nd Kings _Chapter 10

Ahab had seventy sons in Samaria. Jehu wrote a letter to Samaria, informing the leaders of Jezreel, the elders and those who raised Ahab’s sons, saying,

Since you have your master’s sons, chariots and horses, equipment, and a fortified city with you,

After receiving this letter, you can choose a wise and suitable one among your master’s sons to sit on his father’s throne, and you can also fight for your master’s house.

But they were greatly afraid and said to each other, “If the two kings still cannot stand before him, how can we stand?”?

The household and city leaders, as well as the elders and those who raised their sons, sent messengers to Jehu, saying, We are your servants, and we will do everything you command us. We will not make anyone king, but do as you please.

Jehu wrote to them again, saying, If you submit to me and obey my voice, bring the heads of your master’s sons to Jezreel to meet me tomorrow at this time. At that time, seventy of the king’s sons lived in the noble homes of the city where they were raised.

As soon as the letter arrived, they killed the king’s seventy sons, put their heads in baskets, and brought them to Jezreel Jehu.

An envoy came to tell Jehu that they had brought the heads of the king’s sons. Jehu said, “Make two piles of heads at the entrance of the city and keep them until tomorrow.”.

The next morning, Jehu came out and stood up to all the people, saying, You are all righteous. I have betrayed my master and killed him. Who killed these people?

From this, it can be seen that the word spoken by the Lord regarding the house of Ahab did not fail, because all the words spoken by the Lord through his servant Elijah were fulfilled.

All the remaining members of the Ahab family in Jezreel, along with his ministers, close friends, priests, and Jehu, were killed, leaving no one behind.

Jehu stood up and went to Samaria. On the road, where the shepherd shears wool,

I met the brothers of King Ahaziah of Judah and asked them, “Who are you?”. And he answered, We are the brothers of Ahaziah, and now we are going down to greet the sons of the king and the queen mother.

Jehu commanded, ‘Take them alive.’. The people who followed captured them alive and killed them by the pit where the sheep were shearing, a total of forty-two people, leaving no one behind.

Jehu went on from there and happened to meet Jonadab, the son of Rechab. Jehu greeted him and said to him, “Are you treating me with sincerity as I am treating you with sincerity?”? Jonada answered, Yes. Jehu said, “If that’s the case, reach out your hand to me, and he will reach out his hand.”. Yehu pulled him onto the car.

Jehu said, Come with me and see how zealous I am for the Lord. So he was asked to sit in the car,

When they arrived in Samaria, they killed all the remaining members of the Ahab family in Samaria until they were completely destroyed, as the Lord had said to Elijah.

Jehu gathered all the people and said to them, Ahab served Baal coldly, but Jehu was even more enthusiastic.

Now I will offer a great sacrifice to Baal. Let all the prophets of Baal and all those who worship Baal, as well as all the priests of Baal, come to me, one is indispensable. Those who do not come must not live. Jehu did this with a cunning plan to kill all the worshippers of Baal.

Jehu said, declare a solemn assembly for Baal. So it was announced.

Jehu sent people throughout the land of Israel. Everyone who worships Baal has come, not a single one is absent. They entered the Baal Temple, which was filled with people from the front to the back.

Jehu ordered the person in charge of the attire to take out the attire and dress it for all those who worship Baal. He took out the formal dress and gave it to them.

Jehu and Jonadab son of Rechal entered the temple of Baal and said to the worshippers, ‘Look and see, there is no servant of the Lord with you, only those who worship Baal are allowed to stay.’.

Jehu and Jonadab went in and offered peace offerings and burnt offerings. Jehu first arranged for eighty people outside the temple and commanded, ‘I will deliver these people into your hands. If any one of them escapes, whoever releases them will have their life paid for.’.

After Jehu finished offering the burnt offering, he went out and commanded the guards and the commanders of the army, saying, Go in and kill them, and do not let any one come out. The guards and commanders killed them with knives, threw their bodies out, and went to the city of Baal Temple,

Take out all the pillars from the Baal Temple and burn them.

Destroyed the Baal pillar statue, demolished the Baal temple as a toilet, to this day.

So Jehu destroyed Baal in Israel.

But Jehu did not depart from the sin that Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, caused Israel to sin, which was the golden calf that worshipped Bethel and Dan.

The Lord said to Jehu, “Because you have done what is right in my eyes and treated the house of Ahab according to my will, your descendants will continue to sit on the throne of Israel in your place until the fourth generation.”.

But Jehu did not wholeheartedly abide by the law of the Lord God of Israel, and did not depart from the sin that Jeroboam caused Israel to commit.

In those days, the Lord separated the land of Israel and caused Hazael to attack the borders of Israel,

On the east side of the Jordan River, all the land of Gilead, from Aroer near the Arnon Valley, including the Gadites, Reubenites, and Manasseh in Gilead and Bashan.

The rest of Jehu’s actions and his strength are written in the book of the kings of Israel.

Jehu slept with his ancestors and was buried in Samaria. His son Jehoahaz succeeded him as king.

Jehu reigned over Israel in Samaria for twenty-eight years.