The Meaning of 2 Kings 20:3 Explained

2 Kings 20:3

KJV: I beseech thee, O LORD, remember now 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 sore.

YLT: I pray Thee, O Jehovah, remember, I pray Thee, how I have walked habitually before Thee in truth, and with a perfect heart, and that which is good in Thine eyes I have done;' and Hezekiah weepeth -- a great weeping.

Darby: Ah! Jehovah, remember, I beseech thee, how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done what is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept much.

ASV: Remember now, O Jehovah, 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 sore.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

I beseech  thee, O LORD,  remember  now 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  sore. 

What does 2 Kings 20:3 Mean?

Context Summary

2 Kings 20:1-11 - The Shadow Turned Back On Life's Dial
What a contrast between Hezekiah and the Apostle Paul! To the great Christian hero, death seemed infinitely desirable. He was ready to be offered; it would be gain to depart and be with Christ. But Hezekiah, who had walked before God in truth and with a perfect heart, turned his face to the wall and wept sore as the shadow of death fell upon him. Could anything prove more conclusively how much we owe to the Lord Jesus, who abolished death for those who trust Him?
Who does not know what it is to turn the face to the wall in unutterable anguish? There are moments when we are face to face with a blank wall, and only God can open a door in it. But He did for Hezekiah and He will for you. Only have faith and reckon on God's faithfulness. Has the shadow gone down on your dial? Has the day of your earnest zeal for God begun to wane? Have the bright promises of the morning become overcast? Then turn to God with true repentance! Let Him see thy tears of heart-sorrow, and He will restore the years that the cankerworm has eaten. It shall be with thee as in the past. The shadow shall return on the dial and the days of thy youth shall be renewed. There is a sense in which our sun never goes down, but leads our days forward, when the Lord becomes our Everlasting Light. [source]

Chapter Summary: 2 Kings 20

1  Hezekiah, having received a message of death, by prayer has his life lengthened
8  The sun goes ten degrees backward for a sign of that promise
12  Berodach-baladan sending to visit Hezekiah has notice of his treasures
14  Isaiah understanding thereof, foretells the Babylonian captivity
20  Manasseh succeeds Hezekiah

What do the individual words in 2 Kings 20:3 mean?

I pray Yahweh Remember now - how I have walked before You in truth and with a heart loyal and [what was] good in Your sight Have done and wept Hezekiah wept bitterly -
אָנָּ֣ה יְהוָ֗ה זְכָר־ נָ֞א אֵ֣ת אֲשֶׁ֧ר הִתְהַלַּ֣כְתִּי לְפָנֶ֗יךָ בֶּֽאֱמֶת֙ וּבְלֵבָ֣ב שָׁלֵ֔ם וְהַטּ֥וֹב בְּעֵינֶ֖יךָ עָשִׂ֑יתִי וַיֵּ֥בְךְּ חִזְקִיָּ֖הוּ בְּכִ֥י גָדֽוֹל ס

אָנָּ֣ה  I  pray 
Parse: Interjection
Root: אָנָּא 
Sense: ah now! I/we beseech you, oh now!, pray now! (participle of entreaty usually followed by the imperative verb).
יְהוָ֗ה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
זְכָר־  Remember 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperative, masculine singular
Root: זָכַר 
Sense: to remember, recall, call to mind.
נָ֞א  now 
Parse: Interjection
Root: נָא  
Sense: I (we) pray, now, please.
אֵ֣ת  - 
Parse: Direct object marker
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
אֲשֶׁ֧ר  how 
Parse: Pronoun, relative
Root: אֲשֶׁר 
Sense: (relative part.).
הִתְהַלַּ֣כְתִּי  I  have  walked 
Parse: Verb, Hitpael, Perfect, first person common singular
Root: הָלַךְ  
Sense: to go, walk, come.
לְפָנֶ֗יךָ  before  You 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, common plural construct, second person masculine singular
Root: לִפְנֵי 
Sense: face.
בֶּֽאֱמֶת֙  in  truth 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, feminine singular
Root: אֱמֶת  
Sense: firmness, faithfulness, truth.
וּבְלֵבָ֣ב  and  with  a  heart 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular
Root: לֵבָב  
Sense: inner man, mind, will, heart, soul, understanding.
שָׁלֵ֔ם  loyal 
Parse: Adjective, masculine singular
Root: שָׁלֵם  
Sense: complete, safe, peaceful, perfect, whole, full, at peace.
וְהַטּ֥וֹב  and  [what  was]  good 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Article, Adjective, masculine singular
Root: טָבַב 
Sense: good, pleasant, agreeable.
בְּעֵינֶ֖יךָ  in  Your  sight 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, cdc, second person masculine singular
Root: עֹונָה 
Sense: eye.
עָשִׂ֑יתִי  Have  done 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, first person common singular
Root: עָשָׂה 
Sense: to do, fashion, accomplish, make.
וַיֵּ֥בְךְּ  and  wept 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: בָּכָה  
Sense: to weep, bewail, cry, shed tears.
חִזְקִיָּ֖הוּ  Hezekiah 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: חִזְקִיָּה 
Sense: 2th king of Judah, son of Ahaz and Abijah; a good king in that he served Jehovah and did away with idolatrous practices.
בְּכִ֥י  wept 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: בָּכָה  
Sense: to weep, bewail, cry, shed tears.
גָדֽוֹל  bitterly 
Parse: Adjective, masculine singular
Root: גָּבֹול 
Sense: great.
ס  - 
Parse: Punctuation