Author: Beth Duncan

2 Kings 19:4 It may be that the LORD your God will hear all the words of the field commander, whom his master, the king of Assyria, has sent to ridicule the living God, and that He will rebuke him for the words the LORD has heard. Therefore pray for the remnant that still survives.
And now King Hezekiah has his feet back under him, his eyes back on God. In this chapter, he provides a good roadmap of what to do: Seek the LORD and His people. Ask for guidance and prayer. Bring all Your troubles before the LORD and allow Him to work.
2 Kings 19:5-6 When King Hezekiah’s officials came to Isaiah, Isaiah said to them, “Tell your master, ‘This is what the LORD says: Do not be afraid of what you have heard—those words with which the underlings of the king of Assyria have blasphemed Me.’”
How differently my default reaction would have been. There would have been a lot of sputtering and personal affront. I would have brought it before the LORD, but I would have taken it away with me to stew some more. Jesus, Help me.
2 Kings 19:14 Hezekiah received the letter from the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the temple of the LORD and spread it out before the LORD.
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for the faithful example of Hezekiah in this chapter. Help me, always, to bring my troubles to You and leave them at Your feet. Draw me closer. Amen.
2 Kings 19:15 And Hezekiah prayed to the LORD: “LORD, the God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, You alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth.”
Have a blessed day.

2 Kings 18:3 He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, just as his father David had done.
Finally we have a king who removes the high places, King Hezekiah. He begins his reign strong, but he stumbles. When Sennacherib, king of Assyria attacks and captures the fortified cities of Judah, Hezekiah doubts the LORD, sending a message to Assyria telling Sennacherib that he was wrong and offering to pay if he will withdraw.
2 Kings 18:4 He removed these high places, smashed the sacred stones and cut down the Asherah poles.
Again, it is so easy for me to sit in my recliner and judge Hezekiah for his weakness. But what would I have done in the same situation? Would I have kept my eyes on Jesus or would I have doubted?
2 Kings 18:13 In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah’s reign, Sennacherib king of Assyria attacked all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them.
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for the reminder that the enemy is tricky and will use everything in his power to undermine my confidence in You. Give me strength to see past his lies. Draw me closer to You. Always. Amen.
2 Kings 18:14 So Hezekiah king of Judah sent this message to the king of Assyria at Lachish: “I have done wrong. Withdraw from me and I will pay whatever you demand of me….
Have a blessed day.

2 Kings 17:13 The LORD warned Israel and Judah through all His prophets and seers: “Turn from your evil ways. Observe my commands and decrees, in accordance with the entire Law that I commanded your ancestors to obey and that I delivered to you through my servants the prophets.”
The last verse I included today, 2 Kings 17:15b, is the verse that really got me. Commentary says NIV, shown here, uses worthless, while NASB says, “They followed vanity and became vain,” and the original is even more to the point, “They worshiped emptiness and became empty.”
2 Kings 17:14 But they would not listen and were as stiff-necked as their ancestors, who did not trust in the LORD their God.
Worthless, vain, empty. Without my Savior, I am all these things. When I follow my Savior, I become more like Him—loving, compassionate, merciful. But when I follow the world, I become more like the world—shallow, selfish, corrupt. Jesus, Help me.
2 Kings 17:15a They rejected His decrees and the covenant He had made with their ancestors and the statutes He had warned them to keep….
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for the reminder of what happens when I take my eyes off you. Help me to remember that I am Your deeply loved child. Help me to emulate You in all my ways, becoming more like You every day. Draw me closer. Amen.
2 Kings 17:15b …They followed worthless idols and themselves became worthless….
Have a blessed day.

2 Kings 16:1 In the seventeenth year of Pekah son of Remaliah, Ahaz son of Jotham king of Judah began to reign.
Ahaz is the first king of Judah who “did not do what was right in the eyes of the LORD his God.” Many, many kings didn’t knock down the high places but generally tried to do right by God. Not Ahaz. He was definitely the most evil king of Judah in this history thus far, and he rivals many of the Israelite kings in his departure from God.
2 Kings 16:2 Ahaz was twenty years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem sixteen years. Unlike David his father, he did not do what was right in the eyes of the LORD his God.
As I ponder the lessons I can learn from this chapter, the danger of compromise strikes me. Even the many godly kings did not knock down the high places, a huge moral compromise. I would imagine that the people gradually viewed sacrificing in the high places acceptable. Maybe they thought, “The king is allowing it, so what’s the harm?” But in this world such compromise is a slippery slope.
2 Kings 16:3 He followed the ways of the kings of Israel and even sacrificed his son in the fire, engaging in the detestable practices of the nations the LORD had driven out before the Israelites.
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for opening my eyes to the slippery slope of moral compromise. Help me to keep my eyes on You always, to submit every fear, every worry to You. Draw me closer. Amen.
2 Kings 16:4 He offered sacrifices and burned incense at the high places, on the hilltops and under every spreading tree.
Have a blessed day.

2 Kings 14:3a He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, but not as his father David had done before….
Lord, I feel like I am still struggling with my high places, the fear that so often lingers in my life. I know that that fear has to do with my need for control and my inability to lay my worries at Your feet and leave them there. I can’t explain the logic behind bringing my worries to You and them dragging them away with me. I don’t want to continue this cycle.
2 Kings 14:3b …In everything he followed the example of his father Joash.
Lord, What I want more than anything is Your peace, the peace that surpasses all understanding, the peace that comes from turning all my worries and burdens over to You and leaving them in Your mighty hands. Help me to remove these high places, Lord, to submit them to You.
2 Kings 14:4a The high places, however, were not removed…. 
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for helping me recognize what my high places are. Help me destroy every stronghold and submit every part of my life to You. You are sovereign. You are worthy. Help me, Jesus. Amen.
2 Kings 14:4b …the people continued to offer sacrifices and burn incense there.
Have a blessed day.

2 Kings 13:2 He did evil in the eyes of the LORD by following the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat….
My mantra from the first of this crazy semester has been “grace upon grace”—for myself, for students, parents, colleagues—everyone. With things as crazy as they are right now, grace is the only way we will make it through. Yet two days ago I typed these words in an email: “…it feels like some have started taking my grace for granted.” With today’s scripture, I feel my precious Savior is gently calling me to task. 
2 Kings 13:4 Then Jehoahaz sought the LORD’s favor, and the LORD listened to him….
God’s grace is unfathomable. And His love for His children is fierce. As I think about what He’s trying to show me this morning, here are the biggest lessons I see: I am just as guilty of taking His grace for granted as the next person. No matter how much grace is extended, I always hope for just a little more. I need to show others the same level of mercy and grace I want for myself. Help me, Jesus.
2 Kings 13:23a But the LORD was gracious to them and had compassion and showed concern for them because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for whispering gently to my heart about areas I need to work on. Thank You for loving me enough to correct me when I get off-track. Help me to love others the way that You love. Help me to extend mercy and grace the way You do. Draw me closer. Amen.
2 Kings 13:23b To this day he has been unwilling to destroy them or banish them from his presence.
Have a blessed day.

2 Kings 12:2 Joash did what was right in the eyes of the LORD all the years Jehoiada the priest instructed him.
Joash had such potential. And while Jehoiada was instructing him, he “did what was right in the eyes of the LORD.” Was he not strong enough to do what was right in God’s eyes after Jehoiada died? Did he listen to advisors whose hearts weren’t centered on God? Why was his potential not fulfilled? How did he fall away from God?
2 Kings 12:3 The high places, however, were not removed; the people continued to offer sacrifice and burn incense there.
Exhaustion is a common theme of this semester, and with that constant exhaustion is a definite tendency to focus first on the negative instead of the positive. My morning time with God is often spent trying to get my attitude right these days. But today’s scripture helps me see what I’m trying to guard against, a legacy like Joash’s. I don’t want it be said, “She had so much potential, but….” I want to hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”
2 Kings 12:19 As for the other events of the reign of Joash, and all he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Judah?
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for the reminder that every day counts, every day is important. Help me to shine for You always, even when I’m exhausted. Draw me close. Grant me your peace. Amen.
2 Kings 12:20 His officials conspired against him and assassinated him at Beth Millo, on the road down to Silla.
Have a blessed day.

2 Kings 10:28 So Jehu destroyed Baal worship in Israel.
Jehu is mighty for God. He goes a long way in being God’s instrument and doing God’s will in destroying Baal worship in Israel. And yet…. Jehu’s heart doesn’t fully belong to God. We see Jehu’s pride creeping in when he says to Jehonadab, “Come see my zeal for the LORD” (v16) and he never turned away from “worship of the golden calves at Bethel and Dan” (v29).
2 Kings 10:29 However, he did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, which he had caused Israel to commit—the worship of the golden calves at Bethel and Dan.
As always, I am wondering how this applies to my life. Where is my pride overcoming my love of my Savior? What are my strongholds that I am not giving up, even with all my work for my Savior? The answers come easily. God’s been working on me with these issues for a while. I’m so thankful for a Savior who loves me enough to help me daily grow closer to Him.
2 Kings 10:32a Yet Jehu was not careful to keep the law of the LORD, the God of Israel, with all his heart.
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for the pointed look at the work I still have to do. Thank You for loving me enough to bring my attention to strongholds in my life that are keeping me from You. Help me to do the work to remove every stronghold. Draw me closer. Amen.
2 Kings 10:32b He did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam, which he caused Israel to commit.
Have a blessed day.