Highlights:
Death of Ahaziah king of Israel; Elijah taken up by a whirlwind; Elisha purifies Jericho's water; Elisha ridiculed. History records one important question in the life of each king: Did he keep the Commandments of God, or ignore them? All of us will face this review: Do our actions and prayers indicate there is a God whom we desire to control our life (II Kin. 1:3)?
Ahaziah, the king of Israel, was on the rooftop patio of his palace when he accidentally fell through a lattice to the marble floor below and was fatally wounded.
He sent messengers and said unto them, Go, enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron whether I shall recover of this disease (injury). But the angel of the Lord said to Elijah . . . meet (intercept) the messengers. . . and say unto them, Is (there) not . . . a God in Israel, that ye go to enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron? Now therefore thus saith the Lord, thou . . . shalt surely die (II Kin. 1:2-4).
Ahaziah's servants returned and told the king what Elijah had said. Instead of turning to the Lord, Ahaziah expressed hatred for the prophet as his mother Jezebel had. He sent 50 soldiers to arrest Elijah and bring him into custody.
Ahaziah's unfaithfulness to God had hardened his heart, and he failed to see the hand of God in all that occurred — first in the death of his father, Ahab; then his mother Jezebel's violent death; and now his "accident." Because he did not turn to the Lord, Ahaziah died according to the Word of the Lord (1:17).
The providential circumstances of God have placed each of us exactly where we are. Even though we are not conscious of His presence, the Lord is in every circumstance. Not that we are sufficent of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God (II Cor. 3:5). Yes, His grace (loving-kindess, good will, mercy, compassion) is sufficient to meet every situation.
We may or may not be responsible for the circumstances in which we find ourselves, but we are responsible for the way we react to them. We can become angry with the people or things that God allows or brings into our lives, or we can yield to the Lord, who seeks to use our circumstances to change us into His likeness.
We have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us and we gave them reverance: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits and live? . . . He (corrects us) for our profit, that we might be partakers of His holiness (Heb. 12:9-10).
Thought for Today:
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them (Eph. 2:10).
Christ Revealed:
In the taking up of Elijah in the whirlwind and the dropping of his mantle — a symbol of the presence and power of God that remain with His faithful servant (II Kin. 2:8-15). This is a type of the ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ and His sending the Holy Spirit to indwell and empower believers to evangelize the world. He was parted from them, and carried up into heaven (Luke 24:51-53; Acts 1 — 2).
Word Studies:
1:8 girt with =b> wearing; girdle of leather about his loins =b> garment around his waist; 2:19 naught =olluted, bad; 2:24 tare =b> mauled or mangled; 3:9 fetched a compass =b> circled around; made a roundabout march; 3:27 offered him =b> burned him alive as a sacrifice to a god of Moab.
Prayer Needs:
Pray for our Military worldwide • International Broadcasts for the month of May sponsored by Mary Hoffmeyer • Government Official: Rep. Ed Perlmutter (CO) • Country: Guyana (705,000) on the northeastern coast of South America • Major languages: English and Amerindian dialects • The government is becoming increasingly Marxist, radical, and atheistic • 36% Hindu; 28% Protestant; 10% Roman Catholic; 9% Muslim • Prayer Suggestion: Intercede in prayer for those in authority over you (I Tim. 2:1-2).
Optional Reading: Romans 4
NOTE: Bible Pathway covers the Old Testament with devotional and commentary insights over a nine-month period, January through September. Each day during these months, an optional reading of one chapter a day from the New Testament will also be listed. The October, November, and December issues will provide a daily commentary on the New Testament readings. Thus, the reader goes through the New Testament twice each year using the Bible Pathway plan.
Memory Verse for the Week: John 1