2 Kings Archives - Paula Wiseman

A Study in Contrasts: Namaan

Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great man with his master and in high favor, because by him the LORD had given victory to Syria. He was a mighty man of valor, but he was a leper. 2 Kings 5:1

We are continuing our look at contrasts in Scripture marked by the conjunction “but.” Today we have a straightforward one with the Syrian commander Namaan.

When I was a kid, this was a pretty popular story in the Sunday school rotation. Who knows, maybe it was a roundabout way to impress on all of us the importance of taking a bath. (Kind of like how Daniel 1 is used to encourage kids to eat vegetables.) But in the last fifteen or so years that I taught Sunday school, we never covered Namaan. So if you’ve missed out on his story, let me give you some background.

Namaan was the commander of the army of Syria. Syria had just soundly defeated the Israelite armies under King Ahab, who was joined by Judah’s King Jehoshaphat. You can read about the battle of Ramoth-Gilead in 1 Kings 22. The Jewish historian Josephus believes Namaan was the archer who fired the shot that eventually killed King Ahab. (1 Kings 22:34).

A quick check of his resume in 2 Kings 5:1 lists him as a great man, highly favored, victorious in battle (even God-given victories), a mighty man of valor. BUT he was a leper. Leprosy, as described in the Old Testament, could be anything from a regular rash that healed quickly to the incurable disease that often resulted in a loss of digits and eventually death. Leprosy made the sufferer an outcast. Sometimes people were stricken with leprosy as a judgment from God like with Moses’s sister, Miriam, and King Uzziah.

In Scripture, leprosy is a “type” of sin or kind of a symbol. Our sin cuts us off from God’s presence just like leprosy prevents the sufferer from joining with the community. The only cure for leprosy was divine intervention. The only way our sin can be dealt with is by Christ’s death on our behalf.

If you finish reading 2 Kings 5, you find that Namaan receives his cure. His wife’s maid, an Israelite captive, tells them of the mighty prophet Elisha who prescribes a cure for the commander. However, the cure involves humbly submitting to doing things the way the prophet said.

With all that in mind, let’s consider some takeaways from Namaan’s story.

The successful and powerful need Jesus.
A quick glance of any news broadcast– whether politics, sports, or entertainment– will reveal scores of people who have reached the heights of power and influence, but who are cut off from a relationship with the God of heaven. Pray that the “maid” who has access to them can tell the good news that there is a cure. Consider who you might be the “maid” or the “prophet” to.

Humility is hard but life-changing.
Not just for the powerful and influential, either. In 2 Kings 5:11, Namaan became furious because the healing was not going to come the way he envisioned. However, as soon as he gave up his protests and his pride and followed instructions, healing came. Consider the sources of anger or frustration in your life. Would those situations be helped or resolved by the humility?

The glory is God’s alone.
Namaan was overwhelmed by the miracle in his life and, in his enthusiasm, he wanted to give a generous gift to Elisha. The prophet refused. This not only sent a message that messengers of the One True God were different from the pagan priests and prophets in Syria (and Israel too), but that glory for the healing belonged to God. Elisha wouldn’t risk any misunderstanding of that. Consider where God deserves glory in your life and make sure He receives it.

Lessons from the Good Kings: Jotham

By Paula

So Jotham became mighty, because he ordered his ways before the LORD his God. 2 Chronicles 27:6

Over the last few weeks, we’ve been surveying the lives of some of the kings of Judah. Today is our last one. Maybe you’re not into history. But all of these guys– Asa, Jehoshaphat, Joash, Amaziah, Uzziah— should encourage us and bring us hope. That’s why we have their stories. We’ll finish up with Jotham.

Jotham was a young man, only twenty-five when he ascended to the throne. However, he was well-prepared for his reign. We saw last week that his father, Uzziah, had been struck with leprosy and forced to live out his last years in seclusion. This left Jotham to fulfill all the official duties of a king for a full decade before ruling on his own.

Scripture doesn’t tell us very much about Jotham, fewer than two dozen verses in fact, so it’s tempting to skip him as unimportant. But a close, thoughtful reading shows some admirable things about this king.

Jotham learned from his father’s failures. 2 Chronicles 27:2 makes a point of telling us that Jotham did not enter the Temple presumptuously. Furthermore, the chronicler uses the very same word to describe Jotham — mighty — as he did for Uzziah in 26:16. However, that was the moment Uzziah became filled with pride. Jotham was tremendously blessed with civil, financial and military success, but he remained humble.

We need to be wise enough to learn from others. It is easy to tell ourselves that the bad outcomes won’t happen to us, that we will somehow be different, but that rarely happens. Jotham knew pride and presumption led to disastrous consequences and he resolved not to give in to it.

Furthermore, he remained committed to God, leading by example, even though his subjects persisted in their corrupt lifestyles. As king, there is no doubt his every move was scrutinized. There is no comment on whether or not Jotham was a popular king, only that he was a godly one.

We too must remain steadfast even when we are in the minority. This will only be more difficult as our culture becomes more and more stridently anti-God. (Unless of course God intervenes and a great revival breaks out.)

Jotham’s purposefully ordered his life, his routines, his habits so that they lined up with God’s law. His life was marked not simply be the absence of evil but by the presence of godliness.

We can’t expect a God-honoring life to happen by accident. It takes intentional effort to cultivate as well as time and practice to make it a reality. Let’s renew our commitment to holiness.

Unfortunately, Jotham’s reign was a short one. He died at forty-one and his son Ahaz became king. Ahaz was the opposite of his father. He worshiped the idols of Israel and even sacrificed his children to the false gods. (2 Chronicles 28:3) Not even a stunning defeat at the hands of Israel and Syria, including the death of his own son in the battle, could bring Ahaz back to his senses. However, Jotham’s grandson, Hezekiah, built on the foundation of devotion to God. You can read about Hezekiah in 2 Kings 18-20, 2 Chronicles 29-32 and in the book of Isaiah.

The thing that stands out to me in this survey of the kings is that godliness is not necessarily passed on. Some good kings had evil sons. Sometimes, we as teachers, leaders, or parents can instruct and model faith, but each individual must decide to embrace it. That decision is out of our hands.

On the flip side, some good godly kings came from wicked, idolatrous parents. This shows that legacy is not destiny. We shouldn’t write anyone off because of their family or background.

We’ll start a new series next week!

Abijah

By Paula

Hezekiah became king when he was twenty-five years old, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Abijah the daughter of Zechariah. 2 Chronicles 29:1

Over the last couple of weeks, we’ve looked at some “footnote” people in Scripture. They are people whose stories aren’t the most familiar, but their character and faithfulness are just as solid. For today, I’ll say up front that most of my case is by inference. Let me explain.

Hezekiah became king of Judah in 729 BC. Now, he had probably been a co-regent with his father Ahaz since 715 BC, or since he was eleven years old. Ahaz was not a good king, morally or politically. In spite of the advice of prophets like Isaiah, he led Judah to a very dark place. He shut up the doors of the Temple so no one could worship (2 Chr 28:24), gave the utensils inside to try to pay off the Assyrians and had a new altar built to match the one he saw in Syria. His immersion in the worship of Molech was so complete that he sacrificed his own son to the false god (2 Kings 16:3). The historian summed him up this way: Now in the time of his distress King Ahaz became increasingly unfaithful to the LORD. This is that King Ahaz. 2 Chronicles 28:22

So, with that kind of example, it’s almost miraculous that Hezekiah turned out to be the godly king that he was. Sure Isaiah was around, but if Ahaz didn’t pay attention to the prophet, why would his son? Someone laid a tremendous foundation for Hezekiah, a foundation so strong that when he was no longer a co-regent but a king in his own right, he began to turn the nation back to God.

With that inference, I’m guessing it was his mother, Abijah. She would have had a great deal of contact with and influence over her son during his early years, the years before his father took him to begin instructing him in the ways of the court. Perhaps young Hezekiah’s grandfather, Jotham, a godly king had some influence. Perhaps, Abijah’s parents also played a role.

Someone was courageous enough and committed enough to stand against culture. Whoever they were, people in the future king’s life pointed him toward strong, active faith in God. Admittedly, that’s not always enough. Hezekiah had to embrace that faith for himself, but seeing people around him, like the prophets, like his mother and grandparents perhaps, helped solidify that. As believers in Christ, we have to exemplify that same courage and commitment.

Someone took instructing the next generation seriously. We don’t know what God has in store for the young people around us, but we know that they won’t pick up the tenets of faith by osmosis. We have to be intentional, and take advantage of the time and opportunities we have, whether it’s our kids, our grandkids, the kids at church, or the kids in the neighborhood.

Someone understood what was at stake. Embracing the idolatry of the Syrians and selling out to the Assyrians threatened the nation of Judah’s very existence. Unfortunately, they were a minority. Less than a hundred and fifty years later, Judah was devastated by Babylon. We have to understand that while society is at risk, the eternal destinies of countless people are even more threatened by everything from apathy and indifference to outright hostility. We must invest in the people around us.

Who are you influencing for Christ?
Who influenced and instructed you?

Previous weeks: Obadiah, Ebed-Melech

A Lesson in Humility and Submission from a Syrian General

By Paula

But Naaman became furious, and went away and said, “Indeed, I said to myself, ‘He will surely come out to me, and stand and call on the name of the LORD his God, and wave his hand over the place, and heal the leprosy.’ 2 Kings 5:11

As we continue with our look at the things we can learn from unbelievers, today we have an Old Testament story about a Syrian general named Naaman. Now, years ago, this was a pretty popular story for the Sunday school set, but honestly, I can’t remember it coming up in the twenty plus years that I’ve taught. That’s too bad. There are great lessons in the whole episode. I’m going to highlight just one.

Naaman was a very successful general with important military victories under his belt. But beyond that, he was known as a man a great character and integrity. Not a believer in the One True God, but by all external measures a good man. However 2 Kings 5:1 ends with “but he was a leper.”

In the intervening verses, he gets connected to the prophet Elisha for miraculous healing of his leprosy. Elisha tells him to bathe in the Jordan seven times. That brings us to verse 11 and Naaman’s indignation. He wanted, he expected healing on his terms. But … the fact that Naaman remained afflicted betrayed how little he really knew about healing. It wasn’t until he humbled himself and followed the prophet’s — that is God’s — instructions that healing came.

The required humility and submission were two things Naaman was not in the habit of practicing. Elisha demonstrated to the general that no one approaches God without them. We are beggars before Him and not conquering heroes. We have not earned and we do not deserve the things we receive from God’s hand, whether it is the daily grace He pours out, healing from leprosy or the salvation that this healing pictures.

I see myself in Naaman. All too often I try to lay down terms and attempt to tell God how and when He should intervene. And then I wonder why things don’t change. Naaman teaches me I cannot design or dictate my own solutions. He also teaches me that humility and submission are the keys to approaching God.

And the keys to restoration.

Verse 14 says, “So he went … his flesh was restored … and he was clean.”

Let’s learn from Naaman. Let’s go, and be restored, and be clean.

Open My Eyes

By Paula

And Elisha prayed, and said, “LORD, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” Then the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. 2 Kings 6:17

I’ve written before on this verse, on this account of Elisha helping his young attendant see with spiritual eyes rather than just physical ones. Back in November, some friends and I took a weekend for retreat, and this was the verse I brought home. We didn’t discuss it or mention it at all. We spent the time considering worship. The posts for the last few weeks hit on some of the ideas we focused on.

I won’t go into all the details of how I got from the retreat to this point, but Elisha’s prayer became my own prayer for myself. I am praying for God to open my eyes.

Open my eyes to Your work around me.
I don’t want to look around in hopelessness or frustration because it seems You are silent or disengaged, but rather in confidence that You see and know, that You have come down to deliver.

Open my eyes to the needs of others.
I don’t want to be so inwardly focused that I miss Your work in the lives of others. Show me how I can come alongside or carry a burden. Show me where my loaves and fishes can be multiplied, and give me the willingness to offer them.

Open my eyes to my own sin.
I don’t want to be so blindly self-righteous that I ignore or gloss over my own sinfulness. I have not arrived and I am in daily need of the transformation the gospel brings.

What prayers are you praying right now? Where do You see God at work?

Nothing Dropped or Spilled

By Paula

“Know now that nothing shall fall to the earth of the word of the Lord.” 2 Kings 10:10

The phrase “fall to the earth” makes me think of things being dropped or spilled.

If I try to carry too many things, they become unwieldy or unmanageable and I drop them.
God’s promises are not that way. He can’t make too many. They never become unmanageable.

If I get careless or distracted, I’ll lose focus and drop or spill something.
God never gets careless or distracted. He is attuned to carrying out His purposes and His plans.

With my hands full, I can’t always see the path in front of me or anticipate what’s ahead. This makes it easy to stumble and risk dropping or spilling.
God sees everything clearly. After all, He made the path.

Know now that nothing shall fall to the earth of the word of the Lord.
Nothing. Not a single word lost, dropped or spilled.

A Study in Contrasts: Namaan

With all that in mind, let’s consider some takeaways from Namaan’s story.

Lessons from the Good Kings: Jotham

Abijah

A Lesson in Humility and Submission from a Syrian General

Open My Eyes

Nothing Dropped or Spilled

Encounters Series

Covenant of Trust Series

Foundations Series