2 Kings 15

Jonathan Ledbetter

Kingdom, Come • Sermon • Submitted 4 months ago • Presented 4 months ago

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Any Questions?

We’re Looking at 2 Kings

2 Kings 15

Last Week - Reign of Amaziah

He Wasn’t Whole-Heartedly Devoted to God

At First, He Seemed Like a Pretty Good King

Obedient to the Law

Listened When God Instructed Him

But Then, He Started:

Worshiping Other Gods

Arrogantly Picking Fights with Israel

Eventually, Some People in Jerusalem Conspired Against Him & Assassinated Him

Then They Made His Son Uzziah (Azariah) King of Judah

Like Last Week, We’ll Spend More Time in 2 Chronicles Than 2 Kings

Kings Tells Us that Uzziah was a Pretty Good King…

But God Struck Him with Leprosy Until the Day He Died

Questions to Discuss:

Do Bad Things Happen to Good People?

All the Time

Does God CAUSE Bad Things to Happen to Good People?

Does God ALLOW Bad Things to Happen to Good People?

Yes

Does God CAUSE or ALLOW Bad Things to Happen to Bad People?

I’d Say Both

We See Many Examples of God Causing Bad Things to Happen to Bad People

So, if God Doesn’t Cause Bad Things to Happen to Good People…

But Only Causes Bad Things to Happen to Bad People…

Then Why Did God Strike this Good King with Leprosy?

Obviously, this Good King Did Something Bad, Right?

That’s Exactly Why it’s Good to Read Chronicles Alongside Kings:

So You Don’t Come Away with the Idea…

That God Sometimes Causes Bad Things to Happen to Good People

He Doesn’t

2 Chronicles 26:1–15 (NIV)

1 Then all the people of Judah took Uzziah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king in place of his father Amaziah. 2 He was the one who rebuilt Elath and restored it to Judah after Amaziah rested with his ancestors. 3 Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem fifty-two years. His mother’s name was Jekoliah; she was from Jerusalem.

4 He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father Amaziah had done. 5 He sought God during the days of Zechariah, who instructed him in the fear of God. As long as he sought the Lord, God gave him success.

6 He went to war against the Philistines and broke down the walls of Gath, Jabneh and Ashdod. He then rebuilt towns near Ashdod and elsewhere among the Philistines. 7 God helped him against the Philistines and against the Arabs who lived in Gur Baal and against the Meunites. 8 The Ammonites brought tribute to Uzziah, and his fame spread as far as the border of Egypt, because he had become very powerful.

9 Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem at the Corner Gate, at the Valley Gate and at the angle of the wall, and he fortified them. 10 He also built towers in the wilderness and dug many cisterns, because he had much livestock in the foothills and in the plain. He had people working his fields and vineyards in the hills and in the fertile lands, for he loved the soil.

11 Uzziah had a well-trained army, ready to go out by divisions according to their numbers as mustered by Jeiel the secretary and Maaseiah the officer under the direction of Hananiah, one of the royal officials. 12 The total number of family leaders over the fighting men was 2,600. 13 Under their command was an army of 307,500 men trained for war, a powerful force to support the king against his enemies. 14 Uzziah provided shields, spears, helmets, coats of armor, bows and slingstones for the entire army.

15 In Jerusalem he made devices invented for use on the towers and on the corner defenses so that soldiers could shoot arrows and hurl large stones from the walls. His fame spread far and wide, for he was greatly helped until he became powerful.

Uzziah was a Good King Who Honored & Obeyed God

And Because of that, Everything Seemed to Go His Way

God Blessed Him, Made Him Famous & Feared By Other Nations…

And Helped Him Become Extremely Powerful

But, What Often Happens When We Receive Lots of Power?

2 Chronicles 26:16–23 (NIV)

16 But after Uzziah became powerful, his pride led to his downfall. He was unfaithful to the Lord his God, and entered the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense. 17 Azariah the priest with eighty other courageous priests of the Lord followed him in. 18 They confronted King Uzziah and said, “It is not right for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the Lord. That is for the priests, the descendants of Aaron, who have been consecrated to burn incense. Leave the sanctuary, for you have been unfaithful; and you will not be honored by the Lord God.”

19 Uzziah, who had a censer in his hand ready to burn incense, became angry. While he was raging at the priests in their presence before the incense altar in the Lord’s temple, leprosy broke out on his forehead. 20 When Azariah the chief priest and all the other priests looked at him, they saw that he had leprosy on his forehead, so they hurried him out. Indeed, he himself was eager to leave, because the Lord had afflicted him.

21 King Uzziah had leprosy until the day he died. He lived in a separate house—leprous, and banned from the temple of the Lord. Jotham his son had charge of the palace and governed the people of the land. 22 The other events of Uzziah’s reign, from beginning to end, are recorded by the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz. 23 Uzziah rested with his ancestors and was buried near them in a cemetery that belonged to the kings, for people said, “He had leprosy.” And Jotham his son succeeded him as king.

God Didn’t Arbitrarily Strike a Good Man with Leprosy

God Struck a Prideful, Disobedient, Unfaithful Man with Leprosy

The King of God’s People had a Lot of Important Responsibilities

The Greatest of Which was to Read, Know, & Rule According to the Law

The Law Stated that:

Only Levites could Be Priests

Only Levites could Enter the Holy Place of the Temple

King Uzziah had Become So Prideful…

That He Believed that He could Do Whatever He Wanted

Even Setting Himself Up as a Priest & Entering the Holy Place

The Priests Tried to Stop Him…

But He Wouldn’t Listen

Instead, He Broke into a Rage & Started Berating Them

But He Found Out Real Quick that wasn’t Going to Fly with God

After God Struck Him with Leprosy…

His Son, Jotham Began Reigning on His Behalf

We’ll Learn about Him at the End of the Chapter

First, the Author Wants to Run Us Through…

All the Kings of Northern Israel Who Reigned…

During the Years of Uzziah’s Reign in Judah

Last Week, We Saw Jeroboam II Become King Over Israel

Now, His Son Zechariah is on the Throne

He would Only Reign for 6 Months…

Before He would Be Assassinated By a Man Named Shallum…

Who would Then Usurp the Throne

Back in Chapter 10, God Promised King Jehu…

That He would have a Descendant on the Throne for 4 Generations:

Zechariah was the Fourth Generation

Now Jehu’s Lineage No Longer Occupies the Throne

Shallum Only Reigned in Israel for 1 Month…

Before He was Assassinated By Menahem…

Who would Then Usurp the Throne…

And Reign Over Israel for 10 Years

It was During His Reign that Assyria Began Showing Interest in Israel

2 Kings 15:19–20 (NIV)

19 Then Pul king of Assyria invaded the land, and Menahem gave him a thousand talents of silver to gain his support and strengthen his own hold on the kingdom. 20 Menahem exacted this money from Israel. Every wealthy person had to contribute fifty shekels of silver to be given to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria withdrew and stayed in the land no longer.

Assyria was an Absolutely Terrifying Empire

NIV Study Bible:

The Assyrian invasions of the eighth century BC were the most traumatic political events in the entire history of Israel.

The brutal Assyrian style of warfare relied on massive armies, superbly equipped with the world’s first great siege machines manipulated by an efficient corps of engineers.

Psychological terror, however, was Assyria’s most effective weapon. It was ruthlessly applied, with corpses impaled on stakes, severed heads stacked in heaps, and captives skinned alive.

The shock of bloody military sieges on both Israel and Judah was profound. The prophets did not fail to speak out against their horror, while at the same time pleading with the people to see God’s hand in history, to recognize spiritual causes in the present punishment.

After Menahem’s Death…

His Son Pekahiah Become King of Israel

He would Reign for 2 Years

He would Be Assassinated By His Officer, Pekah…

Who would Then Usurp the Throne

He would Reign for 20 Years

During His Reign, Assyria Began Conquering Many Cities Just North of Israel…

And Taking Their People Captive Back to Assyria

Pekah would Be Assassinated By a Man Named Hoshea…

Who would Then Usurp the Throne

We’ll Read More about Him in Chapter 17

But Here’s a Little Hint:

He’s the Very Last King that Israel would Ever Have

That Brings Us Back to the Southern Kingdom of Judah

Jotham is the King of Judah

2 Chronicles 27 (NIV)

1 Jotham was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem sixteen years. His mother’s name was Jerusha daughter of Zadok. 2 He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father Uzziah had done, but unlike him he did not enter the temple of the Lord. The people, however, continued their corrupt practices. 3 Jotham rebuilt the Upper Gate of the temple of the Lord and did extensive work on the wall at the hill of Ophel. 4 He built towns in the hill country of Judah and forts and towers in the wooded areas.

5 Jotham waged war against the king of the Ammonites and conquered them. That year the Ammonites paid him a hundred talents of silver, ten thousand cors of wheat and ten thousand cors of barley. The Ammonites brought him the same amount also in the second and third years. 6 Jotham grew powerful because he walked steadfastly before the Lord his God.

7 The other events in Jotham’s reign, including all his wars and the other things he did, are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah. 8 He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem sixteen years. 9 Jotham rested with his ancestors and was buried in the City of David. And Ahaz his son succeeded him as king.

Judah’s had a Decent Little Span of Pretty Good Kings

They’ve Not Been Completely Good, But Pretty Good

God has Blessed Them with Great Power Because of Their Faithfulness to Him

But that’s All Going to Come Crashing Down with the Ahaz

We’ll Talk about Him Next Week

Invitation

In Class We Looked at King Uzziah of Judah

He was a Good, Righteous, Faithful King

And Because of that, God Greatly Blessed Him…

And Caused Him to Succeed in Everything He Did

But, God would Eventually Strike Him with Leprosy

What Happened?

2 Chronicles 26:16 (NIV)

16 But after Uzziah became powerful, his pride led to his downfall. He was unfaithful to the Lord his God, and entered the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense.

Instead of Allowing God’s Blessings to Lead Him to Further Glorify God…

He Became Prideful Over His Successes & Power

There are 2 Ways to Respond to God’s Blessings:

Gratitude that Leads to Praise, Worship, & Service to God

Ingratitude that Leads to Pride & Self-Glorification/Exaltation

Listen to this Very Important Advice from Moses to the Children of Israel:

Deuteronomy 8:11–18 (CSB)

11 “Be careful that you don’t forget the Lord your God by failing to keep his commands, ordinances, and statutes that I am giving you today. 12 When you eat and are full, and build beautiful houses to live in, 13 and your herds and flocks grow large, and your silver and gold multiply, and everything else you have increases, 14 be careful that your heart doesn’t become proud and you forget the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery.

15 He led you through the great and terrible wilderness with its poisonous snakes and scorpions, a thirsty land where there was no water. He brought water out of the flint rock for you. 16 He fed you in the wilderness with manna, which your ancestors had not known, in order to humble and test you, so that in the end he might cause you to prosper. 17 You may say to yourself, ‘My power and my own ability have gained this wealth for me,’ 18 but remember that the Lord your God gives you the power to gain wealth, in order to confirm his covenant he swore to your ancestors, as it is today.

If You have a Good Life with Many Wonderful Things that Make You Happy…

Praise God for that, Not Yourself

Don’t Forget that God has Given You the Ability to have All of that

When You Forget Where All of Your Blessings Come From…

You’ll Soon Find that You’ve Lost it All