Isaiah 38:9Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

To begin with, it is important to note the following. The Septuagint translates the phrase as "in the height of my days," while other scholars interpret it as "in the half of my days." I find the Septuagint’s translation to be quite robust. The holy city faced siege when Rapsacus and the vast Assyrian army surrounded it. Yet God, through the prophet Isaiah, promised to perform wondrous and unforeseen acts, to deliver those in peril, to remove the oppressor from Judah, and that he would succumb to unrest at home. As these prophecies came to fruition in God's appointed time, the majesty of Hezekiah’s reign reached its zenith. Thus, he reflected that at this peak moment of glory, he would be in the gates of death, relinquishing the latter years of his life.

The passage from King Hezekiah of Judah, when he fell ill and subsequently regained his health, raises an interesting point about the interpretation of language used by the Seventy. They employed the term for prayer, "thephellath," rather than "machthab," as indicated in the current text. This usage suggests that if it were meant to highlight a present plea, it would indeed be called prayer; however, it clearly refers to an event in the past. It is apparent that Hezekiah documented his experience after recovering from his ailment, indicating that this is not a supplication but rather a heartfelt expression of thanksgiving for the grace he had received.