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This is the New King James text of the passages. |
Ahaz (Judah) - he was bad and paid for it (II Kings 16; II Chronicles 28)
II Kings 16 |
II Chronicles 28 |
1 In the seventeenth year of Pekah the son of Remaliah, Ahaz the son of Jotham, king of Judah, began to reign. 2 Ahaz was twenty years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem; and he did not do what was right in the sight of the LORD his God, as his father David had done. 3 But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel; indeed he made his son pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the nations whom the LORD had cast out from before the children of Israel. 4 And he sacrificed and burned incense on the high places, on the hills, and under every green tree. 5 ¶ Then Rezin king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, came up to Jerusalem to make war; and they besieged Ahaz but could not overcome him. 6 At that time Rezin king of Syria captured Elath for Syria, and drove the men of Judah from Elath. Then the Edomites went to Elath, and dwell there to this day. 7 ¶ So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, saying, “I am your servant and your son. Come up and save me from the hand of the king of Syria and from the hand of the king of Israel, who rise up against me.” 8 And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in the house of the LORD, and in the treasuries of the king’s house, and sent it as a present to the king of Assyria. 9 So the king of Assyria heeded him; for the king of Assyria went up against Damascus and took it, carried its people captive to Kir, and killed Rezin. 10 ¶ Now King Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, and saw an altar that was at Damascus; and King Ahaz sent to Urijah the priest the design of the altar and its pattern, according to all its workmanship. 11 Then Urijah the priest built an altar according to all that King Ahaz had sent from Damascus. So Urijah the priest made it before King Ahaz came back from Damascus. 12 And when the king came back from Damascus, the king saw the altar; and the king approached the altar and made offerings on it. 13 So he burned his burnt offering and his grain offering; and he poured his drink offering and sprinkled the blood of his peace offerings on the altar. 14 He also brought the bronze altar which was before the LORD, from the front of the temple—from between the new altar and the house of the LORD—and put it on the north side of the new altar. 15 Then King Ahaz commanded Urijah the priest, saying, “On the great new altar burn the morning burnt offering, the evening grain offering, the king’s burnt sacrifice, and his grain offering, with the burnt offering of all the people of the land, their grain offering, and their drink offerings; and sprinkle on it all the blood of the burnt offering and all the blood of the sacrifice. And the bronze altar shall be for me to inquire by.” 16 Thus did Urijah the priest, according to all that King Ahaz commanded. 17 ¶ And King Ahaz cut off the panels of the carts, and removed the lavers from them; and he took down the Sea from the bronze oxen that were under it, and put it on a pavement of stones. 18 Also he removed the Sabbath pavilion which they had built in the temple, and he removed the king’s outer entrance from the house of the LORD, on account of the king of Assyria. 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. |
1 Ahaz was twenty years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem; and he did not do what was right in the sight of the LORD, as his father David had done. 2 For he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, and made molded images for the Baals. 3 He burned incense in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, and burned his children in the fire, according to the abominations of the nations whom the LORD had cast out before the children of Israel. 4 And he sacrificed and burned incense on the high places, on the hills, and under every green tree. 5 ¶ Therefore the LORD his God delivered him into the hand of the king of Syria. They defeated him, and carried away a great multitude of them as captives, and brought them to Damascus. Then he was also delivered into the hand of the king of Israel, who defeated him with a great slaughter. 6 For Pekah the son of Remaliah killed one hundred and twenty thousand in Judah in one day, all valiant men, because they had forsaken the LORD God of their fathers. 7 Zichri, a mighty man of Ephraim, killed Maaseiah the king’s son, Azrikam the officer over the house, and Elkanah who was second to the king. 8 And the children of Israel carried away captive of their brethren two hundred thousand women, sons, and daughters; and they also took away much spoil from them, and brought the spoil to Samaria. 9 ¶ But a prophet of the LORD was there, whose name was Oded; and he went out before the army that came to Samaria, and said to them: “Look, because the LORD God of your fathers was angry with Judah, He has delivered them into your hand; but you have killed them in a rage that reaches up to heaven. 10 And now you propose to force the children of Judah and Jerusalem to be your male and female slaves; but are you not also guilty before the LORD your God? 11 Now hear me, therefore, and return the captives, whom you have taken captive from your brethren, for the fierce wrath of the LORD is upon you.” 12 ¶ Then some of the heads of the children of Ephraim, Azariah the son of Johanan, Berechiah the son of Meshillemoth, Jehizkiah the son of Shallum, and Amasa the son of Hadlai, stood up against those who came from the war, 13 and said to them, “You shall not bring the captives here, for we already have offended the LORD. You intend to add to our sins and to our guilt; for our guilt is great, and there is fierce wrath against Israel.” 14 So the armed men left the captives and the spoil before the leaders and all the assembly. 15 Then the men who were designated by name rose up and took the captives, and from the spoil they clothed all who were naked among them, dressed them and gave them sandals, gave them food and drink, and anointed them; and they let all the feeble ones ride on donkeys. So they brought them to their brethren at Jericho, the city of palm trees. Then they returned to Samaria. 16 ¶ At the same time King Ahaz sent to the kings of Assyria to help him. 17 For again the Edomites had come, attacked Judah, and carried away captives. 18 The Philistines also had invaded the cities of the lowland and of the South of Judah, and had taken Beth Shemesh, Aijalon, Gederoth, Sochoh with its villages, Timnah with its villages, and Gimzo with its villages; and they dwelt there. 19 For the LORD brought Judah low because of Ahaz king of Israel, for he had encouraged moral decline in Judah and had been continually unfaithful to the LORD. 20 Also Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria came to him and distressed him, and did not assist him. 21 For Ahaz took part of the treasures from the house of the LORD, from the house of the king, and from the leaders, and he gave it to the king of Assyria; but he did not help him. 22 ¶ Now in the time of his distress King Ahaz became increasingly unfaithful to the LORD. This is that King Ahaz. 23 For he sacrificed to the gods of Damascus which had defeated him, saying, “Because the gods of the kings of Syria help them, I will sacrifice to them that they may help me.” But they were the ruin of him and of all Israel. 24 So Ahaz gathered the articles of the house of God, cut in pieces the articles of the house of God, shut up the doors of the house of the LORD, and made for himself altars in every corner of Jerusalem. 25 And in every single city of Judah he made high places to burn incense to other gods, and provoked to anger the LORD God of his fathers. 26 ¶ Now the rest of his acts and all his ways, from first to last, indeed they are written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel. 27 So Ahaz rested with his fathers, and they buried him in the city, in Jerusalem; but they did not bring him into the tombs of the kings of Israel. Then Hezekiah his son reigned in his place. |
Twenty-year-old Ahaz was just like the wicked Kings of Israel - no regard for the one true God. He even sacrificed his children on the pagan altar and rebuilt the altars to Baal. God abandons him because of his evilness. Syria and Israel (Northern Kingdom under King Pekah) team up against Judah (II King 15:37, see notes). First, King Resin of Syria comes after him and defeats him. Then it's his distant relatives from Israel who come and whip up on Judah - even take 200,000 prisoners to serve as slaves, but God speaks through the prophet, Oded, and makes Israel give them back.
Then the Edomites attack...and the Philistines too. What's a king to do? Against the counsel of Isaiah (Isaiah 7, see notes), Ahaz sends to Tiglathpileser of Assyria for help. He pays for this mercenary help by taking treasures from the temple. The problem is that Assyria doesn't actually help to any large degree. They do attack and beat the Syrians, but little more. When Ahaz makes his trip to Damascus, Syria after King Tiglathpileser of Assyria had taken that city, he is impressed with the Syrian gods he sees there. Never mind that those gods had not protected Syria from defeat against Assyria. He sends orders back to Jerusalem to the high priest, Urijah, to build an altar like the one in Syria. After some remodeling in Solomon's temple, they make way for a new kind of worship throughout Judah. Ahaz finally dies after a miserable 16-year reign; while he is buried where his ancestors were buried, they don't bury him in the same tomb with the other kings; he's just not worthy.
Here's the rest of the story on the damage done by Ahaz. Certainly...the Northern Kingdom (Israel) had abused Ahaz. However, Isaiah promised Ahaz deliverance without the assistance of Tiglathpileser of Assyria (II Kings 18:13-19:37; II Chronicles 32:9-22; Isaiah 36-37, see notes). After that assault upon Judah, only Jerusalem remained unclaimed by Assyria...but only after a miracle from God himself. As you can see, Ahaz did a great deal of damage during his short reign as King of Judah.
A Summary of King #12 from 735 to 715 B.C. over Judah: Ahaz |
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References | The Good | The Bad |
II Kings 16 |
Not specified - he was evil | II Kings 16:2-4 Twenty years old was Ahaz when he began to reign, and reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem, and did not that which was right in the sight of the LORD his God, like David his father. But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, yea, and made his son to pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the heathen, whom the LORD cast out from before the children of Israel. And he sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places, and on the hills, and under every green tree. II Chronicles 28:1-4 Ahaz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem: but he did not that which was right in the sight of the LORD, like David his father: For he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, and made also molten images for Baalim. Moreover he burnt incense in the valley of the son of Hinnom, and burnt his children in the fire, after the abominations of the heathen whom the LORD had cast out before the children of Israel. He sacrificed also and burnt incense in the high places, and on the hills, and under every green tree. |
The 9-year reign of Hoshea in Israel (II Kings 17:1-6)
1 In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah, Hoshea the son of Elah became king of Israel in Samaria, and he reigned nine years.
2 And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, but not as the kings of Israel who were before him.
3 Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up against him; and Hoshea became his vassal, and paid him tribute money.
4 And the king of Assyria uncovered a conspiracy by Hoshea; for he had sent messengers to So, king of Egypt, and brought no tribute to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year. Therefore the king of Assyria shut him up, and bound him in prison.
5 ¶ Now the king of Assyria went throughout all the land, and went up to Samaria and besieged it for three years.
6 In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria took Samaria and carried Israel away to Assyria, and placed them in Halah and by the Habor, the River of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes.
The wicked King of Israel, Hoshea, paid off the King of Assyria (Shalmaneser V, son and successor to Tiglathpileser III), not to attack. However, it all fell through when Hoshea double crossed him by working another deal with So, the King of Egypt - a bad deal which landed King Hoshea in an Assyrian prison. Assyria subsequently came in and captured the Northern Kingdom in 721/722 B.C. So, Hoshea has the distinction of being the last king of the Northern Kingdom also known as Israel.
A Summary of King #19 from 732 to 722 B.C. over Israel: Hoshea |
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References | The Good | The Bad |
II Kings 17:1-6 |
Not specified - he was evil | II Kings 17:2 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, but not as the kings of Israel that were before him. |
The fall of Israel (Samaria, Northern Kingdom) and subsequent deportation (II Kings 17:7-23)
7 ¶ For so it was that the children of Israel had sinned against the LORD their God, who had brought them up out of the land of Egypt, from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and they had feared other gods,
8 and had walked in the statutes of the nations whom the LORD had cast out from before the children of Israel, and of the kings of Israel, which they had made.
9 Also the children of Israel secretly did against the LORD their God things that were not right, and they built for themselves high places in all their cities, from watchtower to fortified city.
10 They set up for themselves sacred pillars and wooden images on every high hill and under every green tree.
11 There they burned incense on all the high places, like the nations whom the LORD had carried away before them; and they did wicked things to provoke the LORD to anger,
12 for they served idols, of which the LORD had said to them, “You shall not do this thing.”
13 ¶ Yet the LORD testified against Israel and against Judah, by all of His prophets, every seer, saying, “Turn from your evil ways, and keep My commandments and My statutes, according to all the law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by My servants the prophets.”
14 Nevertheless they would not hear, but stiffened their necks, like the necks of their fathers, who did not believe in the LORD their God.
15 And they rejected His statutes and His covenant that He had made with their fathers, and His testimonies which He had testified against them; they followed idols, became idolaters, and went after the nations who were all around them, concerning whom the LORD had charged them that they should not do like them.
16 So they left all the commandments of the LORD their God, made for themselves a molded image and two calves, made a wooden image and worshiped all the host of heaven, and served Baal.
17 And they caused their sons and daughters to pass through the fire, practiced witchcraft and soothsaying, and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke Him to anger.
18 Therefore the LORD was very angry with Israel, and removed them from His sight; there was none left but the tribe of Judah alone.
19 ¶ Also Judah did not keep the commandments of the LORD their God, but walked in the statutes of Israel which they made.
20 And the LORD rejected all the descendants of Israel, afflicted them, and delivered them into the hand of plunderers, until He had cast them from His sight.
21 For He tore Israel from the house of David, and they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king. Then Jeroboam drove Israel from following the LORD, and made them commit a great sin.
22 For the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they did not depart from them,
23 until the LORD removed Israel out of His sight, as He had said by all His servants the prophets. So Israel was carried away from their own land to Assyria, as it is to this day.
Israelites were deported out of Samaria into greater Assyria. Why? It destroys national pride - makes it easier to control the masses. When you're running an empire, that's important. A discourse is found here outlining why Israel fell (worship of pagan gods, verses 7-12), despite warnings from God's prophets (verse 13). However, they continued with their rejection of God (verses 14-17), until we see a sobering verse 18, "Therefore the LORD was very angry with Israel, and removed them from His sight; there was none left but the tribe of Judah alone."
Judah is still intact at this point, but we see in verse 19 that they don't lag far behind Israel in their wickedness. Then, beginning in verse 20, you will notice that Jeroboam, the first King of Israel after the reign of Solomon, gets the credit for corrupting Israel beyond repair. He set up calf worship from the very beginning, and Israel never served God from that point until their fall to the Assyrians.
The new residents of Samaria (Israel) (II Kings 17:24-41)
24 ¶ Then the king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Cuthah, Ava, Hamath, and from Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel; and they took possession of Samaria and dwelt in its cities.
25 And it was so, at the beginning of their dwelling there, that they did not fear the LORD; therefore the LORD sent lions among them, which killed some of them.
26 So they spoke to the king of Assyria, saying, “The nations whom you have removed and placed in the cities of Samaria do not know the rituals of the God of the land; therefore He has sent lions among them, and indeed, they are killing them because they do not know the rituals of the God of the land.”
27 Then the king of Assyria commanded, saying, “Send there one of the priests whom you brought from there; let him go and dwell there, and let him teach them the rituals of the God of the land.”
28 Then one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and dwelt in Bethel, and taught them how they should fear the LORD.
29 ¶ However every nation continued to make gods of its own, and put them in the shrines on the high places which the Samaritans had made, every nation in the cities where they dwelt.
30 The men of Babylon made Succoth Benoth, the men of Cuth made Nergal, the men of Hamath made Ashima,
31 and the Avites made Nibhaz and Tartak; and the Sepharvites burned their children in fire to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim.
32 So they feared the LORD, and from every class they appointed for themselves priests of the high places, who sacrificed for them in the shrines of the high places.
33 They feared the LORD, yet served their own gods—according to the rituals of the nations from among whom they were carried away.
34 ¶ To this day they continue practicing the former rituals; they do not fear the LORD, nor do they follow their statutes or their ordinances, or the law and commandment which the LORD had commanded the children of Jacob, whom He named Israel,
35 with whom the LORD had made a covenant and charged them, saying: “You shall not fear other gods, nor bow down to them nor serve them nor sacrifice to them;
36 but the LORD, who brought you up from the land of Egypt with great power and an outstretched arm, Him you shall fear, Him you shall worship, and to Him you shall offer sacrifice.
37 And the statutes, the ordinances, the law, and the commandment which He wrote for you, you shall be careful to observe forever; you shall not fear other gods.
38 And the covenant that I have made with you, you shall not forget, nor shall you fear other gods.
39 But the LORD your God you shall fear; and He will deliver you from the hand of all your enemies.”
40 However they did not obey, but they followed their former rituals.
41 So these nations feared the LORD, yet served their carved images; also their children and their children’s children have continued doing as their fathers did, even to this day.
To finish off the task, the Assyrians bring foreigners in to populate Israel since many of the Israelites had been deported. The Assyrians had a little problem, though; the new people weren't familiar with the religious practices in Samaria (WHAT RELIGIOUS PRACTICES?). Interestingly enough, this results in attacks by lions which the King of Assyria attributes to the new inhabitants' lack of familiarity with Israel's God. So they send back to where the Israelites had been deported for a Samaritan priest to provide orientation for the new inhabitants of Israel. So, the corrupted practices of religion instituted by Jeroboam became one of the many religions of the Assyrian Empire in Israel...with a sprinkling of Jehovah worship added into the mix. Why did Israel fall? They did not follow the one true God. This record continues in II Kings 18 (see notes).