Daybreak: 2 Kings 23:31 through 24:20

2 Kings 23-31-24-20

Devotional focuspers

And the Lord sent against Him bans of the Caldys, and bans of the Syrians, and bans of the Moabites,

and bans of the children of Ammon, and sent them against due to destroy it,

according to the word of the Lord, which He spake by His servants the prophets.

2 Kings 24-2

An object lesson that I have never forgotten was given in Sunday school when I was young.

Our teacher related a story about a farmer who called a son to pound a nail into the barn door

every time he did something wrong. After hammering nails into a piece of wood to illustrate,

our teacher continued the narrative. He said that one day the boy looked at the barn door and

felt ashamed of the ugly nails at marked surface, so he asked his dad how he could get rid of them.

The father told his son he could start removing a nail every time he did something good.

Before along, the last nail was taken out of the door.

Removing the nails from the board, our teacher showed us that although every nail was gone,

the holes remained. He was not suggesting that we can compensate for sins by doing something good.

Rather, he made the point that the scars of sin may remain in our lives,

even after we have asked God for forgiveness and are saved in doing right.

Our teacher wanted us to understand that sin has consequences.

In contrast to the boy in the object lesson who felt remorseful for his deeds,

the kings and people of the nation of Judah as a whole had stubbornly refused to heed God's

commandments and warnings. Today's text tells us four more kings who did that which was evil in

the sight of the Lord. Finally, God's anger could not be pacified any longer,

and the people of Judah bore the consequences of their rebellion.

The focus verse says he sent their enemies against them to destroy them.

The choices we make today have consequences and will affect our future.

If we make unwise choices in what we eat, ignore the need for exercise, or develop other

harmful habits, our health will eventually suffer. If we make fully shoes of credit cards

and spend money on things we cannot afford, there will come a day of financial reckoning.

If we neglect the call of God, or fail to live a disciplined spiritual life, that will affect us.

Even so, we must never forget the vastness of God's mercy and grace.

He reaches out in love to those who heed his call, and he has an amazing ability to help and

restore those who look to Him. We can learn from the people of Judah not to resist God.

Remembering that sin has consequences, we want to serve the Lord and by his help make right choices.

He is waiting to give us his strength and grace to do so if we will just ask.

Background information

Under the reign of King Josiah, Judah experienced a brief period of turning away from

idolatrous practices, as the King attempted to lead the nation back to worship of God.

However, after Josiah's death, people quickly returned to the wicked ways which they had

followed during the reign of Manasseh. Josiah's sons, Jehoahaz and Jehoiacem were evil kings.

The judgment which had been postponed during Josiah's reign was about to descend upon Judah,

only 22 years after Josiah's death. When Josiah died, the people of Judah made his fourth

sin, Jehoahaz, also called Shalom, King, see 1 Chronicles 315. However, the armies of Pharaoh

Neco of Egypt were moving northward and they took control of Judah. Pharaoh removed Jehoahaz after

he had rained only three months, taking him to Egypt where he died. Josiah's older son, Jehoiacem,

also called Alayakem, was made king and the people of Judah were taxed to pay tribute to Egypt.

Jehoiacem was a evil and oppressive king, see Jeremiah 22, 13 through 19.

While Jehoiacem was king of Judah, the Neobabolonian Empire conquered the Assyrian Empire

and became the supreme governing force of the world. King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon

invaded the land of Judah three times, the first invasion beginning the 70-year captivity

prophesied by Jeremiah, see Jeremiah 25 11 through 12. During his first invasion in 605 BC,

King Nebuchadnezzar took treasures from the temple and hostages from the nobility and royal families,

including Daniel and the three Hebrew children. These were the vessels that Bell Shazor used in

his fees, see Daniel 5 too, and which Cyrus sent back to Jerusalem with Ezra, see Ezra 1 and 7 through

11. The second invasion occurred in 597 BC, during King Jehoiacem's reign. At that time,

the rest of the temple treasures and 10,000 men were taken away to Babylon.

The prophet Ezekiel was carried to Babylon during the skeptivity. In 588 BC, during the reign of

King Zedakaya of Judah, the third invasion took place. The city of Jerusalem was besieged for 18 months

and then destroyed in 586 BC, along with the temple. Zedakaya was carried to Babylon with all the

remnant of the Jewish population, except for the poorest of the people. Conclusion.

God is waiting to help us make right choices and avoid the consequences of sin.

Are we availing ourselves of his help?