2 Kings 2, 4-5, 9-11, 14:23-29, 16-17 – This portion of Scripture begins with the ascension of Elijah into heaven and his mantle falls to Elisha. Elisha, having already requested a double portion of the spirit that Elijah had, demonstrates that the spirit of YHWH is with him by performing various miracles. One of Elisha’s duties is fulfilling a charge from YHWH that was given to Elijah and that is the task of anointing Jehu as king over Israel. However, Elisha does not personally anoint Jehu, but sends a young prophet who tells Jehu that one of his objectives is to completely wipe out the line of Ahab and Jezebel. Jehu orchestrates a coup and kills both the king of Israel and the king of Judah and he also orders Jezebel’s death. After
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For example, the bloody coup of Jehu and his purge of Baalism from Israel is almost exactly like all of the violence that can be found in the military conquest of the book of Joshua. Like many I’m sure, I have a difficult time reconciling Jehu’s actions with the thought that what he did fell in line with God’s wishes. I know that God is just and that he cannot simply let sin go without consequences for those who commit the sin, but does that justify the amount of murder that Jehu carries out? This reading also made me feel sorry for the Israelites of this time period specifically because it was a time in which violence and suffering could have been considered as the norm for everyday life. Even Jezebel did not so much as flinch when she stared her own death in the face (but she may have been a little crazy, so…). The one story in all of this that possesses any sort of light in it is the story of Naaman’s conversion. His confession of faith in YHWH is a tale of hope and it gives readers some insight to yet another facet of God’s character. He is not only a God of the Israelites. He is a God of all people and He wishes to come to the aid of all people, otherwise there was no way that Naaman could have been cured of his leprosy. God is a kind and compassionate God just as much as He is a wrathful and righteous God – these are the two extremes that many people, including myself, sometimes have a difficult time in trying to put
For example, the bloody coup of Jehu and his purge of Baalism from Israel is almost exactly like all of the violence that can be found in the military conquest of the book of Joshua. Like many I’m sure, I have a difficult time reconciling Jehu’s actions with the thought that what he did fell in line with God’s wishes. I know that God is just and that he cannot simply let sin go without consequences for those who commit the sin, but does that justify the amount of murder that Jehu carries out? This reading also made me feel sorry for the Israelites of this time period specifically because it was a time in which violence and suffering could have been considered as the norm for everyday life. Even Jezebel did not so much as flinch when she stared her own death in the face (but she may have been a little crazy, so…). The one story in all of this that possesses any sort of light in it is the story of Naaman’s conversion. His confession of faith in YHWH is a tale of hope and it gives readers some insight to yet another facet of God’s character. He is not only a God of the Israelites. He is a God of all people and He wishes to come to the aid of all people, otherwise there was no way that Naaman could have been cured of his leprosy. God is a kind and compassionate God just as much as He is a wrathful and righteous God – these are the two extremes that many people, including myself, sometimes have a difficult time in trying to put