2 Kings 9 O We Are Coming to the End of Elisha's Career As a Prophet To

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2 Kings 9 o We are coming to the end of Elisha’s career as a prophet to the Northern Kingdom of Israel o Elisha commands one of the young prophets to go to Ramoth Gilead, take a flask of oil and call Jehu, who was a captain in the Israeli army o He’s told to take Jehu into a room where they can be alone and to anoint him with oil to be King over Israel o Then he’s told to open the door and flee as fast as you can o So the young prophet follows Elisha’s instructions, anoints Jehu and prophesies over him

2 Kings 9:7–10 (NKJV) 7 You shall strike down the house of Ahab your master, that I may avenge the blood of My servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of 8 the LORD, at the hand of Jezebel. For the whole house of Ahab shall perish; and I will cut off from Ahab all the males in Israel, both bond and free. 9 So I will make the house of Ahab like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah. 10 The dogs shall eat Jezebel on the plot of ground at Jezreel, and there shall be none to bury her.’ ” And he opened the door and fled. o The young prophet gets out of dodge and the other soldiers ask Jehu, who was that madman and what was that little secret meeting about o Jehu is reluctant to say at first, finally tells them and now they are blowing trumpets and declaring Jehu is King o Jehu’s name means Yahweh is He o His father, Jehoshaphat, is not the same as the Judean king by that name and it appears that his grandfather Nimshi was more famous than his father because later Jehu is knows as the son of Nimshi o Jehu is mentioned twice in the cuneiform inscriptions on the Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III dating this period to around 841 B.C. o It’s the only mention of a Hebrew King ever discovered o Jehu was the only ruler of the Northern Kingdom to be anointed – which was a symbol of God’s blessing. o Jehoram’s failures showed that he was no longer blessed by God o The secrecy of the meeting give Jehu the advantage of choosing the right time to revolt without alerting Jehoram

2 Kings 9:14 (NKJV)

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14 So Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat, the son of Nimshi, conspired against Joram. (Now Joram had been defending Ramoth Gilead, he and all Israel, against Hazael king of Syria. o Jehu conspires with the commanders of the Israeli Army to overthrow Joram and the success of this coup d’etat depeneded on secrecy o So Jehu tells his fellow soldiers, if you are really with me don’t let anyone leave Ramoth Gilead to warn Joram in Jezreel o Ramoth Gilead was on the northern border between Israel and Syria and Jezreel was 40 miles west, across the Jordan, near Megiddo

Scattered around the city walls of Jezreel were watchtowers 2 Kings 9:17–18 (NKJV) 17 Now a watchman stood on the tower in Jezreel, and he saw the company of Jehu as he came, and said, “I see a company of men.” And Joram said, “Get a horseman and send him to meet them, and let him say, ‘Is it peace?’ ” 18 So the horseman went to meet him, and said, “Thus says the king: ‘Is it peace?’ ” And Jehu said, “What have you to do with peace? Turn around and follow me.” So the watchman reported, saying, “The messenger went to them, but is not coming back.” o The word company literally means dust, so the watchman most likely saw the dust cloud stirred up by Jehu’s approaching army o Two horsemen are sent out to investigate, but instead of returning they join Jehu’s army o Finally, Jehu gets close enough for the watchmen to recognize he’s driving like a madman and they say… that guy is driving like a Jehu!!! o When Joram finds out it’s Jehu, he goes to meet him o They meet on the property of Naboth the Jezreelite, the property that symbolized Ahab’s greed and apostasy

2 Kings 9:22 (NKJV) 22 Now it happened, when Joram saw Jehu, that he said, “Is it peace, Jehu?” So he answered, “What peace, as long as the harlotries of your mother Jezebel and her witchcraft are so many?”

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o Joram turns to get away and Jehu pulls out his bow and carries out the execution of the wicked king himself

(Vs. 26) Jehu quotes Elijah… something he heard as a young soldier 2 Kings 9:26 (NKJV) 26 ‘Surely I saw yesterday the blood of Naboth and the blood of his sons,’ says the LORD, ‘and I will repay you in this plot,’ says the LORD. Now therefore, take and throw him on the plot of ground, according to the word of the LORD.” o (Vs. 27) Ahaziah, king of Judah hears what Jehu has done and goes into the witness protection program o Ahaziah is the son of Ahab, so he’s worried o Jehu tracks him down and shoots him gangland style in his chariot o Then he goes after Jezebel and finds her in her palace in Jezreel

She looks out her window and accuses Jehu of murder 2 Kings 9:32–37 (NKJV) 32 And he looked up at the window, and said, “Who is on my side? Who?” So two or three eunuchs looked out at him. 33 Then he said, “Throw her down.” So they threw her down, and some of her blood spattered on the wall and on the horses; and he trampled her underfoot. 34 And when he had gone in, he ate and drank. Then he said, “Go now, see to this accursed woman, and bury her, for she was a king’s daughter.” 35 So they went to bury her, but they found no more of her than the skull and the feet and the palms of her hands. 36 Therefore they came back and told him. And he said, “This is the word of the LORD, which He spoke by His servant Elijah the Tishbite, saying, ‘On the plot of ground at Jezreel dogs shall eat the flesh of Jezebel; 37 and the corpse of Jezebel shall be as refuse on the surface of the field, in the plot at Jezreel, so that they shall not say, “Here lies Jezebel.” ’ ” o Jezebel knows she’s about to die, so she adorns herself so she can die as a queen o She addresses Jehu as Zimri o Zimri was the one who murdered King Elah and the remaining family of Baasha in 1 Kings 16:10 o He held the throne for a few days and committed suicide

______VANTAGE POINT: 2 KINGS o Jezebel is implying that Jehu will have the same fate o He calls for help, two eunuchs throw Jezebel out the window and Jehu drives his chariot over her dead body – a act of intentional humiliation o He then goes in to eat, but feels bad for her… after all she was royalty, but by the time he gets around to it her body is already eaten by dogs o Prophecy fulfilled

2 Kings 10 o By now, news is spreading to all the descendants of Ahab that Jehu has wiped out the king of Israel and Judah and Jezebel o Vs. 1, we are told that there are 70 sons of Ahab, which included grandsons and great grandsons o Jehu writes letters to those who raised the sons of Ahab, pick the best fighter and prepare to defend your house – it was a threat o Jehu’s intimidation works and they switch sides and pledge their allegiance to Jehu

2 Kings 10:6–7 (NKJV) 6 Then he wrote a second letter to them, saying: If you are for me and will obey my voice, take the heads of the men, your master’s sons, and come to me at Jezreel by this time tomorrow. Now the king’s sons, seventy persons, were with the great men of the city, who were rearing them. 7 So it was, when the letter came to them, that they took the king’s sons and slaughtered seventy persons, put their heads in baskets and sent them to him at Jezreel.

Jehu fulfills the word of the Lord spoken to Elijah 2 Kings 10:9–11 (NKJV) 9 So it was, in the morning, that he went out and stood, and said to all the people, “You are righteous. Indeed I conspired against my master and killed him; but who killed all these? 10 Know now that nothing shall fall to the earth of the word of the LORD which the LORD spoke concerning the house 11 of Ahab; for the LORD has done what He spoke by His servant Elijah.” So Jehu killed all who remained of the house of Ahab in Jezreel, and all his great men and his close acquaintances and his priests, until he left him none remaining. o (Vs. 12) Jehu wipes out Ahaziah’s 42 brothers o (vs. 15) Jehu wipes out the rest of Ahab’s family

______VANTAGE POINT: 2 KINGS o (vs. 18) Jehu wipes out the worshippers of Baal – primarily referring to the leaders of the cult o Not only does Jehu remove Ahab and his family, he removes the worship of Baal that this family introduced

2 Kings 10:29–31 (NKJV) 29 However Jehu did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who had made Israel sin, that is, from the golden calves that were at 30 Bethel and Dan. And the LORD said to Jehu, “Because you have done well in doing what is right in My sight, and have done to the house of Ahab all that was in My heart, your sons shall sit on the throne of Israel to the 31 fourth generation.” But Jehu took no heed to walk in the law of the LORD God of Israel with all his heart; for he did not depart from the sins of Jeroboam, who had made Israel sin. o Up to this point, Jehu is doing an incredible job o But Vs. 29 exposes a serious failure o He allowed the syncretistic worship involving golden calves used in the worship centers at Bethel and Dan to remain o Jeroboam built them not as images of false gods, but images of Yahweh to encourage worshippers not to go to Jerusalem o Even though the golden calves were not technically idols, it was against God’s 10 Commandments and it opened the people to idolatry o Jehu is the story of a man who has commendable zeal for the Lord mixed with personal ambition o Unsurrendered zeal can tempt strong people to cross the line between God’s will and personal ambition and we see that with Jehu o Jehu reigned 28 years and eventually dies a natural death

I think there’s an important lesson for us here o If you remember, when Joshua crossed the Jordan to come into the promised land, there were three tribes that stayed behind o Reuben, Gad and ½ the tribe of Manasseh o This brought back really bad memories of the first time the tribes didn’t want to go into the promised land and they ended up wandering for 40 years o Now, when you look at the spiritual typology of this story, Egypt represents the bondage of sin o Pharoah represents Satan and the kingdom reigned by sin and death

______VANTAGE POINT: 2 KINGS o The Red Sea represents baptism, coming into a new relationship with God, a new life o The wilderness represents the sanctification process whereby we are set apart from the kingdom of Satan in order to be joined to the Kingdom of God o Then you come to the Jordan River, which to the hymn writers represented physical death o I looked over Jordan and what did I see? Coming for to carry me home. A band of angels coming after me. Coming for to carry me home. o But the analogy breaks down because after they crossed the Jordan they still had battles to fight o When we go to heaven, there will be no more battle to fight o So the Jordan River represents my reckoning of my old life and old nature to be dead – it’s that place of faith where I reckon my old life to be dead and I enter into that life of the Spirit – the promised life of victory in Christ Jesus o As we apply this to our lives, there are many Christians who have come out of the world, are going to heaven, but have never entered into the full life of the Spirit possessing the fullness of what is our in Christ Jesus o They are content to stay on the other side of the Jordan o They don’t really need to walk after the Spirit, they are content to live after the flesh – no strong spiritual desires for the fullness of God in their lives o They are like Reuben, Gad and Manassah who said we won’t cross over into the Promises of God o But these three tribes were the first to fall to Hazael, the king of Syria

CHAPTER 11 o Now going back 28 years… we go back to when Jehu first became king o He killed Ahaziah, the king of Judah, who was the son of Athaliah the daughter of Jezebel o The two kingdoms were united by marriage

2 Kings 11:1–3 (NKJV) 11 When Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the royal heirs. 2 But Jehosheba, the daughter of King Joram, sister of Ahaziah, took Joash the son of Ahaziah, and stole him away from among the king’s sons who were being murdered; and they hid him and his nurse in the bedroom, from Athaliah, so that he was not

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3 killed. So he was hidden with her in the house of the LORD for six years, while Athaliah reigned over the land. o Athaliah murders her own grandsons in order to become queen! o She is the only woman among the rulers of Judah and Israel o Jehosheba was the wife of Jehoiada, the high priest o So they rescue Jehoash and hide him for 6 years o At the age of , he is crowed King and given a copy of the law and a scroll of the Torah o Athaliah here’s the crowds cheering on the new King and she tears her clothes and cries out treason o Jehoida, the high priest, orders her to be executed

2 Kings 11:17–18 (NKJV) 17 Then Jehoiad7a made a covenant between the LORD, the king, and the people, that they should be the LORD’s people, and also between the king and the people. 18 And all the people of the land went to the temple of Baal, and tore it down. They thoroughly broke in pieces its altars and images, and killed Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars. And the priest appointed officers over the house of the LORD. o Jehoash is restoring the worship of God by removing the worship of Baal o Impressive for a 7 year old

2 Kings 12:1–3 (NKJV) 12 In the seventh year of Jehu, Jehoash became king, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Zibiah of Beersheba. 2 Jehoash did what was right in the sight of the LORD all the days in which Jehoiada the priest instructed him. 3 But the high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. o Jehoash was more or less a puppet leader because of his young age o He grew up in the temple with Jehoiada, the high priest, raising him… it’s no surprise that his primary achievement is the restoration of the temple o Three categories of revenue were assigned by Jehoash to be used in the restoration project o Census Money – the ½ shekel per year paid by each Israelite over 20

______VANTAGE POINT: 2 KINGS o Assessment money – a property tax based on the personal assessment of each individual o Freewill Offerings – the money that a man purposes in his heart to bring o (Vs. 4-5) report Jehoash’s first attempt at a building fund drive – it doesn’t succeed because of the lack of response on the part of the priests o 23 years later the work isn’t done, so the King institutes a new plan o He takes the collection of the money away from the priests and the king sets up business like procedures to pay for the repairs o He also uses part of the money to pay off Hazael to leave them alone

2 Kings 13 o Now we go back to Northern Israel to the reign of Jehoahaz o Jehu has died and his son begins to reign in Samaria o He reigned 13 years and did was evil in the sight of the Lord

Now we come to the death of Elisha 2 Kings 13:14 (NKJV) 14 Elisha had become sick with the illness of which he would die. Then Joash the king of Israel came down to him, and wept over his face, and said, “O my father, my father, the chariots of Israel and their horsemen!” o Elisha has not been mentioned for 50 years, since anointing Jehu o Even though he is near death, God is just as near to him o Now this gets confusing because we’ve already reported his death, but Joash is still king… why? o Because now we are reporting Elisha’s death and although Joash is dead, he is in the story of Elisha’s death o This is a hard transition for Joash because in their minds, they didn’t need horses and chariots because they had Elisha on their side o Elisha uses symbolic actions to reinforce his prophecies – he was a show and tell prophet o He prophesies that Israel would be victorious over Syria, but only victorious 3 times – because Joash struck the ground with the arrows only three times instead of 5 or 6 times (which would have mean Syria would be wiped out) o Elisha is buried and even in death, Elisha revives a dead man simply by touching his bones… so exciting

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Chapter 14 o (Vs. 3) Amaziah does what was right in the sight of the Lord, but not as much as his father David in that he doesn’t tear down the high places where people sacrificed and burned incense o Amaziah takes revenge on those who murdered his father Jehoahaz, but doesn’t kill their children according to the law of Moses o Here’s a king that follows the Lord o Vs. 17 we are told Amaziah leads a campaign against The Edomites… descendants of Esau, the twin brother of Jacob o These two brothers constantly competed with each other and the nations that descended from them continued their contention o From Genesis to Malachi, the Bible records hostility between them o The land of Edom is located in the great red mountains of the Arabian wilderness south of the Dead Sea – their capital is Petra o The battle takes places in the Valley of Salt and he captures Sela, another name for Petra o He hires 100,000 mercenaries from Israel, but an unnamed prophet warns him against using them in battle and he sends them home o On the way back, the Israelites plundered Judean villages on the way which caused Amaziah to challenge Jehoash at Beth Shemesh o Overconfident, Amaziah declares war on Israel – which is a fatal mistake o Israel defeats Judah and Jehoash plunders Jerusalem and captures Amaziah who was deserted by his retreating army – he is left in Jerusalem as a sort of vassal king o Vs. 19 we are told a conspiracy is formed against Amaziah by his son Azariah who ascends to the throne of Israel o Azariah is called Uzziah in 2 Chronicles and in Isaiah

Vs. 23 – Jeroboam ascends to the throne of Israel o His account is abbreviated because the focus of the writer of Kings was not to give a classic historical account, but a spiritual or theological account o Under Jeroboam II, Israel experienced prosperity, power and grandeur – not since the days of Solomon o But Jeroboam did evil in the sight of the Lord, thus his accomplishments have no value in light of eternity

Chapter 15 and 16 we see an overview of the Kings of Israel and Judah… here are some of the highlights…

______VANTAGE POINT: 2 KINGS o (Vs. 8) Zechariah becomes King in Israel o He does what is evil in the sight of the Lord o Shallum, the son of Jabesh overthrows and kills Zechariah

2 Kings 15:12 (NKJV) 12 This was the word of the LORD which He spoke to Jehu, saying, “Your sons shall sit on the throne of Israel to the fourth generation.” And so it was. o God promised 4 generations to Jehu and here His word is fulfilled o (vs. 13) Shallum becomes King in Israel o Manhem, a cruel man who ripped open pregnant women who refused to surrender, overthrows and kills Shallum o (vs. 17) Manahem is King in Israel o He does evil in the sight of the Lord, but pays tribute to Pul the King of Assyria for protection and institutes heavy taxation to pay for it

CHAPTER 16 o (16:1) Ahaz, Jotham’s son, becomes King of Judah o He did right in the eyes of the Lord, but he also participated in the worship that Jeroboam instituted in the high places o Rezin, king of Syria and Pekah, king of Israel come against Judah o Ahaz calls Tiglath-Pilesar, king of Assyria for help and the attack is called off o He visits Damascus and sees a huge pagan altar he likes and orders Urijah the priest to build one just like it and replace the altar in the temple with it – so Urijah did everything Ahaz asked

2 Kings 16:19–20 (NKJV) 19 Now the rest of the acts of Ahaz which he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 20 So Ahaz rested with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the City of David. Then Hezekiah his son reigned in his place. o In Chapter 17 we will get into what led to the fall of Israel