CHAPTER XVII

ELISHA THE PROPHET AND DECLINE AND FALL OF ISRAEL

THE time came when Elijah was to be succeeded by Elisha. The two journeyed from Gilgal to Bethel and thence to Jericho. There was something unusual in their movements. Twice they were met by a company of prophets who said to Elisha, “Knowest thou that the Lord will take away thy master from thy head to-day?” Three times Elijah said to Elisha, “Tarry ye here, I pray you,” to which Elisha replied, “As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee.” When they reached the Jordan, Elijah took his mantle and smote the river with it, the waters receded so that they were able to cross on dry ground. As they stood on the eastern bank Elijah asked Elisha what should be done for him before he, Elijah, was taken away. Elisha responded, “I pray thee let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me.” It was a great request, but Elijah told him that if he saw him as he was taken away it should be granted. Suddenly a chariot of fire with horses of fire appeared, and Elijah was taken away by a whirlwind to heaven. Elisha saw it and cried, “My father, my father, the chariots of Israel and the horsemen thereof.” He had seen, and a double portion of spirit rested on him. He rent hi clothes, took up the mantle that had fallen from Elijah, and went to the Jordan. He smote the river as Elijah had done and the waters parted so that he crossed on dry land. The prophets, who were waiting for him, asked permission to send a number of men to search for Elijah. At first he refused, but later consented. For three days they searched without result; Elijah was gone. The opening of Elisha’s ministry was marked by a number of miracles such as the healing of the waters of Jericho, and the death of a number of young lads who mocked him.

Jehoram, the new king of Israel continued the worship that had been introduced by Jeroboam though he was not a Baal worshipper. He decided to punish the king of Moab who had rebelled in the reign of his brother, and, assisted by Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom, invaded Moab. The route led the army through a wild and dreary country where there was no water, and they were in sore distress. Jehoshaphat asked if there were a prophet of whom guidance might be sought. Elisha was sent for but when he arrived he said that if it were not for the presence of Jehoshaphat he would not give any information. A minstrel was called for, and, as he played, the spirit of the Lord came upon him and he said, “Thus saith the Lord, Make this valley full of ditches.” They did so, and when the morning broke the ditches were full of water, which in the glow of the rising sun looked like blood. The Moabites thought the three kings had fallen out and had been fighting between themselves. Crying, “Now Moab to the spoil,” they rushed forward, to be met by the combined forces of the three kings. The Moabites fled followed by the allies, who killed them in the rout, threw stones on the arable land, and stopped the wells of water. When the king of Moab saw what had happened, he took his eldest son, and offered him up as a burnt offering. “And there was great wrath against Israel; and they departed from him and returned to their own land.” From the Moabite Stone it appears that the rebellion was ultimately successful, and the domination of Moab by Israel was ended.

Naaman the leper

For a time Elisha is the principal figure in the Story. He performed many miracles. A woman of the sons of the prophets who was in financial distress had her oil multiplied. Another, who had provided him with a room in her house, had her son raised from the dead. In a time of dearth, when the prophets had gathered gourds to cook, and had included a poisonous one, Elisha healed the contents of the pot, whilst on another occasion he fed a hundred men with a few cakes of bread and a few ears of corn. He also caused an iron axe-head to float.

The principal miracle of Elisha was the healing of Naaman the Syrian. In one of the wars between Israel and Syria a little maid had been carried captive to Syria, where she served in the household of Naaman, who was a leper. One day she remarked, “Would God my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria.” The words were repeated and reached the Syrian king, who wrote a letter to the king of Israel, requesting him to cause Naaman to be healed
of his leprosy. The king of Israel regarded it as a attempt to seek a quarrel with him, but Elisha, who had heard of the letter, sent a message saying, “let him come to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel.”

Naaman went to the prophet’s house, and Elisha sent him a message, “Go and wash in Jordan seven times.” Naaman was angry, he thought the prophet should have come out to him. He was indignant at being told to wash in such a river as the Jordan. “Are not Abana and Pharpar better than all the waters of Israel?” he said. He turned his steps homeward, still a leper. There was evidently some­thing good in him, for his servants reasoned with him. “My father,” one of them said, “if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing wouldest thou not have done it?” Of course he would; and he saw the point. He went down to Jordan, dipped seven times, and his leprosy was cleansed. Simple obedience had effected his cure.

He returned to Elisha and pressed upon him great rewards, but Elisha declined them. Then Naaman preferred a strange request. He desired to be given two mules’ burden of earth from the land of Israel, saying, “Thy servant will henceforth offer neither burnt offerings, nor sacrifice unto other gods, but unto Yahweh.” He realised the anomaly of his position; as a great man in Syria he had to accompany the king into the house of the Syrian god, Rimmon. What should he do? “The Lord pardon thy servant,” he said, “when I bow myself in the house of Rimmon.” Elisha’s only response was, “Go in peace,” and the two parted. Elisha had a servant named Gehazi. He thought it absurd that his master should refuse the present which had been offered him. So he followed Naaman, and told him that two young men had just arrived, and requested that he might have a talent of silver and two changes of raiment for them. Naaman pressed him to accept two talents, and Gehazi returned home with his booty. When he went in to his master Elisha asked, “Whence comest thou, Gehazi?”

“Thy servant went no whither,” he replied.

“Went not my heart with thee when the man turned again from his chariot to meet thee? Is it a time to receive money and to receive garments, and olive yards, and vineyards, and sheep, and oxen, and men servants and maid servants? The leprosy of Naaman shall cleave unto thee and unto thy seed for ever.” Gehazi went out from Elisha’s presence a leper, white as snow.

Elisha and Israel

In the various troubles between Israel and Syria Elisha gave valuable information to the king of Israel. The failure of his plans caused the king of Syria to suspect treachery on the part of his officers, until one of them told him that Elisha was able to tell the king of Israel the very words that he himself spoke in his bed chamber. He sent an officer with a band of men to take Elisha, and they encamped round the city where the prophet was. In the morning Elisha’s servant saw them, and cried, “Alas my master, how shall we do?” “Fear not,” said Elisha, and then, “Lord, I pray thee, open his eyes that he may see.” When his eyes were opened he saw the amazing sight of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha. In response to the prophet’s prayer the Syrians were stricken with blindness, or dazzlings, and Elisha offered to lead them to the man they required. He led them to the palace of the king of Israel. There the dazzlings ceased and they saw they were trapped. At Elisha’s com­mand they were supplied with food and drink and sent to their own land. The incident cured the king of Syria for a time of any desire to invade Israel.

When he did at last invade Israel again and be­sieged Samaria the people were reduced to such straits that at least one woman ate her own child. When the king of Israel heard of this he exclaimed, “God do so, and more also, if the head of Elisha shall stand on him this day.” He sent for the prophet as he was seated among the elders of the city. When the messenger appeared Elisha made the startling announcement that to-morrow a measure of fine flour should be sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for the same amount. It sounded absurd, and one of the courtiers derided the idea. “Thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof,” said Elisha.

In the morning twilight the Lord caused a noise to startle the Syrians. It sounded like the rushing of an army. They were seized with panic and fled, thinking the king of Israel had hired help from the kings of the Hittites and of the Egyptians. A company of lepers discovered that the Syrians had gone, and reported it to the watch, who sent the news to the king. When he found it was as the lepers had reported he sent and gathered of the spoil the Syrians had left, placing the courtier who had derided the words of Elisha in charge of the gate. The people were too excited to be restrained by him, and he was trodden under foot and died. He saw the plenty but did not eat of it.

In Elisha’s journeys he went to Damascus, where the king of Syria was sick. Hearing that Elisha was in the town he sent one of his officers, Hazael, to enquire whether he would recover. “Say unto him,” said Elisha, “thou shalt certainly recover, howbeit the Lord hath showed me that he shall surely die.” Hazael was puzzled, and Elisha wept. In response to Hazael’s question why he wept the prophet replied, “Because I know the evil that thou wilt do unto the children of Israel,” and added, “The Lord hath showed me that thou shalt be king over Syria.” Hazael returned to his master and told him the first part of what the prophet had said. On the following day he took a thick cloth, dipped it in water, and spread it on Ben-hadad’s face, and suffocated him.

The reigns of Omri and Ahab had completely altered the positions of the kingdoms of Judah and Israel. Before then the southern kingdom had been the stronger of the two, but by the end of Ahab’s reign the position was reversed, and Jehoshaphat of Judah recognised Ahab as his suzerain.

False religion

One of Jehoshaphat’s principal tasks was the reorganisation of the country and the improvement of the defences of Jerusalem. Towards the end of his reign he associated his son Jehoram with him in the rule. The latter was a very different kind of man from his father; he had married a daughter of Ahab, and was influenced by the false religion of the northern kingdom. When he reigned alone he slew all his brethren and a number of the princes of the realm. The kingdom sank lower and lower and when Jehoram died he was succeeded by Ahaziah who only reigned one year. The two royal houses were now closely related, for Ahaziah was the son of Athaliah, the daughter of Ahab.

Jehu’s work

Elisha had sent a prophet to Ramoth-gilead to anoint Jehu, as king of Israel. Jehu was sitting with a number of officers, and the messenger said, “I have an errand to thee, O captain,” and followed Jehu into the house, where he anointed him. He told Jehu that the house of Ahab should be destroyed like those of Jeroboam and Baasha, and that the dogs should eat Jezebel in the portion of Jezreel. Then opening the door the prophet fled. The whole incident looked strange to those who waited without, and when Jehu came to them they wanted to know what “that madman” had said to him. When Jehu told them they placed their garments on the top of the stairs, and, with a flourish of trumpets, proclaimed Jehu king.

Jehoram the son of Ahab had gone to Jezreel to be healed of wounds he had received of the Syrians. With him was his nephew, Ahaziah of Judah. Jehu made for Jezreel with some of the conspirators. When the watchman at Jezreel saw men coming he reported the fact and Jehoram ordered a horseman to go and enquire their errand. Jehu received him but did not permit him to return. A second horse­man was sent and was similarly treated. This time as the watchman reported the fact he said, “The driving is like that of Jehu, the son of Nimshi, for he driveth furiously.” Jehoram and Ahaziah then went out and met Jehu by the vineyard of Naboth. As they met Jehoram asked, “Is it peace, Jehu?” “What peace so long as the whoredoms of thy mother Jezebel, and her witchcrafts are so many?” Jehu replied. Jehoram and Ahaziah turned to flee, but Jehu drew a bow at his full strength, and the arrow pierced the heart of Jehoram. It was a fitting place for such a tragedy, and Jehu recalled the words of Elijah, uttered some years before, “I will require the blood of Naboth in this plat.” Retribution may sometimes be slow but it is certain. Ahaziah fled, followed by Jehu, and was slain.

Jehu then made his way to Jezreel. When Jezebel heard what had happened she said to Jehu, “Is it peace, thou Zimri, thy master’s murderer?” Jehu did not parley with her. He called on the attendants to throw her down from the window where she was standing. They did so and her blood was sprinkled on the wall and on the horses. Then Jehu went in to eat and to drink. Later on he sent to have Jezebel’s remains buried, but there were none left but her skull, the feet, and the palms of her hands. The prophet’s words, “the dogs shall eat Jezebel” had been literally fulfilled.

Jehu proceeded to do the other things that were necessary to fulfil the command of Elijah. Seventy of Ahab’s sons were killed. As if in explanation, Jehu said, “Know now that there shall fall unto the earth nothing of the word of the Lord which the Lord spake concerning the house of Ahab.” He proceeded to destroy all the members of Ahab’s house, all the great men, his kinsfolk and his priests. As he went to Samaria he met some of the brethren of Ahaziah, who, not knowing what had happened were on their way to Jezreel. They too were slain. When he reached Samaria a further massacre of the supporters of Ahab took place. Jehu was a brutal soldier and a man of blood. Later he announced his intention to hold a great feast to Baal. He said, “Ahab served Baal a little, Jehu shall serve him much.” It was a ruse, yet it was quite true that Ahab was not a whole-hearted worshipper of Baal, though Jezebel was. Like Israel he had “hopped” between two opinions, trying to harmonise Baal and Yahweh worship.

On the day of the sacrifice the house of Baal was crowded from one end to the other. When the sacrifice was over the doors were closed and a band of soldiers entered the temple. They had orders to kill every soul in the building. The image of Baal was destroyed, and the place was defiled. It was not that Jehu had a true conception of the God of Israel. Before his dynasty passed away the prophet Hosea denounced the bloodshed and cruelty of Jehu. “Yet a little while,” he said, “and I (the Lord) will avenge the blood of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu.” There was no excuse for the cold blooded cruelty of the new king, though, for a time, he cleared the kingdom of Baal-worship. Ahab had raised Israel to a high position among the surrounding peoples. In the reign of Jehu the Lord “began to cut Israel short.”

Jehoiada and Joash

The death of Ahaziah caused a change of ill omen to Judah. His mother was Athaliah, a daughter of Jezebel, who had all her mother’s zeal for the worship of Baal. When she saw that her son was dead she slew “all the seed of the kingdom,” and seized the throne for herself. Only one member of the royal family escaped, Joash the young son of the dead king. He was taken by Jehosheba, the sister of the late king, and wife of Jehoiada, the high priest, and hidden in a bedchamber, and, later, in the temple.

For six years Athaliah reigned as queen, then Jehoiada took steps to get rid of her and make Joash king. He took advantage of the fact that at the time of the changing of the guard, there were considerably more men than usual in the temple. A hasty corona­tion ceremony took place, and shouts rang through the temple court, “Let the king live!” Athaliah heard and came to see what had happened, but Jehoiada gave instructions for her to be taken out­side the temple precincts and killed. Baal worship, which she had introduced into Jerusalem, was abolished, and its high priest slain.

The new king was only seven years of age, and the government was in the hands of Jehoiada. There was plenty of zeal in Judah, and arrangements were made for money to be collected for the repair of the temple. Twenty years afterwards nothing had been done, and the king, now of man’s estate, wanted to know why. A new beginning was made. Instead of the money being handled by the priests, the king’s scribe and the high priest took possession of it, and used it to pay builders and carpenters who were engaged in the work on the house of God. Yet the kingdom was not in a healthy state. Hazael of Syria invaded the land as far south as Gath, and Joash had to take the treasures from the house of the Lord to give to him as tribute. The king’s action was unpopular, and he was murdered by some of his servants, and was succeeded by his son Amaziah.

North of the border

In the north things were going badly. Jehu was succeeded by his son Jehoahaz. He was a poor king, and when Hazael invaded the land much suffering was caused. In the following reign, that of Jehoash, Elisha, who was dying, sent for the king, who was sincerely troubled. The dying prophet told the king to open the window and shoot an arrow out of it. When he had done so, Elisha said, “The arrow of the Lord’s deliverance,” and told the king to smite on the ground. The wondering king did so three times and then stayed. He probably thought the whole thing was absurd. But it was real to the prophet. “Thou shouldest have smitten five or six times,” he said, “then hadst thou smitten Syria till thou hadst consumed it.” Three victories were gained by Jehoash, and the cities which had been taken by Syria were recovered. Yet Hazael proved to be a great scourge to the country. Later the Lord sent Israel a saviour in the person of Jeroboam II, the son of Jehoash who succeeded him on the throne.

Under Amaziah the fortunes of Judah improved somewhat. He defeated the Edomites, and, encour­aged by his success, challenged Jehoash of Israel to battle. Jehoash tried to dissuade him, but without success. Judah was invaded and a portion of the wall of Jerusalem was broken down. The people blamed the king for their sufferings, and a conspiracy was formed against him, and he was slain.

When Jeroboam II ascended the throne of Israel the fortunes of the country were at their lowest ebb. He proved to be a wicked, but capable, king, and raised Israel once more to prosperity. His conquests reached as far north as Damascus and Hamath. In his days Hosea one of the earliest of the prophets, whose writings are included in the Bible, commenced his ministry. He was mainly a preacher of doom, but looking into the distant future he saw a brighter picture. The two ideas are included in his saying, “The children of Israel shall abide many days with­out king, and without prince, and without sacrifice, and without pillar, and without ephod or teraphim; afterward shall the children of Israel return, and seek the Lord their God, and David their king; and shall come with fear unto the Lord and to His good­ness in the latter days.”

The beginning of Isaiah’s work

In the south Azariah, or Uzziah, became king at the age of sixteen, and reigned for fifty-two years. He carried on wars against the Philistines, the Arabians, and others. He reorganised the fighting forces of the country, and provided engines of war for the protection of Jerusalem. He built exten­sively, and “was marvellously helped till he was strong.” Then pride brought about his fall. He usurped the duties of the priesthood, and was stricken with leprosy. He could do nothing then, and the affairs of the kingdom passed into the hands of his son Jotham.

The most important event of Uzziah’s reign was the call of Isaiah, who says, “In the year that king Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and His train filled the temple. . . . And I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send? and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I, send me.” It was the beginning of a wonderful career, of which more will be heard as the Story is unfolded.

Another event is not recorded in the history at all; we only know of it from the statements of two prophets. “The words of Amos, which he saw concerning Israel, in the days of Uzziah king of Judah . . . two years before the earthquake.” He draws a dreadful picture of a terrible calamity that was to overwhelm the land from Tyre in the. north to Edom in the south. There had been a number of earthquakes on a small scale, but little notice had been taken. Now Israel was exhorted to prepare to meet her God, for sudden destruction would come; God would touch the land and it should melt; it should rise up wholly as a flood, and should tremble, and should be cast out and drowned as by the flood of Egypt. Earthquakes and tidal waves were to spread death and desolation through all the country. Two hundred and fifty years afterwards the memory of the dreadful visitation remained, and Zechariah, speaking of the time when the Lord shall stand upon the Mount of Olives, said, “ye shall flee like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah.”

Like Hosea, Amos was mainly a prophet of doom, yet he too could take the long view and see the distant future under the coming Messiah. It was in such a spirit that he said, “In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old; that they may possess the remnant of Edom, and all the nations, which are called by My name, saith the Lord of hosts that doeth this. Behold the days come, saith the Lord, that the plowman shall over­take the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed. . . . They shall be no more plucked up out of their land which I have given them, saith the Lord thy God.”

The last days of Israel present a sorry picture. Zechariah, the son of Jeroboam II, succeeded to the throne after an interval of internecine strife, during which the land was without a ruler. He had only reigned six months, when he was slain by Shallum, who retained the throne for just a month and was then slain by Menahem, who occupied it for ten years. In his reign a new enemy appeared upon the scene. The Assyrians under Pul, or Tiglath-pileser, invaded the land and Menahem had to exact money from all the men of wealth to satisfy their demands.

Assassinations in Israel

His son Pekahiah succeeded him and reigned for two years, when he was murdered by Pekah, one of his captains, who reigned over the distracted kingdom for twenty years. He too had to meet an invasion of Assyrians under Tiglath-pileser, who carried great numbers of the people into captivity. By this time the kingdom of Israel possessed very little territory outside the immediate surroundings of Samaria. Then another conspiracy took place; Hoshea murdered the king, and, after an interval, seized the throne.

Judah warned about idolatry

When Uzziah died Jotham took sole control of the land of Judah and ruled it for sixteen years’. He built considerably in Jerusalem and Judah, erecting fortresses and towers at suitable points. In his reign the voice of prophecy became more insistent. Isaiah was joined by Micah, and together they sustained the faith of the southern kingdom. Rezin, the king of Syria, and Pekah of Israel, formed a league against Judah, but it was not until the next reign that events came to a head.

Ahaz was the next king. He was only twenty when he succeeded to the throne, and the times required a man of experience. He re-introduced idolatrous practices and the worst ceremonies of Baal worship. Early in his reign the confederacy between Syria and Israel came to a head and Judah was invaded. Knowing what Tiglath-pileser had done to the northern kingdom, Ahaz sent to him for help, stripping the gold from the temple to pay for it, and acknowledging him as his overlord. The prophet Isaiah tried to dissuade him from such a course. He told him not to be afraid of the allied kings, for their power should soon be broken. He offered to give the king a sign, but Ahaz refused to ask for any. When he refused, Isaiah, speaking to the “house of David,” said, “The Lord Himself shall give you a sign; Behold a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.”
He told the king that the Assyrians, whose help he had invoked, would invade his land, which he spoke of as “Immanuel’s land.” Continuing his prophecy he said, “The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light. . . . For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called, Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” He did not finish there, but added, “Of the increase of his government and of peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to establish it, and to uphold it with judgment and with righteousness from henceforth, even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts shall perform this.” Thus while the king refused to listen to the prophet’s words, the hopes of the faithful were sustained by the growing revelation of the coming of the Messiah. But Ahaz preferred the immediate prospect of Assyrian help. He died soon afterwards, and Hezekiah his son became king.

The end of the kingdom of Israel

In the north things rapidly moved to a climax. Hoshea occupied the precarious throne for nine years. He was practically a nominee of the Assyrians, but he made a conspiracy with Egypt, and refused to pay the usual tribute. Shalmaneser, the king of Assyria, marched to Samaria and for three years the city was besieged. During the siege Shalmaneser died and Sargon seized the throne of Assyria. He pressed on the siege and Samaria fell; the inhabitants, with the principal people of the surrounding country, were carried into captivity. The kingdom of Israel was at an end, and the land was occupied by men of Babylon and other parts, who were placed there to prevent the residue of the Israelites, who were but the poorest of the land, from rising against Assyria.