2 Kings 1 -- It's All Downhill From Here

Ahab died, and with his rule ended, Israel began to fall apart.  They’d kept Moab under their thumb and now, seizing the opportunity, Moab broke free.

 

Ahab’s son Ahaziah followed him as king and he had never learned from the contest on Mount Carmel that God was God.  He too worshiped idols and not the living God.  One day he fell through the latticework from an upstairs room and was badly injured.  He sent messengers to inquire of the Baal priests if he would live (he didn’t ask for healing!).  God directed Elijah to intercept the messengers and deliver His message that Ahaziah would definitely die.

 

Ahaziah knew the message had been given to Elijah, and he foolishly sent a contingent of soldiers to have him brought in, possibly hoping to get him to change his prophecy, since Ahaziah didn’t like the implied outcome.  Elijah called down fire from heaven twice, and God completely burned up both the first and second teams of soldiers.  The third captain knew better than to be prideful, falling on his knees and begging Elijah to respect the 51 lives before him.  God told Elijah to go with them.

 

Face to face with the king, Elijah fearlessly delivered God’s message again, and with the words ringing in his ears, Ahaziah died!  He’d been stubborn, disobedient, and prideful to the end!

 

The introduction to 2^nd Kings in my Bible said, “Twenty-five chapters of people reaping the harvest of sin.  Story after story of people learning firsthand the eternal truth:  The consequence of persistent sin is pain.  Pain, not just in your life but in the lives of those you love.”

 

I don’t look forward to the other twenty-four chapters.

 

Father God, please help me to remember, and my sons to fully understand as well, the timeless truth You reveal here – that persistent sin produces pain, not just in our own lives, but in the lives of those we love.  Help us to love each other enough not to hurt each other by our own choosing to sin.

 

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford