1 Kings 16:1 says, Then the word of the Lord came to Jehu the son of Hanani against Baasha, saying, The word of the LORD came to Jehu concerning Baasha. Baasha was not following God but was worshipping idols instead. I believe this means that he would not have recognized God's voice even if God spoke to him personally. We do not recognize the voice of God until we recognize it as He calls us to salvation, so all the warnings He gives us until then, we will likely ignore or even dispute. Baasha had no personal relationship with God, so I don't believe he would have listened to a voice that was identified as coming from God, but he might listen to a man of God. Verse two adds, Forasmuch as I exalted thee out of the dust, and made thee prince over my people Israel; and thou hast walked in the way of Jeroboam, and hast made my people Israel to sin, to provoke me to anger with their sins: Jehu was to tell Baasha that God had exalted him out of dust and made him a prince over Israel. He was not king by his own worth, since He was no more valuable than the dust of the earth by his own merit. This is still true of everyone today. No matter how powerful we may be seen as in the world, to God we are still God's creation, and are of no more valuable materially than the dust of the earth. It is only spiritually that we have value, having been given an immortal soul by the breath of God in us. Baasha was also reminded that he had chosen to follow the idolatry of Jeroboam instead of following God. We will be judged by our actions and not those of others. Verse three continues, Behold, I will take away the posterity of Baasha, and the posterity of his house; and will make thy house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat. Jehu was to tell Baasha that God was going to take away his posterity and make his family like the family of Jeroboam, which was cut off from God forever. Of course, I don't believe that anyone family or group of people is forever cut off from becoming a part of God's family if they put their faith in Jesus Christ, but if we do not accept Him as our personal Savior and Lord and continue to worship the false gods of this world instead, then we are personally cut off from God forever. Verse four concludes, Him that dieth of Baasha in the city shall the dogs eat; and him that dieth of his in the fields shall the fowls of the air eat. Jehu was to tell Baasha that things were not going to end well for his family. Those dying in the city would be eaten by dogs and those dying in the fields would be eaten by the fowls. This may seem harsh, but what happens to our physical body is really unimportant. It is what happens to our immortal soul that matters, and I believe that the really bad news for Baasha was that he was forever cut off from an everlasting relationship with God and was doomed to spend eternity in hell. Verse five states, Now the rest of the acts of Baasha, and what he did, and his might, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? As with the previous few kings, the question is asked if the rest of the acts of Baasha are not written in the chronicles of the kings of Israel. This also is really unimportant from an everlasting perspective, since only those things written down by God will ultimately matter. No matter what the world may write about a person, when Jesus Christ returns if not before, it will all be gone. Verse six adds, So Baasha slept with his fathers, and was buried in Tirzah: and Elah his son reigned in his stead. Baasha died and was buried with his ancestors. His son Elah succeeded him as king, so God's prophesy had not yet come to pass. God's prophecies may not always come to pass immediately, but they will always come to pass in God's time. We have the promise of everlasting life with God if we have accepted Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord and everlasting separation from Him if we don't and even if this prophecy is not fulfilled in our lifetime, it is still a certainty that it will. Verse seven continues, And also by the hand of the prophet Jehu the son of Hanani came the word of the Lord against Baasha, and against his house, even for all the evil that he did in the sight of the Lord, in provoking him to anger with the work of his hands, in being like the house of Jeroboam; and because he killed him. Before Baasha died, Jehu delivered God's word to him telling him of the coming destruction of his house, or family, because of his idolatry and his leading others away from God. We today have God's word telling us what will happen to us if we do not accept the truth of the gospel. Verse eight concludes, In the twenty and sixth year of Asa king of Judah began Elah the son of Baasha to reign over Israel in Tirzah, two years. Asa was still reigning in Judah when Elah began to reign in Israel. We have but one King, and that is Jesus Christ, and His rule will last throughout all the reign of all earthly kings and kingdoms.
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