2 Chronicles 32

“Now because of this King Hezekiah and the prophet Isaiah, the son of Amoz, prayed and cried out to heaven. Then the Lord sent an angel who cut down every mighty man of valor, leader, and captain in the camp of the king of Assyria. So he returned shamefaced to his own land. And when he had gone into the temple of his god, some of his own offspring struck him down with the sword there. Thus the Lord saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib the king of Assyria, and from the hand of all others, and guided them on every side. And many brought gifts to the Lord at Jerusalem, and presents to Hezekiah king of Judah, so that he was exalted in the sight of all nations thereafter.” 2 Chronicles 32:20-23 (NKJV)

I love mixed martial arts (MMA). It is a trendy sport these days, isn’t it? In fact, MMA is the fastest-growing sport in the world, because it encompasses disciplines from various martial arts. That recipe of varied styles makes the fighting more dynamic and match-ups totally unpredictable.  

Remember, before there was MMA, and we only had regular boxing? I recall staying up past my bedtime as a boy to watch the ending of Muhammad Ali’s fights on television, especially in those long drawn-out fights of his later career. Then came my college years, and the boxing world saw the rise of Mike Tyson. Different from the entertaining “rope-a-dope” styles of Ali and the fighters before him, “Iron Mike” Tyson would end fights in the first couple of rounds. Some fights ended in the first few seconds! After a while, though, Tyson fights became boring and predictable. (Although probably not so boring for his opponents!) We got tired of the long, drawn-out promotional build-up of the “fight of the century,” only to see the challenger lying on the canvas before Tyson could break a sweat.

That is kind of how today’s chapter feels. Verses 1-19 are all the build-up of a battle to finally crush God’s people (and His Word, along with them). And we know that if the battle had been against Hezekiah and the Assyrian army, the Vegas odds would have been in Assyria’s favor. But Assyrian king Sennacherib made a huge mistake: He taunted the God of Israel. And that meant picking a fight with an unbeatable opponent. Hezekiah (along with his friend the prophet Isaiah) knew it!

“‘Be strong and courageous; do not be afraid nor dismayed before the king of Assyria, nor before all the multitude that is with him; for there are more with us than with him. With him is an arm of flesh; but with us is the Lord our God, to help us and to fight our battles.’ And the people were strengthened by the words of Hezekiah king of Judah.” 2 Chronicles 32:7-8 (NKJV)

Sennacherib insulted Hezekiah, specifically his faith in God. Then, he insulted God.  Finally, he insulted the faith of the citizens of Judah. We know that fear and dread fell on the people because it falls on us whenever the World insults our faith in God and His Word. But after all that hype and bluster, YHWH whistled to the bench and summoned one angel, who ended it in the first round! (James 4:7)