Hezekiah is Judah’s greatest king. He destroyed all of the things people used for false worship; even those that might only be considered questionable. Back in Numbers 21, God told Moses to form a brass snake. When people looked at it, they were healed. Now, 700 years later, it had become an object of worship. Hezekiah had the wisdom to understand that despite the object’s noble beginning, it needed to be destroyed. Hezekiah had some military success, but gave into threats from Assyria, which was the superpower of the day. The Assyrians foolishly believed they could not only attack Judah, but also insult God. Tomorrow you will read how that turns out.
Sometimes things that were designed to point to God end up distracting people from him. In today’s reading it was a relic. Even today people can get more wrapped up in preserving a religious object than loving God. Maybe it is some other type of tradition like singing certain songs, saying certain words or participating in a specific ritual. They may have been designed for our good, but if they distract us from loving God, it’s time to move on!