January 9, 2022
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Reading along with us in 2 Kings? Here’s today’s reading:
2 Kings 13 (NIV)
Jehoahaz King of Israel
1 In the twenty-third year of Joash son of Ahaziah king of Judah, Jehoahaz son of Jehu became king of Israel in Samaria, and he reigned seventeen years. 2 He did evil in the eyes of the Lordby following the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, which he had caused Israel to commit, and he did not turn away from them. 3 So the Lord’s anger burned against Israel, and for a long time he kept them under the power of Hazael king of Aram and Ben-Hadad his son..........Continue Reading
2 Kings 13
Well we have here 2 kings of Israel that have something good to their names…very rare for the Northern kingdom. Jehoahaz sought the Lord’s favor and God gave relief from the control of the Arameans for a time. But he and Israel did not change their ways. It is like many who turn to God when trouble comes but don’t really repent from who they are and the path away from God that they are on. They are missing a lot of the fullness that comes from following God. And Jehoash, his son, is saddened by Elisha’s sickness and considers him a father figure, thereby showing great regard. Once again there is no changed life but God grants him a blessing..and it is limited by his unwillingness to seek more from God. When God’s prophet says beat the ground with an arrow, keep doing it until he says stop….
And how amazing this account, that a dead body is thrown on Elisha’s dead bones and the guy is resurrected. To be honest I don’t remember this account, but a neat way to show God’s hand on Elisha, that even though dead he still has the power to work miracles….
When I read this 2 things happened…first I quickly became annoyed that again we have kings that kinda get it but fall right back into evil ways or don’t truly give their hearts and lives to God. But then I quickly became convicted that this must be what our lives look like to God at times. So often we fall before God in the hard times and then when things are good we stray back to our own pride and go it alone. I am reminded how reading the old testament can be so much more relatable to our lives than we think.
“Then the Lord gave Israel a deliverer, so that they escaped from under the hand of the Syrians; and the children of Israel dwelt in their tents as before. 6 Nevertheless they did not depart from the sins of the house of Jeroboam, who had made Israel sin, but walked in them; and the wooden image also remained in Samaria.”
“And Hazael king of Syria oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz. 23 But the Lord was gracious to them, had compassion on them, and regarded them, because of His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and would not yet destroy them or cast them from His presence.”
These two sections reminded me that God is faithful, even when we are not. I have noticed this in Judges as well. The theme is: Israel commits idolatry, etc. suffers the consequences, cries out to God, He rescues them, repeat. It makes me think of the verse, “while we were yet sinners, Christ died for our sins.”
Also, the man revived when he fell on Elisha’s bones! Reading through the OT, and even some of the NT, makes me think of how out of touch we are with the Spirit and reliant on man’s solutions we are. I am as much of a skeptic as the next person, but I read about the ax head floating and a man revived and I wonder if we are just not accessing the power afforded to us by the Holy Spirit beyond mere self-control and purity of thought.