Second Kings 12:10

The Bible says in Second Kings 12:10-16, “And it was so, when they saw that there was much money in the chest, that the king's scribe and the high priest came up, and they put up in bags, and told the money that was found in the house of the LORD.[11] And they gave the money, being told, into the hands of them that did the work, that had the oversight of the house of the LORD: and they laid it out to the carpenters and builders, that wrought upon the house of the LORD,[12] And to masons, and hewers of stone, and to buy timber and hewed stone to repair the breaches of the house of the LORD, and for all that was laid out for the house to repair it.[13] Howbeit there were 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:[14] But they gave that to the workmen, and repaired therewith the house of the LORD.[15] Moreover they reckoned not with the men, into whose hand they delivered the money to be bestowed on workmen: for they dealt faithfully. [16] The trespass money and sin money was not brought into the house of the LORD: it was the priests'.” These verses show us a good example of the practical needs of a ministry if you have property and a building to maintain. Money is necessary. Money is a tool to serve God. But money must be properly accounted for. It says in verse ten that they put the money “in bags, and told the money that was found in the house of the LORD.” Notice the word “told.” That means the financials were made public. Notice also that verse fourteen says, “But they gave that to the workmen, and repaired therewith the house of the LORD.” That means that they paid their bills.

The Bible says in Second Kings 12:17-21, “Then Hazael king of Syria went up, and fought against Gath, and took it: and Hazael set his face to go up to Jerusalem.[18] And Jehoash king of Judah took all the hallowed things that Jehoshaphat, and Jehoram, and Ahaziah, his fathers, kings of Judah, had dedicated, 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.[19] And the rest of the acts of Joash, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?[20] And his servants arose, and made a conspiracy, and slew Joash in the house of Millo, which goeth down to Silla.[21] For Jozachar the son of Shimeath, and Jehozabad the son of Shomer, his servants, smote him, and he died; and they buried him with his fathers in the city of David: and Amaziah his son reigned in his stead.” This passage is very revealing about life and death. We saw that Joash was miraculously preserved when he was a child, and we know that happened because God was looking out for him in order for the lineage of King David to be preserved. It had to do with the plan of God going forth. God has a plan for each of us. He will preserve us on the earth also as long as He has something for us to do. But after many years of being king, this time Joash is murdered. What happened? Why did God allow such a thing? There is only one possible answer: God could have protected Joash again, but Joash’s time was over. We all have a time when we are going to die, and God chooses that time. The evil people of the world do not choose it: God chooses it. The important thing is to know Jesus as Savior, so that when we do die, we go to heaven.

The Bible says in Second Kings 13:1-9, “In the three and twentieth year of Joash the son of Ahaziah king of Judah Jehoahaz the son of Jehu began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned seventeen years.[2] And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, and followed the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which made Israel to sin; he departed not therefrom.[3] And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and he delivered them into the hand of Hazael king of Syria, and into the hand of Ben-hadad the son of Hazael, all their days.[4] And Jehoahaz besought the LORD, and the LORD hearkened unto him: for he saw the oppression of Israel, because the king of Syria oppressed them.[5] (And the LORD gave Israel a saviour, so that they went out from under the hand of the Syrians: and the children of Israel dwelt in their tents, as beforetime.[6] Nevertheless they departed not from the sins of the house of Jeroboam, who made Israel sin, but walked therein: and there remained the grove also in Samaria.)[7] Neither did he leave of the people to Jehoahaz but fifty horsemen, and ten chariots, and ten thousand footmen; for the king of Syria had destroyed them, and had made them like the dust by threshing.[8] Now the rest of the acts of Jehoahaz, and all that he did, and his might, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?[9] And Jehoahaz slept with his fathers; and they buried him in Samaria: and Joash his son reigned in his stead.” Notice the phrase in verse two, “followed the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat.” Unfortunately, this phrase is found often in describing the kings of Israel. It shows the power of setting an example. People follow examples. That is one of the reasons that we are compared to sheep. Be a leader and not a follower. Of course, be a follower of Jesus but not of the people of the world who do not love Jesus. Set a good example of one who lives by faith. You never know how many people will follow your example.

The Bible says in Second Kings 13:10-14, “In the thirty and seventh year of Joash king of Judah began Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned sixteen years.[11] And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD; he departed not from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel sin: but he walked therein.[12] And the rest of the acts of Joash, and all that he did, and his might wherewith he fought against Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?[13] And Joash slept with his fathers; and Jeroboam sat upon his throne: and Joash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.[14] Now Elisha was fallen sick of his sickness whereof he died. And Joash the king of Israel came down unto him, and wept over his face, and said, O my father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof.” Elisha is going to die. Everyone dies. It is one of the great truths of life. That is why it is so important that you have eternal life through faith in Christ. Get ready. Get your heart ready and receive Christ into your heart. Believe on Him. Call upon His name.

The Bible says in Second Kings 13:15-19, “And Elisha said unto him, Take bow and arrows. And he took unto him bow and arrows.[16] And he said to the king of Israel, Put thine hand upon the bow. And he put his hand upon it: and Elisha put his hands upon the king's hands.[17] And he said, Open the window eastward. And he opened it. Then Elisha said, Shoot. And he shot. And he said, The arrow of the LORD's deliverance, and the arrow of deliverance from Syria: for thou shalt smite the Syrians in Aphek, till thou have consumed them.[18] And he said, Take the arrows. And he took them. And he said unto the king of Israel, Smite upon the ground. And he smote thrice, and stayed.[19] And the man of God was wroth with him, and said, Thou shouldest have smitten five or six times; then hadst thou smitten Syria till thou hadst consumed it: whereas now thou shalt smite Syria but thrice.” This is the last thing that Elisha did while he was alive that is recorded in the Bible. What was the issue with the king only striking the ground three times? He could have hit the ground as many times as he wanted. That was the problem. He did not use enough energy. He did not take advantage of the situation. He did not have zeal to do the will of God. Whatsoever you do, do with your might. Give your strength and energy to God and His service. God does not want a half-baked partial dedication. He wants all that you have to give. Jesus said to love God with all your strength, as well as with all your heart, mind, and soul.

The Bible says in Second Kings 13:20-25, “And Elisha died, and they buried him. And the bands of the Moabites invaded the land at the coming in of the year.[21] And it came to pass, as they were burying a man, that, behold, they spied a band of men; and they cast the man into the sepulchre of Elisha: and when the man was let down, and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived, and stood up on his feet.[22] But Hazael king of Syria oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz.[23] And the LORD was gracious unto them, and had compassion on them, and had respect unto them, because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and would not destroy them, neither cast he them from his presence as yet.[24] So Hazael king of Syria died; and Ben-hadad his son reigned in his stead.[25] And Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz took again out of the hand of Ben-hadad the son of Hazael the cities, which he had taken out of the hand of Jehoahaz his father by war. Three times did Joash beat him, and recovered the cities of Israel.” And so Elisha went the way of all flesh. But even at his funeral God performed a miracle. God probably did this in order to tell the people how pleased he was with Elisha’s service to God, and that the people should remember Elisha and try to be like him and remember his messages from God.

The Bible says in Second Kings 14:1-7, “In the second year of Joash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel reigned Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah.[2] He was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and reigned twenty and nine years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem.[3] And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, yet not like David his father: he did according to all things as Joash his father did.[4] Howbeit the high places were not taken away: as yet the people did sacrifice and burnt incense on the high places.[5] And it came to pass, as soon as the kingdom was confirmed in his hand, that he slew his servants which had slain the king his father.[6] But the children of the murderers he slew not: according unto that which is written in the book of the law of Moses, wherein the LORD commanded, saying, The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, nor the children be put to death for the fathers; but every man shall be put to death for his own sin.[7] He slew of Edom in the valley of salt ten thousand, and took Selah by war, and called the name of it Joktheel unto this day.” Once again there is a new king in Judah, and once again even though we are told that he did right in the sight of the Lord, we are also told in verse three, “yet not like David his father.” God sets a very high standard for us. God never says that it is alright to sin. He wants us to serve Him in every way possible. The standard that all the kings had was King David. He was the man after God’s own heart. David symbolized Christ, who would be king one day in the lineage of David. We have Jesus Himself as our standard. That is one of the reasons that we should never judge others. We are not the standard. We have not arrived. That is also why we need forgiveness from the Lord every day. It is easy to fail when Jesus is the standard. Our relationship with the Lord is based upon His forgiveness now and always will be. Thankfully He does forgive us each day. It says in First John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

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