Hezekiah-His Last Good Works

By Mary Vee
II Kings 20, II Chronicles 32

From the Journals of Isaiah

The people of Jerusalem mourned deeply when King Hezekiah's died. I have seen other kings of Israel and Judah die and not receive this kind of respect mainly because they were not good kings. But the people had seen what a good king Hezekiah had been and how much he loved God.

He wasn't perfect. No one but God is. But God told me to write Hezekiah's acts of devotion in the sacred books so that everyone could read about this faithful king.

I'd like to share with you one of the most important acts Hezekiah did that saved the city. 

The pool of water used by the people was outside the city walls. Walking to get water was not a problem. But when an army came to attack, the soldiers could take the water then stand guard to keep the people of Jerusalem away.

Hezekiah mapped out a plan to dig a tunnel going from the center of the city to the pool outside the walls. The direction of the water moved through the tunnel to the center of the city. He then blocked off any access to the water to anyone outside the city walls.

This was not an easy project. It took several years. To speed the process, Hezekiah assigned men to dig from both sides. One team started in the city and the other started out at the pool. 

He used our best skills, but knew if one team angled a bit one way or the other the two ends would never meet. Hezekiah prayed asking God to help them with the project. 

One miraculous day the men broke through, connecting the two tunnels. The water flowed into the new pool inside the city. I wish you could have heard the people rejoicing.

But the work wasn't done. The teams had to make a block to prevent anyone from stealing the water from outside the city. The soldiers and workers spent long hours finishing the project. 

This new water system saved the city. If an attacking army didn't have water to drink, they couldn't stay long. This is one of the projects Hezekiah did during his rein as king of Judah.

And so the people mourned Hezekiah, the good king of Judah.

From Mary Vee: Here is some interesting news. This tunnel, built by Hezekiah so many years ago is still used today to supply water to the city! Imagine the work that was done to make it last so long!

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1. Was Hezekiah a good or bad king?
2. How did God honor Hezekiah?
3. Isaiah shares one of the many good acts down by Hezekiah. What did he do?
4. What problems did the workers have?
5. Why was this such an important project?