1 Kings 15:16-22 – Trust God to the very end

Asa’s reform was doing well but it did not prevent the war that he was having with Israel in the north. So we read in 1 Kings 15:16-22 about the conflict that Judah had with Baasha, the eventual successor of Jeroboam of Israel. They were locked in a hot battle. Baasha already had an existing treaty with Ben-hadad, the King of Aram. He proved to be a formidable opponent. And he built a fortress in Ramah to prevent the people from entering and leaving Judah.

To break Baasha’s threat, Asa took all the silver and gold from the treasuries of the temple and the palace and sent his servants with them to Ben-hadad to entice him to break his treaty with Israel. This Asa did to get the latter to withdraw from him. Accepting his offer, Ben-hadad then sent his commanders to attack Israel, taking many of her cities. Verse 20 had the cities of Israel that Ben-hadad’s force had taken. They included “…Ijon, Dan, Abel-beth-maacah and all Chinneroth, besides all the land of Naphtali.” When Baasha got wind of what Ben-hadad was doing to help Asa, Baasha had to cease building the fortress in Ramah and remained in Tirzah.

It was apparent that instead of trusting the Lord fully, Asa turned to Ben-hadad for help. This had somewhat incurred the displeasure of the Lord. Though the passage in 1 Kings 15 did not mention the Lord’s displeasure, 2 Chronicles 16:7-10 reveals that He sent the prophet Hanani to rebuke him for his reliance on Ben-hadad. In relying on Damascus, he had inevitably allowed it to slip out of his grasp. The prophet then told him that henceforth he would have to face a continuous war. Hanani even reminded him of how the Lord had given him victory over the Ethiopians and the Lubim who were better equipped and greater in power. The prophet also told him that he had acted foolishly. What Hanani said to him incurred his anger and he had the prophet sent to prison. Sadly, 2 Chronicles 16:10 said that at the same time as he did it to Hanani, Asa also oppressed some people.

For the great start he had when he ascended the throne, we read with disappointment how he ended. Second Chronicles 16: 12 said that “In the thirty-ninth year of his reign Asa became diseased in his feet.” What was disappointing was what the last part of that verse said about him. It says, “His disease was severe, yet even in his disease he did not seek the Lord, but the physicians.” Again he chose to trust the physicians rather than the Lord. What happened to the trust he had in the Lord at the start of his reign? How did he lose his plot? He lost it the moment he put his trust in man rather than God.

The lesson we have is about the need to trust the Lord to the very end. We need to ask the Holy Spirit to seal 2 Chronicles 16:9 indelibly on our hearts. Know that “…the eyes of the Lord move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His. ” He is for us and not against us. Hold on to Him faithfully even in the most trying of circumstances. Trust Him regardless. He will never fail us!