📖 Isaiah — Chapter 38 (KJV)
Read the complete King James Version chapter below, then explore the passage sections, check what you remember, and keep your private study notes.
Scripture source: Project Gutenberg KJV, ebook 10.
Isaiah 38:1 In those days Rwas Hezekiah sick unto death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came unto him, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, TSet thine house in order: for thou shalt die, and not live.
Isaiah 38:2 Then Hezekiah Rturned his face toward the wall, and prayed unto the LORD,
Isaiah 38:3 And said, RRemember now, O LORD, I beseech thee, how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept Tsore.
Isaiah 38:4 Then came the word of the LORD to Isaiah, saying,
Isaiah 38:5 Go, Rand say to Hezekiah, Thus saith the LORD, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will add unto thy days fifteen years.
Isaiah 38:6 And I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria: and I will defend this city.
Isaiah 38:7 And this shall be a sign unto thee from the LORD, that the LORD will do this thing that he hath spoken;
Isaiah 38:8 Behold, RI will bring again the shadow of the degrees, which is gone down in the Tsun dial of Ahaz, ten degrees backward. So the sun returned ten degrees, by which degrees it was gone down.
Isaiah 38:9 The Rwriting of Hezekiah king of Judah, when he had been sick, and was recovered of his sickness:
Isaiah 38:10 I said in the cutting off of my days, I shall go to the gates of the grave: I am deprived of the residue of my years.
Isaiah 38:11 I said, I shall not see the LORD, even the LORD, in the land of the living: I shall behold man no more with the inhabitants of the world.
Isaiah 38:12 Mine age is departed, and Ris removed from me as a shepherd’s tent: I have cut off like a weaver my life: he will cut me off Twith pining sickness: from day even to night wilt thou make an end of me.
Isaiah 38:13 I reckoned till morning, that, Ras a lion, so will he break all my bones: from day even to night wilt thou make an end of me.
Isaiah 38:14 Like Ra crane or a swallow, so did I chatter: I did mourn as a dove: mine eyes fail with looking upward: O LORD, I am oppressed; Tundertake for me.
Isaiah 38:15 RWhat shall I say? he hath both spoken unto me, and himself hath done it: I shall go softly all my years in the bitterness of my soul.
Isaiah 38:16 O LORD, by these things men live, and in all these things is the life of my spirit: so wilt thou recover me, and make me to live.
Isaiah 38:17 Behold, RTfor peace I had great bitterness: but Tthou hast in love to my soul delivered it from the pit of corruption: for thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back.
Isaiah 38:18 For Rthe grave cannot praise thee, death can not celebrate thee: they that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth.
Isaiah 38:19 The living, the living, he shall praise thee, as I do this day: Rthe father to the children shall make known thy truth.
Isaiah 38:20 The LORD was ready to save me: Rtherefore we will sing my songs to the stringed instruments all the days of our life in the house of the LORD.
Isaiah 38:21 RFor Isaiah had said, Let them take a lump of figs, and lay it for a plaister upon the boil, and he shall recover.
Isaiah 38:22 Hezekiah also had said, RWhat is the sign that I shall go up to the house of the LORD?
📚 Study This Chapter
📖 What We’re Reading
Isaiah 38:1–8 — A dying king receives mercy
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
Hezekiah is told to set his house in order, then prays and weeps. God grants fifteen years and a confirming sign in the shadow’s return.
Key Truth: Bring mortality honestly before God.
Check What You Remember
1. Complete the KJV wording: “In those days was Hezekiah sick unto ____ . And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came …” (Isaiah 38:1)
Find it in Isaiah 38:1 (KJV).
2. Complete the KJV wording: “… Hezekiah, Thus saith the LORD, the God of David thy ____ , I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy …” (Isaiah 38:5)
Find it in Isaiah 38:5 (KJV).
3. Complete the KJV wording: “____ , I will bring again the shadow of the degrees, …” (Isaiah 38:8)
Find it in Isaiah 38:8 (KJV).
📖 What We’re Reading
Isaiah 38:9–15 — The recovered king recalls his anguish
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
Hezekiah’s written lament pictures life as a removed tent and cut weaving. Recollection gives voice to fear, grief, and the changed perspective illness brings.
Key Truth: Listen compassionately to the fear of loss.
Check What You Remember
1. Complete the KJV wording: “The ____ of Hezekiah king of Judah, when he had been sick, …” (Isaiah 38:9)
Find it in Isaiah 38:9 (KJV).
2. Complete the KJV wording: “… shepherd’s tent: I have cut off like a weaver my ____ : he will cut me off with pining sickness: from …” (Isaiah 38:12)
Find it in Isaiah 38:12 (KJV).
3. Complete the KJV wording: “… go softly all my years in the bitterness of my ____ .” (Isaiah 38:15)
Find it in Isaiah 38:15 (KJV).
📖 What We’re Reading
Isaiah 38:16–22 — Life, forgiveness, and grateful testimony
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
Recovery and sins cast behind God’s back lead to praise among the living and truth passed to children. Practical treatment and a requested sign complete the account.
Key Truth: Turn received mercy into truthful gratitude.
Check What You Remember
1. Complete the KJV wording: “… things men live, and in all these things is the ____ of my spirit: so wilt thou recover me, and make …” (Isaiah 38:16)
Find it in Isaiah 38:16 (KJV).
2. Complete the KJV wording: “… he shall praise thee, as I do this day: the ____ to the children shall make known thy truth.” (Isaiah 38:19)
Find it in Isaiah 38:19 (KJV).
3. Complete the KJV wording: “____ also had said, What is the sign that I shall …” (Isaiah 38:22)
Find it in Isaiah 38:22 (KJV).
Related Scripture (KJV)
Psalms 116:8 — Deliverance from death and tears prompts thanksgiving.
This related passage is selected for its connection with this chapter. It is separate from the chapter text.
Reflect and Apply
What received mercy deserves to be remembered and shared?
Advanced Questions and Answers
Study this chapter’s wording, patterns, contrasts, and meaning in greater depth.
1. What immediate instruction accompanies Hezekiah’s fatal prognosis?
2. How does Hezekiah respond to the message?
3. What response explicitly acknowledges prayer and tears?
4. What sign accompanies the promise?
5. How does the king connect deliverance and forgiveness?
Notes
Write what you want to remember, questions to explore, or Scriptures to look up later. Your saved notes are private to your account.
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