Second Kings 9-11

God’s message to me: God fulfills his promises in His time. The priests of Baal were slaughtered in the temple of Baal which was then demolished and made a trash dump. The line of David was preserved on the throne as Joash took the crown at the age of 7. Jezebel was turned into dog food. Jehoram’s remains were tossed in the field he had stolen when Jezebel conspired against it’s owner. All of the house of Ahab was killed. And so the story goes when God makes a promise, it is only a matter of time.

Promises: God keeps his promises, long term or short term they will be upheld.

Commands: Obey God, do not turn to false worship, false religion and false Gods. Jehoash made a good start in removing Baal worship but, by continuing to turn Israel to idolatry, he doomed his kingdom. Under his rule the kingdom of Israel was picked apart piece by piece by surrounding nations.

Timeless principles: Politicians tend to stick with the tried and true methods even if they are wrong. Jehoash started well. He killed off the royal line that had brought so much destruction to Israel. he avenged the prophets against Jezebel and the priest of Baal. He destroyed Baal worship in Israel. Then he continued the first sin of leading Israel to worship the golden calves so that they wouldn’t turn to the Temple in Judah. The desire to consolidate power can lead the best leaders to evil. No matter how solid the foundation it can be torn down by the quest for power. Think of that when you hear that the US Constitution is an impediment to good government.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: Stay true to God and don’t be turned by false religion. So many weak Christians are turned to a politically correct but false religiosity because they cannot fathom the truth of passages like the one we just read. Remember that one of the most common images given by God is the trial by fire. When everything seems to be going wrong God sometimes finds destruction the only path to salvation. That which is of value can only be purified by fire. When everything else is burned away, God’s chosen remnant can shine most brightly.

more to learn for in-depth study: Promises are obvious, commands should be obvious. This section is about a great slaughter. As horrifying as some of these images may be they ended in the removal of Baal worship, the end of the evil queen Jezebel and the destruction of those who turned Israel to destruction.

Are you a fan of fantasy books. JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis took their inspiration straight from the pages of the bible. The fact is, to best understand this era in Israel's history, you need to read it in large portions just like you would the Chronicles of Narnia or the Lord of the Rings. The story covers a lot of time and pieces together over large parts of scripture. Some prophecies take more than one generation to come true but, by reading it through as we are doing you can more easily see how God delivers on his promises and his curses.

tomorrow: Second Kings 12-15