2 Kings 1:9-18 - Daily Devotion - 2 July 2026

St Barnabas Anglican Church Fairfield & Bossley Park

9 Then King Ahaziah sent to Elijah a captain with his company of fifty men. So the captain went up to Elijah, who was sitting on top of a hill, and said to him, “Man of God, the king declares, ‘Come down!’”

10 Elijah answered the captain, “If I am a man of God, may fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men.”

And fire came down from heaven and consumed the captain and his fifty men.

11 So the king sent to Elijah another captain with his fifty men. And the captain said to Elijah, “Man of God, the king declares, ‘Come down at once!’”

12 Again Elijah replied, “If I am a man of God, may fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men.”

And the fire of God came down from heaven and consumed the captain and his fifty men.

13 So the king sent a third captain with his fifty men. And the third captain went up, fell on his knees before Elijah, and begged him, “Man of God, may my life and the lives of these fifty servants please be precious in your sight. 14 Behold, fire has come down from heaven and consumed the first two captains of fifty, with all their men. But now may my life be precious in your sight.”

15 Then the angel of the LORD said to Elijah, “Go down with him. Do not be afraid of him.”

So Elijah got up and went down with him to the king.

16 And Elijah said to King Ahaziah, “This is what the LORD says: Is there really no God in Israel for you to inquire of His word? Is that why you have sent messengers to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you will not get up from the bed on which you are lying. You will surely die.”

17 So Ahaziah died according to the word of the LORD that Elijah had spoken. And since he had no son, Jehoram succeeded him in the second year of the reign of Jehoram son of Jehoshaphat over Judah.

18 As for the rest of the acts of Ahaziah, along with his accomplishments, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?

REFLECTIONS

Written by Stephen Shead

It turns out that you can’t threaten God. You can’t pressure him to change what he has said.

It would seem like a dumb thing to try, but that’s exactly what King Ahaziah did. Yesterday, Ahaziah had tried to consult the Philistine god Baal-zebub, but instead had received a word from the Lord: “You will surely die.”

I’m sure Ahaziah had used the threat of violence to get lots of people to change their tune. But not even a “standover man” with 50 thugs behind him could force God to change his will. Because God’s Word never fails. The threats didn’t change the message one bit, and they didn’t stop it from being fulfilled: “Ahaziah died according to the word of the LORD that Elijah had spoken” (v. 17).

The third captain was a beautiful contrast, wasn’t he? He discovered that God’s word holds no fear for those who humbly recognise him as God – because the lives of those who trust in God are precious in his sight (Psalm 72:14).

This passage also reminded me that it’s not just God’s word of judgment that is unstoppable. It’s also his word about Jesus – the good news that Jesus is Lord, and that God will save countless multitudes through the gospel. In the book of Acts, after all the threats and violence directed against the early Christian witnesses, we are told: “So the word of the Lord powerfully continued to spread and prevail” (Acts 19:20).

Give thanks that God’s good word about Jesus can’t be stopped, and pray that it will bring the precious gift of life forever to many – especially through our Holiday Kids Club and Winter Youth Camp this month.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Stephen is our Senior Minister.