Thursday, May 5, 2011
II Kings 9:36
Thursday, May 05, 2011 |
Wherefore they came again, and told him. And he said, This is the word of the LORD, which he spake by his servant Elijah the Tishbite, saying, In the portion of Jezreel shall dogs eat the flesh of Jezebel:
There are some very interesting characters in this Biblical narrative that reveal a very important principle of Bible prophecy or should I say several principles of Bible prophecy. I'll get to those principles in a moment, but first, the narrative.
From II Kings 3 through 8 we see the account of the beginning of Elisha’s ministry. Elisha had prayed for a "double portion of the spirit be upon him", II Kings 2:9, and this young Prophet "took up the mantle of Elijah that fell from him", II Kings 2:13.
Now in II Kings 9 we see additional information about the "prophetic ministry" of Elisha, a ministry that was a major part of the life of the Jewish people. As already mentioned there are some very important principles that we need to learn.
Jehu is the son of Jehoshaphat and had been made king of Israel, which included the 10 tribes who had separated from the other 2 tribes Benjamin and Judah. God would use Jehu to fulfill the prophecy He had given through Elijah.
Jehu would travel to Jezreel, the city, and be confronted by the wicked Jezebel. Do you remember her? She was the patron saint of the Prophets of Baal that were defeated and killed by Elijah, I Kings 18.
After Elijah defeated the 400 prophets of Baal on Mt. Carmel, he ran, in fact, out ran King Ahab, Jezebel's husband and wicked king of Israel, all the way to Jezreel, I Kings 18:46.
It was Jezebel who threatened to take the life of Elijah, I Kings 19:2, and scared Elijah so much that he ran for his life all the way to Mt. Sinai. However, Elijah returned to the land of Israel and gave the prophecy that Jezebel would die and her body would be eaten by the dogs, I Kings 21:23.
Now back to our narrative. The King of Israel, Jehu, would be used of God to fulfill the prophecy God gave to Elijah. After Jezebel's death, Jehu had her body thrown down to the ground and she was trodden upon under his feet.
Jehu commanded that Jezebel be buried, but when the men went to take her body for burial, all they found was the skull, feet and the palms of her hands. The dogs had eaten her flesh, which is what Elijah had prophesied would happen.
That is the narrative, and now the "principles" of Bible prophecy. Elijah had prophesied that dogs would eat the flesh of Jezebel in Jezreel. If it is indeed a prophecy from God through one of His prophets, it will happen just like it was prophesied - word for word, Deuteronomy 18:20-22 That is what happened here.
The second principle of Bible prophecy is that when one of God's prophecies is fulfilled that is assurance additional prophecies from God will also be fulfilled. There are countless records of that principle applied throughout the Bible. We will look at them as we continue our journey through the Bible with "prophetic prospectives" on our daily devotional.
Rest assured, this account of Jezebel's death confirms prophecies for the "last days", which will also be fulfilled. As one studies through the prophetic word and compares these passages to current events, it is evident that Jesus is coming soon. Keep looking up, it could be today.
PRAYER THOT: Help me, dear Lord, in my study of prophecy to better understand the times we live in and the nearness of His coming.
For further reading - II Kings 9:30-37
There are some very interesting characters in this Biblical narrative that reveal a very important principle of Bible prophecy or should I say several principles of Bible prophecy. I'll get to those principles in a moment, but first, the narrative.
From II Kings 3 through 8 we see the account of the beginning of Elisha’s ministry. Elisha had prayed for a "double portion of the spirit be upon him", II Kings 2:9, and this young Prophet "took up the mantle of Elijah that fell from him", II Kings 2:13.
Now in II Kings 9 we see additional information about the "prophetic ministry" of Elisha, a ministry that was a major part of the life of the Jewish people. As already mentioned there are some very important principles that we need to learn.
Jehu is the son of Jehoshaphat and had been made king of Israel, which included the 10 tribes who had separated from the other 2 tribes Benjamin and Judah. God would use Jehu to fulfill the prophecy He had given through Elijah.
Jehu would travel to Jezreel, the city, and be confronted by the wicked Jezebel. Do you remember her? She was the patron saint of the Prophets of Baal that were defeated and killed by Elijah, I Kings 18.
After Elijah defeated the 400 prophets of Baal on Mt. Carmel, he ran, in fact, out ran King Ahab, Jezebel's husband and wicked king of Israel, all the way to Jezreel, I Kings 18:46.
It was Jezebel who threatened to take the life of Elijah, I Kings 19:2, and scared Elijah so much that he ran for his life all the way to Mt. Sinai. However, Elijah returned to the land of Israel and gave the prophecy that Jezebel would die and her body would be eaten by the dogs, I Kings 21:23.
Now back to our narrative. The King of Israel, Jehu, would be used of God to fulfill the prophecy God gave to Elijah. After Jezebel's death, Jehu had her body thrown down to the ground and she was trodden upon under his feet.
Jehu commanded that Jezebel be buried, but when the men went to take her body for burial, all they found was the skull, feet and the palms of her hands. The dogs had eaten her flesh, which is what Elijah had prophesied would happen.
That is the narrative, and now the "principles" of Bible prophecy. Elijah had prophesied that dogs would eat the flesh of Jezebel in Jezreel. If it is indeed a prophecy from God through one of His prophets, it will happen just like it was prophesied - word for word, Deuteronomy 18:20-22 That is what happened here.
The second principle of Bible prophecy is that when one of God's prophecies is fulfilled that is assurance additional prophecies from God will also be fulfilled. There are countless records of that principle applied throughout the Bible. We will look at them as we continue our journey through the Bible with "prophetic prospectives" on our daily devotional.
Rest assured, this account of Jezebel's death confirms prophecies for the "last days", which will also be fulfilled. As one studies through the prophetic word and compares these passages to current events, it is evident that Jesus is coming soon. Keep looking up, it could be today.
PRAYER THOT: Help me, dear Lord, in my study of prophecy to better understand the times we live in and the nearness of His coming.