1 Kings 22; 2 Kings 1-2 Godly Sass

Thoughts

1 Kings 22

There were three years of peace between Israel and Syria. In the third year, Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, visits Ahab, king of Israel. Ahab asks Jehoshaphat to help him retake Ramoth Gilead from Syria and he agrees. 

• the god is בַּעַל זְבוּב (Baʿal Zevuv) or “Lord of the Flies.” By the New Testament, “Beelzebul / Beelzebub” shows up as a title for Satan (Matthew 12:24; Luke 11:15).

Ahab gathers about 400 prophets who all proclaim that they will win. Jehoshaphat asks if there is a prophet of God, and Ahab says yes, Micaiah, but he hates him. 

Ahab eventually sends a messenger to get Micaiah. The false prophets keep encouraging Ahab. Zedekiah son of Kenaanah makes iron horns and suggests they use it to gore Syria. 

Micaiah is summoned and the messenger urges Micaiah to agree with the other prophets. Micaiah says he will speak what the Lord says. 

 Micaiah is a bit sarcastic at first, saying he agrees with the false prophets.
He then says that they would indeed be destroyed, including their leader. Ahab gets mad. 

Micaiah continues:

• He describes a vision of God’s throne room.
• The Lord asks, “Who will entice Ahab into attacking Ramoth Gilead and going to his death?”
• Different spirits suggest ideas, until a (fallen?) one says they will speak lies to the prophets and God allows it. 

Zedekiah slaps Micaiah and mocks him. Ahab orders Micaiah to be imprisoned. 

Ahab and Jehoshaphat decide to march to battle. Ahab disguises himself, while Jehoshaphat wears royal robes. The Aramean king commands his chariot officers to fight only the king. 

They mistake Jehoshaphat for Ahab and surround him, but soon realize their mistake. A random arrow strikes Ahab between the joints of his armor. He dies propped up facing the battle. 

This is the fulfillment of prophecy:

• Ahab’s blood is washed out of the chariot at Samaria.
• Dogs lick up the blood.
• Prostitutes bathe in it.
• This fulfills Elijah’s word about Ahab’s judgment.

His son Ahaziah succeeds him.

Jehoshaphat followed the ways of his father Asa, and did what was right in the eyes of the Lord. However, high places were not removed. His son Jehoram succeeded him.

Ahaziah son of Ahab begins to reign over Israel in Samaria. He only reigns two years.He does evil  and  provokes the Lord, continuing in idolatry.

2 Kings 1

After Ahab’s death, Moab rebels against Israel.

King Ahaziah (Ahab’s son) falls through the lattice of his upper room in Samaria and is badly injured. He tells his men to ask a god of Ekron if he will be OK. 

The angel of the Lord tells Elijah the Tishbite to ask the messengers why they are inquiring of this god and that he will die. The messengers return early to Ahaziah, and repeat Elijah’s words.

Ahaziah sends a captain with 50 soldiers to bring Elijah. They find Elijah sitting on a hill and fire falls from heaven and consumes them.

Ahaziah sends another captain with 50. Same thing happens. A third captain with 50 comes, but he falls on his knees and pleads for mercy. The angel of the Lord tells Elijah to go with him. 

Elijah delivers the same prophecy face to face: Ahaziah dies, just as the Lord had spoken.

Since he had no son, his brother Jehoram becomes king of Israel.

2 Kings 2

Elijah and Elisha set out from Gilgal together. At each stop (Gilgal, Bethel, and Jericho) Elijah tells Elisha to stay behind, but Elisha swore by the Lord that he would not leave him.

Groups of prophets came out and told Elisha that the Lord was going to take Elijah that day, but Elisha told them to keep quiet (!) 

When they reached the Jordan, Elijah rolled up his cloak, struck the water, and the parted the river so they could cross. 

Elijah asked what he could do for Elisha before being taken away, and Elisha asked for a double portion of his spirit.Elijah said this was a difficult request, but if Elisha saw him when he was taken, it would be granted.

Suddenly, a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared, separating them, and Elijah was taken up to heaven in a whirlwind.

Elisha picked up Elijah’s cloak and strikes the water asking “Where now is the Lord, the God of Elijah?” and the river parted for him as well.

The prophets asked to search for Elijah but Elisha said not to. They searched for Elijah three days, and returned with nothing, just as Elisha had said.

The men of Jericho told Elisha that the city had bad water and the land unproductive. Elisha asked for a new bowl with salt, threw it into the spring, and declared that the Lord had healed the water so it would never again cause death or barrenness.

Later, as Elisha was going up to Bethel, some youths came out and mocked him, saying, “Go up, you baldhead!” Elisha turned, pronounced a curse in the name of the Lord, and two bears came out of the forest and mauled forty-two of them.

Questions

Why do books end with asking us if something is not written in another book?

Are Elijah and Elisha sassy?

Was it necessary to send the bears against the youth? Did they die?

Why does it say female bears?

Application

Ok I am going to try to do an application on these three men’s sassiness. A touch of “sass” in Micaiah’s sarcasm made the truth stand out more clearly. Elijah mocking the prophets of Baal and sitting on his hill while fire came down showed his courage in God’s power.  Elisha shushing the prophets showed his devotion and that he knew where God wanted him to be. Their sass was never about pride but more about exposing the truth of God. Maybe these stories can give us the confidence to say, “The Lord is God….why are you chasing nonsense?” (Just make sure to use it responsibly…)