Devotional: 11Chronicles 32:31

Good Morning Yamon Ki Yesepar and Nevim Arith Hayomim:
II Chronicles 32:31:  “Howbeit in the business of the ambassadors of the princes of Babylon, who sent unto him to inquire of the wonder that was done in the land, God left him, to try him, that he might know all that was in His heart.”
God miraculously healed Hezekiah from an illness which had left him at death’s door.  Hezekiah, through God had won a great victory over the Assyrian Empire.  This was without the help of Egypt which had allied themselves with Judah and then chickened out at the last minute and left Judah to fend off the powerful Assyrians alone.  Babylon was really impressed and curious as to the God that helped pull this one off as they faced their own threat from Assyria.  They were also worried that if Hezekiah had died, he had no heir to assume the throne and the nation might be in thrown into disarray disrupting the stability of the region Judah had created. On top of that, the Babylonians were noted star gazers and were quite aware of the miracle of the sundial when God moved it back 10 degrees as a sign of Hezekiah’s recovery. I mean God was letting the world know in no uncertain terms that Judah was a nation of the most powerful God in the universe and it was He who establishes nations.   So the Babylonians came to Hezekiah, hat in hand, on the premise that they wished to congratulate him on his miraculous recover, but in truth to learn of this powerful God who delivered a nation with a second rate military from the most powerful nation in the world at that time.
This was a great evangelistic opportunity for Hezekiah but what does he do?  He shows off his armories and wealth.  He basically leaves God out of the formula for success as he seeks to win over the Babylonians and perhaps obtain an advantage and to position himself as a world ruler.
This brings us to our verse today where we learn that when these ambassadors arrived, God left.  God wanted to “try” him so He could know his heart.  The word “left” is “azavu” which is in a Qal form.  More telling this is in a perfect tense and in a passive voice.   In other words, God had already put Hezekiah’s heart to the test.  He knew what Hezekiah intended to do and God could not be a part of this great  act of disobedience, in trying to impress the arm of the flesh.  God had already left, or forsook him. Yet, I am troubled by the fact that this word forsook or “azayu” is in a Qal form and not a Piel.  Thus, forsook is a little harsh, as a Qal it has more of the idea of  stepping back rather than forsaking. The reason for this stepping back is found within that word “azayu.”   It is spelled “Ayin – which in it’s shadow form means blindness, Vav –  in it’s shadow means a co-dependency with the arm of the flesh rather than heaven and “Beth” which represents the heart.    Hezekiah was blinded to the fact that his heart was set upon the arm of the flesh and not God.   Babylon was the very nation that in a few years would take Judah captive, yet here was Hezekiah leaning to these people to help him rather than using the great miracles that God performed to encourage these pagan rulers to put their trust in Jehovah.
Syntax in Hebrew is built into the Hebrew words and  I believe the inseparable pronouns point to Hezekiah, but the last pronoun points to God.  In other words  God left Hezekiah to “try” which is a Piel infinitive for the root “nasah.”   This word does mean to tempt, or to try.  But there is another usage, it is to write an essay.  “His heart,” is referring to the Heart of God, not Hezekiah’s heart.   God was leaving Hezekiah so that he could read or write an essay on God’s heart.
There is a picture here, it is of a lover who has faithfully given and cared for his beloved only for her to take all his gifts to adorn herself to impress another lover.  God is the forsaken lover, who steps back and lets his unfaithful beloved pursue another lover, hoping that in the process she will understand how she has broken her lover’s heart.
You know, you get used to God. He answers your prayers and provides for you and before long you tend to take him for granted. Before long you lose the sense of His presence, it seems like He has left you. Actually He does not abandon you in the Piel form but in the Qal form. He is merely stepping back hoping you will see that He is your source. We may use the arm of the flesh, and try to impress others with our Godly experience and testimony of God’s provision, drawing attention to ourselves at the expense of God. We tend to resort to natural means to obtain our position of power and influence rather than to just sit back and let God control our lives and destinies. That is hard to do as everything in you cries out to get some comfort and encouragement from Babylon rather than declare to Babylon that our trust is in the Lord. If we have to go to battle with Babylon as our ally we must let it be known that our God will be Jehovah and we are depending on Him to supply our needs, Babylon is only God’s instrument to supply that need.