1 Kings 16:8-14 – Be vigilant in serving God

Bear in mind that after Solomon, Israel was divided into two kingdoms – Israel in the north and Judah in the south. The reference to the reign of a particular king and in this case, Asa was to provide a timeline. During Asa’s reign, we have seen the rise of several kings in Israel. Apart from Nadab, 1 Kings 16:8-10, tell of the rise of two other kings of Israel. They were Elah, the son of Baasha, and Zimri one of Elah’s commanders.

The text first talked about Elah. Being the son of Baasha, he succeeded his father as the king of Israel. However, he had a very short reign. He was murdered in the 27^th year of Asa’s reign. Elah came to the throne and ruled Israel from Tirzah for only two years and had a shameful death. In contrast to Nadab who was killed in a military conflict, he was murdered by Zimri while he was having a drunken binge in the home of Arza, one of his officials.  Zimri as we learned was one of his officials in-charge of half Elah’s chariots.

With the death of Elah, Zimri became king in his place. Verse 11 said that as soon as he came to the throne, he had the whole household of Baasha wiped out, leaving no male or kin alive to threaten his throne.  However, the annihilation of Baasha was according to the word of Jehu the son of Hanani. Hence it was based on the word of God through His prophet. Both Baasha's and Elah's judgment was inevitable. They had continued in the sins of Jeroboam and had caused all of Israel to sin, provoking the Lord to anger. Both had proven to be disobedient to God. Verse 14 said that like the other kings of Israel, the deeds of Elah were recorded in the Book of the Chronicles of the king of Israel.

The condition of Elah when he was murdered by Zimri suggests that he was irresponsible in his assignment. While his men were fighting, he was carousing, and reveling in his drunken spree. Ephesians 5:18, admonishes us not to get “drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit.” Let us not be drunk with wine, but most certainly we must not be drunk with the cares of this world. Yes, if we are to do the work of God effectively, we must stay sober for the purpose of prayer. When one is not sober-minded, one become vulnerable to Satan’s trap. Let’s stay alert and be vigilant!