Hezekiah's Illness and Recovery

20 ^(A)In those days ^(B)Hezekiah became sick and was at the point of death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came to him and said to him, “Thus says the Lord, ^(C)‘Set your house in order, for you shall die; you shall not recover.’” ² Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, saying, ³ “Now, O Lord, ^(D)please remember how I have walked before you in faithfulness and ^(E)with a whole heart, ^(F)and have done what is good in your sight.” ^(G)And Hezekiah wept bitterly. ⁴ And before Isaiah had gone out of the middle court, the word of the Lord came to him: ⁵ “Turn back, and say to Hezekiah ^(H)the leader of my people, Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: ^(I)I have heard your prayer; ^(J)I have seen your tears. Behold, I will heal you. On the third day you shall go up to the house of the Lord, ⁶ and I will add fifteen years to your life. I will deliver you and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria, ^(K)and I will defend this city for my own sake and for my servant David's sake.” ⁷ And Isaiah said, “Bring a cake of figs. And let them take and lay it on the boil, that he may recover.”

⁸ And Hezekiah said to Isaiah, “What shall be the sign that the Lord will heal me, and that I shall go up to the house of the Lord on the third day?” ⁹ And Isaiah said, “This shall be ^(L)the sign to you from the Lord, that the Lord will do the thing that he has promised: shall the shadow go forward ten steps, or go back ten steps?” ¹⁰ And Hezekiah answered, “It is an easy thing for the shadow ^(M)to lengthen ten steps. Rather let the shadow go back ten steps.” ¹¹ And Isaiah the prophet called to the Lord, ^(N)and he brought the shadow back ten steps, by which it had gone down on the steps of Ahaz.

Hezekiah and the Babylonian Envoys

^12 (O)At that time ^(P)Merodach-baladan the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, ^(Q)sent envoys with letters and a present to Hezekiah, for he heard that Hezekiah had been sick. ¹³ And Hezekiah welcomed them, and he showed them ^(R)all his treasure house, the silver, the gold, the spices, the precious oil, his armory, all that was found in his storehouses. There was nothing in his house or in all his realm that Hezekiah did not show them. ¹⁴ Then Isaiah the prophet came to King Hezekiah, and said to him, “What did these men say? And from where did they come to you?” And Hezekiah said, “They have come from a far country, from Babylon.” ¹⁵ He said, “What have they seen in your house?” And Hezekiah answered, “They have seen all that is in my house; there is nothing in my storehouses that I did not show them.”

¹⁶ Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Hear the word of the Lord: ¹⁷ Behold, the days are coming, when ^(S)all that is in your house, and that which your fathers have stored up till this day, shall be carried to Babylon. Nothing shall be left, says the Lord. ^18 (T)And some of your own sons, who will come from you, whom you will father, shall be taken away, ^(U)and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.” ¹⁹ Then Hezekiah said to Isaiah, ^(V)“The word of the Lord that you have spoken is good.” For he thought, “Why not, if there will be peace and security in my days?”

^20 (W)The rest of the deeds of Hezekiah and all his might and how he made ^(X)the pool and the conduit ^(Y)and brought water into the city, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? ^21 (Z)And Hezekiah slept with his fathers, and Manasseh his son reigned in his place.

4 Masters, treat your bondservants^[a] justly and fairly, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven.

Further Instructions

^2 (A)Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it ^(B)with thanksgiving. ³ At the same time, pray also for us, that God may ^(C)open to us a door for the word, ^(D)to declare the mystery of Christ, ^(E)on account of which I am in prison— ⁴ that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.

^5 (F)Walk in wisdom toward ^(G)outsiders, making the best use of the time. ⁶ Let your speech always ^(H)be gracious, ^(I)seasoned with salt, ^(J)so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.

Final Greetings

⁷ Tychicus will tell you ^(K)all about my activities. He is a beloved brother and faithful minister and fellow servant^[b] in the Lord. ⁸ I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may know how we are and that he may encourage your hearts, ⁹ and with him ^(L)Onesimus, our faithful and ^(M)beloved brother, who is one of you. They will tell you of everything that has taken place here.

^10 (N)Aristarchus my fellow prisoner greets you, and Mark ^(O)the cousin of Barnabas (concerning whom you have received instructions—^(P)if he comes to you, welcome him), ¹¹ and Jesus who is called ^(Q)Justus. ^(R)These are the only men of the circumcision among my fellow workers for the kingdom of God, and ^(S)they have been a comfort to me. ^12 (T)Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ Jesus, greets you, always ^(U)struggling on your behalf in his prayers, that you may stand ^(V)mature and fully assured in all the will of God. ¹³ For I bear him witness that he has worked hard for you and for those in Laodicea and in Hierapolis. ^14 (W)Luke the beloved physician greets you, as does ^(X)Demas. ¹⁵ Give my greetings to the brothers^[c] at Laodicea, and to Nympha and ^(Y)the church in her house. ¹⁶ And when ^(Z)this letter has been read among you, have it also read in the church of the Laodiceans; and see that you also read the letter from Laodicea. ¹⁷ And say to ^(AA)Archippus, “See that you fulfill ^(AB)the ministry that you have received in the Lord.”

¹⁸ I, Paul, ^(AC)write this greeting with my own hand. ^(AD)Remember ^(AE)my chains. ^(AF)Grace be with you.