2 Kings 15:16-38

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TALKS FOR GROWING CHRISTIANS

Three Bad Kings of Israel and One Good King of Judah

BACKGROUND NOTES



DOCTRINAL POINT(S)

  1. It is impossible to avoid the consequences of God’s moral laws.

  2. It is possible to do what is right in the midst of moral and spiritual decay.

PRACTICAL APPLICATION

  1. How many “howevers” will be in your final record?

QUESTIONS

  1. What was the purpose of Menahem’s cruel and barbaric acts in verse 16?

  2. How is God’s moral law “You reap what you sow” illustrated in this chapter?

  3. How do Hosea 13:16 and Hosea 5:3-7 relate to this passage?

  4. How is God’s moral law “Partial obedience leads to loss” illustrated in this chapter?

  5. Was King Jotham a good king or a bad king?

ANSWERS

  1. The act of killing all the children, including the unborn, was to prevent any uprising in the future from the defeated enemy.

  2. Pekah, one of Pekahiah’s officers, conspired to assassinate King Pekahiah. Later Pekah was assassinated himself as the result of a conspiracy.

  3. The prophet Hosea preached God’s judgment in the northern kingdom at this time. These prophesies were fulfilled in 722 BC when the Assyrians conquered Samaria and defeated the northern kingdom of Israel.

  4. Tiglath-Pileser II, the ruler of Assyria, conquered the cities on the east side of the Jordan River. These cities belonged to the two-and-a-half tribes of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh who had practiced partial obedience back in Numbers 32.

  5. He was one of the eight good kings of the southern kingdom of Judah.

DISCUSS/CONSIDER

  1. Breaking God’s moral laws has consequences. How do people today try to rationalize their actions or avoid the consequences?

  2. King Jotham ruled the southern kingdom of Judah in a time of moral and spiritual decay. Yet he chose to do what is right. How do you and your family consciously try to live rightly in today’s world?

CHALLENGE

  1. Jotham was a good king, however he did not do everything right. What about you? Is there a “however” in your record, holding you back from a righteous life?

KEY VERSES

  • “And Menahem exacted the money from Israel, from all the very wealthy, from each man fifty shekels of silver, to give to the king of Assyria.” 2 Kings 15:20

  • “In the days of Pekah king of Israel, Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria came and took Ijon, Abel Beth Maachah, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor, Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali; and he carried them captive to Assyria.” 2 Kings 15:29

2 Kings, Old Testament, TalksRon Reid2 KINGS 15:16-38