Oh, 2020! Like everyone in 2020, it was a slow and steady realization of everything that wasn’t going to happen. It started with Spring Break, and before long there was the realization that all events, holidays, and specials were being cancelled instead of postponed.
For our own church, when we realized that all events for Easter weekend would be cancelled, I came up with a quick plan. Our church family hosts Passion Journey each year on the Saturday before Easter. It is a combination of Egg “hunts” (which I like to term Oklahoma Land-run style egg hunts), and some sort of family experience to teach about the last week of Jesus life. In the past we have decorated rocks, had walk throughs, planted resurrection gardens, etc.
So I took the Passion week and created an at home experience. Below are all the files I made. You are welcome to print a copy to use. When I borrowed another persons ideas, I tried to give that person as much credit as I could to the original source.
The people of Israel are in captivity for 70 years. We don’t know the total picture of what this life looked like. Families were separated, the conquered peoples of the world were forced to live together with different languages, customs, and religions. Some of the Israelites served in high positions, like Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and even Mordecai, to the ruling kings. These greats serve as a reminder that even though the people were taken far away, that God was with them very presently. He was still to be worshipped and followed.
Even during the time of Exile, the nation of the Babylonians fell to the Medo-Persians. There was no power or kingdom that was unshakable. Daniel faithfully served the ruling king, but his faithfulness to the Lord was always first and foremost.
Darius the Mede decided to divide the kingdom into 120 provinces, and he appointed a high officer to rule over each province.The king also chose Daniel and two others as administrators to supervise the high officers and protect the king’s interests.Daniel soon proved himself more capable than all the other administrators and high officers. Because of Daniel’s great ability, the king made plans to place him over the entire empire. Daniel 6:1-3
When Daniel was first taken into captivity from Jerusalem, Nebuchadnezzar was the ruler of Babylon. Daniel served the Lord faithfully, and because of his integrity and character was promoted to serve in high position under the Babylonians. The Babylonians fell to the Cyrus of the Medo-Persians (Daniel 5). Now, under the rule of Darius the Mede, we find Daniel still in a high position. (For more information about Darius see here or there.)
Then the other administrators and high officers began searching for some fault in the way Daniel was handling government affairs, but they couldn’t find anything to criticize or condemn. He was faithful, always responsible, and completely trustworthy.So they concluded, “Our only chance of finding grounds for accusing Daniel will be in connection with the rules of his religion.” 6:4-5
This news of promotion didn’t sit well with everyone. Perhaps it was out of jealousy that the other high officers began to plot against Daniel. It could be that they knew Daniel didn’t worship the many gods, but the One True Lord, that they didn’t like him being in charge. After trying to do some character background checks, they couldn’t find any good reason to get rid of him. He was a man of integrity. He didn’t lie, steal, or cheat to get ahead. He lived in truth and hard work. They concluded the only way to get rid of him was if they faulted him in being faithful to the Lord.
So the administrators and high officers went to the king and said, “Long live King Darius!We are all in agreement—we administrators, officials, high officers, advisers, and governors—that the king should make a law that will be strictly enforced. Give orders that for the next thirty days any person who prays to anyone, divine or human—except to you, Your Majesty—will be thrown into the den of lions.And now, Your Majesty, issue and sign this law so it cannot be changed, an official law of the Medes and Persians that cannot be revoked.”So King Darius signed the law. 6:6-9
Their plan was pretty straightforward. They would stroke the ego of Darius by declaring a month long national holiday to celebrate his achievements. For one month all people would be told to only pray and worship the god of Darius. Anyone who worshipped anyone or thing else should be fed to the lions. That sounded like a great plan to Darius. Why not?! The high officers knew this was the perfect plan to catch Daniel.
But when Daniel learned that the law had been signed, he went home and knelt down as usual in his upstairs room, with its windows open toward Jerusalem. He prayed three times a day, just as he had always done, giving thanks to his God.Then the officials went together to Daniel’s house and found him praying and asking for God’s help.So they went straight to the king and reminded him about his law. “Did you not sign a law that for the next thirty days any person who prays to anyone, divine or human—except to you, Your Majesty—will be thrown into the den of lions?”
“Yes,” the king replied, “that decision stands; it is an official law of the Medes and Persians that cannot be revoked.”
Then they told the king, “That man Daniel, one of the captives from Judah, is ignoring you and your law. He still prays to his God three times a day.”
Hearing this, the king was deeply troubled, and he tried to think of a way to save Daniel. He spent the rest of the day looking for a way to get Daniel out of this predicament. 6:10-14
What we have in the account of Daniel is a contrast of two characters. You have Daniel. He’s probably around 80 years old, served many rulers and kings, dragged from his home to a foreign land, watched nations rise and fall, and had faithfully loved the Lord through it all. Then you have Darius. Not as young as Daniel, but not as old. He thinks highly of himself, confident, powerful, and strong.
The law goes into effect. For one month everyone must worship Darius alone or die. When Daniel hears the law, what does he do? He goes about his business unchanged. He prayed to the Lord three times a day, giving thanks, the same and unchanged. Nothing about his circumstances would change his behavior. He wasn’t going to hide or live in fear.
So the high officers knew they had caught him. They ran to Darius. “remember the law you made?! Daniel has broken it! What are you going to do?” This is also a test for Darius. In fact, I would argue that this is more of a test for Darius than it is for Daniel. Verse 14 tells us that the king was deeply troubled. He tried as hard as he could to get Daniel out of trouble. Could he even had asked Daniel to lie to save himself and cover it up? Maybe, maybe not. Nothing he could come up with would work.
In the evening the men went together to the king and said, “Your Majesty, you know that according to the law of the Medes and the Persians, no law that the king signs can be changed.”
So at last the king gave orders for Daniel to be arrested and thrown into the den of lions. The king said to him, “May your God, whom you serve so faithfully, rescue you.”
A stone was brought and placed over the mouth of the den. The king sealed the stone with his own royal seal and the seals of his nobles, so that no one could rescue Daniel. 6:15-17
At the end of the day, Darius had nothing. No doubt there was a sense of letdown. He was supposed to be so powerful but had no ability to save his friends Daniel. In fact, this was his fault that Daniel was in trouble. At last he gave the orders for Daniel to be arrested.
Darius gave one last desperate plea to save his friend. Perhaps that God who Daniel was so careful to follow would be able to save him.
Then Daniel was placed inside the den. A stone was rolled over the top and sealed shut. No one was to enter the cave to save Daniel.
Then the king returned to his palace and spent the night fasting. He refused his usual entertainment and couldn’t sleep at all that night. 6:18
I’ve always been fascinated with this verse. Instead of giving us an image of the den where Daniel is, we are instead diverted to Darius. When Darius leaves the den, he goes back to his palace. He is so upset about what has unfolded that he doesn’t eat all night. He refused to have his spirits lifted by entertainment and sleep was greatly lacking. He was so upset about Daniel, that he spent the night tossing and turning in worry.
What we don’t know (except that we know the end of the story) is what is happening to Daniel?!
Very early the next morning, the king got up and hurried out to the lions’ den. When he got there, he called out in anguish, “Daniel, servant of the living God! Was your God, whom you serve so faithfully, able to rescue you from the lions?” 6:19-20
First thing in the morning, maybe even as the sun is just peaking, Darius runs to the den. He can’t stand the suspense any longer. He order them to open the den and calls out immediately. “Was you God able to save you Daniel?!” Notice this is the only conclusion of Darius. If Daniel is alive it is only because of his God.
Daniel answered, “Long live the king!My God sent his angel to shut the lions’ mouths so that they would not hurt me, for I have been found innocent in his sight. And I have not wronged you, Your Majesty.”
The king was overjoyed and ordered that Daniel be lifted from the den. Not a scratch was found on him, for he had trusted in his God. 6:21-23
A moment, even a second of silence can seem like forever, when waiting anxiously. But from inside the dark den, came Daniel’s voice. “he did, indeed.” But notice here is also a testimony. Yes, God saved Daniel. Not even a scratch was on him! But also notice, Daniel maintains his integrity. He was saved because he was innocent and did not wrong the king. The Lord shut the lions mouths, but the Darius also needed to understand what this was about.
Then the king gave orders to arrest the men who had maliciously accused Daniel. He had them thrown into the lions’ den, along with their wives and children. The lions leaped on them and tore them apart before they even hit the floor of the den.
Then King Darius sent this message to the people of every race and nation and language throughout the world:
“Peace and prosperity to you!
“I decree that everyone throughout my kingdom should tremble with fear before the God of Daniel.
For he is the living God, and he will endure forever. His kingdom will never be destroyed, and his rule will never end. He rescues and saves his people; he performs miraculous signs and wonders in the heavens and on earth. He has rescued Daniel from the power of the lions.” 6:24-27
After Daniel was released, Darius was sure to punish the high officials. Not only did they trick Darius (showing their own bad integrity and malice) but they tried to punish a man that had done nothing wrong.
Sometimes the Bible tells us about events that are really hard. Why did the wives and children of these men have to be killed? That seems really dark and like a steep punishment, especially for children to be fed to hungry lions (or killed in battle or war). Yes, it is. This punishment for the kids was not because the kids did wrong, but served as a strict warning to anyone else who might decide to try to manipulate the king. It doesn’t make his judgement right, but more shows the strong message that he was sending out.
Daniel concludes with this proclamation of Darius. No one is to mess with the people who serve the God of Daniel. He is a Living God. He is everlasting. No one will destroy the Kingdom of God. He rescues his people by doing impossible and miraculous wonders, not bound by time or space. He saved Daniel from the power of man and beast.
For the craft with this story, I have the kids make a lion similar to the one pictured below.
Due to CoVid19 and the lack of supplies easily available to a lot of our families, I am going to encourage them to make a lion picture from recycled materials. It could be made from an old CD, a spoon, paper towel tube, magazines/newpapers or anything in between. I’ll include pictures of things I’ve found on Pinterest.
While the people of Judah were taken captive and exiled all over Babylon, the wealthiest and most important families were taken to serve the king. Daniel is included in this group. He distinguished himself by keeping the Jewish laws of customary food. Along with three of friends, Daniel was quickly recognized as a wonderful leader and assistant to the king. Daniel asked that his three friends, most commonly known as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that they would be promoted in being in charge of important parts of the Babylonian kingdom.
King Nebuchadnezzar made a gold statue ninety feet tall and nine feet wideand set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon.Then he sent messages to the high officers, officials, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all the provincial officials to come to the dedication of the statue he had set up.So all these officials came and stood before the statue King Nebuchadnezzar had set up. Daniel 3:1-3
King Nebuchadnezzar was king of a huge kingdom called Babylon. He was the king that had attacked and destroyed Judah. He conquered many lands and many peoples. He dragged them away from their home lands and forced them to live mixed up with other peoples and other things that they all worshipped. He was very powerful and great. So to celebrate his accomplishments he created a massive golden statue and told all his people who helped govern the lands to come together to celebrate.
Then a herald shouted out, “People of all races and nations and languages, listen to the king’s command!When you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes, and other musical instruments, bow to the ground to worship King Nebuchadnezzar’s gold statue.Anyone who refuses to obey will immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace.”
So at the sound of the musical instruments, all the people, whatever their race or nation or language, bowed to the ground and worshiped the gold statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.
But some of the astrologers went to the king and informed on the Jews.They said to King Nebuchadnezzar, “Long live the king!You issued a decree requiring all the people to bow down and worship the gold statue when they hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes, and other musical instruments.That decree also states that those who refuse to obey must be thrown into a blazing furnace.But there are some Jews—Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego—whom you have put in charge of the province of Babylon. They pay no attention to you, Your Majesty. They refuse to serve your gods and do not worship the gold statue you have set up.”
With all the people gathered together from all the nations and races, they were told to come together as one. When the music sounded, everyone was to bow down, as one people, and worship the golden image. Anyone who didn’t bow down would immediately be thrown into the furnace, perhaps it was the very furnace used to create this huge golden statue.
Imagine the scene. All these instruments play a beautiful melody, and at the right time hundreds of people, who were before so different, all bow down together. But as it turned out, not everyone bowed. Some astrologers (which are people who study the stars) came to the king and told him not everyone bowed down. There was a group of men, 3 to be exact, who were in charge of the province in Babylon. These men refused to serve the gods of Babylon and the statue that Nebby K created.
Then Nebuchadnezzar flew into a rage and ordered that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought before him. When they were brought in, Nebuchadnezzar said to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you refuse to serve my gods or to worship the gold statue I have set up?I will give you one more chance to bow down and worship the statue I have made when you hear the sound of the musical instruments. But if you refuse, you will be thrown immediately into the blazing furnace. And then what god will be able to rescue you from my power?” Daniel 3:13-15
When Nebby K heard this it made him so angry. In fact he wasn’t just mad, he was in a rage and commanded that the three men immediately be brought to him. There was going to be no polite asking of the three men. The king was aghast. “Is it true, guys? Are you sure you don’t want to bow to my god?” He offers them one more chance to change their mind. If they won’t bow he will have them thrown into the fire and they will die. After all he is the most powerful man in the whole world.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you.If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God whom we serve is able to save us. He will rescue us from your power, Your Majesty.But even if he doesn’t, we want to make it clear to you, Your Majesty, that we will never serve your gods or worship the gold statue you have set up.” 3:16-18
Their response is my absolute favorite response of all time.
First of all, they say, we don’t need to defend or apologize for not bowing. They are no sorry about disobeying the king. They didn’t bow because they were faithful to their God, not man or some image that man had made.
They weren’t afraid of what would happen to them in the fire. They serve the true Lord. Their confidence was not in man, or in anything man could create- the idea of safety. They were safe in the hands of the Lord alone. He had the power to save them and so no fear was stronger than their confidence in their Lord God.
BUT…they added. even if he doesn’t save. Isn’t that beautiful? Do you hear the confidence? This isn’t something they were saying because they were afraid of death, but they feared faithfulness to God more. Even if he doesn’t save us, we won’t bow. There wasn’t anything the king could take from them. Their lives were not their own.
Even while facing the fear of death the 3 friends stood firm. They served the true, most powerful God. They weren’t going to change their minds; they didn’t need that second chance,
Nebuchadnezzar was so furious with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego that his face became distorted with rage. He commanded that the furnace be heated seven times hotter than usual.Then he ordered some of the strongest men of his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and throw them into the blazing furnace.So they tied them up and threw them into the furnace, fully dressed in their pants, turbans, robes, and other garments.And because the king, in his anger, had demanded such a hot fire in the furnace, the flames killed the soldiers as they threw the three men in.So Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, securely tied, fell into the roaring flames. 3:19-23
I can picture exactly what is happening. Nobby K is so insulted. He was trying to be a nice guy and give them a second chance. How dare the test his power. He was so insulted by their answer. He was so angry his whole face was distorted. He was in a fit!
He screamed, “turn up the heat!!” No more mister nice guy. These three men would see just how powerful he was. He heated up the furnace 7 times hotter than was normally used. He told his strongest men to bind up the three friends. Now in super tight ropes, the men were thrown into the fire. They were fully dressed in all their kingly gowns, which is an important detail for the fire.
Because the fire was so hot, some of the kings own men died as they threw Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego into the fire. Those three friends should have also died immediately and their clothes- all that fabric, burned in such a hot blaze.
But suddenly, Nebuchadnezzar jumped up in amazement and exclaimed to his advisers, “Didn’t we tie up three men and throw them into the furnace?”
“Yes, Your Majesty, we certainly did,” they replied.
“Look!” Nebuchadnezzar shouted. “I see four men, unbound, walking around in the fire unharmed! And the fourth looks like a god!” 3:24-25
Fully expecting to watch as the three men burned to complete ashes, Nebby K jumps up out of confusion. He calls out to his men in charge, “wait only three men fell in the fire, right?” Maybe he wanted to make sure one of the other soldier that died didn’t fall in, too.
After confirming, yes only three, the king announces, “Look there is a fourth. And, look, those men aren’t tied up. They are walking around in the fire, not burning!! That 4th guy is different. He is a god.”
It could be that this fourth man is an angel of the Lord, sent to protect Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. It is also possible that he is more. Even in Nebby’s own description, he says the man looks like a god. We know that Christ, as God, is eternal. He didn’t show up when he was born as a man, but has always been, just as the Father and the Spirit. It is most likely that this forth man is the presence of Christ, in the fire- Immanuel, gad with us.
Then Nebuchadnezzar came as close as he could to the door of the flaming furnace and shouted: “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!”
So Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego stepped out of the fire.Then the high officers, officials, governors, and advisers crowded around them and saw that the fire had not touched them. Not a hair on their heads was singed, and their clothing was not scorched. They didn’t even smell of smoke! 3:26-27
When he sees the men walking in the fire, he knows immediately that he has lost. He is not the most powerful king he thought he was. He gets as close to the door to the furnace as he can (because it is still so so hot.) He calls to the three men to come out. Interestingly he doesn’t call for the forth man to come too.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego step out of the fire in a remarkable way. Everyone crowds around them to see first hand. Nothing on them is burned, including their clothes or hair. In fact, not only did they not burn, but they don’t even smell like smoke. If you have ever been around a camp fire you know this is impossible.
Then Nebuchadnezzar said, “Praise to the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego! He sent his angel to rescue his servants who trusted in him. They defied the king’s command and were willing to die rather than serve or worship any god except their own God.Therefore, I make this decree: If any people, whatever their race or nation or language, speak a word against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, they will be torn limb from limb, and their houses will be turned into heaps of rubble. There is no other god who can rescue like this!”
Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to even higher positions in the province of Babylon. 3:28-30
The king announces for everyone to hear. Praise to the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Not to the men themselves, but to the God they worshipped. He had saved them from the power of the king. They didn’t fear the king, but the God who saves. Then the king declared safety over the men. If anyone threatened their God, they would be punished by the king.
Even though the people had been living in exile, the Lord had not abandoned them. He was the same God to them in a foreign land that he was in the promised land. His power didn’t decrease because as a people they turned their backs on him. He remains the Everlasting One. The is no god who can rescue like the true Lord, but even if he doesn’t, he is still God!
For the craft book, I have a printable craft for the kids to cut out and assemble. Because we don’t have a lot of time, I color the picture in for them and have it printed to 1/4 page size for our books.
Due to Corona virus, I have tried to think of a different craft that he kids might have fun making at home with all their new free time. So to make melted crayon you will need a muffin pan, and broken crayons.
Heat the oven to 250 degrees. Break apart crayons into pieces and place in muffin tins. You can mix color families, all colors, or stick to the same colors. Place the pan in the oven for a few minutes (5 or so. Just watch it so they melt but not burn.) You can talk about how scary it must have been for the friends to go into the hot furnace. Once the crayons are melted, use a toothpick or skewer to swirl the colors together. As the wax cools, it will shrink and pull from the edges of the pan. If you want, place in the pan in the freezer. Once cooled, remove and color freely.
Josiah was the last good king of Judah. Because of the evil of Manasseh, Josiah’s grand-father, God was going to send the people of Judah into exile. However Josiah was different. it say of him in 2 Kings 23:25 that, “never before had there been a king like Josiah, who turned to the Lord with all his heart and soul and strength, obeying all the laws of Moses. and there has never been a king like him since.” Through the prophet, Huldah, God told Josiah that Judah would be destroyed, but not during his time. Josiah’s sons that ruled after him were evil in the Lord’s sight. The ruled from just a few months, to just a little more that 10 years each. All four of them were very evil, not following the Lord like Josiah had done.
Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years.But Zedekiah did what was evil in the sight of the Lord his God, and he refused to humble himself when the prophet Jeremiah spoke to him directly from the Lord.He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, even though he had taken an oath of loyalty in God’s name. Zedekiah was a hard and stubborn man, refusing to turn to the Lord, the God of Israel.
Likewise, all the leaders of the priests and the people became more and more unfaithful. They followed all the pagan practices of the surrounding nations, desecrating the Temple of the Lord that had been consecrated in Jerusalem.
The Lord, the God of their ancestors, repeatedly sent his prophets to warn them, for he had compassion on his people and his Temple.But the people mocked these messengers of God and despised their words. They scoffed at the prophets until the Lord’s anger could no longer be restrained and nothing could be done. 2 Chronicles 36:11-16
Zedekiah, the last ruling king of Judah was a very prideful and wicked man. He worshipped many idols and false gods. The religious leaders also did many of the same things.
God sent his prophets to warn the king. Jeremiah, who wrote a big book in the Bible was one of them. The king and the people of Judah mocked the prophets. They refused to listen to what was being told to them. When a person refuses to listen to warnings, we call this person stubborn or stiff necked. No matter the warnings from the people that loved the Lord, as a nation the people had turned away from the Lord. There was nothing more that God could do.
This is not a good story. When we hear about the destructions of Judah, it is very sad. God did not delight in bringing a nation to destroy his temple or the land of his people. God was not pleased that they no longer asked him for help. He tried to show them compassion, but the people wouldn’t listen.
When I was a kid, if I didn’t want to hear something I would plug my ears. But I didn’t just stick my fingers in my ears. I lived in a home with a lot of brothers and sisters, so if I really wanted to block out noise this is what I would do. I would fold over my ear lobes using my fingers and then push them into my ear to help block extra noise. Try it.
When you do this, your own voice becomes very loud, but you can’t hear noise outside of your head very well at all. It’s very effective to block noise. This is a good illustration of what the people of Judah had done. They blocked the warning of God from their heads and their hearts and all they could hear was themselves and their selfish wants.
So on January 15, during the ninth year of Zedekiah’s reign, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon led his entire army against Jerusalem. They surrounded the city and built siege ramps against its walls.Jerusalem was kept under siege until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah’s reign.
By July 18 in the eleventh year of Zedekiah’s reign, the famine in the city had become very severe, and the last of the food was entirely gone.Then a section of the city wall was broken down. Since the city was surrounded by the Babylonians, the soldiers waited for nightfall and escaped through the gate between the two walls behind the king’s garden. Then they headed toward the Jordan Valley.
But the Babylonian troops chased the king and overtook him on the plains of Jericho, for his men had all deserted him and scattered.They captured the king and took him to the king of Babylon at Riblah, where they pronounced judgment upon Zedekiah.They made Zedekiah watch as they slaughtered his sons. Then they gouged out Zedekiah’s eyes, bound him in bronze chains, and led him away to Babylon. 2 Kings 25:1-7
You probably feel like you are trapped in your home forever during this quarantine, but imagine with me you are in Jerusalem. Jerusalem was the capital city of Judah and was very big and important. To help protect cities, in ancient times, they would have had huge walls built around them to protect them from invaders.
When Babylon comes to attack the people of Judah, it means business. since the walls were carefully protected, the Babylonians built up ramparts. Imagine the city wall around Jerusalem. The ramparts would have been huge ramps to help the invaders attack a wall and overcome the city. For 2 and a half year, Babylon worked on these ramparts to attack Jerusalem.
The people of Jerusalem were stuck in their city for two and a half years, and then to make it worse, there was a terrible famine. Worse than running out of toilet paper, the people had run out of food. Not only that, but there was a huge part of the wall destroyed and the city was surrounded by Babylonians.
King Zedekiah came up with a plan to escape. He would lead a group through the whole in the wall at night. He was hoping in the darkness they could sneak away unseen. His plan didn’t work. The Babylonians chased him down and captured him. They carried the king off to Babylon and he was judged. Judgements are never happy ending. When you break the law, you have to go to court to pay for the crime. If it’s minor, like speeding, you pay a couple hundred dollars. If it’s a major crime, like murder or robbing a lot of money, then the judgement is more strict and severe- going to jail.
The king of Babylon had Zedekiah’s sons killed, and made Zedekiah watch. Then, as if that wasn’t the worse thing ever, he had Zedekiah blinded. For the remainder of his life Zedekiah would know his last thing he saw was probably the worst thing he ever saw.
The Lord tried to warn his people, but they wouldn’t listen.
On August 14 of that year, which was the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar’s reign, Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard and an official of the Babylonian king, arrived in Jerusalem.He burned down the Temple of the Lord, the royal palace, and all the houses of Jerusalem. He destroyed all the important buildings in the city.Then he supervised the entire Babylonian army as they tore down the walls of Jerusalem on every side.Then Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, took as exiles the rest of the people who remained in the city, the defectors who had declared their allegiance to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the population.But the captain of the guard allowed some of the poorest people to stay behind to care for the vineyards and fields.
The Babylonians broke up the bronze pillars in front of the Lord’s Temple, the bronze water carts, and the great bronze basin called the Sea, and they carried all the bronze away to Babylon.They also took all the ash buckets, shovels, lamp snuffers, ladles, and all the other bronze articles used for making sacrifices at the Temple.The captain of the guard also took the incense burners and basins, and all the other articles made of pure gold or silver. 2 Kings 25:8-15
A month later, the Babylonians completely destroyed the city of Jerusalem and the temple of the Lord. They carried off all the valuable things in the temple and the city. The took all the people and scattered them. Families were separated from one another and taken to a new land. The only people left behind were the poorest people, and they were left behind to work.
This would begin the time of exile. Although this is a very sad and hard part of history in the Bible, it is important. It’s important to listen and learn from the people mistakes. It’s also important to look carefully at the lesson from the Lord. He loves his people very much. He doesn’t want to bring destruction, but out of his goodness will not let sin go unpunished. Even when bad things happen, God is good and faithful.
So the message of the Lord spoken through Jeremiah was fulfilled. The land finally enjoyed its Sabbath rest, lying desolate until the seventy years were fulfilled, just as the prophet had said. 2 Kings 25:21
In the next few lessons we will learn about how God was still faithful to his people. When they were carried away in exile he promised that it wouldn’t be forever. It would be for a time of 70 years, but they would return. During that time was a time for rest.
Right now the whole world is also resting because of the virus Covid-19. That’s not to say that this virus is or isn’t a judgment from God, but this is a great time to look for rest. Find rest in the Lord from the busyness that normally consumes the spring. Find time to rest with your family now that you aren’t running all over town all the time. Find rest from your work. Use this time to draw into the word and rest in the Lord’s truths and hope.
For the crafting book, you will create a small house with folding front doors. On the inside of the house, each child will create what their family looks like by drawing each family member. Be sure to include the verse of promise from Jeremiah 29:10
Hezekiah was one of the best kings of Judah. When he became king, he immediately began to undo the evil that his father had done for the nations. He cleaned and reopened the temple (his father had placed idols in the temple to worship and then eventually closed it), reestablished celebrating religious holidays (passover), and as the people began to worship the Lord again, began to bring their offerings, so much that they had to make new storage places to hold all the offerings. But then Hezekiah became deathly ill. On the news of his imminent death, Hezekiah prays and cries before the Lord. Isaiah, who hadn’t even fully left, turns around and returns with a different message from the Lord. Hezekiah will be healed, but will also be tested by the Lord. He will be given 15 more years as king. The test from the Lord Hezekiah failed. To see the full account, read this post. One of the interesting perspectives to think about is where does his son Manasseh come in all of this. One side would argue that Manasseh becomes king at age 12 as a so-heir to his father Hezekiah. Although Hezekiah is given more time, his son is young and wants to help Manasseh prepare to be king, or maybe even because of his illness makes him king at the young age of 12. The other point of view is that Hezekiah had no children when he became ill, and that Manasseh was born to Hezekiah after God extends his life another 15 years (three years after being healed). Both have interesting perspectives to think about.
Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem fifty-five years. His mother was Hephzibah.He did what was evil in the Lord’s sight, following the detestable practices of the pagan nations that the Lord had driven from the land ahead of the Israelites. 2 Kings 21:1-2
Manasseh was so young and ruled Judah for 55 years. Now, that is largely because he had a change of heart, which we will get to. He is most well known for his notorious idolatry. Unlike prior kings who worshipped idols, Manasseh went all out in his idolatry. he did evil in the Lord’s sight. Manasseh was so bad, he wasn’t just evil, but EVIL (insert sinister laugh).
When it comes to talking about evil practices, it’s always wise to err on the side of cautious information. Share enough information to illustrate he has a terrible, no good, very wicked person, but not share details about what he actually did. The Bible is good for this kind of information too.
He rebuilt the pagan shrines his father, Hezekiah, had destroyed. He constructed altars for Baal and set up an Asherah pole, just as King Ahab of Israel had done. He also bowed before all the powers of the heavens and worshiped them.
He built pagan altars in the Temple of the Lord, the place where the Lord had said, “My name will remain in Jerusalem forever.”He built these altars for all the powers of the heavens in both courtyards of the Lord’s Temple.Manasseh also sacrificed his own son in the fire. He practiced sorcery and divination, and he consulted with mediums and psychics. He did much that was evil in the Lord’s sight, arousing his anger.
Manasseh even made a carved image of Asherah and set it up in the Temple, the very place where the Lord had told David and his son Solomon: “My name will be honored forever in this Temple and in Jerusalem—the city I have chosen from among all the tribes of Israel.If the Israelites will be careful to obey my commands—all the laws my servant Moses gave them—I will not send them into exile from this land that I gave their ancestors.” But the people refused to listen, and Manasseh led them to do even more evil than the pagan nations that the Lord had destroyed when the people of Israel entered the land. 2 Kings 21:3-9
In short, he began to undo all the good his father had done. He brought back Baal and Asherah worship (the cause of Israel’s downfall). He also worshipped the gods of the stars and astrology. In the temple of the Lord, he replaced worship of the Lord with blatant idolatry. He even offered his own son as a sacrifice in fire. He actively practiced sorcery, consulting medium and psychics.
The people refused to listen to all the warnings. Even though the nation of Israel was destroyed for these same practices, Judah didn’t heed the warning.
Then the Lord said through his servants the prophets:“King Manasseh of Judah has done many detestable things. He is even more wicked than the Amorites, who lived in this land before Israel. He has caused the people of Judah to sin with his idols.So this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I will bring such disaster on Jerusalem and Judah that the ears of those who hear about it will tingle with horror.I will judge Jerusalem by the same standard I used for Samaria and the same measure I used for the family of Ahab. I will wipe away the people of Jerusalem as one wipes a dish and turns it upside down.Then I will reject even the remnant of my own people who are left, and I will hand them over as plunder for their enemies.For they have done great evil in my sight and have angered me ever since their ancestors came out of Egypt.” 2 Kings 21:10-15
Despite all the prophesies and warnings from the people who loved the Lord, Mannaseh refused to change his ways. The judgment of the Lord was coming and it would be swift. The horror of it would linger, like the ringing in an ear. God will wipe their detestable actions like one scrubs a dish clean. All such vivid descriptions. Even though this is a great loss, God’s promised people rejected, it is right and deserved.
Manasseh also murdered many innocent people until Jerusalem was filled from one end to the other with innocent blood. This was in addition to the sin that he caused the people of Judah to commit, leading them to do evil in the Lord’s sight. 2 Kings 21:16
Oh, and in case you think God is being harsh, Manasseh was a murderer of innocent people, large amounts of innocent people.
The Lord spoke to Manasseh and his people, but they ignored all his warnings. So the Lord sent the commanders of the Assyrian armies, and they took Manasseh prisoner. They put a ring through his nose, bound him in bronze chains, and led him away to Babylon.But while in deep distress, Manasseh sought the Lord his God and sincerely humbled himself before the God of his ancestors. And when he prayed, the Lord listened to him and was moved by his request. So the Lord brought Manasseh back to Jerusalem and to his kingdom. Then Manasseh finally realized that the Lord alone is God! 2 Chronicles 33:11-13
Isaiah, during the time of Hezekiah, told him that Judah would fall to the hands of the Babylonians. It is the Assyrians who have taken Manasseh into captivity. This is a turning point for Manasseh. Assyria would have been an ally. Many of the gods he turned to were the terrible gods of the Assyrians. He was humbled and broken. After being warned by the prophets that judgment was coming, Manasseh now sat in jail, stripped of his glory.
Manasseh sought after the Lord. He repented of the sin of idolatry and changed his heart desire to worship the Lord. He prayed to God, and the beauty of it all is that the Lord heard his prayer. God was moved at the change in Mannaseh. The writer is obviously referencing to 1 Chronicles 7:14, “If my people who are called by my name should humble themselves and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and will heal their land.”
Manasseh is allowed to return to Judah. In this is the full revelation to Manasseh. The Lord alone is God.
After this Manasseh rebuilt the outer wall of the City of David, from west of the Gihon Spring in the Kidron Valley to the Fish Gate, and continuing around the hill of Ophel. He built the wall very high. And he stationed his military officers in all of the fortified towns of Judah.Manasseh also removed the foreign gods and the idol from the Lord’s Temple. He tore down all the altars he had built on the hill where the Temple stood and all the altars that were in Jerusalem, and he dumped them outside the city.Then he restored the altar of the Lord and sacrificed peace offerings and thanksgiving offerings on it. He also encouraged the people of Judah to worship the Lord, the God of Israel.However, the people still sacrificed at the pagan shrines, though only to the Lord their God. 2 Chronicles 33:14-17
When Manasseh returns to his home he is a completely changed man. Like Hezekiah he begins making reforms. He repairs the kingdom, including the military. He removes the idols and gods he placed int he Temple. All the alters he placed around Jerusalem were tossed in the garbage. But no matter how much he had changed, the people’s hearts were not stirred back to the Lord.
The time of Judah is coming to a near end. Since Hezekiah’s misstep, Judah will slowly near it’s end. At Manasseh’s death, he is buried, but not with the other kings. His wickedness superseded his, removing the honor. At his death, his son, Amnon became king, who was like the earlier version of Manasseh. He only ruled 2 years before a plot to kill him was fulfilled. Then Manasseh’s grandson, Josiah will rule. Not since David, was there a king who loved the Lord like Josiah.
To create this craft I borrowed this pop-up craft about Peter in Jail, but adapted it for King Manasseh in jail instead. Print off a copy of the Manasseh craft. Card stock paper is best, but regular copy paper is sufficient.
Now, on the jail side, fold it in half, with the jail on the outside. Using scissors, remove the white part of the jail bars.
Once all the slots are cut out, open the jail paper. Now fold the top of the jail bars down, the opposite of the previous fold. Repeat on the top and bottom.
Now, secure the jail page over the top of the other page.
Fold the whole picture so that the bars of the jail fold out, while the rest of the picture folds the opposite direction.
Hezekiah established his rule over Judah as a king who would seek the Lord. Not only did he restore the worship of the Lord alone in the temple, but the people began to follow the religious customs of holidays, offerings, and sacrifices. After the fall of Israel (seven years into Hezekiah’s reign), Assyria turned to attack Judah as well. Hezekiah sought the Lord for help. Sennacherib taunted Judah by telling them that no one, not even their God could save them. Isaiah delivered the message. God had heard the prayers of Hezekiah and the blasphemy of the Assyrians. Now was the time for his deliverance. That night he decimated the Assyrian army and gave Judah great victory.
Hezekiah had very great wealth and honor, and he made treasuries for his silver and gold and for his precious stones, spices, shields and all kinds of valuables. He also made buildings to store the harvest of grain, new wine and olive oil; and he made stalls for various kinds of cattle, and pens for the flocks.He built villages and acquired great numbers of flocks and herds, for God had given him very great riches. 2 Chronicles 32:27-29
Hezekiah was blessed by the Lord. Because he was determined to worship the Lord alone and be a nation that loved the Lord and not idols, God helped him. He acquired great wealth in silver and gold. He owned many valuables. Judah had so much wealth that they created huge storehouses, that might be equivalent to having Walmart now days. He rebuilt the towns and villages. It was a time of prosperity.
In those days Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz went to him and said, “This is what the Lord says: Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover.”
Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord,“Remember, Lord, how I have walked before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion and have done what is good in your eyes.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly. 2 Kings 20:1-3 (Isaiah 38:1-3)
Not long after the great victory over Assyria, Hezekiah becomes very ill. (Israel fell as a nation around his 7th year. He only ruled over Judah for 29 years. He was given 15 extra years, which means he became ill after just 14 years of ruling.) It was a serious and deathly illness. Later, when he is treated, we will learn that his body was also covered in boils of some kind. Isaiah, the prophet of the Lord, comes to the king and tells him the bad news that he is going to die from this illness. He will not recover.
When Isaiah leaves, Hezekiah turns in his bed. He takes the news of his pending death hard. He makes his case to the Lord, pleading for more time. “I have served you faithfully Lord…”
Then the word of the Lord came to Isaiah:“Go and tell Hezekiah, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will add fifteen years to your life.And I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria. I will defend this city.
“‘This is the Lord’s sign to you that the Lord will do what he has promised:I will make the shadow cast by the sun go back the ten steps it has gone down on the stairway of Ahaz.’” So the sunlight went back the ten steps it had gone down. Isaiah 38:4-8
As Isaiah is leaving the kings palace, the Lord speaks to him. He turns around and returns to the king to share with him the word from the Lord. (2 Kings 20:4). God has changed his mind. Hezekiah prayed to the Lord, and now the Lord had heard his cry for help and saw his tears. He was going to heal Hezekiah and give him 15 more year to live. He would also help Hezekiah and Judah by protecting them from Assyria.
Not only would God bring healing to Hezekiah, but there would be a great sign before the healing would come. This is odd to me. Obviously, as will be shown in time, healing Hezekiah would be enough. So what is God doing by sending this sign?
The sign is that the shadow cast by the sun on a famous sundial in Judah would move backwards instead of forward. This can only be caused by some phenomena of the sun.
Isaiah had said, “Prepare a poultice of figs and apply it to the boil, and he will recover.” Isaiah 38:21
This was some sort of medicinal treatment for the boils that Hezekiah had. Maybe it brought relief to the discomfort. It would not have made him well, unless the Lord was behind the healing of his body. Healing ultimately comes from he Lord.
But when envoys were sent by the rulers of Babylon to ask him about the miraculous sign that had occurred in the land, God left him to test him and to know everything that was in his heart. 2 Chronicles 32:31
At that time Marduk-Baladan son of Baladan king of Babylon sent Hezekiah letters and a gift, because he had heard of Hezekiah’s illness.Hezekiah received the envoys and showed them all that was in his storehouses—the silver, the gold, the spices and the fine olive oil—his armory and everything found among his treasures. There was nothing in his palace or in all his kingdom that Hezekiah did not show them. 2 Kings 20:12-13
Hezekiah was healed and word spread through the nations of the time. Babylon, who was a smaller far off nation, sends a group to visit Hezekiah. These are a people who study and worship the stars. Of course they would be curious about the sun phenomena. Chronicles tells us that this visit is from the Lord, to see what is in the heart of Hezekiah. Has he been humbled by the disease, or is he going to become more proud of himself because he was healed?
When the envoy from Babylon comes, Hezekiah sees no threat. He shows them all the riches of his kingdom. He shows them the storehouses he has built, the wealth he has gained, and even his weapons that he has designed, invented, and stored. There was nothing in his kingdom that he kept as a secret from the Babylonian visitors.
Then Isaiah the prophet went to King Hezekiah and asked, “What did those men say, and where did they come from?”
“From a distant land,” Hezekiah replied. “They came from Babylon.”
The prophet asked, “What did they see in your palace?”
“They saw everything in my palace,” Hezekiah said. “There is nothing among my treasures that I did not show them.”
Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Hear the word of the Lord:The time will surely come when everything in your palace, and all that your predecessors have stored up until this day, will be carried off to Babylon. Nothing will be left, says the Lord. And some of your descendants, your own flesh and blood who will be born to you, will be taken away, and they will become eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.” 2 Kings 20:14-18
As the visitors are leaving Isaiah comes to Hezekiah and asks him about them. Who were they? What did you show them?
Hezekiah, full of pride, brags about his visitors. “Oh, those people are from far away, no threat to us. In fact, I think I just made friends. I showed them all the wonderful things that I have done, stored, and prepared for my kingdom,” Hezekiah bragged.
Did Hezekiah pass or fail the test of the Lord?
Isaiah breaks the terrible judgement of the Lord to Hezekiah. In short, everything that was shown to the Babylonians will one day be carried off as treasure for them. Not only that but the people will also be taken away into captivity, even his own decedents.
The word of the Lord you have spoken is good,” Hezekiah replied. For he thought, “Will there not be peace and security in my lifetime?”
As for the other events of Hezekiah’s reign, all his achievements and how he made the pool and the tunnel by which he brought water into the city, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Judah?Hezekiah rested with his ancestors. And Manasseh his son succeeded him as king. 2 Kings 20:19-21
How did Hezekiah react to this terrible news that the kingdom of Judah will fall, like Israel, but to the hands of Babylon, and it will largely because of Hezekiah, himself? He was relieved, because at least he would have peace during his time. He wasn’t concerned about the fall of Judah. At least while he was king, Judah would have peace and be safe. Hezekiah was very selfish.
After Hezekiah, his son Manasseh would follow him as king. Manasseh was only 12 years old when he became king, which means he was born to Hezekiah after he was healed. Manasseh, as we will learn about is the most wicked king of all. He will be the reason for judgement to Judah, but don’t miss Hezekiah’s own blame and fault for how Manasseh turns out.
The craft for this week is a simple craft. Print off the sundial. Kids will cut out the triangle. Using tape, they will attach the triangle to the sundial.
Hezekiah began his reign as king with a bang. Right away he began major reforms to the nation of Judah. He undid many of the atrocities that his father had done as king. Ahaz had worshipped the gods of Assyria and even closed the temple. Hezekiah immediately began to make changes to bring the people back to worship the Lord. He repaired and reopened the temple in less than three weeks. Hezekiah also celebrated the Passover in Judah, even included some from Israel. Not only this, but the people began to trust in God and bring their offerings to the Lord, so much that there was an abundance of supplies. Hezekiah destroyed worship to idols and alters in the high places. He also rebuilt the cities and fortified walls. After being king for just 4 years, Assyria attacked Israel and it fell after 3 years.
In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah’s reign, Sennacherib king of Assyria attacked all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them.So Hezekiah king of Judah sent this message to the king of Assyria at Lachish: “I have done wrong. Withdraw from me, and I will pay whatever you demand of me.” The king of Assyria exacted from Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold.So Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found in the temple of the Lord and in the treasuries of the royal palace.
At this time Hezekiah king of Judah stripped off the gold with which he had covered the doors and doorposts of the temple of the Lord, and gave it to the king of Assyria. 2 Kings 18:13-16
Assyria was growing year by year in power and dominance over the world. Seven years after the fall of Israel, it turned to attack Judah as well. Out of fear, Hezekiah pays the demands of gold and silver. 11 tons of silver and a ton of gold that he removed from the temple that had been repaired.
This wasn’t enough.
The king of Assyria sent his supreme commander, his chief officer and his field commander with a large army, from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem. They came up to Jerusalem and stopped at the aqueduct of the Upper Pool, on the road to the Washerman’s Field.They called for the king; and Eliakim son of Hilkiah the palace administrator, Shebna the secretary, and Joah son of Asaph the recorder went out to them.
The field commander said to them, “Tell Hezekiah:
“‘This is what the great king, the king of Assyria, says: On what are you basing this confidence of yours?You say you have the counsel and the might for war—but you speak only empty words. On whom are you depending, that you rebel against me?Look, I know you are depending on Egypt, that splintered reed of a staff, which pierces the hand of anyone who leans on it! Such is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who depend on him.But if you say to me, “We are depending on the Lord our God”—isn’t he the one whose high places and altars Hezekiah removed, saying to Judah and Jerusalem, “You must worship before this altar in Jerusalem”?
“‘Come now, make a bargain with my master, the king of Assyria: I will give you two thousand horses—if you can put riders on them!How can you repulse one officer of the least of my master’s officials, even though you are depending on Egypt for chariots and horsemen?Furthermore, have I come to attack and destroy this place without word from the Lord? The Lord himself told me to march against this country and destroy it.’”
Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah, and Shebna and Joah said to the field commander, “Please speak to your servants in Aramaic, since we understand it. Don’t speak to us in Hebrew in the hearing of the people on the wall.” 2 Kings 18:17-26
Sennacherib (king of Assyria) sends his three chiefs army commanders to confront Hezekiah and demand more from them. Hezekiah sends 3 of his own men from the palace to negotiate. The field commander from Assyria tries to intimidate them with strong threats. They taunt them with trying to get help from another nation, Egypt, because Egypt is also powerless. He also taunts them with looking to God for help. With no real understanding about who the God of Judah actually is, they assume Hezekiah has been greatly mistaken. He removed the idols, but those are not real help.
Hezekiah’s men that were sent to negotiate tried to convince the Assyrian leaders to not communicate in Hebrew, the language of the people of Judah. They didn’t want the people to be scared by the threats.
But the commander replied, “Was it only to your master and you that my master sent me to say these things, and not to the people sitting on the wall—who, like you, will have to eat their own excrement and drink their own urine?”
Then the commander stood and called out in Hebrew, “Hear the word of the great king, the king of Assyria!This is what the king says: Do not let Hezekiah deceive you. He cannot deliver you from my hand.Do not let Hezekiah persuade you to trust in the Lord when he says, ‘The Lord will surely deliver us; this city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.’
“Do not listen to Hezekiah. This is what the king of Assyria says: Make peace with me and come out to me. Then each of you will eat fruit from your own vine and fig tree and drink water from your own cistern,until I come and take you to a land like your own—a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive trees and honey. Choose life and not death!
“Do not listen to Hezekiah, for he is misleading you when he says, ‘The Lord will deliver us.’Has the god of any nation ever delivered his land from the hand of the king of Assyria?Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim, Hena and Ivvah? Have they rescued Samaria from my hand? Who of all the gods of these countries has been able to save his land from me? How then can the Lord deliver Jerusalem from my hand?”
But the people remained silent and said nothing in reply, because the king had commanded, “Do not answer him.”
Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah the palace administrator, Shebna the secretary, and Joah son of Asaph the recorder went to Hezekiah, with their clothes torn, and told him what the field commander had said. 18:27-37
Of course the requests to not scare the people only emboldened them more with their threats. The blaspheme against trusting in the God of Hezekiah stepped up a few notches.
“Don’t be deceived. The God of Hezekiah can’t save you. Instead surrender and we will take you to our land where there is plenty to eat and you won’t die.”
“Don’t listen to Hezekiah. No other god was able to save the other nations that we conquered. How could your god possibly save you from us?”
But the people of Judah remained silent. They didn’t answer back. The three men that Hezekiah sent to negotiate came back to Hezekiah, distraught with the terrible news.
When King Hezekiah heard this, he tore his clothes and put on sackcloth and went into the temple of the Lord.He sent Eliakim the palace administrator, Shebna the secretary and the leading priests, all wearing sackcloth, to the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz.They told him, “This is what Hezekiah says: This day is a day of distress and rebuke and disgrace, as when children come to the moment of birth and there is no strength to deliver them.It may be that the Lord your God will hear all the words of the field commander, whom his master, the king of Assyria, has sent to ridicule the living God, and that he will rebuke him for the words the Lord your God has heard. Therefore pray for the remnant that still survives.” 2 Kings 19:1-4
Hezekiah sends word to Isaiah, the prophet. He begs Isaiah to pray on their behalf. The king of Assyria has blasphemed the name of the Lord. Perhaps he would move to help them because of his name’s sake.
When King Hezekiah’s officials came to Isaiah,Isaiah said to them, “Tell your master, ‘This is what the Lord says: Do not be afraid of what you have heard—those words with which the underlings of the king of Assyria have blasphemedme.Listen! When he hears a certain report, I will make him want to return to his own country, and there I will have him cut down with the sword.’” 19:5-7
Isaiah sends a message back to Hezekiah from the Lord. It has three main points- don’t be afraid, listen, and the king of Assyria will die for this!
When the field commander heard that the king of Assyria had left Lachish, he withdrew and found the king fighting against Libnah.
Now Sennacherib received a report that Tirhakah, the king of Cush, was marching out to fight against him. So he again sent messengers to Hezekiah with this word:“Say to Hezekiah king of Judah: Do not let the god you depend on deceive you when he says, ‘Jerusalem will not be given into the hands of the king of Assyria.’Surely you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the countries, destroying them completely. And will you be delivered?Did the gods of the nations that were destroyed by my predecessors deliver them—the gods of Gozan, Harran, Rezeph and the people of Eden who were in Tel Assar?Where is the king of Hamath or the king of Arpad? Where are the kings of Lair, Sepharvaim, Hena and Ivvah?” 19:8-13
The drama doesn’t suddenly just end for Hezekiah. The king of Assyria does withdraw it’s immediate threat to Judah. There is another nation south of Egypt (Cush) that is causing more trouble than Judah for the Assyrians. The king sends a strong warning to Hezekiah, though. “Don’t you dare think you are safe! No other nation or god has been able to stop me.”
Hezekiah received the letter from the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the temple of the Lord and spread it out before the Lord.And Hezekiah prayed to the Lord: “Lord, the God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth.Give ear, Lord, and hear; open your eyes, Lord, and see; listen to the words Sennacherib has sent to ridicule the living God.
“It is true, Lord, that the Assyrian kings have laid waste these nations and their lands.They have thrown their gods into the fire and destroyed them, for they were not gods but only wood and stone, fashioned by human hands.Now, Lord our God, deliver us from his hand, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you alone, Lord, are God.” 19:14-19
When Hezekiah gets the message from the Assyrian king, it is terrible news. He takes the letter up to the temple and spreads it out before the Lord and prays. He prays against the words of the king of Assyria. “You alone are God. You have made the heavens and earth. Please hear! God, please see us. See this for what it is, an attack on you as king.” Hezekiah can see the difference. All the nations that had fallen worshipped worthless idols. But God was not like them. Their very being and purpose was to live for him, and it is his name that is on the line. It was time to show Assyria who was King of kings.
Therefore this is what the Lord says concerning the king of Assyria:
“‘He will not enter this city or shoot an arrow here. He will not come before it with shield or build a siege ramp against it. By the way that he came he will return; he will not enter this city, declares the Lord. I will defend this city and save it, for my sake and for the sake of David my servant.’”
That night the angel of the Lord went out and put to death a hundred and eighty-five thousand in the Assyrian camp. When the people got up the next morning—there were all the dead bodies!So Sennacherib king of Assyria broke camp and withdrew. He returned to Nineveh and stayed there.
One day, while he was worshiping in the temple of his god Nisrok, his sons Adrammelek and Sharezer killed him with the sword, and they escaped to the land of Ararat. And Esarhaddon his son succeeded him as king. 19:32-37
Isaiah sends a message back to Hezekiah. The Lord heard his prayer, and the time had come to move. God had already told Hezekiah once that the king of Assyria would die, but now God would move in a mightier way.
That night, as the Assyrians were sleeping, the angel of the Lord went out and killed 185,000 men of the Assyrian army. When they woke up in the morning, there were dead bodies all over the camp. Once again the Lord had proven who was King.
The Assyrians returned to their home land. The king had thought he was so strong and powerful, that he was perhaps even as powerful as a god. When he returned home, he was worshipping his false god. Two of his own sons snuck in and murdered him. The prophesy of Isaiah was fulfilled.
For this craft, I used a paper punch to make these praying hands. The kids will make a small book reminder of things they can pray about.
In my notes I had the Fall of Israel as the next lesson after Uzziah, but because of a snow day we had at our church I am leaving that lesson out. I will refer to it, because the fall of Israel has a real and strong impact on Judah, during the reign of Hezekiah.
Since the time of Uzziah’s reign and the call of Isaiah, Judah has had it’s share of good and evil kings. After Uzziah (the beginning time of Isaiah) Jotham rules over Judah for 16 short years. Jotham was a good king, but didn’t rid the people of idols. Jotham was followed by his son, Ahaz who was evil. Ahaz was attacked by three nations, Aram, Israel, and Edom. Aha sent a tribute to the king of Assyria for help. He turned his heart to worship the god of Assyria and eventually even closed the temple. After the death of Ahaz, his son Hezekiah begins to rule in judah, and he is nothing like his father. Hezekiah begins to rule Judah during Hoshea’s rule in Israel. Hoshea is the last king of Israel before they are attacked and defeated, carried away from their homes by the kingdom of Assyria.
Hezekiah was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-nine years. His mother’s name was Abijah daughter of Zechariah.He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father David had done.
In the first month of the first year of his reign, he opened the doors of the temple of the Lord and repaired them.He brought in the priests and the Levites, assembled them in the square on the east sideand said: “Listen to me, Levites! Consecrate yourselves now and consecrate the temple of the Lord, the God of your ancestors. Remove all defilement from the sanctuary.Our parents were unfaithful; they did evil in the eyes of the Lord our God and forsook him. They turned their faces away from the Lord’s dwelling place and turned their backs on him.They also shut the doors of the portico and put out the lamps. They did not burn incense or present any burnt offerings at the sanctuary to the God of Israel. Therefore, the anger of the Lord has fallen on Judah and Jerusalem; he has made them an object of dread and horror and scorn, as you can see with your own eyes.This is why our fathers have fallen by the sword and why our sons and daughters and our wives are in captivity.Now I intend to make a covenant with the Lord, the God of Israel, so that his fierce anger will turn away from us.My sons, do not be negligent now, for the Lord has chosen you to stand before him and serve him, to minister before him and to burn incense.” 2 Chronicles 29:1-11
Hezekiah, as a new king, knew exactly what he needed to do for his kingdom. He had seen the turn of Judah during his lifetime. He was 9 years old when his father became king of Judah. He saw the temple of the Lord closed. He saw how his father led the people away from worship of the Lord to worship the god of Assyria. Perhaps he didn’t understand it all, but as new king, the very first thing he did was to end it.
The very first month of his very first year, Hezekiah reopened the temple that his father had closed. He declared the unfaithfulness of the people to the Lord, and commissioned the religious leaders, the priest and levites, to purify themselves and make it all right.
When they had assembled their fellow Levites and consecrated themselves, they went in to purify the temple of the Lord, as the king had ordered, following the word of the Lord.The priests went into the sanctuary of the Lord to purify it. They brought out to the courtyard of the Lord’s temple everything unclean that they found in the temple of the Lord. The Levites took it and carried it out to the Kidron Valley.They began the consecration on the first day of the first month, and by the eighth day of the month they reached the portico of the Lord. For eight more days they consecrated the temple of the Lord itself, finishing on the sixteenth day of the first month.
Then they went in to King Hezekiah and reported: “We have purified the entire temple of the Lord, the altar of burnt offering with all its utensils, and the table for setting out the consecrated bread, with all its articles.We have prepared and consecrated all the articles that King Ahaz removed in his unfaithfulness while he was king. They are now in front of the Lord’s altar.” 29:15-19
The religious leaders wasted no time. They consecrated and purified themselves and immediately began to clean out all the evil and vile things that were placed in the temple that didn’t belong to the worship of the Lord. After just 16 days, the had cleaned out the temple and consecrated the items used for worship.
Hezekiah gave the order to sacrifice the burnt offering on the altar. As the offering began, singing to the Lord began also, accompanied by trumpets and the instruments of David king of Israel.The whole assembly bowed in worship, while the musicians played and the trumpets sounded. All this continued until the sacrifice of the burnt offering was completed.
When the offerings were finished, the king and everyone present with him knelt down and worshiped.King Hezekiah and his officials ordered the Levites to praise the Lord with the words of David and of Asaph the seer. So they sang praises with gladness and bowed down and worshiped.
Then Hezekiah said, “You have now dedicated yourselves to the Lord. Come and bring sacrifices and thank offerings to the temple of the Lord.” So the assembly brought sacrifices and thank offerings, and all whose hearts were willingbrought burnt offerings. 29:27-31
Once the temple was prepared for proper worship, Hezekiah invited the people of Judah to return to the Lord with sacrifices. He also instructed the worship team to play music, like David had established when he was king. That day the people sacrificed and sang. They bowed before the Lord, and returned their hearts to worship only him. All of this was completed in Hezekiah’s first month.
Hezekiah sent word to all Israel and Judah and also wrote letters to Ephraim and Manasseh, inviting them to come to the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem and celebrate the Passover to the Lord, the God of Israel.The king and his officials and the whole assembly in Jerusalem decided to celebrate the Passover in the second month.They had not been able to celebrate it at the regular time because not enough priests had consecrated themselves and the people had not assembled in Jerusalem. 2 Chronicles 30:1-3
This passage doesn’t express for certain if this took place the next month, or a year following the reopening of the temple. I think it was probably directly after the reopening of the temple, because it has a sense of urgency. The Passover was normally celebrated during the first month of the Jewish calendar, but the king and his officials decided to celebrate it the second month because they weren’t ready the first month.
The Passover was one of the holy holidays that the people of Israel were to celebrate every year. Even Jesus celebrated Passover. It was the holiday used to remember how Israel was freed from Egypt. The blood of a lamb was put outside the door of anyone who believed in God. When the angel of death came and saw the blood, it would passover that house. If it came to a house without blood on the door, the oldest son of the house died that night. It is during the Passover time that Jesus died on the cross.
At the king’s command, couriers went throughout Israel and Judah with letters from the king and from his officials, which read:
“People of Israel, return to the Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, that he may return to you who are left, who have escaped from the hand of the kings of Assyria.Do not be like your parents and your fellow Israelites, who were unfaithful to the Lord, the God of their ancestors, so that he made them an object of horror, as you see.Do not be stiff-necked, as your ancestors were; submit to the Lord. Come to his sanctuary, which he has consecrated forever. Serve the Lord your God, so that his fierce anger will turn away from you.If you return to the Lord, then your fellow Israelites and your children will be shown compassion by their captors and will return to this land, for the Lord your God is gracious and compassionate. He will not turn his face from you if you return to him.” 30:6-9
Hezekiah, and his desire to bring all the people of God back to worshipping only him, invites all the people of Judah and Israel. At this point, Israel has not completely fallen, but has already seen the beginning of the end. Many of the people have been carried off to captivity, but there are some that still remain. The fall of Israel takes place 3 years after Hezekiah begins to rule Judah.
The couriers went from town to town in Ephraim and Manasseh, as far as Zebulun, but people scorned and ridiculed them.Nevertheless, some from Asher, Manasseh and Zebulun humbled themselves and went to Jerusalem. Also in Judah the hand of God was on the people to give them unity of mind to carry out what the king and his officials had ordered, following the word of the Lord. 30:10-12
A good bit of the people in Israel rejected the invite to return to the Lord, but not all the people. The ones who humbled themselves recognized the need to repent of their sin and return to the Lord. God was steering the people’s hearts back to Him. Now, because they had been unfaithful, they didn’t know all the rules and laws that God had given to Moses. They didn’t know that they had to consecrate themselves and purify the wrongs that had been committed in worship.
Although most of the many people who came from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar and Zebulun had not purified themselves, yet they ate the Passover, contrary to what was written. But Hezekiah prayed for them, saying, “May the Lord, who is good, pardon everyonewho sets their heart on seeking God—the Lord, the God of their ancestors—even if they are not clean according to the rules of the sanctuary.”And the Lord heard Hezekiah and healed the people. 30:18-20
Hezekiah prays on behalf of the people from Israel. They hadn’t followed the Lord for hundreds of years and had forgotten the rules. By praying for the people, Hezekiah intercedes for them so the anger of the Lord doesn’t burn against this wrong. The Lord honors his prayer and heals the people of their sin.
When all this had ended, the Israelites who were there went out to the towns of Judah, smashed the sacred stones and cut down the Asherah poles. They destroyed the high places and the altars throughout Judah and Benjamin and in Ephraim and Manasseh. After they had destroyed all of them, the Israelites returned to their own towns and to their own property.
Hezekiah assigned the priests and Levites to divisions—each of them according to their duties as priests or Levites—to offer burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, to minister, to give thanks and to sing praises at the gates of the Lord’s dwelling.The king contributed from his own possessions for the morning and evening burnt offerings and for the burnt offerings on the Sabbaths, at the New Moons and at the appointed festivals as written in the Law of the Lord.He ordered the people living in Jerusalem to give the portion due the priests and Levites so they could devote themselves to the Law of the Lord.As soon as the order went out, the Israelites generously gave the firstfruits of their grain, new wine, olive oil and honey and all that the fields produced. They brought a great amount, a tithe of everything. 2 Chronicles 31:1-5
At the conclusion of the Passover celebration, which lasted an extra week than normal, the people who had come from Israel returned to their homes. Once home, they destroyed the idols that they had been worshipping to return to the Lord.
The priests and levites were different that the rest of the people of Judah and Israel. They didn’t have land that was given to them by God, because the Lord was their inheritance. The food that was brought to the Lord as a sacrifice and tithe was what they priests and levites were to receive as their portion.
As the people returned to the Lord, they began to bring their tithes faithfully. The Lord blessed the people, and they responded by tithing, a huge amount was given. Hezekiah ordered storerooms to be built.
This is what Hezekiah did throughout Judah, doing what was good and right and faithful before the Lord his God.In everything that he undertook in the service of God’s temple and in obedience to the law and the commands, he sought his God and worked wholeheartedly. And so he prospered. 31:20-21
These were great times for Judah. As the people returned to the Lord, he kept his promise to provide and protect them. Even in the midst of Israel falling as a nation, the people of Judah prospered as they turned they love and dedication to the God of the universe.
For the craft I want to portray to the kids the idea of unity and the Word of God. First make small Bibles, when folded closed are about a 1/4 page size. This was just black paper cut to 1/4 page size, use a punch to round the corners, then fold in half.
Then I made a paper chain people group to show the idea of unity. You can print this paper chain. I shrunk it 40% and printed 3 copies that I glued together to make them the correct portion size. It was easier to cut out when I folded them as full people and not half people, so I used white out to get rid of the center line. I also colored in pink the part that the kids will cut off before I copied it.
It was tumultuous times of the kings. Israel to the north has Jeroboam II ruling. He seems strong and powerful, ruling for a total or 41 years. Aram is no longer as much of a threat, but Syria is rising. In just one generation, Israel will be no more. In Judah, there was a time of darkness, with rulers who were not good. The priests were trying to steer the people hearts to God, but with kings who weren’t fully devoted to God, it was an unending battle.
Then all the people of Judah took Uzziah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king in place of his father Amaziah.He was the one who rebuilt Elath and restored it to Judah after Amaziah rested with his ancestors.
Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem fifty-two years. His mother’s name was Jekoliah; she was from Jerusalem.He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father Amaziah had done.He sought God during the days of Zechariah, who instructed him in the fear of God. As long as he sought the Lord, God gave him success. 2 Chron. 26:1-5
Amaziah was a good king, but in the end of his rule, his heart turned from the Lord to idols. He was killed by assassins, and the people of Israel crowned his young 16 year old son as the new king of Judah. Zechariah was the priest of the time, and helped Uzziah to serve the Lord faithfully. Interestingly, verse 5 ends with a predictive warning to the life of Uzziah, and really to us today. “As long as he sought the Lord, God gave him success.”
The chapter then continues by explaining the different areas that Uzziah was successful.
He went to war against the Philistines and broke down the walls of Gath, Jabneh and Ashdod. He then rebuilt towns near Ashdod and elsewhere among the Philistines.God helped him against the Philistines and against the Arabs who lived in Gur Baal and against the Meunites.The Ammonites brought tribute to Uzziah, and his fame spread as far as the border of Egypt, because he had become very powerful. 26:6-8
Uzziah was successful in battle and returning Judah back against the enemies that surrounded, especially the Philistines and Ammonites.
Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem at the Corner Gate, at the Valley Gate and at the angle of the wall, and he fortified them.He also built towers in the wilderness and dug many cisterns, because he had much livestock in the foothills and in the plain. He had people working his fields and vineyards in the hills and in the fertile lands, for he loved the soil. 26:9-10
Uzziah was also successful in wealth and rebuilding of his capital. Jerusalem was a symbol of his power as king. Not only did he restore the land and building, but was able to fortify his city in order to protect it from any rising powers.
Uzziah had a well-trained army, ready to go out by divisions according to their numbers as mustered by Jeiel the secretary and Maaseiah the officer under the direction of Hananiah, one of the royal officials.The total number of family leaders over the fighting men was 2,600.Under their command was an army of 307,500 men trained for war, a powerful force to support the king against his enemies.Uzziah provided shields, spears, helmets, coats of armor, bows and slingstones for the entire army.In Jerusalem he made devices invented for use on the towers and on the corner defenses so that soldiers could shoot arrows and hurl large stones from the walls. His fame spread far and wide, for he was greatly helped until he became powerful. 26:11-15
Uzziah was successful in creating a very strong army and weaponry. His army became very skilled in battle, but also there was wealth to the nation, because he was able to provide strong weapons. Not only that, but he also had advanced weapons that could be used to protect the city, newly invented. With trained archers and catapults to defend Jerusalem, fear was removed from the people.
But after Uzziah became powerful, his pride led to his downfall. He was unfaithful to the Lord his God, 26:16a
The readers are brought back to verse 5. Uzziah had known great success, in power, wealth, and might, but he let his pride get ahead of him. He forgot the key to his success. It was Uzziah who had become great. It wasn’t even because of Zechariah or other religious leaders. (most likely by this time, Zachariah had passed away.) Uzziah was successful because of God. When he turned his eyes from the Lord and began to admire himself, he stopped being faithful to the Lord.
(he) entered the temple of the Lord to burn incenseon the altar of incense.Azariah the priest with eighty other courageous priests of the Lord followed him in.They confronted King Uzziah and said, “It is not right for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the Lord. That is for the priests, the descendants of Aaron, who have been consecrated to burn incense. Leave the sanctuary, for you have been unfaithful; and you will not be honored by the Lord God.”
Uzziah, who had a censer in his hand ready to burn incense, became angry. While he was raging at the priests in their presence before the incense altar in the Lord’s temple, leprosy broke out on his forehead.When Azariah the chief priest and all the other priests looked at him, they saw that he had leprosy on his forehead, so they hurried him out. Indeed, he himself was eager to leave, because the Lord had afflicted him.
King Uzziah had leprosy until the day he died. He lived in a separate house—leprous, and banned from the temple of the Lord. Jotham his son had charge of the palace and governed the people of the land. 26:16-21
Huzzah thought he was so good that he could be the priest of the land. He broke the commands of the Lord and tried to carry in the incense into the holy place of the Lord. Azariah, who was most likely the high priest and 80 other priest, bravely approached the king to confront him. He was being unfaithful to the Lord’s command.
Pride is powerful, but there are different kinds of pride. You can be proud of something you’ve done (or someone else) because it was hard to do, but you fought through it to complete with excellence. It’s good to be proud of noble characteristic traits, like kindness or self- sacrificing. Pride become a problem when you begin to think better of yourself, especially more than other people or God. When a person refuses to tell someone sorry for a wrong they did, they are acting in a prideful way. This was Uzziah’s problem. He was so proud of the good things that happened in the kingdom under his careful rule that he began to think those were results from himself and not the God he served.
When Uzzziah tried to fight them for the power, he was quickly reminded of who was the true Ruler, the Lord. Uzziah broke out in leprosy on his face. This would have immediately caused him to be unclean. The priest rushed him our of the temple, even Uzziah willingly went with him. For the remaining time as king, Uzziah spent alone in a separate part of the palace, until his death.
It is at his death that we are introduced to Isaiah.
In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple.Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying.And they were calling to one another:
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.”
At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke. Isaiah 6:1-4
Isaiah was serving in the temple. This was a hard time. Uzziah, who had brought power and stability to Judah as king had just died. However, he died in seclusion because of his pride and leprosy that he was cursed with.
Isaiah is in the temple and he sees not a man on a throne, but the Lord Almighty. His robe of majesty is so great, that it flowed down from his throne and filled the entire space of the temple. All around him were angels, but don’t think of cute baby cherubim. These angels had 6 wings, two wings protected their faces from seeing the glory of God, two covered their feet, and two wings were used to fly.
The angels were calling our back and forth to each other. When ever a word is repeated in the ancient text, it’s not meant as meaningless repetition, but to emphasize the word. It’s like when I describe something I ate that I liked, saying, “It was really really good.”
The word “holy” is also a great church word. It’s a word you hear frequently, but most of the time you don’t really know what it means. Who is this holy God. How does that describe who God is?
Holy literally means “set apart.” So if you are talking about a holy day, it’s a day unlike other days. You keep it clear so that you can focus on worshipping God or serving him. Sometimes we think holy means perfect, and I think it’s because we use holy to describe God as something separate from us, which is perfect, but that’s not really the whole of it. God is Holy because he is perfect, but also because he is the creator, all powerful, all knowing, ever present, all forgiving, and all loving, just to name a few. He is nothing like what we are because he is completely those things, and so he is holy because he is so different.
“Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.”
Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar.With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.” 6:5-7
Because he is Holy and separate from us, we could never be in his presence without death. When Isaiah sees this holy God in the temple, he is terrified. He is fully aware of his sin that separates him from the holy God, and is certain that he will be killed. It’s not that Isaiah was a bad person. He was a priest and served the Lord, but compared to the holiness of God, Isaiah knew he was full of sin. Then something unusual happened.
One of the angels flew over to the place that the sacrifice was burning and picked up a coal from the fire, using tongs. He flew back over to Isaiah and touched him on the mouth. Amazingly it didn’t burn his lips, but Isaiah is told, when the coal touches his mouth that he is now clean. His sins were paid for.
Not thinking about the burning sensation of the lips, lets contemplate what just happened. So if I take my clean hands and touch something really gross of dirty, what will happen to my hands? They will become dirty. It’s not that way when it comes to the holiness of God. God is perfect, he could never be sinful, so when the angel takes from the holy sacrifice to touch Isaiah sinful lips, it doesn’t make the coal unclean, but the opposite. Isaiah is made clean by the sacrifice.
This is exactly what Jesus did for us. Jesus, when he died on the cross took on our guilt of sin and the punishment and judgment of God. But because of Jesus’ holiness it was completely forgiven, and now I am holy when I trust in him for salvation.
Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?”
And I said, “Here am I. Send me!” 6:8
After Isaiah is made clean, the king of kings calls out. There is a message to be shared, but who can share this holy message? Who will go as the spokes person for the Lord.
Isaiah now a changed man, whose lips are cleansed and can share the words of the Lord boldly replies, “send me.”
The craft for this week is pretty simple and straight forward. Print out the colorful hand picture. Have the kids write a word from the end of Isaiah 6:8 on each hand.
To give a little background for the account of Jonah, read through 2 Kings 8-14. There is a lot of drama in the passing of the crown in Israel, Judah, and Aram. Finally, the word given to Elijah when he ran from Jezebel is completely fulfilled. (the end of Ahab’s family rule, death of Jezebel, Jehu’s judgement, and the death of Ben-Hadad by Hazael. 1 Kings 19) In Judah, after Jehoshaphat, his son Jehoram ruled, followed by Ahaziah. Joram, Ahab’s son was ruling in Israel. Elisha anointed Jehu, other son of Jehoshaphat, as king of Israel. He killed Joram and Ahaziah, and was responsible in part to the death of Jezebel. After Ahaziah is killed, his mom, Queen Athaliah tries to rule in Judah. She commands all the descendants be killed, but Jehoram’s sister hides her nephew, Joash. Eventually, a priest who faithfully served Jehoshaphat helps lead a rebellion that overthrows the Queen, and Joash is made king of Judah. After Joash rules, his son Amaziah, and his son Uzziah becomes king. In Israel, Jehu’s son Jehoahaz becomes king, then Jehoash. During Jehoash, Elisha dies of old age, and after Jehoash evil Jeroboam II rules in Israel. In Aram, Ben-Hadad is killed by Hazael. Hazael is very successful in taking land from Israel. Hazel’s son reigns after him. (Ben-Hadad II)
The life of Jonah takes place during the reign of Jeroboam II, king of Israel. Jeroboam II was evil, in that he led the people to continue to worship the golden calves. No longer was Baal worship as prevalent, now that the entire Jezebel family had been removed. What is interesting about Jonah is that although he is a prophet, he isn’t a good prophet. In 2 Kings 14 he prophesies that Israel will regain some territories (Lebo-hamath and near the Dead Sea). In Amos 6:13-14 though Amos chastises the people for claiming that victory as their own and not from God. Although Jonah promised safety, Amos tells the people that they will fall and be oppressed. The paints a little better picture that Jonah is not actually a great prophet, but God still choose him to be the voice to go to the rising power of Assyria.
Check out this video for a great overview of Jonah.
The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai:“Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.” Jonah 1:1-2
Jonah is serving as a prophet to the king of Israel, Jeroboam II. He is told by the Lord to go to Nineveh and preach against the people living there. Nineveh is the capital city of the kingdom of Assyria. It is a wicked and evil nation, but one that was very powerful and growing stronger. Nineveh is located in modern day Iraq, which is located north and east of Israel.
But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord.
Then the Lord sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up.All the sailors were afraid and each cried out to his own god. And they threw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship.
But Jonah had gone below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep.The captain went to him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call on your god! Maybe he will take notice of us so that we will not perish.”
Then the sailors said to each other, “Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity.” They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah.So they asked him, “Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What kind of work do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?” 1:3-8
Tarshish is a city north and west of Israel. Jonah went the opposite direction of where he was told to go. He boarded a ship with the sole purpose of fleeing his mission. It is ironic that Jonah, who knows God is Lord of the sea, would think he could escape the might of the Lord on the ocean.
A terrible storm blows up. The sailors are terrified that all will be lost, that the ship will be ripped apart. The sailors all pray to their various gods that they worship, but there is no reply. They begin to try to save themselves by throwing their cargo into the sea.
Down below the deck, Jonah was hard asleep. He wasn’t even aware of the danger they everyone was in. the sailors wake him up in a panic. They plead with him to join them in the effort to save themselves. In desperation, they cast lots and discover that Jonah is the very reason the sea is about to destroy them.
He answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.”
This terrified them and they asked, “What have you done?” (They knew he was running away from the Lord, because he had already told them so.)
The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, “What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?”
“Pick me up and throw me into the sea,” he replied, “and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you.”
Instead, the men did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder than before.Then they cried out to the Lord, “Please, Lord, do not let us die for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man, for you, Lord, have done as you pleased.”Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm.At this the men greatly feared the Lord, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows to him. 1:9-16
Jonah tells them about himself and the God he serves. His God is unlike another. The Lord is God of the land and the sea, but that Jonah is trying to escape God. The men plea with him, how can they be saved? Jonah tells them to throw himself into the sea. This isn’t a heroic act to save the people, but just another way that Jonah is fleeing from the Lord. The men try to save his life, but finally agree to throw him into the ocean. The sailors see how the storm mediately passed, and they now believed and worshipped in the Lord.
Now the Lord provided a huge fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. 1:17
The Lord provided this huge fish to protect Jonah. The fish swallows Jonah, where he remained for 3 days and nights. Jesus refers to this account of Jonah, just before his own death. It is a picture of Jesus own death on the cross and resurrection after 3 days in the tomb. (Matthew 12:38-42)
Chapter 2 of Jonah is a poetic prayer that he wrote to record the account after he hit the ocean water. Some conclude that based on the wording, Jonah actually did drown in the water, so in a even more real way this is an image to point to the coming Messiah. The chapter concludes, returning the reader back to the story.
And the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land. 2:10
Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time:“Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you.”
Jonah obeyed the word of the Lord and went to Nineveh. Now Nineveh was a very large city; it took three days to go through it.Jonah began by going a day’s journey into the city, proclaiming, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.”The Ninevites believed God. A fast was proclaimed, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth. 3:1-5
The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time. He is to proclaim the message from the Lord. Nineveh was a massive city. It took three days, just to walk through it. As Jonah begins his message on day one, he repeats the same 5 hebrew words. He gives the time- forty days, the who- people of Nineveh, and the what- be overthrown.
As the message was heard, the evil people reacted in an unexpected way. or maybe, Jonah knew they would repent. The Ninevites believed in God. They trend they hearts. They began to mourn overhear behavior, fasting and lamenting.
When Jonah’s warning reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust.This is the proclamation he issued in Nineveh:
“By the decree of the king and his nobles:
Do not let people or animals, herds or flocks, taste anything; do not let them eat or drink.But let people and animals be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call urgently on God. Let them give up their evil ways and their violence.Who knows? God may yet relent and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish.”
When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened. 3:6-10
As the message spread, it worked it’s way all the way to the throne of the king. The king even removed his robes and put on mourning clothes. He commanded the cattle and all the people to repent. This wasn’t the message that Jonah said. He didn’t tell the people to repent or they would be destroyed. He told them that in 40 day the kingdom would be overturned, and that is exactly what happened. It was turned from a place of evil to a place of mourning for the wrongs. It turned from a self-made kingdom to a God-fearing kingdom. When God saw how their hearts turned, be didn’t destroy them.
But to Jonah this seemed very wrong, and he became angry.He prayed to the Lord, “Isn’t this what I said, Lord, when I was still at home? That is what I tried to forestall by fleeing to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity.Now, Lord, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live.”
But the Lord replied, “Is it right for you to be angry?” 4:1-4
Jonah had himself a temper tantrum. He was angry at God, and didn’t even try to hide his feelings. Full of self-righteous indignation, he blows his head, “Didn’t I tell you this is what would happen?! I didn’t want to come because I knew you are gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in love (all amazing qualities that makes God so wonderful).
Jonah wanted the Assyrians to die. He hated them. Probably not just because they were evil and did evil things, after all the people of Israel were not much better. He wanted God to destroy them for his own good. He didn’t care about the people, but maybe even especially because they weren’t Israel, God’s chosen. Maybe he even feared that they would conquer the people of Israel.
Jonah insisted for God to kill him. He would rather die than see mercy. Jonah’s life was spared, but he didn’t want the same thing for the people of Nineveh.
Is it right for you to be angry, the Lord asked. Jonah didn’t reply.
Jonah had gone out and sat down at a place east of the city. There he made himself a shelter, sat in its shade and waited to see what would happen to the city. Then the Lord God provided a leafy plant and made it grow up over Jonah to give shade for his head to ease his discomfort, and Jonah was very happy about the plant.But at dawn the next day God provided a worm, which chewed the plant so that it withered.When the sun rose, God provided a scorching east wind, and the sun blazed on Jonah’s head so that he grew faint. He wanted to die,and said, “It would be better for me to die than to live.”
But God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about the plant?” 4:5-9
Instead Jonah goes outside the city to watch and see what will happen. He builds himself a shelter from the sun. While he is sitting and resting, God causes a vine to grow around his shelter. Jonah was pleased with this little gift. The next day though, the plant was dead from a worm, when the sun rose and grew hot, Jonah was uncomfortable. He tells God again, “it would be better for me to be dead.”
So God asks Jonah, is it right for you to be upset about the plant dying, to the point that you despair life itself? Isn’t that a bit dramatic?!
“It is,” he said. “And I’m so angry I wish I were dead.”
But the Lord said, “You have been concerned about this plant, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight.And should I not have concern for the great city of Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left—and also many animals?” 4:9-11
Jonah was feeling quite self-righteous. Yes! In fact, he was not only right in being angry, but he had the right to despair his life, it was that bad.
That wasn’t Jonah’s plant. He didn’t have the seed, or had not carefully tended to the plant. At no point had he invested time. The plant sprang up on it’s own and died on it’s own. Jonah valued this plant more than he valued the human life in the city of Nineveh. 20,000 people and more animals were saved, and Jonah valued his comfort over their souls.
For the craft, you need a spring clothes pin, tape, double sided tape, scissors, and copies of the mini Jonah.
I drew a two piece whale and copied onto paper to that it fit 1/4 size of 8.5×11″. Kids will cut out the whale pieces and one Jonah. I don’t have this as a file, because I drew it by hand.
Tape the bottom of the whale mouth to the bottom part of the clothes pin using double sided tape. Tape Jonah so that he is on the inside of the mouth on the bottom.
Notice how Jonah is taped to the bottom of the whale piece.
Using double sided tape, secure the top half of the whale to the clothes pin. When you pinch the clothes pin, it should open the mouth of the whale to reveal Jonah inside.
Don’t tape Jonah to the top of the whale pieces, just the bottom
All scripture is in bold print and is used from the NLT.
Ascend: Bible Adventures 