Note: For clarity the Kings of Israel are coded in Orange and Kings of Judah are coded in Blue.
2 Kings 15-17 – Israel Exiled
Azariah (AKA Uzziah) was 16 when he became king of Judah and reigned for 52 years. In the last years of his life the Lord gave him leprosy and when he died his son, Jotham ruled Judah. They both did what was right in the eyes of the Lord. They obeyed God, but neglected to remove the idolatrous shrines and the people continued to offer sacrifices and burn incense there.
Then Jotham’s son, Ahaz became king of Judah and reigned for 16 years. He did not do what was right in the eyes of the Lord. He led Judah in acts of idolatry and rejected God. God allowed attacks on Judah by Syria and Israel. Ahaz sacrificed his own children, which was an abomination in God’s sight. God brought suffering to Judah to provide an opportunity for Judah to repent.
There was a series of five kings who reigned over Israel - Zechariah, Shallum, Menahem, Pekahiah and Pekah ruled. They all did evil and continued with idolatry in Israel. King Hosea was the last king of Israel.
God allowed the king of Assyria to capture much of the northern part of the kingdom of Israel, because they had sinned against the Lord. They were rebellious and refused to listen to the Lord’s prophets and continued to worship idols. Because of their stubbornness the Lord was done with them. He expelled them from the land by the Assyrian king. God was compassionate and delayed His judgment, but His promise stood firm. Just as God had promised, Assyria defeated Israel and took them into exile.
Even Judah did not keep the commands of the Lord. They followed the same practices of Israel so the Lord rejected them. But Judah was more faithful to God than the Northern Kingdom of Israel. Judah saw what had happened to Israel, yet they ignored the lessons and imitated the sins of Israel.
The king of Assyria brought in different people to live in the land in place of the children of Israel. These people were mega sinners and didn’t fear the Lord so the Lord sent lions in to grab their attention. God used the lions to convert them. They were so fearful that a priest was brought in to teach the people what the Lord required. They gave some respect to the God of Israel, because they didn’t want to be eaten by lions. They still served their own gods and picked and chose what religious beliefs that pleased them.
It's like that today. There are many religions. Romans 1:19-20 gives us an explanation for why there are so any religions. The truth of God is seen and known by every human because God has made it so. Instead of accepting the truth about God and submitting to it, many reject it and seek their own way to understand God. People pick and choose what pleases them. They follow meaningless religious practices because it makes them feel good about themselves.
Even if they read their Bible, some choose to believe only the parts of it. They let their feelings, desires and emotions override what Scripture says. They are stiffed-necked and stubborn just like Israel. They ignore and reject the one true Sovereign God and are following themselves. Believing in our Creator God and all of the Bible means that you have put your trust in a message that is greater than you.
Principle: God’s allows difficulties in life so we can recognize our lack of control and the need to depend on Him.
2 Kings 18-20 – King Hezekiah
Ahaz’s son, Hezekiah became king of Judah. He reigned for 29 years and was one of the better kings. He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord. There was none like him among all the kings of Judah, either before him or after him. The first thing he did was to remove the high places where idols were worshipped, smashed the sacred stones and cut down the Asherah poles. He led Judah in the worship and honoring of God. God worked through him to preserve the royal line of King David.
Hezekiah stopped paying a tribute to King Sennacherib of Assyria so Sennacherib decided to invade Judah. Then Hezekiah paid the tribute and Sennacherib decided against going to war. Hezekiah sent silver and gold, but Sennacherib wanted more. He demanded Hezekiah bow down to him. The people were threatened and scared because of what the Assyria had done to other nations. Judah listened but remained silent. King Hezekiah and the people went to the Lord in prayer.
God answered his prayer through the prophet Isaiah. Isaiah foretold that Sennacherib would be defeated and Judah would have victory. Hezekiah fortified Jerusalem and Isaiah’s words came true. That night an angel of the Lord came out and put to death 185,000 Assyrian soldiers. Sennacherib fled back to Assyria.
Hezekiah became ill and Isaiah went to him with a message from the Lord to set his house in order because he was about to die. Once again Hezekiah went to the Lord and prayed for healing. The Lord listened and immediately had Isaiah return and report that the Lord heard his petition and had added 15 years to his life.
When the Babylonian king heard of Hezekiah illness, he sent his son and messengers with gifts. Hezekiah was happy about this and showed them all the things and the people within his kingdom. The Lord sent Isaiah to Hezekiah again, this time he condemned his behavior. He told him that everything and everyone he had showed to Babylon would be carried off into captivity in the future. However, there was peace during Hezekiah’s lifetime. When Hezekiah died, his son Manasseh became king.
Principle: God alone is the Lord and He is the one that determines our destiny.
Lessons from 2 Kings 20:
Key verse: “For the Lord your God is gracious and compassionate. He will not turn his face from you if you return to him.” – 2 Chronicles 30:9b
This week’s attribute of God is He is Jealous. He is jealous when His children devote their time and attention to unrighteous things. He wants us to be devoted to Him and Him alone. God deserves our worship. “Do not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.” - Exodus 34:14
Next time we will continue our study of Kingdom Divided - 2 Kings 21. Hope to see you here. – I encourage you to trust in Jesus.
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