2 Kings 15:23

2 Kings 15:23 says, In the fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah Pekahiah the son of Menahem began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned two years.  Azariah was now in his fiftieth year of ruling Judah, and Pekahiah became king of Israel.  He only ruled for two years.  Matthew Henry points out that Jeroboam had ruled for forty-one years, the longest of any king of Israel, and yet he had done evil in God's sight.  We may never know why God allows some evil rulers to rule for a long time.  Verse twenty-four adds, And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord: he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin.  Pekahiah also did evil in God's sight like Jeroboam had done.  Sometimes, people tend to follow the ways of those who preceded them in power, even if they have done evil in God's sight.  Verse twenty-five continues, But Pekah the son of Remaliah, a captain of his, conspired against him, and smote him in Samaria, in the palace of the king's house, with Argob and Arieh, and with him fifty men of the Gileadites: and he killed him, and reigned in his room.  Pekah took fifty men of Gilead with him and killed Pekahiah and took over as king.  Unlike Jeroboam, Pekahiah did not rule long, even though he was following his ways.  Verse twenty-six concludes, And the rest of the acts of Pekahiah, and all that he did, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.  We are told that the rest of the acts of Pekahiah were recorded in the chronicles of the kings, though all that we are really told so far was that he did evil in God's sight. Also, we are not told where he was buried.  The fact that they are doing evil in God's sight may not determine the length that someone rules in the world today.  Verse twenty-seven states, In the two and fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah Pekah the son of Remaliah began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned twenty years.  Azariah was still reigning in Judah when Pekah began to rule in Israel, and Pekah ruled for twenty years.  Neither Pekahiah nor he was actually referred to as king, but were only said to have ruled.  It may be that the people did not anoint them king, but that they assumed power by their own might.  Many leaders today we know are not really chosen by the people but assume power through their own might.  Verse twenty-eight adds, And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord: he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin.  Pekah also followed the sinful ways of Jeroboam.  This means that the people of Israel had been doing evil in God's sight for sixty plus years following the ways of Jeroboam.  Some countries have been doing evil in God's sight for many, many years and may continue to do so until Jesus Christ returns, but we need to pray that we do not become one of them, though in many ways we are already there.  Verse twenty-nine continues, In the days of Pekah king of Israel came Tiglathpileser king of Assyria, and took Ijon, and Abelbethmaachah, and Janoah, and Kedesh, and Hazor, and Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali, and carried them captive to Assyria.  During the reign of Pekah, the king of Assyria captured some cites of Gilead and the land of Nephtali and took its people captive.  Pekah was evidently not effective in protecting Israel from other countries, but maybe we shouldn't be surprised because it was always God Who protected them.  If we want to be successful as a nation today, I believe that we must obey God.  Verse thirty says, And Hoshea the son of Elah made a conspiracy against Pekah the son of Remaliah, and smote him, and slew him, and reigned in his stead, in the twentieth year of Jotham the son of Uzziah.  Like he had done with Pekahiah, Pekah was killed by another, Hoshea, who then ruled in his place.  We are not told that he was ordained by the people either nor was he chosen by God that we know of.  Verse thirty-one adds, And the rest of the acts of Pekah, and all that he did, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.  As usual, we are told that the rest of the acts of Pekah were recorded in the chronicle of the kings.