The Chronicler devotes more attention to Hezekiah than any other of Israel’s kings – except for David and Solomon. Especially does he focus on Hezekiah’s role regarding the restoration of the worship of the Lord.
I’ve tried to imagine what the great Solomon temple would have looked like – all boarded up and deserted – for that would have been the image seen by Jerusalem’s inhabitants. Hezekiah undertakes to change this by commanding the religious leaders to be about their God-given work. Proper worship is a focus of the book of Chronicles, and because Hezekiah makes such a heroic stab at re-establishing it, he gets a lot of press.
Martin Selman writes: “[E]very human being’s first priority should be to acknowledge God’s worth. That, for example, is how the ten commandments begin (Exod. 20:3–6), it is the reason for Jesus’ obedient death on the cross, and it is the chief characteristic of the community in heaven (Rev. 4:1–5:14; 22:1–9). When Hezekiah, therefore, made it the first act of his reign to prepare properly for worship, he was observing a basic biblical principle, and not just indulging in antiquated ceremonial. His action also reminds believers today that their pattern of worship should always express their wholehearted commitment to God (cf. 1 Cor. 12–14; Rev. 2:14–16, 20–23). Indeed, for the New Testament, sacrificial worship makes a claim on the whole of one’s life (Rom. 12:1).”