Sermon Tone Analysis

Last week we began a study in Kings.

We looked at the first 3 kings to serve the divided kingdom.

Why was the kingdom split?

Solomon’s worship of foreign gods.

How was the kingdom split? 10 tribes in the north, called Israel and 1 tribe in the south called Judah.

What tribe supported one or the other at times?

Benjamin

 

We left off in 1 Kings 15 with the introduction of Asa (Judah)

*9*** In the twentieth year of Jeroboam king of Israel, Asa became king of Judah, 10 and he reigned in Jerusalem forty-one years.

His grandmother’s name was Maacah daughter of Abishalom.

*11* Asa did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, as his father David had done.

This is the first time we have seen those words.

Why did we see a reference to David?

Because David followed after God, and kept the covenant.

*11* Asa did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, as his father David had done.

12 He expelled the male shrine prostitutes from the land and got rid of all the idols his fathers had made.

13 He even deposed his grandmother Maacah from her position as queen mother, because she had made a repulsive Asherah pole.

Asa cut the pole down and burned it in the Kidron Valley.

14 Although he did not remove the high places, Asa’s heart was fully committed to the Lord all his life.

15 He brought into the temple of the Lord the silver and gold and the articles that he and his father had dedicated.

Asa was a good guy, but he did have one fault.

What was it?

V14 He did not remove the high places.

He tolerated them.

This should be a warning to us not to turn a blind eye to evil around us.

 

*16* There was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel throughout their reigns.



Baasha had a treaty with Ben-Hadad who was the son of king of Aram, so it wasn’t just Israel at war with Judah.

Asa got the idea to enter into his own alliance with Ben-Hadad.

So he looted the treasuries of the temple and the nation and sent gold and silver to Ben-Hadad.

*20*** Ben-Hadad agreed with King Asa and sent the commanders of his forces against the towns of Israel.

He conquered Ijon, Dan, Abel Beth Maacah and all Kinnereth in addition to Naphtali.



*24*** Then Asa rested with his fathers and was buried with them in the city of his father David.

And Jehoshaphat his son succeeded him as king.

Over to Israel

25 Nadab son of Jeroboam became king of Israel in the second year of Asa king of Judah, and he reigned over Israel two years.

26 He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, walking in the ways of his father and in his sin, which he had caused Israel to commit.

There’s that verse we see again and again.

27 Baasha son of Ahijah of the house of Issachar plotted against him, and he struck him down at Gibbethon, a Philistine town, while Nadab and all Israel were besieging it.

28 Baasha killed Nadab in the third year of Asa king of Judah and succeeded him as king.

29 As soon as he began to reign, he killed Jeroboam’s whole family.

He did not leave Jeroboam anyone that breathed, but destroyed them all, according to the word of the Lord given through his servant Ahijah the Shilonite— 30 because of the sins Jeroboam had committed and had caused Israel to commit, and because he provoked the Lord, the God of Israel, to anger.



*32*** There was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel throughout their reigns.

We just talked about that.

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33 In the third year of Asa king of Judah, Baasha son of Ahijah became king of all Israel in Tirzah, and he reigned twenty-four years.

34 He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, walking in the ways of Jeroboam and in his sin, which he had caused Israel to commit.

*16* Then the word of the Lord came to Jehu son of Hanani [the prophet] against Baasha:

Another pattern here: God uses prophets to speak to the kings.

2 “I lifted you up from the dust and made you leader of my people Israel, but you walked in the ways of Jeroboam and caused my people Israel to sin and to provoke me to anger by their sins.

His judgment is the same as Jeroboam’s neither would have a long line of his heirs on the throne.



*6*** Baasha rested with his fathers and was buried in Tirzah.

And Elah his son succeeded him as king.

*8* In the twenty-sixth year of Asa king of Judah, Elah son of Baasha became king of Israel, and he reigned in Tirzah two years.

9 Zimri, one of his officials, who had command of half his chariots, plotted against him.

Elah was in Tirzah at the time, getting drunk in the home of Arza, the man in charge of the palace at Tirzah.

10 Zimri came in, struck him down and killed him in the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah.

Then he succeeded him as king.

Just like Jeroboam, an official from the court became king.

11 As soon as he began to reign and was seated on the throne, he killed off Baasha’s whole family.

He did not spare a single male, whether relative or friend.

12 So Zimri destroyed the whole family of Baasha, in accordance with the word of the Lord spoken against Baasha through the prophet Jehu— 

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*15* In the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, Zimri reigned in Tirzah seven days.

The army was encamped near Gibbethon, a Philistine town.

16 When the Israelites in the camp heard that Zimri had plotted against the king and murdered him, they proclaimed Omri, the commander of the army, king over Israel that very day there in the camp.

17 Then Omri and all the Israelites with him withdrew from Gibbethon and laid siege to Tirzah.

18 When Zimri saw that the city was taken, he went into the citadel of the royal palace and set the palace on fire around him.

So he died, 19 because of the sins he had committed, doing evil in the eyes of the Lord and walking in the ways of Jeroboam and in the sin he had committed and had caused Israel to commit.

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*21* Then the people of Israel were split into two factions; half supported Tibni son of Ginath for king, and the other half supported Omri.

22 But Omri’s followers proved stronger than those of Tibni son of Ginath.

So Tibni died and Omri became king.

The people chose their king.

*25* But Omri did evil in the eyes of the Lord and sinned more than all those before him.

26 He walked in all the ways of Jeroboam son of Nebat and in his sin, which he had caused Israel to commit, so that they provoked the Lord, the God of Israel, to anger by their worthless idols.

*28*** Omri rested with his fathers and was buried in Samaria.

And Ahab his son succeeded him as king.

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*29*** In the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah, Ahab son of Omri became king of Israel, and he reigned in Samaria over Israel twenty-two years.

30 Ahab son of Omri did more evil in the eyes of the Lord than any of those before him.

31 He not only considered it trivial to commit the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, but he also married Jezebel daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and began to serve Baal and worship him.

32 He set up an altar for Baal in the temple of Baal that he built in Samaria.

33 Ahab also made an Asherah pole and did more to provoke the Lord, the God of Israel, to anger than did all the kings of Israel before him.



Because the purpose of this study is to look at the kings of Israel & Judah, we’re not going to spend a lot of time on Elijah & Elisha.

In 17 we meet the prophet Elijah.

How did God communicate with the kings?

Through a prophet.

Elijah goes to Ahab and tells him that there is going to be a drought.

*“*neither dew nor rain in the next few years” and then heads out into the desert where he is fed by the ravens.

/ /

*7*** Some time later the brook dried up because there had been no

rain in the land.

8 Then the word of the Lord came to him: 9 “Go at once to Zarephath of Sidon and stay there.

I have commanded a widow in that place to supply you with food.”

When he gets there, she is preparing her last meal.

She’s so poor, she only has enough flour left to make a small cake for her and her son.

Elijah tells her to make him dinner first.

*14* For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘The jar of

flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord gives rain on the land.’”

A while later the woman’s son gets sick & dies.

Elijah lies on top pf the corpse and he comes back to life.

In 18 God tells Elijah to go tell Ahab the drought is over.

*18:2*  Now the famine was severe in Samaria, 3 and Ahab had summoned Obadiah, who was in charge of his palace.

(Obadiah was a devout believer in the Lord.

4 While Jezebel was killing off the Lord’s prophets, Obadiah had taken a hundred prophets and hidden them in two caves, fifty in each, and had supplied them with food and water.)