Sunday Morning Service (II Kings 1-II Kings 2:15)

II Kings 1-II Kings 2

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“Two Men, Two Fates” • 5.14.17 • Calvary Christian Fellowship, Sunday Morning Service

Intro.

- Second Kings continues right where I Kings left off, so we'll pick it up in verse 1.

Text

• II Kings 1:1,2 : "Moab rebelled against Israel after the death of Ahab. Now Ahaziah fell through the lattice of his upper room in Samaria, and was injured; so he sent messengers and said to them, 'Go, inquire of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this injury.'" : In the last chapter of I Kings, we learned of Syria's victory over Ahab's Israel. This was the first blow to national security.

- Moab had been a vassal state under the thumb of Ahab's strength. Their rebellion against Israel meant that they would no longer give their promised tax to Israel.

- Syria on the North. Moab to the South. That is trouble from top to bottom! The enemies around the Kingdom are stirring. They are seemingly recovering some of their old strength.

- Meanwhile, within the Kingdom, Ahab's successor has sustained a major injury from what seems to be a freak accident.

- Ahaziah found himself leaning upon the checkered network of his chambers. They didn't use glass or have windows.

- You could see him standing near to look through, only to look a little too hard at what was happening around the corner. The lattice work was unable to hold against his weight!

- When it became clear that his injuries were substantial, Ahaziah sends his messengers to discover what his future held, not from the altar of God, but of Baal-Zebub!

- "Baal-Zebub," a Philistine deity, is literally, the Lord of the Flies! That is who Ahaziah wants wisdom from regarding his fate! Why Baal-Zebub?

- As with Ahab, Ahaziah is uninterested in the truth that God would offer him. Baal-zebub more than likely has a far more comforting message. His lack of interest doesn't deter God. Verse 3.

• II Kings 1:3,4 : "But the angel of the Lord said to Elijah the Tishbite, 'Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say to them, ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron?’ Now therefore, thus says the Lord: ‘You shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.’ So Elijah departed." : Ahaziah has no interest in the God of Israel but He is interested in Ahaziah! This information should be stock to your understanding of the God of the Bible. God binds Himself to His Word!

- Four times in the Pentateuch, God promises to "visit the iniquity of the Father's" upon successive generations, even to the third and fourth. (Ex. 20:5, 34:7, Num. 14:18, Deut. 5:9)

- Without context, it seems as though God is set on punishing future generations for their Father's sins. Some have used these verses to promote the thought of "generational curses."

- That isn't the thought at all! Rather, these verses promise that God will not simply concede a life over to wickedness on account of their Father's, in this case Ahab's, wickedness!

- Instead, He will step in and visit, allow Himself to be known, by the proceeding generations, in order that they might have a chance to turn themselves to Him!

- Here, He calls upon another generation after Ahab and Jezebel, not willing that Ahaziah should go without first having the chance to encounter Him.

- For those that fear a lack of love in God's justice, let them look long at this passage and understand afresh that if a man is lost, he has followed his own choices to perdition!

- Ahaziah sent his servants to Baal-Zebub and God sent His servant Elijah to the King! One cannot claim that God made a half-hearted effort! He sent his very best messenger to the King!

- Elijah met Ahaziah's messengers on their way to Baal-Zebub's temple and pressed the issue: "Is there not a God in Israel who could answer you?" God will not let Ahaziah dismiss Him!

- You would think that a life threatening injury would turn a man to consider his own mortality and the fact that he will have to give account to a righteous God!

- Our bodily pains and sufferings are a reminder of how close we are to draw to Him. The picture of Ahaziah falling through lattice work is ideal for representing how tenuous our position is!

- In spite of his life threatening injury, it seems that Ahaziah had no consciousness of God. He didn't consider seeking Him out. This shouldn't surprise us. The Bible declares that none seek Him!

- God reminds us in this passage that He is in fact the only one that can be called a "seeker!"

- As for Ahaziah, God does not offer him a healing, but the truth that his condition will be terminal. What a gift that God gives him! He is letting him know that he has time to get things right!

- Maybe that's all that Ahaziah needed. Let's take a look at what he did. Verse 5.

• II Kings 1:5-10 : "And when the messengers returned to him, he said to them, 'Why have you come back?' So they said to him, 'A man came up to meet us, and said to us, ‘Go, return to the king who sent you, and say to him, 'Thus says the Lord: ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to inquire of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.’ Then he said to them, 'What kind of man was it who came up to meet you and told you these words?' So they answered him, 'A hairy man wearing a leather belt around his waist.' And he said, 'It is Elijah the Tishbite.' Then the king sent to him a captain of fifty with his fifty men. So he went up to him; and there he was, sitting on the top of a hill. And he spoke to him: 'Man of God, the king has said, ‘Come down!’ So Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty, 'If I am a man of God, then let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men.' And fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty." : Ahaziah is surprised by his servant's quick return. Hearing the definitive bad news, it's not long before he guesses who gave it! - The fact that it is to the point and bad let's him know that it can only come from one source! He is the man who is literally "a possessor of hair!"

- Ahaziah forgets all about his own condition. He doesn't ask for healing or forgiveness. He turns what little energy he has left onto an old family grudge and sends a brigade to collect Elijah.

- Elijah is sitting on top of the hill, which some have suggested is actually Mt. Carmel.

- What a bad place to have to collect the prophet! This first captain obviously doesn't remember that fire came from heaven to destroy Ahab's god!

- Sadly, his crew suffered from "burn out" because of his ignorance! It doesn't matter to Ahaziah. He will not be deterred. Verse 11.

• II Kings 1:11,12 : "Then he sent to him another captain of fifty with his fifty men. And he answered and said to him: 'Man of God, thus has the king said, ‘Come down quickly!’ So Elijah answered and said to them, 'If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men.' And the fire of God came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty." : This second captain is much more aggressive. "You get down here fast Mister Man of God!"

- You must realize that they are certain that Elijah is not a Man of God and that whatever power he is tapped into, is not worth being afraid of.

- They are insulting both the messenger and the Message originator! Additionally, they are promoting the King's idolatrous agenda in seeking to silence the prophet.

- What a bad idea especially in the land of Israel where the law for promoting the worship of another god carried with it, the death penalty!

- Unfortunately, Elijah again reveals his credentials and a second group of men are consumed by the fire of God. They are executed based on the fact that they deny the true God. Verse 13.

• II Kings 1:13-18 : "Again, he sent a third captain of fifty with his fifty men. And the third captain of fifty went up, and came and fell on his knees before Elijah, and pleaded with him, and said to him: 'Man of God, please let my life and the life of these fifty servants of yours be precious in your sight. Look, fire has come down from heaven and burned up the first two captains of fifties with their fifties. But let my life now be precious in your sight.' And the angel of the Lord said to Elijah, 'Go down with him; do not be afraid of him.' So he arose and went down with him to the king. Then he said to him, 'Thus says the Lord: ‘Because you have sent messengers to inquire of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron, is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of His word? Therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.’ So Ahaziah died according to the word of the Lord which Elijah had spoken. Because he had no son, Jehoram became king in his place, in the second year of Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah. Now the rest of the acts of Ahaziah which he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?" :

Thankfully, this third captain is unlike his predecessors. He doesn't demand that Elijah come down. He walks up to meet Elijah!

- In complete humility, he gets on his knees before Elijah and begs the prophet to consider all of their lives! He likes his life, he loves his men and he doesn't want to get "fired" from his job!

- Consider his portrait. He comes to THE hill, if it is Carmel, where fire has consumed both the sacrifice of Elijah and the men that came to oppose him. Same manifestation.

- This third captain and his men escape with their lives because they come asking for mercy! Their life is precious, not in Elijah's sight, but in the eyes of the Angel of the Lord! 

- It is the Angel of the Lord that has been Elijah's protection and when He allows Elijah to travel back with the captain, Elijah does and delivers his original message to Ahaziah personally.

- Read these words and consider them: Elijah spoke this message. So Ahaziah died according to the word of the Lord. Think about that room. Look into those dying eyes of the King.

- The best of heaven's servants is standing at his bedside, pleading with him, inviting him to repent. Ahaziah just stares back at the prophet, locked in the prison of pride, until he expires.

- He died with his pride intact and then one second later, faced an eternity of regret! Is your pride worth the cost of your own soul? May the Lord give you His grace to understand.

- As for the throne, Ahaziah leaves command to his brother, who is Jehoshaphat's son-in-law! Governmental transition aside, a prophetic transition is also about to occur. Chapter 2.

• II Kings 2:1,2 : "And it came to pass, when the Lord was about to take up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal. Then Elijah said to Elisha, 'Stay here, please, for the Lord has sent me on to Bethel.' But Elisha said, 'As the Lord lives, and as your soul lives, I will not leave you!' So they went down to Bethel." : Ahaziah is not the only one with knowledge of their fate. Elijah is about to be lifted up from the Earth by a whirlwind.

- He will not die, but will ascend away to heaven on a day that he and everyone else seems to know about! How does he respond? He goes about his regular duties!

- We'll discover that he is making the rounds of the prophetic schools of the area, filled with men who are called the "sons of the prophets."

- Israel had prophetic guilds, schools of men, that could develop their skills. The atmosphere around pagan Israel was still open to these institutions.

- Elijah making a tour around the circuit reminds us of when Samuel did the same thing as noted in I Samuel 7:15-17.

- One might deduce that since Samuel visited Gilgal and Bethel, it may be that Elijah was visiting groups of prophets that had been established hundreds of years earlier!

- Elijah is traveling with Elisha. He will continue to seek to dismiss him, but Elisha will have none of it. There is a prophetic test that is about to play out.

- Elisha doggedly insists that he will accompany him wherever he goes as long as he lives. We begin with a trip from Gilgal to Bethel, nearly an 8 mile journey. Verse 3.

• II Kings 2:3-6 : "Now the sons of the prophets who were at Bethel came out to Elisha, and said to him, 'Do you know that the Lord will take away your master from over you today?' And he said, 'Yes, I know; keep silent!' Then Elijah said to him, 'Elisha, stay here, please, for the Lord has sent me on to Jericho.' But he said, 'As the Lord lives, and as your soul lives, I will not leave you!' So they came to Jericho. Now the sons of the prophets who were at Jericho came to Elisha and said to him, 'Do you know that the Lord will take away your master from over you today?' So he answered, 'Yes, I know; keep silent!' Then Elijah said to him, 'Stay here, please, for the Lord has sent me on to the Jordan.' But he said, 'As the Lord lives, and as your soul lives, I will not leave you!' So the two of them went on." :

Elisha is not wanting to talk about it Elijah's pending trip. That isn't why he is with him. He is a faithful servant and he loves Elijah, but he won't disclose his purpose to them.

- He just wants to continue on with him, which he did. Verse 7.

• II Kings 2:7-10 : "And fifty men of the sons of the prophets went and stood facing them at a distance, while the two of them stood by the Jordan. Now Elijah took his mantle, rolled it up, and struck the water; and it was divided this way and that, so that the two of them crossed over on dry ground. And so it was, when they had crossed over, that Elijah said to Elisha, 'Ask! What may I do for you, before I am taken away from you?' Elisha said, 'Please let a double portion of your spirit be upon me.' So he said, 'You have asked a hard thing. Nevertheless, if you see me when I am taken from you, it shall be so for you; but if not, it shall not be so.'" : When Elijah left Jericho for the Jordan river, fifty of the sons followed and were able to watch what was about to transpire. Jericho is only a few miles from the Jordan river.

- They watched as Elijah struck the Jordan river for he and Elisha to cross over to the other side. What a picture that must have been for the prophets!

- They had only heard of the river parting and Israel crossing over to begin the battle against the very city that they now stood by!

- They saw what was happening, but we get to hear what was said. On this day, Elisha followed Elijah for this very moment. Elijah finally asks what Elisha wants.

- "Let me have a double portion of your spirit!" So many have used this passage to speak of a double dose of power. That isn't what Elijah is asking.

- His request has to do with the blessing that would be given to the firstborn son, the inheritor of the majority of an estate!

- Elisha had been selected for this ten years earlier and has been a faithful apprentice to Elijah, but the assignment that he asks will require far more than knowledge and experience.

- He wants to be able to serve God's people by being their prophetic voice as Elijah was!

- Elisha knew that this was paramount to his future success. Elijah doesn't make any promises, but lays out the condition for him to receive it.

- If he is there when Elijah is taken up, a double portion of Elijah's spirit will be his. Verse 11.

• II Kings 2:11-15 : "Then it happened, as they continued on and talked, that suddenly a chariot of fire appeared with horses of fire, and separated the two of them; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. And Elisha saw it, and he cried out, 'My father, my father, the chariot of Israel and its horsemen!' So he saw him no more. And he took hold of his own clothes and tore them into two pieces. He also took up the mantle of Elijah that had fallen from him, and went back and stood by the bank of the Jordan. Then he took the mantle of Elijah that had fallen from him, and struck the water, and said, 'Where is the Lord God of Elijah?' And when he also had struck the water, it was divided this way and that; and Elisha crossed over. Now when the sons of the prophets who were from Jericho saw him, they said, 'The spirit of Elijah rests on Elisha.' And they came to meet him, and bowed to the ground before him. " : In a sense, it came out of nowhere.

- We aren't told what they were talking about, but out of nowhere, a chariot of fire complete with horses of fire appeared and separated the two!

- Without having time to blink, a whirlwind carried the chariot back to it's place of origin and Elisha saw it, but he saw Elijah no more!

- Like any person who has lost someone, Elisha gave into his grief. The tearing of the garment is symbolic of the tearing of one's heart and soul. Elisha certainly loved Elijah.

- But it was just as he tore his clothes that Elijah's mantle fell upon him! When he returned to the Jordan river, it acted just as it had when Elijah had struck it!

- Something had changed for sure, as the sons of the prophets confirmed: The spirit of Elijah rests on Elisha! They paid their respect to their new master.

Conclusion
- What a contrast! Two men with knowledge of their soon departure from Earth. One carries his pride to the grave, the other is carried from the Earth into heaven, having lived in humble service!

- Both men continue to live as they had, making no change to their schedule. In the case of the King, this issues in eternal regret. In the case of Elijah, eternal reward!

- Both men leave with a successor in place, one who will lead the Kingdom of Israel down the same path and one that will do greater things for the Kingdom of God!

- Both men would face the same God. For the King, the God of fire that consumed his henchmen would soon condemn him as well.

- For Elijah, the God of fire served as His protector and His escort to the heavenly places.

- In truth, all who hear this message are in the same predicament. You are leaning against the lattice work of life. You and I have an appointment with the God who is a consuming fire!

- On the Hill, fire came down and consumed the sacrifice and the people were spared. Those that come up that Hill and look for mercy from the Lord will find their life spared!

- God will include them in the single life that He holds precious: The life of His own Son, Jesus Christ!

- It is He who the Father declared to be His beloved Son. It was He who received, not a double portion of a man's spirit, but the full portion of God's Spirit!

- He is the One we bow to. He is our Master. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!