2 Kings 13:15

2 Kings 13:15 says, And Elisha said unto him, Take bow and arrows. And he took unto him bow and arrows.  Elisha instructed Joash the king to take a bow and arrows.  We are instructed to put on the whole armor of God as followers of Christ today.  Verse sixteen adds, And he said to the king of Israel, Put thine hand upon the bow. And he put his hand upon it: and Elisha put his hands upon the king's hands.  Elisha then told the king to put his hands on the bow, and Elisha put his hands over the king's hands.  God will always have His protective, guiding hand on Christians today spiritually.  Verse seventeen continues, And he said, Open the window eastward. And he opened it. Then Elisha said, Shoot. And he shot. And he said, The arrow of the Lord's deliverance, and the arrow of deliverance from Syria: for thou shalt smite the Syrians in Aphek, till thou have consumed them.  Elisha then had the king shoot an arrow out the window to the east and said that symbolized his defeating the Syrians.  The empty cross today represents Jesus Christ defeating sin and death, but we are really to live by faith and not signs.  Verse eighteen states, And he said, Take the arrows. And he took them. And he said unto the king of Israel, Smite upon the ground. And he smote thrice, and stayed.  Elisha then told the king to take the arrows and hit the ground with them, and he did so three times and quit.  If God instructs us to do something today, we should never just do just as little as possible but should always be overzealous in doing what God wants us to do instead.  Verse nineteen adds, And the man of God was wroth with him, and said, Thou shouldest have smitten five or six times; then hadst thou smitten Syria till thou hadst consumed it: whereas now thou shalt smite Syria but thrice.  Elisha told the king that he should have hit the arrows on the ground five or six times and then he would have completely destroyed Syria, but now he would only defeat them three times.  We may not always know why God is calling on us to do something, just as the king didn't know why Elisha had instructed him to hit the arrows on the ground, but it is always better to risk doing too much instead of too little.  Otherwise, we may stop before God's blessing is complete.  Verse twenty continues, And Elisha died, and they buried him. And the bands of the Moabites invaded the land at the coming in of the year.  Elisha then died and was buried.  Then, the next year the Moabites invaded Israel.  If we allow our faith in God to falter, we may be certain that Satan and his forces stand ready to invade our lives, and Elisha had been a great man of God who represented Him to the people of Israel.  Verse twenty-one says, And it came to pass, as they were burying a man, that, behold, they spied a band of men; and they cast the man into the sepulchre of Elisha: and when the man was let down, and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived, and stood up on his feet.  While they were burying a man later, they saw a band of men coming so they threw the man's body into Elisha's tomb, and it touched his bones.  The man was then restored to life.  We do not have to go to the tomb of Jesus and touch any bones, because there are none there to touch, but we must allow Him to touch us with His living hand in order to be restored to life spiritually.  Verse twenty-two adds, But Hazael king of Syria oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz.  Hazael, king of Syria, oppressed the people of Israel all the days of Jehoahaz.  As long as this world stands, there will always be people who will attempt to oppress God's people.  We will never have a complete victory in this lifetime.  Verse twenty-three continues, And the Lord was gracious unto them, and had compassion on them, and had respect unto them, because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and would not destroy them, neither cast he them from his presence as yet.  God was gracious to the people of Israel because of His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and did not allow them to be totally destroyed.  God is gracious to Christians today and will never allow us to be destroyed spiritually because of our faith in Jesus Christ and the new covenant that He established with us through Him.  Verse twenty-four states, So Hazael king of Syria died; and Benhadad his son reigned in his stead.  Hazael, king of Syria, died and Benhadad his son reigned in his place.  Earthly leaders will always come and go, but our King, Jesus Christ, rules forever.  Verse twenty-five adds, And Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz took again out of the hand of Benhadad the son of Hazael the cities, which he had taken out of the hand of Jehoahaz his father by war. Three times did Joash beat him, and recovered the cities of Israel.  Jehoash began to recover the cities of Israel that Hazael had taken, and he defeated them three times.  Unless we put limits on God's power by a lack of faith, there is no limit to the times that we can defeat the power of evil in the world.

2 Kings 13:8

2 Kings 13:8 says, Now the rest of the acts of Jehoahaz, and all that he did, and his might, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?  As with all the kings of Israel and Judah, we are told that all the acts of Jehoahaz were recorded in the chronicles of the kings.  The reign of the rulers of Israel was never sugar-coated, but both the good and the bad they did was recorded.  As Christians, we do not become perfect people and we should never profess to be.  God will always note both the good and the bad that we do, and the good won't get us into heaven and the bad won't keep us out.  Only our relationship with Jesus Christ will do so.  Verse nine adds, And Jehoahaz slept with his fathers; and they buried him in Samaria: and Joash his son reigned in his stead.  After Jehoahaz died and was buried with his ancestors, his son Joash began to reign.  One day, we are going to die, unless Jesus Christ returns first, and someone is going to take our place in the world.  Some people may believe that they are irreplaceable, either in their everyday job or their role in the church, but they are not.  Verse ten continues, In the thirty and seventh year of Joash king of Judah began Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned sixteen years.  Here, we are told that Joash had ruled Judah for thirty-seven years when Jehoahaz's son, here called Jehoash, began to rule in Israel.  Sometimes, the names of the rulers of Israel and Judah were very similar, and often seemed to be used interchangeably, but they were always two different people.  Jehoash ruled Israel for sixteen years.  The name of the people in charge in the church today isn't what is really important.  It is their character, their relationship with God, that is.  Verse eleven states, And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord; he departed not from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel sin: but he walked therein.  Jehoash followed after the ways of Jeroboam and led the people of Israel to sin.  We need ot pray that our leaders today will not lead Christians to sin, especially our religious leaders.  Verse twelve adds, And the rest of the acts of Joash, and all that he did, and his might wherewith he fought against Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?  Here, we are told that the rest of the acts of Joash, as he is once again referred to, are recorded in the chronicles of the kings, especially his war against Amaziah, who was now king of Judah.  In these times, we find that God's people were too often at war with each other, and we as the church, should never be at war with each other.  Verse thirteen continues, And Joash slept with his fathers; and Jeroboam sat upon his throne: and Joash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.  We are told that Joash died and was buried, and that Jeroboam replaced him.  Again, the names can sometimes be confusing, since earlier it was stated that Joash followed after the ways of Jeroboam, and here we are told Jeroboam followed after Joash, but this was a different Jeroboam.  Verse fourteen concludes, Now Elisha was fallen sick of his sickness whereof he died. And Joash the king of Israel came down unto him, and wept over his face, and said, O my father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof.  Elisha was old and died.  He was not transported straight to heaven as Elijah was.  Unless Jesus Christ returns first, we will all die before we go to heaven.  This was while Joash was still king, and he came and mourned for Elisha.  Matthew Henry says this was more out of fear for the loss of Elisha bringing protection from God than for a real respect for Elisha.  We should never look at the loss of a religious leader today only out of concern for how it may affect us personally but must always look at it from the point of view as to how it will affect the work in God's kingdom. 

2 Kings 13:1

2 Kings 13:1 says, In the three and twentieth year of Joash the son of Ahaziah king of Judah Jehoahaz the son of Jehu began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned seventeen years.  Jehoahaz, Jehu's son, began to reign in the twenty-third year of Joash's reign in Judah, and he reigned for seventeen years.  As stated before, God's people should have never been divided, but they were for many, many years.  Christians today should not be divided either, but we often allow ourselves to be.  Verse two adds, And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, and followed the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which made Israel to sin; he departed not therefrom.  Jehoahaz sinned against God by following the sins of Jeroboam who had led the people of Israel to sin.  We certainly should never allow sin to guide us as followers of Christ, and even more so we should never lead others to sin.  Verse three continues, And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he delivered them into the hand of Hazael king of Syria, and into the hand of Benhadad the son of Hazael, all their days.  God was displeased with the people of Israel, and He allowed them to be conquered by the Syrians.  If we as Christians allow sin back into our life, God is not going to be pleased with us and He may remove His protective hand from us.  This doesn't mean that we lose our salvation, but we may lose the joy and blessings of our salvation.  Also, just because someone is in power that doesn't mean that God has placed them there.  Verse four states, And Jehoahaz besought the Lord, and the Lord hearkened unto him: for he saw the oppression of Israel, because the king of Syria oppressed them. Though Jehoahaz hadn't been faithful to God, when he was in trouble, he called on the Lord, just as people who have not been faithful to God will often do today.  Sometimes, people forget about God and His will for them until they have problems in life, and then they call on Him to bail them out and often blame Him for their problems as well.  Verse five adds, (And the Lord gave Israel a saviour, so that they went out from under the hand of the Syrians: and the children of Israel dwelt in their tents, as beforetime.  God gave the people of Israel as savior who delivered them from the hands of the Syrians.  God has given anyone who will accept Him a Savior, Jesus Christ, and if we do accept Him as our personal Savior and Lord, we will be delivered from the power of sin.  Verse six continues, Nevertheless they departed not from the sins of the house of Jeroboam, who made Israel sin, but walked therein: and there remained the grove also in Samaria.)  Still, the people of Israel continued to sin although God had sent them a deliverer.  People today continue to live under the power and penalty of sin, even though God has already sent a Deliverer.  Satan and his forces are already defeated, but God will allow us to live under their power if we will not accept salvation by putting our faith in Jesus Christ.  Verse seven concludes, Neither did he leave of the people to Jehoahaz but fifty horsemen, and ten chariots, and ten thousand footmen; for the king of Syria had destroyed them, and had made them like the dust by threshing.  Though delivered from the rule of Syria, the people of Israel were left with little to go to war with because the Syrians had already destroyed the rest.  If we stray away from God, although we are forever saved if we put our faith in Jesus Christ, we will be diminished in our power over sin in our life.  As Christians, we must always put doing God's will by the leadership of the Holy Spirit first.

2 Kings 12:17

2 kings 12:17 says, Then Hazael king of Syria went up, and fought against Gath, and took it: and Hazael set his face to go up to Jerusalem.  Hazael, the king of Syria anointed by Elijah by God's direction, went to war with Judah, taking Gath and looking to take Jerusalem.  We are not told that he was acting under God's direction, but we do know that Jehoash had turned away from God by this time.  I personally don't believe that God ordains or causes anyone to do anything evil in the world, but Hazael was being used to punish Jehoash for his sins, even though he was not a part of the nation of Israel, so this really wasn't something evil.  If we as Christians turn away from God, He may allow lost people to defeat us in order to call us back to Him.  If we have really accepted Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord, we will never be defeated forever spiritually though.  We are God's forever.  Verse eighteen adds, And Jehoash king of Judah took all the hallowed things that Jehoshaphat, and Jehoram, and Ahaziah, his fathers, kings of Judah, had dedicated, and his own hallowed things, and all the gold that was found in the treasures of the house of the Lord, and in the king's house, and sent it to Hazael king of Syria: and he went away from Jerusalem.  Jehoash took all the treasures of the temple, dedicated to God by Jehoshaphat, Jehoram, Ahaziah and himself and sent them to Hazael in order to keep him from attacking Jerusalem.  Of course, had he not turned away from God, he would have had His protection, but now he put no value on the things dedicated to God except as they helped him.  We should never use things that we have dedicated to God in an attempt to save ourselves, because only faith in Jesus Christ can save us.  Verse nineteen continues, And the rest of the acts of Joash, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?  We are told that the rest of the things that Joash did are recorded in the chronicles of the kings, this time before we are told that he died or was killed.  I do know that God will take note of all our actions in this life, but once we die, there is no changing our everlasting destination.  Verse twenty states, And his servants arose, and made a conspiracy, and slew Joash in the house of Millo, which goeth down to Silla.  We are then told that Joash's own servants killed him.  He may have bought protection from Hazael, but this did not save him.  We may be able to buy our way out of some threatening situations, but if we have not accepted Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord, we will never be safe spiritually.  Verse twenty-one adds, For Jozachar the son of Shimeath, and Jehozabad the son of Shomer, his servants, smote him, and he died; and they buried him with his fathers in the city of David: and Amaziah his son reigned in his stead.  After his servants killed him, he was buried with his fathers in the city of David.  Then, Amaziah his son reigned in place of him.  As Christians, Jesus Christ is the only One Who can reign in our life if we are to be successful in following God.  Still, God will call people to positions of service, and if they stray away from him or die, He will call someone else to replace them.  

2 Kings 12:9

 2 Kings 12:9 says, But Jehoiada the priest took a chest, and bored a hole in the lid of it, and set it beside the altar, on the right side as one cometh into the house of the Lord: and the priests that kept the door put therein all the money that was brought into the house of the Lord.  Jehoiada put a chest with a hole in the lid at the entrance to the temple, and the priests at the door put all the money coming into the temple in it.  This was to set it aside for use in repairing the temple.  We often have designated offerings that set aside money for specific purposes, but this should never come at the expense of our tithes and offerings which are used in reaching out to the world with the gospel and providing for preachers and missionaries.  Verse ten adds, And it was so, when they saw that there was much money in the chest, that the king's scribe and the high priest came up, and they put up in bags, and told the money that was found in the house of the Lord.  When there was a lot of money in the chest, the king's scribe and the high priest put the money in bags and said the money was found in the house of the Lord.  They did not just put the money in the hands of the priests.  Not everything given to God should be used to support those in full-time ministry nor under their sole authority.  Verse eleven continues, And they gave the money, being told, into the hands of them that did the work, that had the oversight of the house of the Lord: and they laid it out to the carpenters and builders, that wrought upon the house of the Lord,  They gave the money to those who had oversight of the work, and the paid the carpenters and builders.  We need to make certain that God's money, that brought into the church, is used wisely today, but we should also pay those doing work on church property a fair wage.  Verse twelve concludes, And to masons, and hewers of stone, and to buy timber and hewed stone to repair the breaches of the house of the Lord, and for all that was laid out for the house to repair it.  All those doing the work were paid fairly.  I don't believe that everyone doing the work was paid exactly the same thing, but that they were paid according to their skills and what their work contributed to the overall repair.  As followers of Christ, we are not all going to be rewarded the same materially for doing God's work, but we will all be rewarded the same spiritually and that is what really matters.  Sometimes, we can become jealous or even angry if it seems some other Christian has more in this life than we do, but this should never be true.  Verse thirteen states, Howbeit there were not made for the house of the Lord bowls of silver, snuffers, basons, trumpets, any vessels of gold, or vessels of silver, of the money that was brought into the house of the Lord:  They were repairing the building, but they were not making the vessels to be used in worship, which had been lost or destroyed.  Workers can repair church buildings today, but they may not be able to provide all that is necessary for real worship.  Of course, for Christians, this is not physical things, but is a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and obedience to His will.  Verse fourteen adds, But they gave that to the workmen, and repaired therewith the house of the Lord.  The money collected went strictly for the repair of the temple.  If we collect money for a specific purpose under the leadership of the Holy Spirit, then we need to use that money only for the purpose for which it was collected, and we also don't need to just sit on the money forever.  If we believe that God has called us to do a specific thing, we should step out in faith and do it.  Verse fifteen continues, Moreover they reckoned not with the men, into whose hand they delivered the money to be bestowed on workmen: for they dealt faithfully.  They didn't oversee how the money was dispersed to the workmen but allowed those in charge to dispense it.  If we contract work to be done on church property today, we need to hire someone who is reputable and trust them to be honest in paying those who work for them.  Verse sixteen concludes, The trespass money and sin money was not brought into the house of the Lord: it was the priests'.  The priests were not left without a means to meet their everyday needs but received the trespass and sin money.  We don't collect trespass and sin money today, but we do need to make sure that even during building projects that we continue to bring our regular tithes at least to God.  Our offerings could be designated, but I believe that money for building projects should be in addition to what we normally give anyway.   

2 Kings 12:1

 2 Kings 12:1 says, In the seventh year of Jehu Jehoash began to reign; and forty years reigned he in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Zibiah of Beersheba.  Jehoash began to reign in the seventh year of Jehu's reign in Israel.  He reigned for forty years, but would have still been fairly young.  Some people start serving God younger than others do today, and they probably will be able to serve Him longer, but they are not guaranteed a long life.  We can only serve God faithfully for as long as we live once we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord.  Verse two adds, And Jehoash did that which was right in the sight of the Lord all his days wherein Jehoiada the priest instructed him.  Jehoash did what was right in God's sight under the instruction of Jehoiada the priest.  As Christians, we are a part of the priesthood of believers and need to live under the leadership of the Holy Spirit so that we will do what is right in God's sight.  Verse three continues, But the high places were not taken away: the people still sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places.  Still, Jehoash was not totally obedient to God, allowing the high places to be viewed as sacred and used for worship.  Matthew Henry said these high places competed with the altar of God at Jerusalem and may have started because at times it was dangerous to travel to Jerusalem.  Though we can worship anywhere, I believe that God expects us to gather together in His name to worship weekly at least.  Verse four states, And Jehoash said to the priests, All the money of the dedicated things that is brought into the house of the Lord, even the money of every one that passeth the account, the money that every man is set at, and all the money that cometh into any man's heart to bring into the house of the Lord,  Jehoash told them to bring all the money dedicated to the LORD into His house, just as we must bring everything dedicated to God to His house today to be used for His mission in the world.  Verse five adds, Let the priests take it to them, every man of his acquaintance: and let them repair the breaches of the house, wheresoever any breach shall be found.  The money collected was to be used to repair the temple, which Matthew Henry says had evidently been neglected and was in need of repair.  As Christians, we cannot afford to allow God's work to fall into disrepair.  Verse six continues, But it was so, that in the three and twentieth year of king Jehoash the priests had not repaired the breaches of the house.  In the twenty-third year of Jehoash's reign, the temple still had not been repaired.  Though they had been told to do so, they weren't in a hurry to repair the temple.  Though we have been told to do so, we often aren't in a hurry to share the gospel and to do God's work, especially if it is going to cost us materially.  Verse seven says, Then king Jehoash called for Jehoiada the priest, and the other priests, and said unto them, Why repair ye not the breaches of the house? now therefore receive no more money of your acquaintance, but deliver it for the breaches of the house.  Jehoash called Jehoiada and the other priests and asked them why the repair of the temple was not being done.  Matthew Henry says that Jehoash may have had more zeal for the repair of the temple than for the actual worship of God.  We cannot allow buildings to become the focus of our worship and begin to be more concerned about a church building than we are about actually worshiping and serving God.  Verse eight adds, And the priests consented to receive no more money of the people, neither to repair the breaches of the house.  Having been told not to receive any more money that wasn't used for the repair of the temple, the priests stopped collecting any.  Even if we don't agree with the way our tithes and offerings are being used, we cannot just quit giving them.  The tithe still belongs to God to be used for His purpose, and the rest is to be used under His guidance.  

2 Kings 11:13

 2 Kings 11:13 says, And when Athaliah heard the noise of the guard and of the people, she came to the people into the temple of the Lord.  When she heard the sound of the guard coming, Athaliah went to the temple of the Lord.  Matthew Henry points out that she came alone without even a guard.  She may have believed that she was too powerful to be defied, but the kingdom had already passed to another.  There are still people who believe themselves to be too important to ever be defied and who stand alone defying God and His people, but the kingdom has already passed, and Jesus Christ is the eternal King.  Verse fourteen adds, And when she looked, behold, the king stood by a pillar, as the manner was, and the princes and the trumpeters by the king, and all the people of the land rejoiced, and blew with trumpets: and Athaliah rent her clothes, and cried, Treason, Treason.  When she looked, Athaliah saw the king standing by a pillar and the people rejoicing and blowing trumpets in his honor.  When we look today, we may not see it, and too many will not accept it, but Jesus Christ is already crowned King.  When we accept Him, we should rejoice and sing praises to Him.  Athaliah tore her clothes and yelled treason when she saw what had happened.  One day, those who do not accept Jesus Christ as their personal Savior and Lord will go away to everlasting punishment where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, but it won't be because anyone betrayed them.  It will be because they betrayed God by not accepting His gift of salvation.  Verse fifteen continues,  But Jehoiada the priest commanded the captains of the hundreds, the officers of the host, and said unto them, Have her forth without the ranges: and him that followeth her kill with the sword. For the priest had said, Let her not be slain in the house of the Lord.  Jehoiada the priest told the captains to bring Athaliah out of the temple and slay her and anyone who followed her.  Her blood was not to be shed in the temple.  If you are not a Christian, you cannot find safety in a chirch building, and if you are, you certainly don't want to shed anyone's blood there.  Verse sixteen states, And they laid hands on her; and she went by the way by the which the horses came into the king's house: and there was she slain.  They took out of the temple and she went by the way that the king's horse travelled, and there she was slain.  Matthew Heny says she was trying to escape by the back way to the palace, but that didn't work, just as there is no way to escape from God's judgment if you have not put your faith in Jesus Christ.  Verse seventeen adds, And Jehoiada made a covenant between the LORD and the king and the people, that they should be the Lord's people; between the king also and the people.  Jehoiada then made a convent between the people and God that they would be God's people.  This covenant would also apply to the relationship of the people to each other.  When we accept Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord, we enter into a covenant prelateship with Him, but we also enter into a covenant relationship with other Christians, because we all become a part of God's kingdom.  Verse eighteen continues, And all the people of the land went into the house of Baal, and brake it down; his altars and his images brake they in pieces thoroughly, and slew Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars. And the priest appointed officers over the house of the Lord.  The people then destroyed the images to Baal and his temple and killed Mattan, the priest of Baal.  As followers of Christ, we must tear down all the idols that stand between God and us, and we cannot follow the advice of anyone who would lead us to worship anyone or anything else.  Verse nineteen says, And he took the rulers over hundreds, and the captains, and the guard, and all the people of the land; and they brought down the king from the house of the Lord, and came by the way of the gate of the guard to the king's house. And he sat on the throne of the kings.  They then brought Jehoash from the temple to the king's house and sat him on the throne.  As Christians, we must put Jesus Christ on the throne of our life and be obedient to God alone.  Verse twenty adds, And all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was in quiet: and they slew Athaliah with the sword beside the king's house.  All the people then rejoiced when the king was on the throne, just as we should rejoice when we put Jesus on the throne of our life.  Verse twenty continues, Seven years old was Jehoash when he began to reign.  Jehoash was only seven years old when he began to reign.  He was anointed by God's direction, so his age really didn't matter.  It also doesn't matter what age we are when we accept Jesus Christas our Savior and Lord.  We should come as soon as well feel His call.