The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 38:15-16
Going softly after sickness. We usually notice in persons who have passed through serious illness which has brought them to the "border-land," and made the things of the other and eternal world familiar, a gracious loosening from this world, a maturing of character, a mellowness, a sacred seriousness, which may well gain poetical form in the expression of Hezekiah, "going softly." We ought to regard all life as a gift, a trust, from God; but in a very special sense it comes home to us that... read more
The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 38:15
What shall I say? The strain is suddenly changed. Hezekiah's prayer has been answered, and he has received the answer ( Isaiah 38:5-8 ). He is "at a loss to express his wonder and his gratitude" (Cheyne); comp. 2 Samuel 7:20 . God has both spoken unto him— i.e; given him a promise of recovery—and also himself hath done it ; i.e. has performed his promise. Already he feels in himself the beginnings of amendment—he is conscious that the worst is past, and that the malady has taken a... read more