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What have they seen in your house?
At that time Berodach-baladan a son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present to Hezekiah, for he heard that Hezekiah had been sick. Hezekiah listened to them, and showed them all his treasure house, the silver and the gold and the spices and the precious oil and the house of his armor and all that was found in his treasuries. There was nothing in his house nor in all his dominion that Hezekiah did not show them. Then Isaiah the prophet came to King Hezekiah and said to him, ‘What did these men say, and from where have they come to you?’ And Hezekiah said, ‘They have come from a far country, from Babylon.’ He said, ‘What have they seen in your house?’ (2 Kings 20:12-15a)
The question Isaiah asks of Hezekiah leads, in this context, to an implied rebuke for his complete disclosure of all his treasure to the king of a country that in the next century would be the world power that conquers, deports, and despoils the people of Judah. The question, “What have they seen in your house?”, however, has always been a haunting one to me, not so much because of the potential danger of theft, but because of the spiritual ramifications of the question.
If someone were to examine your house as thoroughly as Berodach-baladan did Hezekiah’s, what would they see at your house? Would they see evidence of true spirituality by the prominence of bibles in places where they could easily be studied? Would there be other religious books whose wear indicated that they were regularly used to mine the depths of God’s word? Or would they see a predominance of secular materials, even those that showed a lack of spiritual interest in your home? Would pornography (Psalm 101:3) be easily available? Or would the books and movies evident show an absence of God’s place in your home?
What actions would such an observer notice in your home? Would they hear the songs of Zion sung there? Or would secular tunes with suggestive lyrics be the order of the day? What kind of dress would they notice in your home - clothing that would reflect purity and chastity from a modest heart or garments fashioned in Milan and Paris to inspire lust rather than godliness? Would the language heard in your home be indicative of the spirit of Christ (Colossians 4:6) or would cursing and foul speech fracture the harmony of your home?
In spite of the hypothetical nature of the home examination I have suggested, we should remember that Christ is always an unseen guest and observer in our homes. What does he see at your house?
