II Kings 10
Jehu challenged rulers in Jezreelverses 1-3
And Ahab
had seventy sons in Samaria
And Jehu wrote letters
and sent to Samaria – unto the rulers of Jezreel
to the elders – to them that brought up Ahab’s children
saying
Now as soon as this letter comes to you
seeing your master’s sons are with you
and there are with you chariots and horses a fenced city
also and armor
Look even out the best and meet of your master’s sons
and set him on his father’s throne
and fight for your master’s house
Elders afraid and send letter to Jehuverses 4-5
But they were exceedingly afraid
and said
BEHOLD – two kings stood not before him
How then shall we stand?
And he that was over the house – and he that was over the city
the elders also – and the bringers up of the children
sent to Jehu saying
We are your servants
and will do all that you shall bid us
We will not make any king
do you that which is good in thine eyes
Jehu asked for heads of Ahab’s seventy sonsverses 6-7
Then he wrote a letter the second time to them
saying
IF you be mine
IF you will hearken unto my voice
take you the heads of the men your master’s sons
and come to me to Jezreel by tomorrow this time
Now the king’s sons – being seventy persons
were with the great men of the city
which brought them up
And it came to pass – when the letter came to them
that they took the king’s sons
and slew seventy persons
and put their heads in baskets
and sent him them to Jezreel
Heads of Ahab’s sons left at the gate of the cityverse 8
And there came a messenger – and told him
saying
They have brought the heads of the king’s sons
And he said
Lay you them in two heaps
at the entering in of the gate until the morning
Jehu killed the rest of Ahab’s family and friendsverses 9-11
And it came to pass in the morning – that he went out – and stood
and said to all the people
You be righteous
BEHOLD – I conspired against my master – and slew him
but who slew all these?
Know now that there shall fall to the earth
nothing of the word of the LORD
which the LORD spoke concerning the house of Ahab
for the LORD has done that which HE
spoke by HIS servant Elijah
So Jehu slew all that remained of the house of Ahab in Jezreel
and all his great men – and his kinsfolks – and his priests
until he left him none remaining
Jehu kills relatives of King Ahaziah of Judahverses 12-14
And he arose and departed – and came to Samaria
and as he was at the shearing house in the way
Jehu met with the brethren of Ahaziah king of Judah
and said
Who are you?
And they answered
We are the brethren of Ahaziah
and we go down to salute the children of the king
and the children of the queen
And he said
Take them alive
And they took them alive
and slew them at the pit of the shearing house
even two and forty men – neither left he any of them
Jehu rides to Samaria and kills rest of Ahab’s relativesverses 15-17
And when he was departed thence
he lighted on Jehonadab the son of Rechab
coming to meet him
and he saluted him
and said to him
Is thine heart right – as my heart is with your heart?
and Jehonadab answered
It is
IF it be give me your hand
And he gave him his hand
and he took him up to him into the chariot
And he said
Come with me – and see my zeal for the LORD
So they made him ride in his chariot and when he
came to Samaria
he slew all that remained to Ahab in Samaria
till he had destroyed him
according to the saying of the LORD
which HE spoke to Elijah
Jehu orders all worshippers of Baal to his templeverses 18-19
And Jehu gathered all the people together
and said to them
Ahab served Baal a little
but Jehu shall serve him much
Now therefore call to me all the prophets of Baal
all his servants
all his priests – let none be wanting
for I have a great sacrifice to do to Baal
Whosoever shall be wanting
he shall not live
But Jehu did it in subtlety
to the intent that he might destroy
the worshipers of Baal
Worshippers of Baal given a special robeverses 20-22
And Jehu said
Proclaim a solemn assembly for Baal
And they proclaimed it
And Jehu sent through all Israel
and all the worshipers of Baal came
so that there was not a man left that came not
and they came into the house of Baal
and the house of Baal was full
from one end to another
And he said to him that was over the vestry
Bring forth vestments for all the worshipers of Baal
And he brought them forth vestments
Jehu makes sure only worshippers of Baal presentverses 23-24
And Jehu went – and Jehonadab the son of Rechab
into the house of Baal
and said to the worshipers of Baal
Search and look that there be here with you
NONE of the servants of the LORD
BUT the worshipers of Baal ONLY
And when they went in to offer sacrifices and burnt offerings
Jehu appointed fourscore men without
and said
IF any of the men whom I have brought
into your hands escape
he that lets him go
his life shall be for the life of him
Jehu has his soldiers kill all worshippers of Baalverses 25-27
And it came to pass
as soon as he had made an end of offering the burnt offering
that Jehu said to the guard and to the captains
Go in – and slay them
Let none come forth
And they smote them with the edge of the sword
and the guard and the captains cast them out
and went to the city of the house of Baal
And they brought forth the images out of the house of Baal
and burned them
and they brake down the image of Baal
and brake down the house of Baal
and made it a draught house to this day
Jehu left golden calvesverses 28-29
Thus Jehu destroyed Baal out of Israel
howbeit from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat
who made Israel to sin
Jehu departed not from after them
to wit – the golden calves that were in Beth-el
and that were in Dan
LORD promised Jehu four generations of kingsverses 30-31
And the LORD said to Jehu
Because you have done well in executing that which is right
in MINE eyes
And have done to the house of Ahab according to all that
was in MINE heart
your children of the fourth generation shall sit
on the throne of Israel
But Jehu took no heed to WALK
in the law of the LORD God of Israel
with all his heart
for he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam
which made Israel to sin
King Hazael cut down size of Israelverses 32-33
In those days the LORD began to cut Israel short
and Hazael smote them in all the coasts of Israel
from Jordan eastward – all the land of Gilead
the Gadites the Reubenites – the Manassites
from Aroer which is by the river Arnon
even Gilead and Bashan
History of Jehu recordedverses 34-35
Now the rest of the acts of Jehu – and all that he did
and all his might
Are they not written in the book of
the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
And Jehu slept with his fathers – and they buried him in Samaria
and Jehoahaz his son reigned in his stead
And the time that Jehu reigned over Israel in Samaria
was twenty and eight years
COMMENTARY:
DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers
: 4 But they were exceedingly afraid, and said, Behold, two kings stood not before him: how then shall we stand? (5975 “stand” [‘amad] means to go up before, to stand in position, to stand respectfully before, to stand firm, stop moving, or to go up before.)
DEVOTION: Choices we have to make in life are not always easy. Here we have a city that had raised the children of Ahab. They had grown up in the city with many individuals helping them.
Now a choice had to be made whether to fight Jehu or to give in to his request. They had to face the facts that Jehu could come and destroy the city with his army or take the 70 children of Ahab and cut off their heads.
We will never have to make this type of choice but there are choices we have to make if we are going to follow the LORD with all our heart and with all our soul. It is not a easy choice at times.
This world wants us to live in it making only choices that they think are right. They are not concerned with what the Bible says but what society thinks is right. This is happening more and more as all the standards are changing in our world.
The Bible is not the basis on which we are to make decisions but we are to make decisions based on what the WORLD things is right. We are not allowed to say that the Bible say in our schools. We are not allowed to say what the Bible says in our courts. Everything is changing and it is changing fast.
It seems each day there is a new standard that we have to use in our daily work place or even in our churches.
Colleges are now trying to take all standards found in the Bible and say that they are no longer the right standard. They are taking crosses off the Chapels that were built to give students a place to go and find peace in a world that is all mixed up.
The media is trying to have everyone fight against one another because they hold to different beliefs.
We need to realize that the Bible has to be our final authority and not what other people think. We are fighting a real battle. The world is challenging us to give up the Biblical standard and start following their standard which changes from day to day.
CHALLENGE: We need to hold our ground based on the Word of God and not on what society thinks is right.
DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers
: 10 Know now that there shall fall to the earth nothing of the word of the LORD, which the LORD spoke concerning the house of Ahab: for the LORD has done that which HE spoke by HIS servant Elijah. (3045 “Know” [yada] means notice, learn, to realize, to perceive (an idea or situation) mentally, be aware, understand, acknowledge, or consider.)
DEVOTION: The Bible teaches that the LORD knows the past, present and future of every event that has happened and will happen. HE knew all this before the foundation of the world. HE is never surprised but what is going to happen.
Some Bible teachers do not believe this fact but that doesn’t make any difference to the LORD. HE told what was going to happen to Ahab’s family and it did happen in HIS timing. HE doesn’t work in our timing but only in HIS perfect timing.
Once we realize that the LORD is omniscient we realize that we can’t hide anything from HIM. We should therefore act on the truth that we are learning from HIM today. HE wants to bless us for our obedience to HIS Word.
However, HE also knows those who are leading others away from HIM and will deal with them accordingly. HE is longsuffering but that doesn’t mean that judgment is not coming.
What has HE spoken regarding this generation of believers? Does HE know what is happening in the country you are living in today? Does HE need to show HIS power again even today? When HE does HE will show it to all the world we will see HIS hands in it. The future is sure in HIS eyes. HIS plan will not fail.
Jehu knew this to be true even though he was not a genuine follower of the LORD from our point of view. God promised him four generations of rulers because of his actions. He did kill all those who were associated with Ahab and his family.
CHALLENGE: Watch who you associate with in your world!!!
: 16 And he said, Come with me, and see my zeal for the LORD. So they made him ride in his chariot. (7068 “zeal” [qin’ah] means jealousy, envy, ardour, ardent love, passion, or strong desire.)
DEVOTION: Two men joined hands to end the worship of Baal in the land of Israel. They met each other with a commitment to deal with the false worship in the land.
Jehu didn’t end the worship of false gods because he kept the two golden calves that had been in the cities of Bethel and Dan.
Jehonadab was an individual who was zealous for the LORD as well even more than Jehu. He established a group of Rechabites who were faithful to the LORD like the Nazirites who didn’t drink wine and lived a simple life.
He wanted to please the LORD in all that he did. He helped Jehu but was not like Jehu in that he didn’t agree with the worship of any false god.
Sometimes we can find people who have a limited interest in fighting for the LORD. They were willing to give up some things but not all things that are displeasing to the LORD. We need to ask the LORD to help us give up all those things that are displeasing to HIM.
Then we need to help others understand that partial obedience to the LORD is not enough. HE wants us to continue to live better lives for HIM with total obedience. This is not easy but it is something that HE has promised to help us with throughout our life. CHALLENGE: We need to be more like Jehonadab than Jehu.
DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers
: 23 And Jehu went, and Jehonadab the son of Rechab, into the house of Baal, and said unto the worshipers of Baal, Search and look that there be here with you none of the servants of the LORD, but the worshippers of Baal only. (5650 “servants” [‘ebed] means bondage, till, subordinate, laborer, bondman, minister or worshipper.)
DEVOTION: What is a minister? They are someone who helps others. They are available. They are gifted in the area they labor in for another. The LORD wants individuals who are willing to till the soil of the world for HIM.
We find throughout the Old Testament men and women who are willing to minister in the name of the LORD. There are leaders and prophets. Sometimes the LORD calls on people who are not followers of HIM to judge those who are supposed to be followers of HIM. Jehu seems to be one of these men.
He wanted to fulfill the promises of the LORD concerning the family of Ahab. He killed all his descendents and friends. He even wanted to rid Israel of the false worship of Baal. He called all the true worshipers of Baal to the temple of Baal for a sacrifice. He made sure that no true follower of the LORD was present at this sacrifice. He wanted all that worshiped Baal to be in one place at one time.
Everyone who worshiped Baal was commanded to come or else face death. So they all gathered together. Jehu wanted to be sure that none of those who worshiped the LORD were in the house of Baal before the sacrifices were offered. Sometimes there are people who want to compromise and worship other gods and think that the LORD does not mind.
We know that no worshipper of God should be in the house of Baal. We know that we should never be in a place that worships a false god. The problem might be that our homes could be a place where we can worship a false god.
Some of the false gods of our nation could be money, sex, position, sports, and religion. Our world is heading in the wrong direction. One of the compromises that happen in our world is to try to be a true follower of the LORD and get along with everyone around us. Too often this means limiting the God of the Bible. This is manifested in the way we worship the LORD.
Do we put “things” in front of our worship of God? Who and what are the most important “things or people” in our lives? Would we be politically correct and go places God would not want us to go? Our homes need to be worship centers for the LORD. Our children should know that we serve the LORD only. It is important!!!! We cannot serve two masters!!!
Training of our children starts in the home. If the home truly honors the LORD, it will bring forth good ministers to the LORD. If we turn our children off to the church because of our lack of training in what true Christianity is, our children will follow another god.
CHALLENGE: Our children see what is really important to us!!! Stay out of the house of Baal!!!
: 32 In those days the LORD began to cut Israel short: and Hazael smote them in all the coasts of Israel. (7096 “cut short” [qatsah] means to bring to an end, to break/cut/chop off, to remove something figuratively conceived of as cutting something off, trim off, or shorten.)
DEVOTION: The Promised Land was promised to the children of Israel. They were to conquer the whole land which they never did. They grew in strength and conquered more territory when they were strong but when they were weak other nations came and took land from them.
The disobedience of the ten tribes of Israel caused them to continue to lose territory to the people they were supposed to conquer when they were under the leadership of Joshua.
Throughout their history they accepted the false gods of the nations around them. This caused them to drift away from the LORD to follow these false gods. God had to judge them for their actions.
One form of judgment was captivity by other nations while they were living in the Promised Land. This verse states it was the LORD who cut off parts of Israel. HE gave it to foreign kings because of the sins of the people.
HIS protection was promised for obedience. HIS protection is removed from those who are disobedient. Even today we find that HE chastens HIS followers because of their disobedience. HE has promised to never leave those who are genuine believers but it we drift away from HIM HE uses chastening to bring us back.
As we have stated many times HE will use weakness, sickness and pre-mature death to judge HIS servants today. We have to keep short accounts with HIM. This means that we should daily go into HIS presence in prayer, and asks for HIS wisdom, to see what we are doing that is not pleasing to HIM. We are to do this in order to bring glory to HIS name.
There are times when we think we are pleasing HIM when it is evident to others that we are not. Ask others for wisdom in this regard as well. Get to know someone you know to be a genuine believer and pray with them.
CHALLENGE: We don’t want to give any more territory to our enemy the devil in our life and in the lives of those we love.
DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Book of Chroniclesverse 34
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
Law of the LORD God of Israelverse 31
Book of Chronicles verse 34
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
LORD – Jehovah (Covenant keeping, Personal)verses 10, 16, 17, 23, 30-32
Word of the LORDverse 10
Servants of the LORD verse 23
LORD spoke to Jehuverse 30
God – Elohim (Creator)verse 31
LORD God of Israelverse 31
LORD cut Israel short of landverse 32
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead – God/man, Messiah)
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Worship of Baalverses 18-23, 25, 27, 28
Imagesverse 26
Sinverses 29, 31
Golden calf worshipverse 29
Not walking in the law of the LORDverse 31
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Righteousverse 9
Zealverse 16
Servantsverse 23
Right in the eyes of the LORDverse 30
Walking in the law of the LORDverse 31
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Ahab’s whole family killedverses 1-14
Seventy sons in Samaria
Leaders in Samaria afraid of Jehu
Wanted 70 sons killed and heads in baskets
Jehuverses 1-36
Wrote letters to Samaria regarding Ahab’s son
Slew all remaining family members of Ahab
Wanted to put an end to Baal worship
Killed all the Baal worshipers
Still had golden calve worship in Bethel and Dan
LORD promised four generations of kings to him
Actions written in the book of the Chronicles of kings of Israel
Reigned 28 years
Elijahverses 10, 17
Ahaziah- king of Judahverse 13
Killing of worshipers of Baalverses 18-28
Jehonadab – son of Rechabverse 23
Promise to Jehuverse 30
Land of Gaidtes, Reubenites, and Manassites cut shortverse 33
Jehoahaz reigned in place of father
Jehuverse 35
Church (New Testament people of God)
Last Things (Future Events)
DONATIONS:
Remember that all donations to Small Church Ministries are greatly appreciated. The treasurer will send a receipt, at the end of the year unless otherwise requested. Please be sure to make check out to “Small Church Ministries.” The address for the treasurer is P.O. Box 604, East Amherst, New York 14051. A second way to give to the ministry is through PayPal on the website: www.smallchurchministries.org Also if you can support this ministry through your local church please use that method. Thank you.
QUOTES regarding passage
18–24 Jehu’s continued purge of Baalism in Israel next took the form of deception. Feigning that he himself was a devotee of Baal, he ordered a great assembly for sacrifice to be held in Samaria and ordered all the priests and ministers of Baal to come, on penalty of death (vv.18–19). On the day set for the feast, the various ministers arrived. To readily identify them as Baal’s faithful, each was given a special robe (vv.20–22). With the temple of Baal crowded with Baal’s priests, and with the temple guarded securely by eighty selected guards, Jehu and Jehonadab entered the temple to see the opening sacrifices (vv.23–24). (Patterson, R. D., & Austel, H. J. (1988). 1, 2 Kings. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: 1 & 2 Kings, 1 & 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Job (Vol. 4, p. 212). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.)
10:18–23. Jehu called a special convocation of the people of Israel under the pretense that he would sacrifice to and honor … Baal. It was to take place at the central temple of Baal that Ahab had built in Samaria (1 Kings 16:32). Every leader of the Baal cult was required to attend. Obviously Jehu’s true religious preferences had not yet become known in Israel. Jehonadab (cf. 2 Kings 10:15) accompanied Jehu and observed his preparations. Jehu carefully guarded against the possibility of any worshipers of the Lord being present and slain. He also made sure that none of the Baal worshipers would escape. (Constable, T. L. (1985). 2 Kings. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 1, p. 558). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)
Jehu had finished the work of ridding the nation of Ahab’s family, so there were no descendants who could challenge his right to the throne. But what about the Baal worship that had infected the land? That was Jehu’s next responsibility and he decided to use deception as his major weapon.
As king of Israel, Jehu could have dealt with the Baal worshipers in one of three ways. He could have commanded them to leave the land, or he could have obeyed Deuteronomy 13 and killed them. He might even have tried to convert them, although it would have been easy to “convert” if the sword was hanging over your head. He also could have ordered the temple of Baal to be torn down. Jehu had the promised support of the leaders in Samaria (v. 5), so why did he choose to lie to the people and then kill them? God’s servants are not allowed to “do evil that good may come” (Rom. 3:8, nasb; see 1 Thes. 2:3), yet that’s the course that Jehu took. He had authority from Moses to kill the idolaters, and that he did; but why did he deceive them first?
He lied to them about himself, claiming that he was more devoted to Baal than Ahab had been. He also lied about the service in the temple of Baal. However, this may have been another instance of Jehu’s “double-speak,” for there was a “great sacrifice” to Baal—the lives of the priests and the worshipers in Baal’s temple! Jehu was a military man whose life was so dedicated to strategy and conquest that, unlike David, he couldn’t bring faith and the glory of God into his battles. Jehu seems to have had a lust for blood and a joy in outsmarting his enemies, and we never read that he sought the mind of the Lord in any of his endeavors.
First, he assembled the prophets, ministers, and priests of Baal and commanded them to announce a great sacrifice for Baal. Coming from the king through the religious leaders, the announcement would carry much more weight and be more believable. Jehu even sent messengers throughout the land to command the Baal worshipers to attend the great sacrifice in Samaria. The house of Baal in Samaria was built by Ahab for Jezebel (1 Kings 16:31–32), so Jehu would destroy “the house of Ahab” in two senses: his physical “house” or family and the house he built for Baal.
Once the people were in the temple, Jehu made sure that no true worshipers of Jehovah were among the worshipers of Baal. He commanded that the Baal worshipers wear the special garments that were used during their services, and he and Jehonadab admonished the priests not to allow any outsiders to participate (v. 23). Jehu gave the impression that he wanted “pure worship” for the great sacrifice. Once the Baal worshipers were ready inside the temple, Jehu instructed his eighty soldiers outside the temple to be ready to enter the temple as soon as the sacrifice was ended.
Does the “he” in verse 25 (kjv) refer to Jehu or to the high priest of Baal? The niv and the nasb both opt for Jehu, but not knowing the layout of the temple or the order of the service, it’s difficult to decide. How could the king be visible at the altar and, without raising suspicion, leave the altar and go outside to command the soldiers? It’s likely that Jehu provided the animals for the sacrifices, so in that sense, he was “sacrificing to Baal” whether he was at the altar or not. The soldiers killed all the Baal worshipers in the temple and threw their bodies outside into the court. Then some of the men went into the inner shrine of the temple and removed the wooden images of the gods and the stone image of Baal and destroyed them. What once was the sacred house of Baal was turned into a public latrine.
Jehu’s plan worked and enabled him in one day to wipe out Baal worship in the land. By lying to the people, he accumulated a larger crowd of Baal worshipers than if he had gone after them one by one, but it’s unfortunate that his first public act as king in Samaria was an act of deception. Would anybody trust him after that? (Wiersbe, W. W. (2002). Be distinct (pp. 74–76). Colorado Springs, CO: Victor.)
19 Now therefore call unto me all the prophets of Baal, all his servants, and all his priests; let none be wanting: for I have a great sacrifice to do to Baal; whosoever shall be wanting, he shall not live. But Jehu did it in subtilty, to the intent that he might destroy the worshippers of Baal.
All his servants; either, 1. All his ministers; of whom there may seem to have been several sorts, whereof two are here distinctly mentioned, his prophets and priests; and the rest of the inferior sort may be comprehended under this general title of servants, because they were to attend upon the others in their sacred ministrations. And these being once destroyed, Jehu rightly concluded that the rest would fall of course. And this sense may seem to be favoured by ver. 22, wherein vestments were brought forth for all these worshippers of Baal; which were not commonly used by the people in the worship either of God or of Baal, but only by the priests or ministers. Or, 2. All his worshippers, as the same word is translated in the close of this verse. Quest. How could all these be contained in one house of Baal? Answ. Well enough, for the number of Baal’s worshippers had been vastly diminished by the ministry of Elijah and Elisha, and the rest of the prophets, and by Joram’s neglect and disuse of that worship. For the generality of the Israelites had too much knowledge to have any real and religious respect to such senseless idols; only they practised it in compliance with the humour of their king and queen, and for worldly or wicked ends; and therefore when the king deserted it, they generally forsook it, some few silly and besotted persons excepted, who are here gathered together. Besides, this house or temple of Baal might be very large and capacious, and probably was so, because it was the chief of that sort, as being in the king’s city, and nigh his palace, and for the use of the king and queen, and the whole court, and for great and high solemnities. Moreover, as the name of the house or temple of God at Jerusalem oft signifies not only the principal building, but all the other buildings and courts belonging to it, in which all the worshippers stood when they worshipped; so it might be here; and so there was space sufficient for all the worshippers of Baal which can reasonably be thought to have been at this time in all Israel. I have a great sacrifice to do to Baal; I will offer to him a noble and acceptable sacrifice; not of sheep, or oxen, &c., as they understood it, but of his own beloved priests, and prophets, and servants, as he meant it. In subtlety; with another design, that he might both certainly discover and utterly destroy them all, without any further trouble, or danger of sedition or tumult in his kingdom. (Poole, M. (1853). Annotations upon the Holy Bible (Vol. 1, pp. 738–739). New York: Robert Carter and Brothers.)
Ver. 19. Now therefore call unto me all the prophets of Baal, all his servants, and all his priests, let none be wanting, &c.] All that were employed in the several parts of religious worship given him, and in performing any rite and ceremony belonging to it; in invocation of him, and singing praises to him, as the prophets; in offering sacrifices to him, as the priests; or in assisting them in their service, who may be meant by his servants or ministers: for I have a great sacrifice to do to Baal; by which, though he might mean a sacrifice of his prophets, priests, servants, and worshippers, he would have it otherwise understood, and his design was to deceive, which cannot be justified: whosoever shall be wanting, he shall not live; but be put to death; this he said, pretending his great zeal for Baal, when his view was by this threatening to get all his worshippers together to destroy them, that none might escape, as follows: but Jehu did it in subtlety, to the intent that he might destroy the worshippers of Baal: the Targum renders it, with wisdom; but Jarchi and Ben Gersom much better, in deceit; the word signifies supplantation, such as Esau charged Jacob with. (Gill, J. (1810). An Exposition of the Old Testament (Vol. 2, p. 804). London: Mathews and Leigh.)
FROM MY READING:
(Remember the only author that I totally agree with is the HOLY SPIRIT in the inerrant WORD OF GOD called THE BIBLE! All other I try to gleam what I can to help me grow in the LORD!!)
God expects man to return his love. Love, however, is not simply an emotion. It is a structured relationship. To love God is to obey him. So the word is used to denote a passionate, consuming “zeal” focused on God that results in the doing of his will and the maintaining of his honor in the face of the ungodly acts of men and nations. Phinehas, Elijah and Jehu are particular examples of this zeal (TWNT, II, p. 878). Saul (II Sam 21:2) and Jehu (II Kgs 10:16) were prompted by their ardent zeal (jealousy) for God to commit acts violating his commands. Thus, they stirred the wrath of God who is jealous for his name (Ezk 39:25)—that it be vindicated by the keeping of the whole law (Deut 29:20 [H 19]). The godly (esp. Messiah) are consumed, therefore, by an ardour (jealousy) to exalt God by maintaining purity of worship (Ps 69:9 [H 10]), and purity of obedience respecting the whole of God’s word (Ps 119:139). (Coppes, L. J. (1999). 2038 קָנָא. (R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer Jr., & B. K. Waltke, Eds.)Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament. Chicago: Moody Press.)
Jehonadab (je-hahnʹuh-dab), the son of Rechab and spiritual father of the Rechabite sect, whose members were distinguished by their abstinence from drinking wine, planting vineyards, sowing the land, and building houses (Jer. 35:6-7; rsv: ‘Jonadab’). Jeremiah praises them for their unswerving loyalty to their ancestral code of asceticism. Such symbolic clinging to Israel’s nomadic past suits the role of Jehonadab in historical literature as the protagonist of native Israelite tradition. He was partner to Jehu in the mid-ninth century b.c. in the bloody overthrow of the Omride dynasty in Samaria and in eradicating the cult of the Tyrian Baal introduced by the Phoenician princess Jezebel (2 Kings 10:15-29 (Achtemeier, P. J., Harper & Row and Society of Biblical Literature. (1985). In Harper’s Bible dictionary. San Francisco: Harper & Row.)
JEHONADAB (Jə hŏnʹ ȧ dăb) Personal name meaning “Yahweh incites” or “Yahweh offers Himself freely.” Son of Rechab who supported Jehu in the latter’s bloody purge of the house of Ahab (2 Kings 10:15). He was representative of a group of austere ultraconservatives known as the Rechabites. Jeremiah 35 relates a meeting between the prophet and Rechabites, who cited the teaching of their ancestor Jehonadab (who in Jeremiah is called Jonadab). In the context of that meeting, some of the precepts of the Rechabites are articulated. They are reminiscent of the regulations that governed the Nazirites. The Hebrew word rechav means “chariot,” so some scholars think Jehonadab belonged to Israel’s chariot forces. See Jehu; Rechabites. (Brand, C., Draper, C., England, A., Bond, S., Clendenen, E. R., & Butler, T. C. (Eds.). (2003). Jehonadab. In Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary. Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.)
Jehu’s encounter with Jehonadab underscores popular dissatisfaction with Omri’s dynasty. Jeremiah contrasts the loyalty of Jehonadab’s descendants with Israel’s rejection of the Lord’s commands (cf. Jer 35:1–19). Cogan and Tadmor observe that
The group’s ascetic lifestyle—they did not cultivate the land, nor plant vineyards, did not drink wine nor build houses—represented an extreme rejection of all aspects of the civilization of the land of Canaan. Thus the joining of Jehonadab with Jehu to root out the cult of Baal would seem to have been a natural linking of interests.
Jehonadab’s belief in traditional national values led him to trust Jehu’s show of “zeal for the Lord.” Jehu’s later actions probably both pleased and displeased Jehonadab and everyone like him who desired a complete overthrow of everything the Omrides represented. (House, P. R. (1995). 1, 2 Kings (Vol. 8, p. 293). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.)
Faith is the operative ingredient in the Christian life. Without faith, it is impossible to please God (v. 6). Faith is important because without it we cannot even begin to approach God. Simply put, faith is believing God and acting accordingly. All that is accomplished in the world to further the work of God is accomplished by faith. This list of exemplary faithful people shows that when God spoke, His people listened, believed, and acted accordingly. The words of an old hymn sum it all up: “Trust and obey, for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.” (Quiet Walk)
Keeping Covenant
A cord of three strands is not quickly torn apart. ECCLESIASTES 4:12
Modern society is still suffering from the sickness of the “Me Generation,” which has contaminated the covenant of marriage. The selfish Me-Gen person says in effect, “When marriage serves my purpose, I’m on board. But when it ceases to make me happy, when it’s too much effort, when the unexpected shows up and creates additional pressure, I’m outta here.” Some leave physically; others leave emotionally and withdraw.
But those who do have forgotten three basic truths about their commitment to each other:
1. Marriage is a covenant between three, not two. On our wedding day, I entered into a covenant both with Barbara and with God. Our marriage is not a contract but a sacred cord of three strands that will not be easily broken.
2. Marriage vows require us to forgive each other. No marriage is a perpetual walk through the daisies. There will be unmet expectations, unwise decisions, troubles with schedules and finances, and other unexpected pressures that will rattle our relationship until we think it’s about to fall apart. But when hurt and disappointment come, our vows demand that we forgive one another. This is not an optional accessory. It is the
life and breath of our marriage.
3. Marriage vows are enduring. When the pressure becomes relentless and intense—when the cultural voices around us entice us to look out only for ourselves and quit—our vows shout, “DON’T!” (Or, as my kids say, “Deal with it.”)
Quitting on your marriage may temporarily reduce the pressure you feel, but I promise you that a broken marriage and family will add truckloads of new pressures over a lifetime. It takes courage to do what you know is right.
Remaining devoted to your spouse becomes your living testimony to the faithfulness of God and the strength of your marriage covenant.
DISCUSS
Think of the marriages you’ve seen fail. To what extent did selfishness play a part in the breakup of those relationships? (Moments with You Couples Devotional by Dennis and Barbara Rainey)
Visit our Facebook page for Small Church Ministries – please invite others to join us on Facebook. Thank you. Look for the logo from the devotionals.