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Asa was very angry with the prophet and put him in prison. Asa was out
of fellowship with the Lord for four years after that and would not
confess his sin, so the Lord afflicted him with a terrible disease in
his feet. Still he would not admit his wrong- doing to the Lord, so he
died the sin unto death, and his son Jehoshaphat ruled in his place.
CHAPTER 2
Jehoshaphat ruled for forty-one years and was faithful to the Lord in
all that he did. The Lord blessed him with great honor and riches.
Then in the twenty-fifth year of his reign, he made friends with a
very evil man who was Ahab, king of Israel. Jehoshaphat should have
heeded the words of his great-grandfather Solomon who said,
"Confidence in an unfaithful man in time of trouble is like having a
broken tooth or a foot out of joint." (Proverbs 25:18)
Ahab was worse than all the kings of Israel who proceeded him. Not
only did he encourage idolatry among his people, but he chose as his
queen a beautiful princess by the name of Jezebel who brought her
idols and the prophets who served those idols along with her when she
became queen.
Ahab desired to regain a portion of land known as Ramoth-Giliad. It
had been taken by Syria many years before he became king. He sent a
message to Jehoshaphat asking for his help in fighting against the
Syrians.
"Make no friendship with an angry
man, and with a furious man thou
shalt not go." (Proverbs 22:21)
Jehoshaphat reacted emotionally and replied, "Why not? We are all
Jews, and we must stand together against our common enemy. I will come
and help you, Ahab!"
When Jehoshaphat arrived in Samaria, Ahab called four hundred of
Jezebel's false prophets to appear before them, and he asked them,
"Shall we go against the Syrians in Ramoth-Giliad or not?"
The false prophets answered, "Go into battle with the Syrians! The
Lord will deliver your enemies into your hands!"
Jehoshaphat knew that those prophets were not of God's choosing, so he
asked Ahab, "Don't you have one of the Lord's prophets here to advise
us?
Ahab replied, "Well, yes, there is one man, but I hate him! He never
prophesies anything good to me!"
Jehoshaphat said, "You shouldn't speak so disrespectfully about the
Lord's prophet!"
After that rebuke from Jehoshaphat, Ahab ordered, "Bring Micaiah from
the prison so we may ask him what we should do."
The two kings were seated on thrones, dressed in their royal robes,
and they watched as Ahab's soldiers brought Micaiah into the room but
did not summon him to stand before them.
One of the false prophets was a man by the name of Zedekiah, and he
observed what was happening. He took some iron horns that he had made
and used them to demonstrate his message and said to Ahab, "This is
the Word of the Lord: 'You shall fight the Syrians until they are
destroyed! ' You will be victorious!"
 Then
some of the other prophets said, "Yes, go into battle, and the Lord
will deliver your enemy into your hands!"
A soldier who stood with Micaiah turned to him and said, "See how all
of these prophets are encouraging the king? Now you must agree with
them when you speak!"
Micaiah replied, "I can only speak the words that the Lord gives me to
say!" However, when he was taken before the kings and heard Ahab say,
"Micaiah shall we fight against the Syrians and reclaim Ramoth-Gilead
or not?", he replied, "Yes! Go, and you will be victorious over the
Syrians!"
Ahab stood up and said angrily, "How many times have I told you not to
lie to me, Micaiah?"
"The thoughts of the righteous are
right, but the counsels of the wicked
are deceit" (Proverbs 12:5)
Then Micaiah answered truthfully, "This is what the Lord has told me
about the matter: 'The army of Israel will be destroyed if they go
against Syria! ' "
In disgust, Ahab turned away from him and said to Jehoshaphat, "Didn't
I tell you that this man would prophesy evil against me?"
Micaiah spoke again and said, "In a vision, the Lord showed me that
His armies in heaven stood around His throne, and He questioned them
saying, 'Who will go down and convince Ahab that he should go against
Syria and be defeated in war and die on the battlefield?' Then one of
the angels replied, 1 will go and put a lying spirit in the mouths of
Ahab's prophets!' The Lord has done that very thing today!"
Ahab pointed to him and shouted, "Take this fellow back to prison and
feed him moldy bread and stale water until I return in victory over
the Syrians!"
As he was being dragged away, Micaiah turned and said to the king, "If
you return from the battle, the Lord has not spoken through me!"
Ahab took a deep breath and sat down once more and spoke to
Jehoshaphat saying, "Let's have a little fun today! Let's deceive the
Syrian army by disguising ourselves! You put on my robes, and I'll
wear yours, and they won't know which of us to pursue on the
battlefield ! "
Jehoshaphat answered foolishly, "Sounds like a good idea, Ahab!"
When
they were dressed and ready to go, they entered the field of battle. A
Syrian soldier said to his friend, "Hey! There's the king of Israel!
Let's capture him!"
 Of course, they mistook Jehoshaphat for the king of Israel because of
his clothing. They surrounded him, and he cried out to the Lord for
help! When they realized that he wasn't Ahab, the Syrians spared his
life.
" Confidence in an unfaithful man in time of
trouble is like a broken tooth or a foot out
of joint." (Proverbs
25:19)
Meanwhile, one of the Syrian soldiers took a dare and aimed an arrow
at one of Israel's men, not realizing that his target was Ahab!
Ahab was badly wounded, but he asked to be propped up in his chariot
so he wouldn't be embarrassed in front of his men. He stayed there for
the rest of the day, and then they took him back to camp where he
died.
Jehoshaphat returned unharmed to his home in Jerusalem, and the Lord
sent a prophet to him with a stem rebuke which was, "Should you help
the ungodly and love those who hate the Lord? The Lord is very angry
with you because of your action, Jehoshaphat!"
Jehoshaphat accepted the rebuke, and when he returned home he
encouraged his people to be obedient to the Word of God, and he
humbled himself before the Lord. However, some time later, he did evil
again by making friends with the next king of Israel. Together they
made ships and planned to bring merchandise from a far land to profit
both nations, but the Lord destroyed their building efforts.
Jehoshaphat died and his son Jehoram ruled in his place.
CHAPTER 3
Jehoram was an ungodly man and only reigned eight years over Judah. As
a result of his father's friendship with Ahab, Jehoram had met and
married Athaliah, the beautiful daughter of Jezebel, That resulted in
more idolatry being brought into the land of Judah.
After Jehoram died, Athaliah ordered the execution of all of the royal
sons in Judah, and she personally ruled over the land for about seven
years.
Athaliah did not know that one of the sons of Jehoram by the name of
Joash had escaped the slaughter. He was rescued by his sister, the
wife of Jehoida the priest, and they hid the boy from Athaliah for six
years. Jehoida raised the boy, and when Joash was seven years old,
Jehoida gathered a small army of men who were leaders in Judah, and
they decided to put Joash on the throne of Judah.
Jehoida divided his men into three groups and positioned them in
strategic places around the temple. Some were armed bodyguards who
were designated to protect Joash from possible danger.
After all preparations had been completed, they brought Joash into the
temple and placed a crown on his head. All those who were present
shouted, "God save the king!"
Athaliah heard the noise, so she hurried into the house of the Lord to
see what was causing the commotion. When she saw the young king in the
temple, she shouted, "TREASON, TREASON"
Jehoida gave the order, "Take that woman outside, away from the temple
area, and execute her!" She was dragged outside and killed. Then the
people of the land went into the house of Baal, broke down the altars
and the images and slew the priests who ministered there.
After all of that was accomplished, Jehoida made a covenant with the
king and all of the people in the land that they would serve only the
Lord God, and once again there was peace in the land of Judah.
Things went well while Jehoida was alive, but after he died, Joash
took advice from the younger men who had served him, and they went
back into idolatry again.
In grace, the Lord sent prophets to warn Joash of discipline if the
people did not obey His Word, but they refused to listen to them! Then
the Lord sent a Syrian army into the land, and many Jews were killed
in the battle.
Joash survived the Syrian attack, but he was left with a terrible
disease. As he lay in his sickbed, some of his own men came and killed
him.
CHAPTER 4
Several more kings sat on the throne in Jerusalem after Joash died,
and a man by the name of Hezekiah became king. He was a godly ruler,
and he set a good example for the people because of his trust in the
Lord. He was their king for twenty-nine years.
When he had ruled fourteen years, a very evil and powerful man became
king of Assyria, and his name was Sennacherib. For several years he
had been acquiring some of the nations around him, and he decided to
attack Judah. He took all of the fenced cities in the land and was
attempting to capture Lachish, one of Judah's main fortresses that was
situated about thirty miles from Jerusalem.
Hezekiah became frightened and sent a message to Sennacherib asking
what they could give him to stop his attack against them.
Sennacherib demanded that they give him a great deal of silver and
gold, so Hezekiah gave him all of the treasure that was in the temple
and his own personal treasure as well. Instead of being pacified,
Sennacherib was still determined to attack. He sent three of his best
men to Jerusalem in an attempt to frighten the people so they would
surrender.
The spokesman for the Assyrians was a man by the name of Rabshakeh,
and when he saw the Jews on the wall that surrounded Jerusalem, he
shouted to them in their own language and said, "The Lord has sent us
to destroy your land.! Go to your king Hezekiah and ask him who he is
trusting. If he says he is relying on his God to deliver you, ask him
why he destroyed the altars of the Lord."
Hezekiah's men said, "Please don't speak to the people in the Jew's
language! Speak to us in the Assyrian language that we three
understand.
Rabshakeh ignored them and shouted even louder to the people, "Don't
let Hezekiah deceive you when he tells you that the Lord will deliver
you! Instead, make friends with us, and we will take you away to a
beautiful land that is just like your own country. There you may live
and not die! None of the gods of the nations around you have delivered
them from the hand of our great king Sennacherib!"
The people didn't say a word, because the king had commanded them to
be silent. Hezekiah's men reported the words spoken by Rabshakeh, and
when Hezekiah heard the report, he tore his robe and went into the
House of the Lord. He sent men to Isaiah the prophet to give them word
from God about their plight.
When they told Isaiah about the Assyrian threats, he said, "Go and
tell Hezekiah, "Thus saith the Lord: Be not afraid of the words spoken
by the Assyrians. Sennacherib will hear a rumor that will make him
return to his own land, and there he shall fall by the sword!"
While fighting at Lachish, Sennacherib heard news that made him leave
his troops. He took a few men and went back to Nineveh, and while
worshipping in the house of his god, two of his sons killed him with a
sword and then they fled to the land of Armenia. That same night, the
Lord struck the Assyrian troops, and when the Jews arose to fight the
next morning, they saw 185,000 Assyrians lying dead on the
battlefield! The Lord had given them a great victory over their
enemies!
"The fear of man brings a
snare, but he who puts his
trust in the Lord shall be
safe." (Proverbs 29:25)
CHAPTER 5
After that, Hezekiah became very ill and was in the process of dying.
He turned his face to the wall and asked the Lord to heal him. He wept
bitterly and said, "Lord, al my life I have walked before you, and I
have done many good things in your sight Please let me live!"
The Lord sent a message to the king by way of Isaiah that said, "Tell
Hezekiah '. will heal him, and in three days he will be well enough to
go into the temple again. Also tell him that I will add fifteen years
to his life."
During that fifteen year period, Hezekiah accumulated much wealth and
honor and the Lord prospered him in all that he did. News of
Hezekiah's illness had spread throughout the known world, and people
sent precious gifts of silver and gold to him The king of Babylon
wrote letters and sent gifts to Hezekiah. He was so pleased and
grateful that he invited the king of Babylon to Jerusalem and showed
him all of his riches. Immediately after that, Isaiah went to Hezekiah
and asked, "Who were those men who came to see you, and why were they
here?"
Hezekiah answered, "0, those men were from the far country of Babylon.
They came to see me, and I have shown them all of the treasures in my
house."
Isaiah rebuked him and said, "You have been very foolish! The day will
come when all of those treasures will be carried away to Babylon, and
your sons will be taker there in chains to serve the king of Babylon!"
Hezekiah responded, "The word from God is good in my ears! At least
there will be peace and truth during MY lifetime!"
After that, Hezekiah became very proud, and he continually boasted
about his riches and his victories. The Lord was very angry with him
because of his pride, and when Hezekiah realized that the Lord was
displeased, he confessed his sin and thing; went well with him once
more and also with the people in the land.
The Lord extended Hezekiah's life so that he might understand his
sinful nature. (2 Chronicles 32:3 lb)
"Pride goes before destruction,
and a haughty spirit before a
fall. (Proverbs 16:18)
CHAPTER 6
Manasseh's grandson, Josiah, became king of Judah when he was eight
years old and he ruled for thirty-one years over the nation. He
pleased the Lord and walked in th< ways of David and Solomon all of
his life.
When he reached the age of twenty-four, Josiah ordered the removal of
all of the altars and images of idols that had been left in the land
and ground them to powder. He personally went throughout the land to
supervise the destruction of those idols.
In the story of Jeroboam we saw that God sent a prophet to him when he
was offering a sacrifice. The prophet disobeyed the Lord, and a lion
killed him. An old prophet who lived in Samaria buried the man's body
in his own tomb and asked his sons to bury him beside the disobedient
prophet when he died. It is interesting to see that Jeroboam's altar
was found and destroyed when Josiah toured the land. They saw a tomb
near the altar that had engraving on it, and when Josiah asked whose
bones were in the tomb, the men of the city told him the story of the
two prophets, and Josiah did not bun their bones as he did all the
others.
After a thorough cleansing of the land from idolatry, Josiah decided
to repair the temple. It had been neglected for many years, and was in
sad need of repairs. He called a scribe, a recorder and the governor
of the city and asked them to find some skilled workmen. The three men
went to Hilkiah the priest who ministered in the House of God They
asked him to use any money he could find in the temple that had been
given by the people through the years and use it to pay the workmen.
In his search, Hilkiah discovered a copy of the book of the Law of
Moses and gave it to Shaphan the scribe. Shaphan read the words of the
book before the king, and when he heard it, Josiah tore his robe and
said, "Great is the wrath of the Lord that it about to be poured out
upon us, because our fathers have not kept the Word of the Lord to do
all that is written in this book!
"Go, enquire of the Lord for me, and for them
that are left in Israel and in Judah,
concerning
the words of the book that is found; for great
is the -wrath of the Lord that is poured out
upon
us, because our fathers have not kept the Word
of the Lord, to do after all that is written in
this book." (2 Chronicles 34:21)
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