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12 II Kings

April 22 - II Kings 1 - 2

Something to Ponder... Elisha asked, "Where is the LORD God of Elijah?"  Years ago, I heard an old preacher ask, "Where are the Elijah's of the Lord God?"

The book of II Kings continues with the history of the kings of Israel and Judah.  I want to mention that I am taking chemo and some days my mind is cloudy.  Also, many of the names of the kings were similar, and some were spelled differently from one verse to another.  If you find errors, please let me know and I will make the corrections.  The notes in my Scofield Study Bible tell that Amos and Hosea prophesied in Israel during this time period, and Obadiah, Joel, Isaiah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, and Jeremiah prophesied in Judah.  Let's begin with Chapter 1.

"1  Then Moab rebelled against Israel after the death of Ahab.
2  And Ahaziah fell down through a lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria, and was sick: and he sent messengers, and said unto them, Go, enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron whether I shall recover of this disease.
3  But the angel of the LORD said to Elijah the Tishbite, Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say unto them, Is it not because there is not a God in Israel, that ye go to enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron?
4  Now therefore thus saith the LORD, Thou shalt not come down from that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die. And Elijah departed.  (II Kings 1:1-4)

​"7  And he said unto them, What manner of man was he which came up to meet you, and told you these words?
8  And they answered him, He was an hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins. And he said, It is Elijah the Tishbite.
9  Then the king sent unto him a captain of fifty with his fifty. And he went up to him: and, behold, he sat on the top of an hill. And he spake unto him, Thou man of God, the king hath said, Come down.
10  And Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty, If I be a man of God, then let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And there came down fire from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty."  (1:7-10)

King Ahaziah sent another 50 and the fire came down and consumed them also.  "And he sent again a captain of the third fifty with his fifty. And the third captain of fifty went up, and came and fell on his knees before Elijah, and besought him, and said unto him, O man of God, I pray thee, let my life, and the life of these fifty thy servants, be precious in thy sight."  (1:13)  The angel of the Lord told Elijah to go with him and not to be afraid.  Elijah repeated his message to Ahaziah.  "So he died according to the word of the LORD which Elijah had spoken. And Jehoram reigned in his stead in the second year of Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah; because he had no son."  (1:17)  Johoram was another son of Ahab.  Chapter 2 tells of Elijah's glorious departure.  In verse 11 it says that "... as they still went on, and talked..."  Wouldn't you like to have walked with those two great prophets as they talked?

"1  And it came to pass, when the LORD would take up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal.
2  And Elijah said unto Elisha, Tarry here, I pray thee; for the LORD hath sent me to Bethel. And Elisha said unto him, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they went down to Bethel.
3  And the sons of the prophets that were at Bethel came forth to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the LORD will take away thy master from thy head to day? And he said, Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace.
4  And Elijah said unto him, Elisha, tarry here, I pray thee; for the LORD hath sent me to Jericho. And he said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they came to Jericho.
5  And the sons of the prophets that were at Jericho came to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the LORD will take away thy master from thy head to day? And he answered, Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace.
6  And Elijah said unto him, Tarry, I pray thee, here; for the LORD hath sent me to Jordan. And he said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And they two went on.
7  And fifty men of the sons of the prophets went, and stood to view afar off: and they two stood by Jordan.
8  And Elijah took his mantle, and wrapped it together, and smote the waters, and they were divided hither and thither, so that they two went over on dry ground.
9  And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me.
10  And he said, Thou hast asked a hard thing: nevertheless, if thou see me when I am taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be so.
11  And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.
12  And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. And he saw him no more: and he took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in two pieces.
13  He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of Jordan;
14  And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and smote the waters, and said, Where is the LORD God of Elijah? and when he also had smitten the waters, they parted hither and thither: and Elisha went over.
15  And when the sons of the prophets which were to view at Jericho saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him."  (2:1-15)

​The sons of the prophets went to look for Elijah for three days, saying, "...lest peradventure the Spirit of the LORD hath taken him up, and cast him upon some mountain, or into some valley."  They did not find him.  The men of the city told Elisha that the water was naught and the ground was barren.  Elisha threw salt into the spring of water and the waters were healed.  The chapter closes with the little children who mocked him, telling him to go up like Elijah had done.  (Do you think these children were following the example of what they had heard from their parents?  Don't ridicule and put down your pastor.)  "And he went up from thence unto Bethel: and as he was going up by the way, there came forth little children out of the city, and mocked him, and said unto him, Go up, thou bald head; go up, thou bald head.  And he turned back, and looked on them, and cursed them in the name of the LORD. And there came forth two she bears out of the wood, and tare forty and two children of them."  (2:23-24)

​April 23 - II Kings 3 - 4

​Life Lesson... The Lord can take the little we have and stretch it out to be more than enough.  

Jehoram, the son of Ahab reigned over Israel in Samaria 12 years and he wrought evil in the sight of the Lord.  He sent to Jehoshaphat the king of Judah to go with him to battle against Moab.  They went, with the king of Edom, "and there was no water for the host and for the cattle that followed them."

"11  But Jehoshaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of the LORD, that we may enquire of the LORD by him? And one of the king of Israel's servants answered and said, Here is Elisha the son of Shaphat, which poured water on the hands of Elijah.
12  And Jehoshaphat said, The word of the LORD is with him. So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to him.
13  And Elisha said unto the king of Israel, What have I to do with thee? get thee to the prophets of thy father, and to the prophets of thy mother. And the king of Israel said unto him, Nay: for the LORD hath called these three kings together, to deliver them into the hand of Moab.
14  And Elisha said, As the LORD of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward thee, nor see thee.
15  But now bring me a minstrel. And it came to pass, when the minstrel played, that the hand of the LORD came upon him.
16  And he said, Thus saith the LORD, Make this valley full of ditches.
17  For thus saith the LORD, Ye shall not see wind, neither shall ye see rain; yet that valley shall be filled with water, that ye may drink, both ye, and your cattle, and your beasts.
18  And this is but a light thing in the sight of the LORD: he will deliver the Moabites also into your hand.
19  And ye shall smite every fenced city, and every choice city, and shall fell every good tree, and stop all wells of water, and mar every good piece of land with stones.
20  And it came to pass in the morning, when the meat offering was offered, that, behold, there came water by the way of Edom, and the country was filled with water.
21  And when all the Moabites heard that the kings were come up to fight against them, they gathered all that were able to put on armour, and upward, and stood in the border.
22  And they rose up early in the morning, and the sun shone upon the water, and the Moabites saw the water on the other side as red as blood:
23  And they said, This is blood: the kings are surely slain, and they have smitten one another: now therefore, Moab, to the spoil."  (II Kings 3:11-23)

​When the Moabites came to the camp, they were smitten and the king of Moab offered his oldest son as a sacrifice to his god and they returned to their own land.  In Chapter 4 a widow of the sons of the prophets told Elisha that the creditor was going to take her two sons to be bondmen.  "And Elisha said unto her, What shall I do for thee? tell me, what hast thou in the house? And she said, Thine handmaid hath not any thing in the house, save a pot of oil. Then he said, Go, borrow thee vessels abroad of all thy neighbours, even empty vessels; borrow not a few."  (4:2-3)  They filled all of the empty vessels that they had borrowed from the pot of oil.  Then Elisha told her to sell the oil and pay the debt, and live on the rest.  There have been many times when what we had didn't seem to be enough, but God provided!  The next story is about a woman of Shunem who invited Elisha in to eat bread when he passed by.  "And she said unto her husband, Behold now, I perceive that this is an holy man of God, which passeth by us continually.  Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the wall; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a stool, and a candlestick: and it shall be, when he cometh to us, that he shall turn in thither."  (4:9-10)  Elisha asked his servant Gehazi what they could do for the man and woman.  Gehazi told him that they had no child, and her husband was old.  Elisha told her that she would have a son, and she did. 

"18  And when the child was grown, it fell on a day, that he went out to his father to the reapers.
19  And he said unto his father, My head, my head. And he said to a lad, Carry him to his mother.
20  And when he had taken him, and brought him to his mother, he sat on her knees till noon, and then died.
21  And she went up, and laid him on the bed of the man of God, and shut the door upon him, and went out.
22  And she called unto her husband, and said, Send me, I pray thee, one of the young men, and one of the asses, that I may run to the man of God, and come again.
23  And he said, Wherefore wilt thou go to him to day? it is neither new moon, nor sabbath. And she said, It shall be well.
24  Then she saddled an ass, and said to her servant, Drive, and go forward; slack not thy riding for me, except I bid thee."  (4:18-24)

"It shall be well."  It is good to know that when we go to God, He gives us peace that it will be well.  "And when she came to the man of God to the hill, she caught him by the feet: but Gehazi came near to thrust her away. And the man of God said, Let her alone; for her soul is vexed within her: and the LORD hath hid it from me, and hath not told me.  Then she said, Did I desire a son of my lord? did I not say, Do not deceive me?"  (4:27-28)  Elisha gave Gehazi his staff and told him to lay it on the face of the child, but the woman refused to leave, so the prophet went with her. 

"32  And when Elisha was come into the house, behold, the child was dead, and laid upon his bed.
33  He went in therefore, and shut the door upon them twain, and prayed unto the LORD.
34  And he went up, and lay upon the child, and put his mouth upon his mouth, and his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands: and he stretched himself upon the child; and the flesh of the child waxed warm.
35  Then he returned, and walked in the house to and fro; and went up, and stretched himself upon him: and the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes.
36  And he called Gehazi, and said, Call this Shunammite. So he called her. And when she was come in unto him, he said, Take up thy son.
37  Then she went in, and fell at his feet, and bowed herself to the ground, and took up her son, and went out."  (4:32-37)

Elisha went to Gilgal and there was dearth in the land.  He told his servant to set on the great pot and make pottage for the sons of the prophets.  One went out to gather herbs, and gathered wild gourds and shred them into the pot.  As the men were eating, one said, "O thou man of God, there is death in the pot."  Elisha cast meal into the pot and there was no harm in the pot.  The last miracle of the chapter reminds me of the Lord feeding the multitudes with just the few loaves and fish. 

"42  And there came a man from Baalshalisha, and brought the man of God bread of the firstfruits, twenty loaves of barley, and full ears of corn in the husk thereof. And he said, Give unto the people, that they may eat.
43  And his servitor said, What, should I set this before an hundred men? He said again, Give the people, that they may eat: for thus saith the LORD, They shall eat, and shall leave thereof.
44  So he set it before them, and they did eat, and left thereof, according to the word of the LORD."  (4:42-44)

April 24 - II Kings 5 - 6

​Life Lesson... May we continually pray that the Lord will open our eyes that we might see.  "And Elisha prayed, and said, LORD, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see..."  (6:17)

Chapter 5 is the story of Naaman, the leper.  The Lord used Naaman to give Syria victory, even though they were Israel's enemy.  And sometimes when we read this story we may not think about this little girl being a captive, and she served as a maid to Naaman's wife.  She still kept her faith, even though she was taken from her parents and her country.

"1  Now Naaman, captain of the host of the king of Syria, was a great man with his master, and honourable, because by him the LORD had given deliverance unto Syria: he was also a mighty man in valour, but he was a leper.
2  And the Syrians had gone out by companies, and had brought away captive out of the land of Israel a little maid; and she waited on Naaman's wife.
3  And she said unto her mistress, Would God my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria! for he would recover him of his leprosy.
4  And one went in, and told his lord, saying, Thus and thus said the maid that is of the land of Israel.
5  And the king of Syria said, Go to, go, and I will send a letter unto the king of Israel. And he departed, and took with him ten talents of silver, and six thousand pieces of gold, and ten changes of raiment.
6  And he brought the letter to the king of Israel, saying, Now when this letter is come unto thee, behold, I have therewith sent Naaman my servant to thee, that thou mayest recover him of his leprosy.
7  And it came to pass, when the king of Israel had read the letter, that he rent his clothes, and said, Am I God, to kill and to make alive, that this man doth send unto me to recover a man of his leprosy? wherefore consider, I pray you, and see how he seeketh a quarrel against me.
8  And it was so, when Elisha the man of God had heard that the king of Israel had rent his clothes, that he sent to the king, saying, Wherefore hast thou rent thy clothes? let him come now to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel.
9  So Naaman came with his horses and with his chariot, and stood at the door of the house of Elisha.
10  And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying, Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean.
11  But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said, Behold, I thought, He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of the LORD his God, and strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper.
12  Are not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? may I not wash in them, and be clean? So he turned and went away in a rage.
13  And his servants came near, and spake unto him, and said, My father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean?
14  Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean."  (II Kings 5:1-14)

​Naaman went back to Elisha and said, "Behold, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel: now therefore, I pray thee, take a blessing of thy servant."  (5:15)  Elisha refused to take his gift.  Naaman asked for some dirt so he could worship the Lord.  Gahazi, the servant of Elisha, ran after the Syrian and told Naaman that two young sons of the prophets came and he asked for a talent of silver and two changes of garments.  And Naaman gave him two talents of silver and the clothes.  In the end of the chapter, Gehazi lied to Elisha and told him, "Thy servant went no whither" and he became a leper.  Chapter 6 continues with more miracles of Elisha.  The sons of the prophets needed a larger place to live and as they were cutting down trees, an axe head fell into the Jordan.  The man was upset because it was borrowed.  Elisha cut down a stick and threw it into the water "and the iron did swim."  He reached out and got it.  In the next story the king of Syria warred against Israel and talked with his servants about where they would make camp.  Elisha told the king of Israel to beware of that place because the Syrians were there.  

"10  And the king of Israel sent to the place which the man of God told him and warned him of, and saved himself there, not once nor twice.
11  Therefore the heart of the king of Syria was sore troubled for this thing; and he called his servants, and said unto them, Will ye not shew me which of us is for the king of Israel?
12  And one of his servants said, None, my lord, O king: but Elisha, the prophet that is in Israel, telleth the king of Israel the words that thou speakest in thy bedchamber."  (6:10-12)

So the king of Syria sent spies to find Elisha and they told him that he was in Dothan.  He sent horses and chariots by night and surrounded the city.

"15  And when the servant of the man of God was risen early, and gone forth, behold, an host compassed the city both with horses and chariots. And his servant said unto him, Alas, my master! how shall we do?
16  And he answered, Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be with them.
17  And Elisha prayed, and said, LORD, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha.
18  And when they came down to him, Elisha prayed unto the LORD, and said, Smite this people, I pray thee, with blindness. And he smote them with blindness according to the word of Elisha.
19  And Elisha said unto them, This is not the way, neither is this the city: follow me, and I will bring you to the man whom ye seek. But he led them to Samaria.
20  And it came to pass, when they were come into Samaria, that Elisha said, LORD, open the eyes of these men, that they may see. And the LORD opened their eyes, and they saw; and, behold, they were in the midst of Samaria."  (6:15-20)

The king of Israel asked Elisha if he should smite them but Elisha told him to feed them and send them back to Syria.  In verse 24 Benhadad the king of Syria besieged Samaria and there was a great famine in the city.  The king of Israel blamed Elisha, and sent a messenger to get him.  This chapter ends in a cliff hanger... what will happen in Chapter 7?

​April 25 - II Kings 7 - 8

​Life Lesson... May we pray that the Lord will open our ears that we might hear.  As the Lord opened the eyes of Elisha's servant to see the host of the Lord, He will open the ears of the Syrians and they will hear the host of the Lord.

"1  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.
2  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.
3  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?
4  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.
5  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.
6  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.
7  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.
8  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.
9  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.
10  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.
11  And he called the porters; and they told it to the king's house within."  (II Kings 7:1-11)

​The king thought it was a trick to lure them out of the city, so he sent two chariot horses after the Syrians and all the way to Jordan they saw garments and vessels which the Syrians had cast away in their haste.  They returned and told the king.  

"16  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.
17  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.
18  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:
19  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.
20  And so it fell out unto him: for the people trode upon him in the gate, and he died."  (7:16-20)

As Chapter 8 begins we see an example of the Lord's providence.

"1  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.
2  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.
3  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.
4  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.
5  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.
6  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."  (II Kings 8:1-6)

​Benhadad, the king of Syria, was sick and he told Hazael to take a present to Elisha and ask him if he would recover from his disease.  He took forty camels' burdens in his present to Elisha.  

"10  And Elisha said unto him, Go, say unto him, Thou mayest certainly recover: howbeit the LORD hath shewed me that he shall surely die.
11  And he settled his countenance stedfastly, until he was ashamed: and the man of God wept.
12  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.
13  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.
14  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.
15  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."  (8:10-15)

Sometimes the names can be confusing.  "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"  (8:16). In verses 21, 23, and 24, Jehoram the king of Judah is spelled "Joram."  "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."  (8:18-19)  He reigned 8 years, and he died and Ahaziah his son reigned in his stead. Ahaziah reigned one year in Jerusalem.  He mother was Athaliah, the daughter of Omri the king of Israel, and as he was son in law to Ahab, he walked in the way of the house of Ahab and did evil in the sight of the Lord. He was wounded in battle by Hazael king of Syria.

April 26 - II Kings 9 - 10

​In Chapter 9 Elisha sent one of the children of the prophets to take a box of oil and go to Ramothgilead and anoint Jehu, the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi, king over Israel.  He told him to smite the house of Ahab to avenge the blood of the prophets and the blood of the servants of the Lord at the hand of Jezebel.  And he repeated the prophecy of Elijah that the dogs would eat Jezebel in Jezreel, and he opened the door and fled.  When Jehu came out of the room someone asked him, "Wherefore came this mad fellow to thee?"  Jehu told them that the Lord had anointed him king over Israel.  Then they took off their garments and put them under him on the top of the stairs, and blew with trumpets, saying, "Jehu is king."  King Joram had returned from the battle against Syria to Jezreel to heal from his wounds.  When the watchman in the tower saw Jehu coming he told the king, and Joram sent a horseman to ask him, "Is it peace?"  Jehu answered, "What hast thou to do with peace?  Turn thee behind me."  The watchman reported that the messenger came to them, but didn't come back.  So another messenger was sent, and he also didn't return.  

"20  And the watchman told, saying, He came even unto them, and cometh not again: and the driving is like the driving of Jehu the son of Nimshi; for he driveth furiously.
21  And Joram said, Make ready. And his chariot was made ready. And Joram king of Israel and Ahaziah king of Judah went out, each in his chariot, and they went out against Jehu, and met him in the portion of Naboth the Jezreelite.
22  And it came to pass, when Joram saw Jehu, that he said, Is it peace, Jehu? And he answered, What peace, so long as the whoredoms of thy mother Jezebel and her witchcrafts are so many?
23  And Joram turned his hands, and fled, and said to Ahaziah, There is treachery, O Ahaziah."  (II Kings 9:20-23)

Jehu shot Joram (Jehoram) with his bow and arrow, and told his captain to cast his body in the field that had belonged to Naboth before King Ahab, his father, had taken it.  They also killed Ahaziah the king of Judah.  

"30  And when Jehu was come to Jezreel, Jezebel heard of it; and she painted her face, and tired her head, and looked out at a window.
31  And as Jehu entered in at the gate, she said, Had Zimri peace, who slew his master?
32  And he lifted up his face to the window, and said, Who is on my side? who? And there looked out to him two or three eunuchs.
33  And he said, Throw her down. So they threw her down: and some of her blood was sprinkled on the wall, and on the horses: and he trode her under foot."  (9:30-33)

They went in to eat and drink and then he sent to have her buried but the dogs had eaten most of her as Elijah prophesied in I Kings 21:23.  In Chapter 10 Jehu wrote letters to those that brought up Ahab's 70 sons and told them to choose the best one and set him on the throne and fight for his house.  They were afraid of Jehu because he had already killed two kings.  The servants sent to Jehu saying they would do what he wanted them to do.  Jehu told them to kill the 70 sons of Ahab and send their heads in baskets to Jehu, and they did.

"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."  (II Kings 10:9-11)

After that, Jehu had his men kill 42 men of the brethren of Ahaziah.  He then went to Samaria and slew all that remained of Ahab, according to the saying of Elijah.  Next, he announced that Ahab had served Baal a little, but he would serve him a lot.  He proclaimed a solemn assembly for Baal and called all the prophets of Baal and his servants, and his priests to come.  He gave them all vestments and told them to search and make sure no servants of the Lord were in the house of Baal.  When they went in to offer sacrifices he appointed 80 men to guard the doors without so that none could escape, and his men went in and slew all the Baal worshipers.  They brought all the images of Baal and burned them and Jehu destroyed Baal out of Israel.  We have seen in our study that some of the kings of Judah have followed the Lord and some have been evil.  But, Jehu is the only king of Israel, since the kingdom was divided who somewhat followed the Lord.  If only he had continued to follow the Lord...

​"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.
32  In those days the LORD began to cut Israel short: and Hazael smote them in all the coasts of Israel;"  (10:29-32)

​Jehu reigned over Israel in Samaria 28 years, and he died and his son Jehoahaz reigned in his stead.

​April 27 - II Kings 11 - 13

​Did you know... that when a dead man was cast into the sepulchre of Elisha and his bones touched the bones of the prophet the man revived and stood up on his feet?

In Chapter 11 we see a power hungry queen who was so wicked, she killed her own grandchildren.

"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."  (II Kings 11:1-4)

​Jehoiada the priest divided the guards into groups and told them to keep watch of the house of the Lord about the king.  He told them that if anyone came "within the ranges, let him be slain."  With the guard standing round about they put the crown upon his head and gave him the testimony,  and made Joash king.  They anointed him and clapped their hands and said, "God save the king."  All of the people of the land rejoiced and blew trumpets, but Athaliah rent her clothes and cried, "Treason, Treason."  Jehoiada commanded the captains of the host to take her away from the house of the Lord and have her slain.  "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."  (11:17)  The young king began to reign when he was 7 years old, and reigned 40 years in Jerusalem.  In 11:21 and in Chapter 12, the spelling changes to Jehoash.  "And Jehoash did that which was right in the sight of the LORD all his days wherein Jehoiada the priest instructed him."  (12:2)  Jehoash told the priests that all the money that came into the house of the Lord had to be used to make repairs.  "For the sons of Athaliah, that wicked woman, had broken up the house of God; and also all the dedicated things of the house of the LORD did they bestow upon Baalim."  (II Chronicles 24:7)  But, in the 23rd year of the king the repairs had not been done.  So Jehoiada the priest took a box and bored a hole in the top for the people to put the money in.  When the box would get filled, they would take the money and put it into bags.  They gave the money to the carpenters and builders that worked on the house of the Lord.  It also went to masons, and hewers of stone, and to buy timber that was needed for the repairs.  Hazael, king of Syria, planned to fight against Jerusalem, so Johoash took all the hallowed things and gold that was found in the treasures of the house of the Lord, and in the king's house and sent it to Hazael and he went away from Jerusalem.  The end of the chapter tells us that the servants killed him and his son Amaziah reigned.  This would be a good place to read II Chronicles 24.  From the book of Chronicles we find out that after Jehoiada the priest died the princes of Judah convinced Joash to leave the house of the Lord God and serve idols.  "And the Spirit of God came upon Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest, which stood above the people, and said unto them, Thus saith God, Why transgress ye the commandments of the LORD, that ye cannot prosper? because ye have forsaken the LORD, he hath also forsaken you.  And they conspired against him, and stoned him with stones at the commandment of the king in the court of the house of the LORD."  (II Chronicles 24:20-21)  The army of Syria fought against them.  "And when they were departed from him, (for they left him in great diseases,) his own servants conspired against him for the blood of the sons of Jehoiada the priest, and slew him on his bed, and he died: and they buried him in the city of David, but they buried him not in the sepulchres of the kings."  (II Chronicles 24:25)

​Chapter 13 begins with Jehoahaz the son of Jehu, king over Israel.  He reigned 17 years and did evil in the sight of the Lord. The Lord delivered him into the hands of Hazael king of Syria and Benhadad the son of Hazael all their days.  Jehoahaz sought the Lord and the Lord delivered them, but they did not depart from their sin.  "Neither did he leave of the people to Jehoahaz but fifty horsemen, and ten chariots, and ten thousand footmen; for the king of Syria had destroyed them, and had made them like the dust by threshing."  (II Kings 13:7)  After Jehoahaz died, Joash, also spelled as Jehoash, his son reigned over Israel and also did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord.  

"14  Now Elisha was fallen sick of his sickness whereof he died. And Joash the king of Israel came down unto him, and wept over his face, and said, O my father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof.
15  And Elisha said unto him, Take bow and arrows. And he took unto him bow and arrows.
16  And he said to the king of Israel, Put thine hand upon the bow. And he put his hand upon it: and Elisha put his hands upon the king's hands.
17  And he said, Open the window eastward. And he opened it. Then Elisha said, Shoot. And he shot. And he said, The arrow of the LORD'S deliverance, and the arrow of deliverance from Syria: for thou shalt smite the Syrians in Aphek, till thou have consumed them.
18  And he said, Take the arrows. And he took them. And he said unto the king of Israel, Smite upon the ground. And he smote thrice, and stayed.
19  And the man of God was wroth with him, and said, Thou shouldest have smitten five or six times; then hadst thou smitten Syria till thou hadst consumed it: whereas now thou shalt smite Syria but thrice.
20  And Elisha died, and they buried him. And the bands of the Moabites invaded the land at the coming in of the year.
21  And it came to pass, as they were burying a man, that, behold, they spied a band of men; and they cast the man into the sepulchre of Elisha: and when the man was let down, and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived, and stood up on his feet.
22  But Hazael king of Syria oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz.
23  And the LORD was gracious unto them, and had compassion on them, and had respect unto them, because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and would not destroy them, neither cast he them from his presence as yet.
24  So Hazael king of Syria died; and Benhadad his son reigned in his stead.
25  And Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz took again out of the hand of Benhadad the son of Hazael the cities, which he had taken out of the hand of Jehoahaz his father by war. Three times did Joash beat him, and recovered the cities of Israel."  (II Kings 13:14-25)

​April 28 - II Kings 14 - 15

Life Lesson... Kings and leaders will come and go, but the Lord our God is always on His throne!

"1  In the second year of Joash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel reigned Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah.
2  He was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and reigned twenty and nine years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem.
3  And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, yet not like David his father: he did according to all things as Joash his father did."  (II Kings 14:1-3)

As soon as the kingdom was confirmed in his hand, he slew the servants that killed his father.  He slew 10,000 in Edom in the valley of salt and took Selah by war, and called it Joktheel. 

"8  Then Amaziah sent messengers to Jehoash, the son of Jehoahaz son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, Come, let us look one another in the face.
9  And Jehoash the king of Israel sent to Amaziah king of Judah, saying, The thistle that was in Lebanon sent to the cedar that was in Lebanon, saying, Give thy daughter to my son to wife: and there passed by a wild beast that was in Lebanon, and trode down the thistle.
10  Thou hast indeed smitten Edom, and thine heart hath lifted thee up: glory of this, and tarry at home: for why shouldest thou meddle to thy hurt, that thou shouldest fall, even thou, and Judah with thee?
11  But Amaziah would not hear. Therefore Jehoash king of Israel went up; and he and Amaziah king of Judah looked one another in the face at Bethshemesh, which belongeth to Judah.
12  And Judah was put to the worse before Israel; and they fled every man to their tents.
13  And Jehoash king of Israel took Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Jehoash the son of Ahaziah, at Bethshemesh, and came to Jerusalem, and brake down the wall of Jerusalem from the gate of Ephraim unto the corner gate, four hundred cubits.
14  And he took all the gold and silver, and all the vessels that were found in the house of the LORD, and in the treasures of the king's house, and hostages, and returned to Samaria."  (14:8-14)

After Jehoash died, his son Jeroboam reigned over Israel.  In Judah, a conspiracy was made against King Amaziah and he fled to Lachish, but they sent after him and brought him on horses and he was buried in Jerusalem.  The people of Judah took Azariah (also known as Uzziah), who was 16 years old and made him king of Judah.  Verse 23 switches back to Jeroboam king of Israel and we see that Jonah is mentioned in verse 25.  

"25  He restored the coast of Israel from the entering of Hamath unto the sea of the plain, according to the word of the LORD God of Israel, which he spake by the hand of his servant Jonah, the son of Amittai, the prophet, which was of Gathhepher.
26  For the LORD saw the affliction of Israel, that it was very bitter: for there was not any shut up, nor any left, nor any helper for Israel.
27  And the LORD said not that he would blot out the name of Israel from under heaven: but he saved them by the hand of Jeroboam the son of Joash."  (14:25-27)  

​Jeroboam died and Zachariah his son reigned in his stead.  Chapter 15 begins with King Azariah, who did right in the sight of the Lord.  Verse 3 tells us that the Lord smote the king and made him a leper until he died.  We find the explanation in II Chronicles.  The spelling is changed to Uzziah.

"16  But when he was strong, his heart was lifted up to his destruction: for he transgressed against the LORD his God, and went into the temple of the LORD to burn incense upon the altar of incense.
17  And Azariah the priest went in after him, and with him fourscore priests of the LORD, that were valiant men:
18  And they withstood Uzziah the king, and said unto him, It appertaineth not unto thee, Uzziah, to burn incense unto the LORD, but to the priests the sons of Aaron, that are consecrated to burn incense: go out of the sanctuary; for thou hast trespassed; neither shall it be for thine honour from the LORD God.
19  Then Uzziah was wroth, and had a censer in his hand to burn incense: and while he was wroth with the priests, the leprosy even rose up in his forehead before the priests in the house of the LORD, from beside the incense altar.
20  And Azariah the chief priest, and all the priests, looked upon him, and, behold, he was leprous in his forehead, and they thrust him out from thence; yea, himself hasted also to go out, because the LORD had smitten him."  (II Chronicles 26:16-20)

​The Bible verse that always comes to my mind when I read about Uzziah is Isaiah 6:1, "In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple."  Kings and leaders will come and go, but our Lord is always on His throne!

After King Azariah, also called Uzziah, his son Jotham reigned.  Zachariah the son of Jeroboam reigned over Israel only 6 months.  Shallum the son of Jabesh slew him and reigned in his stead.  "This was the word of the LORD which he spake unto Jehu, saying, Thy sons shall sit on the throne of Israel unto the fourth generation. And so it came to pass."  (15:12)  Shallum reigned only a month and he was killed by Menahem, who reigned 10 years in Israel.  Pul, the king of Assyria, came against him and he gave him 1,000 talents of silver that his hand might be with him.  Menahem took the money from the men of Israel to give to Pul and he turned back and stayed not in the land.  After his death, Pekahiah his son reigned in his stead, for 2 years.  He also did evil in the sight of the Lord.  Pekah, the son of Remaliah, a captain of his, killed him in the palace and reigned 20 years.  "In the days of Pekah king of Israel came Tiglathpileser king of Assyria, and took Ijon, and Abelbethmaachah, and Janoah, and Kedesh, and Hazor, and Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali, and carried them captive to Assyria.  And Hoshea the son of Elah made a conspiracy against Pekah the son of Remaliah, and smote him, and slew him, and reigned in his stead, in the twentieth year of Jotham the son of Uzziah."  (II Kings 15:29-30)  After the death of Uzziah, his son Jotham began to reign.  He was 25 years old and reigned 16 years in Jerusalem.  "And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD: he did according to all that his father Uzziah had done."  (15:34)  When he died Ahaz his son reigned in his stead.

April  29 - II Kings 16 - 18

​Chapter 16 begins with the reign of Ahaz, the son of Jotham king of Judah.  He was 20 years old and reigned 16 years.  He walked in the way of the kings of Israel and made his son to pass through the fire.  Rezin, king of Syria and Pekah, son of Remaliah king of Israel went against Jerusalem but could not overcome Ahaz.  Ahaz took the silver and gold in the house of the Lord and his treasures and paid Tiglathpileser, king of Assyria to fight against Syria and Israel.  We read in II Chronicles 28:20-21,   "And Tilgathpilneser king of Assyria came unto him, and distressed him, but strengthened him not.  For Ahaz took away a portion out of the house of the LORD, and out of the house of the king, and of the princes, and gave it unto the king of Assyria: but he helped him not."  King Ahaz saw an altar in Damascus and told Urijah the priest to build an altar like it and to offer the burnt offerings on it.  He also took the brasen sea off the oxen that King Solomon had made.  After he died, his son Hezekiah reigned over Judah.  In Chapter 17 Hoshea the son of Elah reigned in Samaria over Israel 9 years and did evil in the sight of the Lord.  

"3  Against him came up Shalmaneser king of Assyria; and Hoshea became his servant, and gave him presents.
4  And the king of Assyria found conspiracy in Hoshea: for he had sent messengers to So king of Egypt, and brought no present to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year: therefore the king of Assyria shut him up, and bound him in prison.
5  Then the king of Assyria came up throughout all the land, and went up to Samaria, and besieged it three years.
6  In the ninth year of Hoshea the king of Assyria took Samaria, and carried Israel away into Assyria...
7  For so it was, that the children of Israel had sinned against the LORD their God, which had brought them up out of the land of Egypt, from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other gods,
9  And the children of Israel did secretly those things that were not right against the LORD their God, and they built them high places in all their cities, from the tower of the watchmen to the fenced city.
10  And they set them up images and groves in every high hill, and under every green tree:
11  And there they burnt incense in all the high places, as did the heathen whom the LORD carried away before them; and wrought wicked things to provoke the LORD to anger:
12  For they served idols, whereof the LORD had said unto them, Ye shall not do this thing.
13  Yet the LORD testified against Israel, and against Judah, by all the prophets, and by all the seers, saying, Turn ye from your evil ways, and keep my commandments and my statutes, according to all the law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by my servants the prophets.
14  Notwithstanding they would not hear, but hardened their necks, like to the neck of their fathers, that did not believe in the LORD their God.
15  And they rejected his statutes, and his covenant that he made with their fathers, and his testimonies which he testified against them; and they followed vanity, and became vain, and went after the heathen that were round about them, concerning whom the LORD had charged them, that they should not do like them.
16  And they left all the commandments of the LORD their God, and made them molten images, even two calves, and made a grove, and worshipped all the host of heaven, and served Baal.
17  And they caused their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire, and used divination and enchantments, and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger.
18  Therefore the LORD was very angry with Israel, and removed them out of his sight: there was none left but the tribe of Judah only.
19  Also Judah kept not the commandments of the LORD their God, but walked in the statutes of Israel which they made."  (A Portion of II Kings 17:3-19)

The king of Assyria brought men from Babylon, and other places and put them in Samaria.  They did not know how to serve the Lord God and He sent lions among them which killed some of them.  They reported to the king of Assyria that they didn't know how to serve the God of the land, so he sent one of the priests back to teach them how they should fear God.  So, they feared the Lord, and also served their own gods.  Chapter 18 tells us that Hezekiah the son of Ahaz was 25 years old and reigned 29 years in Jerusalem.  He did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord.

"4  He removed the high places, and brake the images, and cut down the groves, and brake in pieces the brasen serpent that Moses had made: for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to it: and he called it Nehushtan.
5  He trusted in the LORD God of Israel; so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor any that were before him.
6  For he clave to the LORD, and departed not from following him, but kept his commandments, which the LORD commanded Moses.
7  And the LORD was with him; and he prospered whithersoever he went forth: and he rebelled against the king of Assyria, and served him not.
8  He smote the Philistines, even unto Gaza, and the borders thereof, from the tower of the watchmen to the fenced city."  (18:4-8)

In the 14th year of his reign, Sennacherib king of Assyria went against all the fenced cities of Judah and took them.  Hezekiah gave him all the silver and cut the gold off the doors and pillars of the temple of the Lord and also gave it to the king of Assyria.  He sent Tartan, Rabsaris, and Rabshakeh and a great host against Jerusalem. 

​"19  And Rabshakeh said unto them, Speak ye now to Hezekiah, Thus saith the great king, the king of Assyria, What confidence is this wherein thou trustest?
20  Thou sayest, (but they are but vain words,) I have counsel and strength for the war. Now on whom dost thou trust, that thou rebellest against me?"
22  But if ye say unto me, We trust in the LORD our God: is not that he, whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah hath taken away, and hath said to Judah and Jerusalem, Ye shall worship before this altar in Jerusalem?
23  Now therefore, I pray thee, give pledges to my lord the king of Assyria, and I will deliver thee two thousand horses, if thou be able on thy part to set riders upon them.
28  Then Rabshakeh stood and cried with a loud voice in the Jews' language, and spake, saying, Hear the word of the great king, the king of Assyria:
29  Thus saith the king, Let not Hezekiah deceive you: for he shall not be able to deliver you out of his hand:
30  Neither let Hezekiah make you trust in the LORD, saying, The LORD will surely deliver us, and this city shall not be delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria.
​36  But the people held their peace, and answered him not a word: for the king's commandment was, saying, Answer him not."  (A Portion of 18:19-36)

​April 30 - II Kings 19 - 21

Life Lesson... We can take our problems and spread them out before the Lord.  He hears our prayers, and He sees our tears, and He can save and deliver. 

"14  And Hezekiah received the letter of the hand of the messengers, and read it: and Hezekiah went up into the house of the LORD, and spread it before the LORD.
15  And Hezekiah prayed before the LORD, and said, O LORD God of Israel, which dwellest between the cherubims, thou art the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; thou hast made heaven and earth.
16  LORD, bow down thine ear, and hear: open, LORD, thine eyes, and see: and hear the words of Sennacherib, which hath sent him to reproach the living God.
17  Of a truth, LORD, the kings of Assyria have destroyed the nations and their lands,
18  And have cast their gods into the fire: for they were no gods, but the work of men's hands, wood and stone: therefore they have destroyed them.
19  Now therefore, O LORD our God, I beseech thee, save thou us out of his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou art the LORD God, even thou only."  (II Kings 19:14-19)

Isaiah told Hezekiah, "That which thou hast prayed to me against Sennacherib king of Assyria I have heard."  (19:20)  The prophet continued with God's message against the king of Assyria.  

"27  But I know thy abode, and thy going out, and thy coming in, and thy rage against me.
28  Because thy rage against me and thy tumult is come up into mine ears, therefore I will put my hook in thy nose, and my bridle in thy lips, and I will turn thee back by the way by which thou camest.
29  And this shall be a sign unto thee, Ye shall eat this year such things as grow of themselves, and in the second year that which springeth of the same; and in the third year sow ye, and reap, and plant vineyards, and eat the fruits thereof.
30  And the remnant that is escaped of the house of Judah shall yet again take root downward, and bear fruit upward.
31  For out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and they that escape out of mount Zion: the zeal of the LORD of hosts shall do this.
32  Therefore thus saith the LORD concerning the king of Assyria, He shall not come into this city, nor shoot an arrow there, nor come before it with shield, nor cast a bank against it.
33  By the way that he came, by the same shall he return, and shall not come into this city, saith the LORD.
34  For I will defend this city, to save it, for mine own sake, and for my servant David's sake.
35  And it came to pass that night, that the angel of the LORD went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore and five thousand: and when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses.
36  So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, and went and returned, and dwelt at Nineveh.
37  And it came to pass, as he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god, that Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons smote him with the sword: and they escaped into the land of Armenia. And Esarhaddon his son reigned in his stead."  (II Kings 19:27-37)

"1  In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And the prophet Isaiah the son of Amoz came to him, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Set thine house in order; for thou shalt die, and not live.
2  Then he turned his face to the wall, and prayed unto the LORD, saying,
3  I beseech thee, O LORD, remember now how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept sore.
4  And it came to pass, afore Isaiah was gone out into the middle court, that the word of the LORD came to him, saying,
5  Turn again, and tell Hezekiah the captain of my people, Thus saith the LORD, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will heal thee: on the third day thou shalt go up unto the house of the LORD.
6  And I will add unto thy days fifteen years; and I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria; and I will defend this city for mine own sake, and for my servant David's sake.
7  And Isaiah said, Take a lump of figs. And they took and laid it on the boil, and he recovered.
8  And Hezekiah said unto Isaiah, What shall be the sign that the LORD will heal me, and that I shall go up into the house of the LORD the third day?
9  And Isaiah said, This sign shalt thou have of the LORD, that the LORD will do the thing that he hath spoken: shall the shadow go forward ten degrees, or go back ten degrees?
10  And Hezekiah answered, It is a light thing for the shadow to go down ten degrees: nay, but let the shadow return backward ten degrees.
11  And Isaiah the prophet cried unto the LORD: and he brought the shadow ten degrees backward, by which it had gone down in the dial of Ahaz."  (20:1-11)

​Berodachbaladan, son of the king of Babylon sent letters and a present to King Hezekiah since he heard that he had been sick.  And Hezekiah showed them all of his precious things and treasures.  Then Isaiah the prophet told him that everything would be taken away to Babylon, and his sons would also be taken away.  "Then said Hezekiah unto Isaiah, Good is the word of the LORD which thou hast spoken. And he said, Is it not good, if peace and truth be in my days?"  (20:19)  (We will see a much different, humble attitude from King Josiah in chapters 22 and 23)  Hezekiah made a pool and a conduit and brought water into the city.  You can search online and see photos of Hezekiah's tunnel that connects the Gihon Spring with the Siloam Pool.  The inscription states that the men worked from the north and from the south and met in the middle.  Chapter 21 tells about the reign of Manasseh after the death of Hezekiah.  He began to reign when he was 12 years old, which puts his birth during the 15 years that were added to King Hezekiah.  He did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord.  He built up the high places of worship that his father had torn down.  He reared up altars for Baal and worshiped the host of heaven.  He made his son pass through the fire and used enchantments and dealt with familiar spirits and wizards, and wrought much wickedness in the sight of the Lord.  The Lord spoke through his prophets.  

"12  Therefore thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Behold, I am bringing such evil upon Jerusalem and Judah, that whosoever heareth of it, both his ears shall tingle.
13  And I will stretch over Jerusalem the line of Samaria, and the plummet of the house of Ahab: and I will wipe Jerusalem as a man wipeth a dish, wiping it, and turning it upside down.
14  And I will forsake the remnant of mine inheritance, and deliver them into the hand of their enemies; and they shall become a prey and a spoil to all their enemies;"  (21:12-14)

(The prophet Amos also spoke of a plumbline... "Thus he shewed me: and, behold, the Lord stood upon a wall made by a plumbline, with a plumbline in his hand.  And the LORD said unto me, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A plumbline. Then said the Lord, Behold, I will set a plumbline in the midst of my people Israel: I will not again pass by them any more:"  Amos 7:7-8)  II Kings 21:16 tells us that Manasseh "shed innocent blood very much, till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to another.."  After his death, his son Amon reigned.  He was 22 and reigned 2 years.  He also did evil in the sight of the Lord.  His servants killed him and the people of the land killed the servants that conspired against King Amon.  They made Josiah, his 8 year old son, king.

May 1 - II Kings 22 - 23

​Did you know... that during this time, Huldah the prophetess dwelt in Jerusalem in the college?

Chapter 22 begins with the reign of Josiah.  "And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, and walked in all the way of David his father, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left."  (II Kings 22:2)  In the 18th year of his reign he sent Shaphan the scribe to Hilkiah the high priest to use the silver that was gathered of the people to repair the temple.  Hilkiah found the book of the law and gave it to Shaphan.  The scribe took it to King Josiah and read it to him.  When Josiah heard the words of the law he rent his clothes. Notice how Josiah humbled himself before God, whereas King Hezekiah said, "Good is the word of the LORD which thou hast spoken. And he said, Is it not good, if peace and truth be in my days?" (20:19)

"13  Go ye, enquire of the LORD for me, and for the people, and for all Judah, concerning the words of this book that is found: for great is the wrath of the LORD that is kindled against us, because our fathers have not hearkened unto the words of this book, to do according unto all that which is written concerning us.
14  So Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam, and Achbor, and Shaphan, and Asahiah, went unto Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe; (now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the college;) and they communed with her.
15  And she said unto them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Tell the man that sent you to me,
16  Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will bring evil upon this place, and upon the inhabitants thereof, even all the words of the book which the king of Judah hath read:
17  Because they have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, that they might provoke me to anger with all the works of their hands; therefore my wrath shall be kindled against this place, and shall not be quenched.
18  But to the king of Judah which sent you to enquire of the LORD, thus shall ye say to him, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, As touching the words which thou hast heard;
19  Because thine heart was tender, and thou hast humbled thyself before the LORD, when thou heardest what I spake against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, that they should become a desolation and a curse, and hast rent thy clothes, and wept before me; I also have heard thee, saith the LORD.
20  Behold therefore, I will gather thee unto thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered into thy grave in peace; and thine eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring upon this place. And they brought the king word again."  (22:13-20)

​In Chapter 23 Josiah gathered the people of Judah and Jerusalem, "both small and great" and read the book of the covenant which was found.  "And the king stood by a pillar, and made a covenant before the LORD, to walk after the LORD, and to keep his commandments and his testimonies and his statutes with all their heart and all their soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people stood to the covenant."  (23:3)  He burned all the vessels that had been made for the false gods and put down the other evil practices in Jerusalem, including breaking down the house of the sodomites, and he defiled Topeth so that men could no longer offer their children as burnt sacrifices to Molech.  He also defiled the high places that King Solomon had made for false gods.  He fulfilled the prophecy found in I Kings 13:2.  "And he cried against the altar in the word of the LORD, and said, O altar, altar, thus saith the LORD; Behold, a child shall be born unto the house of David, Josiah by name; and upon thee shall he offer the priests of the high places that burn incense upon thee, and men's bones shall be burnt upon thee."

"16  And as Josiah turned himself, he spied the sepulchres that were there in the mount, and sent, and took the bones out of the sepulchres, and burned them upon the altar, and polluted it, according to the word of the LORD which the man of God proclaimed, who proclaimed these words.
17  Then he said, What title is that that I see? And the men of the city told him, It is the sepulchre of the man of God, which came from Judah, and proclaimed these things that thou hast done against the altar of Bethel.
18  And he said, Let him alone; let no man move his bones. So they let his bones alone, with the bones of the prophet that came out of Samaria.
19  And all the houses also of the high places that were in the cities of Samaria, which the kings of Israel had made to provoke the LORD to anger, Josiah took away, and did to them according to all the acts that he had done in Bethel.
20  And he slew all the priests of the high places that were there upon the altars, and burned men's bones upon them, and returned to Jerusalem."  (23:16-20)

Josiah commanded all the people to keep the passover.  "Surely there was not holden such a passover from the days of the judges that judged Israel, nor in all the days of the kings of Israel, nor of the kings of Judah;...  And like unto him was there no king before him, that turned to the LORD with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; neither after him arose there any like him. "  (23:22 & 25) Josiah was killed in battle against Pharaohnechoh the king of Egypt, and the people took Jehoahaz and made him king in his father's stead.  He was 23 and reigned 3 months, and did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord.  Pharaohnechoh took Jehoahaz and he died in Egypt, and made Eliakim the son of Josiah king, and changed his name to Jehoiakim.  Jehoiakim taxed the people of the land to pay the king of Egypt.  He was 25 and reigned 11 years, and he also did evil in the sight of the Lord. 

May 2 - II Kings 24 - 25

We have come to the last two chapters of II Kings, where we will see Judah carried away to Babylon, just as the ten tribes of Israel were carried away captive to Assyria.  Chapter 24 tells that different nations went against Judah to destroy it "according to the word of the Lord."  After Jehoiakim died, his son Jehoiachin reigned.  He was 18 and reigned 3 months, again doing evil in the sight of the Lord.  Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon besieged Jerusalem and carried away all the treasures and vessels of gold.  

​"14  And he carried away all Jerusalem, and all the princes, and all the mighty men of valour, even ten thousand captives, and all the craftsmen and smiths: none remained, save the poorest sort of the people of the land.
15  And he carried away Jehoiachin to Babylon, and the king's mother, and the king's wives, and his officers, and the mighty of the land, those carried he into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon.
16  And all the men of might, even seven thousand, and craftsmen and smiths a thousand, all that were strong and apt for war, even them the king of Babylon brought captive to Babylon."  (24:14-16)

Nebuchadnezzar made Mattaniah, his father's brother, king and changed his name to Zedekiah.  He was 21 years old and reigned 11 years.  He also was an evil king.  Chapter 25 begins...

"1  And it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came, he, and all his host, against Jerusalem, and pitched against it; and they built forts against it round about.
2  And the city was besieged unto the eleventh year of king Zedekiah.
3  And on the ninth day of the fourth month the famine prevailed in the city, and there was no bread for the people of the land.
4  And the city was broken up, and all the men of war fled by night by the way of the gate between two walls, which is by the king's garden: (now the Chaldees were against the city round about:) and the king went the way toward the plain.
5  And the army of the Chaldees pursued after the king, and overtook him in the plains of Jericho: and all his army were scattered from him.
6  So they took the king, and brought him up to the king of Babylon to Riblah; and they gave judgment upon him.
7  And they slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him with fetters of brass, and carried him to Babylon."

They blinded him after killing his children and that probably stayed in his mind the rest of his life, being the last thing he ever saw.  When we come to the book of Jeremiah we will see how the Lord tried to warn Zedekiah, through the words of the prophet, not to flee from Nebuchadnezzar but serve him.  But the king would not listen. 

"11  But the nations that bring their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him, those will I let remain still in their own land, saith the LORD; and they shall till it, and dwell therein.
12  I spake also to Zedekiah king of Judah according to all these words, saying, Bring your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people, and live.
13  Why will ye die, thou and thy people, by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, as the LORD hath spoken against the nation that will not serve the king of Babylon?"  (Jeremiah 27:11-13)

​"8  And in the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month, which is the nineteenth year of king Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, came Nebuzaradan, captain of the guard, a servant of the king of Babylon, unto Jerusalem:
9  And he burnt the house of the LORD, and the king's house, and all the houses of Jerusalem, and every great man's house burnt he with fire.
10  And all the army of the Chaldees, that were with the captain of the guard, brake down the walls of Jerusalem round about.
11  Now the rest of the people that were left in the city, and the fugitives that fell away to the king of Babylon, with the remnant of the multitude, did Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carry away.
12  But the captain of the guard left of the poor of the land to be vinedressers and husbandmen.
13  And the pillars of brass that were in the house of the LORD, and the bases, and the brasen sea that was in the house of the LORD, did the Chaldees break in pieces, and carried the brass of them to Babylon.
14  And the pots, and the shovels, and the snuffers, and the spoons, and all the vessels of brass wherewith they ministered, took they away.
15  And the firepans, and the bowls, and such things as were of gold, in gold, and of silver, in silver, the captain of the guard took away.
16  The two pillars, one sea, and the bases which Solomon had made for the house of the LORD; the brass of all these vessels was without weight.
17  The height of the one pillar was eighteen cubits, and the chapiter upon it was brass: and the height of the chapiter three cubits; and the wreathen work, and pomegranates upon the chapiter round about, all of brass: and like unto these had the second pillar with wreathen work.
18  And the captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief priest, and Zephaniah the second priest, and the three keepers of the door:
19  And out of the city he took an officer that was set over the men of war, and five men of them that were in the king's presence, which were found in the city, and the principal scribe of the host, which mustered the people of the land, and threescore men of the people of the land that were found in the city:
20  And Nebuzaradan captain of the guard took these, and brought them to the king of Babylon to Riblah:
21  And the king of Babylon smote them, and slew them at Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah was carried away out of their land."  (II Kings 25:8-21)

Gedaliah was made governor over the land.  "And Gedaliah sware to them, and to their men, and said unto them, Fear not to be the servants of the Chaldees: dwell in the land, and serve the king of Babylon; and it shall be well with you."  (25:24)  Here are the closing verses of these stories of the kings of Israel and Judah.

"25  But it came to pass in the seventh month, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, of the seed royal, came, and ten men with him, and smote Gedaliah, that he died, and the Jews and the Chaldees that were with him at Mizpah.
26  And all the people, both small and great, and the captains of the armies, arose, and came to Egypt: for they were afraid of the Chaldees.
27  And it came to pass in the seven and thirtieth year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the seven and twentieth day of the month, that Evilmerodach king of Babylon in the year that he began to reign did lift up the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah out of prison;
28  And he spake kindly to him, and set his throne above the throne of the kings that were with him in Babylon;
29  And changed his prison garments: and he did eat bread continually before him all the days of his life.
30  And his allowance was a continual allowance given him of the king, a daily rate for every day, all the days of his life."  (25:25-30)