1 Kings 15:25-16:34

Introduction

Won’t Be Here Next Sunday or Wednesday

Marshall & Maggie have Very Generously Invited Us to Go on Vacation with Them

2 of Norah’s Brothers will Teach for Me Next Sunday

Her Youngest Brother, Levi, on Sunday Morning

Her Oldest Brother, Titus, on Sunday Night

They are Both Awesome People…

So Be Sure to Be Extra Hospitable & Welcoming to Them

1 Kings 15:25-16:34

Last Time, We Looked at the 2nd & 3rd Kings of Southern Judah

Abijam, Son of Rehoboam, Only Reigned 3 Years

Then His Son Asa Reigned for 41 Years

We Focused Primarily on the Reign of Asa

For Most of His Reign, He was a Fantastic King

His Reign was Characterized By…

His Restoring Judah to Seeking God

But By the End of His Reign…

He Himself had Stopped Seeking God

Now the Author is Going to Move North…

To Focus on 6 Subsequent Kings of Israel…

That Came After the 1st King, Jeroboam

One Thing to Notice is:

The Author Seems like He’s in a Hurry

He Doesn’t Spend a Whole Lot of Time…

On These 1st Several Kings

It’s like He’s Skimming Over Them…

In Order to Get to a Certain Point

It Seems that Way Because that’s Exactly What He’s Doing

By the End of Our Text…

We’ll Meet One of the Most Infamous Kings in Israelite History

And with Him will Come…

One of the Most Famous Prophets in Israelite History

And the Author is Going to Spend a Lot of Time…

Talking about Them

Now, Let’s Jump into Our Text

Nadab, Jeroboam’s Son Became King and Only Reigned for 2 Years

He was as Wicked as His Father had Been

Nadab was Assassinated By a Man Named Baasha

So Baasha Became King of Israel

1 Kings 15:29–30 (NLT)

29 He immediately slaughtered all the descendants of King Jeroboam, so that not one of the royal family was left, just as the Lord had promised concerning Jeroboam by the prophet Ahijah from Shiloh. 30 This was done because Jeroboam had provoked the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel, by the sins he had committed and the sins he had led Israel to commit.

The Entire Royal Family was Taken Out, Just as God had Said

God has Given the Kingdom to Baasha…

And He Reigns for 24

But He, Like Nadab, is Just as Sinful as Jeroboam

So He Receives the Same Prophesy as Jeroboam…

Revealing that His Family will Receive the Same Fate as Jeroboam’s

1 Kings 16:1–4 (NIV)

1 Then the word of the Lord came to Jehu son of Hanani concerning Baasha: 2 “I lifted you up from the dust and appointed you ruler over my people Israel, but you followed the ways of Jeroboam and caused my people Israel to sin and to arouse my anger by their sins. 3 So I am about to wipe out Baasha and his house, and I will make your house like that of Jeroboam son of Nebat. 4 Dogs will eat those belonging to Baasha who die in the city, and birds will feed on those who die in the country.”

After Baasha’s Death, His Son Elah Takes the Throne

He will Only Reign 2 Years Before He is Assassinated By His Commander, Zimri

Zimri will Go on to Do to Baasha’s Descendants…

As Baasha had Done to Jeroboam’s

He Murdered All of Them

Zimri is Now Ready to Start His Own Royal Dynasty in Israel

But that’s Not Going to Work Out for Him…

Because He’ll Only Be King for 7 Days

The Israelites were Fighting the Philistines at Gibbethon…

When They Heard that Zimri has Assassinated King Elah

They weren’t Happy about that…

So They Made Omri, the Commander, Their New King

Then They Marched Up to the Capital City of Tirzah…

And Besieged Their Own Capital City

1 Kings 16:18 (NET)

18 When Zimri saw that the city was captured, he went into the fortified area of the royal palace. He set the palace on fire and died in the flames.

So, Zimri is Dead, But Omri Didn’t Immediately Become King Over Israel

Even Though Zimri was Only King for 7 Days…

He had Started a Civil War in Israel that Needed to Be Sorted Out

Half of Israel Wanted Omri to Be the Next King…

But the Other Half Wanted a Man Named Tibni to Be the Next King

1 Kings 16:22 (NLT)

22 But Omri’s supporters defeated the supporters of Tibni. So Tibni was killed, and Omri became the next king.

Omri Reigned 12 Years in Israel

6 of Those Years He Reigned in the Capital of Tirzah

But Then He Moved the Capital to a New City

1 Kings 16:24 (NLT)

24 Then Omri bought the hill now known as Samaria from its owner, Shemer, for 150 pounds of silver. He built a city on it and called the city Samaria in honor of Shemer.

Samaria would Become the Capital City…

Of the Northern Kingdom of Israel…

From Then Until its Destruction By the Assyrians

In Jesus’ Day, that Entire Region Between Judea & Galilee…

Would Be Called “Samaria”

The Mixed Breed of People Who Lived There…

Would Be Known as the Samaritans

Just like Every Northern King that’s Come Before Him…

Omri was Wicked and Sinful

But His Wickedness was No Match for the Wickedness of His Son

1 Kings 16:28–30 (NET)

28 Omri passed away and was buried in Samaria. His son Ahab replaced him as king. 29 In the thirty-eighth year of Asa’s reign over Judah, Omri’s son Ahab became king over Israel. Ahab son of Omri ruled over Israel for twenty-two years in Samaria.30 Ahab son of Omri did more evil in the sight of the Lord than all who were before him.

King Ahab will Be One of the Most Wicked Kings in Israel’s History

Much Worse than Any that Came Before Him

1 Kings 16:31–33 (NLT)

31 And as though it were not enough to follow the sinful example of Jeroboam, he married Jezebel, the daughter of King Ethbaal of the Sidonians, and he began to bow down in worship of Baal. 32 First Ahab built a temple and an altar for Baal in Samaria. 33 Then he set up an Asherah pole. He did more to provoke the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel, than any of the other kings of Israel before him.

Being as Sinful as Jeroboam was Too Easy for Him

He Went Far Beyond that

He Married a Foreign Princess…

Who We’ll See in the Upcoming Weeks…

Was the Evil Mastermind Behind Many of His Wicked Acts

She Introduced Him to Baal Worship…

And He Introduced Israel to Baal…

By Building Him a Temple and Altar

We’ll See Lots More of Ahab and Jezebel in the Coming Weeks

The Last Verse of the Chapter Seems a Bit Random/Out of Place

But, as with All Passages of Scripture, I Believe it was Placed Here Intentionally

It Illustrates Perfectly the Hearts of the People at that Time

1 Kings 16:34 (NLT)

34 It was during his reign that Hiel, a man from Bethel, rebuilt Jericho. When he laid its foundations, it cost him the life of his oldest son, Abiram. And when he completed it and set up its gates, it cost him the life of his youngest son, Segub. This all happened according to the message from the Lord concerning Jericho spoken by Joshua son of Nun.

After the Walls of Jericho Fell and Israel Conquered the City…

Joshua Set a Curse Against Anyone Who would Ever Rebuild it

Joshua 6:26 (NASB95)

26 Then Joshua made them take an oath at that time, saying, “Cursed before the Lord is the man who rises up and builds this city Jericho; with the loss of his firstborn he shall lay its foundation, and with the loss of his youngest son he shall set up its gates.”

Around 400 Years After Joshua Set this Curse…

Hiel Decides to Rebuild Jericho

And in Doing So, the Curse Proved to Be True

His Oldest and Youngest Sons Died

As to How They Died is Up to Interpretation

Was it God’s Judgment Upon Hiel for Rebuilding the City?

Or was it Because Hiel Sacrificed His Sons to Build the City?

In Ancient Times There were “Foundation Sacrifices”

Children would Be Sacrificed and Then Placed in Jars…

And the Jars would Be Placed in the Masonry

Pagans Believed this Made the Gods Happy…

And would Ward Off Evil Spirits

Regardless of the Interpretation, We See the Reason this Verse was Put Here

During Ahab’s Reign:

People Didn’t Take God’s Promises/Warnings Seriously

People were Living in Horrendous Idolatry

Application

Regardless of How the Deaths of These Children Came about…

God’s Word Stood Firm

It Always Has

It Always Does

It Always Will

Isaiah 55:10–11 (NIV)

10 As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, 11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

That’s One of the Most Praiseworthy Characteristics of God:

If He Says He’ll Do it, He’ll Do it

If He Says it’ll Happen, it’ll Happen

He Cannot Lie

The Passing of Time Doesn’t Make Him Any Less Trustworthy

It Doesn’t Matter if it’s Been 400 Years or 2,000

If Jesus Said He’s Coming Back to Resurrect/Rescue His Followers…

Then that’s Exactly What He’s Going to Do

Are You Following Jesus?