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The Strength of His Hand (Chronicles of the Kings #3) | 
 enlarge | Author: Lynn Austin
Publisher: Bethany House Publishers
Category: Book
List Price: $12.99
Buy Used: $4.00
You Save: $8.99 (69%)
New (38) Used (13) from $4.00
Rating:  6 reviews
Sales Rank: 105863
Media: Paperback
Pages: 336
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.7
Dimensions (in): 8.4 x 5.5 x 1.1
ISBN: 0764229915
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN: 9780764229916
ASIN: 0764229915
Publication Date: September 1, 2005
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Chronicles of the Kings Book 3- God has rewarded Hezekiah's faithfulness with great wealth and power, but the godly king has no heir. In desperation, his beloved wife takes forbidden measures to ensure fertility.With all that is going on in his kingdom-- and with the Assyrians approaching-- Hezekiah does not discover his wife's idolatry until it's almost too late. Her betrayal cuts to the very core of his being and belief in God. Will his faith sustain him in the face of this deceit, and against an overwhelming enemy?
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| Customer Reviews: Read 1 more reviews...
terrific look at King Hezekiah's reign November 9, 2005
Harriet Klausner
12 out of 13 found this review helpful
King Hezekiah has returned his people to worshipping only Yahweh after the brutal paganism that highlighted the reign of his sire. With the return to praying to the One God, Judah has seen prosperity. Perhaps the only thing that has not gone right for the monarch is the lack of an heir; this especially disturbs his beloved wife Hephzibah.
Desperate to bear a male child, Hephzibah visits a pagan shrine worshiping the fertility goddess Asherahl and offers a deal to this false deity. Stunned when he learns what his wife did that broke the Commandant and the key principle to his reign, an irate Hezekiah devastates the pagan shrine. However, he is severely injured because of his berserker ranting. Once calm he knows his country's future is at stake so he turns to God for help and forgiveness for him, his wife, and their people. God answers through the prophet Isaiah who provides direction to clean his house and to select his heir.
The third tome of the fabulous Chronicles of the Kings series, THE STRENGTH OF HIS HAND, offers a terrific look at King Hezekiah's reign at a time of moral and religious crisis that threatens to destroy all he believed in and worked to achieve. Interestingly, the transgression of worshipping the false god by Hephzibah was done out of love for her spouse (good intentions can be an express way to hell). As Lynn Austin did with the insightful SONG OF REDEMPTION and GODS AND KINGS, fans will learn much about ancient Judah while cherishing this excellent work of biblical fiction.
Harriet Klausner
 Good... February 18, 2006
QueenG (planet earth)
8 out of 8 found this review helpful
You will mostly enjoy this book if you love biblical history or if you would like to understand it better.
First, the writting is not as smooth as more experienced authors I've read. In some places its even a bit jarring. BUT Ms Austin is certainly one thing.....a storyteller!!!
I found myself reading this book and really understanding human nature versus obeying God. It made me repent of some of my own thickheadedness and at other points it made me pray not to fall into the traps that I saw the characters fall into.
Ms Austin has worked good cause and effect into her plotting of this book. Keep up the good work Ms Austin. All in all it was a good read that makes you look introspectively at yourself and hey....thats what every author wants to accomplish...right? 8-)
By His strength, and in His time. Outstanding once again!! December 23, 2006
Wolfe Moffat (Franklinville, NY)
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
Wow! That's the only word that comes to mind after reading Lynn Austin. I picked this up with one lingering doubt in my mind, "Will this even match books 1 and 2?" They were THAT good, and Lynn Austin did her homework to the nth degree, and I'm sitting here astounded! I was wondering if she'd include Sannacherib, Hezekiah's fierce, taunting rival! Oh, she did all right, and had me sweating a time or two! She did an amazing work, and if you have yet to read this, you really are missing out. I really don't feel like putting the book down when I'm on my lunch break at work, or potty training the 2 year old, and it made me all the more crazy to get back to reading!! Yeah, now read on, right? I still have my review to do!
The theme in this would ultimately have to be trust. And for that matter, not trusting in ourselves. To me that is a gut wrenching matter. Especially when I think I need something, and it just ain't happening! When you look back on the times when you haven't trusted God, please don't feel so bad. It is called crisis, and we all go through it. King Hezekiah went through it, and he HAD to trust God. The question is, would he? If you know the story, well then you already know the answer. But let's not make it so obvious. What about Hezekiah's wife, Hephzibah, who has yet to birth a future king? She thought she was promised, yet no baby, not yet anyway! What about other people in this that we've grown to love... like Eliakim? The Assyrians are planning to attack Judah. Eliakim's wife, Jerusha knows about how beastly ONE of them can be. Will God protect them? Will they rely on God's strength, or will they lean to their own understanding? Isaiah, the prophet is still alive and well in this whole mess, and he plays a big part!
This also gives a better understanding of Passover. With a portrait more real than life, the passover is displayed to me in great awe. It really drives home the point, like for instance with the parsley dipped in salt water. Just an example, and you might really appreciate what an awesome God we serve after this. There is a lot of scripture, yet when you see it come alive, WOW!
All God asks sometimes is to simply trust Him. To put aside our strength, and to simply trust Him. Is it always easy? No way. Is it worth it? Yes it is, because I know from some tough experiences. Outstanding once again, Lynn Austin! I'm ready for more.
WOW...a must read series! March 15, 2007
lilmomma
A glimpse into the our past, our families lives, our history...A MUST READ! You will be hooked!
Like the first two, I could not put it down February 12, 2008
Robin
What an awesome storyteller. If you have ever had the pleasure of reading a Francine Rivers novel, you will enjoy Lynn Austin as well. While I meditated on Rivers novels for days and even weeks, I found Austin's stories a bit faster paced and entertaining yet at the same time thought provoking and nourishment to the soul. I greatly enjoyed the first three books and highly recommend them. I am waiting for the fourth and fifth!
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