Bible Lesson from 2 Kings, Lesson 19
Bible Lesson from 2 Kings, Lesson 19
The first king of the Jews was Saul. During his reign, all the tribes of Israel did not unite as one. It was David who brought all the tribes together to form a unified kingdom for the Jewish people. Solomon strengthened that kingdom. After him, his son Rehoboam became king. Ignoring the advice of the elders, he listened to the young men and refused to reduce the heavy tax burden that Solomon had imposed on the people.
As a result, the united Jewish kingdom split into two—north and south. Under Jeroboam’s leadership, the ten northern tribes became a separate kingdom. This kingdom was called Israel or Ephraim. Until it was conquered by the king of Assyria, all the kings who ruled Israel walked not in the ways of God. After Israel was captured by Assyria, it never again became a nation. The last king to rule it was Hoshea.
It was during Hoshea’s reign that Israel came under the control of the king of Assyria. This event is believed to have happened in 723 or 722 B.C. Many people were taken into exile. The Assyrian king settled his own people in Israel, causing them to intermarry with the Israelites, who became known as the Samaritans. From then on, Israel or Ephraim disappeared from the map as a nation.
Hosea the prophet lived during this final period. Everything he warned about Israel came to pass during his lifetime. Just before God punished the nation, we see in chapter 17 of this book the “charge sheet” God brought against Israel. Some of these charges were:
Abandoning all the commands of the Lord their God, they made two calves of cast metal, and an Asherah pole.
Worshiping all the starry hosts and serving Baal.
Sacrificing their sons and daughters in the fire.
Practicing divination, omens, and witchcraft.
Setting up sacred stones and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every spreading tree.
Burning incense at all the high places, as the nations had done whom the Lord had driven out before them, and doing wicked things.
Although they committed these sins for hundreds of years, God forgave them again and again. Yet the people despised His mercy and forgiveness, continually rejecting Him. Of the twelve tribes God had chosen, ten became mingled with the nations of the world. Only the tribe of Judah remained, for God had made a covenant with them.
Even though Judah was later conquered by the Babylonians, they eventually returned to their land, rebuilt the Temple in Jerusalem, and preserved their nation. From that lineage came the Savior of the world. But when they crucified Jesus Christ, the Messiah, Jerusalem was captured in A.D. 70, and the people were scattered across the world. Even so, the tribe of Judah has remained distinct to this day, without mixing with other nations.
The history of Israel is not only a lesson for them but also for us, the covenant people of God. Even today, the reason we have not been wiped out is because of the covenant He made with us beforehand. Sadly, the same sins Israel committed are still present—though in different forms—within Christianity today.
Spiritual adultery (apostasy) is one of the most dangerous sins of all. Only through our daily prayer life and meditation on God’s Word can we keep ourselves from falling into such snares. If we read the historical books of the Old Testament not merely as stories, but with an understanding of the lessons they convey, our spiritual eyes will truly be opened.
One thing we learn from history is that we don’t learn from history.
The lesson we learn from history is that we have not learned anything from history.
Ezekiel Shanmugavel.