

God left him to himself, in order to test him and to know all that was in his heart.

Hezekiah failed the test.

In his pride, Hezekiah gave them the royal tour. He showed them everything that he had done. He showed them the great treasury that he had built up.

Afterwards, Isaiah came and told him that his kingdom would fall into the hands of the Babylonians.

Hezekiah's response, "Oh well, at least it's not going to happen in my lifetime."

God left him alone to see what he would do on his own.

He does the same for us.

Aren't you a different person when you are at home alone, than when you are at church or work?

It's easy to be a good christian when you're at church and everyone else has painted on their masks.

It's easy to be a hard worker when the boss is standing there.

Too often I fail the test. Left alone I can wallow in pity, wander in fantasy or worry about tomorrow.

It's when we are alone that God is testing us and revealing to us what is in our hearts.

What do your private actions reveal about your heart?