Day 51 of Bible Food

Good morning; we are going to be reading again from the book of Isaiah today. Let's get right into the reading.

Isaiah chapter 29

The first eight verses are pointing out the war of Armageddon, which will be fought right near Jerusalem, and many nations are going to come up and fight in that war. It is going to be a world war, and it will be the third and final one.

⁹Stay yourselves, and wonder; cry ye out, and cry: they are drunken, but not with wine; they stagger, but not with strong drink.
¹⁰For the LORD hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep sleep, and hath closed your eyes: the prophets and your rulers, the seers hath he covered.

This is a great verse but it is also very troubling. In the last chapter we discussed the prophets and preachers are drunk but not with wine and not with strong liquor. God has poured out the spirit of deep sleep and has closed your eyes, He has also closed the eyes of the prophets, seers, and Barak Obama's (rulers). Why would God do this?

God has made the understanding of the Bible to be like it is a sealed book that when it is given to educated men they cannot read it because it is sealed.

And when you give it to an uneducated man, he tells you he cannot read it because he simply cannot read (verse11-12). Altogether, people talk about God and Jesus with their mouths, but they don't walk the walk. Their mind is not on Jesus or God at all. Mainly what religions and Christian churches teach are the precepts of men and not by God (verse 13). Because of this the Lord will do an amazing thing with this people, that is the children of Israel (and like many things done by Israel, it leaks into other cultures); He will make the wisdom of their wise men cease, and the understanding of their great men will be hid (verse 14).

From reading this we can see why there is much confusion on different topics like the dead are in heaven now when the Bible clearly speaks of them being in the ground. It is easy to see the confusion of Jesus being in Heaven when the Bible clearly says He has a strong desire to be on the earth. It is because God has done the amazing, hid the wisdom from the wise men and given it to the babies.

¹⁶Surely your turning of things upside down shall be esteemed as the potter's clay: for shall the work say of him that made it, He made me not? or shall the thing framed say of him that framed it, He had no understanding? ¹⁵Woe unto them that seek deep to hide their counsel from the LORD, and their works are in the dark, and they say, Who seeth us? and who knoweth us?

God gives a warning to the men who turn God's word upside down, because they act like He does not know, and they are playing Him like He has no understanding. Like He doesn't know which day His Sabbath is.

¹⁷Is it not yet a very little while, and Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field, and the fruitful field shall be esteemed as a forest?
¹⁸And in that day shall the deaf hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity, and out of darkness.
²³But when he seeth his children, the work of mine hands, in the midst of him, they shall sanctify my name, and sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and shall fear the God of Israel.
²⁴They also that erred in spirit shall come to understanding, and they that murmured shall learn doctrine.

God is going to fix it all in a little while, He will restore Jerusalem, and the deaf and blind will hear and see the words of this Bible and learn to fear the Lord and all will come to understanding by learning doctrine. This is why we are reading the Bible with understanding; to get a head start in our road to salvation through Jesus Christ.

Isaiah 30

¹Woe to the rebellious children, saith the LORD, that take counsel, but not of me; and that cover with a covering, but not of my spirit, that they may add sin to sin:

This was concerning Israel who would go see diviners and witch craft before they would go see God. Should not a people go see the Lord to inquire? Same with us today, before you jump up and go see a psychic, you should go consult God.

⁸Now go, write it before them in a table, and note it in a book, that it may be for the time to come for ever and ever:
⁹That this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the LORD:
¹⁰Which say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits:
¹¹Get you out of the way, turn aside out of the path, cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us.

These are probably the biggest verses in the entire bible, especially verse eight. The Lord told the prophet because these people are rebellious, write all that I'm telling you in a book; and guess what, we are reading this book today. If you want to know what the Lord says, pick up this book daily, and the Lord will speak with you.

We know this, that the children of Israel were and are a rebellious, lying children, that will not as much as hear the law of the Lord, let alone do them. They have told their true seers and prophets not to prophesy true and right things, but to speak to them with smooth and deceitful prophesy.

Three lions running loose up the street and they want the prophets to saw calmly and serene, "three cute lions are coming but they aren't going to harm a fly, plus God will save you anyway."

When a 3 lions are coming the prophet is suppose to warn the people. "THREE LIONS LOOSE, GET OUT OF THE STREETS AND GET INTO YOUR HOME RIGHT AWAY, OR YOU WILL BE EATEN!"

Israel wanted smooth things and lies and they tell preachers and ministers of God until this our present day to get Jesus, the Holy One of Israel, to cease from before us. People do not want anything to do with the real Jesus, because they do nothing He commands.

¹²Wherefore thus saith the Holy One of Israel, Because ye despise this word, and trust in oppression and perverseness, and stay thereon:
¹⁷One thousand shall flee at the rebuke of one; at the rebuke of five shall ye flee: till ye be left as a beacon upon the top of a mountain, and as an ensign on an hill.

Do you remember this from Deuteronomy 28 when the curses were mentioned?
Afterwards, the Lord will settle Israel, after they have taken their punishment and repented and sought the Lord wholly. They will dwell in Zion at Jerusalem, crying no more, because God will be good to them, and He will answer them.

²⁰And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity, and the water of affliction, yet shall not thy teachers be removed into a corner any more, but thine eyes shall see thy teachers:
²¹And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.

They will know clearly who their teachers are, and when ever they lose sight on the right thing to do, their ears will hear a word and voice behind them correcting them. This will happen during the thousand year reign, with people being resurrected and all the Holy angels on the earth, they are going to keep all men straight. As soon as you're about to mess up you will be warned and as soon as go ahead and disregard the warning you will have drama right away.

²⁷Behold, the name of the LORD cometh from far, burning with his anger, and the burden thereof is heavy: his lips are full of indignation, and his tongue as a devouring fire:

Reading verses like this, we cannot say that the Lord is not angry and frustrated with how the earth has been going!

Isaiah 31

¹Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help; and stay on horses, and trust in chariots, because they are many; and in horsemen, because they are very strong; but they look not unto the Holy One of Israel, neither seek the LORD!

Again, God is tired of men trusting themselves or other men and not seeking Him. When Israel was in trouble in the days before Babylon carried them out the land, they use to run to the Egyptians for protection, and God sent the king of Babylon in there and knocked down the Egyptians just to get the remaining Israelites (2 Chronicles). Trust in God in the day of trouble.

³Now the Egyptians are men, and not God; and their horses flesh, and not spirit. When the LORD shall stretch out his hand, both he that helpeth shall fall, and he that is holpen shall fall down, and they all shall fail together. The children of Israel did not understand this, but we have to know it today. God can handle whatever the situation is!

Isaiah 32

¹Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in judgment. As of now, we do not have a righteous king, and we have a lot of chaos and organized chaos in the earth; but eventually the Lord will bring peace, not only to His people, but also to the world.

Isaiah chapter 33

Woe to the person who does harm to someone when nothing was done to them. People call this "karma" but I called it God taking revenge on wickedness. ⁶And wisdom and knowledge shall be the stability of thy times, and strength of salvation: the fear of the LORD is his treasure.

The fear of the Lord is still a treasure and nothing something to be replaced with the word love.

²²For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; he will save us. We know this is future, we know this to because Jerusalem is not covered in peace. In fact it is on the list of dangerous countries to travel to. When Jesus, our judge, lawgiver, and King returns, then Jerusalem will be at peace and we will be saved.

Isaiah 34 (a very violent chapter)

¹Come near, ye nations, to hear; and hearken, ye people: let the earth hear, and all that is therein; the world, and all things that come forth of it.
²For the indignation of the LORD is upon all nations, and his fury upon all their armies: he hath utterly destroyed them, he hath delivered them to the slaughter.

First off, Isaiah is addressing all nations all the people in the earth, all in the world, so this goes past just the children of Israel! The indignation (strong displeasure at something considered unjust, offensive, insulting, or base; righteous anger - dictionary.com) of the Lord is directed at all nations and their armies, and He is going to totally destroy them. I'd be shaking in my boots if I was enlisted in any army today.

The Lord will kill so many that the mountains will look like it is melting with blood. This will take place when He returns because in verse four we see that He will dissolve the host of heavens (those are the stars, sun, and moon).

⁵For my sword shall be bathed in heaven: behold, it shall come down upon Idumea, and upon the people of my curse, to judgment. The Lord is going to come down on Idumea. Idumea is another name or the Greek name for Edom. Edom, if we remember are the children of Esau, Jacob's older brother.

Obviously, this is all future at the war of Armageddon, so it has not happened yet, but this means that the people of Idumea still exist and are on the earth in the middle eastern area! Careful research can point them out, but this book is just to read the bible with understanding, we can do research at another time.

Reading verse five, I can see why no one on the earth wants to claim being those people. The Lord has a special course of violent destruction for the children of Esau.

⁸For it is the day of the LORD's vengeance, and the year of recompences for the controversy of Zion.

The day of the Lord, the day of His return, is a day of vengeance, and repayment to all people who concerned themselves over the land of Jerusalem. So many people fighting and killing folks over whose land is Jerusalem, but Jesus will return and settle that once and for all.

After the Lord destroys the non repenting people of Idumea; He will also burn and destroy their land and it will never be rebuilt again.

¹⁶Seek ye out of the book of the LORD, and read: no one of these shall fail, none shall want her mate: for my mouth it hath commanded, and his spirit it hath gathered them.
Now the Lord tells us plainly, seek all this in the book of the Lord. What is the book of the Lord? It is the bible. And He tells us to do something people do not like doing; He tells us to read it because none of the things He's had written by inspired men will fail. The Lord commanded it, and it will be done. So read it, reread it, and keep reading it, especially with understanding.

Isaiah 35

¹The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose.
²It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the LORD, and the excellency of our God.

This is a chapter about the wilderness, a place of solitary and safety during the time of trouble.

⁹No lion shall be there, nor any ravenous beast shall go up thereon, it shall not be found there; but the redeemed shall walk there:

The redeemed of the Lord will get to the wilderness when they see the sign, then the children of Israel will be brought back to the wilderness after the tribulation.

Isaiah 36

¹Now it came to pass in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah, that Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the defenced cities of Judah, and took them.

This is the story of king Hezekiah and his troubles with the king of Assyria, Sennacherib who was attempting to take over Judah as he had done with Samaria. We read a bit of this in Chronicles; but we are getting Isaiah's details here.

¹⁴Thus saith the king, Let not Hezekiah deceive you: for he shall not be able to deliver you.
¹⁵Neither let Hezekiah make you trust in the LORD, saying, The LORD will surely deliver us: this city shall not be delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria.

This is where the king of Assyria went wrong. He told the people not to trust in their God. Sennacherib surely needed to read the Psalms and how it is all about trusting in the Lord.

Now I can see how Sennacherib could get conceded with his boasting because he conquered a lot of countries in that area that trusted in their gods, but all of them were not serving the God of Israel. Even Samaria that the Lord had Assyria take down, we read that they had not been serving God for years and that is what led them into great captivity. But they were Israel like Judah, so it may have scared Hezekiah, and made Sennacherib over zealous in his speech.

Isaiah 37

¹And it came to pass, when king Hezekiah heard it, that he rent his clothes, and covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the LORD. Hezekiah being a good king that trusted on the Lord went to Him when he heard these things.

It was custom for the Assyrians to skin the leader of the country, they conquered, alive. So Hezekiah wanted no part in that.

⁵So the servants of king Hezekiah came to Isaiah.
⁶And Isaiah said unto them, Thus shall ye say unto your master, Thus saith the LORD, Be not afraid of the words that thou hast heard, wherewith the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me.
⁷Behold, I will send a blast upon him, and he shall hear a rumour, and return to his own land; and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.

Do you notice how the kings had to come to Isaiah the prophet for the answer and the final ruling? It is because Isaiah, and guys like him, are the press secretaries for the God of the Universe. If you are a king or not, you have to deal with God and His servants. At any rate, Isaiah told them, not to fear that God will not permit Hezekiah to step foot in Jerusalem.

¹⁰Thus shall ye speak to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying, Let not thy God, in whom thou trustest, deceive thee, saying, Jerusalem shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria. People will attempt to do this to you today. They will talk against the bible, against your faith, and you just have to be strong and hold on and believe as Hezekiah did.

¹⁵And Hezekiah prayed unto the LORD, saying,
¹⁶O LORD of hosts, God of Israel, that dwellest between the cherubims, thou art the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth: thou hast made heaven and earth.
¹⁷Incline thine ear, O LORD, and hear; open thine eyes, O LORD, and see: and hear all the words of Sennacherib, which hath sent to reproach the living God. Sometimes, when the people are harassing you and talking bad words against your God, put it before Him in prayer and allow Him to handle the situation.

²²This is the word which the LORD hath spoken concerning him; The virgin, the daughter of Zion, hath despised thee, and laughed thee to scorn; the daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee. The Lord's response to Hezekiah's prayer is that the daughters of Jerusalem have laughed at Sennacherib. They are not even taking his claims serious any longer.

It's like getting threats over the phone by someone who claims to have an army and he sounds real tough. Then when you see him, he's a 5 year old and show up by himself. You'll start to laugh.

³⁶Then the angel of the LORD went forth, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians a hundred and fourscore and five thousand: and when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses.
³⁷So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, and went and returned, and dwelt at Nineveh.
³⁸And it came to pass, as he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god, that Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons smote him with the sword; and they escaped into the land of Armenia: and Esarhaddon his son reigned in his stead.

The Lord rebuked Sennacherib, saying he and his army won't shoot one arrow in Jerusalem, they will return the same way they came, and the Lord will defend the city of David's sake.

One angel of God went and killed the entire 185,000 soldiers of Assyria and the angel did it in one night. Sennacherib saw this and fled back to his country and was killed by his own two sons.

We saw how Hezekiah prayed to the Lord. He did not run and seek help in Egypt or another country. And the Lord delivered him because he was a good king and had faith. We also see that when the Lord says an angel will protect you; I'm sure nothing can happen to you with the strength we saw in one angel; one angel killed 185,000 soldiers.
This story can be read in your encyclopedias and history books. They will not say an angel killed the soldiers, but they'll say disease or plague did it. I say, that is probably what the angel used.

Isaiah 38

¹In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came unto him, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Set thine house in order: for thou shalt die, and not live.
²Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and prayed unto the LORD,
³And said, Remember now, O LORD, I beseech thee, how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept sore.

Again, Hezekiah was ill, and it was told to get his house in order because he would die. Hezekiah turned to the Lord and petitioned Him and right away the Lord sent Isaiah back in there and gave Hezekiah 15 more years; and healed him.

If you have a good or decent report with God, you can make prayers and receive healing and blessings from Him by your righteous prayer. It will not be the same if you are breaking His commandments and have no faith. That prayer, you should keep to yourself.

Isaiah 39

While Hezekiah was ill, Merodachbaladan, the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present to him. So when Hezekiah was well, he invited Merodachbaladan to Jerusalem and allowed him to view all that was in the Temple and all that was in the kings palace. It's not a good idea to show all your riches to people.

Isaiah was sent to him and asked Hezekiah what was done, and he told Isaiah, he'd shown all to the king of Babylon. So Isaiah told him what the Lord had to say about this...

⁵Then said Isaiah to Hezekiah, Hear the word of the LORD of hosts:
⁶Behold, the days come, that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store until this day, shall be carried to Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith the LORD.
⁷And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.
⁸Then said Hezekiah to Isaiah, Good is the word of the LORD which thou hast spoken. He said moreover, For there shall be peace and truth in my days.

The same people Hezekiah thought was his friend, would be the same ones who come in and destroy his sons and the riches of Israel. Hezekiah was content that there would be peace and truth in his days. Even if what the Lord has spoken is ugly, it is good if it comes from the Lord, and who can stop it?

Never boast and show off your riches like a people in the Americas do. When people see your riches, they have sight on something they can take. But if you conceal your riches, it appears to them nothing for the taking.

Isaiah 40

¹Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.
²Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the LORD's hand double for all her sins.

One of the reasons why Israel will be redeemed wholly is because the Lord punished them double for their sins. So when He returns, He will speak comfortably to His people who are ready to serve Him correctly.

⁴Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain: The first will be last, and the last will be first.

¹⁰Behold, the Lord GOD will come with strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him. The Lord will come, and when He returns it will be to battle and take over this earth. His reward is with Him, and His what He must do is before Him.

¹³Who hath directed the Spirit of the LORD, or being his counsellor hath taught him?
¹⁴With whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the path of judgment, and taught him knowledge, and shewed to him the way of understanding? Can anyone take this credit on the earth to have taught God? Yes. All the people who have issues with His laws, they can. They cannot. They only think they are wise and teach God.

¹⁷All nations before him are as nothing; and they are counted to him less than nothing, and vanity. The Lord sure knows how to make a creation feel good. But it is the truth though; if we begin to think to much of ourselves, God let's us know about ourselves. If we humble ourselves, He will lift us up in due time and we will not be dust and vanity at that time; but will be just like Him.

²⁷Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, My way is hid from the LORD, and my judgment is passed over from my God?
²⁸Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding.

Israel should know and the world as well, that what we do is not hid from God. God, the creator of the earth does not get tired, nor sleepy, and you cannot search out His understanding. All we can do is read what He gave us, and ask for knowledge of how things work in the earth. That's how we found electricity and other great technologies and science by seeking the Lord.

Isaiah 41

⁴Who hath wrought and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? I the LORD, the first, and with the last; I am he.

Who has worked and done it, who has called the generations from the beginning and done so accurately? It is the Lord, who is the first and with the last. We'll read this again in revelation. Jesus was the first man to raise from the dead into eternal life and being in the God family, and He will be here when the last man is changed into God.

⁸But thou, Israel, art my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend. Abraham was a friend to the most High God and that is one of the reasons why God chose Jacob and his seed to be His priest. He thought they would be good because their father was His friend.

¹⁴Fear not, thou worm Jacob, and ye men of Israel; I will help thee, saith the LORD, and thy redeemer, the Holy One of Israel. Gentiles and other groups should not think the Lord has cast away the Jews or Israel because they down now; He will redeem them.

²⁰That they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together, that the hand of the LORD hath done this, and the Holy One of Israel hath created it.
²⁹Behold, they are all vanity; their works are nothing: their molten images are wind and confusion.

This is the Lord speaking, so Solomon was not all that off when he said man's life is all together vanity? This concludes our reading for today; I hope to see you tomorrow.

Peace & Grace

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Bible Food Day 28 - Second Kings

Good morning and welcome once again to the daily bible food where we're reading the bible in 90 days.

I hope you've stretched and are ready to read.

Today we will begin in 

2nd Kings 16

¹In the seventeenth year of Pekah the son of Remaliah Ahaz the son of Jotham king of Judah began to reign.

 ²Twenty years old was Ahaz when he began to reign, and reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem, and did not that which was right in the sight of the LORD his God, like David his father.

However, he picked up some of the ways of the kings of Israel like sacrificing his son in fire and burning incense on high places.  He had wars with the kings of Syria and Samaria; but they didn't over come him.

²⁰And Ahaz slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David: and Hezekiah his son reigned in his stead.

2 Kings 17

 ¹In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah began Hoshea the son of Elah to reign in Samaria over Israel nine years.

 ²And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, but not as the kings of Israel that were before him.

I just like to put the scripture in that introduces the new king; this will make sense in a few chapters down.  Hoshea takes over from Pekah; and it wasn't handed down to him; he did some over throwing to get the kingdom.  Hoshea would be the last king to reign over Samaria because the Lord had had enough of their sinning; and no king would come in and straighten the people out.

Because Hoshea did send gifts to the king of Assyria; he came in and sieged it for three years before finally taking it completely.  In Hoshea's ninth year, Samaria was taken as slaves into Assyria.  He also placed them in cities in the Medes or what is Russia today.  From this we can hint that Assyria was a power in the world at this time.

They were taken captive, if you remember, because of what was written in Deuteronomy 28.  The blessings and the curses they did not fear their God, nor deal with His statutes, so God cast them out the land.  They did all the abominations that the nations Joshua was sent in to sack, and expected different results.

Those nations became a thorn in their side.  Thus they were carried off.

¹⁸Therefore the LORD was very angry with Israel, and removed them out of his sight: there was none left but the tribe of Judah only.

Now the king of Assyria brought in other nations to keep the land of Samaria; but those people were under the control of Assyria.  Those people did not know the God of Israel, neither did they fear Him and the Lord sent in a lions to kill many of them.  So they commanded a priest to come in and teach them the manner of the God of the land.

 ²⁸Then one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and dwelt in Bethel, and taught them how they should fear the LORD.

Still these nations made their own gods and served them; but they feared the God of Israel.  Somewhat like what is done today, many are Christians; but in their mind they have another god they are serving.

³³They feared the LORD, and served their own gods, after the manner of the nations whom they carried away from thence.

 ³⁴Unto this day they do after the former manners: they fear not the LORD, neither do they after their statutes, or after their ordinances, or after the law and commandment which the LORD commanded the children of Jacob, whom he named Israel;

So now we have Judah there who are real authentic Israelites of the seed of Jacob, Isaac, and Abraham; and we have other nations inhabiting the land of Israel in Samaria.

2 Kings 18

 ¹Now it came to pass in the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, that Hezekiah the son of Ahaz king of Judah began to reign.

 ²Twenty and five years old was he when he began to reign; and he reigned twenty and nine years in Jerusalem. His mother's name also was Abi, the daughter of Zachariah.

 ³And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that David his father did.

Hezekiah was a good king that made small mistakes; but over all he did very well and pleased the Lord like his daddy David did.  He restored and re-instituted a lot of things Israel had fell off from doing.  Plus he witness how Assyria came in and took his brothers out; and he knew it was from the Lord or he would have helped.

He really trusted in the Lord like no king of Judah before him (that does not count Solomon and David because they were kings over the whole Israel, not just Judah); and kept all the commandments that Moses commanded the people to keep from the Lord.

¹³Now in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah did Sennacherib king of Assyria come up against all the fenced cities of Judah, and took them.  Hezekiah had to cut gold off the doors of the Temple and off his house to keep the Assyrians from taking them.  So Hezekiah paid the tribute money to keep them from invading Jerusalem.

However, Sennacherib wanted to sack Jerusalem as part of his quest to take over the world.  So paying the tribute was a gimmick to get you to be late or decide not to pay it; then he was have valid reason to come in and sack the nation.  But when Hezekiah kept paying him; he just came in just fullfill his own desire.

³⁰Neither let Hezekiah make you trust in the LORD, saying, The LORD will surely deliver us, and this city shall not be delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria.

But he did too much big talking against the God of Israel; and God listens in all the time.  And this saved Jerusalem; Hezekiah went to the Lord to the Lord delivered.  This is why it is good to have faith in God because a statement Sennacherib made would have shaken the average faithless king; but not Hezekiah.

³³Hath any of the gods of the nations delivered at all his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria?

 ³⁴Where are the gods of Hamath, and of Arpad? where are the gods of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivah? have they delivered Samaria out of mine hand?

Samaria supposedly had the same God as Judah; but if you don't serve God; do you really have the same God?  Plus the Lord sent Assyria into Samaria, Sennacherib went into Jerusalem on his own free will.

2 Kings 19

Here Hezekiah prays to the Lord and humbles himself.  He knows that the Assyrians meant business and one thing the Assyrians were known for was skinning the leaders of the nations alive.  So Hezekiah certainly did not want that.

Isaiah the prophet was sent in to tell their fate.  ²²Whom hast thou reproached and blasphemed? and against whom hast thou exalted thy voice, and lifted up thine eyes on high? even against the Holy One of Israel.

The Lord was not happy with Sennacherib and spoke against him destruction.  ³²Therefore thus saith the LORD concerning the king of Assyria, He shall not come into this city, nor shoot an arrow there, nor come before it with shield, nor cast a bank against it.

The same way he came into the city is the same way Sennacherib will leave out of the city.  ³⁵And it came to pass that night, that the angel of the LORD went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore and five thousand: and when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses.

 ³⁶So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, and went and returned, and dwelt at Nineveh.

And when Sennacherib got home and went into his the church of his god to inquire about what happened; his own sons came in and killed him.  So much for talking blasphemous against the Lord God of Israel.  The truthful part of this historical event in the bible is that historians share this same stories account in history books, encyclopedias and more and they tell it a bit different.

A plague killed Sennacherib's army according to historians; but we just read that an angel did it from the Lord.

2 Kings 20

After Jerusalem was delivered, time later Hezekiah got very ill; near death. And the prophet Isaiah the son of Amoz came to him, and told him the LORD, said to get your house in order; because this illness will kill you.

 ²Then he turned his face to the wall, and prayed unto the LORD, saying,

Hezekiah prayed and he put his resume on the table how he walked before God with his whole heart, how he took down evil in Judah, just listed his good qualities of following the Lord. 

And before Isaiah could leave the kings court way; the Lord sent a message to him to tell Hezekiah that he heard his prayer and would add to him 15 more years.

That let's us know the Lord answers prayers and answers them quick.  If you have a good heart and are trying to do well before God; you can petition Him with that, but if you have no resume you may as well pack up like the prophet said.  15 years is better than 30 days or less.

⁶And I will add unto thy days fifteen years; and I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria; and I will defend this city for mine own sake, and for my servant David's sake.  

The Lord will defend the city of David's sake.  David was a great king.  How good he was to Israel saved Israel from being dumped on in many generations.

Babylon's king sent letters to the king as he recovered (Berodachbaladan, the son of Baladan, king of Babylon) and the sent his son to visit Hezekiah.  Hezekiah showed Babylon all that was in his house, the Temple of the Lord and Isaiah rebuked him for it telling him all that they've seen they will carry out to Babylon in future generations.

Hezekiah was okay with it because in his days there would be peace and truth.

2 Kings 21

 ¹Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and reigned fifty and five years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Hephzibah.

 ²And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, after the abominations of the heathen, whom the LORD cast out before the children of Israel.

He was a one son wrecking crew.  He was the exact opposite of this father Hezekiah and he destroyed much.  I'm surprised he reigned so long in Jerusalem.  We'll find out why in a moment. With all his evil acts the Lord is preparing to bring evil so bad that people's ears will tingle.

¹²Therefore thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Behold, I am bringing such evil upon Jerusalem and Judah, that whosoever heareth of it, both his ears shall tingle.

The Lord will "wipe Jerusalem as a man wipeth a dish, wiping it, and turning it upside down."  This does not sound good (for the people).  

¹⁶Moreover Manasseh shed innocent blood very much, till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to another; beside his sin wherewith he made Judah to sin, in doing that which was evil in the sight of the LORD.

¹⁸And Manasseh slept with his fathers, and was buried in the garden of his own house, in the garden of Uzza: and Amon his son reigned in his stead.

 ¹⁹Amon was twenty and two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned two years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Meshullemeth, the daughter of Haruz of Jotbah.

 ²⁰And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, as his father Manasseh did.

Amon was wicked and his own workers conspired against him and killed him in his own home.  Then the people killed those of his workers who conspired against him and reestablished his son Josiah king over Judah.

2 Kings 22

 ¹Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned thirty and one years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Jedidah, the daughter of Adaiah of Boscath.

 ²And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, and walked in all the way of David his father, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left.

Josiah was a good king doing right in the eyes of the Lord; walking in the way of David; not veering to the right nor left of the commandments but keeping straight. 

During his reign he wanted to reestablish the real Levite priesthood.  And Hilkiah the high priest found the book of the law in the house of the LORD and he gave the book to Shaphan, and he read it.  All these years; the people were going off of tradition, word of mouth from Moses; and not the actual words in the book.

If it was lost then what were the people doing all those years?  And they read it to the king and he tore his cloths and humbled himself.  They were all going crazy because of what is written in Deuteronomy 28.

So they began to attempt to get their house in order so they are not carried away captive as it says in the writings of Moses.

Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam, and Achbor, and Shaphan, and Asahiah, went to Huldah the prophetess, she was wife to Shallum the son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe; (now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the college;) and they talked with her regarding the wrath the Lord was going to bring on Jerusalem.

 ¹⁶Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will bring evil upon this place, and upon the inhabitants thereof, even all the words of the book which the king of Judah hath read:

Destruction was coming for sure to Jerusalem according to the woman prophet; but because the heart of the king was humbled before the LORD, when he read the book; Josiah will die in peace and his generation will not see the evil that the Lord is going to bring on Jerusalem.

2 Kings 23

Josiah gathered all the people and read the book of the law to them; probably explained to them why Samaria was taken out of the land and made a covenant with God to keep the Lord's commandments.

He also did some cleaning up in the land; ⁷And he brake down the houses of the sodomites, that were by the house of the LORD, where the women wove hangings for the grove.

And the king, Josiah, commanded all the people, to keep the passover unto the LORD your God, as it is written in the book of this covenant.  He did some big time cleaning up to make sure he wasn't taken out of Jerusalem.

In his days Pharaohnechoh king of Egypt, he went up to war against Assyria to the river Euphrates: and king Josiah went against Egypt; and he was killed at Megiddo, by the king of Egypt.

And the people of the land took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah, and anointed him, and made him king in his father's stead.   ³¹Jehoahaz was twenty and three years old when he began to reign; and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.

 ³²And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his fathers had done. 

And Pharaohnechoh, Pharaoh of Egypt, made Eliakim the son of Josiah king in the room of Josiah his father, and changed his name to Jehoiakim, and took Jehoahaz away: and he came to Egypt, and died there.  Because of the evil in Jerusalem from wicked leaders, all of the sudden Jerusalem is being taken on every side.

³⁶Jehoiakim was twenty and five years old when he began to reign; and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Zebudah, the daughter of Pedaiah of Rumah.
 ³⁷And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his fathers had done.

2 Kings 24

Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon took over and came up, and Jehoiakim became his servant three years: then he turned and rebelled against him. Jehoiakim died: and Jehoiachin his son reigned in his stead.

 Now Egypt stop their tax tribute regime over Judah because Babylon had rose in power and taken over from the river of Egypt unto the river Euphrates all that pertained to the king of Egypt.  So a new bully was in town.

 ⁸Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months. And his mother's name was Nehushta, the daughter of Elnathan of Jerusalem.
 ⁹And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father had done.

Nebuchadnezzar carried away all Jerusalem, and all the princes, and all the mighty men of valour, even ten thousand captives, and all the craftsmen and smiths: none remained, save the poorest of the people of the land.

The king then made Mattaniah king of the remaining people and changed his name to Zedekiah.  Zedekiah was only 21 and ruled for 11 years in Jerusalem and he did nothing but evil in the site of the Lord.

2 Kings 25

Nine years into Zedekiah's reign, he rebelled and Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came pitched in Jerusalem and in the 11th year he tore it down.  Nebuchadnezzar was not pleased with Zedekiah at all.

 ⁶So they took the king, and brought him up to the king of Babylon to Riblah; and they gave judgment upon him.
 ⁷And they slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him with fetters of brass, and carried him to Babylon.
²¹And the king of Babylon smote them, and slew them at Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah was carried away out of their land.

Uprising and revolts, jealousy, abuse of power is the best way to describe Judah and Israel and it is ultimately what got each nation thrown out of the land.  

This started because they did not destroy all the inhabitants of the land in Joshua's day; and when they asked for a king to be like the other nations, removing Jesus the God of Israel from being their king, this brought in jealous revolts instead of peace, knowledge and wisdom of the Lord.

Now the land is vacant.  We are going to read another account of the kings of Israel in Chronicles tomorrow.  Thank you for joining today; have a great day.

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Peace and Grace

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