1 00:00:00,480 --> 00:00:08,520 Second Kings 17, verse 24. The dominant theme of this 2 00:00:08,520 --> 00:00:11,480 section in Second Kings is not difficult to pinpoint. 3 00:00:13,080 --> 00:00:17,280 Even a plain reading of the rest of this text will reveal a truth 4 00:00:17,600 --> 00:00:20,680 that is not unfamiliar to us here at Maranatha Bible Church, 5 00:00:20,680 --> 00:00:22,320 something that we hear quite often. 6 00:00:23,080 --> 00:00:28,120 What you'll discover in these verses is the recurring phrase, 7 00:00:29,280 --> 00:00:34,040 the fear of the Lord. You can't miss it, it's 8 00:00:34,040 --> 00:00:37,280 everywhere. In fact, if you count the phrase 9 00:00:37,280 --> 00:00:41,040 both on the positive and the negative, meaning to fear the 10 00:00:41,040 --> 00:00:45,480 Lord or to not fear the Lord, it appears a total of eight times 11 00:00:45,480 --> 00:00:50,520 in this portion of God's word. And so upon discovering this, I 12 00:00:50,520 --> 00:00:55,720 was initially thinking to approach the study with you by 13 00:00:55,720 --> 00:00:58,960 taking all the observations that we make and relating it back to 14 00:00:59,000 --> 00:01:04,239 that theme, the what, who, when, how of fearing God. 15 00:01:05,480 --> 00:01:08,680 But we're not going to limit our study to that narrow framework. 16 00:01:09,480 --> 00:01:12,480 Instead, we're going to approach these verses with a wider lens 17 00:01:12,480 --> 00:01:15,640 while still acknowledging the unavoidable insights regarding 18 00:01:15,640 --> 00:01:20,840 this God word. Ah, but it's worth making a note 19 00:01:20,840 --> 00:01:24,440 for yourself that if you ever want to learn more about the 20 00:01:24,440 --> 00:01:27,920 fear of the Lord, or if you are teaching somebody about that 21 00:01:27,920 --> 00:01:31,520 glorious truth, this is a wonderful passage to use. 22 00:01:31,520 --> 00:01:33,600 There is great insight regarding that. 23 00:01:35,160 --> 00:01:37,800 And this tax is rich for many reasons. 24 00:01:37,800 --> 00:01:41,720 Beyond that, as we will discover now, we won't be reading a large 25 00:01:41,720 --> 00:01:45,800 portion right away. Let's just look at verse 24 and 26 00:01:45,800 --> 00:01:48,840 continue with that pace until we complete this chapter together. 27 00:01:49,680 --> 00:01:55,040 Second king 1724 and the king of Assyria brought people from 28 00:01:55,040 --> 00:02:01,880 Babylon, Katha, Ava, Hamas, and Safar Vayim and placed them in 29 00:02:01,880 --> 00:02:05,840 the cities of Samaria instead of the people of Israel, and they 30 00:02:05,840 --> 00:02:11,080 took possession of Samaria and lived in its cities. 31 00:02:12,200 --> 00:02:17,560 Hopefully you remember that the Assyrians have finally taken, 32 00:02:17,560 --> 00:02:20,920 removed, displaced the northern Kingdom of Israel. 33 00:02:21,080 --> 00:02:25,840 Does anybody remember the Last King of Israel named here in our 34 00:02:25,840 --> 00:02:29,720 study? Well, if you just look down, 35 00:02:29,720 --> 00:02:31,760 it's right there in the beginning of chapter 17, Hoshea, 36 00:02:32,680 --> 00:02:37,640 he was the Last King of this Kingdom before Syria invaded and 37 00:02:37,640 --> 00:02:41,600 removed the entire population, at least most of the population 38 00:02:41,840 --> 00:02:44,680 from their homeland. And what we discovered in this 39 00:02:44,680 --> 00:02:48,360 verse is a policy of the Assyrian Kingdom. 40 00:02:49,080 --> 00:02:51,280 And one of the things that they would do when they would 41 00:02:51,520 --> 00:02:54,520 conquest and when they would take over a place is that they 42 00:02:54,520 --> 00:02:57,200 would repopulate that vacant land. 43 00:02:57,920 --> 00:03:00,360 And so this is was this was an imperial strategy. 44 00:03:00,360 --> 00:03:04,520 It was when a dominating nation would come remove a people and 45 00:03:04,840 --> 00:03:09,680 take other subjects that they have dominated and replace those 46 00:03:09,680 --> 00:03:13,200 that have left an area desolate. And there are many advantages to 47 00:03:13,200 --> 00:03:15,120 this. One of them would be that it 48 00:03:15,120 --> 00:03:19,400 would hinder any unified attempt to cause an uprising or 49 00:03:19,400 --> 00:03:22,840 overthrow those that were conquering them. 50 00:03:23,680 --> 00:03:26,440 Besides that, you also had the exploitation of goods and and 51 00:03:26,440 --> 00:03:29,960 bringing these foreign groups this mixed people and forcing 52 00:03:29,960 --> 00:03:34,560 them to labor to extract goods for again the dominant power. 53 00:03:35,360 --> 00:03:38,120 And we can imagine how much psychological warfare is 54 00:03:38,120 --> 00:03:40,040 included in this. But the one thing that we're 55 00:03:40,040 --> 00:03:45,800 supposed to be gripped by is the fact that this land, this Holy 56 00:03:45,800 --> 00:03:51,280 Land, the Bible calls it, this promised land, is now desolate. 57 00:03:52,120 --> 00:03:55,560 I mean, you got to imagine this now, the very same land that was 58 00:03:55,560 --> 00:04:00,040 promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the very same country 59 00:04:00,200 --> 00:04:03,400 that God help Joshua and a particular generation of 60 00:04:03,400 --> 00:04:06,800 Israelites conquer, is now empty. 61 00:04:08,360 --> 00:04:10,920 This is staggering. This is almost surreal. 62 00:04:10,920 --> 00:04:14,320 It's so difficult to imagine. But it happened. 63 00:04:15,400 --> 00:04:19,760 And sadly, some erroneously believe and reference this 64 00:04:19,760 --> 00:04:23,640 imperative moment in Israel's history to make wild claim about 65 00:04:23,640 --> 00:04:26,880 the Israelites. So what do you mean? 66 00:04:26,880 --> 00:04:30,360 Well, there are some who would claim that since the Assyrian 67 00:04:30,360 --> 00:04:37,040 exile, 10 out of the 12 tribes virtually disappeared into 68 00:04:37,040 --> 00:04:40,200 history. You probably heard this term the 69 00:04:40,480 --> 00:04:44,160 the 10 lost Tribes of Israel. Maybe not. 70 00:04:45,400 --> 00:04:48,240 But the implication of some assert is that the exile served 71 00:04:48,240 --> 00:04:52,920 as a catalyst for these 10 tribes, a major portion of the 72 00:04:52,920 --> 00:04:56,800 descendants of Abraham, to essentially be dispersed and 73 00:04:56,800 --> 00:04:59,040 assimilate to the point of being irrelevant. 74 00:05:01,160 --> 00:05:05,160 And there are others who are confident about strange 75 00:05:05,160 --> 00:05:13,640 conspiracies, ideas and legends, including cults that attempt to 76 00:05:13,640 --> 00:05:16,840 gain authority for the false teachings by claiming descent 77 00:05:16,840 --> 00:05:18,520 from the scattered tribes of Israel. 78 00:05:20,680 --> 00:05:23,120 Here's what they will argue that since the Jews were removed from 79 00:05:23,120 --> 00:05:29,560 their land, many migrated to Europe, Africa, the Americas. 80 00:05:30,800 --> 00:05:35,680 And since they are of those particular regions or 81 00:05:35,680 --> 00:05:40,760 ethnicities, they also come from the same stock of Abraham and 82 00:05:40,760 --> 00:05:43,280 the patriarchs and therefore claim the same covenantal 83 00:05:43,280 --> 00:05:47,760 blessings. There are groups who base their 84 00:05:48,120 --> 00:05:53,280 doctrine on that false assumption, and it's possible 85 00:05:53,280 --> 00:05:57,040 that you might be at some point in your life faced with such 86 00:05:57,040 --> 00:06:00,200 claims. So what do you do? 87 00:06:01,320 --> 00:06:04,800 What do you do with movements that would even come to a text 88 00:06:04,800 --> 00:06:09,360 like this, the one that we're studying, to try to defend a 89 00:06:09,360 --> 00:06:12,760 certain system of belief that is clearly an error? 90 00:06:13,400 --> 00:06:15,960 It's very simple. You know your Bible well. 91 00:06:17,680 --> 00:06:20,600 You know your Bible well. And the way to silence those who 92 00:06:20,600 --> 00:06:28,000 might come from cults and strange ideas is to remind them 93 00:06:28,000 --> 00:06:32,280 that though these 10 tribes were displaced, they were never, ever 94 00:06:32,280 --> 00:06:35,240 lost. They were never lost. 95 00:06:36,640 --> 00:06:39,920 And a common argument as well. You never read in the Bible how 96 00:06:39,920 --> 00:06:42,240 these 10 tribes returned to the land. 97 00:06:42,680 --> 00:06:47,760 True to which I would respond. But you also read that not every 98 00:06:47,760 --> 00:06:53,920 single member of these tribes were removed completely to begin 99 00:06:53,920 --> 00:06:59,560 with. We have to remember that almost 100 00:06:59,560 --> 00:07:05,360 immediately after Israel's schism, after it becoming 2 101 00:07:05,360 --> 00:07:10,400 kingdoms, you had a righteous remnant, a righteous remnant who 102 00:07:10,400 --> 00:07:13,640 really wanted to worship the true and living God in the 103 00:07:13,640 --> 00:07:18,240 northern Kingdom of Israel that migrated to the southern Kingdom 104 00:07:18,600 --> 00:07:20,840 where the temple was so that they can honor God the way he 105 00:07:20,840 --> 00:07:23,960 prescribed. And one of the earliest accounts 106 00:07:23,960 --> 00:07:25,760 of this is found in the book of Second Chronicles. 107 00:07:25,760 --> 00:07:30,360 So let's turn to the Second Chronicles in Chapter 11, verse 108 00:07:30,360 --> 00:07:37,440 16. You may not recognize the need 109 00:07:37,440 --> 00:07:40,040 for this information now, but you never know. 110 00:07:40,040 --> 00:07:46,320 So be equipped tonight. Second Chronicles 11, verse 16. 111 00:07:48,560 --> 00:07:52,520 This is when Jeroboam was ruling in the northern parts and 112 00:07:52,520 --> 00:07:55,320 Rehoboam was still in charge in the southern parts. 113 00:07:55,920 --> 00:07:58,400 And what do we find in Second Chronicles 1116? 114 00:07:58,400 --> 00:08:01,720 And those who had set their hearts to seek the Lord God of 115 00:08:01,720 --> 00:08:07,200 Israel came after them, From which tribes, all the tribes of 116 00:08:07,200 --> 00:08:11,200 Israel, to Jerusalem, to sacrifice to the Lord, the God 117 00:08:11,200 --> 00:08:14,120 of their fathers. They strengthened the Kingdom of 118 00:08:14,120 --> 00:08:18,320 Judah, and for three years they made Rehoboam the son of Solomon 119 00:08:18,320 --> 00:08:22,160 secure, for they walked for three years in the way of David 120 00:08:22,400 --> 00:08:25,320 and Solomon. That should settle the matter. 121 00:08:26,600 --> 00:08:31,280 You have a remnant from all the tribes that made their way to 122 00:08:31,400 --> 00:08:34,760 the southern Kingdom to worship the true and living God. 123 00:08:37,159 --> 00:08:39,320 And if that doesn't settle the matter, let's consider what we 124 00:08:39,320 --> 00:08:43,559 find after the Assyrian exile when Hezekiah becomes the king 125 00:08:43,559 --> 00:08:47,480 in Judah, which we're going to study next week, and how he 126 00:08:47,480 --> 00:08:52,920 invited and he sent a message to all the peoples of the land to 127 00:08:52,920 --> 00:08:56,800 join him in his efforts to reinstate the Passover. 128 00:08:57,000 --> 00:08:58,160 So we're still in Second Chronicles. 129 00:08:58,160 --> 00:09:00,800 Go to chapter 30 and look at verse 6. 130 00:09:02,640 --> 00:09:11,760 Second Chronicles 30, verse 6. So couriers went through all 131 00:09:11,760 --> 00:09:14,880 Israel and Judah with letters from the king and his Princess, 132 00:09:15,120 --> 00:09:18,440 as the king had commanded, saying, O people of Israel, 133 00:09:18,800 --> 00:09:23,640 return to the Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, that 134 00:09:23,640 --> 00:09:28,000 he may turn again to the remnant of you who have escaped from the 135 00:09:28,000 --> 00:09:35,160 hand of the kings of Assyria. So not only is Hezekiah reaching 136 00:09:35,160 --> 00:09:40,240 out to all of Israel, but he is addressing the remnant of 137 00:09:40,240 --> 00:09:42,480 Israel. Remember, he's the king of the 138 00:09:42,480 --> 00:09:46,800 southern Kingdom of Judah, and he's reaching out to the 139 00:09:46,800 --> 00:09:50,720 northern parts. And he's specifically calling 140 00:09:50,720 --> 00:09:53,840 for those who survived the conquest that we're studying 141 00:09:53,840 --> 00:09:56,680 here in Second King 17. Which means what? 142 00:09:56,960 --> 00:10:01,200 That even though most of the tribes were removed, you still 143 00:10:01,200 --> 00:10:05,520 had those representing every tribe who were left behind who 144 00:10:05,520 --> 00:10:12,640 have escaped. So you have tribes that early on 145 00:10:12,640 --> 00:10:17,720 came to Jerusalem, and even after the exile in the northern 146 00:10:17,720 --> 00:10:19,440 parts, you have people who remained. 147 00:10:19,680 --> 00:10:22,240 And if there's any confusion of the confirmation of this 148 00:10:22,240 --> 00:10:24,640 remnant, go to verse 10 of Second Chronicles 30. 149 00:10:25,200 --> 00:10:28,240 So the couriers went from city to city through the country of 150 00:10:28,240 --> 00:10:31,920 Ephraim and Manasseh, and as far as Zebulun, But they laughed 151 00:10:31,920 --> 00:10:36,200 them to scorn and mock them. However, some men of Asher, of 152 00:10:36,200 --> 00:10:41,280 Manasseh, and of Zebulun humbled themselves and came to 153 00:10:41,600 --> 00:10:47,720 Jerusalem. So they're lost. 154 00:10:48,760 --> 00:10:52,720 How can you say they're lost? Yes, a majority of them were 155 00:10:52,720 --> 00:10:55,080 removed, but not completely erased. 156 00:10:56,560 --> 00:11:01,440 And even if this conversation were to continue, there is 157 00:11:01,480 --> 00:11:07,400 evidence in the New Testament that confirms the preservation 158 00:11:07,400 --> 00:11:11,440 of these tribes. Any ideas come to mind? 159 00:11:11,440 --> 00:11:13,400 Any references? Any occurrence of the in the New 160 00:11:13,400 --> 00:11:16,080 Testament that would help us make this case? 161 00:11:16,120 --> 00:11:17,440 You can actually answer if you know. 162 00:11:19,000 --> 00:11:20,200 Paul. Tribe of what? 163 00:11:20,960 --> 00:11:24,000 Sure, tribe of Benjamin. But Benjamin was a part of the 164 00:11:24,000 --> 00:11:26,360 Kingdom of the South with Judah. Correct? 165 00:11:26,360 --> 00:11:29,280 But that's still a good answer. I'm talking more about the 166 00:11:29,280 --> 00:11:31,840 northern tribes that were removed by the Assyrians. 167 00:11:31,960 --> 00:11:36,000 Anything that we find in the New Testament, the Day of Pentecost, 168 00:11:36,000 --> 00:11:39,720 that's a good answer as well. Any references to the tribe 169 00:11:39,720 --> 00:11:46,520 specifically though? Let me ask you a question. 170 00:11:47,400 --> 00:11:50,520 When the Lord Jesus as a child was brought into the temple by 171 00:11:50,520 --> 00:11:55,480 his earthly parents, there was a prophetess by the name of where 172 00:11:55,480 --> 00:12:00,320 was she from? Let's go to Luke chapter 2. 173 00:12:02,440 --> 00:12:04,240 I think I've held you in suspense long enough. 174 00:12:06,080 --> 00:12:09,040 Luke 2 verse 36 and we'll look at another answer in the book of 175 00:12:09,040 --> 00:12:19,120 Luke, Luke 236 reads and there was a prophetess, Anna, the 176 00:12:19,120 --> 00:12:24,720 daughter of Fanuel of the tribe of Asher, one of the tribes from 177 00:12:24,720 --> 00:12:28,240 the northern Kingdom. She was advancing years, having 178 00:12:28,240 --> 00:12:31,960 lived with her husband seven years from when she was a 179 00:12:31,960 --> 00:12:35,640 virgin. Let's look at another answer and 180 00:12:35,640 --> 00:12:37,320 Luke that we can go to other places. 181 00:12:37,320 --> 00:12:40,080 Go to Luke 22. Let's consider the words of the 182 00:12:40,080 --> 00:12:49,260 Lord Jesus Christ. You are those who have stayed 183 00:12:49,260 --> 00:12:52,100 with me in my trials. He is speaking to the disciples, 184 00:12:52,720 --> 00:12:56,840 and I assigned to you as my father assigned to me a Kingdom, 185 00:12:57,560 --> 00:13:02,640 that you may eat and drink at my table in my Kingdom, and sit on 186 00:13:02,640 --> 00:13:04,120 Thrones. Judging who? 187 00:13:04,960 --> 00:13:08,520 The 2 tribes of Israel. Which tribes? 188 00:13:10,000 --> 00:13:14,560 The 12, The 12 tribes of Israel. Now, some try to spiritualize 189 00:13:14,560 --> 00:13:18,520 this passage, but the way we should honor it is he is 190 00:13:18,520 --> 00:13:22,440 speaking about a time when he will rule and reign, and he will 191 00:13:22,440 --> 00:13:27,800 dispatch his apostles to also give judgment to specific 192 00:13:28,040 --> 00:13:31,360 jurisdiction, and that is the 12 tribes of Israel. 193 00:13:31,360 --> 00:13:33,280 This is about the millennial reign of Christ. 194 00:13:34,760 --> 00:13:39,680 So again, there are people out there that really want to argue, 195 00:13:39,760 --> 00:13:44,560 especially in the New Covenant, that the Jewish people have no 196 00:13:44,560 --> 00:13:48,440 relevance anymore, and they would backtrack it even to the 197 00:13:48,520 --> 00:13:52,080 Exiles that we see, namely the Assyrian one. 198 00:13:52,920 --> 00:13:55,880 But I'm here to tell you that God hasn't lost any of them. 199 00:13:56,200 --> 00:13:58,200 In fact, as we study Revelation on Sundays, we're going to 200 00:13:58,200 --> 00:14:01,680 realize that many of those tribes will be there even in the 201 00:14:01,680 --> 00:14:06,320 final days of history. Put that in your pocket for 202 00:14:06,320 --> 00:14:09,040 another time. Let's come back to our main text 203 00:14:09,120 --> 00:14:16,000 and let's continue reading. In verse 25, we read. 204 00:14:16,000 --> 00:14:19,840 And at the beginning of their dwelling there, they did not 205 00:14:19,840 --> 00:14:23,320 fear the Lord. Therefore the Lord sent lions 206 00:14:23,320 --> 00:14:26,920 among them, which killed some of them. 207 00:14:27,960 --> 00:14:32,480 So you have this entire group of people known as the northern 208 00:14:32,480 --> 00:14:35,400 Kingdom of Israel removed from their homes, removed from the 209 00:14:35,400 --> 00:14:39,240 boundaries of Israel, and they are now replaced with Gentiles 210 00:14:39,560 --> 00:14:41,880 who clearly worship different gods. 211 00:14:42,400 --> 00:14:46,000 And though we have new settlers now in this area, they're 212 00:14:46,000 --> 00:14:49,920 quickly going to learn who really owns this land. 213 00:14:51,440 --> 00:14:57,840 God. Now, some here we try to explain 214 00:14:57,840 --> 00:15:00,680 this simply as a natural overpopulation of animals 215 00:15:01,120 --> 00:15:04,480 resulting from an unregulated region due to the absence of 216 00:15:04,480 --> 00:15:07,200 humans present. That misses the point. 217 00:15:07,600 --> 00:15:09,800 What do we read here? That it was the Lord. 218 00:15:09,880 --> 00:15:13,160 It was the Lord who sent lions among them. 219 00:15:14,880 --> 00:15:17,720 So this is how God welcomes these new people in a sense. 220 00:15:18,240 --> 00:15:21,600 They arrive in this place and he wants to introduce these 221 00:15:21,600 --> 00:15:26,920 newcomers to his awesome and terrifying power, His presence. 222 00:15:27,480 --> 00:15:32,400 Now think about this. The Lord did not need any king, 223 00:15:33,680 --> 00:15:40,880 any army, any walls, any Chariots to defend what was his. 224 00:15:42,040 --> 00:15:45,080 He could recruit animals to do his bidding. 225 00:15:46,600 --> 00:15:49,600 And there's so many things that we can say about this, but this 226 00:15:49,600 --> 00:15:52,800 teaches us at least one main thing, that when darkness 227 00:15:52,800 --> 00:15:56,720 spreads and evil invades, God is still in control. 228 00:15:57,240 --> 00:16:00,520 That's the beauty of this verse. He is still in power. 229 00:16:00,560 --> 00:16:03,440 Israel might have been conquered, but the promises and 230 00:16:03,440 --> 00:16:08,400 the purposes of God we're not right at the beginning. 231 00:16:09,160 --> 00:16:12,160 He is proving to us that things are still in operation. 232 00:16:12,600 --> 00:16:16,400 His plans and His purposes are still in motion, and He's 233 00:16:16,400 --> 00:16:19,080 letting these foreigners know the same. 234 00:16:20,080 --> 00:16:23,120 And this serves as a wonderful reminder for you and I when we 235 00:16:23,120 --> 00:16:27,360 look out into the world and we are witnessing A weakening 236 00:16:27,360 --> 00:16:29,840 Christendom. And perhaps the temptation is to 237 00:16:29,840 --> 00:16:32,240 be discouraged as we see professing Christians and 238 00:16:32,240 --> 00:16:36,320 churches and ministries faltering and being overcome by 239 00:16:36,320 --> 00:16:40,080 deception and evil. You can never afford to forget 240 00:16:40,080 --> 00:16:42,280 this truth. Christ is never defeated. 241 00:16:42,800 --> 00:16:46,080 Never. And we see here in the Old 242 00:16:46,080 --> 00:16:48,880 Testament, and surely it is just as true in the New Testament. 243 00:16:49,600 --> 00:16:51,680 It is true in this covenant as well. 244 00:16:52,640 --> 00:16:57,840 And so we find here that the Lord introduces himself in a 245 00:16:57,840 --> 00:16:59,880 particular way. Matthew Henry said something 246 00:16:59,880 --> 00:17:02,760 wonderful about this passage. He said the Lord of hosts can 247 00:17:02,760 --> 00:17:08,880 serve his own purposes by which he pleases small or great lice 248 00:17:09,280 --> 00:17:14,560 or lions. I love that He doesn't need us. 249 00:17:15,319 --> 00:17:18,119 He delights to use us, and we should be delighted to be used. 250 00:17:18,599 --> 00:17:22,839 But he can call a lice or he can recruit lions. 251 00:17:24,119 --> 00:17:28,440 He can do whatever he pleases. I'm meditating on this and I'm 252 00:17:28,440 --> 00:17:32,440 thinking there's more to learn from that one verse. 253 00:17:33,120 --> 00:17:36,000 I find it interesting that the Lord held these pagans 254 00:17:36,000 --> 00:17:42,120 responsible to relate and to respond to God, the true God 255 00:17:42,120 --> 00:17:46,200 appropriately. Look back again at the verse. 256 00:17:46,200 --> 00:17:51,760 It says that they did not fear the Lord, therefore it wasn't 257 00:17:51,760 --> 00:17:53,920 just because they moved in, it's because they didn't recognize 258 00:17:53,920 --> 00:17:57,280 them the way they should have. Therefore the Lord sent lions 259 00:17:57,280 --> 00:17:58,880 among them. So how do we make sense of this? 260 00:17:59,920 --> 00:18:02,760 What's quite simple, the Scriptures tell us over and over 261 00:18:02,760 --> 00:18:06,600 and over again that God has many ways of awakening man in his 262 00:18:06,600 --> 00:18:12,280 sin, awakening man in his falsehood, in order for them to 263 00:18:12,280 --> 00:18:16,880 be placed on the path of truth. And in this particular account, 264 00:18:16,880 --> 00:18:22,000 we find that the Lord unleashes an unusual series of tragedies, 265 00:18:22,000 --> 00:18:23,400 right? People died because of these 266 00:18:23,400 --> 00:18:28,560 lions in order to alarm them. And the question that we should 267 00:18:28,560 --> 00:18:32,400 have as we read this is how are these people going to respond? 268 00:18:34,120 --> 00:18:36,000 How are they going to interpret these events? 269 00:18:36,000 --> 00:18:37,480 And our answer comes in the next verse. 270 00:18:37,480 --> 00:18:43,160 So let's read it together. So the king of Assyria was told, 271 00:18:43,600 --> 00:18:46,760 The nations that you have carried away and placed in the 272 00:18:46,760 --> 00:18:51,200 cities of Samaria do not know the law of the God of the land. 273 00:18:51,560 --> 00:18:54,440 Therefore he has sent lions among them, and behold, they are 274 00:18:54,440 --> 00:18:58,240 killing them, because they do not know the law of the God of 275 00:18:58,240 --> 00:19:01,280 the land. Then the king of Assyria 276 00:19:01,280 --> 00:19:05,000 commanded, Send there one of the priests whom you carried away 277 00:19:05,000 --> 00:19:09,320 from there, and let him go and dwell there, and teach them the 278 00:19:09,320 --> 00:19:13,600 law of the God of the land. So one of the priests whom they 279 00:19:13,800 --> 00:19:16,800 had carried away from Samaria came and lived in Bethel and 280 00:19:16,800 --> 00:19:21,040 taught them how they should fear the Lord. 281 00:19:22,400 --> 00:19:26,360 There is both a positive aspect and a clear -1 in these verses. 282 00:19:27,520 --> 00:19:31,560 The +1 is that these foreigners reacted to the warnings of God 283 00:19:31,560 --> 00:19:34,320 much better than Israel did in the past. 284 00:19:34,320 --> 00:19:38,240 Don't you think we we can applaud them? 285 00:19:39,360 --> 00:19:42,480 Why? Because they responded to this 286 00:19:42,480 --> 00:19:48,160 divinely orchestrated suffering by looking up, by looking for 287 00:19:48,160 --> 00:19:53,320 answers, by inquiring. They didn't just dismiss it as 288 00:19:53,320 --> 00:19:56,560 coincidence. They didn't try to manage their 289 00:19:56,560 --> 00:20:00,600 own pain. They were on a quest now to look 290 00:20:00,600 --> 00:20:04,160 for answers, to try to reconcile themselves to, in their limited 291 00:20:04,160 --> 00:20:06,040 understanding, the God of this region. 292 00:20:06,040 --> 00:20:12,080 And that's something that we can compare with these children of 293 00:20:12,080 --> 00:20:14,840 Jacob and how stubborn they were even in their suffering. 294 00:20:16,160 --> 00:20:18,640 That being said, there is a downside to this. 295 00:20:19,200 --> 00:20:24,040 And the downside is that Israel, Israel had failed yet again to 296 00:20:24,040 --> 00:20:29,280 fulfill the purposes of God in the particular area of shining 297 00:20:29,280 --> 00:20:32,040 the light of the truth to their neighbors. 298 00:20:34,920 --> 00:20:36,720 How can we make that claim from these verses? 299 00:20:37,040 --> 00:20:40,040 Well, we just learned that even after the exile, there was a 300 00:20:40,040 --> 00:20:42,760 remnant who remained in the land. 301 00:20:44,880 --> 00:20:47,360 So here's my question. If there were people who 302 00:20:47,360 --> 00:20:52,680 understood who the true God was, what he asked of them, then why 303 00:20:52,680 --> 00:20:56,800 then they seized the moment and reach out to their bewildered, 304 00:20:56,800 --> 00:21:00,360 confused neighbors and guide them to the truth. 305 00:21:02,360 --> 00:21:05,720 That's a question, right? A worthy question to ask the the 306 00:21:05,720 --> 00:21:08,560 plain answer is that they clearly were not in right 307 00:21:08,560 --> 00:21:13,200 relationship with God for themselves, which is extremely 308 00:21:13,200 --> 00:21:18,640 sad because God from the days of Exodus deliver this people from 309 00:21:18,640 --> 00:21:21,760 Egypt for many reasons, including this wonderful truth 310 00:21:21,760 --> 00:21:24,640 that they would be a holy nation, that they would be a 311 00:21:24,640 --> 00:21:29,640 priesthood to mediate to some degree and to guide people, 312 00:21:29,640 --> 00:21:32,280 namely their neighbors to understanding who the true God 313 00:21:32,280 --> 00:21:33,240 is. And they failed. 314 00:21:33,560 --> 00:21:36,680 They failed over and over even when these neighbors came to 315 00:21:36,680 --> 00:21:41,080 their front step. And this is something for us to 316 00:21:41,080 --> 00:21:44,120 consider because we can't just criticize these Israelites. 317 00:21:44,120 --> 00:21:47,640 We got to examine our own hearts as followers of Jesus Christ. 318 00:21:47,640 --> 00:21:50,840 We need to take heed to instructions like what we find 319 00:21:50,840 --> 00:21:56,160 in Colossians 4-5 as an example, which says walk in wisdom toward 320 00:21:56,520 --> 00:22:01,520 outsiders. Walk in wisdom toward outsiders. 321 00:22:01,880 --> 00:22:05,440 And one of the ways that you and I walk in wisdom in the presence 322 00:22:05,440 --> 00:22:11,280 of unbelievers is that we are continually mindful and alert of 323 00:22:11,280 --> 00:22:16,960 their needs, of the opportunities for us to be able 324 00:22:16,960 --> 00:22:18,800 to give them the hope of the gospel. 325 00:22:19,840 --> 00:22:23,440 One of my favorite examples of this is with Joseph. 326 00:22:25,120 --> 00:22:29,360 Joseph's story is a fascinating 1 And the script of his life 327 00:22:29,360 --> 00:22:33,720 really changed when he was in prison because, as you know, he 328 00:22:33,720 --> 00:22:36,320 interpreted the dreams of two individuals. 1 was the cup 329 00:22:36,320 --> 00:22:38,000 bearer Pharaoh, the other the chief Baker. 330 00:22:38,520 --> 00:22:41,200 And that would essentially be the means for him to be 331 00:22:41,200 --> 00:22:44,720 delivered and promoted to be second command in Egypt. 332 00:22:45,440 --> 00:22:47,760 But did it just start with him interpreting dreams 333 00:22:47,760 --> 00:22:50,400 spontaneously? Now you have to read your Bibles 334 00:22:50,400 --> 00:22:54,440 carefully one day because Joseph was promoted to be the 335 00:22:54,440 --> 00:22:59,080 supervisor in that prison. He's walking through the halls. 336 00:22:59,240 --> 00:23:02,280 He's making his rounds. He's checking off his To Do 337 00:23:02,280 --> 00:23:04,280 List. And he notices something. 338 00:23:04,280 --> 00:23:06,000 Why don't we turn there anyway? I was a planter. 339 00:23:06,000 --> 00:23:07,920 But let's go there. Go to Genesis chapter 40. 340 00:23:11,400 --> 00:23:13,760 Hopefully this will inspire us afresh to read our Bibles 341 00:23:13,760 --> 00:23:18,000 carefully and to draw practical wisdom from stories like what we 342 00:23:18,000 --> 00:23:21,160 find here. Genesis 40. 343 00:23:21,160 --> 00:23:27,240 Let's look at verse 5. And one night they both dreamed, 344 00:23:28,360 --> 00:23:31,000 that is, the chief Baker and the cupbearer. 345 00:23:31,120 --> 00:23:33,360 They both dreamed the cupbearer and the Baker of the king of 346 00:23:33,360 --> 00:23:36,120 Egypt, who were confined in the prison. 347 00:23:36,560 --> 00:23:38,800 Each his own dream and each dream with its own 348 00:23:38,800 --> 00:23:43,040 interpretation. When Joseph came to them in the 349 00:23:43,040 --> 00:23:47,440 morning, he saw that they were troubled. 350 00:23:48,840 --> 00:23:51,560 I have different colors underlining that specific part 351 00:23:51,560 --> 00:23:54,240 of the verse. He saw that they were troubled. 352 00:23:55,240 --> 00:24:00,320 He was aware of the distress on their faces, but he he didn't 353 00:24:00,320 --> 00:24:01,960 just make a mental note about it. 354 00:24:01,960 --> 00:24:04,440 Look what happens in verse 7. So he asked. 355 00:24:05,320 --> 00:24:08,520 He asked Pharaoh's officers who are with him in custody in his 356 00:24:08,520 --> 00:24:12,480 master's house. Why are your faces downcast 357 00:24:12,800 --> 00:24:16,480 today? You know what I asked myself, 358 00:24:16,480 --> 00:24:19,560 reading this many years ago when it first came to me? 359 00:24:20,160 --> 00:24:24,640 What if he had just ignored it? What do you just went on with 360 00:24:24,640 --> 00:24:27,640 his day because he had so many responsibilities? 361 00:24:30,800 --> 00:24:35,040 What would he have missed if you fail to seize the opportunity 362 00:24:35,040 --> 00:24:43,760 here to realize disillusionment, despair, and then to see it as a 363 00:24:43,760 --> 00:24:46,520 way, not realizing the full potential at the moment, but at 364 00:24:46,520 --> 00:24:50,160 least to be caring enough to inquire and that being the means 365 00:24:50,160 --> 00:24:52,360 for him to knowing a greater testimony. 366 00:24:54,160 --> 00:24:55,840 This is something for you and I to consider. 367 00:24:56,760 --> 00:25:03,400 Because if you and I are not prepared to sacrifice, to step 368 00:25:03,400 --> 00:25:09,560 in the lives of people who are hurting, who have questions, who 369 00:25:09,560 --> 00:25:12,120 don't know how to make sense of life, their own lives, what 370 00:25:12,120 --> 00:25:15,600 we're seeing in the world, if we neglect that, if we ignore that, 371 00:25:15,600 --> 00:25:19,200 if we don't feel the responsibility to give clarity, 372 00:25:19,880 --> 00:25:21,840 they will look to another source. 373 00:25:23,720 --> 00:25:28,080 And in this case, instead of the remnant stepping in, they turn 374 00:25:28,080 --> 00:25:32,720 to the king of Assyria. Now we might be excited because 375 00:25:32,720 --> 00:25:36,720 we read there in verse 27 of Second Kings 17 that the ruler 376 00:25:36,720 --> 00:25:39,600 of this Syrians decides to send back a priest that was carried 377 00:25:39,600 --> 00:25:46,480 away in exile to teach these new dwellers of how to honor the God 378 00:25:46,480 --> 00:25:49,640 of the land. But whatever excitement we might 379 00:25:49,640 --> 00:25:53,480 have, even though we seem to be initially excited, He taught 380 00:25:53,480 --> 00:25:56,960 them how they should fear the Lord. 1 Little detail will pop 381 00:25:56,960 --> 00:26:01,120 the balloon of any excitement that you might have enjoyed 382 00:26:01,800 --> 00:26:05,080 quite quickly. What do I mean by that Revisit? 383 00:26:05,080 --> 00:26:10,680 28 So one of the priests whom they had carried away from some 384 00:26:10,720 --> 00:26:16,280 from Samaria, came and lived in where Bethel, and taught them 385 00:26:16,280 --> 00:26:21,360 how they should fear the Lord. Should Bethel remind you of 386 00:26:21,360 --> 00:26:26,320 anything in our study of the Book of Kings, both 1st and 2nd 387 00:26:26,320 --> 00:26:30,520 Kings? What was special about the area 388 00:26:30,520 --> 00:26:32,560 called Bethel? Any ideas? 389 00:26:35,240 --> 00:26:38,200 It was a designated place of worship for the Golden calf 390 00:26:38,200 --> 00:26:43,800 since the days of Jeroboam, so we should remember. 391 00:26:44,280 --> 00:26:45,760 This should in a sense trigger us. 392 00:26:45,800 --> 00:26:55,160 Oh, Bethel priest teaching trouble, How so? 393 00:26:55,920 --> 00:26:58,560 Well, since the days of Jeroboam, when he instituted 394 00:26:59,200 --> 00:27:03,640 golden calf worship in the land, there was no true priesthood, 395 00:27:05,640 --> 00:27:11,760 only counterfeit priests. And so we have every right to 396 00:27:11,760 --> 00:27:15,680 question the legitimacy of this priest who returned to Israel, 397 00:27:17,680 --> 00:27:21,560 because he must be one of the false ones that was removed from 398 00:27:21,560 --> 00:27:24,160 the land. And this is the one who's going 399 00:27:24,160 --> 00:27:27,120 to come back now and teach these people how they should fear God. 400 00:27:28,800 --> 00:27:31,080 So we should be concerned. We should be worried. 401 00:27:31,320 --> 00:27:37,080 What is he going to tell them? And this got me thinking, What's 402 00:27:37,080 --> 00:27:40,480 just as spiritually lethal? Someone ignoring an opportunity 403 00:27:40,480 --> 00:27:44,400 to guide unbelievers is someone who misrepresents the truth in 404 00:27:44,400 --> 00:27:50,280 the name of God. Be very careful where you seek 405 00:27:50,280 --> 00:27:55,760 spiritual answers. Listen, be careful and 406 00:27:55,760 --> 00:27:58,880 thankfully God has graciously given us His words so we have 407 00:27:58,880 --> 00:28:04,240 the ability to examine everything that we hear because 408 00:28:04,240 --> 00:28:06,600 this is the book by which He will hold every man accountable. 409 00:28:07,920 --> 00:28:11,440 That's why I believe in Scripture alone, because over 410 00:28:11,440 --> 00:28:14,920 and over in the Bible we're told that He's going to judge us by 411 00:28:14,920 --> 00:28:21,800 the content of this book. So what excuse do people have, 412 00:28:21,800 --> 00:28:25,520 especially here in the West, of being deceived when God has 413 00:28:25,520 --> 00:28:27,120 given us His complete revelation? 414 00:28:29,320 --> 00:28:33,040 And so on one side you have a remnant of Israelites who fail 415 00:28:33,040 --> 00:28:37,200 to reach out to these darkened Gentiles, and on the other side 416 00:28:37,200 --> 00:28:40,040 we have now a priest who's teaching them who knows what 417 00:28:42,160 --> 00:28:45,160 because he comes from the questionable priest that 418 00:28:45,160 --> 00:28:49,640 Jeroboam promoted. Unfortunately, we are about to 419 00:28:49,640 --> 00:28:52,680 witness the fruit of this nameless priests distorted 420 00:28:52,680 --> 00:28:55,560 compromise teaching and it's heartbreaking. 421 00:28:56,480 --> 00:29:02,680 Let's read in verse 29. But every nation still made gods 422 00:29:02,680 --> 00:29:07,440 of its own and put them in the shrines of the high places that 423 00:29:07,440 --> 00:29:12,160 the Samaritans had made, every nation in the cities in which 424 00:29:12,320 --> 00:29:18,440 they lived. Before we explain this further, 425 00:29:18,440 --> 00:29:21,560 I want to highlight a word that appears for the first time in 426 00:29:21,560 --> 00:29:26,120 the Old Testament and the only time in the Old Testament did 427 00:29:26,120 --> 00:29:27,720 you see the word in the verse that we just read? 428 00:29:28,160 --> 00:29:32,560 If you know it, say it out loud. Samaritans, right? 429 00:29:34,640 --> 00:29:38,040 It appears only here in the Hebrew Scriptures, and we know 430 00:29:38,040 --> 00:29:40,840 that it appears a handful of times in the Gospels. 431 00:29:42,120 --> 00:29:44,600 And we should be persuaded that there's something about this 432 00:29:44,600 --> 00:29:49,880 account that explains something of the history of the Samaritans 433 00:29:50,160 --> 00:29:53,440 and the animosity that the they had towards the Jews and the 434 00:29:53,440 --> 00:29:57,160 Jews had towards them during the days of the ministry of the Lord 435 00:29:57,160 --> 00:29:59,280 Jesus Christ. And there are answers here. 436 00:29:59,960 --> 00:30:04,640 Who are these Samaritans? Well, the best explanation is 437 00:30:04,640 --> 00:30:06,760 that they originated from the Israelites of the Northern 438 00:30:06,760 --> 00:30:09,840 Kingdom. But they developed a new 439 00:30:09,840 --> 00:30:14,520 identity, especially after this moment, because these Samaritans 440 00:30:14,520 --> 00:30:20,680 now intermarried with these pagans, and over time they 441 00:30:20,680 --> 00:30:25,080 became a new breed. And this consistent 442 00:30:25,080 --> 00:30:28,480 intermingling eventually caused the Hebrews of the Southern 443 00:30:28,480 --> 00:30:35,040 Kingdom to deem these Samaritans as illegitimate Jews in regards 444 00:30:35,040 --> 00:30:37,400 to their religion and their race. 445 00:30:39,360 --> 00:30:45,000 And we see this hostility developing as we continue in our 446 00:30:45,000 --> 00:30:47,960 study of redemptive history. And there's one place where it 447 00:30:47,960 --> 00:30:51,920 becomes incredibly clear. It's in the book of Ezra, when 448 00:30:51,920 --> 00:30:54,960 the southern Kingdom will eventually be removed from the 449 00:30:54,960 --> 00:30:55,760 land. By who? 450 00:30:56,960 --> 00:30:59,800 Not the Assyrians, but the Babylonians. 451 00:30:59,800 --> 00:31:03,320 But later they're permitted to return to the land to restore 452 00:31:03,480 --> 00:31:08,480 the temple and their homes. Something occurs when those Jews 453 00:31:08,680 --> 00:31:12,720 of the southern Kingdom return and they are greeted by a people 454 00:31:12,720 --> 00:31:16,240 who remained in the land. Let's turn to Ezra chapter 4, 455 00:31:16,360 --> 00:31:28,680 beginning in verse one. Now when the adversaries of 456 00:31:28,680 --> 00:31:31,720 Judah and Benjamin heard that the returned exiles were 457 00:31:31,720 --> 00:31:36,240 building a temple to the Lord, the God of Israel, pause. 458 00:31:36,560 --> 00:31:38,600 So right there in verse one, we have to ask yourself, who are 459 00:31:38,600 --> 00:31:42,520 these adversaries? Well, one thing we know about 460 00:31:42,520 --> 00:31:46,280 them is what we find in verse 2, They approached Zerubabel. 461 00:31:46,680 --> 00:31:50,400 So whoever these adversaries were, they abided in the land, 462 00:31:50,400 --> 00:31:51,880 in the promised land. They were there, They were 463 00:31:51,880 --> 00:31:56,960 waiting in a sense. And so the people of Judah and 464 00:31:56,960 --> 00:31:59,000 Benjamin, they returned. They represent the southern 465 00:31:59,000 --> 00:32:01,280 Kingdom. They come back to their homeland 466 00:32:01,640 --> 00:32:05,080 and they are approached by what the Scripture says, adversaries. 467 00:32:05,880 --> 00:32:09,000 They approached verse 2, Zerubbel and the heads of 468 00:32:09,000 --> 00:32:13,000 Father's houses, and said to them, let us build with you, for 469 00:32:13,000 --> 00:32:17,320 we worship your God as you do. Again, we're thinking, who are 470 00:32:17,320 --> 00:32:20,480 you? And we know what the remaining 471 00:32:20,480 --> 00:32:23,680 part of this verse. And we have been sacrificing to 472 00:32:23,680 --> 00:32:27,640 him ever since the days of senior Haddon, king of Assyria, 473 00:32:27,640 --> 00:32:32,320 who brought us here. Do we know who they are now? 474 00:32:33,720 --> 00:32:40,400 Yes, these are the Samaritans and they trace their roots back 475 00:32:40,400 --> 00:32:44,520 to the time when the king of Assyria dropped off these pagans 476 00:32:45,200 --> 00:32:49,200 in the northern parts of Israel. And over time they intermarried 477 00:32:49,200 --> 00:32:53,080 and they developed their own people group and they're 478 00:32:53,080 --> 00:32:56,560 claiming the right to be able to join them in this effort to re 479 00:32:56,560 --> 00:32:58,480 establish the worship of the temple. 480 00:32:58,640 --> 00:33:02,160 We worship your gods. We worship your God, namely. 481 00:33:03,920 --> 00:33:07,400 And what's the response of the Jews who returned in verse 3? 482 00:33:07,400 --> 00:33:10,720 But Zerubbabel, Joshua, and the rest of the heads of the 483 00:33:10,720 --> 00:33:13,760 father's houses in Israel said to them, You have nothing to do 484 00:33:13,760 --> 00:33:18,160 with us in building a house to our God, but we alone will build 485 00:33:18,160 --> 00:33:20,880 to the Lord, the God of Israel, as King Cyrus, the king of 486 00:33:20,880 --> 00:33:23,440 Persia, has commanded us. Verse 4. 487 00:33:23,520 --> 00:33:26,160 Then the people of the land discouraged the people of Judah 488 00:33:26,160 --> 00:33:34,960 and made them afraid to build. And this tension only builds 489 00:33:35,560 --> 00:33:40,040 over the years, over the centuries, and it peaks at the 490 00:33:40,040 --> 00:33:44,320 time of Christ. But here's what's so 491 00:33:44,320 --> 00:33:47,720 fascinating. The Lord Jesus Christ, the 492 00:33:47,720 --> 00:33:54,240 Jewish Messiah, does not interact or reference these 493 00:33:54,240 --> 00:33:57,800 Samaritans in the way that the average Jew did of his time. 494 00:34:00,360 --> 00:34:03,120 In fact, when we consider the interaction that we just read, 495 00:34:04,200 --> 00:34:08,360 you can say that there is a thematic reversal in this 496 00:34:08,360 --> 00:34:11,159 exchange in one of the Gospel accounts. 497 00:34:12,320 --> 00:34:14,760 Hopefully this makes sense. Let's turn to John chapter 4. 498 00:34:15,560 --> 00:34:18,880 We know this chapter very well. It's when Jesus visits the woman 499 00:34:18,880 --> 00:34:21,040 at the well, and she's from Samaria as we know. 500 00:34:23,560 --> 00:34:33,760 But look at John 4 verse 7. A woman from Samaria came to 501 00:34:33,760 --> 00:34:37,080 draw water. Jesus said to her, give me a 502 00:34:37,080 --> 00:34:40,560 drink, for his disciples had gone away into the city to buy 503 00:34:40,560 --> 00:34:43,600 food. The Samaritan woman said to him, 504 00:34:43,840 --> 00:34:49,960 How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of 505 00:34:49,960 --> 00:34:53,520 Samaria? For Jews have no dealings with 506 00:34:53,520 --> 00:34:57,040 Samaritans. Now think back to what we just 507 00:34:57,040 --> 00:35:00,960 read in Ezra chapter 4. In Ezra chapter 4, you had the 508 00:35:00,960 --> 00:35:06,680 Samaritans who approached the Jews and asked to participate in 509 00:35:06,680 --> 00:35:08,720 an effort for something good, right? 510 00:35:10,120 --> 00:35:13,960 And what happens? The Jews, led by Zerubbabel 511 00:35:13,960 --> 00:35:16,720 among other leaders, denied their request. 512 00:35:17,560 --> 00:35:21,440 And the response of the people, the land then was to harass them 513 00:35:21,640 --> 00:35:26,320 and to annoy them and to stifle and to try to hinder their 514 00:35:26,320 --> 00:35:29,320 efforts. It just made them even more 515 00:35:29,320 --> 00:35:33,720 embittered. But hundreds of years pass now 516 00:35:33,720 --> 00:35:38,040 and we stumble upon a Jewish man and he approaches and makes a 517 00:35:38,040 --> 00:35:40,960 request to who? A Samaritan. 518 00:35:44,040 --> 00:35:46,120 And initially his appeal was denied as well. 519 00:35:47,000 --> 00:35:48,920 What did she say? She said how? 520 00:35:48,920 --> 00:35:51,760 How are you a Jew asking a drink from me, a woman of Samaria? 521 00:35:54,440 --> 00:35:56,320 Now here's what this gets even more brilliant. 522 00:35:57,960 --> 00:35:59,880 I don't want to overwhelm you with these references, so let me 523 00:35:59,880 --> 00:36:01,960 try to speak slowly because when I get excited I tend to speak 524 00:36:01,960 --> 00:36:08,000 fast. In Matthew 112 you can turn to 525 00:36:08,000 --> 00:36:15,320 if you want, we learn that Jesus is a descendant of Zerubbabel 526 00:36:16,720 --> 00:36:19,520 and that interesting the same Zerubbabel that we read of in 527 00:36:19,520 --> 00:36:22,280 Ezra. So you have the descendant of 528 00:36:22,280 --> 00:36:25,040 Zerubbabel now engaging with a Samaritan. 529 00:36:26,480 --> 00:36:32,440 She rejects his appeal, but what does he do in response to her 530 00:36:32,440 --> 00:36:36,600 stiff armed response? Does he insult her? 531 00:36:37,760 --> 00:36:40,240 Does he rebuke her? Does he denounce her? 532 00:36:40,520 --> 00:36:46,560 No, He patiently leads her to the truth and he grants her one 533 00:36:46,560 --> 00:36:49,480 of the clearest confessions and all of the Gospels that he was 534 00:36:49,480 --> 00:36:52,680 the Messiah. Who would have thought that? 535 00:36:52,680 --> 00:36:55,360 You can make a connection with the Lord Jesus Christ in Ezra 536 00:36:55,360 --> 00:37:01,560 chapter 4 and Second Kings chapter 17, and we see it here. 537 00:37:02,080 --> 00:37:06,160 The Lord draws this woman not just to himself, but to the 538 00:37:06,160 --> 00:37:09,920 truth, and she goes back to the Samaritans of her village and 539 00:37:09,920 --> 00:37:13,280 preaches her testimony with the limited knowledge that she had 540 00:37:13,280 --> 00:37:15,080 and it brought revival to her town. 541 00:37:16,160 --> 00:37:18,160 That warmed my heart. I hope it did something to 542 00:37:18,160 --> 00:37:21,640 yours. Let's come back to our main text 543 00:37:22,960 --> 00:37:27,960 in verse 32nd, King 17. Forgive me if I mispronounce 544 00:37:27,960 --> 00:37:29,520 these names. I will try my best. 545 00:37:30,280 --> 00:37:33,720 The men of Babylon made Sukhoth Binoth, the men of Koth made 546 00:37:33,880 --> 00:37:38,920 Nergal, the men of Hamath made Ashima, and the Avites made 547 00:37:38,920 --> 00:37:43,240 Nibaz and Tartak. And the Sephirvites burned their 548 00:37:43,240 --> 00:37:47,080 children in the fire of Adra Malik and Anna Malik, the gods 549 00:37:47,080 --> 00:37:50,760 of Sephirvan. They also fear the Lord, and 550 00:37:50,760 --> 00:37:54,200 appointed from among all, among themselves all sorts of people, 551 00:37:54,200 --> 00:37:57,600 as priests of the high places, who sacrifice for them in the 552 00:37:57,600 --> 00:38:01,400 shrines of the high places. So they fear the Lord, but also 553 00:38:01,400 --> 00:38:05,680 serve their own gods after the manner of the nations from among 554 00:38:05,680 --> 00:38:12,080 whom they had been carried away. At first glance these verses 555 00:38:12,080 --> 00:38:18,280 seem very troubling. How can you say that they fear 556 00:38:18,280 --> 00:38:22,560 the Lord and in the same breath say that they serve their own 557 00:38:22,560 --> 00:38:27,560 gods? Seems like a contradiction. 558 00:38:29,280 --> 00:38:31,640 Well, it's clarified with context. 559 00:38:32,680 --> 00:38:35,600 All you have to do is keep reading and it begins to make a 560 00:38:35,600 --> 00:38:38,600 little bit more sense. So look briefly at verse 34. 561 00:38:39,640 --> 00:38:43,960 To this day, they do. According to the former manner, 562 00:38:44,200 --> 00:38:50,120 they do not fear the Lord and they do not follow the statutes 563 00:38:50,120 --> 00:38:53,080 or the rules or the law or the commandment that the Lord 564 00:38:53,080 --> 00:38:57,760 commanded the children of Jacob. So this helps us understand 565 00:38:57,760 --> 00:39:01,240 what's really going on here, that whatever allegiance that 566 00:39:01,240 --> 00:39:05,040 these people groups show to the Lord, it was not the way God 567 00:39:05,040 --> 00:39:09,720 designed it to be. It was a measure of respect. 568 00:39:10,480 --> 00:39:15,160 It was a partial recognition. It was a diluted devotion. 569 00:39:18,160 --> 00:39:21,360 But in reality, they simply added Yahweh to their pantheon. 570 00:39:22,720 --> 00:39:26,920 To them, he was just the God of this land, not the God of all 571 00:39:26,920 --> 00:39:29,400 things. And so they thought what was 572 00:39:29,400 --> 00:39:32,640 demanded of them was just to add Yahweh to their other list of 573 00:39:32,640 --> 00:39:38,520 idols. And surely this inept priest 574 00:39:38,520 --> 00:39:43,000 from Bethel didn't make things easier for them to decipher. 575 00:39:43,160 --> 00:39:45,160 Did he know? If anything, he probably 576 00:39:45,160 --> 00:39:48,680 encouraged them to worship all these false gods. 577 00:39:51,240 --> 00:39:53,640 And here's what we can make of this for ourselves. 578 00:39:54,520 --> 00:39:58,960 Like any truth that's found in the Word of God, our sinful 579 00:39:59,880 --> 00:40:06,120 inclinations and tendencies can warp what God asks of us, all 580 00:40:06,120 --> 00:40:07,760 the while thinking we're really honoring Him. 581 00:40:07,760 --> 00:40:11,440 Let me give you an example. Are there people out there who 582 00:40:11,440 --> 00:40:13,680 misinterpret and misapply the grace of God? 583 00:40:14,320 --> 00:40:17,800 Absolutely. Other many who attempt to 584 00:40:17,800 --> 00:40:22,480 justify even reference Scripture to defend their sin. 585 00:40:23,200 --> 00:40:28,800 Yes, which means that there is a right and wrong understanding of 586 00:40:28,800 --> 00:40:30,560 the grace of God. And that's a distinction that 587 00:40:30,560 --> 00:40:33,520 the New Testament even makes. And where my mind went to when 588 00:40:33,520 --> 00:40:38,520 meditating on this earlier today is how Peter ends his initial 589 00:40:38,520 --> 00:40:39,400 epistle. What is he saying? 590 00:40:39,400 --> 00:40:42,120 First, Peter 5, He says, it's in verse 12. 591 00:40:42,600 --> 00:40:47,160 I have written briefly to you exhorting and declaring that 592 00:40:47,160 --> 00:40:50,080 this is oh, I wish we had it on the screen. 593 00:40:51,080 --> 00:40:53,520 It's in your Bibles, though, He says, let me say it again. 594 00:40:53,520 --> 00:40:57,880 I have written briefly to you exhorting and declaring that 595 00:40:57,880 --> 00:41:02,720 this is the true grace of God. Stand for a minute. 596 00:41:04,120 --> 00:41:08,080 So as he's wrapping things up with his letter, he wants to 597 00:41:08,080 --> 00:41:12,440 confirm that everything that he explained to them is the true 598 00:41:12,600 --> 00:41:15,680 grace of God. Which implies what? 599 00:41:16,360 --> 00:41:17,760 That there's a false grace of God. 600 00:41:21,120 --> 00:41:26,920 In like manner, can we not say that there is a true fear of God 601 00:41:27,440 --> 00:41:30,400 and there is a false form of fear of God? 602 00:41:31,400 --> 00:41:34,640 What we're seeing here with this, this people group is the 603 00:41:34,640 --> 00:41:40,080 embracing and the deception of a false fear of God, an 604 00:41:40,080 --> 00:41:42,960 acknowledgement of him, but not the way God intended it to be. 605 00:41:44,760 --> 00:41:49,360 And so the Holy Spirit wants to confirm in verse 34 that they 606 00:41:49,360 --> 00:41:53,880 did not really fear the Lord. They added the Lord. 607 00:41:55,600 --> 00:41:59,160 They had some concept of the Lord, they did things for the 608 00:41:59,160 --> 00:42:02,000 Lord, but the true fear of the Lord is total devotion to the 609 00:42:02,000 --> 00:42:05,080 Lord. And So what do we find? 610 00:42:05,840 --> 00:42:09,040 Let's revisit verse 34. To this day. 611 00:42:09,320 --> 00:42:11,520 They do according to the former manner. 612 00:42:11,920 --> 00:42:15,160 They do not fear the Lord, and they do not follow the statutes, 613 00:42:15,160 --> 00:42:18,000 or the rules, or the law, or the commandment that the Lord 614 00:42:18,000 --> 00:42:20,840 commanded the children of Jacob, whom He named Israel. 615 00:42:22,120 --> 00:42:24,240 The Lord made a covenant with them and commanded them. 616 00:42:24,520 --> 00:42:27,800 You shall not fear other gods, or bow yourselves to them, or 617 00:42:27,800 --> 00:42:31,880 serve them, or sacrifice to them, but you shall fear the 618 00:42:31,880 --> 00:42:35,280 Lord, who brought you out of the land of Egypt with great power 619 00:42:35,480 --> 00:42:38,560 and with an outstretched arm. You shall bow yourselves to him, 620 00:42:38,560 --> 00:42:43,480 and to Him you shall sacrifice, and the statutes and the rules 621 00:42:43,480 --> 00:42:46,080 and the law and the commandment that He wrote for you, you shall 622 00:42:46,080 --> 00:42:49,360 always be careful to do. You shall not fear other gods, 623 00:42:49,560 --> 00:42:52,080 and you shall not forget the covenant that I've made with 624 00:42:52,080 --> 00:42:54,920 you. You shall not fear other gods, 625 00:42:55,080 --> 00:42:59,400 but you shall fear the Lord your God, and He will deliver you out 626 00:42:59,400 --> 00:43:05,080 of the hand of all your enemies. However, they would not listen, 627 00:43:05,680 --> 00:43:07,640 but they did according to their former manner. 628 00:43:08,440 --> 00:43:12,200 So these nations fear the Lord and also serve their carved 629 00:43:12,200 --> 00:43:15,600 images. Their children did likewise, and 630 00:43:15,600 --> 00:43:20,160 their children's children as their fathers did so they do to 631 00:43:20,160 --> 00:43:22,160 this day. You want to know how this 632 00:43:22,160 --> 00:43:26,160 continued, how far it continued? Today's of the Samaritan woman. 633 00:43:30,040 --> 00:43:33,040 This chapter closes with an important flashback of the 634 00:43:33,040 --> 00:43:36,120 covenant of the Lord made with the children of Jacob. 635 00:43:38,320 --> 00:43:41,800 Moreover, it highlights that this new synchronistic religion 636 00:43:41,800 --> 00:43:46,520 that has permeated Samaria, something that violated the 637 00:43:46,520 --> 00:43:51,600 expectations that God had with this covenant, with this people. 638 00:43:53,840 --> 00:43:58,320 You know, you have some people who in our day are trying to 639 00:43:58,320 --> 00:44:00,200 achieve what happened in Samaria. 640 00:44:00,200 --> 00:44:05,800 Here they're fighting for the erasure of the exclusivity of 641 00:44:05,800 --> 00:44:10,480 truth claims they praise, and they're trying to promote the 642 00:44:10,520 --> 00:44:13,280 the merging of different religious paths. 643 00:44:14,000 --> 00:44:16,400 Well, they're just different expressions, different ways to 644 00:44:16,400 --> 00:44:22,880 the same God. But what man applauds, what man 645 00:44:22,880 --> 00:44:28,120 exalts, God condemns and he sees as an abomination. 646 00:44:29,360 --> 00:44:33,480 And that's what I want to try to convey by reading this to you in 647 00:44:33,480 --> 00:44:37,880 one reading, to understand that as the Lord reviews this, he 648 00:44:37,880 --> 00:44:41,640 wants to ensure that he does not want this. 649 00:44:42,040 --> 00:44:44,840 It's a violation to what he expected from his people. 650 00:44:47,000 --> 00:44:50,880 And just in case that there is anyone under the false 651 00:44:52,280 --> 00:44:57,920 assumption who believed for some reason that God's passion for 652 00:44:57,920 --> 00:45:02,360 the truth somehow evolves, and it evolves in the New Testament, 653 00:45:03,920 --> 00:45:07,000 let me remind you what Jesus Christ said to somebody who 654 00:45:07,000 --> 00:45:08,600 belonged to this group of people. 655 00:45:09,280 --> 00:45:13,320 The very same woman that Christ had compassion toward is the 656 00:45:13,320 --> 00:45:16,880 very same Jesus who said the following in John 422. 657 00:45:18,200 --> 00:45:20,440 You worship what you do not know. 658 00:45:21,240 --> 00:45:24,520 We worship what we know for what? 659 00:45:24,920 --> 00:45:32,440 For salvation is from the Jews. I have read and I've even heard 660 00:45:32,560 --> 00:45:39,560 preachers appeal to John chapter 4 to try to make a case for 661 00:45:39,560 --> 00:45:48,240 racial justice, overcoming social barriers, the 662 00:45:48,240 --> 00:45:52,920 reconciliation of our differences, how to achieve 663 00:45:52,920 --> 00:45:55,520 harmony with different backgrounds. 664 00:45:57,280 --> 00:45:59,000 And I believe they missed the point. 665 00:46:00,080 --> 00:46:03,920 Yes, there is an element here of the Lord doing something outside 666 00:46:03,920 --> 00:46:07,480 of the norms of his culture. But what's the goal? 667 00:46:08,000 --> 00:46:10,400 To bring this woman to saving faith? 668 00:46:13,560 --> 00:46:16,800 And he was willing to do what? To tell her in the process. 669 00:46:17,280 --> 00:46:18,520 You don't know what worship is about. 670 00:46:20,240 --> 00:46:23,680 You're in error. The way you think you relate to 671 00:46:23,680 --> 00:46:28,320 God is wrong. So he was willing to this woman, 672 00:46:28,320 --> 00:46:32,240 yes, who had a very shattered history with men, a very sinful 673 00:46:32,240 --> 00:46:37,160 past, very ashamed, and yet he had to say you are not in the 674 00:46:37,160 --> 00:46:39,560 right, but I'm here to tell you the truth. 675 00:46:41,680 --> 00:46:45,880 And so the same heartbeat that we find here in 2nd 17, as the 676 00:46:45,880 --> 00:46:48,680 Lord now gives commentary, what's taking place here among 677 00:46:48,680 --> 00:46:51,840 the Samaritans continues in Christ. 678 00:46:52,280 --> 00:46:54,640 He is still passionate about the truth. 679 00:46:55,400 --> 00:46:57,960 He's still inviting people in air to come to the light. 680 00:47:01,000 --> 00:47:02,240 You worship what you do not know. 681 00:47:02,240 --> 00:47:04,720 We worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 682 00:47:05,920 --> 00:47:08,640 And He leads her step by step. All the patience of Christ, even 683 00:47:08,640 --> 00:47:11,560 in His evangelism. She wasn't getting it right 684 00:47:11,560 --> 00:47:16,040 away, but He was willing to bring her through this process 685 00:47:16,040 --> 00:47:19,560 until she arrived at the knowledge that would change her 686 00:47:19,560 --> 00:47:22,720 life forever. But there's another thing that 687 00:47:22,720 --> 00:47:25,000 stands out from these verses. I mean, you heard it over and 688 00:47:25,000 --> 00:47:26,760 over. Do not fear other gods. 689 00:47:26,880 --> 00:47:28,440 You shall fear the Lord. It's everywhere. 690 00:47:28,440 --> 00:47:30,640 It's just it's peppered all over these verses. 691 00:47:32,240 --> 00:47:34,160 But something stood out to me and we'll close with this 692 00:47:34,160 --> 00:47:39,160 observation in verse 40. After mentioning the fear of God 693 00:47:39,160 --> 00:47:44,120 in different ways so many times, the author writes, however, they 694 00:47:44,120 --> 00:47:52,800 would not listen those 4 words. They would not listen, but they 695 00:47:52,800 --> 00:47:54,640 did according to their former manner. 696 00:47:56,640 --> 00:48:00,760 One way we can be certain that we fear the Lord is that we 697 00:48:00,760 --> 00:48:06,160 listen. We listen to God's Word not just 698 00:48:06,160 --> 00:48:07,440 with our ears, but with our hearts. 699 00:48:09,080 --> 00:48:13,080 We are eager to obey. In other words, the extent to 700 00:48:13,080 --> 00:48:17,200 which this book has authority over your life is a key 701 00:48:17,200 --> 00:48:19,160 indicator of the strength of your awe of God. 702 00:48:21,720 --> 00:48:22,880 You fear God. I fear God. 703 00:48:22,880 --> 00:48:25,040 OK, what does this book mean to you? 704 00:48:25,040 --> 00:48:28,800 Does this book have the final say, no matter what it 705 00:48:28,800 --> 00:48:34,560 challenges with your predispositions and what you 706 00:48:34,560 --> 00:48:36,200 hold too dearly? What's rooted in you? 707 00:48:36,200 --> 00:48:38,520 What's been passed down generationally, what you've 708 00:48:38,520 --> 00:48:40,360 heard in your own church background? 709 00:48:40,680 --> 00:48:44,000 What does the Bible have to say, and do you agree with it? 710 00:48:45,520 --> 00:48:48,680 That tells you and I so much about a person's fear of God. 711 00:48:49,960 --> 00:48:56,440 They would not listen. I love to make these claims 712 00:48:56,480 --> 00:48:59,600 because they're biblical and then just compact it with more 713 00:48:59,600 --> 00:49:02,840 Bible. And so as I'm reading 2nd 17, 714 00:49:02,840 --> 00:49:05,360 earlier in this week, I'm revisiting the book of Exodus. 715 00:49:06,080 --> 00:49:09,080 And what I found in Exodus, what I was reminded of in a 716 00:49:09,080 --> 00:49:13,400 particular place, just makes the point that I'm ending with that 717 00:49:13,400 --> 00:49:17,040 much more strong. So we come to a particular 718 00:49:17,040 --> 00:49:20,800 plague in Exodus 9. Why don't we turn there and 719 00:49:20,800 --> 00:49:25,160 we'll finish with it? In Exodus Chapter 9, Moses 720 00:49:25,160 --> 00:49:32,720 confronts Pharaoh yet again with the 7th plague, which was the 721 00:49:32,720 --> 00:49:36,640 threat of unusual hail crashing on everything. 722 00:49:39,240 --> 00:49:42,680 And notice what he says here in verse 19. 723 00:49:43,440 --> 00:49:47,320 Now therefore send get your livestock and all that you have 724 00:49:47,320 --> 00:49:49,760 in the field and to safe shelter. 725 00:49:50,000 --> 00:49:53,440 For every man and beast that is in the field and is not brought 726 00:49:53,440 --> 00:49:56,600 home will die when the hail falls on them. 727 00:49:58,160 --> 00:49:59,440 Notice what happens in the next verse. 728 00:49:59,880 --> 00:50:06,480 Then whoever feared the word of the Lord among the servants of 729 00:50:06,480 --> 00:50:12,440 Pharaoh, hurried. They hurried his slaves and his 730 00:50:12,440 --> 00:50:17,840 livestock into the houses, but whoever did not pay attention to 731 00:50:17,840 --> 00:50:21,400 the word of the Lord left his slaves and his livestock in the 732 00:50:21,400 --> 00:50:28,320 field. Connect fearing the Lord with 733 00:50:28,320 --> 00:50:33,120 paying attention to the word of the Lord, and connect not 734 00:50:33,120 --> 00:50:35,880 fearing the Lord with not paying attention to the word of the 735 00:50:35,880 --> 00:50:38,480 Lord. Does that not confirm what we 736 00:50:38,480 --> 00:50:44,920 read in Second Kings 17? They would not listen and every 737 00:50:44,920 --> 00:50:47,480 word matters here, right? Once they heard what Moses said 738 00:50:47,480 --> 00:50:50,640 in verse 20, it says that the servants of Pharaoh, they 739 00:50:50,640 --> 00:50:53,280 hurried, they didn't drag their feet. 740 00:50:54,560 --> 00:50:58,520 I argue that they echoed what we find there in Genesis 22 when 741 00:50:58,680 --> 00:51:00,800 the Lord visits Abraham and he says, Abraham, I want you to 742 00:51:00,800 --> 00:51:03,840 give up your son. Yes, the son whom you love. 743 00:51:04,360 --> 00:51:06,240 And read there in the introduction of that chapter 744 00:51:06,240 --> 00:51:12,680 that he rose early. He didn't delay, he didn't toss 745 00:51:12,680 --> 00:51:14,360 back and forth in bed. What was that a dream? 746 00:51:14,360 --> 00:51:18,600 Was that really the Lord? He got up, he packed his bags, 747 00:51:18,600 --> 00:51:22,440 he brought his son, he brought company, and they made their way 748 00:51:23,080 --> 00:51:26,840 towards the mountains of Moriah. They hurried. 749 00:51:29,120 --> 00:51:31,720 How does your heart respond when you hear something that confirms 750 00:51:31,720 --> 00:51:37,120 or convicts you to the degree that the word of the Lord has? 751 00:51:37,120 --> 00:51:42,760 That kind of force in your soul is the measure of the pulse of 752 00:51:42,760 --> 00:51:45,520 your absolute reverence and awe towards God. 753 00:51:47,000 --> 00:51:49,480 Isn't it wonderful? It's not necessarily a feeling, 754 00:51:49,480 --> 00:51:52,640 though feeling is included. It's about response. 755 00:51:52,800 --> 00:51:56,760 It's about conviction. It's about what's authoritative 756 00:51:56,760 --> 00:52:02,760 in your life. And so let me end the way we 757 00:52:02,760 --> 00:52:08,560 ended last week that everything went wrong for this people 758 00:52:10,040 --> 00:52:14,000 because they fail to fear God. It's no different for people 759 00:52:14,000 --> 00:52:17,520 today. You can trace everything back to 760 00:52:17,520 --> 00:52:20,320 that. A refusal, denial, or a 761 00:52:20,320 --> 00:52:24,440 weakening in this place of your heart, seeing God for who He 762 00:52:24,440 --> 00:52:27,360 truly is. May the Lord inspire fresh fear 763 00:52:27,360 --> 00:52:30,840 of Him. As we close this chapter, we 764 00:52:30,840 --> 00:52:35,720 thank you, Lord, that you've led us through this wonderful text, 765 00:52:36,920 --> 00:52:39,400 instrumental in our understanding of the history of 766 00:52:39,400 --> 00:52:43,280 your works in this world. Help us be able to retain it, 767 00:52:43,280 --> 00:52:49,200 not forget it. Help us walk away with ears that 768 00:52:49,200 --> 00:52:54,080 are open and remaining open. Lord, we love you because even 769 00:52:54,080 --> 00:52:56,320 in this we can see your Son, the Lord Jesus. 770 00:52:56,320 --> 00:53:00,440 Even in this we can see principles that apply to us in 771 00:53:00,440 --> 00:53:03,640 the New covenant. And for this, Lord, we want to 772 00:53:03,800 --> 00:53:07,240 worship you. We want to rejoice, we want to 773 00:53:07,280 --> 00:53:11,200 give you our awe. You are gracious to us. 774 00:53:11,200 --> 00:53:17,480 O God and Lord, we pray that you would even give us a fresh seal 775 00:53:17,480 --> 00:53:21,840 to reach out to those around us. Help us overcome fear and the 776 00:53:21,840 --> 00:53:23,520 things that we try to convince ourselves with. 777 00:53:23,520 --> 00:53:28,560 To not be bold and not be clear and not be caring enough to look 778 00:53:28,560 --> 00:53:30,600 at people that we know, even strangers. 779 00:53:30,960 --> 00:53:34,440 Be willing to step in so that they can be delivered. 780 00:53:37,160 --> 00:53:42,360 Help us love the truth. Help us hold on to this word 781 00:53:43,640 --> 00:53:45,400 with absolute delight and treasure. 782 00:53:46,720 --> 00:53:52,800 And Lord, help us live for you. We ask these things in Jesus 783 00:53:52,800 --> 00:53:54,000 name, Amen.