worship

The harvest

The universal law of the harvest, sowing and reaping, applies to all areas of life and experience (2232). Referring to Israel’s idol worship, the prophet Hosea declared, “For they have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind” (Hosea 8:7). In this instance, the wind “may be a suggestion of purposelessness, uselessness, or even vanity (emptiness)” (7307). The wind is regarded in Scripture as an emblem of the mighty penetrating power of the invisible God, therefore, the whirlwind or hurricane, suggests a spiritual storm that would snatch away the peaceful existence of God’s people.

The Israelites’ idolatry centered around two golden calves made by king Jeroboam I after Israel was divided into two kingdoms (1 Kings 12:28). The worship of these calves was most likely connected to the 400 years Israel spent in Egypt in slavery. Shortly after they were miraculously delivered from Pharaoh’s army, the Israelites made a golden calf and their leader Aaron declared, “These be thy gods, O Israel, which have brought thee up out of the land of Egypt” (Exodus 32:8). King Jeroboam I spoke similar words about his golden calves (1 Kings 12:28). God’s sentence against the Israelites specifically condemned this practice:

Of their silver and their gold have they made their idols, that they may be cut off. Thy calf , O Samaria, hath cast thee off, mine anger is kindled against them…The workman made it, therefore, it is not God: but the calf of Samaria shall be broken in pieces. (Hosea 8:5-6)

While the Israelites were dwelling in the Promised Land, they had enjoyed the benefit of God’s blessing and were given something no other nation received, God’s mercy. What this meant was that even though they had sowed wicked deeds like everyone else, the Israelites were not punished for their transgressions. Their sacrifices cancelled the record of their debt and they were blessed by God even though they didn’t deserve it. Because they turned their backs on God, things would to change.

Now will he remember their iniquity, and visit their sins…The days of visitation are come, the days of recompense are come; Israel shall know it. (Hosea 8:13, 9:7)

The northern kingdom of Israel received harsher treatment than Judah because their idolatry was blatant and continuous from the time of king Jeroboam I until the people were taken into captivity by Assyria. In particular, the capital city of Samaria had a reputation for paying tribute to foreign kings and relied on its army rather than God to deliver her from her enemies.

Ye have plowed wickedness, ye have reaped iniquity, ye have eaten the fruit of lies: because thou didst trust in thy way, in the multitude of thy mighty men. Therefore shall a tumult arise among thy people, and all thy fortresses shall be spoiled. (Hosea 10:13-14)

Unfaithful

The prophet Hosea was given the difficult task of modeling for everyone around him the relationship between God and Israel. Hosea’s choice of a mate was symbolic of God choosing the nation of Israel to be his people. Because Israel had been unfaithful to him, God told Hosea, “Go, take unto thee a wife of whoredoms and children of whoredoms: for the land hath committed great whoredoms, departing from the LORD” (Hosea 1:2).

The harsh picture drawn of the Israelites was meant to be a sort of shock treatment to get them to realize how God felt about their idolatry. Not only did God want them to know how disgusted he was with their behavior, but he also wanted them to know that in spite of their unfaithfulness, he still loved them and wanted them to come back to him. The names of Hosea’s children were used to convey a message of detachment and punishment for their inappropriate behavior. Beginning with Jezreel, God’s awareness of his children’s sin was made public so that his intentional rejection would not be mistaken for a lack of love on his part.

God had a right to be angry because he had gone to such great lengths to deliver his people from their sins, and yet, they made no effort to follow his commandments. In fact, the Israelites openly worshipped other deities and gave them the credit for their success. The seriousness of their transgression was reflected in the name of Hosea’s third child. “Then said God, Call his name Lo-ammi: for you are not my people, and I will not be your God” (Hosea 1:9).

In spite of Israel’s lack of interest in having a relationship with the LORD, God did not want to permanently cut them off. His intention was to show them that their idol worship was pointless. In order to bring them to their senses, God allowed Israel to reap what it had sown, ruin, and destruction. Speaking of Hosea’s unfaithful wife Gomer, the LORD said, “Therefore behold, I will hedge up thy way with thorns, and make a wall, that she shall not find her paths. And she shall follow after her lovers, but she shall not overtake them; and she shall seek them, but shall not find them: then shall she say, I will go and return to my first husband; for then was it better with me than now” (Hosea 2:6-7).

More than wanting to punish Israel for its unfaithfulness, God wanted to restore the relationship that existed between him and his people when they first entered the Promised Land. God was capable of forgiving them, but he would not allow his people to worship other gods. The end result that God expected was sincere devotion to him and him alone. He said, “And I will sow her unto me in the earth; and I will have mercy upon her that had not obtained mercy; and I will say to them which were not my people, Thou art my people; and they shall say, Thou art my God” (Hosea 2:23).

Spiritual reform

Hezekiah’s intentional effort to revive his nation’s worship system began immediately after he became king of Judah. It says in 2 Chronicles 29:3, “He in the first year of his reign, in the first month, opened the doors of the house of the LORD, and repaired them.” During his father Ahaz’s reign, idolatry had replaced worship of the LORD and the temple of God had been desecrated by foreigners (2 Kings 16:17-18). Hezekiah took responsibility for his nation’s spiritual reform and acted quickly to make things right again.

Hezekiah saw the connection between Judah’s trouble and the neglect of God’s temple. Hezekiah’s personal commitment to the LORD resulted n a national revival at a time when there was little to no interest in God’s blessing (2 Chronicles 30:10). Much of what Hezekiah did could be attributed to supernatural circumstances or divine intervention. After the temple was restored to daily activity, it was noted that it happened suddenly, as if in the blink of an eye (2 Chronicles 29:36).

The primary focus of Hezekiah’s spiritual reform was restoration of the Passover celebration. The Passover was key to the Israelites relationship with God because it not only represented their deliverance from Egyptian slavery, but also signified their forgiveness of sin. The Day of Atonement was a national celebration in which the priest made reconciliation in order to atone for the sins of all Israel (2 Chronicles 29:34). The sacrifice literally wiped the slate clean for the entire nation in a single moment.

The positive effect of having their sins forgiven resulted in the people of Judah giving generously to support the priest and Levites who served in the temple. It says in 2 Chronicles 31:5, “as soon as the commandment came abroad, the children of Israel brought in abundance the firstfruits of corn, wine, and oil, and honey, and of the increase of the field; and the tithe of all things brought they in abundantly.” The people brought so much stuff to the temple that it took four months to process and store their offerings (2 Chronicles 31:7).

Hezekiah’s spiritual reform shows that the kings influence had a significant impact on the people. His actions were described as “that which was good and right and truth before the LORD his God” (2 Chronicles 31:20). But, perhaps the best testimony to Hezekiah’s positive spiritual example was the condition of his heart. It says in 2 Chronicles 31:21, “in every work that he began in the service of the house of God, and in the law, and in the commandments, to seek his God, he did it with all his heart.”

Escape clause

The punishment Amos predicted was a complete destruction of the nation of Israel. He said, “Hear ye this word which I take up against you, even a lamentation, O house of Israel. The virgin of Israel is fallen; she shall no more rise” (Amos 5:1). A lamentation is a chant or wail that occurs at a funeral. Amos was speaking as if the judgment had already been decided and there was no chance of escaping it, but God intended to preserve a remnant of the nation.

According to Amos, ten percent of the people would survive (Amos 5:3). What this meant was that at an individual level there was a type of escape clause in God’s punishment that enabled an Israelite to remain alive even though the nation of Israel would not longer exist. Amos stated, “For thus saith the LORD unto the house of Israel, seek ye me, and ye shall live” (Amos 5:4).

The Hebrew word translated house, bayith (bah´ – yith) refers to a family or a household. It can also designate a “fixed, established structure made from some kind of material” (1004) such as a home. Similar to when the Israelites celebrated the Passover in Egypt and were exempted from the plague that killed all the first born males, each household that sought God’s mercy would be kept alive.

One of the things that Amos made clear was that the punishment of Israel’s sin was coming directly from God. Amos declared, “Therefore the LORD, the God of hosts, the Lord, saith thus; wailing shall be in all streets; and they shall say in all the highways, alas! alas! And they shall call the husbandman to mourning, and such as are skillful of lamentation to wailing. And in all vineyard shall be wailing: for I will pass through thee, saith the LORD” (Amos 5:16-17).

A significant problem that existed in Israel was false worship. By that I mean worship that had nothing to do with having a relationship with God. The goal of worship was supposed to be communication with God. In particular, prayer was meant to be a two-way conversation. Instead of asking God what he wanted them to do, the people of Israel were making sacrifices so that God would do what they wanted him to.

Pagan worship, in which deities had to be appeased in order to gain their favor, had infiltrated the Israelite culture. Much like the heathen that lived around them, the Israelites expected their God to do certain things because they made sacrifices to him. The LORD warned his people, “Though ye offer me burnt offerings and your meal offerings, I will not accept them: neither will I regard the peace offerings of your fat beasts” (Amos 5:22). In order to be saved, God’s people would have to seek his direction through prayer.

A destructive pattern

A common phrase found in the record of the kings of Israel is “he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin” (2 Kings 15:24, 28). Jeroboam the son of Nebat was a servant of Solomon who was “ruler over all the charge of the house of Joseph” (1 Kings 11:28). During the reign of Solomon’s son Rehoboam, Jeroboam led the people of Israel in rebellion against the house of David (1 Kings 12:19). After establishing his kingdom, Jeroboam thought:

If this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they shall kill me, and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah. Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. (1 Kings 12:27-28)

A hundred years later, Jehu was commissioned by God to wipe out king Ahab’s entire household because of their wickedness. Jehu led a massacre of all the Baal worshippers, “But Jehu took no heed to walk in the law of the LORD God of Israel with all his heart: for he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam, which he made Israel to sin” (2 Kings 10:31). It says in 2 Kings 10:32, “In those days the LORD began to cut Israel short.” The exact meaning of the phrase “to cut short” is not clear, but it appears that God began to reduce the population in Israel until they reached a point where they could no longer adequately defend themselves against their enemies. In 722 B.C., they were conquered by the Assyrians and absorbed into that empire.

About 20-30 years prior to their exile, there was a destabilization in Israel’s leadership. A series of assassinations caused the throne to fall into the hands of Hoshea the son of Elah (2 Kings 15:30). “Hoshea probably represented the faction in the northern kingdom that favored cooperation with Assyria rather than resistance” (Note on 2 Kings 15:30). Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria had already taken possession of several territories in Israel when Hoshea took the throne (2 Kings 15:29). The initial phase of Israel’s captivity took place sometime around 738-732 B.C., within a decade of the death of Uzziah (a.k.a. Azariah) king of Judah.

Uzziah’s son Jotham probably began his reign amidst a great deal of turmoil and confusion in Israel. Jeroboam II’s military conquests (2 Kings 14:28) seemed to be turning the tide in Israel’s favor, but most likely the reduction in size of Israel’s population made it impossible for the expanded borders to be maintained. Even though Israel’s army consisted of seasoned warriors trained over decades due to continual warfare with Syria, the expanded borders may have spread them too thin and caused the people of Israel to become easy prey for the Assyrians.

Recovery

Jehu did not walk in the law of the LORD (2 Kings 10:31), therefore, “the LORD began to cut Israel short; and Hazael smote them in all the coasts of Israel” (2 Kings 10:32). Hazael, the king of Syria, was a ruthless dictator appointed by God to afflict Israel because of their idolatry. Hazael had been in power approximately 12 – 15 years when Johoash a.k.a. Joash began to reign at the age of seven.

While Jehu was alive, Hazael focused on the northern kingdom of Israel. For twenty three years, Johoash had a chance to restore the temple of God and to rid Judah of Baal worship. Jehoash’s plan to reignite the people’s passion for their temple centered on the repair of breaches in the house of God (2 Kings 12:5). The breaches may have been gaps in the exterior wall or the interior chamber known as the Holy of Holies. The temple’s existence for more than a hundred years suggests that the building had become old and worn down.

The temple had been Jehoash’s home for seven years while he was being hidden from Athaliah. No doubt, he was very familiar with the structure and the condition of its chambers. As a child, he probably explored places that no one had entered for years. In spite of his order to collect money and make the repairs, the priests refused to follow Jehoash’s command. By the twenty third year of his reign, nothing had been accomplished(2 Kings 12:6).

One of the problems with furnishing the temple was it attracted attention from the surrounding nations. Solomon’s temple was known for its extravagance. Most of the utensils and furnishings were made of precious metals and had been stolen on previous occasions. If the temple became operational, it could be assumed that treasure was available for the taking. Finally, when the repairs began, “there was not made for the house of the LORD bowls of silver, snuffers, basons, trumpets, any vessels of gold, or vessels of silver, of the money that was brought into the house of the LORD” (2 Kings 12:13).

After the repairs had been made, Hazael, king of Syria, attacked Jerusalem. “And Jehoash king of Judah took all the hallowed things that Jehoshaphat, and Jehoram, and Ahaziah, his fathers, kings of Judah, had dedicate, and his own hallowed things, and all the gold that was found in the treasures of the house of the LORD, and in the king’s house, and sent it to Hazael king of Syria: and he went away from Jerusalem” (2 Kings 12:18).

 

Out of the darkness

God’s covenant with king David assured him that God would “stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever” (2 Samuel 7:13). It is clear the kingdom promised to David was to be an eternal kingdom, but its location was not specified. The use of the term for ever implies that David’s throne would exist in heaven, and yet, in the time David lived, man did not have access to heaven. Therefore, David’s kingdom would have to transcend the barrier between heaven and earth.

Typically, in the times of the Old Testament, a king “‘reigned’ as the earthly representative of the god (or God) who was recognized as the real king” (4427). So, David’s throne was designated as the throne through which God would govern his people. It was a precursor to the throne of Jesus Christ. In order for David’s kingdom to be transferred to heaven, the Messiah, Jesus Christ had to be born and take possession of David’s throne.

After David’s kingdom was divided, the kingdom of Judah retained the rights to David’s throne. Through the course of time, Solomon’s descendants maintained possession of God’s kingdom until the death of Ahaziah, approximately ninety years later. “And when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the seed royal…And Athaliah did reign over the land” (2 Kings 11:1,3).

Athaliah, the daughter of king Ahab and Jezebel, was a worshipper of Baal. Her position as queen of Judah indicated that Baal had taken over possession of God’s kingdom. This situation triggered a stipulation in God’s agreement with Solomon that he would cut off Israel out of the land if they “go and serve other gods, and worship them” (1 Kings 9:6). Nevertheless, God did not break his promise to David.

“Jehosheba, the daughter of king Joram, sister of Ahaziah, took Joash the son of Ahaziah, and stale him from among the kings sons which were slain; and they hid him, even him and his nurse, in the bedchamber from Athaliah, so that he was not slain” (2 Kings 11:2). Even though Athaliah reigned over the land, she did not reign over God’s kingdom. In essence she was a puppet queen. God’s sovereignty did not rest in the position she held, but in the person who was God’s designated representative. Only David’s descendants had the authority to rule over God’s kingdom.

The land that Athaliah reigned over was “the temporal scene of human activity, experience, and history” (776). “All human rule is under God’s control” (4467). Consequently, Athaliah’s effort to destroy all the royal seed (2 Kings 11:1) was unsuccessful and she was removed from her position as queen (2 Kings 11:16).

 

 

Judgment

Israel’s miraculous defeat of the Syrian army (1 Kings 20:29) made it clear that God intended to eliminate the threat of a future attack from Ben-hadad. Ahab’s decision to form an alliance with the king of Syria may have been an attempt to accomplish God’s will in a different manner, but it did not guarantee that Ben-hadad would leave Israel alone.

While it is true that God is merciful, he judges those who choose to follow Satan. King Ahab was determined to maintain his secular lifestyle and was willing to align himself with one of Satan’s chief agents in order to do so. Ahab was more concerned with accumulating wealth than he was worshipping and serving God, so God punished him for his disobedience.

Even though he may not have been specifically instructed to kill Ben-hadad, it was obvious that God had delivered the king of Syria over to Ahab so that he could kill him. It was because Ben-hadad acknowledged his inferiority and subordination to Ahab by designating himself Ahab’s servant (1 Kings 20:32) that Ahab wanted to keep him alive. Ahab went so far as to refer to Ben-hadad as his brother, a sign that he intended to develop a close relationship with him.

After making a covenant with Ben-hadad, Ahab was visited by an unnamed prophet. “And he said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Because thou hast let go out of thy hand a man whom I appointed to utter destruction, therefore thy life shall go for his life, and thy people for his people” (1 Kings 20:42).  The Hebrew word translated appointed, cherem is derived from the word charam. “Charam is a religious word of great importance representing the devotion of some object to destruction or to a sacred use, not for the gratification of any selfish purpose” (2763).

Israel’s defeat of the Syrian army was meant to bring glory to God. Ahab could have sent a strong message to the surrounding nations by killing Ben-hadad. Instead, the covenant he formed with Ben-hadad let everyone know that Ahab’s relationship with Ben-hadad was more important to him than his relationship with God.

The true God

Elijah’s residency in the northern kingdom of Israel gave him an advantage in confronting the people because he knew what was going on there. Like king Ahab, the people were caught in the middle of two worship systems, one that honored the pagan god Baal and one that honored Jehovah; the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob who delivered the Israelites from bondage in Egypt and had given them the land of Canaan to dwell in.

Elijah challenged the people to make a choice based on whichever one they believed to be the true God. “And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? If the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word” (1 Kings 18:21).

The message Elijah was trying to convey was that worshipping two gods was getting them nowhere. The people were hopping back and forth depending on their circumstances and were not committed to either deity. The reason the people couldn’t give Elijah a straight answer was because they were stuck. They weren’t sure if they were ready to walk away from God altogether and didn’t know if Baal could protect them the way the LORD had.

In order to prove to the people of Israel that Baal was no match for God, Elijah designed a test to demonstrate the superiority of the LORD. It involved the sacrifice of a bullock as a burnt offering without using any fire. Elijah’s instructions to the people were “call ye on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the LORD: And the God that answereth by fire, let him be God. And all the people answered him and said, It is well spoken” (1 Kings 18:24).

Elijah’s contest was intended to show the people of Israel that their idols were inanimate objects with less than human capabilities. Baal could not see or hear them and he was unaware of the worship they performed to honor him (1 Kings 18:26). In stark contrast, God instituted the Israelite’s system of worship and made a covenant with them to guarantee the fulfillment of his promises to his people.

In order to emphasize God’s awareness and involvement in what was going on, Elijah drenched his bullock and the altar it was placed on with water before he prayed to the LORD to consume it with fire. It says in 1 Kings 18:33-35 that Elijah filled four barrels with water, poured it on the burnt sacrifice and on the wood, then repeated the process two more times until more than 30 gallons of water ran round about the altar and filled a trench that Elijah dug to hold it. His extreme demonstration made it clear that it would be impossible for Elijah to light the fire for the sacrifice.

Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces: and they said, The LORD, he is the God; the LORD, he is the God. (1 Kings 18:39)

 

Revival

By the time Jehoshaphat replaced his father Asa as king of Judah, the kingdom of Israel had already been in existence for more than 150 years. Much of what David had established in the way of worship had deteriorated into false religion and idolatry. Like his father Asa, Jehoshaphat focused on reform and he appeared determined to keep Israel’s faith alive.

It says in 2 Chronicles 17:3-4 “the LORD was with Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the first ways of his father David, and sought not unto Baalim; but sought to the LORD God of his father and walked in his commandments, and not after the doings of Israel.” Like David, Jehoshaphat led by example. Before he did anything to change the people, Jehoshaphat made sure his own house was in order.

Jehoshaphat understood that the key to his success was living consistently with God’s word, obeying his commandments. Jehoshaphat did not try to fake it. He actually read God’s word and then he sent the Levites out “and they taught in Judah, and had the book of the law of the LORD with them, and went about throughout all the cities of Judah, and taught the people” (2 Chronicles 17:9).

As a result of Jehoshaphat’s effort, the nations surrounding Judah saw a change taking place “and the fear of the LORD fell upon all the kingdoms of the lands that were round about Judah, so that they made no war against Jehoshaphat” (2 Chronicles 17:10). Jehoshaphat managed to revive his kingdom to the point where no one dared to take him on because they knew God was on his side.