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Despite Isaiah's warning, King Ahaz, father of Hezekiah, obtained the aid of Assyria in repulsing Syria and Israel, at this time in league against Judea. As a result Judea became a mere puppet state under the control of the victorious Assyrians.
Hezekiah, however, revolted against this vassalage and, again against Isaiah's counsel, he turned to Egypt for assistance, refusing to pay Assyria the tribute as demanded of his father.
Sennacherib then sent a herald, Rab-shakeh, to intimidate Hezekiah into submission, reminding him of Assyria's many conquests and how she had subjected all surrounding countries. (The House of Israel had already been dissolved and the Ten Tribes sent into captivity.) Rab-shakeh's aim was to bring about a revolt of the people against Hezekiah and his God: "Beware lest Hezekiah persuade you, saying: The Lord will deliver us. Hath any of the gods of the nations delivered his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria?" (Isaiah 36:18)
Hezekiah sent again to Isaiah for advice before deciding upon his course. "And Isaiah said unto them, Thus shall ye say unto your master, Thus saith the Lord, Be not afraid of the words that thou hast heard, wherewith the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me. Behold, I will send a blast upon him, and he shall hear a rumour, and return to his own land; and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land." (Isaiah 37:6-7)
The keynote to Isaiah's answer may well be summed up in the words put God first. Be he king or commoner, no real harm can come to one who thus orders his life. Isaiah ever admonished Hezekiah to take all his problems to the House of the Lord, and so long as the king followed this command the outcome was as predicted. By being obedient to Isaiah's instructions in this crisis, Hezekiah was rewarded with fulfillment of God's promise.
Isaiah stresses throughout his "Doctrine of the Remnant," meaning preservation of a nucleus for the New Israel. The journeyings of this nucleus have previously been touched upon; and also the care and protection of its sanctuary and refuge, the Holy City of Jerusalem.
There is an inner and an outer significance to these words. It has been shown that the Kingdom of the North never succeeded in establishing a permanent dynasty, whereas the dynasty of Jerusalem, descended from David, was never broken. Hence, the promise of the Lord to save Jerusalem "for my servant David's sake." Esoterically, the Remnant is the few, the Elect upon the initiatory Path, who have found a sanctuary or holy city within themselves, whence emanate their power and protection. The material power of Assyria (conditions of the outer world) cannot touch this inner refuge. Isaiah realized the perils to this beloved people when he inscribed his sublime formula for protection: "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee."
Throughout our textbook of life, the Christian Bible, the ultimate conquest of good over evil, the supremacy of Spirit over matter, is assured again and again. A hundred, fourscore and five thousand, the number of the Remnant, yields the numeral 10 (1 plus 4 plus 5); and according to Hermes, "10 is the number of the soul, and life and light are therein united. 10 is born from Spirit (1) and matter (0). The unity has made the 10 and the 10 has made the unity."
Isaiah, the princely prophet, wielded a powerful influence in both spiritual and political circles. After Jeroboam's rebellion Elijah repaired the altars that were broken down-that is, he sustained the Mystery School. Then in the Assyrian crisis Isaiah assumes the same task, preserving alive the Christ Motif of Jerusalem. For its protection he trains Hezekiah as a king-Initiate in the Order of Melchizedek. Hence, the words of Micah:
Kabbalists say that "to every upper Mystery corresponds a Mystery in our lower world which is the Cosmos."
In their historical interpretation, the prophecies of Micah and Isaiah describe the life and mission of good King Hezekiah. From an esoteric or spiritual viewpoint, they describe perfectly the life and mission of Christ Jesus. Herein we consider the wonderful wisdom of the Bible, how great truths are intricately interwoven in such manner as to conceal and reveal various phases of truth in their application to varying stages of consciousness and different planes of manifestation.
Hezekiah was descended from both a royal and a spiritual line. He was the grandson of the great Temple Seer, Zachariah, and he definitely separated ritualism from esotericism, thereby forming two distinct forms of religious worship. The masses followed the exoteric, ceremonial; "the Remnant" was given the deeper teachings of Moses. Isaiah was the principal instructor in this work.
Chapter thirty-eight contains the most esoteric information to be found in the Book of Isaiah. It deals with lengthening the life of Hezekiah.
The sundial represents an astrological life chart, an index to the time and manner of death. By good or evil deeds a life span may be prolonged or shortened. Cosmic laws are unalterable; even the God of the solar system is powerless to change them, for they are reflections of a yet higher Being whose laws, in turn, reflect the Absolute — Parabrahman of the Hindus. This incident in the life of Hezekiah illustrates the action of the law of man's innate divinity. Every man is a potential god, and the purpose of earth life is to awaken this godhood from a static condition to a dynamic power.
The good life and works of Hezekiah "brought the shadow ten degrees backward;" i.e., the day, his day or life-span, was prolonged. Death passed him by.
It is interesting from the astrological and astronomical point of view to note that according to ancient records a partial eclipse of the Sun took place on September 26, 713 B.C. and that the eclipse produced exactly the phenomenon recorded in Hebrew annals as quoted above.
The fact that man has within himself power to lengthen or to shorten his span of physical life is interestingly discussed by Max Heindel, the Rosicrucian Mystic:
Whether we know it or not, every act of our lives hastens the end or defers it in a measure dependent upon whether it is in harmony with the law or not. If we do not apply ourselves to the labor of life, or if we persistently follow a path that is subversive of soul growth, the discordant life destroys the archetype, and rebirth in an altered environment then gives us a chance to retrieve the neglected opportunities. On the other hand, when we live in harmony with the plan of life inscribed in the archetype of our dense. body, there is a constructive consonance in their vibrations which lengthens the life of the archetype and consequently also the life of the physical body. When we realize that our life on earth is the seedtime and that the value of our post mortem existence is in direct ratio to the increment we have earned on our talents, it will be at once apparent how supremely important it is that our faculties should be used in the right direction. While this law applies to all mankind it is superlatively vital to aspiring souls, for when we work for God with all our might and main, each added year of life increases our heavenly treasures. enormously. Advancing years give greater skill in soul culture, and the fruit of the last few years may easily outweigh that acquired in the balance of the life.
All healings recounted in the Bible have to do with Initiation as well as with the restoration of physical well-being. For his good deeds and his introduction to the masses of precepts relative to the then pure and undefiled Arian religion, Hezekiah was worthy to receive deeper teachings belonging to the coming Piscean Dispensation and dealing with Mysteries concerned with the coming of Christ Jesus. And in gratitude for his healing, Hezekiah made a song of thanksgiving:
An aspirant never fails so long as his aspiration for greater and nobler achievements does not die. Even though Hezekiah had grievously erred, his contrition and repentance made his dedication the more earnest and complete: "I shall go softly all my years in the bitterness of my soul."
The grave has no part in the experience of an Initiate. He knows life to be continuous and eternal. His language is praise and he abides forever in "the house of the Lord," the deathless body of immortality.
In the life of every aspirant Baptism is followed by Temptation, and the tests which come to try the soul are of the most subtle nature. The biblical Chronicler states that after his wonderful experience of spiritual healing, "Hezekiah rendered not again according to the benefit done unto him; for his heart was lifted up." From awed humility he passed quickly to pride of accomplishment. He was therefore in no spiritually receptive condition when danger again touched his city in the person of the Chaldean emissary to the court of Jerusalem. This incident has already been discussed from an exoteric point of view. It remains to show its esoteric content as brought forth in the works of Isaiah.
To uncover sacred, secret truths to people who are not yet qualified to understand them and to rightly use the power they confer is very serious. Hezekiah's "house of precious things" was his own understanding of esoteric truths. This he was willing to exchange for worldly advantage.
The Master's warning against casting pearls before swine has become an occult maxim. Discrimination is one of the first attributes to be developed in a neophyte. Hezekiah failed in both these tests: "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." (II Chron. 32:31)
Hezekiah endeavored to the best of his ability to retrieve his mistake and liquidate the, resultant causation. "Then said Hezekiah to Isaiah, Good is the word of the Lord which thou hast spoken. He said moreover, For there shall be peace and truth in my days." (Isaiah 39:8)
— Corinne Heline
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