This week, we shall continue to
study the book of 2 Kings in the Old Testament.
While the kings of Judah were not perfect, most of them at least earned their commendation that they “did what was right in the eyes of the Lord”. It was not so with Ahaz:
(1) Who were the two kings that preceded Ahaz? (15:1, 32)
(2) What kind of spiritual legacy was left by them to Ahaz?
(3) Whom then could Ahaz blame for his turning away from the Lord?
(4) In describing his wickedness, the Bible says, “He followed the ways of the kings of Israel” (16:3). Why does the Bible drag the kings of Israel into Ahaz’s sins?
(5) How thorough did Ahaz follow the ways of the kings of Israel?
(6) 2 Chronicles 28 and Isaiah 7 contain more detailed accounts of the joint attack by Rezin and Pekah, and 2 Chronicles 28:5 points out that this attack was a punishment by God for the sins of Ahaz:
a. Were the joint forces of Rezin and Pekah able to overpower Judah? (v. 5)
b. Why then did Ahaz turn to Tiglath-Pileser, the Assyrian king for help?
c. What price did he pay for seeking help from the Assyrian king?
d. Given his wickedness, did the Lord seek to intervene and help him? (Isa. 7:1-14)
e. Why didn’t Ahaz listen?
(7) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
“Ahaz sent messengers to say to Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria, ‘I am your servant and vassal. Come up and save me out of the hand of the king of Aram and of the king of Israel, who are attacking me'.” (2 Ki. 16:7)
One wonders why King Ahaz chose to seek help from the king of Assyria instead of from the Lord.
For one, he had the godly examples of both his father Jotham and his grandfather Uzziah to follow. Both had helped Judah become very strong and powerful and in the case of his father, the Bible clearly states that the reason for the growth of his power was “because he walked steadfastly before the Lord” (2 Chr. 27:6).
Furthermore, Ahaz had the good fortune of having the prophet Isaiah serving the Lord in his time. The Lord even used this occasion of the attack by Rezin and Pekah to announce through Isaiah the most wonderful prophecy of the birth of Jesus Christ, “Emmanuel” (Isa. 7:14), as a sign of His promise to deliver him from his enemies.
Also, his situation was not as dire as he thought. As much as the joint force of Aram and Israel had inflicted Judah with losses, the Bible points out that “they could not overpower him” (2 Ki.16:5; Isa. 7:1).
Therefore, there was no reason for Ahaz not to trust the Lord. However, as is always the case, the exercise of faith in God is always an exercise in complete obedience, in trusting in the unseen and its result is not necessarily instant. On the other hand, the help of another human ruler or authority can always be gotten by bribes, the power of which is visible, and the result is often far more instant.
But the help of men is always temporal and is not dependable, but the help that comes from the Lord is not only dependable and lasting, but it ushers us into a greater and deeper knowledge of His love.
(1) What was the result of Ahaz’s alliance (or submission) to Assyria? (16:9)
(2) How then would Ahaz look upon his decision to depend on Assyria rather than on God as the prophet Isaiah had admonished him? (Isaiah 7:4ff)
(3) Why did Ahaz desire to build a replica of the altar in Damascus? (see 2 Chr. 28:23)
(4) What did he do when he returned from Damascus and what did his action indicate? (2 Ki. 16:12-14)
(5) Ahaz intended to use both the new altar (modelled after the one used to worship the gods of Aram) and the old altar (the one used to worship the Lord):
a. What was each of the altars used for? (16:15-16)
b. Do you think he intended to use the latter to enquire of the Lord? (see 2 Chr. 28:24-25)
(6) The Bible does not give us the reason why Ahaz cut off the side panels, removed the basins from the movable stand and removed also the Sea from the supporting bronze bulls (see 1 Kings 7:23ff and the diagram of 1 Kings 6:1-38, Year 4 Week 19 Day 127 of this Devotional Guide). Consider the following questions:
a. What did his action signify?
b. Why did he also take away the Sabbath canopy used for his own entry outside the temple of the Lord? (16:18)
(7) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
“Ahaz gathered together the furnishings from the temple of God and cut them in pieces. He shut the doors of the Lord’s temple and set up altars at every street corner in Jerusalem.” (2 Chr. 28:24)
Yesterday, we were reflecting on why Ahaz, who had the benefits of godly predecessors, the service of the prophet Isaiah and the promise of God to deliver him, would still trust in the help of men and not in God. Today, we read that as he was delivered by Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria, he decided to completely eradicate the worship of the Lord from Judah!
It started with the replacing of Solomon’s altar in the Lord's temple with a replica of the altar in Damascus — the altar for the worship of the gods of Aram; from then onward, all the regular sacrifices would be made on the new altar. Since 2 Chronicles 28:24 tells us that he later shut the doors of the Lord’s temple, these regular offerings made to the Lord did not last long. As far as the old altar which was being pushed aside was concerned, I do not think he had any intent to use it to enquire of the Lord at all — he knew the Lord would have nothing to do with him anyway!
The removing of the side panels, the basins and the Sea (2 Ki. 16:17) simply signified his total defiance against the Lord in not regarding anything within the temple as holy; and with the shutting of the temple’s doors and the setting up of altars at every street corner in Jerusalem to burn sacrifices to other gods (2 Chr. 28:25), he was determined to eradicate the worship of the Lord from Judah!
Fittingly, when he died, “he was not placed in the tombs of the kings of Israel” (2 Chr. 28:27), an important symbol of where he would spend his eternity — he was not in the company of David and other godly ancestors of his, because just as he has shut the doors of the temple, the Lord has shut the door of heaven to him!
Hoshea―Last King of Israel (see Note below)
(1) In what way(s) might Hoshea be less evil than the kings of Israel before him? (see 2 Chronicles 30 for possible answer(s), especially 30:10)
(2) In any case, why would God still put an end to the kingdom of Israel in the time of Hoshea, the less evil king?
(3) What did Hoshea do in an effort to rid of the control of Assyria? (17:3)
(4) What should he have done?
(5) Presumably Hoshea still put up a fight for three years. What was the final outcome of his effort? (17:5-6)
(6) The reigns of both Pekah and Hoshea marked the beginning of the phenomenon known as the “diaspora” which continues to these days among the people of Israel:
a. The word is first used in the Greek translation of the OT (Septuagint) in Deuteronomy 28:25 to foretell the diaspora (i.e. scattering) of the people: What was the reason given there for this scattering? (Deut. 28:15)
b. Now with the restoration of their nation in 1948, has their spiritual condition changed?
(7) The core reason for their destruction was given in v. 7:
a. What was the core reason for their fate?
b. In pointing out their core sin, why does the Bible emphasize the following?
- Who God is to them
- What He had done for them
(8) How may you apply your answers to 7b to yourself?
(9) How outrageous was their sin?
(10) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
Note:
There was some confusion over when exactly Hoshea seized the throne from Pekah due to the words of 2 Kings 15:30. However, “The earlier commentators, and almost all the chronologists have therefore justly assumed that there was an eight years’ anarchy between the death of Pekah and the commencement of Hoshea’s reign…there is nothing at all surprising in the existence of anarchy at a time when the kingdom was in a state of the greatest inward disturbance and decay” (K&D, 291).
“He did evil in the eyes of the LORD, but not like the kings of Israel who preceded him.” (2 Ki. 17:2)
It is interesting to note that the judgment of God in the final destruction of the nation of the Northern Kingdom, Israel, came at a time the nation was ruled by a “less evil” king, Hoshea (17:2). We have no idea how less evil Hoshea was, but Israel as a whole had continued to sin as they did since the time of Jeroboam. By the time of Hoshea, the nation had plunged into anarchy; whether the nation would face total destruction and exile as prophesied over and over again by the word of the Lord, or Hoshea would be assassinated and overturned like his predecessors, the people obviously continued with the sins so vividly recounted in vv. 8-23. The sum of them is highlighted by v. 7:
“All this took place because the Israelites had sinned against the LORD their God, who had brought them up out of Egypt from under the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt”.
While all the nations of the world also
sinned against the Lord, the sins of Israel were particularly outrageous:
- The Lord (i.e. Yahweh) — the Creator God of the universe had pledged Himself to be “their God”, as the Lord put it at the time of His choosing this people of Israel, “Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (Exod. 19:5-6). In other words, with their sins, they took lightly both who God is and their privilege of election.
- The Lord had brought them out of Egypt from under the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt: In other words, they spurned the grace of deliverance out of slavery and into a “holy nation, a kingdom of priests”.
In essence, they despised who God is and who they have become, and this is also a serious reminder to all of us who have been saved by the blood of Christ into a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God (1 Pet. 2:9). May we never spurn the grace of God like Israel did!
Reasons for the destruction of Israel elaborated:
(1) The worship of gods of the nations: (v. 8)
a. How outrageous was such a sin?
b. Since these nations were driven out by them (or at least subdued by them), was it not proof that these gods could not protect the nations, or that they were at least inferior to the Lord? Why then would they choose to worship them instead?
c. The key appears to be not just the “worship” but the following of their practices:
- How did the practices of the nations differ from theirs?
- On whom did the Bible lay the blame for their introduction to Israel?
- Why?
(2) Their secret sins (vv. 9-11)
a. What were the secret sins?
b. Why does the Bible refer to them as being done secretly?
c. What was the result of such secret deeds?
(3) Spurning the mercy of God (vv. 12-15)
a. What did God do all these years as they did these wicked things?
b. Can you recall some of the faithful and powerful prophets you have read so far in 1 & 2 Kings?
c. Can you recall how they responded to the messages of the prophets and how they treated some of these prophets?
d. What is meant by “(they) themselves became worthless”?
(4) Specific charges of idolatry (vv. 16-17)
a. What particular sins are being cited by the Bible?
b. Which, in your opinion, was the most abhorred by the Lord? Why?
(5) The ultimate judgment (vv. 18-23)
a. What was the consequence brought upon them by their sins?
b. Why does the Bible call the destruction of Israel and the exile of the people into the land of Assyria as the “removal of them from His presence”?
c. In conclusion, why does the Bible single out the sin of Jeroboam?
- How particularly wicked was this sin? (1 Ki. 12:28)
- How was it able to persist throughout the history of Israel? (1 Ki. 12:26-27)
- Was destruction of the nation and their exile inevitable? Why or why not?
(6) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
“They worshipped other gods and followed the practices of the nations the LORD had driven out before them, as well as the practices that the kings of Israel had introduced.” (2 Ki. 17:7-8)
It is quite inconceivable that the people of Israel would worship the gods of the nations especially when we consider the fact that these were nations that “the Lord had driven out before them” (2 Ki. 17:8). Why would they worship these gods who could not protect those who worshipped them? Was it not clear that Yahweh, their God, is far more powerful than any of the gods of the nations?
I believe the key to their rebellion against the God who had already demonstrated both His power and love to them laid in their desire to “follow the practices of the nations” and to “imitate” them (2 Ki. 17:8, 15).
For one, none of these surrounding nations had a code of law imposed by their gods that demanded not only singular devotion, but ethical behaviors that reflected the character of the divine.
The Law of Moses demands in no uncertain terms that they could only worship one God (Exod.20:3), and all the rest of the code of the Law of Moses demands their love for God with all their heart, soul and strength (Deut. 6:5) and their love for their neighbors as they love themselves (Lev. 19:18).
As a result, they found the worship of the Lord too restrictive; they’d rather imitate the worship of the gods of other nations which would not only free them to do as they please, but even if there was an ethical dimension to their worship, these pagan gods could either be bribed with sacrifices and donations or appeased with doing other good works.
Many years ago, I heard one Christian leader say this about those Christians who left the Lord after their college years: “Before they claimed that there was no god, they first loved the world”. I find this rather insightful.
The resettlement of the people to Samaria gives us insight into the background of the relationship between the Samaritans and the Jews in the time of Jesus:
(1) While the deportation of the Israelites to Assyria might not be total (17:6), who would be the dominant residents in Samaria from this time onward? (v. 24)
(2) Why did the Lord choose to kill the new residents with lions? Should He not “leave” as the nation of Israel was put to an end?
(3) What did the king of Assyria do in response to the ravaging of the lions in Samaria? (vv. 27-28)
(4) Did it result in the worship of the Lord by these new gentile residents of Samaria? (vv. 29-33)
(5) Can you find present-day examples of syncretism where Jesus Christ is being worshipped alongside idols and pagan gods?
(6) Was such syncretized worship acceptable to the Lord? Why or why not? (vv. 34-39)
(7) Is such syncretized worship of Christ and idols acceptable to the Lord today? (2 Cor. 6:14-18)
(8) In the period following the Babylonian captivity (i.e. the destruction of Judah and the temple of the Lord), it appears that those post-exilic Jews who returned to Jerusalem had gradually relinquished idol worship up to the time of Jesus: How did these Jews look upon the Samaritans as illustrated by the following?
a. The encounter of Jesus with the Samaritan woman in John 4
b. The parable of the Good Samaritan (Lk. 10:25-37)
(9) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
“When the LORD made a covenant with the Israelites, He commanded them: ‘Do not worship any other gods or bow down to them, serve them or sacrifice to them'.” (2 Ki. 17:35)
It is understandable that the Jews in Jesus’ time rejected the Samaritans. While some Jews might discriminate against the Samaritans based on their mixed blood, many rejected the Samaritans based on 2 Kings 17 which clearly rejects their sins of syncretism in that “Even while these people were worshipping the Lord, they were serving their idols” (2 Ki. 17:41). The redacting of the Jewish Pentateuch into their own Samaritan Pentateuch which made over two thousand changes to accommodate their own theology, including their place of worship, did not help them gain acceptance by the Jews either.
Of course, the Jews in Jesus’ time erred in their failure to accept that all are equal before God and that God’s love and forgiveness extends to the gentiles. They erred also in that they themselves only honored the Lord with their lips and not with their hearts (Matt. 15:8) and that they rejected the Son of God.
However, the sin of syncretism remains an abominable sin that is rejected by God, as the Apostle Paul insists, “What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God" (2 Cor. 6:15-16).
I recently shared the gospel with at least three individuals who hesitated in accepting Christ because of their reluctance to leave their ancestral or idol worship. However, I am glad that they were at least honest enough to know that should they accept Christ as their Lord and Savior, they could not “worship other gods” any longer (2 Ki. 17:37).
(1) When did the reign of Hezekiah begin?
(2) What had Hezekiah and the people Judah witnessed as far as the Northern Kingdom was concerned?
(3) What kind of a nation did Hezekiah inherit from his father, Ahaz? (see 2 Ki. 16:3-4, 17-18; 2 Chr. 28:24)
(4) What does his breaking of the bronze snake of Moses tell you about his determination to be rid of idols and the restoration of the genuine worship of the Lord? (18:4)
(5) What commendation did he receive from the Bible and how was he rewarded by the Lord? (18:5-8)
(6) The resumption of the power of Judah appeared to have happened in the first thirteen years of his reign. What was the significant event that took place to his north in his 4th year of reign? (vv. 9-12)
(7) What happened to Judah in the 14th year of his reign?
a. How did he respond to the capture of his fortified cities by the Assyrians? (v. 14)
b. What constituted the total tributes he had to give to the Assyrians (vv. 14-16)
(8) Since he was such a godly king:
a. Why did he not fight with the help of the Lord?
b. What would his people think of him and the God that he honored?
(9) Did his effort to appease the Assyrians work? (vv. 17-25)
a. From the words of the field commander, what outside help was Hezekiah counting on? (vv. 21, 24)
b. How was his faith being challenged and ridiculed? (vv. 22, 25)
(10) What should Hezekiah do under the circumstances?
(11) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
“He removed the high places, smashed the sacred stones and cut down the Asherah poles. He broke into pieces the bronze snake Moses had made, for up to that time the Israelites had been burning incense to it.” (2 Ki. 18:4)
The
reformation under Hezekiah was truly remarkable, especially when you think of the following:
(1) He inherited a nation that had almost eradicated the worship of the Lord: His father Ahaz was so determined to eliminate any form of worship of the Lord that he not only introduced idol worship into the nation, setting up altars of sacrifice to any form of idols in every street corner, but he also eventually shut the doors to the temple of the Lord (2 Chr. 28:24). In other words, by the end of Ahaz's 16 years reign (i.e. Hezekiah would not be exposed to the worship of the Lord since the age of nine), the nation of Judah was basically void of the worship of the Lord, at least on the surface. We are not told how Hezekiah learned to trust in the Lord, to the point of eradicating all forms of idol worship when he came to the throne. The only clue we might have is the presence and service of the prophet Isaiah whom Hezekiah had learned to consult. In any case, his spiritual reformation was as total as the deconstruction of faith by his father.
(2) The fact is that he “broke into pieces the bronze snake Moses had made, for up to that time the Israelites had been burning incense to it” (18:4): His action did not only point to his determination to be rid of all forms of idols and to restore the genuine worship of the Lord in the nation, but it also reflected his accurate understanding of the meaning of the 2nd Commandment: “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them” (Exod. 20:4-5). The bronze snake was only a piece of metal that God once used to demonstrate His merciful healing power to the repenting Israelites (Num. 21:4-9) after which it was nothing more than a piece of dead bronze (presumably that was what Nehushtan meant). For the people to revere it as sacred was already inappropriate, let alone burn incense to it. This certainly flies in the face of those who seek to cherish and make icons and all kinds of religious relics sacred. Hezekiah would have broken all these into pieces as well.
(1) How did the officers from King Hezekiah respond to the words of the field commander? (v. 26) What did they call themselves in particular?
(2) Could the field commander tell that they were people who belonged to the Almighty God? Why or why not?
(3) How did the field commander challenge the faith of Hezekiah? (v. 30)
(4) What kind of bait did the field commander dangle before the people of Judah? (vv. 31-32)
(5) How did the field commander directly challenge the Lord? (vv. 33-35)
(6) While the people remained silent, what might they be saying in their hearts? (v. 36)
(7) What would you do at this time, if you were Hezekiah?
(8) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
“Furthermore, have I come to attack and destroy this place without word from the Lord? The Lord Himself told me to march against this country and destroy it.” (2 Ki. 18:25)
For those who belong to and love the Lord, the worst situation is not necessarily being totally helpless and desperate, but a demise to which our sin has contributed. This was the situation faced by Hezekiah in 2 Kings 18 and was further explained in the Book of Isaiah.
Isaiah had forewarned the king not to trust in Egypt, but to totally depend on the Lord (Isa. 30:1ff). From the words of the field commander of Assyria, it was certainly not the case. Hezekiah had indeed sought help from Egypt (Isa. 36:6). And the result was exactly what the Lord had predicted (Isa. 30:2-5). Egypt was of no help at all. The words of the field commander had certainly poured “shame and disgrace” upon Hezekiah (Isa.30:5). As a result, Hezekiah had to face his crisis in shame and with guilt.
However, the commander added
insult to his wounds by suggesting that God had Himself turned against Hezekiah:
- The removal of the high places and altars was an error that probably had angered the Lord: Hezekiah was not only one of the kings who “did what was right in the eye of the Lord “ (2 Ki. 18:3), he had such spiritual discernment and courage that he smashed the bronze snake that Moses had made (Num. 21:9) in order that the people could not worship it as an idol (what a warning to those who sympathize with icon-worship today). He also tore down the high places that the Israelites had erected after the customs of the Canaanites in order that they might worship the Lord outside of the designated place of worship which was in Jerusalem. Now the field commander used Hezekiah’s military failures to insinuate that he had made a huge mistake.
- However, it was the Lord who had sent him to destroy Jerusalem — which was in tune with many of the prophecies of Isaiah. God is using the nations to punish His people for their sins.
I wonder what we would do, if we were Hezekiah. Consider the following:
- In view of the fact that only Jerusalem among his fortified cities survived, though it was under siege, and given the sin that he committed, would Hezekiah think that God has also left him? Or
- Given his faithfulness to God in destroying all high places and even Moses’ bronze snake, would God remain faithful to him in spite of his sin — but only if he confesses his sin and asks for forgiveness? And/or
- With his discernment, he understands that the oracles of Isaiah only speak of God using Assyria as a tool to totally destroy Israel, and not Judah (e.g. Isa. 9:8ff). Would Judah survive, while Assyria is punished (Isa. 10:12)?
As we read on (chapter 19 of 2 Ki.), we shall find out that Hezekiah did seek the Lord and listen to the exhortation of Isaiah (Isaiah 30:15): "In repentance and rest” (in God alone), he found his deliverance! (2 Ki. 19:35ff). And with this defeat, the Assyrians were greatly weakened.
Indeed, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 Jn. 1:9).