Bible Strands
Isaiah 38:2
Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the LORD,
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Hezekiah acts in direct response to the prophet Isaiah’s declaration of his impending death. He turns his face toward a wall and directs a prayer to the LORD.
The words — The Hebrew verb וַ/יַּסֵּ֧ב (va/i.ya.Sev) literally means "and he turned," paired with פָּנָ֖י/ו (pa.Na/v) "his face" and הַ/קִּ֑יר (ha./Kir) "the wall." This physical orientation precedes the verb וַ/יִּתְפַּלֵּ֖ל (va/i.yit.pa.Lel) "and he prayed" directed to יְהוָֽה\׃ (Yah.weh) "Yahweh."
The thread — The posture of turning toward a specific location during prayer echoes 1 Kings 8:30, where God is asked to hear prayers directed toward the temple. The pattern of calling upon God in distress aligns with the promise in Psalms 50:15 and the private prayer instruction in Matthew 6:6.
Why it lands — The text records a dying king’s physical and verbal appeal to God before recording his petition. A reader must note that the narrative presents the action of turning and praying as the immediate response to a terminal diagnosis, leaving the outcome to the subsequent divine interaction.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and prayed unto the Lord,
Cross-references
- Matthew 6:6 But when you pray, go into your inner room, shut your door, and pray to your Father, who is unseen. And your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
- 1 Kings 8:30 Hear the plea of Your servant and of Your people Israel when they pray toward this place. May You hear from heaven, Your dwelling place. May You hear and forgive.
- Psalms 50:15 Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor Me.”
- Psalms 91:15 When he calls out to Me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble. I will deliver him and honor him.