Ahaziah

Would you like to read James McNaught’s novel Sinking Sand”? click here: Sinking Sand

http://www.booksthataregood.com/Reference_Books.php

http://twitter.com/#!/jamesmcnaught 

http://www.youtube.com/user/jamesmcnaught1

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

2 Kings 8:25–29, “In the twelfth year of Joram the son of Ahab king of Israel did Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah begin to reign. Two and twenty years old was Ahaziah when he began to reign; and he reigned one year in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Athaliah, the daughter of Omri king of Israel. And he walked in the way of the house of Ahab, and did evil in the sight of the LORD, as did the house of Ahab: for he was the son in law of the house of Ahab. And he went with Joram the son of Ahab to the war against Hazael king of Syria in Ramothgilead; and the Syrians wounded Joram. And king Joram went back to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds which the Syrians had given him at Ramah, when he fought against Hazael king of Syria. And Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah went down to see Joram the son of Ahab in Jezreel, because he was sick.”

There is some difficulty with the names Joram and Jehoram as one name seems to be a contraction of the other. However, one was king in Judah while the other was king in Israel. Ahab, from Israel, and Jehoshaphat, from Judah, were on friendly terms and they even worked together from time to time, notably they were allies against the Syrians when Ahab was killed. Jehoram was Jehoshaphat’s son in Judah and Ahaziah was Jehoshaphat’s grandson. The alliance between Israel and Judah was so strong at that time that Jehoram married Ahab’s sister. Consequently, Ahaziah followed Ahab’s family in his religious practices and decided to ignore the true God of Heaven, the Lord God of Israel, altogether. Ahaziah and Joram went to war, as allies, against Hazael the Syrian king who had caused Elisha so much grief. Joram was wounded in the battle and Ahaziah went to visit him in Jezreel while he recuperated.

Kings die and new kings reign

Would you like to read James McNaught’s novel Sinking Sand”? click here: Sinking Sand

http://www.booksthataregood.com/Reference_Books.php

http://twitter.com/#!/jamesmcnaught 

http://www.youtube.com/user/jamesmcnaught1

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

2 Kings 8:16–24, “And in the fifth year of Joram the son of Ahab king of Israel, Jehoshaphat being then king of Judah, Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah began to reign. Thirty and two years old was he when he began to reign; and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem. And he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as did the house of Ahab: for the daughter of Ahab was his wife: and he did evil in the sight of the LORD. Yet the LORD would not destroy Judah for David his servant’s sake, as he promised him to give him alway a light, and to his children. In his days Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah, and made a king over themselves. So Joram went over to Zair, and all the chariots with him: and he rose by night, and smote the Edomites which compassed him about, and the captains of the chariots: and the people fled into their tents. Yet Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah unto this day. Then Libnah revolted at the same time. And the rest of the acts of Joram, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? And Joram slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David: and Ahaziah his son reigned in his stead.”

Every time we read through the historical sections of the Bible it is helpful for us to remember that this is a record of the Lord’s dealings with people showing what happens if they obey and what happens if they don’t. It also shows what happens when people ignore the Lord altogether. This information doesn’t allow us to say that the Lord approves of things that people do when they disobey Him, even if they pretend they are. We have just been through the historical record of a very important time in Israel’s history, after the kingdom was divided the northern kingdom followed a form of the original contract that they had made with the Lord. However, the initial truths that Jeroboam used were quickly transformed into Satan’s lies and they were not following the Lord and His Law at all. When Ahab became king, Israel moved away from the pretence of following the Lord to become exactly like the neighbouring nations and follow the gods of the other nations. At this critical stage, the Lord graciously sent two powerful and important prophets to call Israel back to their true God and save them from the ultimate penalty clause of the contract, that is, exile. Both Elijah and Elisha were faithful and fearless as they brought the Lord’s message to Israel and gave them every opportunity to repent and return to their God, the Lord God Who brought them into the Promised Land in the first place. All the elements needed for true repentance were there but they were ignored. Eventually the Lord let Israel, the northern nation, have the fruit of their choice and history moved on towards its inevitable conclusion. The two nations, Israel and Judah continued in their ways. Kings were died and replaced by other kings. The Lord allowed Judah to continue under the Davidic dynasty with custody of the Temple. When Judah became too close to Israel, through marriage alliances, Judah became more like Israel and sinned against the Lord their God. As they followed this course of actions they began to lose their prestige and influence among the nations that the Lord had given them. However, the Davidic dynasty continued with both good and evil kings.

Hazael

Would you like to read James McNaught’s novel Sinking Sand”? click here: Sinking Sand

http://www.booksthataregood.com/Reference_Books.php

http://twitter.com/#!/jamesmcnaught 

http://www.youtube.com/user/jamesmcnaught1

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

2 Kings 8:7–15, “And Elisha came to Damascus; and Benhadad the king of Syria was sick; and it was told him, saying, The man of God is come hither. And the king said unto Hazael, Take a present in thine hand, and go, meet the man of God, and enquire of the LORD by him, saying, Shall I recover of this disease? So Hazael went to meet him, and took a present with him, even of every good thing of Damascus, forty camels’ burden, and came and stood before him, and said, Thy son Benhadad king of Syria hath sent me to thee, saying, Shall I recover of this disease? And Elisha said unto him, Go, say unto him, Thou mayest certainly recover: howbeit the LORD hath shewed me that he shall surely die. And he settled his countenance stedfastly, until he was ashamed: and the man of God wept. And Hazael said, Why weepeth my lord? And he answered, Because I know the evil that thou wilt do unto the children of Israel: their strong holds wilt thou set on fire, and their young men wilt thou slay with the sword, and wilt dash their children, and rip up their women with child. And Hazael said, But what, is thy servant a dog, that he should do this great thing? And Elisha answered, The LORD hath shewed me that thou shalt be king over Syria. So he departed from Elisha, and came to his master; who said to him, What said Elisha to thee? And he answered, He told me that thou shouldest surely recover. And it came to pass on the morrow, that he took a thick cloth, and dipped it in water, and spread it on his face, so that he died: and Hazael reigned in his stead.”

Elisha was well known throughout the entire region. Even Benhadad, the Syrian king, knew of Elisha and his reputation as a great man of God. Benhadad already had experience with the Lord’s Almighty power in his dealings with Elisha. Elisha went to Damascus. He was able to go into enemy territory with complete confidence because he had absolute faith in the Lord. Benhadad was ill in bed and wanted to find out if he was going to recover so he sent one of his senior staff members, Hazael, to ask Elisha what would happen. Elisha told Hazael that he could tell Benhadad that he would get better but that Benhadad would certainly die. Before this we heard that during Ahab’s time the Lord had sent a lying spirit among Ahab’s prophets so that they would entice Ahab to his death. The Lord gave Elisha permission to send Hazael as a lying spirit to Benhadad to entice the king to his death. Elisha then looked into Hazael’s eyes and wept. Hazael was embarrassed and asked the prophet what he was going. Elisha told Hazael that he was concerned for the future of Israel and all the cruelty that Hazael would inflict on Israel throughout the years to come. Hazael went back to Benhadad and told him that he would okay then smothered him with a wet cloth.

A witness to a miracle

Would you like to read James McNaught’s novel Sinking Sand”? click here: Sinking Sand

http://www.booksthataregood.com/Reference_Books.php

http://twitter.com/#!/jamesmcnaught 

http://www.youtube.com/user/jamesmcnaught1

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

2 Kings 8:1–6, “Then spake Elisha unto the woman, whose son he had restored to life, saying, Arise, and go thou and thine household, and sojourn wheresoever thou canst sojourn: for the LORD hath called for a famine; and it shall also come upon the land seven years. And the woman arose, and did after the saying of the man of God: and she went with her household, and sojourned in the land of the Philistines seven years. And it came to pass at the seven years’ end, that the woman returned out of the land of the Philistines: and she went forth to cry unto the king for her house and for her land. And the king talked with Gehazi the servant of the man of God, saying, Tell me, I pray thee, all the great things that Elisha hath done. And it came to pass, as he was telling the king how he had restored a dead body to life, that, behold, the woman, whose son he had restored to life, cried to the king for her house and for her land. And Gehazi said, My lord, O king, this is the woman, and this is her son, whom Elisha restored to life. And when the king asked the woman, she told him. So the king appointed unto her a certain officer, saying, Restore all that was hers, and all the fruits of the field since the day that she left the land, even until now.”

When the Lord first gave the Promised Land to Israel He told Joshua to allocate a separate portion of the Land to each family that went into the Land. This land was to belong that that family in perpetuity and there was a system whereby the property was to be returned to each family in the fiftieth year. Remembering this, Elisha told the woman whose son he had revived from death to go away because the Lord was bringing a famine to the Land. The Lord was still acting with love and grace towards Israel and giving them further opportunities to repent of their sin and be restored to their faith in the Lord. The woman left and lived in Philistia for seven years until the drought was over. At one stage the king was asking some of his advisors about Elisha and all the things that he had done. One man told the king about Elisha and boy he brought back to life. Just as the man was relating that piece of history the woman came to see the king. She had come back to her home and wanted to have title to her land again. The king asked her what had happened and she confirmed that Elisha had been the Lord’s agent in bringing her son back to life again. The king ordered that she be given her land and all the profits from her land for the seven years that she had been away.

The Lord kept His promise

Would you like to read James McNaught’s novel Sinking Sand”? click here: Sinking Sand

http://www.booksthataregood.com/Reference_Books.php

http://twitter.com/#!/jamesmcnaught 

http://www.youtube.com/user/jamesmcnaught1

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

2 Kings 7:12–20, “And the king arose in the night, and said unto his servants, I will now shew you what the Syrians have done to us. They know that we be hungry; therefore are they gone out of the camp to hide themselves in the field, saying, When they come out of the city, we shall catch them alive, and get into the city. And one of his servants answered and said, Let some take, I pray thee, five of the horses that remain, which are left in the city, (behold, they are as all the multitude of Israel that are left in it: behold, I say, they are even as all the multitude of the Israelites that are consumed:) and let us send and see. They took therefore two chariot horses; and the king sent after the host of the Syrians, saying, Go and see. And they went after them unto Jordan: and, lo, all the way was full of garments and vessels, which the Syrians had cast away in their haste. And the messengers returned, and told the king. And the people went out, and spoiled the tents of the Syrians. So a measure of fine flour was sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, according to the word of the LORD. And the king appointed the lord on whose hand he leaned to have the charge of the gate: and the people trode upon him in the gate, and he died, as the man of God had said, who spake when the king came down to him. And it came to pass as the man of God had spoken to the king, saying, Two measures of barley for a shekel, and a measure of fine flour for a shekel, shall be to morrow about this time in the gate of Samaria: And that lord answered the man of God, and said, Now, behold, if the LORD should make windows in heaven, might such a thing be? And he said, Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof. And so it fell out unto him: for the people trode upon him in the gate, and he died.”

Israel’s king was very careful and certainly did’t believe the prophecy that Elisha had brought him the day before. He thought that the Syrians were just trying to trick him so he told his men that the Syrians were just trying to ambush him. One of the king’s advisors suggested that some men go out with a few horses and just check the Syrian camp to make sure that they men were telling the truth. Some of the men took two chariot horses and went, quietly out of the city gate. They saw that the camp was empty and followed the tracks of the fleeing Syrian army all the way down to the Jordan River. They could see that the Syrian soldiers had run away in sheer terror and had thrown their gear away as they ran to lighten their loads and run faster. Those men came back and told the king and the people went out to take the plunder from the Syrian camp. Some people brought the food back in carts and sold it to other people. The man who had mocked Elisha was standing near the city and heard the news and knew that it was true but the people trampled him to death as they rushed out to get the food. The Lord’s promise to the man who mocked God and said that even God could not provide relief to the siege came true, he heard about the Lord’s miracle but was unable to enjoy any of it at all.

Four sick men

Would you like to read James McNaught’s novel Sinking Sand”? click here: Sinking Sand

http://www.booksthataregood.com/Reference_Books.php

http://twitter.com/#!/jamesmcnaught 

http://www.youtube.com/user/jamesmcnaught1

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

2 Kings 7:3–11, “And there were four leprous men at the entering in of the gate: and they said one to another, Why sit we here until we die? If we say, We will enter into the city, then the famine is in the city, and we shall die there: and if we sit still here, we die also. Now therefore come, and let us fall unto the host of the Syrians: if they save us alive, we shall live; and if they kill us, we shall but die. And they rose up in the twilight, to go unto the camp of the Syrians: and when they were come to the uttermost part of the camp of Syria, behold, there was no man there. For the Lord had made the host of the Syrians to hear a noise of chariots, and a noise of horses, even the noise of a great host: and they said one to another, Lo, the king of Israel hath hired against us the kings of the Hittites, and the kings of the Egyptians, to come upon us. Wherefore they arose and fled in the twilight, and left their tents, and their horses, and their asses, even the camp as it was, and fled for their life. And when these lepers came to the uttermost part of the camp, they went into one tent, and did eat and drink, and carried thence silver, and gold, and raiment, and went and hid it; and came again, and entered into another tent, and carried thence also, and went and hid it. Then they said one to another, We do not well: this day is a day of good tidings, and we hold our peace: if we tarry till the morning light, some mischief will come upon us: now therefore come, that we may go and tell the king’s household. So they came and called unto the porter of the city: and they told them, saying, We came to the camp of the Syrians, and, behold, there was no man there, neither voice of man, but horses tied, and asses tied, and the tents as they were. And he called the porters; and they told it to the king’s house within.”

While the city was besieged there were some men who leprosy, who were unclean under the Law. They had to remain outside and couldn’t have any association with other people. They couldn’t get any food from inside the city and the Syrians wouldn’t give them any as they lived just outside the city gate. They decided that they would throw themselves on the mercy of the Syrian armies. If they stayed where they were then they would die and the Syrians couldn’t do any more than kill. They went to the place where they Syrians had camped and were surprised that no one challenged them and they couldn’t see any soldiers anywhere. These men went into the first tent they saw and found that it was full of food, wine and riches. The Syrians heard a sound of a great army, caused by the Lord during the night, and they retreated because the army sounded far to large for them to fight against. All the tents were empty because the soldiers ran away in such a hurry that they left everything behind. The men, who had leprosy, took as much as they could carry and hid it away then went to the next tent, had another huge meal and hid as much as they could. After a while they realised that they were doing the wrong thing. They had the most important news for Samaria and they weren’t telling anyone what they knew. They went back to Samaria and called out at the gates, telling the guard at the gate that all the Syrians had left their camp in a hurry and the place was empty. The guard went to the king and gave him the good news.

Windows in heaven

Would you like to read James McNaught’s novel Sinking Sand”? click here: Sinking Sand

http://www.booksthataregood.com/Reference_Books.php

http://twitter.com/#!/jamesmcnaught 

http://www.youtube.com/user/jamesmcnaught1

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

2 Kings 7:1–2, “Then Elisha said, Hear ye the word of the LORD; Thus saith the LORD, To morrow about this time shall a measure of fine flour be sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria. Then a lord on whose hand the king leaned answered the man of God, and said, Behold, if the LORD would make windows in heaven, might this thing be? And he said, Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof.”

The Lord’s actions are not arbitrary or random. He works to bring His people to their knees in repentance so that they can be restored to the full benefits of the covenant that He made with Israel. The Lord was working to bring Israel to an understanding of their sin and their urgent need to repent before things got much worse. Elisha told the king that the Lord would abundantly supply all their needs and that food would be readily available at very economical prices the next day. One of the kings senior advisors was very cynical about this and mocked Elisha and the Lord. He said that even the Lord God Himself would not be able to make this happen. Elisha promised that man that he would see the miracle but not be able to enjoy the benefits of the miracle because of his unbelief and blasphemy.