I struggled to read this book of the Bible. I would be reading and find my mind drifting and then be overcome by sleepiness. I don’t know if that’s a health thing or the monotony of all these Kings who keep doing evil in the sight of the Lord. Despite my struggles, I did pull some meaningful morsels out of the book in the Bible.
This book tells the story of the prophet Elijah’s successor, Elisha, and the memorable name of Isaiah appears much later in the book. Elisha provides the people with a drinking spot when the rest of the land is dry, and there is no rain in the sky. Elisha performed a miracle through the Lord by filling many vessels with oil, which a widow could sell to pay off her debts and care for her family. He also raised a faithful woman’s son from the dead, even though he had no prior knowledge that the death was to occur. Elisha continues on his journeys, performing miracles and walking as the Lord would want.
And then we get into the many greedy kings. They each would reign for a time, continuing to do evil in the sight of the Lord to the point murder became a goal. Through these tumultuous times, some saw enough good to repair the Temple while collecting money and using it in ways not considered proper. Finally, King Azariah did what was right in the sight of the Lord. He began his reign at only 16. Jotham was a good king, but neither removed the high places used for worshipping other Gods.
Toward the end of this book, I saw Isaiah, a name I knew because his book is often read and used in church services. Isaiah prophesizes, letting the people know the Lord was unhappy with their behavior and continually breaking commandments. They truly didn’t listen as Manasseh took reign at twelve years old. He was genuinely evil in his deeds and sins against the people. He “shed very much innocent blood.” Then goodness appeared in the continuing saga of kings when King Josiah took reign when he was eight years old. Josiah was good and did what was right. He gathered the people to make a new promise with the Lord and a new covenant, almost rededicating their beliefs. It says there was no king before or after him who was so dedicated to God. But God couldn’t let go of his anger for all the badness that started with Judah and continued to Manasseh. As Judah has fallen by the end of this book, I believe the Lord saw punishment for those who had wronged Him.
One of the most complex parts of reading 2 Kings is the significant number of rulers over many years and different territories. I couldn’t keep them straight in my mind, which hurt my understanding. I did listen to one podcast about 2 Kings, but there wasn’t a lot of information. This being said, reading the Bible straight through without a spiritual guide or helper tools is complex; thus, I am taking it slow to try and comprehend the massive amount of history and faith I am reading. I will begin Chronicles next.
by Amanda Renz