May
5th 2 Kings 10 Ahab & Ahaziah’s family killed
1: And Ahab had seventy sons in
Samaria. And Jehu wrote letters, and sent to Samaria, unto the rulers of
Jezreel, to the elders, and to them that brought up Ahab's children, saying, 2:
Now as soon as this letter cometh to you, seeing your master's sons are with
you, and there are with you chariots and horses, a fenced city also, and
armour; 3: Look even out the best and meetest of your master's sons, and set
him on his father's throne, and fight for your master's house. 4: But they were
exceedingly afraid, and said, Behold, two kings stood not before him: how then
shall we stand? 5: And he that was over the house, and he that was over the
city, the elders also, and the bringers up of the children, sent to Jehu,
saying, We are thy servants, and will do all that thou shalt bid us; we will
not make any king: do thou that which is good in thine eyes. 6: Then he wrote a
letter the second time to them, saying, If ye be mine, and if ye will hearken
unto my voice, take ye the heads of the men your master's sons, and come to me
to Jezreel by to morrow this time. Now the king's sons, being seventy persons,
were with the great men of the city, which brought them up. 7: And it came to
pass, when the letter came to them, that they took the king's sons, and slew
seventy persons, and put their heads in baskets, and sent him them to Jezreel.
8: And there came a messenger, and told him, saying, They have brought the
heads of the king's sons. And he said, Lay ye them in two heaps at the entering
in of the gate until the morning. 9: And it came to pass in the morning, that
he went out, and stood, and said to all the people, Ye be righteous: behold, I
conspired against my master, and slew him: but who slew all these? 10: Know now
that there shall fall unto the earth nothing of the word of the LORD, which the
LORD spake concerning the house of Ahab: for the LORD hath done that which he
spake by his servant Elijah. 11: So Jehu slew all that remained of the house of
Ahab in Jezreel, and all his great men, and his kinsfolks, and his priests,
until he left him none remaining. 12: And he arose and departed, and came to
Samaria. And as he was at the shearing house in the way, 13: Jehu met with the
brethren of Ahaziah king of Judah, and said, Who are ye? And they answered, We
are the brethren of Ahaziah; and we go down to salute the children of the king
and the children of the queen. 14: And he said, Take them alive. And they took
them alive, and slew them at the pit of the shearing house, even two and forty
men; neither left he any of them. 15: And when he was departed thence, he
lighted on Jehonadab the son of Rechab coming to meet him: and he saluted him,
and said to him, Is thine heart right, as my heart is with thy heart? And
Jehonadab answered, It is. If it be, give me thine hand. And he gave him his
hand; and he took him up to him into the chariot. 16: And he said, Come with
me, and see my zeal for the LORD. So they made him ride in his chariot. 17: And
when he came to Samaria, he slew all that remained unto Ahab in Samaria, till
he had destroyed him, according to the saying of the LORD, which he spake to
Elijah.
Jehu
kills Baal worshippers
18: And Jehu gathered all the people
together, and said unto them, Ahab served Baal a little; but Jehu shall serve
him much. 19: Now therefore call unto me all the prophets of Baal, all his
servants, and all his priests; let none be wanting: for I have a great
sacrifice to do to Baal; whosoever shall be wanting, he shall not live. But
Jehu did it in subtilty, to the intent that he might destroy the worshippers of
Baal. 20: And Jehu said, Proclaim a solemn assembly for Baal. And they
proclaimed it. 21: And Jehu sent through all Israel: and all the worshippers of
Baal came, so that there was not a man left that came not. And they came into
the house of Baal; and the house of Baal was full from one end to another. 22:
And he said unto him that was over the vestry, Bring forth vestments for all
the worshippers of Baal. And he brought them forth vestments. 23: And Jehu
went, and Jehonadab the son of Rechab, into the house of Baal, and said unto
the worshippers of Baal, Search, and look that there be here with you none of
the servants of the LORD, but the worshippers of Baal only. 24: And when they
went in to offer sacrifices and burnt offerings, Jehu appointed fourscore men
without, and said, If any of the men whom I have brought into your hands
escape, he that letteth him go, his life shall be for the life of him. 25: And
it came to pass, as soon as he had made an end of offering the burnt offering,
that Jehu said to the guard and to the captains, Go in, and slay them; let none
come forth. And they smote them with the edge of the sword; and the guard and
the captains cast them out, and went to the city of the house of Baal. 26: And
they brought forth the images out of the house of Baal, and burned them. 27:
And they brake down the image of Baal, and brake down the house of Baal, and
made it a draught house unto this day. 28: Thus Jehu destroyed Baal out of
Israel. 29: Howbeit from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel
to sin, Jehu departed not from after them, to wit, the golden calves that were
in Bethel, and that were in Dan. 30: And the LORD said unto Jehu, Because thou
hast done well in executing that which is right in mine eyes, and hast done
unto the house of Ahab according to all that was in mine heart, thy children of
the fourth generation shall sit on the throne of Israel. 31: But Jehu took no
heed to walk in the law of the LORD God of Israel with all his heart: for he
departed not from the sins of Jeroboam, which made Israel to sin.
Jehu
dies - is buried in Samaria
32: In those days the LORD began to
cut Israel short: and Hazael smote them in all the coasts of Israel; 33: From
Jordan eastward, all the land of Gilead, the Gadites, and the Reubenites, and
the Manassites, from Aroer, which is by the river Arnon, even Gilead and
Bashan. 34: Now the rest of the acts of Jehu, and all that he did, and all his
might, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of
Israel? 35: And Jehu slept with his fathers: and they buried him in Samaria.
And Jehoahaz his son reigned in his stead. 36: And the time that Jehu reigned
over Israel in Samaria was twenty and eight years.
2
Kings 11 Athaliah King of Judah
1: And when Athaliah the mother of
Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the seed royal.
2: But Jehosheba, the daughter of king Joram, sister of Ahaziah, took Joash the
son of Ahaziah and stole him from among the king's sons which were slain; and
they hid him, even him and his nurse, in the bedchamber from Athaliah, so that
he was not slain. 3: And he was with her hid in the house of the LORD six
years. And Athaliah did reign over the land. 4: And the seventh year Jehoiada
sent and fetched the rulers over hundreds, with the captains and the guard, and
brought them to him into the house of the LORD, and made a covenant with them,
and took an oath of them in the house of the LORD, and shewed them the king's
son. 5: And he commanded them, saying, This is the thing that ye shall do; A
third part of you that enter in on the sabbath shall even be keepers of the
watch of the king's house; 6: And a third part shall be at the gate of Sur; and
a third part at the gate behind the guard: so shall ye keep the watch of the
house, that it be not broken down. 7: And two parts of all you that go forth on
the sabbath, even they shall keep the watch of the house of the LORD about the
king. 8: And ye shall compass the king around about, every man with his weapons
in his hand: and he that cometh within the ranges, let him be slain: and be ye
with the king as he goeth out and as he cometh in. 9: And the captains over the
hundreds did according to all things that Jehoiada the priest commanded: and
they took every man his men that were to come in on the sabbath, with them that
should go out on the sabbath, and came to Jehoiada the priest. 10: And to the
captains over hundreds did the priest give king David's spears and shields,
that were in the temple of the LORD. 11: And the guard stood, every man with
his weapons in his hand, round about the king, from the right corner of the
temple to the left corner of the temple, along by the altar and the temple. 12:
And he brought forth the king's son, and put the crown upon him, and gave him
the testimony; and they made him king, and anointed him; and they clapped their
hands, and said, God save the king. 13: And when Athaliah heard the noise of
the guard and of the people, she came to the people into the temple of the
LORD. 14: And when she looked, behold, the king stood by a pillar, as the
manner was, and the princes and the trumpeters by the king, and all the people
of the land rejoiced, and blew with trumpets: and Athaliah rent her clothes,
and cried, Treason, Treason. 15: But Jehoiada the priest commanded the captains
of the hundreds, the officers of the host, and said unto them, Have her forth
without the ranges: and him that followeth her kill with the sword. For the
priest had said, Let her not be slain in the house of the LORD. 16: And they
laid hands on her; and she went by the way by the which the horses came into
the king's house: and there was she slain.
Jehoiada’s
reforms
17: And Jehoiada made a covenant
between the LORD and the king and the people that they should be the LORD's
people; between the king also and the people. 18: And all the people of the
land went into the house of Baal, and brake it down; his altars and his images
brake they in pieces thoroughly, and slew Mattan the priest of Baal before the
altars. And the priest appointed officers over the house of the LORD. 19: And
he took the rulers over hundreds, and the captains, and the guard, and all the
people of the land; and they brought down the king from the house of the LORD,
and came by the way of the gate of the guard to the king's house. And he sat on
the throne of the kings. 20: And all the people of the land rejoiced, and the
city was in quiet: and they slew Athaliah with the sword beside the king's
house. 21: Seven years old was Jehoash when he began to reign.
2
Kings 12 Joash King of Judah
1: In the seventh year of Jehu Jehoash
began to reign; and forty years reigned he in Jerusalem. And his mother's name
was Zibiah of Beer-sheba. 2: And Jehoash did that which was right in the sight
of the LORD all his days wherein Jehoiada the priest instructed him. 3: But the
high places were not taken away: the people still sacrificed and burnt incense
in the high places. 4: And Jehoash said to the priests, All the money of the
dedicated things that is brought into the house of the LORD, even the money of
every one that passeth the account, the money that every man is set at, and all
the money that cometh into any man's heart to bring into the house of the LORD,
5: Let the priests take it to them, every man of his acquaintance: and let them
repair the breaches of the house, wheresoever any breach shall be found. 6: But
it was so, that in the three and twentieth year of king Jehoash the priests had
not repaired the breaches of the house. 7: Then king Jehoash called for
Jehoiada the priest, and the other priests , and said unto them, Why repair ye
not the breaches of the house? now therefore receive no more money of your
acquaintance, but deliver it for the breaches of the house. 8: And the priests
consented to receive no more money of the people, neither to repair the
breaches of the house. 9: But Jehoiada the priest took a chest, and bored a
hole in the lid of it, and set it beside the altar, on the right side as one
cometh into the house of the LORD: and the priests that kept the door put
therein all the money that was brought into the house of the LORD. 10: And it
was so, when they saw that there was much money in the chest, that the king's
scribe and the high priest came up, and they put up in bags, and told the money
that was found in the house of the LORD. 11: And they gave the money, being
told, into the hands of them that did the work, that had the oversight of the
house of the LORD: and they laid it out to the carpenters and builders, that
wrought upon the house of the LORD, 12: And to masons, and hewers of stone, and
to buy timber and hewed stone to repair the breaches of the house of the LORD,
and for all that was laid out for the house to repair it. 13: Howbeit there
were not made for the house of the LORD bowls of silver, snuffers, basons,
trumpets, any vessels of gold, or vessels of silver, of the money that was
brought into the house of the LORD: 14: But they gave that to the workmen, and
repaired therewith the house of the LORD. 15: Moreover they reckoned not with
the men, into whose hand they delivered the money to be bestowed on workmen:
for they dealt faithfully. 16: The trespass money and sin money was not brought
into the house of the LORD: it was the priests'. 17: Then Hazael king of Syria
went up, and fought against Gath, and took it: and Hazael set his face to go up
to Jerusalem. 18: And Jehoash king of Judah took all the hallowed things that
Jehoshaphat, and Jehoram, and Ahaziah, his fathers, kings of Judah, had
dedicated, and his own hallowed things, and all the gold that was found in the
treasures of the house of the LORD, and in the king's house, and sent it to
Hazael king of Syria: and he went away from Jerusalem. 19: And the rest of the
acts of Joash, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the
chronicles of the kings of Judah? 20: And his servants arose, and made a
conspiracy, and slew Joash in the house of Millo, which goeth down to Silla.
21: For Jozachar the son of Shimeath, and Jehozabad the son of Shomer, his
servants, smote him, and he died; and they buried him with his fathers in the
city of David: and Amaziah his son reigned in his stead.
Today we read the justice finally
catches up with the family of Ahab and Ahaziah. Jehu also is raised up by the
Lord to execute the Baal worshippers before he dies in Samaria. Then we read of
Athaliah becoming king of Judah in his place. Jehoiada makes reforms and Joash
becomes kings of Judah. The LORD had spoken by Elijah that all the family of
Ahab would be executed at the command of the King for leading Israel into great
wickedness. So Jehu sent letters to have his 70 sons executed, but the people
at first were afraid however a second letter gave the people courage to do the
deed and they brought their heads to Jezreel and left them there. The sin and
evil culture of Ahab was so bad that his family also had to suffer the same
judgment of God so they also fell under the sword and so a very great evil was
put away forever from Israel. This was not genocide; it was the judgment of God
enacted by Jehu on the LORD’s behalf. Then the LORD turned his attention on the
Baal idol worshippers. This evil religion was based on child sacrifice and
prostitution and rape. It was designated for the judgment of God. Jehu called
for all the Baal worshippers to gather. The Prophets, servants and priests of
Baal came to Jehu. He insisted that every one of them should come on fear of
execution if they didn’t. They came to the temple of Baal which was packed from
end to end. Then he told his servants to check very carefully to make sure that
no righteous men were with them. Then he appointed 80 men to surround the
temple and if any escaped then the man that let them go would pay with his own
life. Then Jehu told his a captain to go in with his men and execute every man
and they that were killed were thrown out of the door. And they took the wooden
Idols and burned them outside. Then they broke down the image of Baal and
totally destroyed the temple of Baal. Jehu totally destroyed Baal worship in
Israel but he did not destroy the golden calves that were in Bethel and Dan.
The Lord promised that Jehu’s sons would be kings after him for four
generations. Yet in all this Jehu didn’t serve the LORD with his whole mind he
still allowed the sin of Jeroboam. In the days that followed the LORD began to
discipline Israel again by allowing Hazael to come into the borders of Israel’s
territory. Jehu died after reigning for 22 yrs. And his son Jehoahaz reigned in
his place. In Judah when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was
dead she destroyed all his children but Jehosheba the daughter of Joram –
sister of Ahaziah took Joash the son of Ahaziah and hid him and his nurse so
that he was delivered. She hid him in the temple for 6 yrs. Athaliah as queen
reigned over the land but after 7yrs Jehoiada (See v14-15) the nurse of Joash
gathered all the rulers of hundreds and captains of the guard and brought them
to the house of the Lord and the soldiers were set to protect the young king
for assassination. Then they anointed him as king and crowned him and the
trumpets blew and there was great celebration. When Athaliah saw what was
happening she cried out treason, treason but the men at arms took her and any
that followed her and executed her. Jehoiada made a number of reforms, in
particular she made a covenant between the LORD and the king and the people and
they went and destroyed the house of Baal and executed the priest Mattan of
Baal. Joash began to reign when he was 7yrs old. And so we see that Baal
worship was destroyed both in Israel in the north and Judah in the south.
Jehoash reigned in Judah and he reigned for 40 yrs in Jerusalem. He was a good
king because he served the LORD in righteousness. He had a faithful guardian
who advised him. But some of the people served the Lord in the high places. He
insisted that the LORD’s house should be repaired yet it continued in disrepair
for 23 yrs. So the king took a chest and made a hole in the lid and this was
used as a place for the people to make their offerings to the Lord. Then when
the chest was quite full they emptied it at times and used the money to pay for
carpenters and masons to do their work of repairs. Those who deal with the
money were totally faithful to the Lord they were not checked by others. Then
when Hazael king of Syria came against Judah the king took all of the gold
things in the temple and sent then to Hazael thinking that is would satisfy
him. In the end the servants of Joash made a plot to kill him and the murdered
him and buried him and Amaziah reigned in his place.
No comments:
Post a Comment