2 Kings 18-19

Overview of 2 Kings

-2 Kings tells the story of the fall of God’s people

-Northern Kingdom falls in 722BC (chapter 17)

-Southern Kingdom falls in 587BC (chapter 24-25)

“When we look at 1 and 2 Samuel and 1 and 2 Kings together, the overall thesis is ironic, but clear: the nation that Joshua led into Canaan to be a witness to the surrounding nations becomes instead an imitation of those nations. Israel does the exact opposite of what it is taught to do; God’s people reject God…these four books called God’s people to repentance.” - Dever

-Remember they were written during the exile, reminding the people that the nation of Israel deserved the exile…and needed to repent.... 1) Blessing: God had blessed his people - background we must remember…temple, king, land

2) Failure: The leaders of God’s people lead them into sin

3) Punishment: God punishes his people (17; 25)

4) Hope: God’s people still have hope If they repent...

Because of God’s promises…8:19, 13:23, 20:6, 19:15-19

Sermon -

Biblical Exposition - Preparation Worksheet:“Every text has a structure, every structure has an emphasis, the emphasis shapes the sermon.”

Think through and what God want my people to hear this time...

EXEGESIS: (Then and then) (HOW has the author structured the text?)

1. How has the author organized the text? Answer this question in two ways:

1) show the author’s structure with sections and verse references, and

1. Hezekiah begins to reign

25 years old

reigned 29 years

His mother was Abijah, daughter of Zechariah

he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father David had done

He removed the high places

Hezekiah trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel

There was no more like him among all the kings of Judah, either before him or after him.

He held fast to the Lord and did not stop following him; he kept the commands the Lord had given Moses.

He rebelled against the king of Assyria and did not serve him.

From watchtower to fortified city, he defeated the Philistines, as far as Gaza and its territory...

2. Samaria was captured in Hezekiah’s 6th year

Hezekiah’s 4th year Shalmanser king of Assyria marched against Samaria and laid siege to it.

At the end of 3 years Assyrians took it

The king of Assyria deported Israel to Assyria

This happened because they had not obeyed the Lord their God, but had violated his covenant -

They neither listened to the commands nor carried them out.

3. In the 14th year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib of Assyria attacked all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them

Hezekiah sent a message to Sennacherib to back off if they pay a tribute

Hezekiah stripped off the gold of the doors and doorposts of the temple to pay this tribute

4. The king of Assyria sent his supreme commander, his chief officer, and his field commander with a large army, from Lachish to king Hezekiah at Jerusalem’

He taunts them about having confidence in the Lord

He set himself up as sovereign...

He was told to speak in Aramaic, but he replies in Hebrew for all the people…to not be tricked to trust in the Lord to deliver them

He invited them to abandon Hezekiah and come out to him...

All this was told to king Hezekiah

5. Hezekiah responds by tearing his clothes and going into the temple.

wearing sackcloth

they told Isaiah what Hezekiah said

2) explain how you arrived at this structure.

What emphasis does the structure reveal?

God will not be mocked?

-God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble

-The Israelites are to trust God to deliver them out of the hand of Sennacherib

2. How is the meaning of your text informed by its context? Answer this question using… (WHERE does this text occur?)

1) the immediate context (the closest passages on both sides of your text)...

-Isaiah was exiles because of sin and Samaria resettled with Babylonians...

-The chapter after talks about Hezekiah’s illness and recovery...

2) the context of the whole book...

-Hezekiah is a ray of hope in a very dark reign of bad kinds

-The book describes the downfall of Judah...

3) the historical context...

-The kingdom is divided

Of Book…

-The kingdom was divided and on a downward spiral to the eventual fall at the end of the book of 2 Kings

Of chapter …

-Comes right after the fall of Israel, which should be a sober reminder to Judah of the consequences of sin and rebellion...

4. Biblical context - connections to other places in the bible

- the basic content is in these chapters as is in 2 Kings 18-19

Isaiah 36-37

3. What is the main idea (or aim) that the author is communicating to his audience? (WHY did the author include this text? WHAT is in the text?)

Answer this question with one simple sentence.

Answer this question with one simple sentence.

Trust God in the day of trouble

THEOLOGICAL REFLECTION:

THEOLOGICAL REFLECTION:

4. What are a few ways that your text relates to or anticipates the gospel (i.e., the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ)? (Think about this more)

-

How would you incorporate one of these connections into your sermon? TODAY: (SO WHAT?)

5. What is your primary argument in your sermon?

Trust God in the day of trouble

Answer this question by showing the implications and/or applications for both the unbeliever and the believer.

What does this text say to the unbeliever?

Where is your hope in the day of trouble?

What does the say to Christians?

Why would the author mentioned this?

We don’t always walk by faith...

Who needs to hear this?

FCF - we think we are safe…do we really trust God?

Application: What does God now require of me?

Where does he require it of me?

Why must I do what he requires?

How can I do what God requires?

Look for...

(1) promises to claim,

God will be with you as you obey him...

(2) commands to obey,

(2) commands to obey,-I don’t think there are commands

(3) examples to follow,

Hezekiah and prayer

(4) sin to avoid and

Unbelief

(5) above all, look for Jesus Christ.

What is he telling PRBC?

6. What is your homiletical outline?

Intro to service...

Good morning...

I want to welcome all of you here this morning

I hope all of you are having a wonderful summer...

We are here this morning to worship the God who has saved is by his love and grace through faith in Christ Jesus...

We will be singing a few songs…giving you an opportunity to give financially to ministries of the church…and then we will open our bibles and be taught from God’s Word...

Let me pray a short prayer to ask God’s blessing on this service...

Intro to preaching...

In a few moments we will open the word of God together and I will preaching a sermon for about 45 minutes...

This will take up most of what we do in a worship service because in the Bible we learn about who God is and what God requires of us...

It teaching that we cannot do and will not do what God requires and so the bible teaches is about what God has done to save us from the judgement of God

And it is through the preaching of the Bible we hear God’s will for our lives...

Preaching is where I explain part of the Bible and then try to apply it to our lives today...

It is through the preaching of the Word that God speaks to us today...

That is why it is so important to open up your bibles with me and follow along to make sure I understand the part of the bible the way it is meant to be understood and to hear what God wants us to know.

This is why I stand behind this pulpit with the Word of God in front of me...

I am not teaching you my ideas…my opinions...

This morning we will be reading and looking at a bigger chunk of the bible than I normally preach from...

But that does not mean the sermon will be that much longer...

So please turn 2 Kings 18...

Let me pray...

Intro...

This morning we are going to look at a story where a godly man was challenged to trust God in a day where trouble came to his door step...

Where something threaten to sake his faith in the power and sovereignty of God...

This very thing…something happening to threaten our faith…can happen from time to time...

When life does not go the way that we planned it...

Or when a tragedy suddenly strikes...

I don’t need to go through specific examples because I think everyone knows what I am talking about...

And the question is, how are we going to respond?

Are we going to keep trusting God? Are we going to keep walking by faith?

The character in the story is a man by the name of Hezekiah...

There are many things that come our way in life that threaten to shake whatever we have put our faith in...

And this is especially true when it comes to our faith in God...

And his story teaches us, and this is the theme of the message today...

In the midst of stories where we see peoples lack of faith, we have a story where the day of trouble came and ends up being a story about faith...

Which is an important reminder to us...

And the message of this story is to...

Theme -Trust and obey God in the day of trouble

How do we see this in the story of Hezekiah in chapter 18...

1. God delights in radical faith (18:1-8)

Let me read 18:1-8...

These verses are like a breath of fresh air...

A nice cool breeze on a warm summer day...

It is like king David is back!!!

Ralph Davis is right to get us to...“Think of Hezekiah’s reign in light of Judah’s previous 150 years.”

Abijah - 1 Kings 15:3

Asa - , 14

“Think of Hezekiah’s reign in light of Judah’s previous 150 years.

Jehoshaphat - …peace with Ahab

Jehoram -

Joash -

Amaziah -

Azariah -

Jotham -

Ahaz - 6:2-4

Godly Jehoshaphat’s stupid marriage alliances with Ahab’s family not only guaranteed wicked kings (Jehoram, Ahaziah) to Judah but nearly wiped out the Davidic dynasty (Athaliah).

Kings followed who were doing ‘what was right’ but never getting extreme about it (Joash, Amaziah, Uzziah, and Jotham).

In 14:3 Amaziah did right ‘yet not like David his father’, and in

Asa did what was right as David had, but he didn’t put the ‘high places’ out of business (v. 14a).

Then with Ahaz (ch. 16) it looks like Judah is plunging into the pit.

Davis, D. R. (2005). 2 Kings: The Power and the Fury (p. 262). Great Britain: Christian Focus Publications.

But look at verses 3-4 of chapter 18...

But this new David removes the high places, shattering the symbols of male deity (pillars) and hacking down those of female deity (Asherah)—he even pounds to bits the bronze serpent from Moses’ time () since the people were venerating it (v. 4).”

Then with Ahaz (ch. 16) it looks like Judah is plunging into the pit.

How amazing that after Ahaz we have David redivivus.”

Davis, D. R. (2005). 2 Kings: The Power and the Fury (p. 262). Great Britain: Christian Focus Publications.

Look at how different he was even to his father, Ahaz...

He removed the high places...

Go through some of the kings…some did some things right…but not all things...

Smashed the sacred stones...

Cut down the Asherah poles...

He broke into pieces the bronze snake Moses had made...

After 150 years of courage-less kings in Judah we have a king that has the courage to do what please God...

Look at what motivated Hezekiah in verse 5...

He trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel...

He held fast to the Lord and did not stop following him...

He kept the commands the Lord had given Moses...

And the Lord was with him...

He was successful in whatever he undertook...

He rebelled against the king of Assyria and did not serve him…like his father did in chapter 16...

He defeated the Philistines...

In 14:3 Amaziah did right ‘yet not like David his father’, and in Asa did what was right as David had, but he didn’t put the ‘high places’ out of business (v. 14a). But this new David removes the high places, shattering the symbols of male deity (pillars) and hacking down those of female deity (Asherah)—he even pounds to bits the bronze serpent from Moses’ time () since the people were venerating it (v. 4).

Davis, D. R. (2005). 2 Kings: The Power and the Fury (p. 261). Great Britain: Christian Focus Publications.

Davis, D. R. (2005). 2 Kings: The Power and the Fury (p. 262). Great Britain: Christian Focus Publications.

But then Hezekiah...

He not only cleaned up Judah, but he also stood his ground against the king of Assyria...

What a resume!!!

What a list of accomplishments...

Iain Provan draws attention to some interesting parallels:

“The consequence of this religious faithfulness was that Hezekiah’s military exploits paralleled David’s in a way that was not true of any of the rest of his descendants.

Only of David and Hezekiah among the Davidic kings is it said that the Lord was with him (v. 7; cf. ; , ; ) and that the king was successful in war (Hb. śkl, v. 7; cf. , , ).

Only David and Hezekiah, furthermore, are said to have defeated the Philistines (Hb. nkh, v. 8; cf. ; ; etc.).

As similar to David as he was, he was by the same token utterly dissimilar to Ahaz, for he would not continue to serve the king of Assyria (Hb. ‘bd; contrast Ahaz’s description of himself as “servant” in ) but rebelled against him.”

Davis, D. R. (2005). 2 Kings: The Power and the Fury (pp. 261–262). Great Britain: Christian Focus Publications.

Do you see this as a breath of fresh air?

It takes one man to step out in faith...

It was a risky, radical faith...

He could have done what every other king did...

God is not after a faith that is just the same as everyone else...

Hezekiah is a great example to follow...

Application -

In what areas of your life is God calling you to step out in faith?

Maybe to be a witness at home or at work? To actually talk about Jesus with people when you can...

Maybe it is giving more to the church...

Maybe it is discipling some…meeting them regularly to study the bible together...

Maybe it is having your unbelieving neighbours over and befriending them for the sake of the gospel...

Maybe it is sacrificing some time to serve in a ministry of the church...

Maybe it is how you walk into church…looking to serve and encourage someone instead of coming just to receive...

Maybe it is to take the step of baptism…and become a member of our church...

You see Hezekiah took that step of faith and trusted God…it was not comfortable...

He probably had a lot of people oppose him in the religious changes that he made...

He had international opposition that we will look at it now that shook him to the core of his faith...

And that leads into my second point...

2. Days of trouble will come to challenge your faith (9-37)

Let me read 9-18…what happened to Hezekiah’s faith?

I kind of wished that chapter 18 ended in verse 8...

1) Radical faith does not keep you from disaster...

But that would give you a false picture of faith and of God...

“You can cling to the Lord and the Assyrians will come.

This does not overthrow the overall promise of blessing and help given to faith and obedience (e.g., ; ) but recognizes that such blessing often can be diluted with trouble and grief.

If it were not so, our faith would likely become magic.

Many folks who get ‘disappointed with God’ have walked by this prophylactic faith.

One gives himself to earnest prayer but his wife still dies of cancer, and he never prays again.

A woman who is a diligent children’s worker in the church is abandoned by her husband, and she abandons the church

.A lady in the early stages of Alzheimer’s tells her pastor that she says her prayers every night and it sounds as if this practice is a kind of religious rabbit’s foot.

Kings 18 can prove a helpful corrective.

It tells you that you can be a king who trusts and obeys Yahweh and who reforms the nation’s worship and yet your enemy may come and crush your land, deport its population, and await the moment when he can impale the king’s carcass on a stake outside the city wall.

It’s helpful to faith to know that.

Davis, D. R. (2005). 2 Kings: The Power and the Fury (p. 264). Great Britain: Christian Focus Publications.

This was a serious threat…think about what the king of Assyria did to Israel…3 years of siege...

Strong faith does not keep

Strong faith does not keep you from disaster

Here we see a huge lapse in his faith...

Christians are not immune to the day of trouble...

I read an article this past week titles, “5 Christian Cliches that need to die”

You know what a cliche is, right?

“a phrase or opinion that is overused and betrays a lack of original thought.”

One of the cliches is corrected by the this story and the cliche is this...

a phrase or opinion that is overused and betrays a lack of original thought.

“God will not give you more than you can handle.” - Matt Semethurst

In a culture that tells us we can be anything we desire, this motivational slogan is meant to encourage, to reassure us that life won’t be too hard.

There will be challenges, sure, but God knows my limits. He won’t overdo it.

The problem, however, is that God will give you more than you can handle.

He’ll do it to make you lean on him. He’ll do it because he loves you.

Over the past few years, few things have encouraged my soul more than the letters of John Newton (1725–1807), the former slave trader who penned “Amazing Grace.”

In one letter to a widow fearing death, Newton writes:

Though our frames and perceptions may vary, the report of faith concerning [the time of death] is the same. The Lord usually reserves dying strength for a dying hour. . . .

When the time shall arrive which he has appointed for your dismissal, I make no doubt but that he will overpower all your fears, silence all your enemies, and give you a comfortable, triumphant entrance into his kingdom.

You have nothing to fear from death; for Jesus, by dying, has disarmed it of its sting, has perfumed the grave, and opened the gates of glory for his believing people.

The good news is not that God won’t give us more than we can handle; it’s that he won’t give us more than he can handle.

Hezekiah may have thought this was more than he can handle because the 2 thing we learn in the day of trouble is that...

2) Radical faith can flounder and fail at times

Verse 14 Hezekiah sent Sennacherib, the king of Assyria a message…look at what he said...

He is saying he was wrong for rebelling against him...

I think what challenged his faith is what happened to Hoshea, the king of Israel...

Look back with me to chapter 17...

Hezekiah also did not pay tribute...

Look what the king of Assyria did…took Israel into exile...

Now when Assyria came knocking about 10 years later, Hezekiah did not trust God the way he should have...

But he tried to do what his father did…he caved in...

But it didn’t work…look at what the king of Assyria did in verse 17...

Look at what he uses to discourage the Israelites...

Intimidation - they just came from destroying Lachish just west of them…look at what the field commander said...

Verse 21…17:4 - Hoshea depended on Egypt…which led to Israel’s downfall

Not sure if Hezekiah supported this…but there would have been pro-Egypt people in his leadership...

And he exposes this folly of trusting them...

And Ralph Davis makes this point..

“...it is sad when an Assyrian has to teach you how flimsy and foolish and fragile is the object of your trust. It’s sad when an Assyrian can divine that you trust Egypt more than Yahweh. It’s sad when an Assyrian can expose your folly rather than your faith.”

But it is sad when an Assyrian has to teach you how flimsy and foolish and fragile is the object of your trust. It’s sad when an Assyrian can divine that you trust Egypt more than Yahweh. It’s sad when an Assyrian can expose your folly rather than your faith.

Davis, D. R. (2005). 2 Kings: The Power and the Fury (p. 270). Great Britain: Christian Focus Publications.

Division - look at how he misunderstands Hezekiah’s reforms…but he plays on the notion that not everyone would be happy with these reforms

Division through confusion…the Lord told him to destroy Judah...

More division in speaking Hebrew so all the people can hear...

Human logic -

He uses division, intimidation, and then logic

Days of trouble came to Israel because of sin…but not in this story...

It is easy to think this way, isn’t it?

How can God work in this situation?

No one is perfect…maybe get to Jesus here...

How can God get me out of this jam I am in?

How can God deliver us…how can God work?

It is easy to think about our church and ask these questions...

In a culture that tells us we can be anything we desire, this motivational slogan is meant to encourage, to reassure us that life won’t be too hard. There will be challenges, sure, but God knows my limits. He won’t overdo it.

The problem, however, is that God will give you more than you can handle. He’ll do it to make you lean on him. He’ll do it because he loves you.

Over the past few years, few things have encouraged my soul more than the letters of John Newton (1725–1807), the former slave trader who penned “Amazing Grace.” In one letter to a widow fearing death, Newton writes:

Though our frames and perceptions may vary, the report of faith concerning [the time of death] is the same. The Lord usually reserves dying strength for a dying hour. . . . When the time shall arrive which he has appointed for your dismissal, I make no doubt but that he will overpower all your fears, silence all your enemies, and give you a comfortable, triumphant entrance into his kingdom. You have nothing to fear from death; for Jesus, by dying, has disarmed it of its sting, has perfumed the grave, and opened the gates of glory for his believing people.

The good news is not that God won’t give us more than we can handle; it’s that he won’t give us more than he can handle.

Do we trust him? Are we obeying his call?

The day of trouble will expose your faith...

The only antidote is to pray...

Insofar as the safety here is eternal, or means something like “in the right place,” this maxim is gloriously true. Almost every time I hear it, though, the person is referring to physicalsafety.

Years ago, as I was preparing to become a missionary in a closed country, a few well-meaning believers assured me God would protect me from harm since he had called me.

Jesus seems to disagree:

You will be delivered up even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends, and some of you they will put to death. You will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But not a hair of your head will perish. ()

Some of you they’ll slaughter. You’ll be entirely safe. Huh?

These promises sound contradictory, but they’re not. Justin Martyr (AD 100–165) was almost certainly reflecting on this passage when he said, “They can kill us, but they cannot harm us.”

I love that. Only a Christian could say something so crazy.

God has promised us many wonderful things; physical safety is not one of them. Brutal life circumstances are normal in a fallen world. Pursuing God may even lead you into greaterphysical danger. But you will be spiritually alive and eternally secure.

3. Pray in faith to our sovereign God in the day of trouble (19)

A lapse in faith does not have to be the end of the story…

Nor does it have to be the end of your story...

1) Pray the truth…be honest (1-19)

2) Rest on the pillow God’s sovereignty (predestination) (20-37)

-Love the sovereignty of God...

-Many Christians get nervous when

“In short, a little predestination cuts arrogance down to size.

Predestination, of course, makes some Christians nervous; they shudder at the mention of the ‘P-word’.

All I can say is: If you don’t want predestination, well then, go ahead and live a comfortless life, bite your nails and swallow your tranquilizers and eat your guts out as you watch the evening news.

Some of us prefer, however, the pillow of predestination, that is, of having a God big enough that he is never surprised by the blathering Sennacheribs of this age.”

Davis, D. R. (2005). 2 Kings: The Power and the Fury (pp. 287–288). Great Britain: Christian Focus Publications.

“Prayer does not change things but prayer lays hold of God who changes things”

Prayer is frequently unnerving because it is the activity we engage in between catastrophe and deliverance.

But if we pray truth, as Hezekiah did, we will find it not only reaches God but anchors us.

Davis, D. R. (2005). 2 Kings: The Power and the Fury (p. 282). Great Britain: Christian Focus Publications.

3) Trust God to work things out according to his will

Prayer is frequently unnerving because it is the activity we engage in between catastrophe and Prayer does not change things but prayer lays hold of God who changes things

But if we pray truth, as Hezekiah did, we will find it not only reaches God but anchors us.

Look at what God did...

Prophecy: A Love Affair with Predestination (vv. 20–34)

Prayer does not change things but prayer lays hold of God who changes things

Davis, D. R. (2005). 2 Kings: The Power and the Fury (p. 282). Great Britain: Christian Focus Publications.

This story is not meant to teach is that God will save the day…will aways have a positive outcome...

God worked things out in Hezekiah’s day of trouble...

because he is bigger than our troubles

God worked things out in the day of trouble...

Reminds of the day of trouble in the life of Jesus

 “Fellow Israelites, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. 23 This man was handed over to you by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. 24 But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him....

: 37 When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”

38 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.

Challenge - Trust and obey God in the day of trouble

This is another

This is another time

And I do not pretend to know how God will work all things out...

And I do not pretend to know how God will work all things out...

Not every pray turns out like this...

Challenge - Trust and obey God in the day of trouble

“Prayer does not change things but prayer lays hold of God who changes things”

Prayer is frequently unnerving because it is the activity we engage in between catastrophe and deliverance.

But if we pray truth, as Hezekiah did, we will find it not only reaches God but anchors us.

Davis, D. R. (2005). 2 Kings: The Power and the Fury (p. 282). Great Britain: Christian Focus Publications.

There is another Christian cliche that needs to die...

-talk about cliches that need to die…can use a few of them here

“You’re never more safe than when you’re in God’s will.” - Matt Semethurst

Insofar as the safety here is eternal, or means something like “in the right place,” this maxim is gloriously true. Almost every time I hear it, though, the person is referring to physicalsafety.

Insofar as the safety here is eternal, or means something like “in the right place,” this maxim is gloriously true.

Almost every time I hear it, though, the person is referring to physical safety.

Years ago, as I was preparing to become a missionary in a closed country, a few well-meaning believers assured me God would protect me from harm since he had called me.

Jesus seems to disagree:

You will be delivered up even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends, and some of you they will put to death.

You will be hated by all for my name’s sake. 

But not a hair of your head will perish. ()

Some of you they’ll slaughter. You’ll be entirely safe. Huh?

These promises sound contradictory, but they’re not.

Justin Martyr (AD 100–165) was almost certainly reflecting on this passage when he said, “They can kill us, but they cannot harm us.”

I love that. Only a Christian could say something so crazy.

God has promised us many wonderful things; physical safety is not one of them.

Brutal life circumstances are normal in a fallen world.

Pursuing God may even lead you into greater physical danger.

But you will be spiritually alive and eternally secure.

ut you will be spiritually alive and eternally secure.

Challenge - Trust and obey God in the day of trouble

So trust God in the day of trouble...