Father, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts that Lord,
we have a promise from You that death is not the final say.
We have eternity. We have you, your presence, your
glory to enjoy forever and ever. But until then, Lord, we pray
that our pilgrimage here on earth would be effective and
fruitful. Lord, we don't, we don't chase
after platforms or notoriety or recognition.
Lord, just make us content and faithfulness.
And may we each be absolutely convinced that we are walking in
the center of your will. And Lord, may we know true
contentment and longevity in that pursuit, in that
discipline, in that calling that has been clarified to each of
us. Lord, we pray that you would use
this final study in Second Kings to help us draw closer to you
and to know Your will for our lives.
We trust that you will use it. In Jesus name we pray.
Amen. Well, ladies and gentlemen,
brothers and sisters, tonight marks the final installment in
our study of the Book of Second Kings.
And I'm sure that you can agree that this book has presented us
a series of dramatic studies as we've been carefully observing
the decline of a nation who had a unique relationship with God
unlike any other nation and it's day.
And for the first time reader, it may seem that there's nothing
more to say after the last statement of the final verse in
our previous study. If you don't remember, look
quickly at verse 21 of Second Kings 25 and notice what the
writer records the last sentence there.
So Judah was taken into exile out of its land.
What more do you need to say after that?
The Babylonian conquest is complete.
Jerusalem lies and ruins. The majority of God's people are
now removed from the Promised Land and will endure the height
of heavenly discipline for many decades ahead.
What more can be said after this?
Well, clearly the Holy Spirit has more to say.
And as we are prepared to read this new section, I have a
feeling that the opening verses of it will not surprise us,
sadly. But the final part, the final
portion might because it offers incredible encouragement to us,
especially when we consider this being Israel's darkest hour.
But before we get to that hopeful closing, we have to
engage with the disappointing commentary that comes before it.
So let's read now. Second Kings 25, beginning of
verse 22 down to verse 24. And over the people who remained
in the land of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon,
had left. He appointed Gedalia the son of
Akhiqam son of Shafan governor. Now when all the captains and
their men heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gadalia
governor, they came with their men to Gadalia and Mizpah,
namely, Ishmael the son of Athania and Johanna, and the son
of Karea, and Soraya the son of Tanumeth the Neathophathite, and
Jehaziya the son of the Makatite.
And Gadalia swore to them and their men, saying, Do not be
afraid because of the Chaldean officials.
Live in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and it shall be
well with you. We noted last week that after
the Babylonians came in and orchestrated their final
deportation, they had left behind some vine dressers and
plowmen to tend the land. But even that small remnant
required some kind of oversight and leadership.
Nebuchadnezzar was wise enough to recognize that.
So what does he do? He appoints a governor.
He raises up a man by the name of Gadalia to fulfill that role.
Now, we don't know much about Gadalia, but there's something
about his father and his grandfather that helps us know a
little bit of his background in history.
He is the son of Ari Kham. Now, Ari Kham was one of
Josiah's top officials. We remember Josiah, the great
reformer. He played a role in helping
bring reform. And more than that, when you
read Jeremiah carefully, Ahikam actually protected Jeremiah from
being killed by the king. So this man Ahikam was a
righteous person, and it seems like his son Gadalia was
following in his steps. And it could be that
Nebuchadnezzar, though a Pagan himself, recognized something
noble about Godalia. That's why he granted him and
appointed him as a leader in this respect.
And Godalia's instructions to the remnant that remained
reflects his submissiveness and his integrity.
What did he tell the people? He said, look, don't be afraid
of the Chaldeans. As long as we remain here and
don't cause trouble, it will be well with you.
He's echoing what Jeremiah had prophesied for years.
And so we see that this man was also an ally to the prophet in
many ways, including and what we see here with his exhortation.
But although the Babylonians were not the ones to fear in the
story, there is someone else, and he's not associated with the
Chaldeans. Let's read now here in verse 25
to verse 26. But in the seventh month,
Ishmael, the son of Athenia, son of Eli Shama of the royal
family, came with 10 men and struck down Gadalia and put him
to death, along with the Jews and the Chaldeans who are with
him at Mizpah. Then all the people, both small
and great, and the captains of the forces, arose and went to
Egypt, for they were afraid of the Chaldeans.
It's hard to imagine how this can be true.
Are you kidding me? Jerusalem has fallen, Babylon
has conquered, thousands have died, and thousands more have
been removed from their homes. And it hasn't been very long
until we learn of a murder case among the remnant who are kept
back. This is absolutely absurd.
This is mind numbing. This is yet another case, I
believe, that helps us make a little bit more sense of
Jeremiah's words when he famously said that the heart is
deceitfully wicked above all things, desperately sick.
And he ends it by saying, who can understand it?
Who can understand? Indeed, who can understand?
I can't understand this. You guys have been brought so
low and you still have it in you to kill each other.
This is demented. This is twisted.
This is the human heart. And we cannot fully comprehend
just how depraved and twisted this heart really is.
Why did this happen? Why was Gadalia assassinated?
Well, with a little investigation we can learn
exactly why the culprit of the assassination is who?
A man by the name of Ishmael. Ishmael.
Now Ishmael, according to verse 23, was among who looked back
again. Now, when all the captains and
their men heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gadalia
governor, he's one of the captains.
Who are these captains? Very likely some of the military
leaders or guerrilla leaders who were successful in evading the
Babylonian conquest and exile. So they they must have escaped.
They must have hidden themselves.
And when they saw that the air had cleared, the fury of Babylon
had subsided, and new leadership was established, they come out
of the woodworks and they make their way back to the people.
But there's more to his background.
Read slowly verse 25 once more. But in the seventh month,
Ishmael, the son of Nathaniel, son of Eli Sharma of the royal
family. If you underline your Bible,
underline that part, what does it mean that he's of the royal
family? What does that indicate?
He's a descendant of David. He's from the royal line.
This is now beginning to make sense.
Think about it. How would you feel if you were a
descendant of David and someone outside the royal line was
elected and appointed to be the leader of the people who
remained in Judah? It's easy to see how someone
like Ishmael might have felt like he deserved to be that
leader. He's one of the few that
remained from David's line. And so even though Gedalia was
not made an official king, he was a governor.
You can see how this man, Ishmael was convinced that he
deserved to be the leader, and it disturbed them to the core.
What do you have here? You have selfish ambition at
work. Read closely, read between the
lines, look more carefully, ask more questions.
If he's of the royal family, why do we need to know that?
Because that's the motive behind his murderous plot.
But there's more details. See, there's 2 verses that we
just read. That's just a summary.
We have a detailed account of all that took place here in
Jeremiah's writing. And though we can't touch on
every point, I want you to see with me how Ishmael's plan was
exposed beforehand. It was made known and it shows
us a little bit more of the behind the scenes of why this
happened. Let's go to Jeremiah 40 now this
is quite interesting. Jeremiah 40 and verse 13.
Now Johannan, or Johannan the son of Korea and all the leaders
of the forces in the open country, came to Gadalia at
Mizpah and said to him, Do you know that Balis, the king of the
Ammonites, has sent Ishmael the son of Nathaniel to take your
life? But Gadalia the son of Akhiq
Khan would not believe them. Interesting.
So now we are introduced to another man by the name of
Johanan. He's there in Second Kings 25,
and he is also one of the captains perhaps of a different
band of soldiers that are mercenaries.
And he somehow uncovers Ishmael's plan to assassinate
Gadalia. And so he approaches Gadalia
faithfully. He says, look, you have to
understand this man wants to kill you, and he was actually
hired by the Ammonites to do it. Now here's my question.
Why would the Ammonites be interested in the death of
Gadalia? I'm actually asking, does
anybody have an idea why would the Ammonites be interested?
What does this have to do with them?
I think the best answer is that we saw earlier how the
surrounding nations recognize earlier in our study of second
kings, how they recognize the the, the very dangerous and
concerning uprising and, and powerful entity Babylon was
becoming. And so they attempt on many
occasions to create a coalition to try to figure out how they
can push back and resist this new empire.
And I believe the Ammonites understood that Gedalia's
willingness to work with the Babylonians undermine their
efforts to try to keep them in place.
And so it's likely that Ishmael, in knowing this, actually
approached the Ammonites and said, look, I'll take care of
Gadalia. Yeah, he's a puppet.
Let's get rid of him because he's obviously going to be an
obstacle in our attempt to try to hold Babylon back.
And so he probably got a price for it.
And at the same time, this would serve his personal interest.
We have a profound spiritual lesson before us, brothers and
sisters. You have now a foreign entity,
an enemy of Israel and Judah, working through a descendant of
David. To kill someone who is innocent,
to kill someone who is actually obeying God and submitting to
Babylon. Jealousy and selfish ambition
opens the door for Satan to enter and 'cause civil war among
God's people. Every time you think that's an
exaggeration, I'm here to tell you that the New Testament says
it in a very plain and obvious way.
Go to James chapter 3. We have looked at these verses
throughout our study of kings more than once.
You know why? Because we've seen jealousy and
selfish ambition at play and more than one occasion.
And I just find it amazing that this is one of the final lessons
that God want God wants to give us in our conclusion of this
study. Look at James chapter 3 and
verse 14. He's speaking to many Christians
in different areas and notice what he says.
But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your
hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth.
This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but it's
earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish
ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile
practice. End Quote.
Including murder. Including murder.
Want to talk about vile practice?
Murder is on that list. But did you notice how the word
demonic is sandwiched between the two references to jealousy
and selfish ambition? It's mentioned there in verse 14
and in verse 16. And what's tucked between
demonic? So it's not an exaggeration to
say that where pride and self entitlement is harbored and
justified, not resisted, not fought against, not brought
before God in His presence, you make a way for demonic activity
to intensify and to destroy anything that is good, anything
that is holy, anything that is righteous like Gadalia
represents. Brothers and sisters, be careful
of these things in your heart and in my heart, because if you
let them have free range, it will ravage a marriage, it will
disintegrate any friendship. It can shut the doors of a
church until nothing remains. I mean, Israel has already been
brought so low. And I mean Israel.
I'm talking about Judah specifically.
And yet because of Ishmael's selfish ambition, he brought it
even lower. I mean, how much lower can you
get? Everything's in rubble.
Everything is still burning, and yet you still have it in you for
your own sake, for your own name, for your own ego, to
destroy it further. It's hideous.
It's it's terrifying and it's something that we should be
warned about. Here's what moved me.
One of the final lessons in our study of Second Kings is a
warning about jealousy and selfish ambition.
Kill it fast about it. Starve it out of your heart if
you have to. Come before God and take time
away from everything else until that thing is eradicated from
your soul because it won't stay in your heart.
It will make a way for Satan to come in and do things that you
never thought was possible. And there's more that can be
said about Gadalia and his refusal to believe the report.
We can spend a lot of time there.
Like leadership can't afford to be naive.
That's one lesson. He refused to believe that
Ishmael was capable of killing him.
If you're a leader in this place, you got to be more
discerning than that. You got to be more careful than
that. You got to be willing to
investigate even those that you you think are not capable of
doing certain things. And he refused to do that.
But we have to move on and look at what's mentioned here in the
rest of Second Kings. Come back with me.
Look again at verse 26 of Second Kings 25.
After Gadalia's murdered, we read then all the people, both
small and great, and the captains of the forces arose and
went to Egypt, but they were afraid of the Chaldeans.
Egypt. What's going on here?
Here's what's happening. So remember we read about that
man who reported to Gaddalia what Ishmael was up to Johanna.
Well, when you read later on in Jeremiah, he actually scares
Ishmael away. Ishmael attempts to take the
remnant captive and to bring him to the Ammonites.
And who comes to the rescue? This individual.
And so he keeps the remnant. He brings him back home, but
everybody now is afraid of the Babylonians.
Why? Because the man that
Nebuchadnezzar had appointed was just assassinated.
So you can imagine what they're thinking, can imagine the fear.
Oh, Nebuchadnezzar, if he hears this, he's going to take us all
the way now. And So what did they decide to
do? OK, let's just go to Egypt.
He won't come to Egypt. Let's flee there.
Let's stay there for a little while and then we'll come back
to our hometown. And what's so amazing?
I mean, if you want to look at this in detail, go to Jeremiah
41 to chapter 43. You don't have to turn there,
but read it on your own time. They actually approached
Jeremiah. They say, Jeremiah, can you ask
God if this is his will for us to go to Egypt?
And Jeremiah says, OK, give me some time to pray.
A few days go by. Jeremiah gets a word from the
Lord and tells the leaders and the remnant don't trust God,
stay put, He'll take care of you.
Babylon will do nothing. What do you think the people
did? You're a liar.
They actually called Jeremiah a liar.
And so this man now who seemed to be righteous, I mean, he
reported Ishmael's plot. He actually rescued the remnant.
Now he leads the effort of bringing the remnant into Egypt,
and he even forces Jeremiah to go, yes, Jeremiah had some
ministry time in Egypt. And so while they're in Egypt,
God gives Jeremiah a word. And here's the summary.
Hey, Jeremiah, tell everybody who went down to Egypt that
they're going to die in Egypt and that they will never return
to their homeland. That's their punishment for not
trusting in me. This is heavy.
This is disheartening. It you almost feel like when is
this going to end? Well, it's almost over.
And as deeply disturbing this is, thankfully it doesn't end
there. Look now at verse 27.
This is where we're ending because we have no choice.
It's ending here. Let's read the rest of it, shall
we? This is going to be a much
shorter Bible study because we have a quiz coming up.
And in the 37th year of the exile of Jehoiakim, king of
Judah, in the 12th month, on the 27th day of the month, evil
Merodach, king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign,
graciously freed Jehoiakim king of Judah from prison.
And he spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat above the seats
of the kings who are with him in Babylon.
So joy I can put off his prison garments.
And every day of his life he dined regularly at the King's
table. And for his allowance a regular
allowance was given him by the king according to his daily
needs as long as he lived. A little bit of a strange way of
wrapping things up, don't you think?
Before we try to make sense of this, let's deal with the facts
that are clear. The Holy Spirit fast forwards in
time and brings us into Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar is no longer on
the throne, His descendant, evil Merodach is.
And what this man chooses to do in the first year of his reign
should shock us. He removes one of the last kings
who went into exile, takes off his prison guards, elevates him
to a prominent position, allows him to regularly dine at the
royal table, and takes care of him plentifully for the rest of
his life until his dying day. No explanation is given, and
that's intentional without notice.
As you come to the end of this record, it's as though the Holy
Spirit wants to stun the reader by providing a final
demonstration of grace, by not just saying it, but by
demonstrating it by providentially working in a
different country altogether. The very instrument of judgement
now becomes the means of relief and grace to a king who
represented the people. You see, what's happening here
is that God is providing a message of hope for the people
of God that after all the things that they've done, after their
nauseating disobedience that we just saw in the preceding
verses, he wants to reveal that he is absolutely faithful to his
promise to David. I have not forgotten my covenant
with David. And he also wants to show in a
very practical way that he is intensely merciful and kind.
And as you and I look at this, we can realize that message even
more by the wider context. What's the very last word of
Second Kings in the ESV? It's the word lived.
If you have any other translation, especially a word
for word translation, it's the word life.
That's the last word that we have in Second Kings life.
Does anybody remember how Second Kings begins?
Go to chapter 1, verse one. I'll wait for you to get there.
After the death of Ahab, Moab rebelled against Israel.
So the very first statement of this book contains the word
death, and the very last word is life.
What's the point? God can rewrite your story even
though your history, your background, is riddled with
death, darkness, perversion, cycles of evil and disobedience,
indifference to the things of God, callous to the warnings
around you. He can change the ending.
The punctuation mark of your life can be life, not death, if
you allow him to. So I'm putting these thoughts
together midweek, and here's the thought that comes to me.
Remember, there are three kings who go into exile.
Jehoiah, Kim, Jehoiah, Kin or kin.
Who's the last one? Zedekiah. 3 deportations, one
for each. Now you can make a case that the
first one, Joya Kim, didn't actually get all the way to
Babylon, though he was arrested and though he was chained, and
though he was brought, some argued that he died along the
way, but he was still planned to go to Babylon.
And here's the thing that I was thinking about.
Out of all the three, why was this undeserved kindness granted
to the middle one? Why not the first?
Why not Zedekiah? I'm meditating, I'm thinking,
I'm comparing. Then it hits me.
Jehoiah Kin did something that the first and the Last King did
not do. Can I show it to you?
Go to Second Kings 24 verse 12, and Jehoiah Kin, the king of
Judah, gave himself up to the king of Babylon himself and his
mother and his servants and his officials and his palace
officials. The king of Babylon took him
prisoner in the eighth year of his reign.
You see it, the first king, Joya Kim, did not give himself up.
Zedekiah tried to escape the Chaldeans and they paid a price
for it. The main difference, though each
of them are rebel in their own way, is that the middle king
surrendered. He surrendered which was in
alignment with God's will surrender to Babylon.
Stop resisting, stop thinking and believing the lies that
you're going to be rescued from this agent of judgement.
Let's put all this together. Do you want God to rewrite your
story? Are you sick and tired of sin?
Are you? Are you deflated yet?
Because the trajectory of your life is disaster?
It has been, and it looks like that's where you're going.
You have to give up. You have to give up.
You have to surrender. That's the only way God can
rewrite the story. You can't hold on to your pride.
You can't hold on to your stubbornness.
You can't hold on to your lust. You can't hold on to that person
that God told you so many times to get rid of.
You can't hold on to the occupation that you know
dishonors the name of Jesus Christ.
You can't hold on to anything God says.
Give up and expect God to rewrite your story.
It'll never happen. Only when you completely
surrender do you have the possibility of God changing the
script of your life. So it's really up to you.
And that's one of the last messages.
In fact, you can say it's the very last message of Second
Kings. Give up.
Give up not because you're just told to and there's no promise
on the other side, because there is so much promise you got to
imagine, but that's what the people reading this originally
and for all time we're supposed to, we're supposed to put
together. Why Jehoiakim?
Because he gave up. And look at how God was kind to
him. He even used an enemy to be kind
to him. What about Zedekiah?
Most likely died in Babylon, a blind man.
What about Jehoiakim? He died a donkey's death, and it
received a donkey's burial, according to Jeremiah.
So here's our reigning Second kings.
Do you have anything you need to give up?
Have you been here since Second Kings 1 and you're still holding
on to that sin and you haven't learned a thing about these
kings? And what happens when you live
in disobedience? Have you not been moved once by
God's incredible mercy from one scenario to the next, one
administration after the other? If your heart is not moved by
what we see here in these final verses, God help you.
This is unbelievable. And the same God who did this
for this king is the same God who can do it for you, but you
have to surrender. How do I know if I surrendered?
You know, no, I don't know. OK, let me help you.
Do some inventory, examine your own life.
Actually ask these questions. If God were to ask me to get rid
of this, would I be able to let go of it?
Go every over every compartment of your existence, everything
believer, even your ministry, even good things, and have an
honest conversation with your own heart.
If God tells me to give this up, am I willing to give it up?
If you can't Ding, Ding, Ding, my friend, you have identified
an idol. But if you can say, Lord, all
that I am and all that I have is yours.
But if there's anything that I'm blinded to, there's anything
that I'm not aware of, if you were to highlight to me and tell
me I need to repent of it, I will repent of it.
That's how you know you've given up to the Lordship of Jesus
Christ and you are promised way more than whatever your little
plan, your little blueprint promise you.
Oh, I want to just say it one more time.
Let tonight really be the turning point as you see this
gracious example provided to you and me to surrender truly and
completely. Well, we thank you for Second
Kings. What an amazing book.
As dark as it has been, it ends with life.
And Lord, if there's one person in this place who's clinging to
death because they're deceived or they're afraid, or, or, or
whatever the reason may be, we ask, Lord, that you would use
these truths to shatter any of those shackles and that they
would know true freedom. Thank you that you are a God
filled with hope. Thank you that no matter what
kind of a mess that we've made of our lives, like Jehovah kin,
you can change it all. You can do a miracle with our
mess. And though we believe that you
are the same God that we are studying and we have been
studying week after week. Lord, may our hearts come alive
and Thanksgiving for how you've spoken to us through 1st and 2nd
Kings. May you receive all the glory, O
Lord, and how we apply these truths and share them with
others so they too may surrender to the kingship of Jesus Christ.
You are All in all. And Lord, we in a fresh way tell
you, we give up, we give up. Have everything, you're worthy
of it. In Jesus name we pray, Amen and
Amen. If you need to stay seated, you
stay seated. If you want to stand, you can
stand. But let's wholeheartedly worship
the Lord. The study is not over yet, but
let's just take this moment to engage with God directly before
we do what we're planning to do next.
So however you are comfortable, as long as you're not
distracting, just engage with these truths and seek God and
pour out your heart to him. He's here, He, he's hearing us
praise him. Come on up.
Thank you.