5/2/2011 9:22:14 AM
SPIRITUAL DIARY
My Worship Time Focus: Fear and double-talk
Bible Reading
& Meditation Reference: 2Kings 10:1-10
Message of the verses: Today’s SD begins the sixth chapter in Warren
Wiersbe’s commentary on 2Kings and parts of 2Chronicles. He entitles this chapter “THE SWORD AND THE
CROWN.” The sword belongs to Jehu and
the crown belongs to a young king of Judah who is protected by a priest and his
wife. Without them the dynasty of David
would have stopped. Just a little note
on this and that is that I have read or heard that it was because of this
action of evil done by the former king of Judah, Jehoram who was married to
Ahab and Jezebel’s daughter Athaliah, and after his death she killed all of the
royal family, that is she thought that she did, but there was one who was saved
from her killings. What I have read is
that because of this evilness that the line of Mary came through Nathan, and
the line of Joseph came through Solomon.
Jehu
takes his orders from the Lord too far and begins to kill many people and that
causes more trouble in the Northern Kingdom of Israel. These are still God’s chosen people and He
still cares for them even though it seems that few care about doing His will.
Samaria accepts Jehu’s rule (verses 2Kings
10:1-5): “1 ¶ Now Ahab had seventy sons in Samaria. And
Jehu wrote letters and sent them to Samaria, to the rulers of Jezreel, the
elders, and to the guardians of the children of Ahab, saying, 2 "Now, when this letter comes to you,
since your master’s sons are with you, as well as the chariots and horses and a
fortified city and the weapons, 3 select
the best and fittest of your master’s sons, and set him on his father’s throne,
and fight for your master’s house." 4
But they feared greatly and said, "Behold, the two kings did not
stand before him; how then can we stand?" 5 And the one who was over the household, and
he who was over the city, the elders, and the guardians of the children, sent
word to Jehu, saying, "We are your servants, all that you say to us we
will do, we will not make any man king; do what is good in your sight.’”
This
is the fear part of this main point of fear and double talk, for the men of
Samaria were fearful of Jehu since they knew what he had done in killing the
two kings and the wife of Ahab, so because of their fear they gave into Jehu
and eventually will probably wish that they had not done so.
Samaria obeys Jehu’s orders (verses 2Kings
10:6-10): “6 Then he wrote a letter
to them a second time saying, "If you are on my side, and you will listen
to my voice, take the heads of the men, your master’s sons, and come to me at
Jezreel tomorrow about this time." Now the king’s sons, seventy persons,
were with the great men of the city, who were rearing them. 7 When the letter came to them, they took the
king’s sons and slaughtered them, seventy persons, and put their heads in
baskets, and sent them to him at Jezreel. 8
When the messenger came and told him, saying, "They have brought
the heads of the king’s sons," he said, "Put them in two heaps at the
entrance of the gate until morning." 9
Now in the morning he went out and stood and said to all the people,
"You are innocent; behold, I conspired against my master and killed him,
but who killed all these? 10 "Know
then 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 what He spoke
through His servant Elijah.’”
I
would suppose that one could call this a shrewd move by Jehu, but it was more
like double-talk and David wrote this about double-talk: “They speak falsehood to one another; With
flattering lips and with a double heart they speak (Psalm 12:2).” Jehu’s message to the elders of Samaria could
have been taken in two ways, but these men took it to kill the seventy men and
bring their heads to Jehu in Jezreel.
They did this and Jehu said that it was the Lord through Elijah who said
this would happen and Jehu had only killed the king so don’t blame him for
these killings. Jehu was now on his way
to be established as their king, and it was through fear and double-talk.
Spiritual meaning for my life today: If I can take one thing from this section it
would be to make sure that I guard my speech.
Double-talk is not an option for a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ.
My Steps of
Faith for Today:
1.
Guard my speech.
2.
Remember that I am in a spiritual battle and in need
of the spiritual armor.
3.
Continue to learn contentment.
5/2/2011 9:55:54 AM
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