Historical Books 2 Kings

Defiling The Temple

Discover Jesus as: Surviving Seed 2 Kings 15-16 Read on Bible Gateway (HCSB)

Day 276 of 730
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INTRO

As we look at the crazy genealogy of 2 Kings, we can praise the Lord that we have the Surviving Seed. Most of the kings for both the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah were evil in God’s sight. Occasionally in Judah, a king would do what was right in God’s sight. Chapter 15 jumps between kings in both kingdoms, but their reigns were shortened because they all followed in the sin of King Jeroboam. In verse 32, Jotham is introduced as the king of Judah.

TEACHING

2 Kings 16:1–4: In the seventeenth year of Pekah’s reign in Israel, Ahaz became king of Judah at the age of 20 (vv. 1–2). Ahaz also chose to walk in the way of Jeroboam, instead of King David. During this time, two new prophets entered Judah: Isaiah and Micah. Not sure how this all worked out, but Ahaz’s father, King Jotham, was still alive at this point. Ahaz sacrificed his son in the fire to the god Molech (v. 3) (Leviticus 18:21). Ahaz also sacrificed and burned incense throughout the nation (v. 4).

2 Kings 16:5–9: Aram’s King Rezin and Israel’s King Pekah joined forces to wage war against Jerusalem and King Ahaz. They besieged the city but could not conquer it (v. 5). According to 2 Chronicles 28:5–8, Ahaz was handed over to the king of Israel because of his sin. King Ahaz’ son was killed in the process, and many others were also killed and captured. Sin constantly leads to consequences. Meanwhile the king of Aram took back Elath, an important port town that was essential to Judah’s economy, and expelled the Judahites from it (v. 6). Ahaz sent messengers to the king of Assyria asking him for help against the king of Aram and the king of Israel and swearing allegiance to him (v. 7). Ahaz also sent the king of Assyria the silver and the gold from the temple and the palace as a tribute to Assyria (v. 8). Assyria marched in to help, deported the people of Aram, and killed King Rezin (v. 9).

2 Kings 16:10–18: Ahaz went to meet the king of Assyria. There he saw the altar of Damascus and sent a model of the altar and building plans to Uriah the priest (v. 10). “The serious iniquity in this was meddling with and changing, according to personal taste, the furnishings of the temple, the design for which had been given by God.”1(Exodus 25:40; 26:30; 27:1–8; 1 Chronicles 28:19). Ahaz’s action showed his desire to please the Assyrian king instead of his own God.2

We must avoid trying to make friends with the world instead of staying obedient to God. Ahaz sought to be friendly with the world (James 4:4), he became stained by the world (James 1:27), he came to love the world (1 John 2:15–17), and he chose to become conformed to the world (Romans 12:2). Is the church today becoming more like the world?

Priest Uriah followed Ahaz’s instructions for the altar rather than staying obedient to God (v. 11). When Ahaz returned, he worshipped and sacrificed at the new altar (vv. 12–13). Then Ahaz moved the bronze altar God wanted off to the side (v. 14). Ahaz commanded Uriah to make all offerings on the new altar, and only the king would sacrifice at the bronze altar so he could seek God’s guidance (v. 15). Uriah, God’s priest, complied (v. 16). Ahaz then altered the water carts and the bronze basins at the temple and removed the Sabbath canopy from the temple, all to satisfy the king of Assyria (vv. 17–18). Wiersbe writes, “Ahaz thought that the Lord would be pleased with sacrifices offered on this magnificent new altar, but he was wrong. The Lord doesn’t want sacrifice; He wants obedience.”3

Dale Ralph Davis points out that Ahaz made four major changes. Ahaz (1) created new altars (vv. 10–11); (2) made new arrangements (vv. 12–14); (3) developed new regulations (vv. 15–16); and (4) brought new rationale (vv. 17–18).4Scripture describes four major changes that Ahaz brought to the temple in Jerusalem:

  1. He removed the side panels and basins from the portable stands (1 Kings 7:27–29, 38).
  2. He removed the large ornate reservoir, called the “sea” from atop the twelve bronze bulls to a new stone base (1 Kings 7:23–26).
  3. He removed the Sabbath canopy used by the king on Sabbath.
  4. He removed the king’s outer entrance, a special entrance to the temple used by the king on Sabbath and feast days.

These changes removed the options that covered the king when he came into the presence of the Lord. Ahaz didn’t want those because he coveted the approval of the king of Assyria. Ahaz turned his back on the Lord.

CLOSING

I want to close with these words from Wiersbe:

“Once we allow worldliness to get into the church fellowship, it will quietly grow, pollute the fellowship and eventually take over. It was not until the reign of his son Hezekiah that the temple Ahaz defiled was reopened and sanctified for ministry (2 Chronicles 29:1-29).”5

1 Corinthians 5:6 makes me think of King Ahaz: “Your boasting is not good. Don’t you know that a little yeast permeates the whole batch of dough?”

  1. John MacArthur, The MacArthur Bible Commentary (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers,2005), p. 458.

  2. MacArthur, p. 458.

  3. Warren W. Wiersbe, The Exposition Bible Commentary: 2 Kings (Colorado Springs: David C. Cook, 2003), p. 566.

  4. Dale Ralph Davis, Focus on the Bible: 2 Kings (Great Britain: Christian Focus Publications, 2011), n.p.

  5. Wiersbe, p. 566.

Questions

  1. In 2 Kings 15:19, the current king of Israel paid the king of Assyria 1,000 talents of silver to gain his support. Where did this silver come from?
  2. How did all but two of the kings of Israel mentioned in 2 Kings 15 die? What does this tell us about the condition of this kingdom? (Romans 1:28–32)
  3. King Ahaz of Judah had his son “walk through the fire.” What does this mean? (Leviticus 20:2–3; Deuteronomy 18:9–10; Ezekiel 16:21)
  4. When meeting with the king of Assyria, King Ahaz saw his altar and had one made just like it for worship in Jerusalem. Do you think the Lord was okay with this (Exodus 39:32, 39, 42–43)? What changes did King Ahaz make to how the people worshiped at the temple (2 Kings 16:14–18)? Is this a portrayal of how mankind designs his own way to worship rather than obedience to the instruction of the Lord?
  5. What did the Holy Spirit highlight to you in 2 Kings 15—16 through the reading or the teaching?

Next: the Daily Word →

Daily Word

Laura Martin 2 Kings 16:18

“To satisfy the king of Assyria, he removed from the LORD’s temple the Sabbath canopy they had built in the palace, and he closed the outer entrance for the king.”

FURTHER SCRIPTURE

  • Psalm 84:10 — “Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be at the door of the house of my God than live in the tents of wicked people.”
  • Galatians 1:10 — “For am I now trying to win the favor of people, or God? Or am I striving to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a slave of Christ.”
  • 1 Thessalonians 2:4 — “Instead, just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the Gospel, so we speak, not to please men, but rather God, who examines our hearts.”