2 Kings 16 Devotional

Servant of the Wrong King

“So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, saying, “I am your servant and your son. Come up and save me from the hands of the kings of Aram and Israel, who are rising up against me.””2 Kings 16:7 (BSB)

Ahaz turns from the LORD, even sacrificing his son in the fire (16:2-3). When Aram and Israel besiege Jerusalem, he does not turn to the LORD. He calls himself the Assyrian king's servant and son and pays him with silver and gold from the LORD's house (16:7-8). The rescue works, but it costs him his worship. He copies an altar he saw in Damascus, moves the LORD's bronze altar aside, and rearranges the temple for the Assyrian king's sake (16:10-18).

Isaiah tells another side of these days. The LORD invited Ahaz to ask for a sign and Ahaz refused (Isaiah 7:11-12). God gave a sign anyway, a son called Immanuel, and Matthew says it was fulfilled in Jesus, whose name means that God is with his people (Matthew 1:23). Ahaz handed himself over to a foreign king. The LORD gave himself to be with his people. Before reaching for a powerful helper, you can go to the God who has already come near.

To think about: What powerful helper are you tempted to lean on in place of God, and what might it cost you?