When reading the accounts of some of the miraculous events recorded in the Bible, it can be helpful, even faith strengthening, to consider the harmony of biblical accounts with the laws established by the All-Wise Creator.

2 Kings chapter 20 and Isaiah chapter 38 both describe a miraculous event that centers on Hezekiah, king of Judah, and Isaiah, a prophet of God. The scriptures record Hezekiah’s efforts to turn his people away from the idol worship that previous kings had led them into, and return them to the worship of God. Due to this faithfulness, God rewarded Hezekiah and his efforts, as recorded in 2 Kings 19.

2 Kings 20 opens with Hezekiah sick and near death. After being told by Isaiah that God would extend his life by an additional 15 years, Hezekiah asked for a sign from God to confirm the promise. In response to Hezekiah’s request, verse eleven records that the shadow of the “sundial,” used by the people for timekeeping, would be set back ten “degrees.” By witnessing this miracle, Hezekiah was given his requested sign from God.

Many interpretations of these events lead to the conclusion that in some miraculous fashion, God caused the planet to turn backwards for a time, thus causing the shadow of the “sundial” to reverse ten “degrees.” This scenario can cause some to question the accuracy of the account. The scriptures do not refer to any natural disasters or events that would accompany such a dramatic change in the earth’s established rotation, or any other reaction to an event so momentous as the reversal of time. Further, such an event would fundamentally break God’s established natural laws, and can thus prove difficult to reconcile in one’s mind.

With these thoughts in mind, consider an alternative interpretation of the events in verse 11. First, the phrase “sundial,” as used in the King James Version of the Bible, is Hebrew word #4609 in Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance, and has the meaning of a step or a stair. Thus, the “sundial” may have actually been a set of stairs that Hezekiah and his people looked upon and depending on how the shadow lay on the stairs, ascertained the time of day. From this perspective, verse 11 records the shadow upon these stairs reversing ten literal steps backwards up the stairway.

There are any number of events that could have occurred to cause the shadow to reverse up the stairs. A sufficiently bright light in the sky brought about by some natural event could have “out shown the sun” temporarily, causing the shadow of the steps to reverse back. This explanation would be completely in harmony with God’s established laws of the planets and of time itself, and still have provided Hezekiah with the requested evidence of God’s promise.

This suggestion does nothing to lessen the power of God and the beauty of His miracles. Only God who “knows the end before the beginning” (Isaiah 46:9-10) could have orchestrated the exact timing of such an event, celestial or otherwise, that would cause exactly enough light to reverse the shadow exactly ten steps up the stairs at exactly the moment Hezekiah looked out his window.

However, even more important than a definitive understanding of the miracle of the shadow and the ten steps is the potential lessons that those who seek to please God may take from this account. Hezekiah brought many positive changes to bring his people back to God, and in so doing, Hezekiah pleased God.

However, despite all of the blessings God provided Hezekiah, when offered deliverance by God Himself from a life-or-death situation, Hezekiah asked for a sign or proof of God’s intentions. Centuries later, however, Jesus instructed his followers to have faith in God above all else. In John 20:29, Jesus stresses the importance of faith and its relationship to pleasing God, even when physical evidences are not seen. In Matthew 6:25-34, Jesus teaches his followers to have faith in God for all things, material and spiritual. In 1 Corinthians 5:5-8, Paul emphasizes that followers of God should seek to order their lives by their faith, not by things necessarily seen. Instead desiring “signs,” a follower of God is better served seeking out God’s will in all things, and once His will is understood, doing all in one’s power to accomplish that will, sign or no sign.

Picturing the miracles recorded in the Bible can be difficult at times, especially when viewed through the perspective of modern science and knowledge. However, all of God’s followers can have complete confidence in God’s word and in all of His creation, including the laws that govern the universe that He established. Further, all of God’s followers should seek to cultivate a complete trust in the merciful Father for all things, from the most mundane to the most precious.

Additional Resource:
(PDF) Article: “The Sundial of Ahaz,” Beauties of the Truth magazine, May 2009, pages 11-15