According to 2 Kings, King Hezekiah prayed for healing and was granted fifteen additional years of life.
Hezekiah becomes seriously ill, and the prophet Isaiah initially tells him to prepare for death. Hezekiah turns toward the wall and prays, recalling his faithfulness. Isaiah then returns with a message that God has heard the prayer and will add fifteen years to Hezekiah’s life.
The narrative gives a sign involving the shadow on the stairway or steps of Ahaz moving backward. Hezekiah later receives envoys from Babylon and shows them his treasures, an act Isaiah treats as a warning about future Babylonian conquest.
Hezekiah ruled Judah during the late eighth and early seventh centuries BCE. He is also associated with resistance to Assyria and with religious reforms in Jerusalem. His son Manasseh succeeded him.