Free Daily Bible Study Podcast

2 Kings 16 | Titus 2 | Hosea 9 | Psalms 126, 127 & 128

Although Judah has experienced wicked kings before this point, King Ahaz leads the southern nation of Judah into unprecedented evil. Ahaz’s father, Jotham, was a godly king who did what was right in the eyes of Yahweh (apart from leaving the high places in Judah; 2 Kgs. 15:34–35), but Ahaz pushes the nation to a new level of wickedness.

First, King Ahaz goes beyond the wickedness of the previous kings of Israel and Judah to the point of sacrificing his own son “according to the despicable practices of the nations whom the LORD drove out before the people of Israel” (2 Kgs. 16:3). Now, while Abraham had also attempted to offer his son Isaac as a sacrifice (Gen. 22), it is important to recognize that the two acts were fundamentally different. Abraham nearly sacrificed Isaac out of obedience to Yahweh, stopping when an angel commanded him to stop. Ahaz, on the other hand, willfully sacrificed his son in direct disobedience to the law of Yahweh (Deut. 18:10), following instead the vile practices of the surrounding nations.

Second, Ahaz systematically corrupts, pollutes, and disassembles Yahweh’s temple. So, when the kings of Syria and of Israel join forces to come up against Jerusalem (2 Kgs. 16:5), Ahaz seeks out an alliance with Assyria, offering silver and gold stolen from the temple (2 Kgs. 16:8–9). Then, when Ahaz visits the Syrian capital of Damascus to meet Tiglath-pileser, the king of Assyria, Ahaz replaces the bronze altar Yahweh had given his people with an altar that the Syrians used in their worship (2 Kgs. 16:11–14). Finally, Ahaz continues his defiling of the temple by removing frames from the basin and by replacing the bronze oxen on which the sea sat with a stone pedestal, as well as changing the external entrance into the temple “because of the king of Assyria” (2 Kgs. 16:17–18)—that is, either as a part of paying off the king of Assyria to fight against the Syrians, or worse, to allow the king of Assyria to use the temple of Yahweh for his own purposes.

There is a fascinating inverse story to Ahaz’s, however, contained in the New Testament. There, Yahweh hands the temple of his own Son’s body over to be defiled and destroyed at the hands of wicked men, and he does so while offering up that Son as a once-for-all sacrifice for his people. The difference between Ahaz and Yahweh, then, comes in the way that Ahaz sought spiritual power by embracing the culture of death and idolatry of the surrounding nations, while Jesus Christ came to enter fully into death not because he loved it but because he hated it and came to destroy it forever. Therefore, choose the life that is in Christ, “that you and your offspring may live” (Deut. 30:19).

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

2 Kings 15 | Titus 1 | Hosea 8 | Psalms 123, 124 & 125

One of the fascinating aspects of the stories of the kings of Israel and Judah is the way that Yahweh continues to bless his people despite their sinfulness—even as their sinfulness brings about an increasing number of curses. The stories repeatedly emphasize Yahweh’s goodness toward his people, though they violate his covenant again and again. In contrast, the modern tendency is to feel entitled to the blessings God gives us, while simultaneously demanding that God justify why he would allow bad things to happen at all. So, C. S. Lewis wrote, “The ancient man approached God (or even the gods) as the accused person approaches his judge. For the modern man, the roles are quite reversed. He is the judge: God is in the dock. He is quite a kindly judge; if God should have a reasonable defense for being the god who permits war, poverty, and disease, he is ready to listen to it. The trial may even end in God’s acquittal. But the important thing is that man is on the bench and God is in the dock.”1 Two of the stories in 2 Kings 15 illustrate this tension well.

First, we read that Azariah, king of Judah, does what is “right in the eyes of the LORD, according to all that his father Amaziah had done” (2 Kgs. 15:3) but that the high places still have not been taken away (2 Kgs. 15:4). Nevertheless, we read that Yahweh touches Azariah with leprosy until the day of his death (2 Kgs. 15:5). So, is it fair for Yahweh to give leprosy to a reasonably godly king?

Second, we read about Menahem, king of Israel, who does evil in the sight of Yahweh (2 Kgs. 15:18). During Menahem’s reign, Pul, the king of Assyria, comes up against Israel, but Menahem is able to keep Pul from destroying Israel altogether by giving the Assyrian king a thousand talents of silver (2 Kgs. 15:20). So, is Yahweh still good if he allows Israel’s enemies to extort them this way?

In the case of Judah, Yahweh does give leprosy to Azariah, but shouldn’t we also notice that he keeps Assyria from coming against Judah at all? And in the case of Menahem, shouldn’t Israel give thanks for the fact that Assyria does not destroy Israel entirely and that Yahweh has given them yet another opportunity to repent?

Often, we have a tendency to notice the bad things Yahweh permits but to forget the kindnesses he shows to us. Is it possible, though, that even in the midst of terrible things, Yahweh might be preventing us from experiencing something worse? Or, might he be bringing us through something painful so that we gain an intimacy with him that we might not otherwise know? In the midst of your pain, how might you recognize God’s fatherly kindness to you in Christ Jesus?

1 C. S. Lewis, God in the Dock (Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1970), 244.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

2 Kings 14 | 2 Timothy 4 | Hosea 7 | Psalms 120, 121 & 122

In 2 Kings 14, we read a strange role reversal between the two kingdoms, Judah and Israel. In this chapter, we find Judah with a relatively godly king, Amaziah, who does right in the eyes of Yahweh, even though he permits the high places—that is, hills where the people of Judah would offer unauthorized sacrifices—to remain (2 Kgs. 14:3–4). On the other hand, we have Joash (also called Jehoash; 2 Kgs. 14:1, 8), the king of Israel, who does evil in the sight of Yahweh and who does not depart from the sins of Jeroboam (2 Kgs. 13:11).1 Yet, when the two go into battle, the godly King Amaziah of Judah loses, and the wicked King Joash of Israel captures Amaziah and ransacks the temple in Jerusalem (2 Kgs. 14:13–14). Shouldn’t the righteous always win out over the wicked?

In fact, the story is a bit more complicated than a simple battle of good versus evil. First, as mentioned earlier, Amaziah does not do all that he could in obedience to Yahweh. In fact, the biblical author specifically delineates that Amaziah is “not like David his father” (2 Kgs. 14:3). In part, this refers to leaving the high places to remain, but the phrase also suggests that Amaziah simply is not a man after Yahweh’s heart as David had been.

Furthermore, the manner in which Amaziah goes into battle against Joash sounds like prideful, puffed up bravado after a big victory over the nation of Edom and not like a godly pursuit of the kingdom of God. In 2 Kings 14:8, Amaziah challenges Joash, saying, “Come, let us look one another in the face,” and, while Joash tries to warn Amaziah off, his message seems only to provoke Amaziah further.

We should learn from this that godly kings—and godly people—can make foolish, catastrophic mistakes when they are inflamed with pride. Also, we should notice that Amaziah did not follow Yahweh fully but instead he cut corners along the way. It is possible—although the text stops short of telling us—that Amaziah might not have sinned by provoking war with Israel if he had walked more closely with Yahweh. Certainly, even David stumbled to make terrible mistakes occasionally, but David also avoided many of the terrible mistakes of Saul and of Solomon because of his persistent love for Yahweh all the days of his life.

As we grow older, when some of our youthful temptations begin to fade away, our pride can stiffen. In all things, let us strive to follow closely after Jesus, fighting with faith the kind of pride that can lead our hearts into awful, foolish decisions. Pray that God would give you the grace to persevere all the days of your life that you may finish the race well.

1 For the sake of clarity, it should be noted that there is also a Joash/Jehoash who is the king of Judah, referenced in 2 Kings 11–12.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

2 Kings 13 | 2 Timothy 3 | Hosea 5–6 | Psalm 119:145–176

The death of Elisha is a tragedy in Israel. After this point, we do not read of another prophet whom Yahweh sends to the northern ten tribes, and very shortly, the entire nation of Israel will fall to the Assyrians in 2 Kings 17. The end of Elisha’s life, then, signals the demise of Israel as their last prophet departs from the scene, but it also underscores the enduring, unshakable hope that God’s people have in Christ.

When Joash, king of Israel, visits Elisha at the prophet’s deathbed, he cries out, “My father, my father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” (2 Kgs. 13:14), the same words Elisha spoke when he saw Elijah taken up into heaven in 2 Kings 2:12. In both cases, the expression mourns the loss of a great man in Israel whose loss is as terrible as the loss of all of Israel’s military defenses.

And in fact, Elisha goes on to prophesy specifically that Israel’s military will never gain lasting domination again. Elisha instructs Joash to shoot an arrow out of the window, and then he announces that the arrow symbolizes the victory that Yahweh will give to Joash over the nation of Syria (2 Kgs. 13:17). But, when Joash only strikes the ground three times and then stops, Elisha prophesies that Yahweh would only give him three victories over Syria; however, Israel would not put away Syria forever.

Then, when Elisha dies and is buried, some marauding Moabites throw the dead body of one of their own into the grave along with Elisha, but when the man’s body touches the bones of Elisha, the man rises up from the dead (2 Kgs. 13:21). There is one other time in the Bible that the dead rise up at the death of another, and that is when Jesus himself dies, according to Matthew 27:52.

The story of Elisha’s death anticipates the rest of Israel’s story in two ways. First, this story subtly emphasizes the fact that Yahweh’s people have completely rejected their prophets. Even when the prophets foretell military victories, the faith of Israel is so weak as to fail to lay hold of their victory to the degree that they should, leading directly to Israel’s looming exile.

And second, the rising of the dead points forward to the resurrection power of another prophet whom Yahweh would send. This prophet also will be opposed by the leaders of the day (as Elisha was), but he will nevertheless raise not only himself from the dead, and not only a few others at his death, but he will also raise up from the dead all those who look to him in faith—including Gentiles like the Moabite whom Elisha raised up.

Do not lay hold of Jesus with the half-hearted faith of Joash but rather as your only defense in life and in death.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

2 Kings 11–12 | 2 Timothy 2 | Hosea 3–4 | Psalm 119:121–144

In 2 Samuel 7, Yahweh made a covenant with David, promising that David would never lack a man from his own body to sit on the throne of Israel. But, as we continue through the stories of the kings of Israel and Judah, one major question arises again and again: Will Yahweh continue to honor his promise to David, despite the fact that David’s descendants do not obey Yahweh as David did? In fact, we find Yahweh’s promise severely tested at multiple points—including during the usurped reign of Queen Athaliah in today’s reading from 2 Kings 11.

Athaliah is the mother of King Ahaziah of Judah (2 Kgs. 11:1). When Jehu kills both King Ahaziah and King Joram of Israel, he begins to reign over the ten tribes of Israel (2 Kgs. 9–10), but not the two tribes of Judah. Athaliah, then, murders the entire royal family of Ahaziah (2 Kgs. 11:1) because she recognizes an opportunity to secure the throne of Judah for herself by destroying all the remaining men of the house of Ahaziah—with one major exception. Athaliah fails to murder Ahaziah’s infant son Joash, who is rescued and hidden away by his aunt Jehosheba, and this last, remaining heir to Ahaziah’s throne is the loose end that becomes Athaliah’s undoing. On Joash’s seventh birthday, after Jehosheba hides him for six years (2 Kgs. 11:3), Jehoiada the priest calls together a guard of priests (2 Kgs. 11:4–8). Together, these priests anoint Joash as king in Jerusalem (2 Kgs. 11:12) and then put Athaliah to death (2 Kgs. 11:16). Joash (also called Jehoash; e.g., 2 Kgs. 11:21) eventually becomes a godly king who invests significantly in repairs for the temple (2 Kgs. 12:4–16).

Through this, Yahweh preserves the house of David from Athaliah’s bloodthirsty, power-grabbing purge of Ahaziah’s sons—her own grandchildren. We have already seen a couple of points in which Yahweh promises to preserve the house of David despite the sin of David’s descendants (1 Kgs. 15:4; 2 Kgs. 8:19), and this theme will run all the way to the very end of 2 Kings. There, in the final words of this book, after Judah has been dragged off into captivity by the Babylonians, we see Jehoiachin—who was a wicked king (2 Kgs. 24:9)—released from prison and provided for by the Babylonian king. Despite the wickedness of David’s descendants such as Ahaziah, Jehoiachin, and so many others, Yahweh nevertheless preserves the house of David, according to his word.

And this Yahweh does to preserve the line not only extending from David but also toward Jesus. For the sake of Yahweh’s servant David, and for the sake of raising up Yahweh’s own son in the line of David, Yahweh defends that lineage from even the most brutal attacks on it.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

2 Kings 10 | 2 Timothy 1 | Hosea 2 | Psalm 119:97–120

In yesterday’s meditation, we began discussing the way the biblical authors use repetition to lace their narratives with rich, complex meaning. In 2 Kings 10, the biblical author uses yet more repetition to evaluate the reign of Jehu.

To begin, Jehu stages an event for all the worshipers, prophets, and priests of Baal that recalls the showdown of the gods on Mount Carmel in 1 Kings 18. There, Elijah had also summoned all the priests of Baal and Asherah into a single place and also, in the sight of Ahab, had slaughtered them all (1 Kgs. 18:40). Here in 2 Kings 10, Jehu not only destroys the whole household of Ahab, but he also destroys the remaining priesthood of Baal that Ahab had introduced into Israel (1 Kgs. 16:31), and Yahweh commends Jehu for this (2 Kgs. 10:30). As far as these comparisons go, we are meant to see Jehu as a figure who does right in the eyes of Yahweh by opposing the house of Ahab, just as Elijah had done.

But if we notice that this chapter features other repeated stories as well, we will see that Jehu is more than merely anti-Ahab—rather, he follows tragically in the footsteps of Gideon (the judge of Israel) and of Gideon’s son Abimelech. Gideon had done many good things for Yahweh, only to apostatize at the end of his life. Where Gideon had set up an ephod that all Israel worshiped (Judg. 8:27), Jehu here re-establishes the golden calf worship of Jeroboam (2 Kgs. 10:29). Then, where Gideon’s son Abimelech killed the seventy other sons of his father (Judg. 9:5), here Jehu kills the seventy sons of Ahab (2 Kgs. 10:7). Now, Jehu executes the seventy sons of Ahab because of the word of Yahweh—not because of treachery, as with Abimelech’s murders—but the overall repetition of patterns from the stories of Gideon and Abimelech helps us to underscore a pattern from their lives that Jehu follows: we have here a leader who does some good things but turns in the wrong direction toward the end of his life.

These comparisons do not contradict the straightforward meanings of the stories, but rather they enhance and enrich them. Together, these stories demonstrate that Israel simply cannot escape the patterns of their flawed leaders and rulers, no matter whether they are led by patriarchs, judges, or kings. The same glimmers of hope are snuffed out again and again by the same besetting sins.

Ultimately, these comparisons and analogies underscore Israel’s need for a better savior—one whose good accomplishments could escape the disqualifying sins that had ensnared Israel again and again. Jesus, then, is the fulfillment of Old Testament types and shadows. Where Israel failed, Jesus succeeded, and where Israel succeeded in limited ways and for limited times, Jesus accomplished something both better and everlasting.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

2 Kings 9 | 1 Timothy 6 | Hosea 1 | Psalm 119:73–96

One of the difficulties of reading certain stories in the Bible—especially the more violent stories—comes in the way that the narratives in the Bible convey meaning and value judgments in such different ways than we might expect from, for example, a modern novel. Because the Bible was written in a different time and a different culture, we have to learn the ways that the biblical authors convey meaning rather than bringing our own prejudices to the text. Make no mistake—God condemns the evil bloodshed of wicked rulers like Ahab and Jezebel in 2 Kings 9, but there are more ways to announce such a condemnation than by simply doing it directly.

One of the chief ways the Bible conveys meaning, then, is through repetition. Sometimes, the biblical literature relies on the repetition of words to convey meaning, such as in Isaiah 6:3, where the prophet hears a voice crying out in the throne room of God, saying, “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” The Hebrew language doesn’t have superlatives like “more” or “most,” so Hebrew authors might repeat a word to increase its intensity. Repeating the word “holy” three times conveys the idea that Yahweh is unimaginably holy.

But this repetition can also happen in the stories themselves. In the course of this study, we have explored ongoing repetitions, such as the many stories of men who meet their wives at wells,1 or, as we discussed yesterday, the repeated stories involving famine, exile, wealth, and a son. We have also seen individual repetitions, such as when the story of Sodom and Gomorrah is replayed in the Benjaminite city of Gibeah,2 and then the repetition of Gibeah’s story when King Saul splits an ox into pieces to summon all Israel to join him in defense of Jabesh-gilead.3 In all of these cases, the stories build on top of one another and intermingle. Biblical scholars call this technique “comparative structures” or “narrative analogies,” where the repetition of stories in the Bible provides layered, complex meaning through comparisons, analogies, and allusions.4

This helps us to understand the repeated elements from today’s story. First, the showdown of Jehu with Joram and Ahaziah takes place at the exact location of Naboth’s vineyard, calling attention to the great sin of Ahab and Jezebel (2 Kgs. 9:21). Furthermore, both Joram and Ahaziah die in the exact same manner as did Ahab, from arrow wounds in their chariots (2 Kgs. 9:24, 27; cf. 1 Kgs. 22:34–35). In this way, the biblical stories are bringing the wickedness of Ahab full circle as Jehu executes Ahab’s descendants.

There is more to explore about this important technique of biblical interpretation, as well as its specific application in the story of Jehu. We will pick up this discussion tomorrow.

1 See the January 23rd meditation for Genesis 24.

2 See the August 5th meditation for Judges 19.

3 See the August 19th meditation for 1 Samuel 11.

4 See Peter J. Leithart, “Counterfeit Davids: Davidic Restoration and the Architecture of 1–2 Kings,” in Tyndale Bulletin 56.2 (2005): 19–33. I am indebted to Matthew Patton for helping to crystalize some of these ideas for me in his interview for Christ the Center, “Narrative Analogies among Israel’s and Judah’s Kings,” September 11, 2015, <http://reformedforum.org/ctc402/>. Accessed October 1, 2015.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

2 Kings 8 | 1 Timothy 5 | Daniel 12 | Psalm 119:49–72

The story of reclaiming the Shunammite woman’s land in 2 Kings 8 seems, at first, to be a rather strange addition to the storyline of the reigns of kings in Israel, Syria, and Judah through the rest of the chapter, but there is more to it than meets the eye. Intriguingly, what we have here in 2 Kings 8 is yet another story of Israelites who depart from the Promised Land because of a difficult situation.

We read the first story back in Genesis 12, where Abram and Sarai sinfully depart from the Promised Land during a famine, even though Yahweh had specifically instructed them to dwell in the Promised Land (Gen. 12:1). Yahweh made Abram rich in Egypt despite his disobedience (Gen. 12:16), including giving him an Egyptian female servant whom Abram named Hagar. But, through Hagar, Abram had a son named Ishmael, a perpetual source of contention for God’s people.

Then, in the book of Ruth, a family leaves Bethlehem for Moab because of another famine with neither an explicit command to stay nor to go. While they are there, most of the family dies, leaving only a widow named Naomi and her Moabite daughter-in-law, Ruth. Through Ruth, Naomi eventually gains not only wealth through her kinsman redeemer, Boaz, but also a child (Ruth 4:17). This child, however, is not excluded from God’s promises like Ishmael—rather, the child is Obed, the father of Jesse, the father of David.

And now, we see a woman who sojourns in the land of the Philistines at the explicit command of Elisha, the prophet of God, because of a famine (2 Kgs. 8:1). Again, a son and wealth are at the center of the story, as the woman regains her wealth when Gehazi points out that Elisha had raised this woman’s son from the dead (2 Kgs. 8:5–6). So, why are we given this story here, and why should the story be told in this way, to resemble the two previous stories?

First, this story reminds us that even as Israel and Judah sink deeper into sin under wicked kings like Joram, king of Israel, and Jehoram, king of Judah, God is still working in the same ways that he had worked at critical times in Israel’s history. Second, and more importantly, this story foreshadows the manner in which God’s own Son Jesus would enter the world. Jesus went down into Egypt at the command of an angel of the Lord after he had received wealth from the wise men (Matt. 2:11) in order to escape danger—not from a famine, but from King Herod, who executed all boys age three and under (Matt. 2:13–15).

Even when times seem darkest, these four stories stand together as a witness of God’s assurance to us that he will continue to provide for his people.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

2 Kings 7 | 1 Timothy 4 | Daniel 11 | Psalm 119:25–48

At the end of 2 Kings 6, we find Ben-hadad, the king of Syria, besieging Samaria and driving the city to starvation, so that women are eating their children to stay alive (2 Kgs. 6:28–29; cf. Deut. 28:52–57). Nevertheless, even in the midst of this incredibly dark situation in 2 Kings 7, we find a shining, brilliant illustration of the gospel of Jesus.

First, the story in 2 Kings 7 reinforces the biblical doctrine that the battle belongs to Yahweh (1 Sam. 17:47). Yahweh simply causes the Syrians to hear the sound of chariots, horses, and a great army. The Syrians, believing that the Israelites have hired the Hittites and Egyptians to go to war against them, flee, abandoning all their supplies in their camp to escape with their lives (2 Kgs. 7:6–7). Yahweh gives Israel victory without requiring his people to step onto the battlefield at all.

Second, the lepers, who rejoice in the feast but then return to tell the others in Samaria, provide a vivid picture of what sinful wretches like you and me gain through the gospel. After hoarding this feast to themselves for awhile, the lepers turn to one another and say, “We are not doing right. This day is a day of good news. If we are silent and wait until the morning light, punishment will overtake us. Now therefore come; let us go and tell the king’s household” (2 Kgs. 7:9). In fact, the word for “good news” in the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testament) is euangellias, the same word used in the New Testament that we translate as “gospel.”

Third, Israel’s captain warns us of the dangers of unbelief. The captain does not rejoice at the word of Elisha, who prophesies that Yahweh would provide an abundant feast: “Tomorrow about this time a seah of fine flour shall be sold for a shekel, and two seahs of barley for a shekel, at the gate of Samaria” (2 Kgs. 7:1). Instead, he despises the gospel that Elisha preaches, scoffing at Elisha’s prophecy. For his unbelief, Elisha prophesies doom to the captain: “You shall see it with your own eyes, but you shall not eat of it” (2 Kgs. 7:2).

In the same way, let us never harden our hearts against believing the good news of the gospel. When we inevitably face our own difficult situations, let us keep in mind that Yahweh is the God who can turn back whole armies with ease—and who even raised up Jesus Christ from the dead. Then, because we are nothing more than beggars who have stumbled upon unimaginable riches, let us tell all the world of what God has given us in Christ.

No matter what suffering we may be facing, rejoice, for this day is a day of gospel.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

2 Kings 6 | 1 Timothy 3 | Daniel 10 | Psalm 119:1–24

Despite the fact that Elisha healed Naaman, the commander of Syria’s army in 2 Kings 5, Syria nevertheless attempts to capture Elisha in 2 Kings 6. The reason for turning against Elisha is simple: he had prophesied military intelligence about the Syrians to Israel’s king (2 Kgs. 6:12). But when the king of Syria sends his army to capture Elisha, Yahweh protects Elisha—much in the same way that Yahweh had protected Elijah from King Ahaziah with fire from heaven in 2 Kings 1. Elisha’s servant is terrified at the sight of the Syrian army, but Elisha calms him by explaining, “Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them” (2 Kgs. 6:16). After Elisha prays, Yahweh opens the servant’s eyes so that he sees the reality: the mountains are full of horses and chariots of fire sent to protect them (2 Kgs. 6:17).

But rather than annihilating the Syrian army at once, Elisha simply prays that Yahweh would strike the Syrians with blindness (2 Kgs. 6:18), and then (humorously), Elisha leads the blinded army directly into Samaria, the capital of Israel. When the king of Israel asks whether he should strike them down (2 Kgs. 6:21), Elisha insists that the king should instead show them hospitality by sparing their lives, feeding them, and sending them on their way (2 Kgs. 6:22). It seems that this act of mercy does the trick, since we read that, ultimately, “the Syrians did not come again on raids into the land of Israel” (2 Kgs. 6:23).

This is a magnificent passage to help believers understand how to face fears in our lives. Our Lord Jesus has promised that he would be with us always, to the end of the age (Matt. 28:20), so that we may have confidence that Jesus will never leave us nor forsake us (Heb. 13:5). And if Jesus promises to remain by our side, we must also remember that Jesus is the commander of the army of Yahweh (Josh. 5:14), which means that he brings with him all the chariots of fire from heaven in our defense.

Put another way, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Rom. 8:31). No power in heaven or on earth or under the earth can stand against us if God himself is for us—and if God didn’t even spare his only Son for us, but freely handed his Son over to die in our place because of his great love for us, then how will God not graciously protect us now (Rom. 8:32)?

No matter what armies may surround you, pray that God might open the eyes of your heart to remember that “he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4).

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.